Posted on 09/02/2010 8:16:26 AM PDT by Immerito
As a tyke I remember clamping a hunk of wood into my grandfather's bench vise and cutting blocks. Later, it was fixing and building bikes in my mom's garage. The bench vise and broken bikes led to my career as a building contractor, where I make my living using the tools I first picked up as a kid. I believe the lessons learned at the business end of a wrench are confidence, determination and success. That matters to me, because today, I'm the dad. While my boy is an infant--his tool life awaits--my daughter, 7, has already had some practice. She helped me "demolish" our dining room this November to begin its remodel. She whacked the plaster with my hammer, dust fell, a smile widened. Pride was born. All that from a hammer and a little time. Here, I have compiled 10 of the best tools for children to start their journey.
Safety Note: Safety is the top priority for tool use. Tool manufacturers offer no prescribed age restrictions on tool use nor does Popular Mechanics or the author. The parent--as with all things--is the ultimate arbiter of safety.
(Excerpt) Read more at popularmechanics.com ...
Why do they need any tools when playing with a Wii, Xbox or Nintendo?
I am 41 and just got my very first one ever, and it is awesome. It is so fun that I literally walked my property and looked for things to cut up. A lot of tree limbs lost their lives that day!
Excellent ideas.
Good list. We all need these basic tools.
Thank you for posting this article.
vise grips, wrenches, and screw drivers of various sizes, types are also basic. and necessary for most all projects.
#12. Pocket knife
#13. Hatchet
Lots of bandages.
Also, I'd suggest that while it's good for a child to have "his own" tools, his toolkit can be built up according to need ... using Dad's tools under Dad's supervision is where to start. Again, IMHO.
2nd the Sawzall. Those puppies are awesome!
First of all, in my opinion, should be instruction on how to READ a tape measure and that it is made for the right hand.
Each inch on a tape measure has lines of varying lengths ... the 1/2" line is the longest .. the 1/4" lines are next, followed by eighths and maybe sixteenths being the shortest.
I really heard from a grown man, "8 feet 3 and a half and 1 little line inches"
I'm right handed so I usually use the tape measure in my left while I mark with the right ... this forces you to read the tape upsidedown, because the tape was engineered to be pulled with the right hand and marked with the left.
I would include a coping saw in the list.
Learning to cope is a wealth of finger/hand/wrist training that works out well in other tasks.
Prolly most important will be a good Boy Scout type whittlin' knife.
Jes' th' two o'ya, whittlin'
What's that?
An arrowhead
Yep .. fine one too
priceless.
the shotgun ain’t bad, either!! :)
As far as work clothes, I use old stuff of mine that’s worn but still good-and I often stop by my church’s thrift store for used clothing.
Ummm ...
OK. You give your seven-year-old a Sawzall.
Me?
I'll give it to him when he's seven MONTHS old.
Why are you waiting so long?
For cooking... err... *looking at* ants.
I can think of about a million, but Vise Grips, Channellocks, and saw-horses come to mind. My dad was a superintendent for one of the largest construction companies in the world, and I spent a good deal of my youth on mega-construction sites. He knew his way around tools and passed some of that on to me. I worked as a farmhand as a kid, and later worked in the printing industry, so I got a lot of practice building and fixing things; as a home-owner those lessons have saved me tens of thousands of dollars. Every person - man and woman, boy and girl, should be able wire a switch, change a fixture, replace a faucet, frame a wall, build a table, sharpen tools, and use an electrical meter to check a circuit. I am stunned to know men my age (early 50s) who wouldn’t have a clue on how to do any of those things - if you know how, pass it along to someone who doesn’t; if you don’t, learn.
LOL!!!
I know, a sawzall isn’t the best tool for a kid, but it’s a real nice tool to have!!!
ISBN: 0143117467
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