Moving Beyond Home Depot
Sep 26 '01
The Bottom Line ...get your advice from people and stores in the know.
My workshop is a testimony to many buying adventures in tool departments across the land....okay, from catalogs across the land. When I began in the business (i.e. woodworking/carpentry) there were no Home Depot or Lowe's stores to walk into and view tools from most major manufacturers. In fact, at the time Sears was the only place with the true tool department. Can you imagine?
With so many places to begin a workshop, whether it be in one location or mobile for job sites, where are the best places to begin? The answers are both obvious and hidden. Those "in the know" realize that just because it's in Home Depot doesn't mean it's either a good deal, or the perfect tool.
Here are some suggestions:
1) Subscribe to a trade publication. Begin your tool box with a magazine. Consider a subscription to The Journal Of Light Construction, or another publication applied directly to your field. Here you will find advice on utilizing tools on a regular basis---not advice for weekend warriors, but advice for and by those who use their routers, saws, guns, etc. on a daily basis. In addition, you'll find Tools of the Trade coming to your mailbox as well. A free publication that usually arrives quarterly---top reviews on the tools you're drooling over.
Buying tools but not necessarily in the construction field? Fine Homebuilding or Fine Woodworking (both from Taunton) show some fairly high-end projects and homes. Perhaps not what you will be working on, but sometimes it provides great inspiration and great advertising. Yes, advertising. These ads will often lead you to catalogs and mailing lists for off-price tools, tool warehouses, and other mail order/catalog companies.
2) Walk through your yellow pages.
Look for any local woodworking or lumber supply companies. If you stumble upon a Johnson's Workbench as I have here in town you will have found a treasure. Stores like this generally have many, many router bits. Lots of specialty woods (or at least the ability to find them for you) and many large shop tools. Oh, you'll find a router here and there, but this is the place to go if you're looking for some stationary tools for a shop.
Prices may be steeper, but features will be more abundant. Not just one model of table saw, jig saw, etc. Here you'll find the big guns that many only dream about. Plus you'll encounter some helpful staff who are working there because they have expertise, not for the stock options.
3) Your local woodworker.
This is the guy that usually has a bit of saw dust on his (flannel) shirt, probably drives a pick-up, and owns more tools than you thought possible. He's also got a lot of experience and war stories. He knows where to find the cheapest prices, and also when to avoid the cheap prices.
Nothing beats experience, and starting a discussion involving tools or wood will probably get this guy to warm up to you right away. Then grab all the advice you can. Ask for suggestions on what to buy first, what to avoid, and whether the fancy model is really worth the extra $75. Find out where he does his shopping and ask to see some of his "old" tools...the ones who have been with him forever and continue to run well.
Friends like these are invaluable.
4) Watch those home shows.
I enjoy those home improvement shows on PBS and other stations, but the best in regard to tool advice are definitely This Old House and The New Yankee Workshop. The first will talk about lots of new tools on the market although without naming brands. The latter will show tools in use (most of which are Delta or Porter Cable).
5) The big stores.
Lest you think I am opposed to stores like Home Depot, Lowe's, and to a lesser extent, Menard's, I had better list this as well. Stores like these provide a one stop shopping experience for most tool buyers. The tool departments are traditionally separate from the rest of the store and kept in one, convenient area. The basic tools plus some extras are here (although you'll need to look elsewhere for a large selection of bits and such...especially specialty versions). And if you go in having done your research it won't matter if the salesperson assisting you doesn't really know much about the product and has never used a router.
So there is some tool advice from one of those guys with sawdust eternally on his flannel shirt. I think in the end, my primary message is to not rely on the big/mega home improvement stores. They have their purpose and I certainly utilize them regularly. But when beginning a shop whether for pleasure or (most certainly) as a career, some additional research should be considered. Read, watch, ask questions...don't jump for that first fancy air gun or planer you see. Even consider reading a few epinions...get your advice from people and stores in the know.
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Epinions.com ID:
GuisBuild
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Location: USA
Reviews written: 142
Trusted by: 87 members
About Me:
to a man with a hammer everything looks like a nail
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