Tools you didn't know you needed until you had them

[Teakettle]

Surely some of you have had the experience that you bought a tool for a one-time project, and then you found yourself reaching for it all the time. My most recent example is a plastic welder, which I bought because I was helping restore a car where some of the plastic interior and underhood parts were no longer available new and we needed to repair the pieces we could get our hands on. Then once I had it, I kept running across broken plastic things around here ranging from appliance knobs to toys, where in the past I would simply have bought new components but now I don't have to, and i can even correct the structural mistakes that the original engineers made.

I still passionately hate under-engineered plastic parts, but since this tool came with rods of a half-dozen different polymers I have compatibility with a wide range of materials. I always use it outdoors or with a fan going, as I know very well that this is not a wholesome activity for one's respiratory system.

My previous such tool was a great big hydraulic press. How did I ever live all those years without one? Before that it was a pneumatic trim nailer.

What's your example?

 

[MM-TX]

Gotta be my multi-tool saw.

 

[Teakettle]

Gotta be my multi-tool saw.

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Yes, I've had one of those for long enough that I had to buy a bin to store all the accessories for it I've picked up over the years....

 

[Phill Tibbetts]

Gotta be my multi-tool saw.

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I've had one of those for years and don't think have ever used it.

 

[RedMF40]

Oxy-acetylene torch. I don’t even like thinking of all those times I tried getting rusted fasteners apart without fire.

 

[Jim in LA]

Gotta be my multi-tool saw.

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I bought one of those multi tools at HF years ago, never have used it but have it if I need it. They come in handy when replacing flooring in mobile homes or porta buildings i know.

 

[Mule Meat]

I would have to say a Roberts Laminate Floor cutter.

Bought it for one job and haven't used anything else except a 20 volt multi tool and a drill with hole saws since to cut laminate flooring. It's nice to get to the end of a run, mark the plank, cut it and move on without having to get up carry the piece to a mitre saw and back. And you have no saw dust to clean up. I have used it to install thousands of feet of laminate and vinyl flooring over the years.

 

[KCTractors]

Surely some of you have had the experience that you bought a tool for a one-time project, and then you found yourself reaching for it all the time. My most recent example is a plastic welder, which I bought because I was helping restore a car where some of the plastic interior and underhood parts were no longer available new and we needed to repair the pieces we could get our hands on. Then once I had it, I kept running across broken plastic things around here ranging from appliance knobs to toys, where in the past I would simply have bought new components but now I don't have to, and i can even correct the structural mistakes that the original engineers made.

I still passionately hate under-engineered plastic parts, but since this tool came with rods of a half-dozen different polymers I have compatibility with a wide range of materials. I always use it outdoors or with a fan going, as I know very well that this is not a wholesome activity for one's respiratory system.

My previous such tool was a great big hydraulic press. How did I ever live all those years without one? Before that it was a pneumatic trim nailer.

What's your example?

My AC-DC welder and the Torch set!!!

 

[Terry G]

Surely some of you have had the experience that you bought a tool for a one-time project, and then you found yourself reaching for it all the time. My most recent example is a plastic welder, which I bought because I was helping restore a car where some of the plastic interior and underhood parts were no longer available new and we needed to repair the pieces we could get our hands on. Then once I had it, I kept running across broken plastic things around here ranging from appliance knobs to toys, where in the past I would simply have bought new components but now I don't have to, and i can even correct the structural mistakes that the original engineers made.

I still passionately hate under-engineered plastic parts, but since this tool came with rods of a half-dozen different polymers I have compatibility with a wide range of materials. I always use it outdoors or with a fan going, as I know very well that this is not a wholesome activity for one's respiratory system.

My previous such tool was a great big hydraulic press. How did I ever live all those years without one? Before that it was a pneumatic trim nailer.

What's your example?

20 volt Dewalt 1/4” impact

 

[Ultradog MN]

Surely some of you have had the experience that you bought a tool for a one-time project, and then you found yourself reaching for it all the time. My most recent example is a plastic welder, which I bought because I was helping restore a car where some of the plastic interior and underhood parts were no longer available new and we needed to repair the pieces we could get our hands on. Then once I had it, I kept running across broken plastic things around here ranging from appliance knobs to toys, where in the past I would simply have bought new components but now I don't have to, and i can even correct the structural mistakes that the original engineers made.

I still passionately hate under-engineered plastic parts, but since this tool came with rods of a half-dozen different polymers I have compatibility with a wide range of materials. I always use it outdoors or with a fan going, as I know very well that this is not a wholesome activity for one's respiratory system.

My previous such tool was a great big hydraulic press. How did I ever live all those years without one? Before that it was a pneumatic trim nailer.

What's your example?

A metal lathe and a 16 lb sledge hammer.

 

[Tgrasher]

Bought a T595 Bobcat at an auction and it's become the number one "tool" for the farm and processing lumber.

 

[Fawteen]

Pneumatic pop rivet tool. My arthritic old hands are NOT happy with the manual version any more.

 

[560Dennis]

Madtown Tools line wrench for Ford 4.6 egr removal . I can’t do without to clean the goop out of the holes blocking exhaust gas hole recirculating ports . Causing engine code. Was the tool of the decade past . Saved me a lot of cash.

 

[urbancase]

one i have is a small deburring machine, tub type with about 2.75 cu\ft capacity. i use a media that does not damage threads so if i in a project of rebuilding something i dump items in with a little soap and let it run for an hour. item come out clean and i can do something else as its doing its thing.

 

[Johnnypopper]

Gotta be my multi-tool saw.

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I love my multi tool saw. It gets used all the time . I have two now and would not want to be without them . I didn’t know I needed one until I had it.

 

[john in la]

I have a few tools that I found out I didn’t need them as bad as I thought I needed them before I bought them.

 

[Hayfarmer]

Sawzall (sp) before I had it chain saw was only option. Remodeling a house used it a lot and since have used it more. I now have Dewalt battery one.

 

[Fawteen]

I have a few tools that I found out I didn’t need them as bad as I thought I needed them before I bought them.

I have a few of those as well, one or two I haven't used since I bought them. Still, I know what they're for and when the time inevitably comes, they'll be right there.

 

[miangus]

My small electric chain saw for doing fence work.

 

[WI Dan]

My small electric chain saw for doing fence work.

I second this. I'm amazed how much I like the quiet saw.