I shared one of my favorite sayings in my last post, and it applies to this one as well. The source for a particular tool will depend on your priorities (good, fast, or cheap), and remember you get to pick two in most cases. Each of these has its advantages and trade-offs. Identifying those will help guide you as to where the best place is to hunt down some new tools. For instance, I am currently on the hunt for a stand-up drill press. I currently have a benchtop drill press, so I don’t HAVE TO have it right now, as in I don’t need it fast. This allows me to focus on good and cheap. Good and cheap will lead me to used sources like pawnshops, estate sales, and craigslist. I can take my time and get the best deal on the best tool I can find. Below are six of my favorite sources I use to acquire my tools.
Family and Friends are the ones we turn to when we need help, why would it be any different with tools?
My go-to source, first and foremost, is family and friends. Most of us have more than we need. We have stuff we bought, used once, o never used, and it went to the back of the closet. Tools are one of the items that fall into this category, and it applies even more to specialty tols. People get inspired, buy all the tools, and jump into a project or new hobby only to lose interest for one reason or another. A lot of those tools go to storage and are never thought of again
I talk to my family and friends about projects I’m working on all the time. I’ll mention that I’m looking for a specific tool or tools in general. Fairly often they volunteer information about unused tools they are aware of. They say something to the effect of, “I think I have one of those in the garage I don’t use” or “<insert husband/wife/son/daughter/friend’s> name bought one of those years ago and never uses it, you should ask them about it.” Offer to buy it. Sometimes they will give it to you and be happy just to help you out. It also helps them because they are happy to see the item go, get rid of some clutter, and free up some space. Even if they want to sell it, it will most likely be substantially less than what you would pay for it from other sources.
Talk to other makers. Makers have the best tools!
For specialty tools, you might look to other makers. Makers are constantly buying and upgrading tools. Upgrading tools is like an addiction! Some of us just must have the most up to date model or newest gadget. I’m guilty of this occasionally–it happens! Those perfectly good older models of tools or items that have been replaced end up on a shelf or in the back of a drawer, and shop space is at a premium! When I do a deep clean of the shop, I find tools that have a small issue or were replaced, and I just don’t use any more. I generally offer them up to my friends and family because I just don’t feel like haggling with people on Craigslist, and because it helps my friends out!
Ask other makers that you know at local shops. Maybe they have a tool with a small issue you can fix or live with. A quick YouTube or Google search could surprise you at how easy it is to make certain tool repairs yourself! Makers like to help out other makers generally speaking and this can also get a good dialogue going.
Retail store sales/coupons: it is a waiting game, but it can pay off, especially around the holidays
When you need to go retail, try to wait for a sale, the big box stores(Home Depot, Lowe’s, etc,) run good combo sales around Christmas time and other holidays. Great deals can be found on battery packs, tool kits, and combos. I generally buy at least one multipack of batteries for the brands I use every year. With a lot of brands going tool only, this gives more flexibility to select the tools and batteries that are more geared towards your particular uses in an “a la carte” fashion.
Another thing the big box stores do during their Christmas sale is offer combo and bonus deals: “buy this 5-tool combo and select two of these other tools free” or some variation of this. These offers give you more customization to your purchase, so you’re able to get what really works for you.
Discount stores (like Harbor Freight) may not be known for quality, but they can be a good source when you’re priority is to save money! I buy from discount stores when I am not particularly concerned with quality or accuracy, and I want to spare my expensive tools. Consumables like gloves, masks, drop cloths, etc. are other items that HF is a good source for. They run ads regularly and have coupons to even further reduce the prices. I can’t speak for a lot of the power tools and have heard mixed reviews. It generally seems pretty hit or miss. I do have friends that run their HF tools until they die, return them, and repeat. It isn’t a bad option to start with on a budget and upgrade as you grow.
Pawnshops/thrift stores: Bad reputations. Good deals.
Probably the most intimidating source for buying tools is the pawnshop. pawnshops get a bad rap, maybe some of it is warranted. I worked at pawnshops for years and learned a ton which I’m happy to share. First thing is that there are two types of shops and they are fairly different: Corporate stores (Cash America, EZPawn, etc) and then the local, privately-owned shops. I will tackle the differences between these two in a future post and give some tips.
Craigslist/Facebook Marketplace
Just because I don’t like selling things on Craigslist doesn’t mean I don’t like buying from there. There is a lot of junk for sale on there, but there are also deals to be had. With the internet, people are generally aware of what things are worth. Like pawnshops, product knowledge is your friend here. You can run into some of the same issues where people overvalue their items, but what you want to find is where the seller NEEDS to get rid of the item. Maybe they have a bill due, are trying to clean out the garage, or the item was a gift from an ex. It doesn’t matter to you; they are looking for a quick sale and that does matter. Just be smart about it.
Estate sales/Auctions/Liquidations
A lot of people that shop these do so with the intent of reselling items. They generally have more resources to buy but must leave enough room to make a return on the item. Since you are buying the item to use, you are most likely willing to pay more than the reseller. Again, product knowledge is key. Some of these will list the items with pictures online before the sale. Get an idea of what items you are interested in and do your homework. Familiarize yourself with what types of payments are accepted and show up early!
Be creative, be resourceful
The key to all of this tool hunting is the same as designing and completing projects. It is all about using your creativity, using the resources available to you, and a little bit of luck. I will expand on a few of these in a future post to give more tips and tricks on how to get the most out of them. Until then, stay awesome!
Pete