Good Christmas Gift For Carpenter

Warren

Tools not to get him for Christmas:

Battery powered tape measure.
Craftsman lighted screwdriver

Thoughtful? Maybe. Practical? No way. (Thanks anyway family)

Gus Dering

One of my most favorite gifts I ever recieved is a Leatherman Tool that I ended up paying for myself.

Kids give it to me for Father's day. I know where they got it and how much it cost as soon as I saw it. My lumber yard - $50

I say "wow boys ,that is very generous. Thank you"

Wife - "I helped them pay for it"

I think, great. I've been eying it for some time and now I have one.

Lumber bill comes a few weeks later. There is the tag for the tool. Wtf?

Wife "the kids gave me cash and I charged it so I could get the discount"

" well where is the cash?"

wife "just pay the damn bill and quit your bitchin"

Thats love people, pure love.

Still have the tool at least 15 years later. Never go in the woods camping without it. Even day hikes.

Great gift and under $75. No matter who pays for it.

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Every parent who has walked barefoot into their child's room late at night hates Legos

Inner10

I've gotten alot of crap over the years too....dollar store side cutters and the likes.

I've never used a lighted screwdriver but it sounds like the cats arse. I love my lighted impact driver, lighted 110 punch and pretty much anything with a light!

Bottom line stay away from gimmicky crap, Lee Valley has an excellent selection!

jeffaah

10oz or 12 oz Stiletto titanium hammer with curved hickory handle. He'll love it.

And if you really love him....a Veto pro pack

Tinstaafl

Seconded and thirdeded. I had to buy my own, but I've been carrying for nearly 20 years. Seemed gimmicky when my buddy first got one, but one night I found myself with a bubbling can of beans in the campfire and no way to pick it up (duh!).

There's rarely a day goes by that I don't use it for something.

TempestV

When it comes to multitools, Leatherman isn't the only game in town- I like my SOG powerlock more than my Wave. Also, the Victorinox Swiss Tool is a good one as well. I used to like gerber, but from what I've seen lately, their quality is slipping.

Tool gifts usually suck when there is no thought in them, or they base the thought off of what they think would be useful, without knowing what is really useful to someone that uses the stuff every day. Coming here and asking trades people gets you stuff that really is useful, not gimmicky. Talking to the buisness partner is even better. He knows what your brother already has, so that you don't end up with a duplicate gift. Your brother might have even commented to someone he was working with about some tool that he wished he had.

robin303

Give him a Gift card from Homer. That way he gets what he wants.

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Quiglag

I wrote a Christmas gift guide for tools, but I am not allowed to "advertise" my site so...

but here is something that would probably make a good gift.

+ YouTube Video

robert c1

Quiglag,
Have you used that blind mark thing. It seems to me it would fall out of the box at an inappropriate time.

ARI001

A carpenter can never have enough clamps. Other nice gifts would be high quality chisels, planes, scrapers, moulding profile sanders, pin gun, kreg jig, transfer scribe, books on advanced techniques, mortise chisel bits (for drill press), marking gauges, collectible tools (old tools). I would go with clamps myself though. I have boatloads of them and it never seems to be enough.

TempestV

So your best bets would be
1: Clamps- Bessey and Pony are two good companies to look at.
2: High quality collectible tools- Chisels, Planes, Squares, ect. If it's made from rosewood or brass, there there is a pretty good chance that he will like it
3: Multi tool- Leatherman, SOG, Victorinox
4: Titanium hammer- 10-12 oz finish hammer or 14-16 oz framing hammer.
5: Construction Master Calculator

dakzaag

Hijacking this thread for a second.

I have a Janurary birthday so Christmas and birthday have been one in the same for three decades now. Several years ago, the wife and boys give me a "certificate" for a new crapper in the guest bathroom. (been a problem for years, but never high on the list.)

Turns out to be permission to buy my own stool and install when I have the time. I was not impressed

Still putting up with a small toilet that doesn't flush and clogs with three sheets of tissue whenever anyone uses it. Thank you very much Congress of United States.

I would definately not recommend a reminder of something around the house that needs doing...seems so obvious!

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D K & Sons
The maintenance schedule for brick
1. Stand back and say "man that looks nice!"
2. Repeat as often as needed.

Quiglag

No, I haven't used it. I plan on picking one up the next time I have a paneling job. Thats if the panels are small enough to justify the extra movement required

JamesKB2

Got two of those in one year. Sis in law, then my nephew.

Returned one, kept one to power out and stick people in the eye with.

Otherwise, worthless.

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Rustbucket

I think I would stick with a small hand tool. Something that can be used every day. A Starret combination square has been mentioned. That is a great tool. And it's $75 at Lee Valley. Right on budget. It's a nice gift because it is a high quality version of a tool every carpenter needs. A lot of people just don't spend a whole lot on them, and end up with questionable units from HD, Lowes or wherever. These get used every day by most, and the Starret is the best of the bunch. He will thank you every day.

PlaneWoodworker

THAT just made my day . My wife must be related to yours.

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Matt Fuller
Prestige Remodeling
"Do it once, do it right."

PlaneWoodworker

I've used those drywall markers before - good stuff

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Matt Fuller
Prestige Remodeling
"Do it once, do it right."