Tools and death what you doing

Rob Keeble

Member
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Location
GTA Ontario Canada
For some time now and i mean years, this thought has been on my mind.
Question i have is what to do in will regarding tools.
Times have changed i am sure we can all agree that our kids might not neccessarily take up tinkering. I can see mine attempting some work around their house but they way more interested in sporting activities than tinkering and woodwork is even one step deeper in the tinkering world.

My concern got greater after i saw Pauls shop being sold off recently. As y'all know i purchased his drill press with the assistance of Jay and Larry.

Thats fine for the big stuff but the smalls ???
I dont see the value as in second hand realistic fire sale value of what i have making a dent to my estate.
I would far sooner see these tools ending up in someones hands thats going to love them the way i do and not a collector but a user.

But the gap between a good intention of leaving them to such solution and the reality of finding a person in need that would appreciate and use them is huge.

Even with the kids hopefully by the time i do pop off, they would have already acquired many of their own tools so they faced with feeling "obligated" to take on Dads some for sentimental reasons but realistically unless one is somewhat interested it becomes hording for the sake of it.
Example being i am still sitting with 80kg of "stuff" my dad sent me not long before his passing. Stuff he could not bear to clean out. But in reality totally his "stuff" that has no connection to me.

Another example of this cold be something as small as my scratch stock tool i made and its blades. A good hand tool woodworker or interested person would make use of it. Its super highly unlikely my sons ever would so it becomes either a casualty and garbage or a hording burden.

Some of you dont have offspring so i wondered what your thoughts have been on this?
Add to this the burden it places for your loved ones left behind to see to this with them knowing how much it meant to you.
Seeing how Tom felt clearing out Dads workshop while alive is bad enough showing but it would be even worse after the even worse after passing in my view.

Whats your take, i know its an unpleasant subject but thinking about how fast the past years have gone and planning surgery raises thoughts that we are all mortal.

I wish there was some old woodworking tool charity that would take on these items and see they get to a needy home but i cant see how it would work vetting the fake needy. Any ideas?

Food for thought i am sure.

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The likelihood of me leaving this life way before my wife does is inevitable mostly due to her family history of longevity. I've told her to look at it this way: Having a fully-equipped shop right out the back door will make Raul very happy! :rolleyes:
 
have it set up to be sold on forums or to other woodworkers, have a good friend to over see it, the kids will get no of it.. they have no interest or appreciation of what they are or where they came from.. they moneys will go to a trust fund to split 50 / 50. also i will be selling as much as i can before then.. there fore making my own choices.
 
I have made my very practical daughter the executor of my will. She, being she, will divide up the bits and pieces amongst my survivors who may want any of the stuff, and auction off the rest. As for me, it won't be my problem.
 
after my mom passed, with 5 children, and 4 stepchildren from her second husband, no will was a real mess.

that is a reason Im obsessed with the distribution of my assets when Im dead.

money is easy, elen gets everything or the children get it.

Ive made detailed instructions of my belongings, including any tools I think are worth money.

Like rob says, they aren't going to make anyone rich, but my son will assist my wife with selling whatever is valuable, meaning over lets say 100 dollars each.
The rest that my children or their spouses(hopefully by then) don't need, can sell off at a garage sale.
 
I have some tools that were my great grandfathers...My hope is that my daughter will get more involved with me in the shop in the coming years and she can use them as well and then pass them on to her kid(s). She likes coming out to watch me and make small things, but loses interest pretty quickly most times. She's only 9, but more thought will go into this in the future for sure...

My great uncle and another uncle had a large amount of tools when they were moved to homes (unknown to them as they had/have dememtia) and those were gone thru by family members. What was wanted was taken, what was not was sold or junked. Luckily only a few minor fights broke out during that time, but that was over my great uncles vast gun collection. "He like me more than you so I should get more" was one of many arguments. Some relationships won't be the same after that either...pretty dumb if you ask me.

My dad has been giving me tools that he has multiples of or when he upgrades, I'm certain that will continue. Once he passes, I'm sure my mom (if she is still around) will ask my brother, myself and sister to go thru his shop and do with it what we want as we are the beneficiaries of my parents trust. She's been in charge of 3 "estates" in the past 4yrs (including the messy one above) and has told everyone she knows to purge as much as you can when you can to make it easier on those who will need to deal with it. Purge, but also have will or trust in place...takes care of most questions and problems.
 
I'm fortunate that my son is also a fairly avid wood worker... although his interest runs somewhat differently than mine, he will probably take all of my tools and dispose of whatever he doesn't want. My step son may share in some of them, but he's not into any sort of wood work, so don't really expect he will want any... sons in law are not into wood work at all.

I do have a regret that when my father died, he had a pretty good collection of hand tools, most of which I would not have any use for as he was a framing carpenter and I don't do any flat work... as his only son I could have taken any and all of them, but at that time no interest in wood working either, that has developed since then. He had been collecting his tools from his early teen years and most of them were fairly well worn and used... if I had taken any, would have been for the sentimental value... instead, I advised my stepmother to sell them and take what ever she got for her own use. I think she did just that, sold them in one lump package and probably cleared enough for one or two weeks groceries. I know one of my nephew's did take some and his guns...

It's a good thought to plan for the inevitable and have talked with the wife several times about doing a will, but haven't taken the time... it should become a MUST DO on the To Do list.
 
not to beat up on chuck ellis, but anyone here that doesnt have a will or trust, is putting a major load on those left afterwards.. you really need to make it a priority and not have the attitude i dont care what happens i wont be here, outlook..
 
Good question.

It harder to talk to the kids about it - than it is to talk about it here.

Naturally - the kids are more interested in us than in what we have, and the natural tendency is to not talk about possessions.

For me - I am pretty sure I am at the stop acquiring stage - save for building a CNC router.

At this point I want to start thinning out.

In the house I am working really hard - going against the tide - to get to as minimalist as possible. I get NO support in that effort.

I believe some day, when I cannot care for the property, and work in the shop - I will need to move into an apartment.

At that point - I want the house to be already cleaned out

For the shop - I am not buying any materials just to stock it. If I don't have something and I NEED it - that is the only reason to buy it. Other than that - I have a HUGE supply of materials on hand. I think - nearly enough to keep me busy the rest of my working life. So - I need to use it up to thin it down

Because I am an engineer and I am anal about collecting data - I have nearly everything in my shop categorized with the year I bought it and what I paid for it. In essence - it is an inventory list, with values.

I think my son some day would want some stuff - but right now - he has no place to put any of it.

My plan is to first offer to the kids whatever they want - then - as I no longer can do it - to sell it.

Other than that - I really don't know what to do with it.
 
I am with Jon, still buying and not planning on kicking off yet:D I do how ever have a spread sheet with most listed and broken into 3 categories. Wood, Mechanic and Electrical. I have the price paid for most stuff from the last couple years. On the sheet is a couple names and numbers so wife would know who to call for help. Far as long term and going until I can't do much, I will then sale off.
 
If I go first the wife gets everything (no kids).

I told her she has several options:

- If she needs the money, sell them in small groups.
- If she doesn't need the money, keep them, they are paid for and are in a detached garage.
= She may want to actually start using some of them to fix/make stuff.
= She may remarry and the next guy may enjoy the shop as much as I have.
= She may remarry and the next guy doesn't want them and he can sell them.

If she doesn't remarry and she goes before her parents (her father is 1 of 20 kids), her father can have them and he can find which of the 100 nieces and nephews on his side of the family wants them.

The only other option I have contemplated was to donate to a local high school or trade school.

But the Will states, all to wife, then her parents. After that, don't care. A hundred years from now most will end up in a landfill anyway.....It may just make if there sooner.

If she goes first, I will update my Will, give everything to the Hare_Krishna...................:rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:

(Sorry if anybody here is a HK....)
 
I just hope my wife doesn't sell my tools for the same prices I told her I paid for them. Same with the guns and guitars. :rofl:

Realistically, aside from three nephews and one niece who may be interested in some of the tools (as well as guns and guitars), the rest will be sold or given away as my wife sees fit. If she's not resourceful enough to research the current used prices, it's clearly not going to be my problem.
 
I've been talking with my parents about such things lately, I'm the only, so the who gets what is simple when that time comes.

As for me, I'm hoping to have awhile to use the tools I'm finally getting to enjoy. My two boys haven't shown a lot of interest, though all three have a basic knowledge of them. I'm planning on a couple of upgrades in the relatively near future, and when I get them my eldest; James, will receive some starter tools and a workbench.
 
None of my kids are interested, so I've decided not to die.

Seriously, the kids don't show interest. So I' with Ted and Jay. I would rather let my wife sell them of ten cents on the dollar than to give them to someone that isn't going to use them.
 
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I'm with Bill and Ted, it will be "Betty's got a bass boat" scenario for my wife. ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUDiPAnFob8

Need to be a little more diligent in keeping things up to date on my will, but she knows that things marked with my dad's name are to go to my nephews first, everything else for my kids to divide. However, I need to do some updates to make sure a few things go to the grandson when he's old enough.

Also reminds me that I need to get back to doing inventory in the shop. Have a lot of stuff entered, but have acquired a few new things and need to get images added.
 
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Whatever you do with things, just remember if you list it they will tax it.

Those laws change all the time, so who knows how they will value things,

or what rate they will tax it at.
 
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