Tools

Here is a list of the tools I have in the shop that I use most for the boat:

1. Portable 'jobsite' table saw with fence, 10" blade.
I find this invaluable, and I can't count the number of times I've used it to rip up long boards into stringers, beams, any of the dimensional lumber in the boat. Super important tool, for the $100 or whatever it was.

2. Hand held electric jigsaw
This has cut out ALL the bulkeads, all the hullsides, all the keel pieces, all the stems and skegs, and tons of other little trimmings and end-choppings, and I still am on the original blade! I have two others in the handle still, probably enough to finish the boat! I bet that blade had cut close to a mile of continuous sawline.

3. 3/8 corded clutch drill
I found out last year on the dinghy that a battery drill is next to useless. My wife got me this one for father's day last year, and it's gotten tons of use, I have a set of bits to drill holes with, a die-grinder sanding disc, and the awesome drum sander attachment, the drill works well.

4. Japanese Style pullsaw.
What boat builder is without one of these? I not only use it for endless wooden things, but it is the main workhorse when I have to cut bone. How many of your pullsaws have beheaded multiple deer? I can hear it now, in the Bahamas one day, some rich guy will be looking at my boat, and say "What's that dark reddish brown staining under the epoxy there, rot?" "Nah, it's just deer blood."

5. 9 inch tabletop bandsaw:
Another handy thing, but actually not nearly as useful as a lot of other tools are. I do use it whenever I can, mostly to save time or elbow grease with a handsaw on tedious jobs.

6. Electric power plane, hand-held.
This guy eats wood with the greatest of ease, and no effort on my part. I use him whenever the job calls for him. when you laminate a lot of plywood, some of the edged don't match up perfect, until this comes along.

7. Regular jack plane, sharp.
I got this at a flea market for $12, and it's done $400000 worth of work. I abuse it though, I am sorry. No plane should face hardened epoxy, but this one must.

8. Handheld belt sander
I hate this tool I HATE it. It is in my hands far too much, and it never seems to DO anything to the material. The belt always stops moving too. I thing I am faster with a sanding block.

9. Table top belt/disc sander
This is a different story. it works well, and I like it. It's relatively new, and only broke down after 20 minutes or so of run time, requiring me to disassemble it and put the centrifugal start/run switch back on the motor shaft, from which it had fallen off. Other than that, it's great.

10. Random orbital sander, 5"
This works well too. I hate sanding anything though.

11. Sur-form
King of the shop here, lifesaver of all lifesavers, etc...

I also have a circular saw that doesn't get much use. And a table top scroll saw that gets ZERO use, I don;t know why I own it. Maybe it'll gut out lexan windows one day or something/