Yeah… I are one. But I ain’t stupid about it. Allow me to present an actually useful report. This is the highly-useful companion to our “The AC7X Ham Radio Tube-type Gear Addict’s Calendar.”
Seasonal Tool-Buying Master Guide
January – Early March (Top Window #1)
Holiday bills and tax prep hit. People unload tools for cash flow. Pawnshops deal. Start at 50-off to avoid feeling like shit if they take your first offer. Avoids that “Damn…I should have opened lower…” feeling.
Best for: welders, generators, compressors, big stationary shop tools.
Coincidental data: Many law-firms and family-law practices — and even the popular press — call January “divorce month.” There is often a spike in filings in early January, presumably because couples wait until the holidays are over to “pull the plug” and start the year fresh. Coincidence? You make the call…
Late May – July (Top Window #2)
Moving season and spring cleanouts. Counter-data: a major longitudinal study by sociologists at University of Washington found that actual filings peak in March and August, not January.
Best for: table saws, bandsaws, drill presses, routers, planers, lawn equipment.
Coincidental data: Best time of the year to buy a boat is end of the season: Season is ending ? Sellers don’t want to store a boat over winter. It costs money. Don’t blame the boat for your divorce. Use something more realistic like the DUI on the fishing trip….
Early September – Mid October
Men discover their summer projects didn’t happen. Contractors upgrade before year-end write-offs.
Best for: woodworking gear, routers, sanders, jointers, air tools.
Coincidental Data: October is the peak marriage month in recent years. Perfect temperatures in most states, Fall colors = extremely popular for photos, Venues book out 12–18 months in advance.
Early December (Post–Black Friday Used Surge)
Contractors upgrade during Black Friday. Their old gear appears at pawnshops 7–10 days later.
Action Jackson: Circle the next two weekends or Pawn Shop visits. Get ugly tool deals while yammer “Maybe I should check Amazon for a new one, instead…”
Estate Sale Windows
Weekly: Friday mornings.
Seasonal peaks: March–May, September–November. Check local listings.
Action Jackson: If your name appears in the obits? You can stop shopping now and see if you’ve won.
Best Times for Buying New Tools
When the Wife Says So. See peak divorce filings notes above if you want to risk it….
Black Friday to Cyber Monday
The best new-tool prices of the year. Combo kits, batteries, big iron, dust collection. (I’m looking at a dust collector for my wallet…)
Father’s Day Sales (late May–mid June)
Second-best window. Batteries, drills, compressors, jobsite gear.
Amazon Prime Day (July)
Great for Ryobi, Kobalt, Craftsman, Skil.
Sometimes good Milwaukee/DeWalt lightning deals.
Labor Day (early September)
Clearance of miter saws, table saws, jobsite stands.
Tax Refund Season (February–April)
Manufacturers push high-ticket upgrades: cabinet saws, jointers, dust systems.
Model Rollouts (August–October)
Floor models blow out: bandsaws, drill presses, metal lathes.
(This explains why ham radio manufacturers show their new wares at Dayton HamVention in May – before new tool releases begin to compete.)
Best Times for Woodworking Tools
(Not before breakfast and coffee?)
September – December
Woodworkers doing gift projects drive retailer discounts. (I found this one hard to fathom…)
Best buys: bandsaws, jointers, router tables, sanders. Most shops are too cold to play with new toys until February, so go figure. Maybe I should heat the shop?
March – April
Good for clamps, jigs, sanders, shop furniture. When you run out of money, try building something in here.
January Clearance
Discontinued SKUs vanish cheaply.
We also will tend to “buy tools” the same way we do autos: Price per pound. (There is an inverse correlation when single and dating, BTW. Skinny women tend to be more expensive than heavyweights – not sexist, just our Consumer Protection hat was laying there and….
Best Times for Metalworking Tools
Metalwork timing is an art: Winter and your hands freeze to the tools; summer and you set off fires. There’s a 15-minute period during green-up which is usually safe and workable. But it also interferes with the lowland lake freshwater trout season in many areas, so this is a particularly treacherous part of the calendar to navigate.
January – March
Pawnshops and small machine shops move equipment.
Best for: welders, plasma cutters, vises, grinders. Maybe a gas-powered welder this year? Portable Saw Mill?
Action Jackson: Do timber cutting in this window – sap is running – much heavier log weights at the mill. Send us 10 percent. You’ll still come out ahead.
June – July
Floor-space clearing at machine shops.
Sometimes best for: drill presses, grinders, lathes. Search focus on the online industrial recyclers.
October – November
Retail discounts on metal-cutting bandsaws, machining accessories.
Buy by the pound.
Auction and Farm Equipment Timing
Farm Auctions: February, April, September
Best for welders, torches, anvils, vises, compressors.
Business Closeouts: March and October
Shops close on fiscal boundaries; machinery gets dumped cheap.
Pawnshop Buying Timing
Best time: Days 18–27 each month (cash drought).
Worst time: Days 1–5 each month (checks arrive).
Bundle batteries and chargers for best deals.
Annual “Best of the Best” Buying Plan
January–March: Used big iron, welders, machinery.
Late May–July: Used woodworking tools, relocations.
September–October: New tool clearances, used regret sales.
November–December: Black Friday and cyber deals; best overall window.
(Early May – HamVention deals online. After Labor Day: Boats and motorcycles.)
What to Check Before Buying Used Tools
General Mechanical Tools (After obligatory Wife-Check)
Check bearings for noise or wobble.
Verify switches and triggers work consistently.
Inspect cords for cracking, tape repairs, or heat spots.
Check brushes (if brushed motor) for life remaining.
Spin motor by hand where possible to detect roughness. (Owned by a democrat?)
Battery Tools
Test battery under load, not just “power on.”
Check charging port for melting or discoloration.
Ask age of batteries — most last 3–5 years.
Prefer buying tool-only and getting fresh batteries.
Table Saws / Bandsaws
Check arbor runout with a dial indicator if available.
Inspect trunnions for cracks or misalignment.
Check fence for parallelism and deflection.
Verify wheels on bandsaws are co-planar. (Check the wheel rubbers, too)
Lathes
Inspect ways for scoring or uneven wear. (Ask if any tooling comes with it Steady-rest and boring tools?)
Check tailstock alignment with a dead center test.
Run spindle at high RPM and listen for bearing howl.
Drill Presses
Check for quill slop by gripping extended quill and wiggling. (If it smiles, let go and run)
Inspect belts for cracking and pulleys for wobble.
Planers / Jointers
Check cutterhead bearings for rumble.
Inspect tables for flatness with a reliable straightedge.
Look for chip-out scars: a sign knives were abused.
Verify depth adjustment mechanisms aren’t frozen.
Air Compressors
Listen for knock or slap when running. Check oil level if used.
Check tank date; reject anything older than 20 years.
Inspect for rust around drain valve. (Has it ever been opened?)
Verify pressure switch cuts in and out properly.
Welders
Inspect leads for cracking and overheating scars.
Strike an arc if possible. (Harder with an oxy-acetylene rig?)
Check fan operation. (Bid or ditto)
Avoid heavily cigarette-smoked units — corrosion risk. (Make up a sign “No smoking inside my welder”?)
Hand Tools
Inspect for cracks in sockets and wrenches. (Check points or round-off in sockets esp. pop. sizes)
Avoid knurled-surface tools that feel slick (worn knurling).
Tool Depreciation Tables
Most tools depreciate to zero if a divorce is pending! Have a friend with a tool you don’t have and the wife is grousing? Lay groundwork. Machiavelli machine works, right?
Cordless Tools (Drills, Drivers, Saws)
Year 1: ?35 to ?45 percent
Year 2: ?50 to ?60 percent
Year 3+: Flat tail of ?60 to ?70 percent
Milwaukee holds value best. Ryobi drops fastest.
Chinese Tools: Some zero as soon as opened, otherwise some will outlive your grandchildren.
Stationary Woodworking Tools
Cabinet saws: ?20 percent first year, then ?5 percent per year.
Bandsaws: ?25 percent first year, then ?10 percent per year.
Jointers/planers: ?30 percent first year, then ?10 percent annually.
Festool: Freakishly low depreciation (often ?10 to ?15 percent lifetime).
Long-throw drill presses will give joy for a lifetime. Kinda like a good marriage. Which gets us to…
Metalworking Machines
Drill presses: ?25 percent first year, then ?10 percent per year. Exception: Dayton.
Engine lathes: ?15 percent first year, then ?3 percent per year. Except Atlas
Milling machines: ?20 percent first year, then ?5 percent per year. Exception Bridgeport
Welders: ?30 percent first year, then ?10 percent annual. Except gas-powered/
Air Tools
?40 percent first year
?60 percent by year three
Stabilizes around ?70 percent long-term.
Hand Tools
Quality brands (Snap-On, Wright, SK): ?10 to ?20 percent lifetime.
Midrange (Craftsman, Kobalt): ?40 percent first year.
Harbor Freight: Worth whatever someone will hand you.
Hope this helps?
Write when you get rich, which you won’t after this column, lol.
George@Ure.net