Woodpeckers has come out with yet another One Time Tool, or rather 2 new tools – the Odd Job, and the Odd Job XL.
If the name sounds familiar, that’s because this is a modern take on a long-ago Stanley tool. Woodpeckers says that they preserve all of the 15 original tool functions, while also bringing some improvements to the table.
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The Odd Job comes with a 6-inch ruler, and the Odd Job XL comes with a 12-inch ruler. That should give you a good sense about how big they are, and the size of the workpieces each is designed to be used on. Both can also be equipped with an optional 8-inch ruler.
While you should be able to fit the smaller Odd Job tool in an apron pocket, the XL is probably going to be more comfortable sitting on your bench.
Here are the 15 functions:
- Try square
- Miter square (right and left handed)
- T-square
- Marking gauge
- Mortise gauge
- Depth gauge
- Plumb level
- Spirit level
- Miter level
- Beam compass
- Inside corner square
- Scribe tool (for making circular/radius marks)
- Stainless steel ruler (removable)
- Hardened stainless steel scratch awl (removable)
- Plumb bob
It’s made from red anodized aluminum, stainless steel, and hardened stainless steel.
Woodpeckers ships the Odd Job and Odd Job XL with a 9mm mechanical pencil, which can be used in place of the scribe to form the beam compass, as well as a bunch of pencil lead refills and spare erasers.
Everything is neatly stored in a foam-lined plastic case. If you buy the deluxe set, which includes both tool sizes and the optional 8-inch ruler, you could pay a little extra for a foam-lined T-Loc Systainer case.
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Prices:
- $140 for the Odd Job in standard case
- $200 for the Odd Job XL in standard case
- $300 for the deluxe Odd Job and Odd Job XL package in standard case
- $370 for the deluxe package in a Systainer case
You can buy spare, extra, or different sized rulers separately, for $17 (8-inch, 200 mm) and $19 ($12-inch, 300 mm).
Order Deadline: September 7th, 2015
Shipping ETA: February 2016
Buy Now(via Woodpeckers)
As with all of Woodpeckers’ past One Time Tools, this one has a limited time pre-ordering window.
Their demo video does a good job of showing the Odd Job’s various functions:
Aside from a little brow raising as I try to see how beam compass and scribe tool are at all different, as it seems the only difference is whether the included pencil or hardened scratch awl tool is used, the Odd Job looks like a decent many-in-one layout and marking tool.
It’s pricey, there’s no doubt about that, but if Woodpeckers’ claims are correct, the Odd Job takes the place of a whole slew of individual dedicated-purpose tools.
If the original Stanley Odd Job was so good, why did they stop making it? Then again, Stanley discontinued a lot of good tools years and years ago.
SawdustTX
This thing is brilliant and now I want another tool that until now I didn’t even know exists….
But upon searching, I found that Garrett-Wade makes the Odd Job in brass, for less than half what Woodpeckers is asking. To my eye, they look identical functionally, and being Garrett Wade I’m sure it’s well made. Has WoodPeckers put more capability into theirs than what I’m seeing at quick glance?
Garrett Wade’s standard Odd Job is $37, versus $140 for the WoodPeckers version. The large Garrett Wade is $88 (and has a longer rule), versus $200 for the WoodPeckers version.
Before I pull the trigger, any insight or comparison of the Woodpeckers vs. the Garrett Wade would be very interesting.
SawdustTX
To be clear, I’m a fan of Woodpeckers tools and a customer! Brilliant designs that are beautifully made and most of them are unique one-of-kind items. And made in the USA!
It’s just this one in particular I’m trying to determine if it’s worth over twice the cost of the alternative option.
Stuart
Garrett Wade products can be tough to gauge. A while back an editor for a magazine I contributed to had pointed out some neat pliers Garrett Wade was selling under their own descriptive title instead of specific branding. I pointed out that they’re just Knipex Pliers Wrenches at a huge markup.
I looked at the Garrett Wade Odd Job while writing this post, but can’t tell you anything about it.
What I can tell you is that Woodpeckers doesn’t seem to build tools around a price point, they seem to set their price point around how much it costs to make their tools.
SawdustTX
Thanks for the info. I’m just looking for function and quality for the money, and struggling with the huge price difference. The only reason I haven’t ordered a GW at this point is I did notice it doesn’t have the ruler lines all the way out to the edges. The marks are only on the wood and don’t carry across the brass edges. But I can’t justify the cost of the Woodpeckers, so I’ll either go with GW at $37, or skip it.
BikerDad
Darn tempting, as are many of the Woodpecker One Time tools. For me, the biggest roadblock to getting them has been the “One Time” aspect. I have several of their rules and squares, very happy with them, but I had the luxury of buying them when the need and resources coincided. Too often, the resources aren’t available at the same time as the One Time Tool, else I’d probably have about half a dozen to a dozen of the things.
As for why Stanley stopped making ’em, I suspect it’s mostly a matter of economics. The Odd Jobs were popular when folks didn’t have nearly as much money and worked more with their hands. Because it is a good multi-function tool, handy folks with limited funds would get it rather than the 1/2 dozen tools it replaced. Today, far fewer people outside of woodworkers are going to be using the mortise and marking gauges, so a pencil, combination square, plumb bob and tape measure does the trick for most folks.
Now if only Woodpecker had picked blue anodizing as their signature color, rather than red…. :p
john
It is a nice looking bit of kit but the price is staggering! I have had a Kreg Multi-Mark from about the day it came out and that’s about £10 UK. That’s a great little setting out tool.
I am fully aware of the difference in quality etc but the Multi-Mark covers the bases very well for me.
Mark S.
Kreg’s are also USA made if I’m not mistaken (I know the screws sometimes aren’t but the tools are). I like my Multi-Mark but haven’t used it much outside of joinery (use it to mark centers and the like, prefer my old fashioned try-square or carpenter’s triangle for miters and such).
John
The photo of the 1888 Stanley ad lists the price as 75 cents.
I found a website that does historical money conversion…
…75 cents in 1888 equates to $19.46 in 2014.
I realize Stanley didn’t use ‘aircraft-grade aluminum’ (heck, aircraft didn’t even exist!), but still!
Nathan
There has not been a “one time tool” that woodpeckers has come out with that I thought was worth the money.
are they nice, yes. are they functional, yes. are they overly designed, sometimes
are they way over built/spec’d/polished etc so as to be pretty sitting in your clean workshop for your friends to see. ABSOLUTELY
this is another fine example of that.
John
I trained in a machine shop that had nothing fancy like this and I have been working with nothing fancy ever since!
Who buys stuff like this???
Jed
I like the products this company produces. They seem to be of great quality and to me price has very little to do with high standards. I will pay it!
Nancy
I pre-ordered this thing thinking of a special someone for a Christmas present. And almost immediately received a delay in production date. They stated that they would be shipping by mid December, so I didn’t raise a stink thinking it would still be here in time. No such luck. Received another delayed production notice stating that product will be shipped mid February. Very unhappy,, and special someone says speciality tool such as this are totally unnecessary. In closing,,,,,,don’t order anything from Woodpeckers.
Tom
Why don’t they have the metric rule on one side and imperial on the other ?
Arthur Hill, CPA, MBA
Now that I know what ‘ONE TIME TOOL’ means I will not bother checking them out. This is ridiculous. With modern CND/CNC it takes nothing to do another run of such a tool other than loading the blanks and assembling them. I guess it is their way of justifying the sky-high price. Too bad!!