If you spend your days moving around on the floor, then you know what a toll it takes on your knees. The problem isn't so much that you are on your knees all day, but that you have to get up and down to move around or crawl on all fours. I have found 3 possible solutions that aim to solve the problems of moving around on the floor, and they range in price from $55 - $150.
I am always on the lookout for cool tools, and The Gutster is definitely one of them. As you can see from the title, it is a demolition bar. I am not in the destruction business myself, but seeing what this tool can do sure makes it look like a lot of fun.
A few key features of The Gutster are: a long handle that will keep you standing upright, a wedged shaped tip that allows you to get under all those pesky boards, a forked tip that allows you to twist and remove 2x4s, and a nail puller if you need it. They have 3 sizes available (40" 32" 24") all under $44, and can be purchased from their website. See the video after the break.
Most of the newer cordless drivers come with LEDs that help you to light the way. Thank you to Makita for making lights in tools popular. But what if you have an older tool that doesn't have a light, or you need light for you hand drivers. The UFO Tool & Flash Light could be your answer. It is a small disk light that can be slipped onto your screwdrivers, bit extensions, Allen wrenches, etc. A turn of the disk powers on three wide beam LEDs, and a magnetic back makes it easy to store in your toolbox. Unlike toys when you were a kid, batteries are included.
For a limited time Rockler.com has these UFO Tool & Flash Lights on sale, and with promo code V9739 you can get free shipping. Shipping code expires 2/28/09
Update: Extend free shipping with promo code V9742. Expires 3/8/09
UFO Tool & Flash Light
Do you ever find it hard to get your layouts exactly in the right place down to the 64th of an inch. Or maybe you are having trouble marking 47.5 degrees. If you are having problems with your layouts, you might be in need of one or more of these super cool rules from Incra.
They are precision made stainless steel rules with micro-fine holes for making highly accurate marks or lines. Simply find the correct hole or slot for the measurement you are looking for, and mark away. The holes are designed to fit .5mm pencil lead.
Incra has a variety of marking Rules that are sure to fit your needs.
Incra Rules
You don't have to worry about ruining your expensive tool belt pockets anymore with the FastCap foldable chisels. They work very much like a butterfly knife, where the blade is stored safely away in the handle of the tool until it is needed. This feature also keeps the blade from impacting other tools, therefore keeping the blade sharper longer. Sure most chisels you buy come with some type of blade guard, but how long does it take before those are lost. Plus having a built in guard is much cooler.
The new Pocket Chisel is made of precision tool steel and has a heavy duty nylon 66 handle that locks when opened and will stay locked so that you can hammer the hell out of it. The Pocket Chisel is available in 1/4", 1/2", 3/4" and 1" and the handles are color coded to eliminate having to guess which chisel you are pulling out of your pocket!
Visit the Pocket Chisel page to see a video of the beating in action.
Available form Amazon
One problem that all tool users face is having too many tools. This is something you probably don't want to admit, but it is true. While having every tool makes some tasks easier; at the same time, having to carry and store all the tools can make things harder. That is why it is always great to have some tools that can do more then one job. But as the old saying goes jack of all trades, master of none. So choose your multi tools carefully.
The CT-15 is the latest gadget form Bridge City Tool Works. It is a small pocket square, that has an 8:1 dovetail saddle square, a 6:1 dovetail saddle square, a regular saddle square and a cam lock sliding t-bevel which can be quickly set as a try-square or a double square, and the whole thing is milled out of solid stainless steel.
If you do a lot of work with hand tools and layout your dove tails by hand, the CT-15 might be what you need. BCTW says it is "extremely precise, accurate, and the joints tight-fitting" and at a price of $289.00 it better be. The CT-15 is in production and scheduled to be available February 2009.
iRobot showcased their newly improved version 2 of the Looj at CES 09. The Looj is simply a remote controlled gutter cleaning tank that allows you to clean your gutters without having to move your ladder every 5 feet. Which is not only a pain, but can also be dangerous. This new version addresses some of the issues that plagued the previous version. Some of the new features are: a longer flexible auger that should prevent the Looj from flipping itself over, a faster reverse speed, and a tool free battery door. All of which were common problems, and complaints.
You can look for the Looj v2 in stores and online this Spring 09
via engadget
Veto Pro Pac makes high quality contractor hand tool bags. I have never used one myself, but if you read any of the discussions about them on the Internet, you can see what all the fuss is about. So it seems logical that they expand their line of tool bags to try and fill any void.
The LT-XL laptop bag is very similar to the XL closed top bag, with a few differences. One being that it can hold a laptop... how obvious. It also has a few other pockets to fit things like your multimeter, or any other delicate testing equipment (ipod). Lets not forget about the hand tools. Just like any other Veto bag, it can hold enough of your hand tools to make you wish you didn't own so many. This bag is perfect for the professional audio/video tech, networking tech, or any other tech or non tech that requires a laptop and hand tools. If you dont use a laptop, it can also be used for a clipboard, notepad or binder.
Check it out: Veto LT-XL
Do you need a trailer that you can just pull up to the job site and get right to work without having to unload all your tools. The problem with most trailers is the limited access to your tools. If you need something in the back, you have to unload everything in front of it.
Rope is one of the greatest inventions of all time, and also one of the oldest. It is used for everything from sail boats, securing loads, or even for tying your shoes. If you ever watch survival shows like Man vs Wild, you can see how important rope can be if you are alone in the wilderness. A little bit of rope can make all the difference.
Survival Straps knows how important rope can be, and they have made it easy for anyone to carry rope around everyday. A specially woven bracelet made of 550 lb. paracord can be unwoven in an emergency to 15 - 20 feet of paracord. Then you can simply send it back, to be rewoven. If a bracelet is not manly enough for you, they also have watch straps, dog collars, rifle slings, and more.
There are also many other makers of Paracord Bracelets that can be found on eBay
