It's the week after the 4th of July, which means two things: nobody wants to be at work, and Zach is a different color than he was on Thursday.
David had a normal holiday. Friend's house. Reasonable behavior. Zach spent the entire day on a boat, never got off the boat, and — this is the important part — never once touched the sunscreen. Not applied it wrong. Did not touch it.
He is now paying for that choice in front of a microphone, in a garage, in July.
The Garage Is Hot and We Are Dressed the Same
Two things became clear about thirty seconds into recording. One, we record in a garage and it is approximately the temperature of a kiln, so a fan got turned on. Two, the guys showed up in the same outfit. Nobody planned it. Nobody will admit to noticing first.
Great place for podcasting. Let's get to the gear.
New Products: Turtlebox Cub, Makita 3-Speed, and a Klein Tools Showdown
Three new products worth your attention this week.
Turtlebox Cub Speaker. The small one, and it's built like the big one — drop proof, dust proof, waterproof, with 14 hours of run time and a party mode. If you've ever watched a job site speaker die a slow death in a five-gallon bucket, this is the answer.
Makita 3-Speed Drill Driver. The guys saw this one at World of Concrete and it is genuinely a lot of tool. So much so that Emma, their boss had a healthy respect for it when handed the trigger, which is either a knock on the drill or a very reasonable reaction to it. Listen and decide.
Klein Tools Construction Jack. This one turned into a competition, because everything here turns into a competition. Which construction jack do we actually like? Is Klein the end all be all? There's a verdict.
Metabo HPT: What's Actually Changing
There's a brand shift happening — Metabo HPT becoming the name you'll see going forward in North America. The guys break down what that means for the tools on the shelf and whether anything changes for you.
Zach Would Like Makita to Bring Aloe
With the Makita trip coming up and Zach's current situation being what it is, he has put in a formal request. Not for tools. For aloe. He said it out loud, on the record, to a major manufacturer.
The bar has been set for professional conduct on this trip.
The Meta Glasses Era Has Begun
We picked up Meta glasses to film content on the road, which means POV footage and hands-free shots from trips coming up. This is going to be genuinely cool for the road trip content.
It is also going to be a problem, because David has not let Zach touch them since the second they came out of the box. They are David's baby. First thing he did was hit us with "say cheese, just took a flick." His words on why he won't share: "Whenever I wear them, I feel pretty cool. Like, they're kind of like my new favorite sunglasses. Not gonna lie."
Zach has not worn them once.
Road Trip Talk
The upcoming road trip comes up, and there's a noticeable enthusiasm gap: Zach is fired up, David is… going. Long hours in the car, chattering the whole way, and a music situation that has not been negotiated yet.
Someone is going to lose aux privileges. It's early, but the signs are there.
New Segment: "Wait, We Sell That?"
New recurring bit, and it's exactly what it sounds like: stuff Acme Tools sells that nobody would guess we sell. First two entries set a high bar.
A Yard Bird Chicken Plucker. For plucking chickens. We sell it.
A Sunex Skull-Themed Mini Fridge. Not skull-adjacent. Skull-themed.
If you thought a tool company was just drills and saws, this segment is going to be a rough ride for you.
Guess That Tool
The guys also play a game where they describe a tool and the other one has to guess it. Sounds easy. It is not easy, especially when the person describing it is intentionally being unhelpful. Play along at home and see how you'd do.
Also: Toys, Action Figures, and Facing the Hate Comments
Two ideas got floated that we're may or may not be doing now. First, the guys want Acme Tools to start carrying toys and action figures. We are a tool company. Make that make sense. They tried. You be the judge.
Second, and more dangerous: they want to start reading the hate comments on air. Out loud. For fun. So if you've left one, know that it may eventually be performed in a hot garage by the man it was written about.
Listen to Episode 5
New gear, a sunburn that deserves its own segment, and a chicken plucker. Episode 5 of the Acme Tools Podcast is live now — listen on Spotify or watch the full video on YouTube.
