This post is coming to you live from the Edinburgh Mini Maker Faire—returning to Edinburgh for the second time—being held at the Summerhall here this weekend as part of the Edinburgh International Science Festival.
One of the main constraints when you’re trying to decide what you want to build is the tools you have. While you can go a long way with a hammer, a couple of screw drivers, and a hacksaw, sometimes there’s a lot of truth in the old saying, “The right tool for the right job.”
Even if you can turn everything into a nail—and then use that hammer you have lying around—if you have the right tool for the job then everything is going to go a lot easier. Your build will go more smoothly, take less time, and look nicer at the end of it. The fewer hammer dents the better in fact.
Of course you can’t own every tool, and even if you’re lucky enough to be a member of a hackspace or makerspace, you can’t guarantee that they’ll have the right tools either, and you probably won’t be allowed to take them home if they do.
Which is where the Edinburgh Tool Library comes in, it’s a new charity that not only wants to lend you tools, but teach you how to use them. I spoke to Chris Hellawell here at Edinburgh Mini Maker Faire the about the library and the aim of the charity.
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