In a deal announced today, Stanley Works is buying Black & Decker for $4.5 billion. And Stanley Works CEO, John Lundgren is being named CEO of the combined company. According to the companies, the deal views the housing market in a comeback stage and the DIY and construction markets in a lagging position.
The merge is good news for the folks at Stanley's headquarters in New Britain, Connecticut where the combined company will be based, and bad news for headquarters employees at B&D in Towson, MD where the companies have stated most job cuts would be based.
While both tool manufactures, the companies have little overlap in product lines and expect regulatory and and shareholder approval shortly.
This was a huge tool purchase. Here is my question: What was your largest tool purchase and was it a good investment?
If there's one place you need specialized tools, it's in outer space. So it was interesting for me to read about tools NASA designs and how NASA designs them. After trying out a variety of tools in area hardware stores, one NASA engineer decided to use the handle design on a DeWalt cordless drill for a new power screwdriver. The same engineer also used concepts behind air wrenches used by NASCAR pit crews to remove tires in building the screwdriver.
Who said power tools were only for home building? Fred & Friends, an online store of kitschy and creative kitchen accessories, recently came out with a circular saw that you can use on your plate: to cut your pizza. PIZZA-PRO 3000 slices right through that tough crust and sausage slices and gives you an excuse to claim the biggest slice. Just be careful when you wash it; those blades are sharp!
Every handyman knows there's nothing a little duct tape can't fix. But did you know of the many things you can make from duct tape? This page from Instructables.com shows you them all, including a duct tape wallet, shoes, top hat and tie.
If you have ever done a site job and said, “Gosh, this would have been so much easier to do back at the shop with my table saw,” join the club. Sure, I have a circular saw and a couple of collapsible horses to do the larger cuts, but the lines are never as clean or straight as with my table saw. To top it off, on smaller jobs I work alone and when cutting a 4’ x 8’ sheet of 3/4-inch plywood I often wonder how I am going to catch something before it hits the ground. I personally don’t like to bring a truckload of tools; I prefer to keep the big ones in the shop and just take the portables. Thank you, DeWalt, for making a tool that cuts like a table saw but can be easily brought to the job site. While the tool is far from perfect (no dust collection system like my home unit), but when I'm working alone and not bring a truckload of tools to the site then the DeWalt TrackSaw Kit with extra 44 inches of track is a time-saver and I am adding it to my tool box. The reason I really like it is with straighter cuts I have less waste. Less waste means I have less material to buy and clean up. Who would have thought that a tool that would save me time could also be green?
Everyone has seen the series or at least the movie with Harrison Ford. Well, if you liked it, I may have found the tool for you. And it may just help you find the "one-armed man." How, you may be asking, "Will I find the one-armed man?" Simple; you just need the bait: The perfect gift for someone trying to screw with one hand. Black and Decker, which makes many starter tools for the do-it-yourselfer, has come out with a contraption to hold the screw and the drill with one hand, leaving your other hand to multi-task (either holding up the board or simply holding the bag of screws). Either way, this handy new power screwdriver is a great gift for the fugitive lover in all of us.
After reading the horrific story of a man who tried to teach his six year old how to use a table saw (the boy lost a good portion of his thumb), I was again reminded of the thumb-saving technology of Saw Stop. This technology, which stops a table saw instantly upon contact with human flesh, was recently profiled on the Discovery Channel. In the clip, they discuss the mechanics involved and at the end, the inventor shows his confidence in his invention by sticking his own thumb into the table saw. (DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME). Watching the retracting technology in super-slow motion is absolutely AMAZING (at around 4:29 in the clip). It shows how important it is to get this technology into every table saw in America. If you don't believe me, just ask Tommy MacDonald.
