Recommended Toolkits

Recommended Tools

Boats operate in a hostile environment. The constant motion of the boat, stresses of wind and waves, salt water corrosion, and UV sun exposure all combine to cause damage to your boat. There is always something that needs to be fixed on a boat, and you'll need a set of tools in order to make repairs.

The lists below have suggested tool kits for daysailing, coastal and ICW travel, and offshore / long-distance cruising.

Tool Kit for Daysailing

Daysailers should carry a basic tool kit to effect simple repairs such as tightening a piece of loose hardware or changing a fouled spark plug in an outboard.

	Item	Link to Detail
Basic Tools
	Knife
	Pliers: slip-joint, needle nose
	Screwdrivers: straight blade and phillips head
	Wrenches: adjustable wrench, spark plug wrench

Tool Kit for Coastal/Overnight and ICW Sailing

Coastal and ICW sailors need the ability to diagnose problems and effect repairs on more complex systems. They should carry all of the basic tools listed above, plus the following:

	Item	Link to Detail
Canvas Work
	Sailmakers needles
	Sailmaker's palm
	Speedy-stitcher hand sewing tools
Cutting / Drilling / Shaping
	12v rechargeable drill and twist drill bits
	Center punch
	Cold chisels - 1/4" and 1/2" wide
	Dremel tool kit
	Hacksaw and blades for metal cutting


Electrical Tools
	Crimper
	Cutting pliers
	Digital multimeter for checking voltages and resistance
	Soldering iron
	Test leads - 3' sections of wire with alligator clips on each end
	Test light - 50w 12v bulb in a socket with 6' leads and alligator clips on each end. Often, a bad circuit will show full voltage on the multimeter, but won't light up the test light.
	Wire stripper
Hand Tools
	Allen wrenches - set of both English (1/16" to 3/8") and Metric (2mm to 12mm)
	Awl
	Channel-locks
	Drift punches - 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2"
	Hammer, ball-peen
	Screwdrivers, philips head - #0, #1, #2 in short and long shafts
	Screwdrivers, straight blade - #0, #1, #2 in short and long shafts
	Socket set - 3/8" and 1/2" drive - includes common Metric and English sizes
	Vice grips - regular and "needle nose"
	Wrenches, adjustable - 6", 8" and 10"
	Wrenches, box-end - set of Metric (6mm to 20mm) and English (3/8" to 1")

Measuring
	25' tape measure
	6" rule
Plumbing
	Plumbers helper (plunger)
	Plumbing snake
Rigging
	Rigging tension gauge
	Safety gear for going aloft: climbers harness or bosun's chair, harness, tether, canvas tool bag, messenger line, walkie-talkies.
	Means of going aloft - two halyards, TopClimber, MastMate, or traditional Bosun's chair.

Specialty Tools
	Oil filter wrench
	Packing gland wrench (make sure they fit your boat before you go)

Tool Kit for Offshore / Cruising

Long-distance cruisers and offshore sailors need additional capabilities to fabricate new parts from raw materials.

	Item	Link to Detail
Cutting / Drilling / Shaping
	Carbide hacksaw blades (for cutting stainless steel)
	Cobalt drill bits (for drilling stainless steel) 1/16" to 3/8"
	Files - 10" mill file, 10" round file, 6" round rat tail file, 6" triangular file
	Hole saws, set ranging from 7/8" to 2.5"
	Sabre (scroll) saw and blades
	Tap and die set
	Vise, portable clamp-on

Hand Tools
	C-clamps - two each of 4" and 6" clamps
	EZ Out - set of bits for removing broken bolts
	Rivet gun, heavy duty (can pull 1/4" aluminum rivets)

Lubrication
	Grease gun
Measuring
	12" layout square
	Vernier calipers

Specialty Tools
	Feeler gauge (for setting diesel engine valve clearances)

Links to Outside Resources

The following links provide links to further reading, manufacturers websites and more information on "how to"

	Item	Link to Detail
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