Tools

If you decide to work on expensive things like engines or transmissions be careful of the tolerance of cheap tools. You only need to round off one bolt head or worst yet snap one off to pay for the next grade up of tools. I have some of each I seem to run in to less problems with the high end tools and will not use the low end tools on critical jobs.

funangler said:

If you decide to work on expensive things like engines or transmissions be careful of the tolerance of cheap tools. You only need to round off one bolt head or worst yet snap one off to pay for the next grade up of tools. I have some of each I seem to run in to less problems with the high end tools and will not use the low end tools on critical jobs.

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I agree, My old dad that left us in December, bless his soul, used to say "pliers were never made for nuts but it's often nuts that use them". You see so much damage with cheap tools, pliers and vise grips instead of using the proper tool.

Go to Home Depot and you can find everything that you need.

ezdipper said:

Other than your basic screw driver sets, wrenches and sockets hammer what type of tools do you carry on your trawler? Any specialty tools reccommended. I know this can vary depending on your engines and electronics. I currently do not own a trawler but hope to purchase a used one in the next 2 years or so. Just trying to get some information so I will be better prepared. Thanks

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You will have a better idea of what tools you need once you have the boat. For example, you may or may not need a complete set of metric tools in addition to standard sized tools.

I have a fairly complete set of tools on my boat but some of the posts list items that I don't carry and probably won't.

I will say this though; There's little point in carrying tools that you don't know how to use. The same goes for spare parts.

If I could only take one tool on my boat it would be my TowBoatUS towing membership card!

funangler said:

If you decide to work on expensive things like engines or transmissions be careful of the tolerance of cheap tools. You only need to round off one bolt head or worst yet snap one off to pay for the next grade up of tools. I have some of each I seem to run in to less problems with the high end tools and will not use the low end tools on critical jobs.

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I agree whole-heartedly. All tools, but especially hand tools, need to be of sufficient grade for the task. If you're just pounding a nail, any hammer might do, but if you're removing 35 year old exhaust manifold bolts, you better do it right the first time. As my grandfather used to say, "Use the right tool for the job."

Another tool I find helpful is a hot glue gun. It makes temporary field repairs a breeze and it's usually easy to remove/clean up.

If you can wait around Black Friday Home Depot Sears Lowe's all have phenomenal tool sales. Personally I think a blowmolded box that holds all the sockets is worth it small expense.

Greetings,
Mr. skidgear mentioned torches in post #11. I have one of these and use it quite a bit. As mentioned, heat shrink but also for soldering, paint stripping very small areas, heating stubborn nuts and bolts, lighting kids sparklers, melting rope ends and creme brule.


Also picked up one of these on sale at Harbor Freight ($15). Replaced the buffing wheel with a 3" wire wheel. VERY handy.

rwidman said:

If I could only take one tool on my boat it would be my TowBoatUS towing membership card!

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Well, now....we're finally getting down to the "nut cutting" as they say out west!

I basically have a tool room on my boat as the forward cabin is seldom occupied. When you are cruising full time and like "wilderness" boating, I have found use for some of the most odd ball items I managed to stow. If you are coming back to a dock every night, less of an issue. You know the old saying: Definition of Cruising: "Fixing your boat in exotic places".

But I do have a few top-of-mind MVPs:
-A small set of stubby Gear Wrenches. I have a big set of Craftsman wrenches that I have used maybe 6 times or so in 5+ years, almost always for the metric sizes. These little guys do so many boat jobs so well I can't even begin to count the ways.
-digital multi-meter; indispensable. If I were to lose mine I would go to the nearest port immediately to get another. Get the best one you can find. Oh and a few litlte jumpers with alligator clips. Big heavy duty jumper cables are extremely handy too.
-one of those arcade game flexible grabbers. I never use the magnet on a stick because nothing you should be picking up on a boat is magnetic. The little mirror on a stick is very handy too.
-A little brad puller, which looks like a screw driver with forked tongue. Gets broken out for all kinds of odd jobs but main use is springing recalcitrant snaps.
-T handle hex set; get the right one and you can also put a socket wrench on it and use it as a nut driver for reaching into difficult spots, such as hose clamp installs.
-dual intensity heat gun: shrink wrap fittings, varnish removal and many other uses.
-ratchet crimper
-angled needle nose pliers
-small vise; I don't use it a lot but when I need it, it is wonderful
-measuring tape; probably belongs nearer to top of list, amazing how many time I break it out
-calipers; I am terrible at measuring hoses, holes, bolts etc without one. I do have an innate talent for losing these mysteriously.
-allen wrenches. though the t-hexes usuall cover this.
-vaseline
-corrosion x
-and last but certainly not least a little wet/dry Shop Vac.

If I had to go to sea with only the above and a wide range of screw drivers I wouldn't feel naked.

9 times out of 10 it's not necessarily the tools...it's still the mechanic...

An experienced mechanic can get by with a simple set of tools by knowing what can and cant be done with what is at hand...

Like using a fine tip screwdriver in a wrench to make up the difference in a slightly rounded bolt head...

or using 2 wrenches in conbination to give a longer moment arm to free a stubborn bolt...etc...etc...

Sure..buy a good set of tools before you go cruising...but more importantly...spend some time working on systems with a master and get to know how things are actually done in the field and not the "how to" section of some dreamland boating magazine article.

Or know the first thing to do in trying to break a recalcitrant nut/bolt is tighten it.

jeffnick said:

The tools you carry often reflect the condition of your boat.
For us as inland/coastal cruisers, we buy a cheap combo set every couple years, donating the old set (with missing/rusted components) to Goodwill...and we have unlimited towing (which we've never used).
WEST MARINE Shipyard Tool Kit at West Marine

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I cant count the times I have stopped to assist broken down boaters who have broken a belt or impeller which they should have spares of onboard but didn't.
Good idea the cheap combo set but for non trailer boats don't you think they should also be additional items?

caltexflanc said:

Or know the first thing to do in trying to break a recalcitrant nut/bolt is tighten it.

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Same trick applies to tapered pipe threads.

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caltexflanc said:

Or know the first thing to do in trying to break a recalcitrant nut/bolt is tighten it.

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Of course you can always follow the (insert name of airframe manufacturer here) method of torquing a fastener. Which is:

Torque it down until it breaks, then back off half a turn.

A realtively simple job can become a major project because of the damage caused by using the wrong tool, a wrongly sized or damaged tool, or the right tool held at an awkward angle. Combine this with the fact that boats seem to have endless fasteners with restricted access and you have mucho opportunities to screw up. I bought a Skewdriver by Spec Tools 12 years ago and it solves most of these problems; I use it just about every day. Apart for the obvious, the nut-driver bits are ideal for tightening hose clamps and there is an adapter to mount 1/4" drive sockets. I have a set of small hex-shank twist drills, so it can double as a light-duty angle drill too. I would not be without it. No affiliation etc etc.

After a lifetime of fixing things, I can say one thing for certain; Some people should not be allowed to own, much less use tools.

It's not a matter of intelligence, it's a matter of aptitude. I've known people with PHD degrees who couldn't put a piece of knockdown furniture together with picture instructions.

Some folks would do much better to carry a credit card or cash.

A person has to be smarter than the tool their using.

And make sure to get two of everything because inevitably the first one WILL go in the water.

Besslb said:

And make sure to get two of everything because inevitably the first one WILL go in the water.

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That's true Bess with the proviso only when you need it the most

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Besslb said:

And make sure to get two of everything because inevitably the first one WILL go in the water.

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At the risk of being made fun of...

I use leashes on any expensive tools in a precarious situation. Or any time I am in the water (changing a zinc).

Northern Spy said:

At the risk of being made fun of...

I use leashes on any expensive tools in a precarious situation. Or any time I am in the water (changing a zinc).

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So do I. I tie a piece of twine around the wrench I use to change the transom zincs, for example. The bitter end gets tied to the base of a rail stanchion.

Northern Spy said:

At the risk of being made fun of...

I use leashes on any expensive tools in a precarious situation. Or any time I am in the water (changing a zinc).

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Same here. If I'm working over the gunwale, when possible, I use a leash or wrist strap. I keep a length of parachute cord handy for this purpose. Some tools, like screwdrivers, are less conducive to this than others, like wrenches, but I do it when practical. Plan B is my large permanent magnet to retrieve those tools which escaped Plan A.

Just last weekend, while refueling, I remembered an incident which occurred in Jan when we joined markpierce and Giggitoni in Pittsburg, CA. While refueling, my fuel vent overflow canister started to float away during refueling. My Admiral and Mrs. Delta Swizzler sprung into action and retrieved it at an adjacent dock with the help of a boat pole and fishing net. This time, I tethered it...and good thing I did. After tank #1 filled, I saw it jump off the transom vent, making a run for it. Shortly thereafter, here comes Pineapple Girl, out of the blue, looking for cheap diesel. Without the tether, she would have caught me fishing the bottle out of the river! (shhhh...don't tell)

Whew...

Well, my wife still thinks I'm a geek.

For important tools, we use four hands. I'm supposed to catch.

Besslb said:

For important tools, we use four hands. I'm supposed to catch.

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Bess, you've got that salty-talking hamster that can fix everything - he's the best tool there is!

I think he's rebuilt Skinny Dippin' from scratch.

FlyWright said:

Same here. If I'm working over the gunwale, when possible, I use a leash or wrist strap. I keep a length of parachute cord handy for this purpose. Some tools, like screwdrivers, are less conducive to this than others, ..................

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Drill a hole trough the handle for a piece of string or light rope.

As the biggest tool on this forum (and a lifetime mechanic), let me make a couple of important points.

A lot of people advocate that Brand X or that doing This or That is cheap insurance for you to keep your boat going. Well, here is a PRIME example of it and just about the only one I abide by. Cheap tools suck. Period. Harbor Freight, Wal-Mart, and the tool tent at your local flea market is NOT the place to buy tools. IMHO, having quality tools onboard is vital to sucessful boating. Sure, you can use cheaper parts here and there, but when said part breaks while underway or when you rally need to get a stubborn bolt off without destroying it and costing you perhaps hundreds or thousands in extra repair costs, THIS is when good tools pay for themselves.

Yes, some people WILL have success with cheaper tools. I don't deny that it can happen. However, when it comes to the right tool for the right job, I rarely skimp and prefer quality over quantity unless there is a specific need or that I know this will be a one-use job.

The flaw in my attitude happens when I am discovering that the Craftsman tools I have relied on for decades begin to fall victim to the shift of quality and profits by Sears and they are NOT the tools they were 25 years ago. No, they are not Snap-On or Matco, but they are still a much higher quality over HF.

I really enjoy having to go out and buy new tool. I haven't tried to have everything at once. I have slowly built-up my toolbox over the last four years and feel like I have a superior stockpile over a lot of the other boaters I know without a ton of redundancy or without a box full of stuff I won't need.

Thanks for your time... Now back to your regularly scheduled thread,

My general rule is that if I needed to take a tool from my house to the boat for mechanical or electrical maintenance, it stays there, or a similar and suitable replacement is obtained. Carpentry tools, no.

but sorry to be the bearer of bad news Tom but a friend of mine has a Snap-On truck and he says that Snap-On has been forced to go off shore for some products as well just to stay competitive. Even Costco now has a Snap-On LED work light on their shelf, made in China. I still have a full set of Gray wrenches I bought when I was a teenager nearly 50 years ago (yes I'm that old). The chrome is not as pretty as today's stuff but I have yet to break one and they have been well used.

I worked as a field mechanic on heavy equipment for 30 years. During that time one of the things I learned was it makes no difference how good the guarantee on a hand tool was when you broke the only one you've got & your 40 miles from no where. I started out buying Craftsman but ended up when I retired with a truck full of Snap-On. When you make your living with tools don't skimp on quality.