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There are many types of power tools available in the market, and while they all have very distinct uses and benefits, they often confuse new homeowners.
What makes choosing the right power tool even more difficult is that the uses of many tools overlap with each other.
Keep reading, and I promise it will all make sense by the time you get to the conclusion.
Power Tools Names And Their Uses
Below is a list of essential power tools that every contractor and homeowner should know about.
1. Circular saw
A circular saw is a motor-powered saw that rapidly rotates to cause friction and cut wood. Although wood is the most common material circular saws are used for, you can find saws that can cut metal and even concrete.
Circular saws are portable and work best when making straight cuts in the workpiece. But they aren’t very good in terms of precision since they provide limited support for keeping the wood steady in place while cutting.
Usually, when talking about circular saws, people mean the handheld saw that uses a saw blade like the one in this image.
Check out our list of the… Best Circular Saws for Woodworking
However, there are some other saw types available that use circular saw blades but go by different names such as…
2. Table saw
A table saw consists of a table and a circular saw blade that sticks out through the tabletop. The tabletop provides support for whatever you happen to be cutting.
Table saws are primarily used for making straight cuts and work great for cutting longer pieces. They typically have woodworking fences to assist you with handling the workpiece as precisely as possible.
With some modification, table saws can also be used for crosscuts, miter cuts, beveled cuts, and even dado cuts.
Here are some of the… Best Table Saws for Beginners
A table saw isn’t the best tool for such cuts though – there are many other tools that can do them better like the…
3. Miter saw
Also known as a compound miter saw, it consists of a circular saw blade and a small platform to place what you are cutting on. Simpler miter saws are capable of cutting wood at angles from 45 to 90 degrees.
More complex versions also allow the blade to tilt right and left to make beveled cuts.
Out of the box, miter saws tend to be used with shorter pieces of wood. With a DIY or commercially-made miter saw stand, one could easily cut longer workpieces as well.
While miter saws can also be used for doing straight cuts, they are mostly used to make accurate crosscuts and beveled cuts like those used for molding and trim work.
To cover the bulk of your potential projects we found the 5 Best Miter Saw for Homeowner…
4. Nailer
The nailer or brad nailer (also known as a nail gun) is a tool used to drive nails into wood, metal, and other types of materials. It’s basically a powered replacement for a hammer. Nailers are usually powered by air, highly flammable gases like propane or butane, electromagnetism, or even small explosive charges.
The fasteners for nailers are mostly sold in the form of long clips, similar to a clip of staples. There are a variety of fasteners available too, ranging between small headless 23-gauge nails used to attach material together and 15-gauge nails commonly used as finish nails.
Make sure to read… What are the Best Finish Nailers for Baseboard?
5. Drill
Another essential power tool that everyone has handled at least once in their life. Drills are primarily used for making round holes to run cables, wires, piping, or make recessed holes for light fixtures. A drill can also be used for driving fasteners like this one below installing a new doorknob.
