Top 10 Tools That Should Be in Your Toolbox

Written by John White

For many modern men, owning and using tools has become somewhat of a novelty. Today’s younger men likely have grandfathers and fathers with well-stocked toolboxes, but have not stocked a toolbox yet themselves.

The modern trend for young men when faced with a project is to rely on a tradesman to take care of their carpentry, construction, and repair needs.

Traditionally, part of being a man involves a certain degree of self-reliance, and in order for a man to take care of business on his own, he should have the tools to get the job done.

The Top-10 Tools that every man should have are:

1. Utility Knife
Also known as a box cutter, razor blade knife, carpet knife, or Stanley knife, is a very common knife that is used in a wide range of trades for a variety of purposes. If you don’t own a utility knife, get one now. This tool is a basic essential, and you’ll be suprised how many opportunities you will have to put it to use.

2. Level
A good level is a necessary tool that is designed to guage whether a surface is horizontally “level” or vertically “plumb.” Levels come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Traditional levels are known as “spirit levels” or “bubble levels,” and rely on a liquid filled glass tube with a bubble in the tube that travels from side to side, and rests in the middle when the surface is level. More recent advancements in level technology have brought us the “laser line level” which is a high-tech gadget that combines a spirit level with a laser. The laser line is projected against the measuring surface to display an accurate horizontal or vertical line.

3. Drill
A good drill with the proper drill bits has uses ranging from screwing and unscrewing screws in various surfaces to drilling holes in everything from wood to metal, and even concrete. For most do-it-yourself projects and light construction, a cordless drill is a better choice than a pistol-grip corded drill because cordless drills are less cumbersome and offer slightly better range of motion. You’ll want a cordless drill with high enough torque to handle tasks ranging from working as a screwdriver to boring large diameter holes. Because large diameter holes require more juice, you’ll want to make sure your cordless drill comes equipped with at least an 18 volt (18 V) battery pack. Make sure you’ve got a good drill bit set that is appropriate for a range of hole sizes and surface types.

4. Needlenose pliers
Needlenose pliers are also referred to as long-nose pliers, or pinch-nose pliers, and are designed for cutting and repositioning wire. While they are most commonly used by electricians, they are also extremely useful in situations requiring you to reach into spaces where objects or materials are unreachable by fingers.

5. Vice Grip Pliers
Vice Grip Pliers are also known as Mole grips or Vice-Grips and are pliers than can be adjusted by changing the position of the jaws to fit the object, and locked into position. Vice Grip Pliers come in many different sizes and configurations for various applications. “Leatherman” manufactures a useful line of products, called the “Multi-Tool.” The “Crunch” multi-tool model includes locking pliers instead of regular pliers and folds together for easy transport. This gadget is quite handy, because it includes a few other necessary tools in one.

6. Socket Wrench Set
I picked up my first socket wrench when I was six years old, and it was love at first grip. I’ve gone through a couple of sets since then, but I’ve never failed to realize the importance of a solid socket wrench set as part of dude’s tool set. A socket wrench, also referred to as a “rachet” is absolutely essential in the lineup of tools that every dude should own. A complete socket wrench set should have enough removeable sockets to fit most of the different sized fasteners, such as nuts and bolts, measured in both metric and English-standard sizes.

7. Tape Measure
Tape measures are flexible rulers that have a curved metal measuring ribbon that remains straight and stiff when extended and retracts into a coil that is stored in a square metal or plastic hand-held container for convenient transport. Tape measures are necessary for measuring the dimensions of a room, furniture, and carpentry/construction projects.

8. Allen Wrench Set
Also known as “Hex Keys” the allen wrench is a tool with a hexagonal cross-section that is used to screw and unscrew bolts that have a hexagonal socket head. A lot of prefabricated furntiture and home decor that requires assembly use bolts and screws with hexagonal sockets. An allen wrench is a very simple tool, and good set with various hex sizes will only set you back a few bucks.

9. Screwdriver Set
There are many types of screw heads, but the most common that you’ll encounter are the “Slotted” (this is the flat/straight head – a single straight line) and the “Phillips” (this is the crosshead type that looks like a plus-sign). A complete set of phillips head and flat/straight head screwdrivers is aan important thing to have around the house.

10. Hammer
There are many types of hammers, including the ball-peen, soft-faced, mallet, etc. The “claw hammer” is the type that is ideal for driving nails with the flat edge, and removing them with the clawed edge. The hammer is the basic tool of many professions, and should be found in every man’s toolbox.