Skil just recently introduced the Isio 2-in-1 gardening tool — it’s a new lithium-ion grass and shrub trimmer with a tool-less blade-changing system that allows you to convert it from lawn shears to shrub trimmer and back again easily.

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If you need a small portable cutting tool for carpet, clamshell, cardboard, fabric, and other lightweight materials, take a look at Skil’s Power Cutter. It sports a 10-sided 1-1/2″ blade, and it comes with a 3.6V lithium-ion rechargeable battery and charger.  Amazon is selling the Skil Power Cutter for $48 — or you can pick it up at Ace Hardware for $52 if you need it immediately.

Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Skil Power Cutter [Ace Hardware]
Street Pricing [Google]

Skil’s 4690 corded jigsaw has proven itself to be a workhorse.  Under our guidance in the Toolmonger shop it has cut curves in many projects both large and small and never let us down. There’s nothing remarkable about it, except that it takes on every project we give it without difficulty — there’s something to be said for that.

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A friend of mine called me today having recently seen Skil’s Power Wrench (pictured) on QVC. Her question: Is it good for anything around the house? Sadly I don’t have a good answer. My father had an old Black & Decker model that looked sorta similar back in the early ’90s and it was pretty worthless. But then again, battery — and small device — technology has come a long way since then. Has it improved this tool type?

If you have some experience with this model (or these tools in general) I’d love to hear about it in comments. And if you have one, don’t forget to tell us what you do with it!

Skil Power Wrench [QVC]

Circular saw blades fall into one of two categories:  Either they will or will not work for what you’re doing.  We needed a cheap blade to cut double-veneered 3/4″ ply and decided to find out which category Skil’s 7-1/4” sixty-tooth carbide blade fell into.  Our results were pretty positive.

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At first glance, the Skil 7292 1/4-sheet palm sander looks just like any other modern sander –- and mostly it is.  The 7292 differentiates itself, however, with a pressure indicator that lets you know when you’re pushing too hard.

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This great how-to video up in Skil’s “Vid Zone” covers the basics of refinishing hardwood floors.  It shows you what to look for and how to take care of nail heads, worn areas, holes in the floor, and other problems you’ll run into when tackling this type of project.

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We stumbled across this fun-looking project from Skil and thought we’d pass it on. It’s a caboose-ish toybox, complete with top-mounted game board. The link below takes you to Skil’s site where you’ll find more pictures plus a link where you can download full plans and instructions via a PDF.

And if you’re not into the caboose theme (shame on you!) they also offer a simplified no-detail square version. Have fun!

Caboose-Inspired Toy Chest [Skil]

Skil’s website features a slick how-to on building a bookcase with pocket joinery.  The guys over at Extreme How-To magazine put the article together, and though they often do some pretty far-out projects, this one seems easy enough that even beginners could tackle it with a solid chance of success.

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When you decide to improve the appearance of your home, you quickly discover that real changes can cost more than your first car — but the cheap route, like adding little knick-knacks, doesn’t get it done either. You can steer the middle course pretty easily with additions like this faux wainscoting project we found on Skil’s website.

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You want to create a backyard paradise that’s the envy of all the neighbors, and a sweet, eye-popping deck will be a prominent element in that picture-perfect space — the challenge is getting it to look less Frankenstein and more Better Homes and Gardens. Here’s a not-so-obvious secret the pros use: Build curves into the design. To help you get there Skil’s site features a nice how-to guide, complete with pictures and exploded diagrams.

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In the Tool Talk Podcast #38, a caller asked about replacing the chuck on his Skil hammer drill. Though Chuck and Sean weren’t able to answer his questions on the spot, I found some answers at eReplacementParts.com, which boasts the Internet’s largest selection of power tool diagrams and replacement parts . By looking at a diagram on their site, I found that the chuck in question is standard-thread and removable. Also, before you can remove the chuck, you have to remove a securing screw that goes down the middle of the barrel.

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First thing after purchasing a shiny new circ-saw, most guys toss the blade in favor of a higher quality rig. Talk to any framing guy or contractor, and that’ll almost always be true. Skil’s new contractor series blades might actually entice you to try a few cuts with it.

The new blades incorporate a thin-kerf design which results in a faster cut versus fat-body blades.  “J”-hook expansion slots allow the blade to dissipate heat during cutting, which helps the blade run straight and true. The anti-stick coating also reduces heat, friction, and binding, for smooth, easy cutting.

It’s not earth-shattering news, and you can certainly find other blades out there right now that fit this description — but it’s nice to know that you might not have to blow $12 on a new blade right out of the box when you purchase a new Skilsaw this year.

Skil says these will ship to stores this month, and they should be priced competitively with others in the same class.

Skil [Corporate Site]

Sanding work ranks up there with having a root canal done in most people’s book — it takes about as long, and it’s almost as painful. But the fact is, any project you attempt to finish without sufficient sanding will wind up looking as beat-to-hell as the picnic table at the park. You know the one: it stands alone off to the side, and the kids call it the Splinter-Master. Ray Travers at Skil wrote a great article on basic sanding tips and what to steer clear of.

I could almost hear the collective groan as I wrote the title for this article.

“Sanding…ugh!”

But the truth is, with the proper attitude, the right tools, and the correct techniques, sanding doesn’t have to be a grind. I’ve got a few ideas on each of those topics that should help your sanding time sail by.

The thing to remember about sanding in general: The amount of time and care you put into sanding directly corresponds to how good the project looks when you’re done. You can rush it and half-ass the job, but in the end you’re only hurting yourself.

The Science of Successful Sanding [Skil]

If you’ve moved beyond using two saw horses and a scaffold plank for a work surface, you may want to consider Skil’s new XBench. It may look like a plain table, but some simple details and a variety of accessories set it apart from other work surfaces.

You can adjust the bench’s telescoping legs to work at different heights or different surfaces easily. You can fold it in half to move to the next location. If you’re cutting with a circular saw, you can split the top of the bench to create a channel for the blade to pass through while fully supporting your material. You can even plug that saw into a built-in outlet, complete with bumpable kill switch. All of this would add up to a decent table, but add the accessories and it really starts to get interesting.

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First up in our no-particular-order top ten favorite tools, 2007 edition, is Skil’s ever-popular circular saw — the 7-1/4″ Skilsaw. And we’re not talking about their high-buck worm-drive model. Our 2007 favorite is the model 5400-01, which we snagged for a whopping $25 off a Lowe’s sale table sans operator’s manual. Read on past the jump for details.

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Here’s another tool guaranteed to help holiday shoppers please their gadget-loving friends and family: Skil’s new li-ion Power Wrench. Based on Skil’s proven 7.2V li-ion batteries, the power wrench can maintain its charge even when stashed away for up to 18 months. And with a reversible 1/4″ square drive, the Power Wrench can do just about everything that a socket wrench can do, only quicker and easier.

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