Tool Awards 2023: Hand Tools

BEST TORPEDO LEVEL

Toughbuilt TB-H2-L-9X

Best Torpedo Level

Toughbuilt TB-H2-L-9X

Best Torpedo Level

Toughbuilt TB-H2-L-9X

$35 at Lowe’s

A torpedo level with an extension that slides out extending the tool from 9 to 15 inches isn’t a gimmick. Doubt this? Hop down off a ladder or go find a straight piece of lumber to set the level on the next time you need to extend its reach. So this Toughbuilt gets our vote (as does its big brother, the TB-H2-L-24X that extends to 24 inches). The level is sturdily machined out of aluminum and its top bubble (the horizontal vial) settles very quickly, making it fast and easy to find level without a lot of trial and error on your part.

BEST HEAVY DUTY LEVEL

Toughbuilt TB-H2-L-48S

Best Heavy Duty Level

Toughbuilt TB-H2-L-48S

Best Heavy Duty Level

Toughbuilt TB-H2-L-48S

$60 at Lowe’s

Credit: Toughbuilt

This is the toughest 48-inch masonry level we’ve ever seen. It’s extremely robust, weighing 6.4 lbs. Everywhere you look on it, you see heavy duty, from its massive deeply recessed vials, to its impact-resistant end caps, to its rugged box beam construction. Its rubber-coated surfaces allow it to be used as a screed to smooth and level concrete or granular sub base­–work that would kill a typical level.

BEST UTILITY KNIFE WITH SNAP-OFF BLADES

Knipex 90-10-165 CutiX

Best Utility Knife With Snap-off Blades

Knipex 90-10-165 CutiX

Best Utility Knife With Snap-off Blades

Knipex 90-10-165 CutiX

$25 at Amazon$39 at Walmart

Over time, various snap-off utility knives have passed through the Pop Mech shop. We weren’t impressed with any until the Knipex. It cuts very smoothly and feeds out spare blades just as smoothly. Its slide-out spine provides a place to put your thumb in tough cuts, and its slide-out magazine holds two rows of spare blades, with eight snap-off blades in each. Our test cuts on carpet, flooring, and insulation were all nice and neat.

More From Popular Mechanics

BEST INSULATED SCREWDRIVER SET

Klein 85076INS

Best Insulated Screwdriver Set

Klein Tools 85076INS

Best Insulated Screwdriver Set

Klein Tools 85076INS

$40 at Amazon

You may not need the electrical insulation on these screwdrivers; on the other hand, it can never hurt. That aside, it’s an excellent lightweight set of high-quality drivers. And at this price it’s hard to believe they are US made! The ribbed insulation handle gives an outstanding grip and the neatly machined tips fit with a satisfying socket action into the screw heads that we tried. The tools’ torque transfer was excellent.

BEST PRECISION SCREWDRIVER

Klein 32328

You get a drawer full of precision tech screwdrivers in this one multi-bit tool—26 bits are stored in its handle. Among the bits are truly tiny sizes, such as 000 Phillips and those sized specifically for Apple products. Place your index finger on the spin cap and turn the handle to loosen or tighten even tiny fasteners with ease and precision. When you lift the bit free, the powerful magnet in the barrel lifts the fastener free, too.

BEST PRECISION WRENCH

PipeVise Micro5 SW 127-14

Best Precision Wrench

PipeVise Micro5 SW 127-14

Best Precision Wrench

PipeVise Micro5 SW 127-14

$57 at supplyhouse.com

It’s been a good year for small tools as this 6-inch self-adjusting wrench attests. Clasp its jaw around a pipe (anywhere from approximately 5/16-inch to 1/2-inch diameter) and you find it produces a surprisingly powerful bite on the metal surface. Moving it in the direction of the teeth loosens the grip, moving against the teeth tightens the grip. That tooth configuration and spring loaded jaw enables a rapid fire ratchet action to tighten or loosen.

BEST HANDSAW

Disston D8

Best Handsaw

Disston D8 Handsaw

Best Handsaw

Disston D8 Handsaw

$250 at disstontools.com

Credit: Trevor Raab

Disston D8 handsaws were last produced in the 1950s. We were thrilled when the company told us it was bringing back faithful reproductions of them, made in Sheffield, England using the original blueprints. We tried a coarse-tooth rip version and a fine-tooth crosscut, cutting Douglas fir framing lumber. The saws cut as well as the old timers say they did.

Roy Berendsohn

Senior Home Editor

Roy Berendsohn has worked for more than 25 years at Popular Mechanics, where he has written on carpentry, masonry, painting, plumbing, electrical, woodworking, blacksmithing, welding, lawn care, chainsaw use, and outdoor power equipment. When he’s not working on his own house, he volunteers with Sovereign Grace Church doing home repair for families in rural, suburban and urban locations throughout central and southern New Jersey.

Bradley Ford

Test Editor

Brad Ford has spent most of his life using tools to fix, build, or make things. Growing up he worked on a farm, where he learned to weld, repair, and paint equipment. From the farm he went to work at a classic car dealer, repairing and servicing Rolls Royces, Bentleys, and Jaguars. Today, when he’s not testing tools or writing for Popular Mechanics, he’s busy keeping up with the projects at his old farmhouse in eastern Pennsylvania.