Do-it-yourselfers making home repairs sometimes spend more time and effort fetching and hunting for tools than doing the work. Some preliminary planning and organization of tools will greatly speed up many projects and often improve results and safety.
Spending a few minutes listing and gathering the tools needed for a project is a good first step. Some do-it-yourselfers streamline that preliminary step by storing tools in well-organized groups-woodworking, plumbing, electrical, painting, gardening.
A tool carrier is a necessity for efficient work. The carrier can range from a simple and inexpensive nail apron with a single pocket to a
scientifically designed tool bag or toolbox.
My favorite carrier, when a sizable collection of tools is needed at the site of a project, is a homemade tray measuring 10 by 20 inches with plywood and pine-shelving parts. The tray sides are only 4 inches high, but the ends are about 18 inches high and are tapered to a three-inch width at the top. The ends are capped by a flat wood handle several inches wide.
Versatile tote
The high, wide handle lets the carrier be used as a small sawhorse or nailing bench or as a stool for sit-down work.
A tray of this type needs to be sturdy to hold up under the weight of tools and to be used as a work surface, so all parts should be made of wood at least three-quarters of an inch thick. Assemble the carrier with glue and screws for maximum strength.
A bucket also makes a fine, inexpensive bulk carrier for tools. I prefer a plastic bucket over metal because it offers less chance of damaging the cutting edges of tools.
Any size can be used, but a 5-gallon bucket is deep and roomy enough to hold a sizable collection of tools and materials, including a small handsaw.
Those who want to make a 5-gallon bucket even more useful as a tool carrier and storage container can equip it with a special fabric cover with pockets and loops for individual tools (about $25 from Woodworker`s Supply of New Mexico, 5604 Alameda Place NE, Albuquerque, N.M. 87113; catalog $2).
Special bags for organizing and carrying tools are also available and appear to be gaining favor over toolboxes, which are frequently heavy, bulky and difficult to carry.
A deluxe bag made from leather and Cordura, a tough nylon material, is available for about $50 from Woodworker`s Supply of New Mexico; the bag has a roomy main compartment and eight outer pockets. A heavy-duty canvas bag, with 24 pockets surrounding its main compartment, is about $30 from Constantine`s, 2050 Eastchester Road, Bronx, N.Y. 10461 (catalog $1).
Ladder aides
Personal tool carriers that can be worn while working are fine time- and effort-savers. They are especially helpful when one is working on ladders because they can save many trips up and down and help eliminate the dangerous practice of resting loose tools on ladder steps or roofs where they can fall and possibly cause injury.
A nail apron, made of durable fabric such as canvas or denim and having one or two wide pockets and a string that lets it be tied around the waist, is a simple but effective carrier for nails, screws and small tools such as screwdrivers, tape measures, pliers, paint scrapers, marking pencils and putty knives. Home centers, hardware stores, lumber yards and paint stores sometimes sell such aprons, and custom versions are easy to make. For even more versatility, add a bib with a couple of additional tool pockets and put a hammer loop at one side of the apron.
Some home centers and tool dealers sell holsters or carriers for individual tools, generally with belt loops or a belt clip. Examples are metal-and-leather hammer loops and special holsters for cordless drills, cordless screwdrivers and pruning shears. Belt-carried pouches or holsters that will hold several small tools, including a hammer, are also available.
The ultimate in personal tool carriers is a multi-pouch, belt-on tool organizer of the type worn by carpenter Norm Abram of television fame. Some of these make the wearer look like a two-gun refugee from a Western movie, but a well-designed pouch will keep a wide collection of small tools and materials at the wearer`s fingertips.
A new trend is to make the pouches from a tough but lightweight material, such as Cordura. An example is Vermont America`s Tuff-Tote line of Cordura pouches, which cost about 25 percent less than comparable leather pouches.
