George Robertson is well organised this month as he tries out some of the latest tool storage innovations from ToughBuilt.
As a conscientious professional, I’m a real stickler for being organised in my work, but if I made an estimation as to how much time and energy I’ve spent either searching for, or walking to the van to collect certain tools, it would be enough to make my eyes water.
You can imagine my pleasure, therefore, when the folks at ToughBuilt sent me a selection of the latest products to try out – all with the aim of keeping my precious tools safe and accessible when they’re required.
I’ll start by saying that I’ve not traditionally been a tool belt user – like most electricians, I work out of a tool bag. That said, when I’m working at height I do like to strap on a tool belt and/or pouches, as there’s nothing worse than getting up there and finding you’ve left something behind.
As such, I did already have a familiarity with the ToughBuilt brand, having utilised the ClipTech Journeyman Electrician’s Pouch to carry my hand tools over the last 18 months – that is also a product I’d highly recommend!
Belt and braces
Among the goodies I received for this review was the ToughBuilt 5 Piece Pro Contractor Tool Belt. This boasts three ClipTech Pouches, a padded belt, padded braces (called ‘suspenders’ in homage to ToughBuilt’s US heritage) and three ClipTech Hubs.
The belt is made of six layer tough fabric and is adjustable to fit waists from 32-48 inches. The extra padding at the front can be removed, but I’m not sure why anyone would want to do this as it makes the belt itself very comfortable to wear. The padded braces can be quickly clipped on/off the belt and I found that adding them to the belt took a lot of weight from my hips, making the whole rig more comfortable and easier to use.
Additionally, the three ClipTech Hubs can be attached to the belt at any point and it’s these that make the whole system so versatile. Clipping the pouches to the hub takes seconds and to remove them you simply press the yellow release and lift.
The Hubs can be clipped to any belt, attached to the wall using the two mounting holes on the back of the hub or attached to the ToughBuilt Wall Organiser – a 60cm long unit that can be mounted on a wall or in a van and allows you to easily organise your tools in the pouches and have them to hand when you need them.
As the tool belt rig comes with three pouches, you essentially have 36 pockets and tool loops, two tape measure clips and an ‘extreme duty’ hammer loop to play with. The larger pouches all have attached kickstands so when you remove the pouch from the belt you can stand it on the floor or a table next to you, upright and ready to use. A very handy feature.
Total versatility
Because of the versatility of the system all pouches in the ToughBuilt range will fit all of the ClipTech Hubs. This makes it extremely simple to remove a pouch you won’t be using for a job and replace it with one that holds the tools you will need.
I should also add that ToughBuilt produces some awesome tool totes, with the Large Tool Tote and the XL Rolling Massive Mouth Tool Bag just a couple of the options on offer. Both of these products offer a myriad of helpful design features, along with an integrated bar which is used to house the ClipTech Hubs so that an extra tool pouch can be added or removed simply and quickly.
As mentioned previously, I’ve always been fairly traditional in the way I store and carry my tools but this system really has turned me into a convert. I can store my tools strategically in separate pouches, attach them to the wall organiser in my van and take ONLY what I need to use on-site with me. On a different job, it might mean that I’m carrying a different pouch, but either way I’m not trying to cram every one of my tools into one bag and then spend the day carrying around a load of tools that I’m not going to need at any point.
Overall I’ve been really impressed with the ToughBuilt brand and would recommend that other readers take a good look at the ClipTech system – it could be an absolute game-changer for you moving forwards.
To get more details about ToughBuilt’s ClipTech range click here
