Toolmonger Top 5: The Week in Tools

Still hunting for a Father’s Day gift? Each year we make the same recommendation: skip the ties and expensive golf gear and give dad a good quality (but not too expensive) pocket knife. Don’t get him a 6” hunting knife, either – unless he collects them. Pick up a functional knife that he can carry everywhere. It’s the perfect way to say thank you for all the things he gave you (that you lost) and all the times he bailed your ass out of trouble.

In tool news: Toolmonger readers tell us that they consider palm sanders archaic, recommending instead random orbital sanders for more control and power. We looked at a slick new one from Festool that switches between random orbital and pure rotary – to remove material quickly – on the fly. Readers also gave us the low-down on deck screws, comparing Deck Mate’s famous offering to standard square-drive and the more recent LOX anti-camout models. In short: square-drive offers the best price-to-performance deal, but YMMV. This week MAC Tools announced an expansion of their spline-type spherical sockets. These sockets (like those offered by Snap-on, Husky, and others as well) can handle 6-point, 12-point, splined, Torx, square, and even half-rounded fastener heads. Half the battle in starting a new project is finding the supplies you need. This week we found Sparkfun, which sells all sorts of good stuff, like GPS and cellular gear and a 24-bit LCD screen identical to the one in the Sony PSP. This is definitely one to add to your “little black book.”

Top 5: The Week in Tools [Toolmonger]