Winter has us all hunkered down, but it's almost time to come out of hibernation, renew goals, and revive projects. Ensuring your toolbox or kit has everything you’re going to need for the season is essential. No reason to make lack of prior planning turn into a supply emergency! Here are a few of our favorite ideas for what to put in your toolbox:
Wrenches Turn It All
Wrenches make the world go round in theatre and life. You nearly always need one on at least one occasion per show. StageSpot has a wide selection of hand tools to make your hang and focus easier. If you’re not a fan of traditional sized tools, the Stage Junk tools might be more to your liking. Pocket sized and ever so practical. There are many varieties of the tool, so find your favorite and keep a spare handy because your friends will want to “borrow” it often. Don’t forget your leash for tools so you won’t lose your investment to gravity.
Tape Holds It All Together
Tape is an essential part of any toolbox or kit. Be it gaff, electrical, friction, or console tape, at least one roll of some kind of tape always comes in handy. Gaffers tape being the duct tape of the staging world. It’s easy to rip, handy for marking, excellent at temporary repair for just about anything from shoes to shirts to door jams and props. It should be renamed MacGuyver tape according to some. Electrical tape is a well-designed vinyl plastic insulating tape. It’s used for insulating wire splices (or repairing nicks from poorly maintained audio cable). Electrical tape has saved many a crew member from unpleasant encounters with electricity. Friction tape is a two-sided tape that gets its usefulness not so much from being sticky, but from being able to cling to itself tightly, yet peel off easily at your discretion. It’s very handy for wrangling the various odds and ends that accumulate back stage and behind camera. Console tape is fantastic at its job. It’s designed to make labeling consoles easy and mess free. While you can use gaffers tape, console tape is easier to label with a variety of writing tools and incredibly easy to replace when the next show loads in. If you haven’t tried it yet, give it a shot. You’ll be amazed at how easy and clear it makes labeling consoles, panels, and switches without leaving a residue.
Odds and Ends to Finish the Job
Telrad spotting scopes are primarily for those using a spot, but if your venue doesn’t provide one it’s worth it to carry your own. It’s a lifesaver for anyone thrown into the spotlight.
Pulleys can aid in heavy lifting making it safer and easier. Keeping a variety on hand is especially useful. It’s never fun to do the heavy lifting unaided.
Cable Adapters are always handy. You never know when that one piece of equipment is going to have 3 pin instead of 5 pin or vise versa. It’s all about getting those connectors to connect.
To sum up, spring is great time to ensure your toolbox is ready for the season.
