Tools Ask about a kit

First-day apprentice tool kits by trade.

A new hand showing up on Monday morning does not need a truckload of specialty saws or a titanium hammer. They need the belt and hand tools they will touch every ten minutes, and they need to wait on cordless tools until they see what battery platform the crew already runs.

Ask about a crew kit

The Monday-morning rule

Buy before day one: The belt or pouch, the tape measure, the layout square or level, the knife, and the core hand tools for your trade.

Wait until Friday of week one: Any cordless drill or impact driver, until you see what batteries sit on the crew charger.

Never show up on day one with a battery nobody else on the truck can charge.

What to carry on day one in each trade

Start with solid, mid-priced hand tools. Upgrade pouches and hammers after your first few months on the job.

  1. Framing and rough carpentry

    Two-bag framing belt with a hammer loop, a 21 to 23 oz milled-face steel framing hammer, a 25-foot or 30-foot wide-blade tape measure, a 7-inch aluminum speed square, a chalk box, a utility knife, a cat's paw nail puller, and carpenter pencils. Saws, nailers, and levels stay on the crew truck.

  2. Trim carpentry and drywall

    For trim: a light two-pouch belt, a 16 oz smooth-face finish hammer, two nail sets, a 16-foot tape, a 6-inch combination square, end nippers, a utility knife, and a 0.9 mm pencil. For drywall: a hanger's pouch, 25-foot tape, utility knife with spare blades, jab saw, rasp, and a 12-inch stainless mud pan with 6-inch and 10-inch taping knives.

  3. Electrical and plumbing

    For electrical: an electrician's hip pouch, 9-inch lineman's pliers, diagonal cutters, long-nose pliers, wire strippers, an 11-in-1 screwdriver, a non-contact voltage tester, a magnetic torpedo level, and a 25-foot tape. For plumbing: two pair of tongue-and-groove water pump pliers, a close-quarters tubing cutter, a PEX cutter, a 6-in-1 screwdriver, a torpedo level, and a 25-foot tape.

What stays on the crew truck until later

Do not spend your first paycheck on heavy tailgate tools the contractor or lead carpenter already brings to the job.

  • Miter saws, table saws, and stands. One sliding miter saw and stand serves the whole trim or framing crew. Learn to maintain and square the crew saw before buying your own.
  • Framing nailers, compressors, and press tools. Pneumatic guns, hoses, rotary lasers, and copper/PEX press jaws are truck equipment on most crews.
  • Specialty meters and knockout sets. An apprentice electrician needs a non-contact tester and basic continuity/voltage meter early on, while hydraulic knockout punches and thermal cameras live on the service van.
  • Full-Reference Checklists. Open the interactive Belt-to-Tailgate Kit List on the home page to print or download the complete checklist for your trade.

Ask about a crew kit

Putting together a starter tool list for new hires or apprentices? Tell us the trade, the crew size, and what the truck already provides.

Requests come to us, the people who publish this site. If we can help, we reply by email. We do not sell tools, so a request is not an order or a quote.

Companion guides: Framing belt weight guide · One battery platform for a crew.

Crew kit request