Ever bought too much tool?

[Charles P. Wright]

If I couldn't start until I could buy quality tools, I just couldn't start.

John,

Great post. I'd also like to add, that in my opinion,even if a tool is at the low-end of a category, having that low-end tool that is the right class of tool for the job can be very useful. Trying to force your a limited set tools to do a job that they aren't really the best for can be frustrating and you can't always wait to get the better ones.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

John....BTW....I'm wishing I didn't have so much wrapped up in the stock market right now. With prices so low it is a buyers market but the stuff I own has sure been taking a beating lately.

[John Schreiber]

John,

I started my post by saying I thought it was prudent to buy the best quality your budget will allow. . . .

No disagreement with you there Ken, but I do get frustrated with people who recommend buying top quality tools, when for most people that is either impossible or unwise.

John....BTW....I'm wishing I didn't have so much wrapped up in the stock market right now. With prices so low it is a buyers market but the stuff I own has sure been taking a beating lately.

Mine is in the tank now too. I just keep reminding myself to think long term. (For the market, I need smiley with clenched teeth and worried eyes.)

[Stephen Tashiro]

Professionals may buy too much tool, but one principle should be kept in mind by every hobbyist:

THE PURPOSE OF BUYING A TOOL IS POSSESSION, NOT USE

Every hobbyist's workshop should have a large sign with this principle prominently displayed. I have several routers and other woodworking tools, but have never gotten around to making such a sign, partly because of the aforesaid principle.

[Jim Broestler]

Interesting responses here. I'd say I agree in part with most of them. I think it's usually best to wait until you can buy quality stuff versus, say, HF junk. I also agree that perhaps it's more a matter of wrong tool than too much tool, but going back to my original example (combo sander vs. floor model edge sander), they can often be one and the same. If I'm a hobbyist who maybe sells a few items from time to time, then a nice benchtop combo sander is probably a better idea than a $1500 industrial machine built for production work. In that sense, I have to agree with John. For what I'm doing, it's better to get the lesser machine now and enjoy myself, and, in all honesty, there's nothing to say that I can't use that cheaper sander to help develop some skills and build some stuff to sell, with the intent of taking the profits and investing them in a bigger, better machine when space and demand warrant it.

Let's put it this way (and this is totally a personal rule, so no judgments are being made here about anyone else's policy): if I have to charge over $200 to buy it, then I'm probably better off saving up for it. If nothing else, it checks that impulse mentality as I'm standing there in the store drooling, giving me a chance to be honest with myself as to whether or not I really need it. I've found myself amazingly able to do quality work with what I already have once I've had a couple days to get away from the showroom tool lust.

[Steve Nouis]

In my shop my edge sander get the most use after the table saw. Steve

[Don Bullock]

...
There are an awful lot of people who don't buy the best because they can't justify the cost. I could drop real money for tools, but I would be doing it at the expense of my retirement and my childrens' education. If people do have disposable income to spend, that's great, but I disagree with the message that unless you are buying the best, you are wasting your money.

I've pushed my budget this year and I've spent about $600. I will have a lot of fun in the shop and I will make some nice things. With an investment of about $10,000 in tools, I'm sure I would have less frustration and I could probably do three times the work. But I'd rather have that money invested in stocks and bonds.

If I couldn't start until I could buy quality tools, I just couldn't start.

Very well said John. You're at the point in life where planning your financial future is much more important than having the "best" tools. Having fun doing what you want to do along the way is important as well. It sounds like you are so that's great.

As for the OP -- No, I haven't had a case where I've bought too much tool. I have, however outgrown, my present shop that is 1/2 of a two car garage due to my tool purchases in the last couple of years. Yes, if I can ever get the building permit issued, I'll have a larger shop in the future. There have been many times in the past where I bought less tool than I should have and have regretted those purchases. But, as John said, there are times when the future of one's family are more important than tools. When I bought the lesser tool it was all that I could possibly afford at the time.

[Jack Hutchinson]

John - don't jump from quality to expensive too quickly. I recently bought a Bosch barrel grip jig saw on advice here and reviews elsewhere. ~$150. It isn't a Festool. It's a great tool. I think the point people are making is that there are tools sold which are miserable to work with - not that we all need a CNC-equipped shop. Where we have regrets it was due to buying tools that we soon replaced because they were ineffective or broke down. That's true on any budget.

Generally we're saying it pays to research, budget, choose carefully. Only a few of us can afford all (or any of) the really high-end (expensive) stuff.

[Tim Byars]

Leaving aside the budget and space questions, the OP's question intrigues me because of my feeling that I've "grown into" every tool I've owned. A quality tool gives me more potential long-term upside, in ways that I don't even necessarily foresee.
But, then, I'm so new to most of this I'm still on the steep part of the learning curve. Sometimes I think, "well, now I wish I'd waited and purchased a premium tablesaw instead of my HD Ridgid"...but without having a year's worth of experience on it, I wouldn't know what I was doing, or what I was missing (and, honestly, there's no way my skills are anywhere near having "outgrown" it). Then there's my bandsaw, for which I DID wait and save, spending time reading and whatnot...not premium by many people's standards (Steel City 14") but lots of room for me to grow into. I've only had it a couple months, but using it has opened my eyes to lots of techniques, projects, and other possibilities that I didn't specifically have in mind when I bought it.

[John Shuk]

Actually I read an article in WOODSHOP NEWS that talked about hobbiest vs Pros. They said that the hobbiest spends much more on tools than the pros do. A pro wwker needs to make a profit and is likely to buy enough tool to get by and still turn a profit. If a more expensive tool can add production and profit then it can be justified.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

To make plant stands you really do need a $1500 sander

A $3000.00 band saw and a $20,000.00 sliding TS are absolutely required too.

Oh I forgot you absolutely need a 12" or larger jointer and at least that for a planer.

And trying to get along without a full size slot mortiser is - well don't even bother.

Then you can't run all that equipment without the $5000.00 DC

These are the bare minimum essentials mid you.

Later when you progress to the plant containers themselves you'll need a Martin saw and maybe a Streibig. along with a radial arm drill press.

.

[jim oakes]

Quote:
Originally Posted by John Shuk
Actually I read an article in WOODSHOP NEWS that talked about hobbiest vs Pros. They said that the hobbiest spends much more on tools than the pros do. A pro wwker needs to make a profit and is likely to buy enough tool to get by and still turn a profit. If a more expensive tool can add production and profit then it can be justified.

I can see this in my case. I was a pro from 1971 to 1986. I only bought the tools I could justify to turn a profit. Now I have a hobby shop and can afford any machine I want,but It's still hard for me to justify buying "to much tool".
The key to me is satisfaction. I could sleep good at night as a pro when I made good money and paid cash for all my machines.
Now I sleep good knowing I can build anything I want with the tools I own.
Yes,when I play around with a massive cast iron machine in a showroom I say to myself " I would love to own this some day" but am I a tool collector or woodworker? I guess today I'm a little of both.

It would be satisfying to have a huge heavy bandsaw. Maybe soon. I guess I'll sleep on it.(No,I won't turn it on first that would be dangerous.)

[Jim Broestler]

To make plant stands you really do need a $1500 sander

A $3000.00 band saw and a $20,000.00 sliding TS are absolutely required too.

Oh I forgot you absolutely need a 12" or larger jointer and at least that for a planer.

And trying to get along without a full size slot mortiser is - well don't even bother.

Then you can't run all that equipment without the $5000.00 DC

These are the bare minimum essentials mid you.

Later when you progress to the plant containers themselves you'll need a Martin saw and maybe a Streibig. along with a radial arm drill press.

.

And for the gumball machines I make, I'm thinking a 30" wide belt sander at the bargain price of only $50,000 is a must-have.

[Verne Mattson]

I've enjoyed this thread. I've not had the good fortune to buy too much machine...I've bought what I needed to get the job done...lunchbox planer, contractors' saw, small 6" jointer, Delta 14" bandsaw with riser (actually a gift from my wife). I've tuned everything to the best of my ability and I enjoy using all my tools, especially the bandsaw. And since I added a Biesemeyer fence to the tablesaw, it's done everything I've asked.

My calculus has always included lugging machinery to my basement shop. I've seen some nice prices on used Unisaws, but I can't really justify it right now, nor would I want to take it apart and lug it downstairs.

If I were to buy a top notch industrial level machines or machine, right now I think it'd be a combo jointer/planer. I don't enjoy dimensioning wood - I hate the snipe on my old Delta lunchbox planer and the bed on my jointer is too short. A nice combo machine would be great.

I have bought too much tool in the way of handtools, though. I'm a sucker for fine planes...

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

And for the gumball machines I make, I'm thinking a 30" wide belt sander at the bargain price of only $50,000 is a must-have.

Absolutely~!!