Hand tools

Bridge City Tool Works: Chapter Two…

June, 8th, 2018

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end."— Seneca

Drivel Starved Nation!

When you visit our Bridge City office you immediately see a panorama of all the tools we have made over the last 35 years.

Welcome to the Bridge City “Tool Zoo” the sign reads—if only we had one.

When guests arrive, Consuelo presses a secret button under her desk and a live, 220-volt electrode jabs my right thigh indicating that my Zoo Keeper presence is desired. (My concentration skills demand intense diversionary measures….)

When our guests see me crawl out of my man-cave office, they almost universally say: Continue reading →

Pencil Precision Video, China Field Trip, Other Bridge City News

October, 17th, 2017

"My journey began with a single pencil. While traveling through India in 2006, I asked a boy begging on the streets, 'If you could have anything in the world, what would you want?' and he answered me with two words: 'A pencil.' Luckily, I had one in my pocket, and in the second it took me to give it to him, a defining dream was born." — Adam Braun

Drivel Starved Nation-

Here’s the latest news regarding your favorite Tool Potentate…

Continue reading →

Introducing Pencil Precision from Bridge City Tool Works

October, 10th, 2017

"What can a pencil do for all of us? Amazing things. It can write transcendent poetry, uplifting music, or life-changing equations; it can sketch the future, give life to untold beauty, and communicate the full-force of our love and aspirations." — Adam Braun

Drivel Starved Nation!

It’s always exciting when we have something new to share… which I suppose makes this post news. (I did that math all by myself – FYI)

Since 1983, (that’s 34 human years, but 311 tool maker years), we have been producing impeccably crafted bench tools primarily for avocational woodworkers. It’s been mostly fun, but not as fun as it could have been knowing what I know now… Continue reading →

New Tool from Bridge City… Clue #6

September, 28th, 2017

"Consider the postage stamp: its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to one thing till it gets there."— Josh Billings

Drivel Starved Nation!

I know, this is hard!

This part is 210mm in length. And, it serves several purposes, one of which is in conjunction with an earlier clue…

For those of you who follow this Totally Awesome and Worthless Blog (about 4.2 billion people when I last didn’t check) you know that when we use the color red in our products, there is a reason…

-John

New Tool from Bridge City Tool Works Identified!

September, 27th, 2017

"What can a pencil do for all of us? Amazing things. It can write transcendent poetry, uplifting music, or life-changing equations; it can sketch the future, give life to untold beauty, and communicate the full-force of our love and aspirations." — Adam Braun

Drivel Starved Nation!

We have our two winners who identified what I have been working on over the past 7 months. Now watch it make me the laughing stock of the internet.

It’s called Pencil Perfection and here is what you can do with it;

I have some commitments that will keep me out of the office until next Monday, but when I return, I will share the story behind our winners, this project and what it means to me and hopefully you too.

-John

Clue # 4 for New Bridge City Tool…

September, 26th, 2017

“Attitude is a choice. Happiness is a choice. Optimism is a choice. Kindness is a choice. Giving is a choice. Respect is a choice. Whatever choice you make makes you. Choose wisely.” — Roy T. Bennett

Drivel Starved Nation, Got a headache yet? I would if I were you. Think about this, I’ve spent 7 months of my life figuring out how to become the laughing stock of the internet. This is my way of sharing the pain headed my way. Here’s clue #4, this component is 77mm in length. Milled from aluminum and it is known internally as “the rack”. -John

Clue # 2 for New Bridge City Thingamajig….

September, 22nd, 2017

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science." — Albert Einstein

Drivel Starved Nation-

Here’s your second clue to the thing that will make Bridge City the laughing stock of the internet…

If you guessed bent stainless steel wire you are correct! The longer version is about 90mm in length.

-John

Bridge City Tool Works Introduces New KM-2 Kerfmaker…

September, 7th, 2017

Drivel Starved Nation!

You talked and we listened. Over the past couple of years we have received numerous requests for a larger KM-1 Kerfmaker. I am pleased to announce that I finally got around to designing one. And in the process, we have made it better!

If you are new to our Kerfmaker tool, we conceived and patented this device several years ago and over this time it is our number one selling tool. Here’s a video of how the original KM-1 works–the KM-2 Kerfmaker is no different;

Continue reading →

Critiquing the UG-1 Universal Gauge…

August, 17th, 2017

"I am very self-critical, but that's a good thing because it keeps me growing as a human being and as a musician." — Ray LaMontagne

Drivel Starved Nation!

In my previous post I mentioned that I would “grade” the functionality of our new UG-1 Universal Gauge pictured below.
UG_R.8 700

The reason for this self-critique is twofold: I am typically not fond of multi-purpose tools. Too often the compromises are just to hard to deal with. Hopefully we have not fallen into that trap and I want to share why by grading all the functions. Secondly, as painful as they can be, critiques are crucial to understanding both the design and functional aspects of the things we make.
Continue reading →

The Back Story on Our Latest “Different” Tool…

August, 14th, 2017

"You will never influence the world by trying to be like it." — Sean McCabe

Drivel Starved Nation;

It seems that whenever we introduce a tool that is not “traditional” factions of the woodworking community, using their internet bullhorn, feel compelled to condemn the effort as heresy, an egregious assault on our “woodworking heritage”. These anachronistic views to me, and to us as a company, are about as much fun as pre-chewed food. Ideas evolve and so do tools — at least I like to think so.

New ideas are almost always the result of a changing perspective. And this is what I believe we do best, we rattle the cage of conventional woodworking wisdom with tool ideas that either attack or improve functionality deficiencies, inconvenience and work-flow efficiency, all with an underlying passion for aesthetics. Ironically, nobody needs any of these tool ideas… except me. Continue reading →