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We're talking two-ton hydraulic transplanters and hydro hole diggers, smart stud sensors and super saws that can tear cars in two (Now get to work)
Like most accidents, this one happened so fast and irrevocably it seemed unfair. I was pruning deadwood near the top of a 100-foot ponderosa pine when a routine chain saw cut went sour. At full throttle, the tip caught on a nub and flung the 16-inch bar back toward me at 12,000 rpm. The chain bit deep - 36 stitches deep - into my shoulder. While I waited a moment to see how bad it was, I reflected on the cardinal safety rule I'd just broken: Never make a one-handed chain saw cut once you've removed the chain brake. I kicked out from the trunk and made a smoking rappel down the safety rope on my way to the hospital.
Power tools have certainly changed in the quarter-century I've been a tree surgeon, thinning branches a hundred feet off the ground. So I was thrilled to get the chance, with my builder friend Neil, to choose the latest, greatest power tools to show on the following pages.
We found that today's tools are twice as light, fast, reliable, and safe as their predecessors. They feature high-impact plastic cases, weight-saving polymer motor parts, and rubber-coated ergonomic handles.
But the most impressive engineering advance has been in power supply for cordless tools. Most use nickel cadmium batteries; depending on voltage, a charge might last an hour at steady use. The newer nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) cells can last up to 70 percent longer. Bolder Technologies, in Golden, Colorado, is developing a rolled thin metal film rechargeable battery it hopes to bring to power tools over the next year; these cells would have much more power than nickel cadmium under a heavy load.
Cordless tools, of course, help backyard builders and pros alike avoid the hazards of heavy extension cords that constantly catch, tangle, and trip. Just remember to use both hands when you take off the chain brake.
SOFT TOUCH
There's user-friendly, and then there's user-fresh. Get your mitts on one of these zaftig tools by Oxo and you'll see what wemean. This first-generation line of soft-handled ergo-tools reconfigures all the classics: hammer, pliers, screwdriver, and tape measure. With handsome black elastomer cases and handles bonded directly to forged chrome-vanadium steel, these tools are as easy on the eye as they are on the hand. Hammer: $24; pliers: $13; screwdriver: $4-7; tape measure: $15. Oxo: (800) 545 4411, +1 (212) 242 3333, www.oxo.com.
ULTIMATE ROOT SERVER
Sick of sweating like a dog to put a shade tree in your front yard? Plant an instant forest with the TS44A. Vermeer's trailer-mounted hydraulic tree spade easily transplants a leafy friend up to 14 feet tall and 5 inches in diameter. It digs a hole 3 feet deep and 44 inches around, plucks up the tree and root ball, and drops the transplant into its new home. Powered by a Kohler 20-hp motor, the 5,400-pound Vermeer has some of the most sophisticated hydraulics around. TS44A: $20,000. Vermeer Manufacturing: (800) 370 3659, +1 (515) 628 3141, www.vermeer.com.
CLEAR CUT
Stihl's 018 chain saw is the latest in idiot-proof safety gizmos. At 8.6 pounds, this superbly balanced ravening wood minx is ready to take on everything from piles of firewood to totem pole-carving contests. Its 14-inch bar has a low-profile safety chain and wrench-free adjustment mechanism - the most innovative chain saw feature since the chain brake. Light it up and hang on to your flannel shirt! 018: $199.95. Stihl: (800) 467 8445, www.stihlusa.com.
SHEAR GENIUS
Take a hike, Scissorhands. Swoop along those raggedy hedgerows with the rippling 1.2-horse HS80 trimmer by Stihl and transform your backyard into a gallery - hard-edged abstract or formal baroque. No need for contortions to make those vertical "shoulder" cuts, either: Just swivel the handle, lock it in, and watch these 12-pound, 30-inch double-sided shears tear it up. HS80: $369.95. Stihl: (800) 467 8445, www.stihlusa.com.
TREE TOTALER
Packing 7.3 cubic inches and close to 9 horsepower under the hood, Husqvarna's 3120XP chain saw is one of the most powerful around. This ain't no firewood saw. With the 5-foot bar pictured here, this unit is ready to take on the biggest-diameter logs on the continent. Or you can use the 36-inch bar for quick removal of huge dead trees and giant stumps. 3120XP: $1,199.95. Husqvarna: www.husqvarna.com.
NAILED!
At 3.8 pounds, Stanley Bostitch's N62 Finish Nailer is the lightest pneumatic nail gun in the business. With a magnesium frame and plastic magazine, it supplies 400 pounds of driving power at 100 pounds per square inch. It shoots nails from 11/4 to 21/2 inches long as fast as you can pull the trigger, setting them to precise depths into cabinets and delicate moldings. And since it's operated with one hand, the other hand can hold on to your rickety ladder. N62 Finish Nailer: $349. Stanley Bostitch: (800) 782 6539, www.stanleyworks.com.
NICE HIGH BEAMS
Don't let the setting sun stop you: Makita's ML121 rechargeable 12-volt head lamp makes it possible to keep plugging away in the dark. The light beam is adjustable from straight ahead to straight down, and the battery pack clips onto your belt or hangs from whatever's handy. Several types of batteries are available, providing up to 440 minutes of operating time on a single charge - and they're usable with other Makita 12-volt and 9.6-volt tools. ML121: $37.50. Makita: (800) 462 5482, www.makitatools.com.
RIP AND ROLL
An aluminum table and tough plastic base make the Bosch 4000 10-inch worksite table saw light enough to be carried by one person, with molded grips for comfort. But the 15-amp, 4.4-horsepower motor is at the top of its class in power. The saw can cut dimensioned framing lumber and even hardwood as fast as you can push it through, with a torque response system that kicks in extra power when it's needed. 4000: $529. Bosch: (877) 267 2499, www.boschtools.com.
GROUNDBREAKER
Grab your trowel and park it in the museum of garden artifacts. Working on water pressure as low as 15 pounds per square inch, the Holey Moley Hydro Planter hooks up to your garden hose and digs a hole for bulbs or perennials in seconds. The 4-pound, 28-inch hydro-tool closes the book on Sturm-und-Drang planting. A larger unit, the HP1500, does groundbreaking work for planting seedlings. Holey Moley Hydro Planter: $49.95. Snake River Tool Company: (877) 372 7782, www.holey-moley.com.
WAY TO MAKE AN EXIT
A private detective friend of ours recently used this 6521-21 Orbital Super Sawzall to cut a car in half, exposing the vehicle's flimsy construction for a personal injury case. The most powerful saw of its kind on the market, this 11-amp, variable-speed device tops out at 3,200 rpm and does to wood and metal what Jaws did to swimmers. But its refined side comes out in its fine-tunable speed and action settings and its tool-free Quik-Lok blade change. A patented, counterbalanced antivibration system stakes the Super Sawzall's claim as the smoothest saw on the planet. 6521-21 Orbital Super Sawzall: $262. Milwaukee: (877) 729 7819, +1 (262) 781 3600, www.mil-electric-tool.com.
SWEPT AWAY
Tired of neighborhood blowhards? Shindaiwa's gas-powered electric PB230 Powerbroom weighs no more than your average leaf blower, but its drum-mounted, soft rubber paddles quietly sweep up baked- or caked-on substances from nearly any surface. What's more, it can squeegee water, or scour and clean with a handy bristle-wheel attachment. Powerbroom is also a neat freak: Unlike hot-air machines, it won't turn your backyard into a dustbowl. PB230 Powerbroom: $499. Shindaiwa: (800) 521 7733, +1 (503) 692 3070, www.shindaiwa.com.
ROTARY CLUB
With the touch of a button, you can adjust the speed of Dremel's Professional High-Speed Rotary Tool from 5,000 to 30,000 rpm. But the unit's real genius lies in the incredible versatility of its 100-plus accessories (which attach to the rotor for high-speed spin). Slightly bigger than a cell phone, the tool will rout, sand, cut, grind, drill, carve, and engrave. If Dr. Frankenstein's monster were around today, he wouldn't have to put up with those bolts sticking out of his neck: A friend of ours used his Dremel to cut off a stripped lug nut. Professional High-Speed Rotary Tool: $119. Dremel: (800) 437 3635, +1 (262) 554 1390, www.dremel.com.
PLANE DEALER
At 15 amps and 10,400 rpm, Hitachi's P12RA planer/jointer smoothes the surface of a piece of lumber up to 12 inches wide and 6 inches deep; it will even take it down to the precise dimensions necessary for fine crafting. The P12RA has an automatic feed rate of 26 feet per minute, and its innovative design allows you to pass finished boards right back through the jointer for edge surfacing. Just under 100 pounds, the unit can be carried without difficulty by two people (or by one guy who's out to prove something). P12RA: $1,493. Hitachi: (800) 448 2244, www.hitachi.com/products/industrial/powertool/planer.
ONE GOOD TURN
The buzz over cordless drills is more about screwing than drilling. The Luger-shaped Porter Cable 9884 19.2-volt drill jams screws home with the touch of a finger (more than 100 lags, 3-inch by 1/4-inch, on a single battery charge), taking the pain out of both home repairs and professional building. The drill comes with a replaceable battery that slides out quickly like an automatic clip. 9884: $289. Porter Cable: (800) 487 8665, +1 (901) 668 8600, www.porter-cable.com.
STUD POKER
Anyone who's ever cut into a hot wire (there's nothing quite like the taste of that jolt through your fillings) or a pressurized water pipe (once Neil did this directly over a closet where a lady stored her wedding dress) needs no urging to give the Stanley IntelliSensor Digital Stud Sensor a try. Besides avoiding disasters, the device greatly enhances speed by minimizing the need for exploratory cuts and cautious probing. Using deep-read electromagnetic signals, it identifies wood studs and live wires through as much as 1½ inches of drywall, and pipes through 3 inches of concrete. It displays the types of material it detects as icons on an LCD readout. IntelliSensor Digital Stud Sensor: $42. Stanley: (800) 782 6539, www.stanleyworks.com.
SMOOTH SHAVE
At just over 23 pounds, Makita's LS711DWBEK cordless 18-volt miter saw is one of the lightest and finest portable units around. Before starting on a fancy cedar deck railing, we doubted its power. But the 71/2-inch, 40-tooth carbide-tipped blade, turning at 2,000 rpm, shaved thin increments cleanly off wood for a perfect fit every time. For larger cuts, it has an astonishing cutting capacity of 71/8 by 2 inches. LS711DWBEK: $569. Makita: (800) 462 5482, www.makitatools.com.
SOCKETMAN
The Makita 6704DW cordless 9.6-volt angle socket driver is 15-plus inches of slim power for turning that impossible- to-reach nut without dashing the skin off your fingers. Reversible and variable speed, the driver has a trigger that responds to a light touch. Torque settings adjust from 17.4 to 69.4 inch-pounds - enough to drive a (predrilled) 5- by 3/8-inch lag screw quickly and easily - and there's a clutch to prevent overtightening. 6704DW: $299. Makita: (800) 462 5482, www.makitatools.com.
