I’m restocking my toolbox. My sons are going to get the tools I started with, and I’m going to buy everything new. This time, I want tools that weigh less. What should I look for?

This is the era of lightweight tools. There are hammers with titanium heads (stilettotools.com) and aluminium box-beam levels (johnsonlevel.com) – and even the wrist-straining cast-iron pipe wrench can be had in an aluminium version (ridgid.com). To restock your box, look for types of tools that have replaced steel parts with magnesium, aluminium or plastic. Even where you can’t reduce the weight of a tool, good industrial design can make it easier and less tiring to use. Whenever possible, handle several variations of a tool before you buy one.