I just spent two days hauling all of the tools home for the winter. As I sit here sorting through them I wonder to myself which ones do I really need and which ones are just ballast. What kind of a tool kit do you keep on your boat
Boat tools
- Thread starter Frank15180
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Too Many
I have double or triple of about anything I'd ever need on the boat. My nav station is one tool kit. I have a Sears' Craftsman travel bag with another set for going to visit friend's boats (and with electrical tools). And another full set of complete tools [sockets, screwsrivers, pliers, etc.) someone gave me for a gift. I also have an inverter, so I carry a power drill along with a hand drill. A full set of box/open end wrenches is also onboard. After dropping an 11 mm socket overboard during a repair, I was glad I had another one. If weight is a problem, if you're a racer, you have a completely different set of priorities. Stu
I have double or triple of about anything I'd ever need on the boat. My nav station is one tool kit. I have a Sears' Craftsman travel bag with another set for going to visit friend's boats (and with electrical tools). And another full set of complete tools [sockets, screwsrivers, pliers, etc.) someone gave me for a gift. I also have an inverter, so I carry a power drill along with a hand drill. A full set of box/open end wrenches is also onboard. After dropping an 11 mm socket overboard during a repair, I was glad I had another one. If weight is a problem, if you're a racer, you have a completely different set of priorities. Stu
Daul purpose tools
You already stated the solution. Ballast and tools for all occasions in one. No bricks, no water ballast, no lead pigs, just all the tools you would ever need, especially if you cruise. I look at my stuff the same way that Stu does. If there is even a remote chance that the tool would be useful while underway or away from the deck box, it is on board. Tom
You already stated the solution. Ballast and tools for all occasions in one. No bricks, no water ballast, no lead pigs, just all the tools you would ever need, especially if you cruise. I look at my stuff the same way that Stu does. If there is even a remote chance that the tool would be useful while underway or away from the deck box, it is on board. Tom
You can never...
... be too rich, too thin, or carry too many tools on your boat (smile). Most of us have found this out the hard way: the one tool you need is the one you don't have on board at that moment. More seriously, take a hard look at your particular boat, look at every fitting, every nut, every connection and then put together a took kit to deal with them. As Stu said, unless you race, more is going to better than less....
... be too rich, too thin, or carry too many tools on your boat (smile). Most of us have found this out the hard way: the one tool you need is the one you don't have on board at that moment. More seriously, take a hard look at your particular boat, look at every fitting, every nut, every connection and then put together a took kit to deal with them. As Stu said, unless you race, more is going to better than less....
Great Question
What I ultimately did was to figure out what I was hauling from home. I inventoried the parts and then duplicated them all for the boat. I also purchased a large SAE/metric socket and open end set. Now, after loaning my socket set to a guy who then nagged me because I didn't have craftsman or snap-on, I am in the process of upgrading. I didn't want to buy good ones since I thought they would soon rust out. Not so, after 10 years they still look good. My cordless drill is probably the most used tool, and it's time to retire it to the house and get an upgrade there too. Rick D.
What I ultimately did was to figure out what I was hauling from home. I inventoried the parts and then duplicated them all for the boat. I also purchased a large SAE/metric socket and open end set. Now, after loaning my socket set to a guy who then nagged me because I didn't have craftsman or snap-on, I am in the process of upgrading. I didn't want to buy good ones since I thought they would soon rust out. Not so, after 10 years they still look good. My cordless drill is probably the most used tool, and it's time to retire it to the house and get an upgrade there too. Rick D.
Tools
Tools! Probably way too many but here goes. There are two Large Plano tool boxes. One for general tools (the "Blue Box") and one for heavy tools (the "Yellow Box"). The "Blue Box" has nut and screw drivers and a complete set of electrical tools and parts including DVM, crimper, wire stripper, wire cutter and crimp on terminals, shrink tubing, tie wraps, electrical tape in three colors etc., a spool of .041" stainless safety wire and a pair of wire twister pliers, all sorts of screw drivers and crescent wrenches, half a dozen kinds of pliers, snap ring pliers and lots more. The "Yellow Box" has 3/8" and 1/2" english and metric sockets and english and metric open/box end combination wrenches, a set of english racheting box end wrenches, a big, aluminum handled pipewrench and a smaller pipe wrench, punches and brass drifts, several sizes of plastic and steel hammers, hacksaw and blades, files and lots more. I have an engine box with spares for oil and fuel filters a large and a small torque wrench, a ridge reamer, a piston ring compressor and a valve spring compressor (ready for an engine rebuild) a mechanics stethoscope, a strobe/tach for engine speed measurement, spare diodes for the alternator and spare belts (3), a "JC Whitney Special" belt tensioner which really helps when installing belts, and lots more. I have an outboard tool box, which goes in the dinghy when in use, with spare plugs and a plug wrench, a spare starter cord and handle, a set of whitworth wrenches (I have an ancient British Seagull outboard) and a measuring cylinder for measuring oil to mix with the gas, a screw driver kit, a small set of stainless steel tools (the dinghy gets wet) and some other stuff. There's also a bucket to go in the dinghy with an anchor, a bailer, a horn and other stuff for safety. I know it's not a box but it still has to be stowed with the outboard box. I even have a big tackle box with fishing gear and an old hard shell briefcase full of navigation tools. I also have a couple of small boxes for collecting fasteners, the kind with little drawers that pull out. And a collection of old plastic peanut butter jars for stowing shackles etc. Of course this is far too much unless I need something out on the water then it's (I hope) just enough. Oh yeah, the bolt cutters (large and small) in the emergency gear in the starboard cockpit locker along with the all steel hatchet. One of these days the laptop is going out to the boat and I'm going to do a complete inventory of the tools in each box. I have a spare box at home which will probably get all the electrical gear so that it isn't mixed in with the other stuff in the "Blue Box." This will be the "E-Box." I should note that I have looked long and hard for boxes which will not allow water to run inside. When stored away on my old boat leaks in the cockpit locker lids would allow rain water into the locker and, in boxes which had water paths, usually from the handle attachments, into the boxes, rusting some tools. The big Plano boxes are excellent but they can get very heavy. It takes a lot of effort to move the "Yellow Box."
Tools! Probably way too many but here goes. There are two Large Plano tool boxes. One for general tools (the "Blue Box") and one for heavy tools (the "Yellow Box"). The "Blue Box" has nut and screw drivers and a complete set of electrical tools and parts including DVM, crimper, wire stripper, wire cutter and crimp on terminals, shrink tubing, tie wraps, electrical tape in three colors etc., a spool of .041" stainless safety wire and a pair of wire twister pliers, all sorts of screw drivers and crescent wrenches, half a dozen kinds of pliers, snap ring pliers and lots more. The "Yellow Box" has 3/8" and 1/2" english and metric sockets and english and metric open/box end combination wrenches, a set of english racheting box end wrenches, a big, aluminum handled pipewrench and a smaller pipe wrench, punches and brass drifts, several sizes of plastic and steel hammers, hacksaw and blades, files and lots more. I have an engine box with spares for oil and fuel filters a large and a small torque wrench, a ridge reamer, a piston ring compressor and a valve spring compressor (ready for an engine rebuild) a mechanics stethoscope, a strobe/tach for engine speed measurement, spare diodes for the alternator and spare belts (3), a "JC Whitney Special" belt tensioner which really helps when installing belts, and lots more. I have an outboard tool box, which goes in the dinghy when in use, with spare plugs and a plug wrench, a spare starter cord and handle, a set of whitworth wrenches (I have an ancient British Seagull outboard) and a measuring cylinder for measuring oil to mix with the gas, a screw driver kit, a small set of stainless steel tools (the dinghy gets wet) and some other stuff. There's also a bucket to go in the dinghy with an anchor, a bailer, a horn and other stuff for safety. I know it's not a box but it still has to be stowed with the outboard box. I even have a big tackle box with fishing gear and an old hard shell briefcase full of navigation tools. I also have a couple of small boxes for collecting fasteners, the kind with little drawers that pull out. And a collection of old plastic peanut butter jars for stowing shackles etc. Of course this is far too much unless I need something out on the water then it's (I hope) just enough. Oh yeah, the bolt cutters (large and small) in the emergency gear in the starboard cockpit locker along with the all steel hatchet. One of these days the laptop is going out to the boat and I'm going to do a complete inventory of the tools in each box. I have a spare box at home which will probably get all the electrical gear so that it isn't mixed in with the other stuff in the "Blue Box." This will be the "E-Box." I should note that I have looked long and hard for boxes which will not allow water to run inside. When stored away on my old boat leaks in the cockpit locker lids would allow rain water into the locker and, in boxes which had water paths, usually from the handle attachments, into the boxes, rusting some tools. The big Plano boxes are excellent but they can get very heavy. It takes a lot of effort to move the "Yellow Box."
not many
Hello, I day sail with an occasional overnight. I have a small toolbox with a set of SAE wrenches (there are no metric fasteners on my boat), large, medium, and small pliers, assorted screwdrivers, hammer, bolt cutter, and hacksaw. I also have a small electric kit with tape, spare wire, various connectors, digital multi meter, and crimping tool. Finally I carry some spares: engine oil, oil and fuel filter, water pump impellers, alternator and autopilot belt, and some loose nuts and bolts, hose clamps, and of course duct tape. The tools are in one small box, the engine parts in the plastic case that they came in (from Marine Diesel Direct) and the electric stuff in a separate case (the one it came in). In the two years I have been sailing the only repair at sea I had to so was remove and replace an alternator. When I have to do scheduled maintenance or other work on the boat I bring the special tools with me, then bring them home at the end of the day. The less stuff cluttering up the boat the better. If something really goes wrong I will sail, motor, or get towed home and deal with it later. Barry
Hello, I day sail with an occasional overnight. I have a small toolbox with a set of SAE wrenches (there are no metric fasteners on my boat), large, medium, and small pliers, assorted screwdrivers, hammer, bolt cutter, and hacksaw. I also have a small electric kit with tape, spare wire, various connectors, digital multi meter, and crimping tool. Finally I carry some spares: engine oil, oil and fuel filter, water pump impellers, alternator and autopilot belt, and some loose nuts and bolts, hose clamps, and of course duct tape. The tools are in one small box, the engine parts in the plastic case that they came in (from Marine Diesel Direct) and the electric stuff in a separate case (the one it came in). In the two years I have been sailing the only repair at sea I had to so was remove and replace an alternator. When I have to do scheduled maintenance or other work on the boat I bring the special tools with me, then bring them home at the end of the day. The less stuff cluttering up the boat the better. If something really goes wrong I will sail, motor, or get towed home and deal with it later. Barry
duct tape
Just a good roll of duct tape, vise grips and a solid hammer will do a lot of good (aka damage). Okay, okay, throw in couple of screw drivers and some 5200 for good measure..... Yeah, my old boat will be the sunken wreck out in the harbor that you're sailing around every week but I won't loose many tools! Kidding, some good suggestions out there. I'd just keep it simple for the type of sailing you ACTUALLY do, not a tool box that will get your 21' day sailer across the Atlantic.
Just a good roll of duct tape, vise grips and a solid hammer will do a lot of good (aka damage). Okay, okay, throw in couple of screw drivers and some 5200 for good measure..... Yeah, my old boat will be the sunken wreck out in the harbor that you're sailing around every week but I won't loose many tools! Kidding, some good suggestions out there. I'd just keep it simple for the type of sailing you ACTUALLY do, not a tool box that will get your 21' day sailer across the Atlantic.
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