ArcaMax

I found myself entranced by a video several weeks ago. Shoyan, a master carpenter who lives in Japan, chronicled the construction of a simple residential house that was a mix of Japanese construction methods and Western amenities.

I was in awe of Shoyan’s skills and attention to detail. He employed precision you might see a master cabinetmaker use to build a fine piece of furniture. Shoyan used power tools, but he never hesitated to pull out his razor-sharp wood chisels or a hand plane to get a piece of lumber to do exactly what he wanted. You can watch this video on my www.AsktheBuilder.com website. Just type “Shoyan” into the search box on my home page.

I thought about you after the video ended. The average homeowner will never build a home with their own hands as did Shoyan. You, though, often are charged with doing minor repairs and projects around your home. The more of these you accomplish with a great result, the more your confidence soars. My late father-in-law had a saying about this: “Nothing builds success like success.”

I’m often asked about power tools by my newsletter subscribers. Drills, saws of all types, drill/drivers, routers, and portable table saws are at the top of the list. One tool, however, doesn’t seem to garner much interest even though I feel it’s one of my personal go-to tools each week.

I’m talking about the power multi-tool. A power multi-tool is used to cut things. The head of the tool vibrates side-to-side just like the clippers a barber uses to cut hair. Any number of blades can be attached in seconds to the tool.

You can cut glass, plastic, wood, drywall, metal and so forth using a multi-tool. Precision cuts like those made by Shoyan are possible. Hand-eye coordination is required, as well as a small amount of practice.

You might rush out and buy one of these magic small power tools once you discover how I used mine on a recent project.

Fiber optic cable Internet service became available at my home months ago. The most secure and fastest Internet you can have, in my opinion, is wired cable within your home. WiFi signals can leak outside your home and be sniffed. I once saw a troubling sniffing demonstration at a conference.

It was impossible for me to install Ethernet cables in my existing home, so I was forced to use WiFi. I was faced with getting the fiber optic cable from a far corner of the garage to the entrance hall of my home. With some ingenuity and 50+ years of remodeling experience, I was able to create an alcove above the coat closet in the hall.

The first step was to use my multi-tool to make a small surgical cut in the drywall above the closet. This small 4-inch by 4-inch hole allowed me to confirm I could slide a 10-foot-long conduit from that point across a mudroom ceiling and then into the garage ceiling.

I then went into the garage and used the tool with a fine-toothed blade to carefully cut a larger hole in the drywall. I only let the tool penetrate the drywall as I had no idea if wires or pipes were just above the drywall. I put some blue painter’s tape on the blade to show me when to stop plunging the blade into the drywall.

The tool did a superb job of cutting the plastic electrical conduit. There were minimal burrs I had to deal with because I used the very fine-toothed blade.

I decided to build a box to create the alcove. I had some scrap pieces of 3/4-inch A/C fir plywood that would be perfect. The A side was very smooth, much like drywall. The multi-tool was then used to cut precise holes in the back wall of the box. One hole was for the electric box for the 120-volt outlet, and the other hole was for a one-gang electric box the conduit that would house the fiber optic cable.

The multi-tool cut through the thick plywood like a warm knife through butter. There was no need to drill a pilot hole with a drill. I didn’t have to use a jigsaw that would create all sorts of nasty splinters. The multi-tool created a hole that looked like it was cut with a sharp razor knife.

You’ll be able to find an affordable power multi-tool with no issues. There are many different brands. Keep in mind the more money you spend, the better the tool will be in almost all cases. The most expensive multi-tools have strong parts and great motors that can last a lifetime with normal care.

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