I thought it might be of interest and informative to members of this
list to do a quick survey -

If you had to choose say eight power tools to have on board, which ones
would you choose which features and make preferences included if you
wish. Battery powered 14 or 18V etc or cord, drill size, sanders,
polishers, multi-use, Dremel, saws etc??

Ron Barr
Lady Brookhaven Hatteras LRC 42
Presently lying RI Yacht Club, Narragansett Bay, RI
KB1LFX

Not sure what the best 8 power tools are but thought I would report on a set I just purchased. Here in St Pete, FL, we have one of the WM outlet stores. They offer all sorts of discontinued parts, tools, etc at good discounts. I purchased a 3 tool cordless set. It is manufactured by Seafit. Contains a drill, sander and flashlight and two 18volt batteries...all this for 44.95. Have used all the tools and work fine. The drill has a chuckless system, 20 diff settings for torque and variable speed. Not sure of longevity, but for $45 I couldn't pass it up. It is definitely one tool set gonna stay on the boat. By the way, they had several of these sets available for you locals....

As for other tools I like having around.
Rotozip, jigsaw, orbital sander, buffer and....best tool...my multimeter.
Joel Wilkins
mv Jolly Mon
St Pete, FL

Okay here goes:

1. Ryobi 18v drills. I have two drills, two chargers and five battery
   packs. Two drills allow me to drill with one and drive screws with the
   other.

2. Dremel tool and tool bits - use it to cut just about everything.

3. Dewalt router - good balance between power, weight and cost.

4. Craftsman Dry Wall trimmer. Think of it as a lightweight, compact router.

5. 6" Porter-Cable Random Orbital Sanders. These guys are real
   workhorses. I have two.

6. DeWalt quarter sheet ROS.

7. Makita 3x21 belt sander. Threw the Sears lump out years ago,

8. Delta 10" chop saw. Cut all the interior trim with this guy.

Paul Esterle - Freelance Boating Writer
Columbia 10.7/Matilda 20
North East MD
www.captnpauley.com
pages.preferred.com/~pesterle/

Eight favorite power tools onboard, in no particular order:

1. Fein multi (I hate the price of this set and its replacement parts but
   nothing else compares)
2. Bosch saber saw
3. Porter Cable random orbit sander
4. DeWalt 18 volt cordless drill
5. Porter Cable biscuit joiner
6. Bosch 12 inch chop saw (however I saw a new laser guided Hitatchi that is
   to die for)
7. Miller XMT 304 CC/CV mig welder with 1 pound spool gun (you gotta have
   this on an aluminum boat)
8. Pair of Milwaukee mini grinders (usually one has a wire brush and one has
   a non-ferrous grinding wheel on it)

Do we have to stop at eight?

Safe Cutting and Drilling.

Eric Thoman
Abyssinia

This is kind of fun I guess:

Dremel tool with a good set of burrs for grinding out
gel coat cracks and crannies for repair.

Porter Cable 5.5" sidewinder "skil" saw

Porter Cable random orbit sander

Porter Cable 1/4 sheet block sander

Porter Cable Belt Sander (Last resort for sanding).
Good for sharpening chisels and screw drivers

H/D Makita Clone buffer/sander 1000-3000 RPM

Hitachi M12V router and table top that can be used
also as a table saw with the 5.5" sidewinder above

Bosche jig saw (not yet acquired)

Fluke 29 series multimeter. Or an 87 if you're flush.
I wouldn't bother with anything other than fluke on
board. I cart around a Simpson too because they are so
handy for some kinds of testing.

Chop saws are nice but more of a production tool I
think. Take up too much room on the boat. I have too
all the rechargable stuff but find that I always fall
back on the corded drills for large holes. The
Milwaukee 1/2" hole shooter is a phenominal tool. Be
careful with big hole saws, It can break your wrist!

Lot's more tools to talk about

Dan Hall
M/V New Adventure
Hatteras 48 LRC
Sausalito
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