Minimalist Project

[Bolster]

Most of us try to MAXimize our tool collection, get as many tools as possible. No criticism of that; all well and good, I believe the more tools the better...at your base camp, at least.

But when you have to schlep your tools around, and those tools DO get heavy, and they DO take up space, and they DO leave you vulnerable to thieves. Do you also follow a minimalist strategy with at least one or a few portable boxes? No, I'm not talking multi-tool-minimalist (that's too extreme), I'm talking hand-carry tool boxes, maybe 10-30 lb range. Something you can take to the work site and feel reasonably covered, tool-wise.

I've been working hard on getting necessary tools down to just a few boxes that I can throw in the pickup and take to location. I want to perform maximum workage with minimum toolage, within reason--trying to carry no more than 50 lbs of tools. If I don't use a particular tool within a year or two, it remorselessly gets removed. Curious if any of you do the same. Obviously the contents will vary based on intended purpose, but some tools probably do double-duty better than others and reduce weight and size.

For example: I have been making extensive use of 1/4" hex drive. Even my 1/4" ratchet set doesn't make it into my minimalist set, that's all done with 1/4" hex nut driver bits. No allen wrench set. All 1/4" hex allen bits, etc. Torx, Standard, and Philips...all bits. Very compact.

No hacksaw (altho I do miss it), just a Bosch blade handle that can take either T-style jig blades, or sawzall-type blades. Again, very light and compact.

Will try to upload a photo of contents in a day or two. Hope you will share a photo of your minimalist box(es) too, and your recommendation for compact, lightweight tools that can do double-duty.

 

[Jawn]

I do keep a tool bag in the car for emergencies or just random stuff while I'm away from home...

I've been meaning to re-organize it, I'll see if I can get to that shortly and then snap some pics.

 

[fivespdcat]

If I'm moving with tools I definitely reduce the amount. I like the knipex pliers wrench and ratcheting screwdrivers. These can really help reduce the tool count, but it always depends on the job.

 

[RivennHewn]

I do a lot of work in downtown locations. Parking may be blocks away from where I'm working.

I don't feel safe leaving tools on a loading dock. I need to carry all my tools in one trip.

What seems to be working for me is 3 of the plastic flip top boxes and a light weight hand truck.

 

[ddo]

I work out of a large bag stuffed full of everything I need - CLC bag square open topped bag with plastic organizer in the bottom. It has worked out great so far. When I need to go vertical in climbing ladders and such, I have a smaller closable shoulder strap bag (satchel) with some essentials that I will also stock from the bigger bag with project specifics.

As far as universal tools go, I have a few favorites.

Bahco 9070 RP, 9071 RP, 9072 RP, 9073 RP- Pipe wrench adjustable wrench combo. Pipe wrench portion works great and the adjustable isn't bad either (Bahco did invent the adjustable wrench). Newer versions are made in Spain vs. Sweden, but quality has been great from what I've seen.

Knipex Cobra - Another pipe wrench, adjustable wrench combo of sorts. Great for low clearance, large diameter and low torque applications. Bites like a pipe wrench on pipe and doesn't do too much damage on bolt heads when used in that fashion. I prefer this vs. the NWS Quattrogrip for a number of reasons (jaw shape, head size, access, quality of bite, number of adjustments, size options, etc.). Both are far and away better than Channellock.

Knipex plier wrench - This one is a workhorse. Grips bolts great and doesn't mar the surface at all. Open ended ratcheting action is a big time saver. Only reason I will ever use a combination wrench these days are either for clearance or because its sitting in front of me.

Klein 11 in 1 or similar. I have ratcheting screwdrivers and use frequently, but if I gotta climb a ladder, this is coming with. Benefit of having a portable nut driver and common slotted phillips and square drivers is huge. Plus its a cheapo at $10-15 so I don't feel bad abusing it and wearing out the bits.

Knipex electricians cutters - 4 in 1 style strippers, crimpers, cutters and needlenose. Does most of what I need with wiring. Not terribly easy to use, but also doesn't cut into stranded wires like a lot of other cutters when you have that tempting smaller / incorrect size available to use.

Dewalt flip style utility knife - All the features I want in a knife with small footprint - multiple position adjustment, blade storage, and twine cutter. Always have a hook blade in storage. Another option for this is the bostich 2 blade utility knife - can roll with one hook blade and one straight at the same time. There's a lot of complaints about this knife with the blade swap mechanism but ignore them - its actually easy. If you're having difficulty....check that you're sticking it in the right hole. Both of these run for ~$10.

Gearwrench Quadbox - HVAC style ratcheting wrench. Each wrench has 4 sizes on it and is reversible. Generally if I can't get at it with this ratchet, I'll just do it the old fashioned way. Carry the metric and SAE versions. They run around $30 for set of two wrenches.

I'm always on the look out for great universal style tools to pack the bag with as well. The full bag is ~70 lbs. depending on what I pack in there, but there is a strap so its tolerable. Beats walking back and forth through a shop or a plant. Love having all my tools handy, which in my case would never be possible with a rolling tool cart.

 

[gte718p]

Depend to much on your intended use to really provide helpful input.

A SHTF bag is different from a professional work bag. The bag I take to the junk yard is different then I take with me on the trail rig. I got to the point where my trail bag was over 80 lbs and decided that it was ridiculous and to pare it down to essential tools only. I have three different minimalist bags I take out depending on the application. Allen wrenches can be extraneous or essential depending on what you are working on.

 

[Bolster]

As far as universal tools go, I have a few favorites...

Outstanding post! You've given me a long list of double-duty tools to hunt down...!

 

[Farmall450]

We also take a tool bag around...probably on the heavy side but works. Screwdrivers, sockets, ratchets, hammer/mallets, inspection mirror (hard to fix what you can't see), a wire brush or two, pliers, dykes & lineman's, needlenose, etc etc

Flashlight!

 

[joedodge]

Hell I'm a auto truck tech and have always decided to do the minimalist route I only buy what i need to make money and dont have a huge tool box because I like plastic snap ob trays that take up a whole drawer to display my tools

 

[Bolster]

Recently I've been doing a lot of maintenance work on houses. So I've got my minimalist "house" kit down to 50 lbs:

1) Small toolbox "Little Boy" (15 lb)
2) Larger toolbox "Fat Man"
3) Hitachi Drill Driver "12" volt (10.5v)
4) Hardware Assortment.

This kit is carryable in a single trip (with some difficulty, the drill and hardware strapped across shoulders) and will get me through about 80+% of the work I have to do. I've been refining it for years and am fairly happy, but always looking for ways to reduce weight/add work capacity.

Here's "Little Boy," designed to go with the drill/driver. It also allows light electrical work. Sometimes just this box and the drill driver make the trip for ultralight carry, just 21 lbs total. Here are some of my favorite multi-purpose tools from the small box:

PB Swiss short 1/4" hex bit driver
Plano box chocked with 1/4" hex bits
Ultra low profile (modified by me) offset ratcheting driver in 1/4" hex
Bosch handle that takes jig or recip blades. Some fit in handle.

Here's the full contents of Little Boy:

 

[signcrafter]

I think I'm the opposite. I've been burned way to many times by not having that one tool I needed to finish something and having to go home to get it or just run to the store to buy it. I take care of all my family member's houses and vehicles. So when I get a call to come fix this or that I load up anything I think I might need. I have all my house repair tools in different tool boxes. So if a faucet needs to be fixed I grab my plumbing box and drill and drill bits box along with anything else I think I might need. I also bring an assortment of hardware. If I get a call for an oulet or other electrical job I bring my electrical box along with anything else I might think I could possible need. I have different boxes that have all the tools I've needed in the past for that particular job. Common tools are in every box like screwdrivers, hammers, pliers, etc along with all the tools special to that repair. Over the years I've added and simplified boxes but have got it down pretty good. I have a bunch of plastic tool boxes I've bought on sale over the years for electrical, plumbing, laminate, carpet, siding, drywall, paint, rough carp, finish carp, plumbing fittings, and a bunch I'm forgetting right now. I also keep my different saws and extra blades in different boxes so I can just grab them, like rotozip, dremel, sawzall, etc.

 

[Bull]

I can't organize that well, so I am working on becoming extremely muscular and strong; that way, I can just carry my main Lista box to the job and be all set no matter what comes up.

 

[Stuart in MN]

In my youth I knew a lot of farmers who were able to fix just about anything with a pair of slip joint pliers and a screwdriver.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

In my youth I knew a lot of farmers who were able to jury rig just about anything with a pair of slip joint pliers, bailing wire and a screwdriver.

There, fixed it for 'ya.

Charles

 

[Outlawmws]

Most of us try to MAXimize our tool collection, get as many tools as possible. No criticism of that; all well and good, I believe the more tools the better...at your base camp, at least.

But when you have to schlep your tools around, and those tools DO get heavy, and they DO take up space, and they DO leave you vulnerable to thieves. Do you also follow a minimalist strategy with at least one or a few portable boxes? No, I'm not talking multi-tool-minimalist (that's too extreme), I'm talking hand-carry tool boxes, maybe 10-30 lb range. Something you can take to the work site and feel reasonably covered, tool-wise.

I've been working hard on getting necessary tools down to just a few boxes that I can throw in the pickup and take to location. I want to perform maximum workage with minimum toolage, within reason--trying to carry no more than 50 lbs of tools. If I don't use a particular tool within a year or two, it remorselessly gets removed. Curious if any of you do the same. Obviously the contents will vary based on intended purpose, but some tools probably do double-duty better than others and reduce weight and size.

For example: I have been making extensive use of 1/4" hex drive. Even my 1/4" ratchet set doesn't make it into my minimalist set, that's all done with 1/4" hex nut driver bits. No allen wrench set. All 1/4" hex allen bits, etc. Torx, Standard, and Philips...all bits. Very compact.

No hacksaw (altho I do miss it), just a Bosch blade handle that can take either T-style jig blades, or sawzall-type blades. Again, very light and compact.

Will try to upload a photo of contents in a day or two. Hope you will share a photo of your minimalist box(es) too, and your recommendation for compact, lightweight tools that can do double-duty.

I did that for my Samurai travel tool box, and I can repair almost ANYTHING on the rig with the set I have. One Blow mold box from Craftsman about 10 years ago with some critical additions, +1 smaller box for a couple of things that would not fit, + a plastic 50cal ammo box of key spare parts and consumables like tape, AlumaSeal, JB Weld, Epoxy, wire, spare hose clamps, spare distributor, cap and plugs, one spare spark plug wire, and the coil wire, rotor, etc...

I have several Kennedy 20" boxes that are setup for specific jobs like plumbing, etc.

Anything after that it used to be a "toss it in a bucket" job, but I recently got a Bucket Boss tool bag and will use that for the grab and carry jobs.

 

[Outlawmws]

ps: I have a 6" hack saw in that blow mold box, and It's bailed me out a couple of times. no where near the action of a full sized hacksaw, but adequate and works. I do carry spare blades for it though...

 

[Bolster]

I have all my house repair tools in different tool boxes. So if a faucet needs to be fixed I grab my plumbing box and drill and drill bits box along with anything else I think I might need. ..

I have task-specific boxes and buckets also. I have a separate plumbing box, electrical box, locksmithing box, drywall box, paint box, mechanical box, tile bucket, demolition bucket, etc. etc., but what I'm talking about here is a minimalist "general" set of tools that will get you going most of the time--even when you don't know what you'll encounter. A "swiss army knife" tool box as it were.

After reading the responses so far, I think I really need to add a Knipex Pliers Wrench to the kit. It's weak for plumbing, but I don't always haul my plumbing box(es) around.

Have been considering a mini hack. Making do with reciprocal blades at the moment.

Outlaw, what is in your Samurai box?

 

[Yopauly]

I carry a fencing tool because I consider it the "original" multi use tool.

A HighLift jack comes in handy also when off road.
I prefer steel toolboxes for plumbing, carpentry and welding. Plastic for electrician, irrigation and fasteners. For the back of my Jeep, I like RoughNeck boxes tied down with motorcycle style tiedowns.

 

[crewchief888]

I can't organize that well, so I am working on becoming extremely muscular and strong; that way, I can just carry my main Lista box to the job and be all set no matter what comes up.

 

[crewchief888]

all depends on what i think i may be doing.

i mostly overthink and overplan for simple fix/repair, and have way more stuff than i need....

 

[vartz04]

I hope to get something set up in my house for specific tasks. A plumbing box electrical box and a carpentry box. A big 26" blow molded box for each or a bucket with a bucket boss for each should work fine with some tackle box style organizers in each.

As luck would have it my toolbox is now too small after buying a house and a new one isn't in the cards right now so this should gain me back some space. I really just need to peg board my pliers and screwdrivers in the garage too.

 

[PECVD2]

My secret santa Mlittle29 gave me a Snappy SDDD101 reversable blade driver. I immediatly thought I could lose a pound or so from my go bag. Crappy cell pic sorry.
But the snappy tool will hopefully not let me down as I removed the 4 torx and 4 screwdrivers from my bag.

 

[Bolster]

I like those ^^^ OD bags. I carry one in my truck, very handy and low profile.

 

[PECVD2]

I like those ^^^ OD bags. I carry one in my truck, very handy and low profile.

Yup me too. I've had this guy since '83 unfortunatly I left the canvas wrench roll someplace in Utah a few years back. That screw up has haunted me ever since. Some day I will find/purchase another.

 

[airdale]

If you're having difficulty....check that you're sticking it in the right hole.

^ My sentiments exactly.

Looks sig worthy to me!

 

[Bolster]

Yup me too. I've had this guy since '83 unfortunatly I left the canvas wrench roll someplace in Utah a few years back. That screw up has haunted me ever since. Some day I will find/purchase another.

That's funny, 'coz I found my canvas wrench roll in Utah, several years back.

 

[PECVD2]

WOW, That is weird. I had a olive green roll with craftsman sae and some thin KAL metric wrenches doubled up in a fairly worn roll. I used my OD bag near MOAB and again near Park City (screwdrivers only as far as I could remember). I thought that I had greased the bearing buddies on our trailer near Green River but don't remember using my tool bag there. I didnt notice it missing until we were in Cheyenne a few days later. Really sad day for me.

 

[Bolster]

I confess I was just teasing, Pecvd2. I didn't really swipe your tool roll in Utah. But you seem like a really nice person to swipe something from, if the opportunity ever presented itself. If you ever plan to leave tools lying about in So Calif please give me a head's up.

 

[PECVD2]

^^^^ dude you had me, only because I had something returned to me by a friend who had his landscaper find it at the business he managed. Interesting story (at least to me).....

sorry Bolster for the hyjack.

Back on track.

I use these Stanley Fat Max boxes for my separate storage but hardly minimal as I keep lots of excess plumbing stuff in one, electrical in one and sprinkler stuff in another.

 

[honcho]

Man, what a timely topic. I've been trying to rethink my truck bag as it has been getting bigger and heavier. Unfortunately, with a 3/4t truck it requires bigger wrenches / sockets than the family honda and toyota, not too mention that the truck is getting up in years and miles and therefore has it's fair share of unplanned "maintenance."

I remember going to a military convention about ten years ago when the Army was still working on the RAH-66 Commanche helicopter and one of the companies competing for the engine contract touted that organizational maintenance only required a tiny toolbox of about 10 tools. I suspect the next level of maintenance required a semi-truck full of tools but they didn't talk about that. Of course, that program was killed in an effort to save money.

You can do an awful lot with a pair of pliers, screwdriver and hammer in a pinch but after losing a front wheel bearing (unit bearing) on Christmas day, even with my heavy tool bag, I had to buy a 7/8 deep socket and some snap ring pliers to disassemble and replace the bearing the day after Christmas after being towed almost 200 miles. After paying for the tow, I barely had enough money to buy the bearing and fuel to get home, I had to replace it myself. Oh, the socket and snap ring pliers are still in the truck--just in case.

 

[Outlawmws]

My secret santa Mlittle29 gave me a Snappy SDDD101 reversable blade driver. I immediatly thought I could lose a pound or so from my go bag. Crappy cell pic sorry.
But the snappy tool will hopefully not let me down as I removed the 4 torx and 4 screwdrivers from my bag.

I like those ^^^ OD bags. I carry one in my truck, very handy and low profile.

Wow, I have one of those bags, but I keep camp rain gear in it, and mine is much more beat, but I got it that way. I wouldn't mind getting some more of them...

 

[Bolster]

You can do an awful lot with a pair of pliers, screwdriver and hammer in a pinch but after losing a front wheel bearing (unit bearing) on Christmas day, even with my heavy tool bag, I had to buy a 7/8 deep socket and some snap ring pliers to disassemble and replace the bearing ...

I don't travel to the exotic locales that you do, but I am all too familiar with "projectus interruptus" when you're not carrying that one specialty tool you need or, much more often the case for me, the need for uncarried hardware arises. This sets up the perpetual dilemma: Carry light and risk a second trip, or carry heavy and put up with space/mpg/lifting issues (and STILL have to make a second trip). If I were traveling in Iraq I'd opt for "heavy carry." If a long trip from here to the job, heavy carry again. Here in CA where the HD stores are plentiful, and home base is within 20 miles, light carry does me OK maybe 80% of the time.

The box-for-purpose approach works well. If you think electrical or plumbing or mechancial will be on the list, grab that box. If I don't know...I am gravitating toward my four-box carry: two of general hand tools, one drill/driver, and one box of misc hardware. Nothing more frustrating than stopping work because you don't have a single nail/bolt/screw. Of course, that's for working on houses and apartments. Auto mech would be different.

 

[Zaylor]

I struggle with this constantly. I hate not having the right tool to complete a project. But I also hate having more tools than I need, such that the tools take up a lot of space and distract me from what I am doing.

To me it is all about getting the most utility out of the least tools.

Less but higher quality.