• Less is more when it comes to salvage yard tools.wrenches image by Igor Shootov from Fotolia.com
  
  When visiting a salvage yard for parts, you want to carry as few tools with you as possible, in order to keep your load light. You will have to walk some distance, and numerous tools equals additional weight. Less is more when it comes to tools to take into a junkyard, so it is best to choose a few essential tools that will perform the necessary tasks.
  
  

Wrenches

• Two sets of wrenches are essential. A metric set will be required for European or Japanese makes of automobiles. A set including a 10 mm, 11 mm, 13 mm and 17 mm should be sufficient for most bolts, with 10 mm being the most common.
  
  For domestic makes of cars, you will need a set of standard increment wrenches. Standard wrenches start as small as 3/16 and step up by 1/16 increments to 9/16. Tubing wrenches, which are used for gripping nuts and bolts at the ends of tubes or pipes, are handy to have for stubborn parts, such as rusty brake lines.
  
  

Screwdrivers

• An assortment of screwdrivers, including both Phillips heads and flat heads, is necessary for removing many parts. An alternative is a universal-style screwdriver, with an assortment of tips. Be sure you have enough sizes to deal with a variety of screw sizes.
  
  

Pliers

• You will need a set of pliers at a salvage yard, including needle-nose, side-cutters, and channel-locks, regular and locking. This should cover any situation you encounter. The locking type, for instance, will come in handy in many situations, such as gripping rounded or stripped bolts. Needle-nose pliers can help you to manage areas that are difficult to access with regular pliers.
  
  

Sockets

• A set of quarter-inch drive sockets won’t take up much room in the toolbox and will come in handy at the salvage yard. Extensions and swivels are useful for bolts that are in difficult areas. Long extensions can help to gain access to a particularly tricky area. A wobble-socket will prove useful on off-angle nuts.
  
  

Allen Keys

• Allen keys (also known as Allen wrenches or hex keys) are an extremely versatile tool well worth the small amount of space they will occupy in the toolbox. They work on bolts and screws with hexagonal cross-section heads. An assortment of fractional and metric Allen keys will help you to manage bolt or screw jobs where standard and metric wrenches, sockets and screwdrivers may fail to do the job.
  
  

Hammer

• The hammer is an often overlooked salvage yard tool, but it will more than pay off for the added weight it provides your toolbox with one single use. It is indispensable for working stubborn and rusted parts loose.