Shop Used Tools
The great thing about most tools is that they are durable. Hand tools can last for decades and even well made power tools are in it for the long haul. If you are not dead set on having a brand new collection of tools, going to the used market can save you a few hundred or even a few thousand dollars. But where should you look?
Garage Sales
If you want to score the best deals on used tools, a garage sale is the place to start. When people have a garage sale, their goal is not simply to make money, it is also to get rid of all the junk they have collected over the years. What that means to you is that they are going to be willing to make a deal to move their stuff.
To take advantage of a garage sale to the fullest, there are two things that you need to do. First, you need to get to the sale early. Most garage sales do not make it past noon, so you will need to be an early riser. Next, you need to bundle to save. If you just offer to buy a power drill, you might score a deal. If you buy a power drill, circular saw and a ratchet set, you can probably score a great deal.
Pawn Shops
Pawn shops can be a good deal in certain situations. In most cases, the owners tend to be tough negotiators and deals are not always the best. The exception is when the shop is overstocked with an item, and this happens often.
When a pawn shop has too many table saws, for example, they will be willing to negotiate on price more because they need to move the inventory.
Facebook Marketplace
If you are looking for a certain item, nothing beats Facebook Marketplace. Simply do a search and you will find plenty of offerings for just about anything. The only problem is negotiating the price as some people are just not willing to budge, but there is a secret to this too.
When you search for a tool, save the listings that you find. Save several listings and then check back in a week and see which tools are still available. The owners of the ones that are will likely be willing to take a lower price, sometimes substantially.
Wait For A Major Holiday
If you want to stock up on new tools and save money, the best thing that you can do is wait for a major holiday. Tools are one of those items that stores drastically cut the price on for certain holidays.
The biggest tool money saving holiday is Father’s Day, but other holidays can be just as rewarding. Think Labor Day, Memorial Day and of course Christmas.
Buy Combination Packs
Another great way to save is to buy combination packs. This works particularly true with cordless power tools that share the same battery. Instead of buying a drill by itself, for example, you can pick up a combo pack that contains a drill and an impact driver. You can also buy larger packs that contain 5 or even more tools.
Of course, some of the savings that you get from these combo packs is from the fact that you do not get a battery for each tool, so consider that. Still, this is a good deal because if you have 5 cordless tools, do you really need just as many batteries? In most cases no, so take the savings.
Prioritize Tool Importance
Unless you take out a loan to pay for your tools, you will need to prioritize which tools are most important to own at the moment. You simply can not have every tool that you want immediately. A garage stocked with every tool imaginable would cost tens of thousands of dollars, which is not in the average do it yourselfer budget.
To prioritize your tool purchases, make a list of all the tools that you need and then simply rank them by hours of usage in a month or in a year. Pick the ones that will get the most usage and purchase them first.
Split A Tool
If there is a tool that you really want but you may not get a lot of use out of, why not split it with a buddy. This cuts the tool price in half and, if the tool is something not used often, will cause you little inconvenience.
There are a few caveats to going this route to save money on tools. First, you need to make sure that it is a close buddy and not just an acquaintance who might take off with the tool. Second, you should decide what happens if the tool breaks while one person is using it. Who pays to replace it or fix it? Work that little detail out first before a problem arises.
