# My Big Fat Obnoxious Keychain



## Radman (Dec 12, 2004)

That is, obnoxious to everyone but me!

What tools do you carry in your pocket or on your belt when at work?

I have a craftsman 15mm (size of a c-clamp bolt) ratcheting box end wrench, a blue-point (snap-on) 6" wide jaw adjustable wrench, my keys, and my brand new AA Maglite!

I attached a large key-ring to the neck of the ratcheting wrench so it slides up and down but the ends of the wrench prevent it from slipping off. This is attached to the loop on the adjustable wrench. My keys to the theater doors and cabinet padlocks are on a seperate ring which is also attached to the adjustable wrench. The mag is in a holdster on my belt. I stick the ratchet in my pocket and let the rest hang out.

I hope to add a 3/4" craftsman ratcheting box end wrench on another ring, an LED penlight on another ring, an LED bulb for the mag, a safety leader on a caribiner, and a bely-holdstered Gerber Legend 800 multipliers, plus a set of car keys when I can drive. 

Anyone use any of these tools?


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## zac850 (Dec 12, 2004)

At work I usually have, in my pockets:

a c-wrench, attached to a belt loop with some tie line
my leatherman, a very nice leatherman with 2 saws a knife, a small screwdriver that I use as a pin splitter, plus all the other stuff leathermen have.

In my bag, to be grabbed as needed I have:
another c-wrench
another, smaller leatherman
a GAM check (one of the best things ever)
pens
a sound cable to get from headphone out to RCA in, so I can plug my iPod to the sound system
gloves (setwear)
a cable slicer (what you call it, to get the plastic insulator off the cable...)

a bunch of other things that I forget at the moment...


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## avkid (Dec 12, 2004)

i almost always have a mini-maglite at least one multi-tool ,my wire cutters (got for free from leviton) and a mini stereo to RCA cable


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## mbenonis (Dec 12, 2004)

All of our tools live in our closet off stage left, but usually I carry my keychain, which is also loud and obnoxious, and an Altman tool around (much easier to use than a C-wrench for lighting!) Other than that, I also keep my PDA on me to jot down lighting notes and a pen.


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## moojoe (Dec 12, 2004)

hmmm...i too have my loud, obnoxious keychain with like...20 keys, i then have my 8" cressent wrench on a safety phonecord. the wrench can also come off and be replaced with a altman wrench depending on what im doing. i then have my Gerber, then my knife, phone, and pin splitter, and maglite.


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## SuperCow (Dec 12, 2004)

I always have my Gerber, a AA Maglite, and my C-Wrench. I carry them in this neat belt pack I got from Tools for Stagecraft. It looks llike this:





I really like it. It has pockets on the front for the Gerber and the Maglite. Behind them, it has a pocket that fits my C-Wrench perfectly. And it all fits onto my belt.

On my key chain, I have: Dorm room key; House key; Locker key; Bike lock key; Maglite Solitaire, Glowing Sushi, Lucky Dice (I stole them from a girl I used to row with.); Watch; A binder clip and the key to my Laptop's lockdown cable. I make quite the little jingle as I walk down the halls.


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## ccfan213 (Dec 12, 2004)

i have my mag, C-wrench and leatherman on my belt, keys to the amp rack and my house keys which have a keychain mag in my pocket and my locker contains 5 types of tape at least, extra wrenches, pliers, all kinds of wires, a screw diriver and alot of other stuff.


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## propmonkey (Dec 12, 2004)

i keep my keys in my pocket(at hate all of the crew wearing their keys, they're showing off, i dont mind if you have a reason but we only need one key at my theatre). i usually will pick up a wrench, screw driver, and gloves during focus or set.


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## techieman33 (Dec 12, 2004)

well, i carry a mega wrench, a small knife, a solitare maglite, and ofcourse my keys on my keychain.
In my pockets, i usually have my gloves, a c-wrech, my zippo ( i don't smoke, but it comes in handy at times), a pen, sharpie, my big knife, my cell phone, and my pda, i love my pda, it's helped me pass trough a lot of very boring rehersals, and it's great to take quick notes on. On my belt, i carry my gerber 600 series, my leatherman pst, 2 maglites, and another c-wrench. yes i know it's kind of over kill to carry that much stuff, but i people borrow stuff, and i like to have another so i can use it, if i need to, and usually a box of 4 AA batteries. All of this is just during shows though.

normally i only carry one multi-tool, 1 maglite, no wrench or batteries. And i have a locker in the scene shop, so it's not like my stuff is far away.


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## SuperCow (Dec 12, 2004)

> i carry my gerber 600 series, my leatherman pst



Why carry two multi-tools? The Gerber is clearly the superior tool, in my opinion, but why carry one of each? They're both essentially the same.


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## ccfan213 (Dec 12, 2004)

if i carried a regular knife i would get in so much trouble it is rediculous, i have found that it is easier to avoid the whole mess and deal with the pain in the ass of opening my leatherman every time.


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## Sombra2 (Dec 12, 2004)

boy i hate to see your belt your whole body must be covered with pouches. Or do you have some sort of tool belt?


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## SuperCow (Dec 12, 2004)

The Gerber's not a pain in the ass. Just give 'er a flick of the wrist, and she's ready to rock and ruin.


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## techieman33 (Dec 13, 2004)

i carry one of each, because i bought the leather man first, the bought the gerber, i carry the gerber everyday, and the leatherman also during shows, i mean, i might as well get some use out of it. and with the gerber i like being able to operate it with one hand when i'm on a ladder screwing around with a light, but my leatherman will open one handed as well, i've used it so much it butterflies open, it's cool. 
and yes i have a pouch, that carries, my gerber, my maglite, my c-wrench, batteries, and a pen, and my sharpie, i never go anywhere without a sharpie.


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## SuperCow (Dec 13, 2004)

Sharpies are key. For marking boards, making big notes, writing on people's faces...


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## JahJahwarrior (Dec 13, 2004)

what are thr rules on knives/multitools at school? some kid at my school just got kicked out and in ALOT of crap legally beecause he had knives at school, apparently there is some law. But I cannot find any info ont he laws on it online, does anyone here know anything about them? I'd assume they change a little from state to state.


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## OldGrover (Dec 13, 2004)

On me : Mini-maglite, maglite, leatherman wave (with tool adapter, plus bits).

In my job chest/toolbox : 4 inch grinder, circular saw, drill, cordless drill, air compressor, pneumatic nailgun/stapler, manual stapler, hammers, mallet, socket sets, wrench sets, screwdriver sets, extra screws, glue, extra staples/brads, nails, jigsaw, bit set, carpenter's square, speed square, duct tape, gaffer's tape, glow tape, clamps, more clamps, electrical tape (many colours), blue gels to cover lights backstage, flashlights, nightlights, chisels, 3 or 4 tape measures, a pack of mechanical pencils, neon sticker sheet with 'Grover' on them - to label tools, drinks and cute actresses/prop mistresses as my property - and chalkline with extra chalk.

*grins* Thank the lord for job chests with wheels  My goal is to be able to roll in with enough stuff to equip a build team with enough stuff to build, well, anything - and since my theatre owns nothing toolswise and since most of my build teams have never used powertools before... well, it takes some doing.

-OG


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## techieman33 (Dec 13, 2004)

i don't know about any laws concerning knives, as far as my school went, security and the principal's all knew we carried them, and what we used them for, so it wasn't a big deal, as long as we didn't pull them out outside of the theater, if they saw them outside of the theater, we would have gotten in trouble, but for the most part they didn't care.


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## ccfan213 (Dec 13, 2004)

my assistant principal lets me leave my leatherman in his office all day so i dont have it in class where i dont need it, but if i had an actual 1 blade knife, with no other tools or purpose, becauseit is so much easier to pull out and attack someone with they would flip out.


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## JahJahwarrior (Dec 13, 2004)

maybe I wll ask my administration...it's a private school, so it's not ike there is a police officer around I can ask....i just really don't want to get expelled and get felony charges  

On my key ring, I have a key to a lock on my big box of whatever (kinda like oldgrovers box, but without powertools), a key to my room, a key to my house, a key to a lawnmower, two other keys that go to other lawnmowers that don't use the standard ignition key,, and a drumkey. I do alot of tech with bands and drummers are very good at losing theirs, I have learned.


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## techieman33 (Dec 13, 2004)

ya, but that's the thing with having just a knife, i like to be able to pull it out and use it without having to dig around. If i need to cut something, i like to be able to do it now, especially when i'm on a ladder. And i'm really hard on knifes, and i don't want to destroy the blade on my gerber, it's a little more expensive to replace, granted the knife i like is a $30 knife so i'm not saving much money, but i'd rather buy a new knife every 6 month's than a new multi tool. 

oh and on a side note, the sheath for a 2AA maglite is perfrect for holding most 6" c-wrenches.


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## ccfan213 (Dec 13, 2004)

oh i agree a knife is preferable, i am a boyscout so i know how handy it can be, but i would rather not be expelled and have to open the leatherman then the blade.


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## techieman33 (Dec 13, 2004)

ya, i totally understand it's not worth it, but if you have that option, i prefer it.


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## Radman (Dec 13, 2004)

OldGrover said:


> ...In my job chest/toolbox : 4 inch grinder, circular saw, drill, cordless drill, air compressor, pneumatic nailgun/stapler, manual stapler, hammers, mallet, socket sets, wrench sets, screwdriver sets, extra screws, glue, extra staples/brads, nails, jigsaw, bit set, carpenter's square, speed square, duct tape, gaffer's tape, glow tape, clamps, more clamps, electrical tape (many colours), blue gels to cover lights backstage, flashlights, nightlights, chisels, 3 or 4 tape measures, a pack of mechanical pencils, neon sticker sheet with 'Grover' on them - to label tools, drinks and cute actresses/prop mistresses as my property - and chalkline with extra chalk...



That was really funny until I realized you didn't say "On my chest/in my toolbelt..."


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## SuperCow (Dec 13, 2004)

> but i'd rather buy a new knife every 6 month's than a new multi tool



If you break anything on your Gerber, you can just send it back to them and they'll give you a new one for free. Lifetime warranty.


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## techieman33 (Dec 13, 2004)

ya, but it's not really worth the effort to wait 2 months to get one. I can't live without it that long. My knife is a gerber too, i really like it.


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## SuperCow (Dec 13, 2004)

I love my Black Gerber 600. It's one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. A pretty big investment, but a worhwhile one.


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## techieman33 (Dec 14, 2004)

are the black one's more expensive?
i have a regular 600 and it was only $50, and it was near christmas when i bought it, and it came with a ridge knife to.


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## Peter (Dec 14, 2004)

Ya, I think i mentioned this before, but it was asked again, knives of any kind are a Big NO NO at my school, even multi tools. Ya, if we need to cut something, it's pull out the sisors, or run down to one of the shop classes and hope the teacher is there. I guess it's a good thing we dont do a ton of stuff like making sets where we really have to cut stuff often. we mostly cut gels anway, and those are best cut with sisors if you ask me.


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## techieman33 (Dec 14, 2004)

actually what i like best for cutting gels is the big paper cutters with the machette arm. you can mark out the sizes of all the gel frames, and cut all you need quickly without having to trim, and make measurements.


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## Peter (Dec 14, 2004)

Hey ya, that does sound like a good idea! now I just have to find me a papercutter! lol, I think there might be one in the copycenter, but i really doubt I can get my hands on it, I might have to go take a field trip next time i need to cut lots of gel! Thanks for the great idea! I had never thought of using a papercutter for gel!


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## bdesmond (Dec 14, 2004)

A thought from using a variety of paper cutters to cut gels:

If you haven't used the particular paper cutter before or in a long while, I'd get a scrap and put it in and see whether you get a good cut. I've found that unless the blade is extremely sharp, it just crushes the gel down into the groove whole and knicks it up, making a bigger mess than when you started.

There are a couple of very large paper/material cutters here in the art rooms and I made the assumption that because one worked marvelously the other would work just as well ... bad idea.

For the most part I can cut everything I need with a utility knife, grease pencil, and a gel frame as a template just as quickly as setting up my lines on the paper cutter and messing around with that..


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## len (Dec 14, 2004)

I keep this one in my belt http://www.stanleytools.com/default...1&SDesc=6-5/8&quot;+Sport+Utility&#153;+Knife.

It has a 3" blade, as well as a replacable tile cutter knife. Very handy for cutting tape as well as gels, since there's an extra blade inside the handle which means a good gel cutting knife. 

But mostly I deal with moving lights, which means I also have http://www.wingnutspanner.co.uk/pageone.htm

and a gator grip wrench http://www.toolsforstagecraft.com/n317.htm

and a maglite of course. All of it stays on a toolbelt rather than going in the toolbox. 

Plus, I carry a lot of oddball stuff in my toolbox, which is more workbox size. Board tape, toothbrush, powerbars, bandaids, antacids, imodium (ever eat a bad meal right before curtain?), zip ties, magazines, dmx tester, 3-5 pin converters, friction tape, electrical tape, hammer,


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## dvsDave (Dec 14, 2004)

Here's how ridiculous schools have gotten about sharp objects at schools:

quoted from WPVI.com

> *December 11, 2004* — A 10-year-old girl was slapped in handcuffs and taken away to a police station this week for brining a pair of scissors to her Philadelphia elementary school.
> School district officials say the girl hadn't threatened anyone with the 8-inch shears, and was keeping them inside her schoolbag.
> 
> But under school policy scissors are considered weapons and are banned from school grounds.
> ...



Followup: The initial 5 day suspension was pared down to 2 days. The mother is considering a civil lawsuit.

There are a lot of things I would _love_ to comment on about this ludicrious situation, but I think I'll hold my tongue and hope the school officials are _asked_ to resign following the embarresment of Philidelphia's school system.


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## SuperCow (Dec 14, 2004)

That is, to put it bluntly, utter anal buerocratic stupididty. What's a ten-year-old schoolgirl going to do with a pair of scissors that are in her schoolbag? Perhaps she might do something as terrible as cut some paper, or maybe even, god forbid, a piece of cardboard! I can tell you, little girls with scissors scare the hell out of me, I don't know about you, but, whew. I bet they were safety scissors too.

I tell you, people who bring school supplies to school should be disciplined. I remember in grade three when I got into trouble for _not_ having a pair of scissors in my school bag! And now a kid's suspended for having them. Morons.


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## dvsDave (Dec 14, 2004)

as far as the papercutters go, I designed a long low rolling cart we built with shelves and drawers underneath for cut and uncut gel storage. It's actually a pretty ingenius solution. I planned for a rubber cutting mat to be glued to the top of the cart with the common gel sizes marked out on it already for easy pre-cut marks with a grease pencil . The plan was to mount a machete style paper cutter flush with the surface of the cart. The cart was to be 34" high if I remember right and 6 feet long and as wide as the biggest papercutter we could find.


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## avkid (Dec 14, 2004)

when i was in middle school several kids got supended for having those plastic knives you get in the lunchroom


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## dvsDave (Dec 14, 2004)

SuperCow said:


> I bet they were safety scissors too.



Read carefully, the scissors were 8 inch shears. These were probably the old style friskers that are indestructable.


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## SuperCow (Dec 14, 2004)

> when i was in middle school several kids got supended for having those plastic knives you get in the lunchroom



You mean the kind that break whenever you try to cut anything? Wow, dangerous stuff!


> Read carefully, the scissors were 8 inch shears. These were probably the old style friskers that are indestructable.



Oh, sorry Dave, that must have not registered in my mind. That changes it, since they clearly weren;t school supplies. But still, a ten year old girl? Suspended? Come on.


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## ccfan213 (Dec 14, 2004)

my mom's friend's kid was suspended and sent to a psycologist in i think 4th or 5th grade for playing a game on the playground that involved some sort of military type thing and saying "im gunna kill you" 1) the kid was a little nerdy kid with a lisp and 2) he was playing a game. if that is not rediculous i dont know what is. but anyway, back to the topic at hand, dave do you have pictures of the cart u made for gels? and if anyone does manage to obtain a paper cutter, i would reccomend locking it up somewhere or it will end up in a classroom!


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## len (Dec 14, 2004)

My guess is that schools have to take these severe actions because they are afraid that either the kid who brought it, or some other person, could turn it into a weapon. And then someone gets injured. And the school district has to spend more money on lawyers to defend itself from possible criminal and certainly civil action. They have to maintain zero tolerance because it is just too risky for them to have anything less. 

As a parent, I have to sign stuff agreeing not to send my kids with anything that can be considered a weapon (and they always put in "including, but not limited to ..."). So they can say they did everything they can to prevent stuff like that.


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## who_touched_the_patch (Dec 15, 2004)

JahJahwarrior said:


> what are thr rules on knives/multitools at school?



One of the craziest was a rental that I worked on in a school last year. (My theatre company maintains a running list of techies that they 'rent' out to people - its great, keeps us in a job...)

This school's policy was absolute zero tolerance on knives and blades, and thus we had to have our toolboxes locked at all times. What was really stupid was the fact that we weren't allowed to carry around the keys - one set at home, one set with the school janitor, not really a trustworthy person but always on site.

You would think that if we're walking round in shirts that say 
*STAGE CREW* in big black letters, people would understand that we need blades in our toolboxes.

Aside: The same applies for public transport (in NSW, Aus.) You can have knives and blades in a toolbox, but it has to be secure, and you also need to have applied for a small card from State Transit which identifies you as a professional with potentially dangerous tools.

You gotta remember that after some rehearsals you DO feel like killing someone... perhaps it's for the techies own good?[/u]


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