All Purpose Carpentry Tools

Basic carpenters tools

Whether you are building a house, constructing a beautiful piece of furniture or putting up some shelves in the garage, it is important to have a good collection of all purpose carpentry tools in your toolbox. Your toolbox is the start of your collection and needs to be selected with care. It should be your first purchase so that you have a place for all your later tool acquisitions. Select with care the type of tool box you think will suit you, the best way is to determine what is going into the box. If you are only buying a few small tools for your home then it is not necessary to buy an ‘all singing, all dancing’ toolbox on wheels.

Hand saws

Firstly look at hand saws you will need a couple of basic saws which you can add to as the need arises. The 28”-30” Rip saw cuts along the length of the grain and is a useful purchase. The 22”-26” Cross cut saw is used for cutting across the grain of a piece of wood. The Tenon saw is used for cutting joints and is a smaller blade with finer teeth. Always ensure that your saw blade is straight by looking along the length of the saw blade (before you buy it).

Hammers and mallets

Choose the weight of hammer that you find most comfortable. Before purchasing, look at the head of the hammer, there are many different types, one kind is a ‘claw’ hammer which is useful for removing unwanted nails, the cross-peen hammer used in fine work, tack hammers for a hand punch, small pins and nails.
The mallet is usually made of wood and is designed to be used with chisels for cutting joints or carving. The European beech mallet weighs about 1 pound and is generally suited to most woodworkers.

Planes

A plane is used for preparing and smoothing your timber before marking out your piece. It is also used for cutting joints and finishing your work. To start your tool kit, you will need a basic metal or wooden bench plane on which the cutter can be adjusted to plane different thicknesses. Check the blade is aligned and projecting properly by looking along the length of the underneath of the plane.

Drills

There are many cheap power tools but the most useful tool for boring holes is the electric drill it has almost taken over from the hand drill and is a versatile and extremely useful piece of equipment and should be used with great care. Video available below on How to Use a Router is a good guide for safe power tool use.

Chisels

When you are starting out it is not necessary to buy a huge selection of chisels. I have found that most of the basic carpentry needs are met by having a 1” and ½” bevel chisel in the toolbox. It is possible to cut some basic joints with these chisels. The handles of the chisels should be made of box wood or beech and close grained to prevent them splitting. If you are hitting them with a hammer, then ensure you have a chisel with a steel hoop around the handle.

Square

An essential in any tool box is the try square, it will be the difference between it looking right or looking wrong. It is used to ensure all your pieces are truly square before they are cut. Usually made from wood and steel, align it with the straight edge of your wood.

Measuring carpentry tools

A steel tape measure is an important piece of equipment, ‘measure twice and cut once’ is the old saying and it is very true, use your tape to measure wood or walls but use a steel rule and sharp pencil to draw accurate lines on your wood.

Types of carpentry tools

There are literally hundreds of tools available in the stores, some of which are metal tools, but many others are wood tools for carpentry only. Start off small with a basic saw, hammer and chisel and then build your kit steadily as you gain experience. Once you start working with wood you will begin to appreciate the specialist tools you might need, which you can add to your toolkit. Always look after your tools as they will provide many years of useful service if they are treated properly.. This article gives you an idea of the basic kit of all purpose carpentry tools, so enjoy starting your new life as a worker of wood.