Size matters
You can call this a rant, plain and simple, but sometimes the way they size tools makes no sense to me.
You can call this a rant, plain and simple, but sometimes the way they size tools makes no sense to me.
I have lots of pet peeves, all of which make me scream. (So, please, stop doing them. Thanks.) But when it comes to the shop some of these peeves affect the way I work. Way up at the top of the list is how manufacturers size some things.
Drill bits are the biggest offender. Why is it that all narrow-diameter bits are also extremely short, and all large-diameter bits are extremely long? Seriously, the narrow the bit, the shorter they get in a regular progression of decreasing length. Why?
There are lots of times I want to drill a very small hole in a project, but the miniscule length of the bit makes it impossible to get the drill in there. Conversely, if I want to drill a very large hole, why does the bit need to be the length of broom handle?
Same thing with screwdrivers. If you need to drive very, very small screws – say like when you’re rebuilding a drill motor – why is it the only screwdrivers available for the task have handles smaller than Q-Tips? I have big hands, and I fumble with those little drivers. Why don’t they make tiny driver bits that fit into regular handles?
You can probably think of lots of other examples in your own shop of things coming in sizes that flat out make them difficult to actually work with. I know I can. But these two in particular have driven me nuts for years and I just had to blow off some steam about them.
There, I feel better now.
A.J. Hamler is the former editor of Woodshop News and Woodcraft Magazine. He's currently a freelance woodworking writer/editor, which is another way of stating self-employed. When he's not writing or in the shop, he enjoys science fiction, gourmet cooking and Civil War reenacting, but not at the same time.