Hand Tools

Bow Saw

• A lightweight utility saw for fast cutting of all woods. • Consists of a tubular steel frame and a saw blade. • Some bow saws are designed to hold hacksaw blades as well as standard bow saw blades. These multi-purpose saws can be used to cut wood, metal or plastic.

Rip Saw

• Best for cutting wood with the grain. • Not for finish work as the ripping action of the saw produces a coarse, ragged cut. • Typical blade length is 24" to 28", usually 5-1/2 tpi (teeth per inch).

Hex (Hexagonal) Tip Screwdriver

• Use to tighten socket set (hex head) screws and usually comes in sets. • Also called a hex key or hex wrench. • Some hex sets are attached to and fold into a metal carrying case. • Other variations include T-shaped hex tools with vinyl grips and L-shaped keys for greater torque power.

Retractable Tape Measure

• A general purpose measuring tool with a spring mechanism contained in the housing to automatically retract the tape. • A locking mechanism holds the tape in place. Some models have buttons that slide to lock the blade, while others have levers and toggles that permit the tape to retract when squeezed. • Many have markings for laying out studs on 16" centers or other specialized markings. • Ranges in blade length from 6' to 35', with 10', 16' and 25' being common sizes. • The concave blade measuring rule varies in width from 1/4" to 1-1/4"—wider tapes are easier to extend over longer distances without collapsing.

Adjustable Wrench or Crescent Wrench [C-wrench]

• Adjusts to grip a range of fastener sizes. • You can easily adjust the jaw opening with a knurl operated by your thumb. Gradations on the jaw indicate the size of the opening.

Tongue-and-Groove Pliers

• Use for gripping and applying limited torque to round, square, flat and hexagonal objects. • Feature multiple size adjustments. • Jaws may be straight, smooth or curved. • Sizes generally range from 4-1/2" to 20-1/4" in length. • Plumbers, electricians and other professionals use this tool.

Mixer

• Use with either a 3/8" or 1/2" drill for mixing drywall mud. • Has blades attached to a shaft that is inserted into power drill. • Shaft lengths generally range between 16" and 28".

Try Square

• Use this L-shaped tool as a guide for pencil markings of 90°cuts and to check the edges and ends of boards for "squareness". Also use to determine whether a board is the same depth for its entire length. • Try squares have broad 6" to 12" blades set at right angles, with wood, plastic or metal handles. • Another type is a try/mitre square, which features a 45°corner edge.

Mallet

• Use to drive chisels or hammer joints together. • Has rubber, plastic, wooden or rawhide head. • Sizes are specified in head weight or diameter with the exception of wooden mallets, which are specified by head diameter only. • Comes in variety of shapes and sizes for specific tasks.

Pry Bar

• Use to remove nails with exposed heads and to pry paneling or molding without marring the surface. • Smaller and flatter than a wrecking bar and not designed for heavy-duty prying. • Features beveled notches in each chisel-like end and ranges in size from 6" to 21". • One type of pry bar features an extra curve, which makes it useful for lifting and holding such things as drywall panels in place. • Double claw models provide equal force on push or pull.

Ball Peen (Ball Pein) Hammer

• Use with cold chisels for riveting, center punching and forming unhardened metal work. • Striking face diameter should be about 3/8" larger than the diameter of the head of the object being struck. • Popular sizes are 12 and 16 oz. • Variations include a cross-peen hammer (with a horizontal wedge-shaped face) and a straight-peen hammer (with a vertical wedge-shaped face).

Ratchet Socket Wrench

• Use with sockets to make turning nuts and bolts easier than with a conventional wrench. • Available in a variety of handle shapes and lengths. • Drive size is 1/4", 3/8" or 1/2". • Available with a round or teardrop-shaped head and contains a reversing mechanism to facilitate tightening or loosening a fastener. • Sockets are available with 6-, 8- and 12-point gripping ends, in a full range of inch and metric sizes. • One type has a hinged head for more versatility. • Popular accessories include flex handles, speeder handles, T-handles, extensions of various lengths and universal joints to work on fasteners in hard-to-reach locations.

Cutting Pliers

*Use for cutting wire or other thin metals. There are several different types of pliers avail- able depending on the application. • Side cutters have a cutting blade on one side only and are available in long-, curved- and short-nose types. • End cutting nippers have cutting blades on the end to make sharp, clean cuts close to the surface on wires, bolts and rivets. • Diagonal cutters have two cutting blades set diagonally to the handle. They offer leverage when pulling cotter pins. Mechanics and electricians use them for general cutting.

Precision Knife

• A pencil-sized tool used for precision cutting of lightweight materials, such as paper or poster board. • Also called a hobby knife or X-Acto® knife. • Ultra-sharp blades made from surgical steel come in a variety of sizes in triangle and curved shapes. • Contains a built-in chuck to hold and secure blades. • Some models feature blade storage in the handle.

Speed Square

• A small triangle-shaped square with a flanged edge for butting against the edge of a work piece to draw 90° or 45° angles. • Also use as a cutting fence for circular power saws. • It has different angle measurements marked on its surface and edges. • Markings on diagonal edge correspond to layout dimensions for rafters and stairs. • Generally available in 7" and 12" sizes.

Framing Square

• Also known as carpenter's or rafter square because this tool is generally used for laying out rafters and marking stair stringers. Use anywhere you need to mark a square angle. • 90° L-shaped tool made from one piece of material (steel or aluminum). The long end (blade) is usually 24" and the short end (tongue) is 16". • Similar squares are also available in other sizes (8" x 12"). • Generally has framing tables (rafter and Essex tables) etched into the body to provide information on roof framing. • Also has ruler increments printed on the inside and outside edges.

Crosscut Saw

• Best for cutting wood across the grain. • Produces a smoother cut than rip saws, so it's often used to cut plywood. • Saws are 10 to 12 tpi for fine work and 7 or 8 tpi for faster cutting. 10 tpi is a good general purpose saw. • Blade lengths range from 20" to 28", with 26" the most popular. • A shorter version is the panel or short cut saw. It can be used for ripping, crosscutting and general cutting of lumber, plywood and particleboard and plastic materials.

Needle-Nose (Long-Nose) Pliers

• Use for electrical and electronics work. • They have a pointed nose for doing work in tight places. • Most have side cutters for cutting wire. • A variation is the thin-nose, or bent-nose pliers, with the nose bent at an 80° angle so it can be used to grip and force wire through odd angles or reach around objects.

Claw Hammer

• Use for general carpentry, household chores and nail pulling. • Curved claw offers leverage in removing nails. • Use only with non-hardened, common or finishing nails. • You can choose 16 or 20 oz. weights for general carpentry. For fine cabinetry or light- duty driving, choose 7, 10 and 13 oz. nail weights. • Available with a smooth face for finishing jobs, or a waffled face for more control when hammering large nails into lumber.

Wire Strippers

• Use for general-purpose wire cutting and stripping insulation from wire. • Feature adjustable stops to remove wire insulation without damaging conductors. • Feature pre-cut holes to cut different wire gauges. • Plier-style nose permits pulling and looping of wire.

Sledgehammer

• Use for jobs that require great force, such as breaking up concrete or driving heavy spikes. • These hammers have long handles from 14" to 36" and heavy heads weighing from 2 lbs. to 20 lbs. • Double-face sledgehammers feature two identical faces. • Single-face sledgehammers have one flat face for striking and one wedge-shaped face for splitting wood.

Framing (Rip) Hammer

• Use for ripping apart wooden components and demolition work. • Use only with non-hardened, common or finishing nails. • Choose weights from 20 to 32 oz. for framing and ripping. • Available with milled or waffled faces to grip the nail head and reduce the effect of glancing blows and flying nails.

Plumb Bob

• Use in construction and framing. • A small, tapered, pointed weight suspended from string or cord used to measure true vertical plumb or depth. • Many chalk line reels can also be used as plumb bobs, hanging the tool from its string.

Wrecking Bar

• Use in construction, demolition and where pulling nails, ripping wood and similar tasks are done. • Also known as ripping bars or crowbars. • Those with curved ends are also known as gooseneck bars. • Because of their length, usually 24" or 30", they have more leverage than hammers, enabling them to pull much larger and longer nails. • One variation is the utility bar, which includes two jaws for grabbing lumber.

Phillips® Tip Screwdriver

• Use on cross-slotted screw heads with modified U-shaped slots of uniform width. • Sizes range from 0 to 4, with 0 being the smallest. • Similar tip configurations include Frearson tips that have V-shaped cross slots with tapered sides, and Pizidriv® with additional, smaller slots at 45° angles to the main cross slots.

Star (Torx®) Tip Screwdriver

• Use with star head screws and bolts to reduce slippage. • Tips have six lobular drive surfaces to provide additional contact surface with the screw head. • Vertical sides transmit torque perpendicularly to the driven element so there is no slipping.

Tape Reel

• Used by builders for measuring foundations. • Tape is typically 100' long and designed to measure long distances. • Tape is contained in durable case and is generally rewound by a crank on the side of the case with a small hook on the end for hooking onto objects to be measured.

Bar Clamp

• Used for clamping large objects, making them popular with woodworkers and hobbyists. • Has a clamping device built on a flat bar, which is usually made of steel. • The length of the bar determines the capacity of the clamp, which is the dimension of the largest object that can be accommodated between its clamping jaws. • "Reach" is the distance from the edge of the bar to the end of the clamping jaws. • Screw pressure applies the final clamping load.

Carpenter's Level

• Uses bubble vials positioned in the center and both ends to check vertical and horizontal surfaces for level or plumb. • Made of either hardwood with brass binding, metal (aluminum, magnesium) or high-impact plastic. • Typically 24" to 48" long, but some models (generally mason's levels) are longer and can be up to 72" in length. • Some models include split level or graduated vials that have two sets of lines, with the outside line representing a 2% grade that conforms to the slope required for gutters and waste lines to drain properly.

Spring Clamp

• Versatile enough for home, hobby or professional use indoors or outdoors, holding round or odd-shaped objects. • Use with thin materials. • Similar to a clothes pin, this clamp consists of two metal jaws to which clamping pressure is applied by use of a steel spring. • Sizes available include 1", 2" or 3" jaw openings.

Slip-Joint Pliers

• General utility pliers with two jaw-opening size adjustments. • Some have a shear-type wire cutter to cut small-gauge wire.

Combination Wrench

• Combines both a box-end and open-end style of wrenches. • The open-end side of the wrench provides gripping power on two sides of the fastener head with another side open so the wrench can be placed on a nut, which might not be accessible to a closed or box wrench. • It should fit the nut exactly to prevent mutilating the nut edges. • One type is the flare nut wrench, which is flared to fit hex fittings and flare nuts. • The box-end side of the wrench has an enclosed head and provides more leverage by completely enclosing the nut. • Some types are offset to provide knuckle room and clearance over obstructions. • Wrenches are available with either 6- or 12-point rings. • While the combination style is common, you can also get a wrench with a box-end on both ends, or an open-end on both ends. There are typically different sizes on each end. • Has a box and an open end on opposite sides of the same wrench. Both ends are usually the same size. • Also available is a reversible ratcheting combination wrench that allows you to quickly tighten nuts and bolts without lifting the wrench off and repositioning it after each rotation.

Snap Blade Knife

• Cuts light- and medium-duty materials such as wallpaper, rubber, vinyl and leather, or materials with adhesive backing that will stick to the blade and prevent sharp, accurate cutting. • Blade sections snap off without having to open the tool to change blades. There are generally between 8 and 13 blade sections per blade.

Retractable Blade Utility Knife

• Cuts materials such as drywall, cardboard cartons, laminates and plastic. • Blade retracts into body of knife for safer operation and storage. • Handle generally unscrews or swivels open to permit blade changes. Usually has extra blade storage in the handle.

Hacksaw

• Cuts metal or plastic. • Consists of a blade held in a steel frame with relatively high tension to hold the blade rigidly straight. • Blades come in coarse-, medium (18 tpi), fine (24 tpi) and very fine-toothed (32 tpi). Regular or standard blades are used for general-purpose cutting; high-speed or bi-metal blades for cutting hard, extra-tough steel. • Most models can be adjusted to hold various blade lengths. Some have both horizontal and vertical positions for blades. Others provide blade storage. • A close-quarter (or utility) hacksaw holds and positions a hacksaw blade so it can be used effectively in narrow spaces and slots. • Replacement blades include rod saw blades capable of cutting through most hard mate- rials—spring and stainless steel, chain, brick, glass and tile. • Another type of saw used to cut PVC and plastic is the plastic pipe saw.

Glue Gun

• Electrically operated glue gun consist of a heating element, nozzle and glue chamber. • Glue or caulking sticks are put in the chamber, where they are melted by heat and released through the nozzle. The adhesive cures by cooling. Cordless models are also available.

Hand Drill

• Generally used for precise drilling in fine woodworking applications. • Drilling action comes from turning a hand crank on the side of a drill frame. • Also called an eggbeater drill. • Features adjustable drill chuck to permit easy changing of drill bits ranging in size from 1/16" to 1/2".

Jeweler's Screwdriver

• Has a rotating head that is held by the forefinger to steady the screwdriver while the thumb and middle finger turn the screwdriver to remove or install small screws. • Jewelers, hobbyists and others who work with very small screws use this tool. • Usually available in sets with Phillips and slotted tips.

Bench Vise

• Mounts on a work bench or table to hold work pieces securely in place between two flat jaws. • Generally used in light-duty applications. • Available in both stationary and swivel models to hold work at various angles and positions. • A threaded spindle opens and closes the jaws of the vise to hold and release work piece. • Generally has jaws ranging in length from 3" to 8". • Jaw opening ranges from 4" to 12" in different models.

Staple Gun

• Shoots a variety of staples or brad nails with a one-hand lever operation. • Good for a variety of jobs requiring material to be held with one hand and fastened with the other, such as lining closets, installing insulation, tacking ceiling tile or fastening roof- ing paper. • Other models are designed to fasten a variety of materials, such as different types of wire, including telephone wire, heavy-duty wire and insulated wire. • Always recommend an electric staple gun whenever a project calls for shooting a multi- tude of staples, such as for an upholstery project or installing roll insulation in walls.

C-Clamp

• The most common type of clamp. Consists of a C-shaped frame, made of either forged steel or cast iron. • Use a sliding cross-pin handle or a wing nut to tighten the screw, which changes the size of the jaw opening. • Measure the size of a C-clamp by its jaw capacity—the dimension of the largest object the frame can accommodate with the screw fully extended. Most range in jaw capacity from 2" to 10". • Also important is depth of throat, the distance from the center line of the screw to the inside edge of the frame. • C-clamps range from 3/4" to 14".

Pistol Grip Bar Clamp

• These are bar clamps designed with a pistol grip to allow the user to tighten or loosen the clamp instead of screwing it. • Adjust by using just one hand on a trigger switch. • Perhaps the most significant innovation to come about recently in the area of clamps. • Available in jaw openings from 6" to 50" and a variety of sizes.

Lineman's Pliers

• Use for cutting, holding, shaping and twisting wire. • They have gripping jaws in addition to cutting edges. • Professionals engaged in electrical, communications and construction work use these heavy-duty pliers. They are also called electrician's pliers. • High-leverage lineman's pliers have rivets placed closer to the cutting edges to provide more leverage. • Two head patterns are available: standard (bevel nose) and round nose, which is more streamlined. • Sizes range from 6-1/4" to 9-1/4".

Slotted Tip Screwdriver

• Use for driving and removing standard, slotted fasteners. • Slots generally range in size from 1/6" to 1/4". • Tip is flared at shoulder of blade so it is wider than the driver bar. Blades should not taper too sharply from the tip, because an improperly tapered tip has a tendency to rise out of the screw slot. • Variation is the Cabinet Slotted Tip, which has a straight tip with no flare. For use with small screws and countersinking screws where regular tips with a flare would mar the wood or material on the side.