It is the worst feeling arriving at your new job unprepared. It is a new career for you, you have never worked in an aviation maintenance environment. Any tools that you likely have at this point are ones that you have acquired throughout the years working on your vehicles at home. Although those tools are handy, they likely are not enough to fill out a professional grade tool box.
Something that has always baffled me has been how new employees will show up to the job with no tools at all! They have willingly chosen an industry that requires tools to be purchased, yet they have none (not even basic stuff) on arrival. Often the answer that I get is that they didn't know what they needed, and wanted to see first hand before buying anything. I guess that is a valid argument to make, how can you buy what you don't know.
One would assume that any individual arriving to the industry will have had some college exposure to a hangar environment, and that they would have been exposed to a minimal set of tools to complete college projects. However, we know what happens when one assumes.
Nothing impresses me more than when a new technician shows up with a decent spread in their tool box. It doesn't need to be Snap On or Mac, but just a well rounded set of tools that make me stop and think "Hey, maybe this guy means business."
So to help mitigate some of that first day embarrassment, I have compiled a list of the top ten tools you really need the first day to make a lasting impression on management.
1. Speed Handle
The speed handle may look ancient, however our fore fathers were on to something with this device. Speed handles allow you to really lean into a screw and get some serious torque to loosen fasteners. These bad boys also live up to their name, and you to whirl them in your hands when you get good with them, allowing you to remove fasteners efficiently. They are a staple in the M2/ Airline industry, and are usually one of the first tools technicians are introduced to as they begin to pull hundreds of panels off of wings.
I prefer speed handles which have a large ball type grip on the end that allows you to use the palm of your hand to push on it. Speed handles which have the long cylindrical type handles tend to hurt your palm after that 100th panel.
2. 1/4" Drive 12 Point Socket Set
This really is the meat and potatoes of the industry. In other industries typically you would be reaching for the 3/8" drive socket set, however due to the dainty nature of aircraft hardware we typically use the 1/4" for about 90 percent of the time as an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer. I am not saying that you won't need a 3/8" and a 1/2" drive socket set either, far from that. I am only stating that if you are limited on budget, 1/4" is the must have.
Now it may not be feasible at this time to afford Snap On brand sockets and ratchets, however I must admit that the fit and finish on them are amazing. The ratchets hands down are the best in the industry. The sockets walls are just that much thinner to allow you in tighter spots. My socket and ratchet set are Snap On, and I have to say I am very happy with the quality of them. That being said, any high quality socket set will due to get you started. These Stanley socket sets are an okay starter, and at the price you won't be crying if something breaks. Watch the ratchets as they have a tendency to start slipping. It may be worth while purchasing, at least, a Snap On quarter drive ratchet to get you going.
3. Extensions
These go hand in hand with the above, however socket sets only come with a couple. You will often have to get into tight places that will only work using longer extensions. The further you can get out from your work they less confined you will be. You will often find as well that be further away will allow you to be able to see what you are doing.
Everyone has their opinion on extensions, I personally like wobble extensions, these act as faux universal joint sockets (to some extent) where as others hate them and like traditional straight extensions. Wobble extensions are limited on torque, and I have broken them clean in two.
4. Ratcheting Screw Driver
This really is a must. Ratcheting screw drivers are a really fast way to remove fasteners. As you are unscrewing with one hand, the other can be spinning the shank of the screw driver allowing you to spin screws out twice as fast. Twice as fast, twice as efficient, and typically efficient employees climb the corporate ladder. Okay, maybe that is a little bit of a stretch, however you get my point. Being more efficient at tasks like this will go a long way in the eyes of your employer. Ratcheting screw drivers are usually bi-directional and have a switch to change direction on the fly. Some of them have removal ends, some do not. They all usually have magnets on the end, so be careful around things like flux detectors and magnetometers (high sensitivity to magnetic fields like me.)
5. High Quality Flashlight
Buy 10 of them, as the flashlight is your best friend. Flash lights are an essential part of the business. As an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer, you will constantly be looking, and working in dim lit areas. Areas require inspection and light is essential to being able to all the issues for that particular inspection or area.
The days of disposable batteries are gone, and I really do welcome this new era of USB rechargeable flashlights. Simply mark which one is yours and plug it in somewhere near an outlet or a computer. These are infinitely useful, and I have often taken mine from work home as it works so well. Having an assortment of variety of lights is a great idea as well. One being a handheld stick type light, and another being a trouble light style that can be fastened in a work area.
Your flashlight should be shock proof as they are susceptible to falling, explosion proof as we work around highly volatile chemicals and flammable substances, and last but not least, water proof, just in case you drop it into the lav. You won't have to label yours after, it will be stained blue.
6. Mirror
This is a pretty basic one, mirrors are required to perform inspections. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, I prefer the telescoping variety. Some are mounted on a hard stick, however they are a bit useless in my opinion as they do not extend that far.
The nice thing with a mirror, you can find them anywhere exactly like the one that I have shown here, so if you break it they are locally sourced easily. Trust me, you will break them - then every spar you look at will be cracked!
7. Pick Set
Such an over looked item that is the pick set. These are extremely useful to get into places that you cannot get into with a common screwdriver. They are very handy for remove and installing o-rings. Picks can be used to fish wiring through conduits, they can be used for gently scraping witness paint off of a fastener, they can be used for a whole myriad of tasks that you couldn't even begin to imagine.
You do however need to be careful with picks as they are a lot sharper than you think. I have seen many get impaled by them from poor working practices. Needless to say the pain is immediate. Picks can also mar delicate surfaces that require certain RMS finishes, such as gasket mating surfaces. This can affect the sealing of the area, and lead to headaches down the road.
8. Duckbill Pliers
It is funny because before you get into aviation you never, ever hear anyone say "Please pass the Duckbills", they just aren't that common. However, once you arrive on the scene, Duckbills are an essential pair of pliers in the Aircraft Maintenance Engineers arsenal. They are often confused by the masses as Needle Nose pliers, however they are far from it. The Duck Bill is slightly wider, giving it better grip than needle nose. The jaws are typically lightly knurled instead of serrated, this prevents Duckbills from marring lock wire like Needle Noses do.
The wide jaws allow you to get the edge of the Duckbill pliers closer to your work, and sometimes be able to get in on a slightly different angle that just works. Duckbills unlike Needle Nose, do not have a pair of cutters built into them. They are purpose built and they work well at what they do.
9. Safety Wire Twisters
Safety wiring is a job that is done multiple times a day, several days a week. As an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer, wire twisters save me a TON of time. I was reluctant though to place this on a list of tools that a technician absolutely needs, because you really should be practising with your hands. You need to be able to pick up lock wire, cutters, and a pair of Duckbills and be able to hand twist safety wire to AC43.13 standards at anytime.
Hypothetically lets say you are on a ramp somewhere and you are doing a turn around on an aircraft. You need to lock wire something, oh shoot, you forgot your wire twisters, and all you have are basic hand tools... What will you ever do? That is when you turn MacGyver, and use your hands and twist it by hand. You don't have time to go back to the base to get your wire twisters. Therefore, knowing how to lock wire by hand is still an essential skill.
Wire twisters come in many varieties, of course Snap On/Blue Point being the most expensive, and not necessarily any better, this Proto pair that I have posted here are literally the exact same pair. I do warn that this pair has a tendency to lose its locking ability if you start to use it with 0.041" lock wire. Ideal for 0.032" and below. A heavier duty, separate pair is ideal for 0.041", since it isn't used often (typically propellers in general aviation) you could get a way without it.
10. Wrenches
No box is complete without wrenches. For the time being, buying a your basic set from 1/4" to 1" is the bare minimum. However wrenches are an animal of their own, and there are so many different variations. You are eventually going to need double offset, stubby, ignition wrenches, flare wrenches, the list goes on.
There are two schools of thought with wrenches, I used to be a snob and only buy Snap On. I find the quality of Snap On wrenches is amazing. Over the years though, I started to realise that realistically a wrench is a wrench, and if I purchase a cheaper one, I can grind it up in order to make a wrench for a particular job. So in my tool box I have a mix match, I have Snap On as my daily wrenches I do for 90 percent of the tasks that I am doing (but really any brand would do), and I have cheap ones that I purchased online that I take to the bench grinder and make a wrench that works for my application. At the end of the day, if it breaks I can buy another one quickly, and affordably.
Wrenches are a tool that everyone has preferences with. The box end angles can vary from brand to brand, the tolerance on the open ends can be looser on some than others. Chrome Vanadium is not a great choice because if its starts to flake it can get into a sensitive area in the aircraft or engine.
Conclusion
As you can see, these are only 10 tools that will get you started, there are still many, many other basic tools that you require like hammers etc. I will probably come back and revisit this topic, and make a more comprehensive guide to the tools that I use on a daily basis. The bottom line is, that if you are coming into your new job prepared, and you have to borrow very little from your colleagues, that is going to go a long way towards creating a self image of responsibility. Nothing drives other Aircraft Maintenance Engineers and Technicians crazy like other people going through their tool box, if you can do your best to avoid being that person, your journey will be an easily less painful one!
