100 Skills Every Man Should Know (21-40)

Let's get right back in to it. #21 through #40 are "Mastering Your Workshop" items.

#21 - Circular Saw
Have used this many, many times. Although an interesting piece of information is that the circular saw in my garage was actually purchased by my wife. And, why buy another one?!

#22 - Spade Bit
This are very handy to have around. I have a small set of these. You must have a drill with some power for some wood, and it helps to have a small sharpening stone to keep them at the top of their game.

#23 - Infrared Thermometer
I am not sure why using an infrared thermometer is on this list. You aim, click the button, and it tells you the temperature. If you are pulling a trailer, it can be helpful to monitor the temperature of the wheel hubs.

#24 - Wood Chisel
These are actually quite simple to use and in a pinch, you can use a flat head screwdriver (depending on how nice you need it to look). Outline your cutting area and then score off several rows inside. Then, chip them out.

#25 - Sandblaster
We did some of this when I was younger, but it is not a skill I have really needed. You have to be careful to not destroy what it is you are trying to restore.

#26 - Torque Wrench
I really should have one, but I don't. I always guess, which you can't really do. I just haven't had the job yet that required me to purchase one, but I have used them. Funny story- in college, we found a Craftsman torque wrench when doing a highway cleanup; it was in really bad shape. We took it to Sears and *poof*, we had a brand new torque wrench! I believe Study still has it.

#27 - Hacksaw
I love my hacksaw. You really should have one in your garage or workshop. Know your blades and know which size to have on. Usually around 20 tpi could be considered general use. A hacksaw is not a tool you wait until you need to purchase; by then it is too late.

#28 - Feeler Gauges
I have to admin that growing up, we used the poor man's method of checking rocker arms. With the engine running, slightly over-tighten them all and then one by one, adjust. So while I have not used these before, I know where to use them and we just didn't.

#29 - Test Light
I prefer to use a multimeter for all my tasks, so I don't have a test light. As mentioned in the mag, be careful where these are used.

#30 - Framing Hammer
While I can't hammer as fast as I could in college, I think I am still faster than most people. Part of the trick is practice, part is confidence, and part is a good hammer. I love my Stanley hammer for this job so much that I won't use this hammer for other jobs; I have a second general use hammer.

#31 - Grease Gun
Oh yeah, plenty of experience with these growing up on the farm. Knowing when a fitting is dirty just by the feel of the gun doesn't take much time to master either.

#32 - Hand Plane
I have done a little of this, but not a lot. It gets tiring on bigger jobs, so find a planer.

#33 - Socket Wrench
My collection is not as big as a mechanic's, but it is big enough for all my jobs. And, I add sockets as needed. Not sure what to have lying around for a small set? Buy 6 point deep wells to start off with. Unless you are doing more advanced work, you don't need 12 point. And the deep wells are always handy to have around.

#34 - Multimeter
Please, Fluke and I are tight. I still have my old analog meter too! Don't forget your EMF detector!

#35 - Brick Trowel
It has been a while since I laid brick, but it comes back to you.

#36 - Air-Impact Wrench
Oh yeah, who doesn't love the sound of one of these going to task. While I have one, I would like a bigger one. Important tip- don't use these to put your lug nuts back on!

#37 - Drill Driver
Oh boy do I love my Craftsman Professional Lithium Ion drill set. And while I am mentioning Craftsman, don't forget to join the Craftsman Club!

#38 - Coolant Hydrometer
While I haven't used one in a while, growing up we did because we were keeping our old vehicles running. Now, I just do a standard flush every 30k-45k miles.

#39 - Sledgehammer
Back to cutting firewood growing up, for the really big logs, we would start with a sledge and a wedge. Also, when we would set fence posts, we didn't have a fence post driver, we used a sledge hammer. One of us would stand on the bed of the truck and drive it in, the other would hold the post.

#40 - Crosscut Saw
These have their place but are seldom used on my projects.

There you go! I did pretty well there, how did you do against the list?