Video Transcript

Hand Tool ID & Terminology I

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1. Introduction
Proper tool identification is the first step to using a tool correctly and safely. Included
in this video presentation are several types of screwdrivers, hammers, pliers,
punches, and chisels. Dr. Lon Shell, Professor of Agriculture at Southwest Texas State
University, discusses the tools as they are displayed, identifying their proper names,
distinguishing characteristics, and safety tips for their use.

2. Screwdrivers, Hammers, Pliers, Punches & Chisels

Screwdrivers
Screwdrivers are the most common hand tool. Because they are so common, they're
probably the most misused. Of course, their intended use is to tighten or loosen
screws. They should not be used as a chisel, as a punch, pry bar, and you should not
hammer on them.

You should not use wrenches or pliers with screwdrivers. Except, for example, there is
a heavy duty screwdriver, which has a square shank like this one, which it is
permissible then to use a wrench on it. Screwdrivers are sized by the length of their
blade. The most common sizes range from three inches to 12 inches.

The tip width, thickness, and the blade diameter are usually proportional to this length.
There are exceptions to this rule though. For example, the stubby screwdriver, which
has a very short blade has the same thickness and width as a screwdriver that has an
eight inch blade.

Another exception to this is when you have two screwdrivers with the same blade
length, but it's very evident that they have different widths and thicknesses. It is
important when reconditioning or fitting screwdriver tips to maintain the proper
thickness and width.

Here are two examples. One screwdriver is fitted properly. The other one is too sharp
and too narrow. The one on the right is the one that is fitted properly. The one on the
left is too narrow and too thin.

Shown here are standard screwdrivers. Sometimes they are referred to as regular or
flat tip or slotted screwdrivers. The first screwdriver is six inches in total length, has a
blade three inches long and a tip width of 3/16 of an inch. The second standard
screwdriver has a 4 inch blade with a 1/4 inch tip width.

The next standard screwdriver is a stubby. It has the same tip size as a screwdriver

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with a four inch blade. The last screwdriver has a six inch square blade with a 5/16
inch tip. This is a special purpose screwdriver. It is called a standard offset. Its
advantages are similar to a stubby screwdriver in that it is used when there is not
enough room for a regular length screwdriver.

Phillips screwdrivers are used on Philips-headed screws. Philips screws are used, for
example, on vehicle moldings or trim. Their advantages, that they do not allow the
screwdriver to slip off. In addition to blade size, with four, six, and eight being the most
common, a Philips screwdriver may also be sized by point or tip number. These
numbers range from zero to four and are proportional to blade diameter.

These are Phillip screwdrivers. The first screwdriver shown is eight inches long with a
three inch diameter blade and a number four point. The next Philips is a stubby. It is
one and 1/4 inches long and a 1/4 inch blade diameter with a number two point.

Just as there is an offset standard screwdriver, there is also an offset Philips. This one
is equipped with different size points on each end. The Reed & Prince screwdriver is
often confused with the Philips.

Unlike the Philips, the tip of a Reed & Prince comes to a sharp point. For this reason,
the two screwdrivers should not be used interchangeably. Reed & Prince screwdrivers
come in five different blade lengths. They range from 1 and 1/2 to six inches long and
have four different point sizes. Reed & Prince screwdrivers are most likely used in
electrical appliances and components. Shown here is a Reed & Prince screwdriver
with a six inch blade.

This is a clutch screwdriver with a six inch blade. Sometimes it is referred to as a

butterfly or figure eight, because of the shape of the point. The primary advantage of
the clutch screwdriver is its greater area of contact with a screw, thus reducing the
chance of slippage. Clutch screwdrivers come with both four to six inch blades and six
different tip sizes.

Nut drivers shown here are considered a form of a screwdriver. They are normally
used on electronic equipment and other instruments. They are also called hex nut
drivers. And they are sized according to the socket on the end.

The blade length of the nut drive is not indicative of the socket size. The handles are
usually color coded to help differentiate size. The size is also printed on the handle.
Sizes of sockets ranged from 3/16 to 5/8 of an inch. The green handle nut driver has
11/32 inch socket. 11/32 is printed on the handle.

The blue handled nut driver has a 3/8 inch socket and it is also printed on the handle.

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Hammers
There are many kinds of hammers. We'll be identifying those hammers that's used in
the mechanical application only. Most hammers are classified according to the weight
of the head without the handle.

Safety considerations you should think about when using a hammer are, one, always
be sure to wear eye protection. Another consideration is to be sure that the head of
the hammer is always tight on the handle. Also, don't use the handle as a pry bar, or
don't use a handle to hammer with, like, for example, a bearing. You may not only chip
the hammer handle, but you could also leave wood fibers in the bearing.

Another thing is to be sure that you keep the face clean and inspect the face
periodically to be sure that it's not chipped or broken. If you find it's damaged, be sure
to discard the hammer. The most common hammer used by mechanics is the ball
peen. They range in way from four to 12 ounces and one to two pounds.

Shown here is a one and 1/2 pound ball peen hammer with a 15 inch handle. Next to
it is a four ounce ball peen. The blacksmith hand hammer is heavier than most ball
peens. It does not have a peen and was originally designed to be used by blacksmiths
as the name implies.

Shown here is a blacksmith hammer. It's 32 ounces with a 14 inch handle length.
These three specially hammers are used by mechanics to prevent damaging the part
being hammered.

Shown here is a one and 1/2 pound all-purpose brass hammer. Next to it is a plex
plastic tipped one in 5/16 diameter face hammer. The plastic tips are replaceable.
Next to it is a rubber mallet with two and 5/8 inch diameter face.

Pliers
There are many kinds of pliers. They are sized by the overall length. The handle might
be plastic coated for better grip. Do not rely on this plastic coating to prevent an
electrical shock. Also, do not use pliers in place of wrenches.

Combination or slip joint pliers come in five, six, eight, and 10 inch lengths. This is an
eight inch combination plier. Diagonal cutting pliers are commonly called dikes or
cutter pliers. They are used in electrical applications to cut wires and size is selected
by a gauge of wire.

Mechanics may also use them for pulling cotter pins from castellated nuts. Diagonal
pliers come in sizes ranging from four inches to eight inches. Displayed are examples
of a seven inch diagonal with coated handles. The midget pliers are four and 1/2
inches long.

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Linesmen are side cutting pliers, there are different kinds of side cutting pliers, they all
have in common cutting edges in addition to clamping jaws. These lineman's pliers
are nine inches long, with coated handle.

Needle nose pliers are usually differentiated from long nose side cutting pliers in that
they may not have cutting jaws.

There are many different variations of needle nose pliers. For example, the curb
needle nose pliers are shown here. Needle nose pliers are the standard tool for
electrical and electronics work. Needle nose pliers come in many sizes, from midgets
to the seven and 1/2-inch length pliers shown here.

Slip joint, channel lock, or water pump pliers. As with other tools, the name of the tool
may originate with the original manufacturer's tradename. Channel lock has been
used for a long period of time and the tradename channel lock is almost generic.
Sometimes a tool is named according to its use. In this case, water pumps were an
original application for this kind of plier, thus the name.

These pliers are sized up to 16 inches in length with a jaw capacity of four and 1/4
inches as shown here. These pliers are popular with plumbers and are sometimes
referred to as plumber’s pliers. The most common size slip joint plier is the 12 inch
length shown here.

Locking pliers or vice grips, this is another example of a tradename, vice grip
becoming generic. Locking pliers are sized by handle length in range from five to 10
inches with the most common size being the seven inch displayed here. Other kinds
of locking pliers are welding clamp, C clamp, and bending tool locking plier.

End cutter or nipper pliers cut close to the surface on wires, bolts, and rivets. The
most common size is the eight inch. Hose clamp pliers are used for the insulation
repair of spring tension clamps on hose connections. The most common length is
eight inches.

Here are two of the many kinds of specialty pliers. The retaining ring pliers are used
on both internal and external retaining rings. The lock ring pliers have parallel jaws
and are nine and 1/2 inches long. They are used to remove lock and snap rings.

Punches
Safety is a very important consideration when using punches. Always use approved
eye safety protection devices. Never use a punch, which is chipped or the head is
mushroomed. Always use the right kind and size a punch for the work to be
performed.

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A center punch is used to mark the location of a hole that is to be drilled. This
prevents the twist drill from wandering. The points of the center punch is sharpened to
have an included angle of 60 degrees.

Center punches are also used to mark machinery for the alignment in reassembling.
Center punches are usually four to six inches in length. Shown is a five inch long
center punch made from 5/16 inch hex stock.

Starter and taper punches are very similar. Starter punches are usually shorter and
heavier than taper punches and that they are used initially to drive out pins or bolts.
They can withstand heavy blows. The taper punch shown here is similar to the shorter
starter punch. It is 10 inches long and made from 5/8 inch hex stock.

Pin punches are used after the starter punch. A pin punch with a straight shank is
used to finish driving out the pin, bolt, or rivet that was broken loose with a starter
punch. This pin punch is six inches long, has a 3/16 inch point, and is made from 3/8
inch hex stock.

A roll pin punch is a kind of pin punch. This punch is distinguished with a machine
shoulder at the top of the reduced portion of the shank and is used to drive out roll
pins. This roll pin punch is five and 1/2 inches long, has a 1/8 inch point, and is made
from 5/16 inch hex stock.

An aligning punch is usually 10 to 16 inches long and 5/8 or 3/4 inch in diameter. This
punch has a long taper and is used to shift parts so corresponding holes line up.

Chisels
Cold chisels are made of high carbon steel. Proper care and use of chisels is similar
to that of punches. Repeated blows on the head of a chisel will cause it to mushroom.
A mushroom head is dangerous because the chips could fly off and hit you in the face
or the eye.

To resurface that head, it's best to grind mushroom off, until you get back to the
original diameter of the hex in which the chisel was made. Always wear eye protection
when using a chisel.

You may need to redress cutting edges of the chisel when they begin to become dull.
Normally the edges are ground at a 60 degree angle. Chisels are sized from four
inches to 14 inches in length.

Flat chisels or flat cold chisels are all purpose tools with many applications in cutting
metal. Flat chisels are sharpened at a 60 degree angle. Sizes range from five and 1/2
to eight inches in length and blade which range from 1/4 to 7/8 inches.

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The flat chisel shown here is one of the larger ones. It is eight inches long and has a
7/8 inch blade width. Cape chisels are used to cut key ways, narrow grooves, and
square corners. They are distinguishable by their unique blade shape.

This cape chisel has a 3/8 inch cut or a cutting edge width of 3/8 of an inch. Diamond
point chisels have a diamond shaped edge or point. They are used for cutting big
grooves and square corners. Diamond point chisels are made from different sized hex
stock, which influence their point size. This one is made from 3/8 inch hex stock.

Round nose chisels are used for cutting semicircular grooves and chipping inside
corners. This round those chisel has a 5/16 inch point, which is determined by the hex
stock it is made from.

Recognition and identification are the first steps towards using tools properly. By
properly using the tool, the damage to equipment and personnel will be reduced and
productivity will be increased.

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