Buying a man a new set of tools doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to get rid of the old ones. It means he now has more tools. This is worth understanding before making plans for the extra space in the shed (no wives will be named or shamed in this post).
His reasoning is usually pretty sound. There’s nothing wrong with the old tools. For example, the wrench. The new set came with one the same size, but that’s hardly the old wrench’s fault is it? And sometimes you need one wrench to hold something while you turn it with the other. Throwing one away would leave you buying a third wrench to replace the first one, which he’d have a hard time explaining to himself.
The saw is dull. He’ll grant you that. But a dull saw is still a saw, and he’s been meaning to get it sharpened for going on eleven years. But the circular saw is just so convenient. Still he's certain the day will come when he'll need that old hand saw in easy reach.
The hammer handle has been taped so many times it's more tape than wood. But it has a balance the new one doesn’t have, and he knows exactly where it’s going to hit. The new one will have to prove itself, just like the old one did.
Then there’s the coffee can. Nobody knows everything that’s in it, including him. Bolts, washers, a hinge pin, a spring off of something. None of it matches, and every piece of it will be needed about a week after the can goes to the dump. (Every man knows the bolts and bits you need are the ones you threw away).
Some of those tools were his daddy’s, and a few were his granddaddy’s before that. Back when tools were built to last and fathers taught their sons how to hammer straight, measure twice, and cut true. The tools aren't just tools. They are a door into memory.
Here's what I can promise. In his heart, he's hoping one day his son will stand where he is standing, looking at the old tools he passed on. Deciding what to keep, and understanding that new isn't always better. Because while you can always have more tools, you can't always make more memories with the ones who taught you to use them.