Carl Mueller, host of DIY Tools & Techniques, offers a series of useful shop tips: Use a nail to close the top of a glue or caulk container (figure A). Store nuts, bolts, screws and nails in a clear container such as a jam jar or a sandwich bag (figure B). Clean rust from tools with sharpening or lubricating oil and steel wool (figure C). Line a toolbox with a cloth treated with honing oil (figure D). Tools stored atop the cloth will be less likely to rust. To make a homemade sandpaper cutter, screw the ends of a hacksaw blade to the end of a plywood board, with the teeth of the blade facing in (figure E). Slide a piece of sandpaper under the blade for straight and easy cutting (figure F). To make a homemade carrier for circular-saw blades, drill a hole large enough to accommodate a carriage bolt through the middle of a scrap piece of wood (figure G). Poke the carriage bolt through the center of a square piece of cardboard (figure H). Lay a circular saw blade on top of the cardboard (figure I), and continue layering, alternating cardboard pieces and saw blades. When all of the saw blades have been added to the carrier, secure a washer and a wing nut to the carriage bolt to hold the blades in place (figure J). To prevent paint from drying around the rim of a paint can, use an awl to poke holes around the rim (figure K). Any paint that gets into the rim of the can will drip through the holes instead of sticking to the rim.
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