Hand Tools for Carpentry After TEOTWAWKI

hand tools

Because various members of my family have construction businesses, I have had a chance to talk to some of their younger employees.  One thing that I notice was that they seem to be very dependent on battery-operated tools.  The question of how would you do your work without power tools seems to throw them.  They are completely dependent on power tools and have no real knowledge of hand tools.

A suggested set of hand tools for a carpenter

  • rip saw, (for cutting with the grain)
  • crosscut saw, (for cutting across the grain)
  • back saw,  (a backsaw is any hand saw which has a stiffening rib on the edge opposite the cutting edge, a miter saw)
  • compass saw, (a keyhole saw or coping saw)
  • jack plane, (A jack plane is the general-purpose bench plane
hand tools
a hand drill
  • fore plane, (The fore plane is about 14″ to 18″ long and has a cutting edge with a thumbnail shape)
  • smoothing plane, (The smoothing plane is typically the last plane used on a wood surface)
  • shave or drawing knife Do You Need A Drawknife?
  • Assorted wood chisels
  • cold chisel for metal
  • a gouge or two (a type of chisel)
  • a good hatchet
  • two or three hammers, including a tack hammera finishing hammer and a framing hammer
  • a brace and bit, with a set of half a dozen or more bits of different sizes  (Hand operated drills)
  • a set of  (A gimlet is a hand tool for drilling small holes, mainly in wood, without splitting , similar to an auger)
  • a rubber mallet
  • several nail sets
  • several assorted screw drivers
  • a tape measure
  • a hand level
  • a miter box
  • a good carpenter’s square
  • tin snips
  • assorted small and large pliers
  • several rasps
  • a large, flat file; at least one medium-sized three-cornered file and a half-round file.
  • Yankee screwdriver
  • A vise
  • 2 saw horses
  • A hand operated drills and bits
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  • hand tools
    a yankee screwdriver
  • Assorted nails, screws and glues
  • The above list of hand tools would let you do most of the necessary repairs around a home or homestead that require woodwork.  In the near future, we will post a list of the hand tools you need for automotive and metal working.

    Howard

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    6 thoughts on “Hand Tools for Carpentry After TEOTWAWKI”

    1. Rather than a gimlet set, I recommend a push drill. I bought one from Garrett Wade (search their site), smooth action and as fast or faster than a electric drill even for large jobs. And I’ve got an old Stanley with the gray plastic handle and red cap, over 60 years and going strong. Either are great. The bits snap in and are secure.

    2. never a bad idea to be ready & able to do a strong joint …. a dowel jig and a selection of premade is a good addition ….

    3. I’ve been slowly building my hand tool collection and is a great list to compare what I have with what I need. Looking forward to the metal working list as I have no idea what do get in that discipline. As always love your very educational postings.

    4. Something to add to list and often overlooked are a saw set and feather files for keeping the saw blades cutting decent, JMHO

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