Adam Savage's Favorite Tools: Color Coded Hex Key Sets!

While Adam has long kept his workshop stocked with his favorite Bondhus T-handle hex wrenches, he recently picked up sets of these Wiha Hex L-Keys that are beautifully and smartly color coded for quick identification. You can never have enough hex key sets around the shop!

Disclaimer: Tested may earn an affiliate commission when you buy through the links here.

Join this channel to support Tested and get access to perks:

Tested is:

Intro bumper by Abe Dieckman

Thanks for watching!

#AdamSavage #FavoriteTools #ShopOrganization

[tested]

Disclaimer: Tested may earn an affiliate commission when you buy through the links here.

[Deepbu]

Colour coding you hand tools is a great idea. If you are starting as a field engineer here is another top tip. Put a bit of tape on each tool you carry in your case/bag. As you use it take the tape off. After 3 months any tool still with its tape on doesn't need to be hauled around in your kit. Leave it back in your vehicle for that odd occasion you may need it but get rid of that dead weight as you are not using it enough.

[AverageNerdGuy]

Hearing Adam say that "It is a universal rule that these wrench holders will always be missing one wrench!" This was the most comforting thing I've heard this week!!:)

[edbennett]

I'm impressed by the fact that they shifted the spectrum between the sets, so that similar size tools between SAE and metric sets are clearly in a different color range. Makes it easier to differentiate between them.

[beaker_guy]

Yep. :)
My wife (who owns her own core drilling rig) has all her tools painted neon pink... for the VERY sensible reason that you will NEVER be more frustrated than when you are looking for a dropped chrome tool (which automatically reflects its surroundings and thereby blends in) in a field full of tall grass!
(Inspired by her example, my own outdoor tools are now largely dayglo red.)

[tonyrulez]

Also worth mentioning that these L-keys are luminescent under UV light. So if you lose one and have a UV flashlight it's even easier to find them.

[MysticJhn]

This video is a great example of why I love watching Adam's videos. I'm not a maker, a builder, or any kind of person that would have a vested interest in tools. However, the kind of infectious enthusiasm Adam has for his tools and equipment of all kinds, particularly new ones, is like a child on Christmas morning. So amazed and happy with what they have and they have to show every single family member everything about it and how cool it is and everything it can do. Even if you didn't start the video with an interest in the topic, you have one afterwards.

[Sebach]

I'd like to see an Adam Savage curated essentials toolbox. Like if "Uncle Adam" was to give a kitted-out tool box to a young person who was moving out for the first time, and he wanted to give a well-rounded buy-it-for-life tool kit, what would be in it?

[camsoup]

The random tool rants are by far my favorite content on your Channel there's always one Allen key missing and it's probably the one you need based lol

[fredfred]

I have very similar sets ofmulticoloured allen wrenches (or keys as we call them on this side of the pond) both in metric and torx. I was working on refrigerated vans for supermarkets and I'd be mounting the same compressor kit to 5 identical vans every single day. By the end of it I didn't know if I needed a 5mm or 6mm, I just knew I needed blue, and it made life so much quicker!! Also, mine are of the "extra long" variety which was perfect when you're lying on the ground beneath a vehicle because I could just hang my weight from them to get a decent level of torque.

[stephenroberts]

This brings back some fond memories of the days when I was a field engineer for a chain of cinemas. We used Christie projectors (35mm) and every single fastener on the things were alan. My kit of choice were the Eklind brand long T handles. They were long enough to reach that fastener that was buried under multiple layers of gears and belts. The length of them also made them a bit more flexible around the twist axis which made it nearly impossible to over-tighten. Thanks Adam for the memories and consistently good content.

[Skauber]

Another great thing about this colour coding is that it is the same across their range. If you buy any other tool from Wiha which is the same size as the orange metric hex key in this kit, it will also be color coded orange. Which makes it easy to find it no matter the style of hex you want. Same with their other tools, like torx or screwdrivers. Wera does the same thing. Wera and Wiha are my go-to for tools like these.

[oracle]

I love that you mentioned "color sophistication" an artist who fully understands the inner meanings of colors and their nuances.

[xrphqlic]

You should try the Wera allankeys, they are also color coded, the same goes for their sockets sets ++. They have imo best design on the tool side. They are tapered and concave, so you wont round of the heads that easy. You shoud giv'em a try.

[markpinther]

Always have appreciated Adam’s enthusiasm and intensity about topics like this. The guy is always entertaining.

[Sizes]

Wera have their 'Take It Easy' colour codes across their allen keys, sockets and spanners - making it super easy, barely an inconvenience.

PB Swiss tools make some great RainBow coloured L-wrenches (and parallel pin punches too).

Bottom line: colour codes for quicker identification helps. And is nice to look at!

[BrBobMackeSJ]

There's a reason the missing wrench is always "the one you need right now." It's because it is the size that is currently in most demand (because you are working with a particular size bolt, or whatever) and so it is the one that was most recently used. I can't say how many times I found the missing wrench on my workbench, right next to the thing I am working on.

[bradholmes]

love those. I work as a heavy equipment mechanic for a company that runs ski resorts. Often times ive got to go out and recover equipment, and i often work on the backup motors for the lifts. its really nice having these they keep me organized and i love the ball ends as well. really helps in tricky spots

[sethm]

I have some really old sets of bondhus t handles. The handles on most of mine were destroyed. You can strip and re-dip them in automotive truck bed liner and it adds really good grip for when your hands are greasy.

[TheElrondo]

I use the WIHAs for years and it's a pleasure every time. Besides the nice colors the over all quality is outstanding. Worth every penny...