Tools we waited too long to buy + toolbelt setup

Be one of the first to own the Perkins Brothers Tool Belt!

We love tools, and have been buying them relentlessly for the last 15 years. There are a few of those tools that stood out to us immediately as tools that we should’ve purchased way before we actually did! In this video we will tell you about some of these experiences as well as give you a full toolbelt set up at the end of the video!

Learn more about us at:

Pencil Pull

Fast Cap Magnetic Bit Holder

Maverick Safety glasses

Gecko Siding clamps for fiber cement siding

Gecko siding clamps for LP Smartside

Evolution masonry saw

Paslode cordless framing nailer

Stiletto framing hammer

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[dutchcreek]

My wife and I watch ALL of your videos together. Nearly every evening, we sit together, watch, smile, laugh, take lots of notes and enjoy the dynamics of the Perkins Brother culture. I’m a one-man show carpenter/handyman+ here in Colorado. It’s very rewarding to have mentors like you all (or is it y’all). Thank you, we learn so much from you both (and from the crew). Keep up the great work.

[bedef]

Pro tip from a New Zealand painter. On your airless sprayers outer casing, simply rub on some Vaseline all over the casing and when it’s time for a clean, a rag or paper towel will wipe off the paint and the Vaseline in one go back to factory colours.
Enjoy your channel guys albeit talking in imperial instead of the best way-metric 😆

[sawdustadikt]

Great list. If anyone reads this, think long haul. Investment over time. When I got my one man business started 20 years ago I got a titan 440 impact. I started doing painting, used the little profits from that to build my carpenter tools arsenal. I am a renovation carpenter that specializes in finish work, custom cabinetry and shelving, all forms of trim work. I still have that 440 and I use it mainly for pre painting/finishing all my materials. Buy top quality that you can afford, you will save money and buyers regret. There is nothing like getting on the job with a new toy, dialing it in, seeing the ease and time saving it gives. Especially if you have really wanted the tool for a long time.

[davegordon]

Y'all have come along way since the beginning. From your editing and production to your sponsors. It's been allot of fun over the years watching. Keep it up. True building gangstas!!!

[chetable]

The impact driver and the oscillator saw have been game changers the last 10 year

[dawsontaylor]

I wish i worked for someone like you guys, you all seem like a great group of guys to work alongside and take tremendous pride in your work!

[oystercovecraftsman]

Biggest game changer for me recently was built not brought.
Get some turn buckles, weld some flat bar on the ends with holes drilled in it. Screw your turnbuckle to the top of a stud or top plate and the other end to a timber brace that’s screwed to the floor. It makes straightening walls so easy and accurate

[ernieforrest]

As for tools, back in my day when i started in the home building industry, power saws, then commonly referred to as Skill saws were just gaining in popularity.
Rough carpenters, AKA framers would have 3 hand saws in their tool box.
A large tooth variety called a rip saw, a smaller tooth 8 point, and a 10 point for finer work like installing pine facia material.
A sharpening service would come by the jobs weekly to pick up saws, and return them with the blades covered with a cardboard cover.
Most saws were made by the Henry Diston co. in Philly.
Tool belts didnt exist, nor did the large box stores that sold everything from tools to lumber and home cleaning products.
Lumber was sold by lumber yards, and they had sales people who visited the job sites.
They supplied heavy cloth nail aprons and carpenter pensils with their name on them.
Hammer holders were made by bending the heavy wire the lumber was contained with from the lumber yard and attached to the belt holding your pants up.
There were no tapes used other than the 50 and 100 foot variety.
All carpenters used folding rules in either 6 foot or 8 foot versions.
So a framing carpenter on a job site would be wearing a nail pouch with 2 large pockets holding nails.
And a framing hammer and a folding rule and a pensil, and that was all.
Framing carpenters also had a hatchet in their tool box which got frequent use since there were very few power tools.
I always felt that the sawsall was the best creation in my time. Mainly for its use for fixing mistakes made in door and window locations.


I cant understand why today its necessary to carry every tool you own all the time.
I mean how often do you need a cats paw? or a chalk box? even a speed square? which by the way didnt exist either in the 50s and 60s. If we needed a cats paw we would just ask for one to be passed up to where we we working, same with a chalk box or other tools.
We also always used a cut man operating the power saw. He did all the cutting of things like headers, jack, cripples, etc.
And he was always one step ahead of those nailing things together.
And we also had to cut all the studs, since precuts werent available then either.
A helper would place the studs on a rack on the floor, and 25 or more at a time would be cut by using a chalk line for marking them.
I would certainly agree that especially some of the power tools today are very important to have.
Especially ones like the Paslode nail gun used for the metal hangers and truss straps.
The early version framing nailers were in my opinion more trouble than they were worth.
When i moved to Florida in the late 80s we still didnt own any framing nail guns.
I did buy a couple after i moved there however and they worked pretty well.
But we did have and use trim nail guns, and also power mitre saws for the trim work, which were time savers.
For more than 20 years we had 2 full time trim carpenters, each of whom worked alone.
We never used our framers for trim work.
My brother ran the jobs after all framing, roof shingles, rough ins and concrete floors were complete.
I ran them from stakeout untill that point.
i personally staked out and set the batter boards for every house we ever built, with zero mistakes of any kind ever.
In 1973 alone we completed 97 houses on scattered lots within a 50 mile radius of our office.
With a good helper and fairly good lot conditions i could stake out 2 houses in a day provided there wasent alot of travel time involved.

What you guys really need to be thinking about at this point in your life, is how long do you want to be hanging over the edge of a roof?
Especially during those bad months when things get icy and even more dicey.
Be thinking about that shop, and shifting over to needing a bigger one, even a much bigger one with much more machinery and a place to paint cabinets.

A large kitchen and bath remodel can be more lucrative than building an entire house, especially when a remodel or addition is involved.
Also making custom trim and other millwork like custom doors is worth thinking about.
Just learn to keep your hands away from the machines when their running.
Put power feeders on everything you can, especially things like shapers.
My youngest son now 52, was always more interested in the trim part of carpentry.
He moved to Florida also now close to 20 years ago.
But he almost immediately moved towards building cabinets and installing them.
He has since moved to 3 different shop locations due to size constraints.
He owns his present 4000 sq ft location, but he could easily use twice that much space.
Lumber and plywood storage alone requires a lot of space.
Plus space to store cabinets after they are assembled and then finished.

He is also a Florida licensed building contractor, and will soon have his electrical license as well.
Which can be a big obstacle when doing any type of kitchen remodeling.
So my advice would be to be thinking less about tools, and more about where you are in your life.
How many days are lost due to conditions and other things beyond your control?

[jesswu]

Just realized it's been almost two weeks without updated the current house building But still enjoy this...love these guys...

[Storm-rpxe]

Great video with straight to the point reviews and links for the tools. Would be neat to see a video about your crew, how you came to know/hire them and how long they each have worked for you.

[maintenancebynathan]

Great vid again. We run the Dewalt cordless nailers but ONLY with Paslode nails. Anything else tends to jamb. Also run the Milwaukee 18 gauge trim nailer. So much better when doing additions where the original home is occupied. (noise) Especially now with so many people working from home. Love your vids. Real people on real job sites. Thank you!

[Bruceyenzer]

The belt tour was exactly what I needed! I get so curious as to what other builders carry on them. Thanks dudes!!

[davidlithgow]

Enjoy your videos guys, thanks. To avoid cumulative error you can simply swap the jigs from side to side occasionally. Any micro error on one side will then micro correct on the other side of the siding course.

[j-dawg]

Honestly this is the best building channel online. Love love love it! I’ve learnt so much. Awesome bunch of guys too! Safe building 😎👌🇦🇺

[ggrimm]

For bits, I keep a Klein 14-in-1 Screwdriver on hand with a DeWalt locking bit holder in it. Serves me well as a handyman, who runs into all kinds of fasteners. I put a Key-baks on my rig shoulder straps with NC voltage detector and a mini Klein contact voltage detector connected to them..

[wk]

Love this show. Nice to see all the important tools. Seeing the way that plumb bob is hanging out of your belt you will be using the chalk line in no time.

[milesharlan]

Sunday afternoon video Yippie..It is alittle hard to watch while I am am out shopping with the family!! Thank You guys! Keep Up The Good Work!!

[antonvink]

In addition to my big sprayer i bought a year back an Graco Ultramax for doors, skirting boards and siding. I have seen you guys paint siding by hand I highly recommend an additional small sprayer for these projects it is such an time/effortsaver. I set mine up in about 2 minutes ready to go and cleanup is also around 10 minutes max.

[MattyWill]

I finally switched from hammer to palm nailer for hangers. Lol. What a life saver. Might have to get the gun sometime soon.

[rjhoover]

Oscillating saw, Dremel tool and a heat gun were game changers for me after many years. the heat gun allows you to finish a paint or plaster patch instead of having to wait for it to dry and the dremel is great for cutting screws and nails and the saw is a must.
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