Hand Tool Reviews & Buying Guides

Hand tools make up a large portion of the equipment we carry every day. Pro Tool reviews pays close attention to recent innovations. Our hand tool reviews include knives & cutting tools, wrenches, chisels, fastening tools, hammers, and more. These hand tools covers the gamut from one end of the industry to another. Possibly our favorite series is our best framing hammer review. In that head-to-head review we compared nine popular models. This type of comparison isn’t always possible, but we do test out these tools on the jobsite. Hand Tool Reviews for the Pro Tradesman This is also where you’ll find popular lighting products and even folding knives from Kershaw, CRKT, and Zero Tolerance. Even Milwaukee Tool has new Fastback knives for use by contractors and tradesmen in the field. We try to review as many of these types of tools as possible. This helps us remain a leader in reporting industry trends. This is particularly important when manufacturers add new features or make tweaks to their products. Sometimes they revamp an entire line. Other times they include something that only slightly improves a hand tool over a previous model. It all adds up.

Swanson 24" Magnetic Lightning Level Review BLL24M

Swanson 24″ Magnetic Lightning Level Review BLL24M

Everyone needs a good level. When you’re working in dimly lit areas such as walk-in closets, attics or work sheds, a lighted level seems just the thing to make a common task much easier to manage. Swanson’s most recent line of levels, including their Savage line of torpedo levels, have always done a good job of capturing a great amount of the available light within their vials – making them easier to view. With their new Lightning Level, however, Swanson Tools takes it to a new level and uses a couple of AAA batteries to send this level where few have gone before.

Bosch GLR225 Laser Distance Measure Preview

Bosch GLR225 Laser Distance Measure Preview

Bosch Measuring Tools has introduced the GLR225 laser distance measure, the latest addition to its award-winning line of laser measuring tools. The GLR225 laser distance measurer is a quality product that downloads accuracy into a tool designed to fit into a pocket or tool pouch. Able to perform a wide variety of distance measuring tasks, the GLR225 is ideal for builders, remodelers, project estimators, appraisers, architects, flooring contractors, interior decorators, plumbers, electricians, HVAC contractors, real estate agents and more.

Craftsman Evolv 101 Piece SAE and Metric Tool Set Review

Craftsman Evolv 101 Piece SAE and Metric Tool Set Review

The Craftsman Evolv 101 Piece SAE and Metric Tool Set is an ideal starter kit since it comes with decent tools to tackle most home owner’s tasks that require turning a wrench or tightening a bolt. With a pretty wide variety of sizes in both the sockets and wrenches, this set is a pretty good gift for the young person moving out on their own for the first time.

Stanley 55-099L FuBar Utility Bar Review

Stanley Fatmax FuBar Utility Bar Review

Every now and then you find a special tool. The kind of tool you wonder how you ever did without. The kind of tool that really, truly, makes you want to go break something. The Stanley FuBar is that tool. We all know what FuBar stands for: Functional Utility Bar. Right. The, um, “original” meaning is a bit closer to the truth as this tool will wreak havoc on any demo project, allowing you to disassemble walls faster, pull off drywall with more efficiency, and punch through lathe and plaster like it was paper mache.

Kobalt 46-piece SAE Tap, Die and Drill Set Review

Kobalt SAE Tap and Die Set Review

Everyone has experienced a stripped bolt or nut. It can leave you feeling helpless – unless you have a good tap and die set handy. Kobalt introduced its 46-piece Tap and Die Set to take away that dilemma and provide you with the tools necessary to fix that nut or bolt right up. Of course, you can also use a good tap and die set to take a bare piece of steel rod and turn it into a threaded one. For most, however, you’ll use this to fix a bad bolt, nut, or threaded socket – and those are the tasks for which this level of set is best suited.

Bosch GLL2-80 Dual Plane Leveling and Alignment Laser Review

Bosch GLL2-80 Laser Level Review

The Bosch GLL2-80 Dual Plane Leveling and Alignment Laser gives users the functionality of a much larger rotary laser level combined with the convenience of a compact jobsite tool. To make it even better, Bosch gives you both horizontal and/or vertical 360 degree planes with just the push of a button. You can use this tool alone, with the mount included in the kit, or with a tripod depending on your needs.

Black & Decker BDL170 BULLSEYE Auto-Leveling Laser Review

Black and Decker BDL170 Bullseye Auto-Leveling Laser

The Black & Decker BDL170 BULLSEYE Auto-Leveling Laser is just the ticket if you are trying to put up chair rail, install wallpaper borders or hang pictures in a row. What’s even better is that it comes with a temporary hands free mount so that you can stick it on a wall and then use both hands to make marks or mount what you need on the wall. The auto leveling feature makes it a cinch to use too.

Milwaukee Rasping Jab Drywall Saw Preview

Milwaukee Rasping Jab Saw Preview

Milwaukee introduced a new Rasping Jab Saw (Drywall Saw) as part of its new line of hand tool products. Eliminating the need for separate rasping and reaming tools, the new saw utilizes grating holes along the side of the blade to rapidly expand holes or smooth rough edges of sheetrock or drywall after a cut has been made.