Tools / Gadgets

You've probably accumulated quite a few pairs of inexpensive scissors that are too good to throw away but not sharp enough to work well. You could buy more, or you could get the Fiskars Scissors Sharpener instead. This simple sharpener quickly restores the cutting edges of many standard scissor blades.

The Fiskars ...

Designed by Doug Ritter of "Equipped to Survive," the Adventure Medical Kits Pocket Survival Pak earned positive reviews from survival instructor Cody Lundin and many other back-country professionals. Toss it in the day pack, the backpack, or the pocket to make sure you've always got something useful on hand.

The basic ...

The Topeak Alien II had better be good, because it's 10.21 ounces of steel to hang on the bike. But, with even more tools than the original Topeak Alien multi-tool, this compact toolkit could be the key to riding home instead of pushing the bike. It's a little extra ...

The Fein FMM 250Q is one of the few power tools that actually does those critical awkward jobs you'd otherwise need hand tools to accomplish. With the Fein, you can avoid the other carpenter's solution of busting things out and starting over.

The Fein MultiMaster drives an assortment of ...

Drawknives like the Arno Flat Forged Drawknife can remove large amounts of wood quickly, but only with the proper hold-downs or vises in place. Arno makes this knife in a traditional pattern that was once a favorite of coopers and wheelwrights. Using any drawknife successfully means stepping back to ...

When you've purchased a beautiful sword, whether it came from a fantasy realm or a historical background, it's natural to want to try it on. Usually we get as far as picking up the scabbard, because modern clothing isn't equipped for tucking in swords here and there. ...

A modern version of a specialized and still useful old tool, the DK1000 10-inch Draw Knife from Lumber Jack Tools is much better suited to shaping tool handles than stripping bark from trees. That's no criticism of the knife, since this is a tool of excellent quality -- ...

The UZI Special Forces Set includes a tactical pocket knife, compass, watch, and an LED flashlight. Overall, it's a good deal and a handy emergency kit for anyone's pockets.

The tanto-style pocket clip folder knife, only 4-1/4 inches when closed, wields a combo-serrated cutting edge of 8Cr14 high carbon ...

Built to exceed Russian Spetsnaz specifications, this tactical combat shovel from Cold Steel makes a great camp tool for the hunter, fisherman, and canoeist. With about a pound and a half of medium carbon tool steel and a durable hardwood handle, the Cold Steel tactical shovel is a ...

Tool Logic's SLP2 Multifunction Folding Knife makes the multi-tool approach to survival knives actually work. Similar in appearance to the Swedish Light-My-Fire knife, this version from Tool Logic offers much more than a magnesium firestarter and a cheap knife.

The SLP2's three-inch blade of 420J2 high carbon ...

Cooks always acquire cookbooks, but most books aren't built of materials that survive well in the kitchen. Instead of ruining the printed words of your favorite chef with butter and sphagetti sauce spatters, try this solidly built and attractive cookbook stand from Bartelt.

The cookbook stand, 12.5 inches wide by 11 inches tall ...

This 38 piece Knife Block set plus an assortment of kitchen tools won't match the quality of Wusthof, Victorinox or Henckels. Actually it won't match the usual offerings from Sabatier, the company which contracted the Chinese production of this full-scale kitchen tool assortment.

Handles of measuring cups and spoons are held on ...

Kitchen shears usually look and work like ordinary scissors. The only feature that makes them kitchen shears is that they come apart easily for cleaning. This pair of poultry shears from Chef's Choice beats that old paper-cutting design handily. The 9-Inch Poultry Shears cut meat, skin and gristle, and snip ...

If you're considering the purchase of a turning slicer, then you likely fall into one or more of the following categories: Professional Cook, Raw Food Devotee, or Kitchen Gadget Junkie. Regardless of which category you fall into, if you want or need a turning slicer, this is an ...

With the advent of affordable industrial diamond abrasives, sharpening systems like this Chef's Choice 464 Pronto have actually begun to work properly. Older versions of this patented idea used hardened steel wheels or ceramic rods and yielded uncertain results, but the Pronto produces consistent results with a minimum of practice.

The ...

No one likes tough meats - this has been a fact of human nature for centuries. And, for a long time, the meat mallet was the most effective way to tenderize beef, chicken, fish, etc. A meat mallet is an object akin to a hammer, but with little spikes in ...

If you don't like getting all that pulp and juice underneath your fingernails while you're peeling an orange, you'll probably want to keep an orange peeler handy in your kitchen drawer. Most traditional peelers have a small hook on one end and a peel lifter on the other. But this ...

This OXO i-Series Swivel peeler will no doubt be the best peeler you've ever used. Personally, I've tried the knock-off brands of comfort-grip peelers, and truthfully they're good but not as good as what you're looking at here. OXO has taken steps with their i-Series product to make sure ...

No more waiting for ice cream to thaw before you're able to scoop it. With the Van Vacter Ice Cream Knife, you won't have to wait at all. It's an ice cream knife, not an ice cream scoop. That alone should tell you something. Maybe they should call it an ice cream ...