I have enjoyed the recent posts on tools, so thought to ask your best inexpensive tool purchase of recent years. A ‘favourite tool of all time that costs under USD30 for this week’ or something like that.
For me, it is a sprung centre punch. I use it all the time for marking centres for turnings, to mark and align drill holes in harder wood and occasionally it is a nice texturing tool for small items. It also finds use for the odd metalwork job I have to do. I only have the one and if it has been misplaced, I find myself willing to expend considerable effort hunting for it, rather than using an awl or other tool to do the job, which is a mark of it’s utility and the pleasure obtained from using it. It cost me about USD10 (NZD 20) from a local engineering supplies shop.
Second prize goes to a set of igaging engineers squares from chipsfly.com – dirt cheap and dead accurate – I use them for machine setup, small spaces and as a reference for other tools. at $8-12 each for the useful sizes, these are amazing value.
So, what is your best small or cheap tool that punches above it’s weight in the value stakes?
Replies
Card scraper
Card scraper is the hardest working cheap tool.
I love the Lee Valley spear point marking knife. The plastic handle pales next to the beautiful Blue Spruce version, but the business end is every bit as good.
I have a bevel setting guage made of heavy steel from igaging that I think is just about perfect, and cheap.
Big Gator drill guide - takes the free out of freehand. Also great for sizing errant drill bits and dowels.
The dial caliper from Harbour Freight is a great value. Seems super accurate and well made.
A vernier or caliper measuring tool is also my most used inexpensive and very useful tool. I avoid even the dial, though (and definitely the electronic digital variety) as the simpler they are the longer they'll last and the more accurate they'll remain over much use.
Mine is one with the differential scales that provide measurement down to 0.05mm. Only three moving parts in that and very unlikely to ever lose accuracy.
Mine is like this:
https://i0.wp.com/www.theengineerspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/VC-type-a-1024x551-min.jpg?fit=750%2C404&ssl=1
Even the relatively inexpensive ones are accurate. You can, of course, buy an upmarket one with more shine and the "right" label .... but no better accuracy.
Lataxe
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