What should be in my boat toolbox?

WELL ALL THE ADVICE GIVEN TO YOU HAS BEEN GREAT

However my advice would be to get three toolboxes that will fit comfortably on board. One is for electrical tools and accessories. one is for the plumbing kit and finally one is foe the engines. Some people also have one for general work as well for other odds and sods, such as small set of various saws and adhesives eyc.

Good luck
 
May already have been mentioned, but:
toothbrush
surplus screws nuts & bolts when only six were used of a pack of ten
stubby screwdrivers
Swiss Army knife or equivalent
PTFE gel and spray
lots of cable ties
 
Not really replying to your question but one really useful tip (it is for us anyway) is, when you have assembled your toolkit, to keep some of the commonly used items separately in a bag which is always handily available. We have the main tool store neatly in toolboxes in a locker and an Axminster tool bag which although it sounds crazy usually lives on the cabin sole where it never seems to get in the way. I am regularly in and out of this bag for various things! It contains a few screwdrivers, pliers, a set of spanners (2 of each) 6mm to 14mm, a few bits of wet & dry etc etc

The bag we use is sadly no longer available but it is a bit like this one
View attachment 36155
 
For what its worth, I'm with the tool box for a particular sort of job. I have one for the engine, one for electrical, one for plumbing, one for rigging (inc. sewing / splicing etc.), and one for emergencies. I also keep a full cleaning kit and a small "touch up" kit for paintwork and varnish. Its nice to be able to take advantage of a warm day to add the odd extra coat.

I have just upgraded by spanners to double ended. One end is open and the other a ring.

I have gone round the boat and looked at the spares that I might need. During the refit I was able to get many of the spares together simply by buying an "extra one" of whatever I felt was necessary.

I also looked at potential sinking events because when we got her Paean did have this habit of filling with water, so I keep on board various bits of wood, nails, some epoxy and a couple of heavy duty canvas tarps.


I also carry a decent sized saw, an axe and crow bar. They might be helpful in an emergency but even if they are not, I quite like having them on-board. For similar reasons, I upgraded from a flimsy plastic boat hook to a decent size wooded one with bronze end. It could double as a emergency tiller or be used to repel unwanted boarders.

Perhaps OTT but it makes me happy :)
 
I'm beginning to think that this bigger boat of mine isn't going to be big enough to fit all the tools in!
 
Ru88ell said:
I'm beginning to think that this bigger boat of mine isn't going to be big enough to fit all the tools in!
Click to expand...

When I bought my boat I bought her a forty quid tool set in a plastic box from Lidl. It has so far covered every mechanical job I have needed to do, up to and including a 1GM10 head change, with the addition only of a hammer, a torque wrench and a multimeter.
 
JumbleDuck said:
When I bought my boat I bought her a forty quid tool set in a plastic box from Lidl. It has so far covered every mechanical job I have needed to do, up to and including a 1GM10 head change, with the addition only of a hammer, a torque wrench and a multimeter.
Click to expand...

I have one of those too.If they ever sell them again I'll buy a spare.

I use that as the main toolox, and have another box for the extras. as a bove.
I keep a tupperware box with crimps, crimper etc, and another one for rigging.
 
Most seems to be covered but if not already mentioned, bolt cutters, crimping tools and a mirror on a stick.
 
Ru88ell said:
Did anyone mention grease gun? I need one of them for the prop.
Click to expand...
You only *actually* need one for the prop once a year (and you can normally borrow one, although this year I bought one). However you occasionally encounter people who take delight in saying that anyone who doesn't own a grease gun shouldn't be allowed to own anything mechanical so it's useful to have one to prove your right of ownership.

Ru88ell said:
I'm beginning to think that this bigger boat of mine isn't going to be big enough to fit all the tools in!
Click to expand...
I think the PBO basic toolkit just about fits into a double garage. The alternative of "business cards for a carpenter, a mechanic and a boatwright, plus a mobile phone" take up much less space and might actually work out cheaper
 
I now have 12 medium to large plastic toolboxes, those near see-through things with a plastic lid and fold-up blue plastic handles.

They tick many of the boxes except for two.

1. Pick a heavily loaded one up by the end with one hand and the lid can fly open spilling the load.

2. The lids do not seal air tight.

So my recommendation after you've added all of those tools/spares/bits'n'bobs, is to see if you can get large unbreakable click seal plastic boxes.
This will mean that nothing will fly out uninvited and after a few months of leaving stored aboard they will not be spoilt by the salt air.

There is a big advantage on a medium/small cruiser in having many boxes.
They can be found a place to stow somewhere, even if they are little spread out.
The tool(s) you want can be found easily and not hidden under a crowd of others.

Since having this number of boxes I know exactly where that screwdriver I want to use will be....In the screwdriver box etc...

If this all sounds a bit anal..... you have to understand that I have part rebuilt two yachts so far and I used to exist in a mess.

Son arrives on the scene to help one day and he refuses to assist unless we have a massive tidy up and hence the plastic boxes.
Life has been so much easier since!

Today, I found the cross head medium screw driver in the right box, the allen key set in its right box, the 13mm spanner in its right box, and so the job of going up the mast in a half gale was made less frustrating in that I was uncommonly organised.

After teaching CDT for 20yrs and being a pain in the proverbial to the students about being neat and tidy, I have had to swallow my own medicine and feel so much better for it ;)
 
sailorman said:
a set of metric spanners
set of allen keys
hammer
set of good screwdrivers
brass feeler gauge
a set of hhs drill bits & something to turn them
multi meter
a good torch ( LED Lenser T7)
bluemels gasket sealer
spare impellers,oil,stern tube grease
Click to expand...
Small socket set
Necessary specialist sockets/spanners to remove injectors.
Torx screw driver set and socket set if your engine uses them.
A junior hacksaw and plenty of blades.
Engineers hammers drift and rubber mallet.
Soldering iron,solder,wire,spade connectors.
I also carry a torque wrench
 
Ru88ell said:
I'm beginning to think that this bigger boat of mine isn't going to be big enough to fit all the tools in!
Click to expand...

:)

Well, I know for a fact that my list above will fit in the bottom step of your companionway, which always struck me as a good place for it on Kindred Spirit. It doesn't seal with an airtight lid like the Tupperware boxes some are suggesting, but an occasional brief spray of WD40 (used for its actual intended purpose for once!) into the locker used to keep everything rust-free.

Pete
 
PhillM said:
For what its worth, I'm with the tool box for a particular sort of job. I have one for the engine, one for electrical, one for plumbing, one for rigging (inc. sewing / splicing etc.), and one for emergencies. I also keep a full cleaning kit and a small "touch up" kit for paintwork and varnish. Its nice to be able to take advantage of a warm day to add the odd extra coat.

I have just upgraded by spanners to double ended. One end is open and the other a ring.

I have gone round the boat and looked at the spares that I might need. During the refit I was able to get many of the spares together simply by buying an "extra one" of whatever I felt was necessary.

I also looked at potential sinking events because when we got her Paean did have this habit of filling with water, so I keep on board various bits of wood, nails, some epoxy and a couple of heavy duty canvas tarps.


I also carry a decent sized saw, an axe and crow bar. They might be helpful in an emergency but even if they are not, I quite like having them on-board. For similar reasons, I upgraded from a flimsy plastic boat hook to a decent size wooded one with bronze end. It could double as a emergency tiller or be used to repel unwanted boarders.

Perhaps OTT but it makes me happy :)
Click to expand...
Agree with the idea of different boxes for different tasks. Mine are:
Mechanical - spanners etc
Electrical - Wire strippers, crimps, spare fuses, spare bulbs, gas soldering iron, insulating tape, bits of wire, multimeter.
Rigging and sewing
Gloop - WD40, silicone grease, sikaflex, spray silicone lubricant...
I have another big box for large tools like the big hammer, oil pump pliers, hand drill, huge screwdriver etc.

I also have loads of wee boxes with things like spare cooker jets etc. and a wide selection of useful nuts screws and bolts (from which all the useful sizes have been used!)

I favour cheap plastic boxes like these:
http://www.plasticboxshop.co.uk/hom...s-c7/5-lt-plastic-utility-tool-craft-box-p239
It is a huge advantage if they are transparent in my opinion. They're not very robust, and every now and then I replace a broken one, but at four quid each it seems OK to me.

I agree with the sentiment that, when you are dangling upside-down over the engine hatch trying to tighten an inaccessible grub screw and building a massive debt to the swear box, the last thing you want is a crappy tool. However you grudge the money for a fancy tool because it will rust to bits in a few months.

Spanners - you need two of each size so I'd go for a ring set and an open-ended set. In my opinion it is pretty pointless having ring and open-ended of the same size on both ends of the same tool - unless you buy two sets!

Don't forget cable ties (all sizes), duct tape and WD40.

Oh, and by the way - a 7mm nut spinner makes doing hose clamps up a hell of a lot easier! http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/screwdrivers/4992329/
 
Last edited:
Amulet said:
I favour cheap plastic boxes like these:
http://www.plasticboxshop.co.uk/hom...s-c7/5-lt-plastic-utility-tool-craft-box-p239


many thanks for putting that link up......

I have just spotted a plastic box that used to hold some of my kids toys some 20yrs ago, and it now holds an array of drill bits and associated bits.
I dropped it from a great height recently and things scattered far and wide and the box doesn't shut too well because of it.... yet still useable.
A good test over many years?.... see http://www.plasticboxshop.co.uk/hom...-boxes-c7/32cm-coloured-plastic-tool-box-p211
Click to expand...
 
Amulet said:
Oh, and by the way - a 7mm nut spinner makes doing hose clamps up a hell of a lot easier! http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/screwdrivers/4992329/
Click to expand...

A 7mm socket on the end of an electric screwdriver (the small pistol-shaped kind) makes it easier still :)

The electric screwdriver is not part of my on-board toolkit though, it comes down from the home workshop when required.

Pete
 
Well mine has what ever I happened to have at the time in it and what ever I have missed and seen cheap to buy. I have sailed on boats with lots of tools, I never seem to have the right tool for the job but normally find I have tools that can do the job...

Must have sort out and remove what I have not used for long time, I restrict myself to 1 box a small socket set and screw driver set...
 
Cable ties!!! Never know when you may need them

We had corroded battery terminals for the windlass a few weeks back and the threads were totally gone to pot. So to make do, we cabled tied the connectors against the correct positions for use of the anchor.
 
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