Need help...what to get for an uncle

[phunluvin82]

...that I don't know all that well.

My mom's side draws names for Christmas, and I got one of my uncles that I'm not really that close with. I have no clue what to get him.

He does construction for a living and is a somewhat typical blue collar, Bud drinking, guy's guy. He is the type that would love tools as a gift, but A) I know nothing about tools, and B) I wouldn't know what he has/doesn't have. Booze is often my go-to in these scenarios, but I've literally never seen the guy drink anything other than Bud or Miller.

I need a $50-60ish gift and don't want to resort to a GC...although if I found something fitting for less, I wouldn't be opposed to throwing in a GC to make up the difference.

IIRC, in the past, he has gotten things like leatherman, gloves, fleece, etc in the exchange...so he prob has tons of those things.

So, what does that leave? Any ideas? You ladies are so good with this stuff, help me out!

TIA!

[Deleted]

What about signing him up for some sort of beer-of-the-month club?

[ssmjlm]

Does he have a sports team he follows? Maybe something like a jacket or sweatshirt.

[bluelikejazz]

Grilling spices or Omaha steaks?

[rubytue]

Which trade is he? That might help with tools, or even fun stuff.

Like an electrician would get a huge kick out of a Klein bottle opener or the BBQ tool set.

Headlamps are also handy. And DH goes through about 6 per year.

He also LOVES this apron

He may have gotten gloves before, but they are essentially disposable in the trades. Another thing that we buy 6-8 times per year. Even the good ones. H would recommend something like these Carhartt gloves. Or really any framer gloves for the dexterity. You wouldn't believe how many fewer ER trips we've had (for stitches) since he started wearing gloves.

FWIW, I'm getting H this knife for Christmas. He has a bunch of these. This one is cool looking and fancier. Hopefully he will leave it as a home tool, not in his work stuff.

The thing with tools, especially if you work in the trades, is a lot of them have to be replaced often. They wear out, they walk off, they get lost, etc. So don't shy away from tools just because he might have it. Same with safety gear. The safety dork in me might go with some high quality gloves and some really nice safety glasses.

eta: drill bits are another of the things that he always needs. We stock up on bits generally once a year (usually black friday), and he is running low come September.

[KaraOrNot]

12 pack, box of snacks (pretzels, peanuts, chocolate) and a gc to a hardware store?

ETA. I just re-read and saw that you don't want to do a gc. I don't know then... I hate shopping for boys.

[Deleted]

More gloves are always needed. Corn Huskers lotion is a big hit with guys who work their hands. Beef jerky. Home Depot has an aluminum folding work platform , it's 3' long, 18" ish inches high. They are awesome and so useful. Should be $50ish.

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[dexteroni]

I would do something like a meat/cheese/cracker gift basket. Are you shipping this or giving it in person? If you're giving it in person, and you live near a World Market store, I would head there and put together a snack basket (they have the best selection of gift-basket-size food) and a make-your-own six pack. It doesn't matter if it's not a kind of beer he wouldn't buy for himself; it's a gift. If you don't have a World Market, you can make your own six pack at Whole Foods and get good snacks at Trader Joe's.

If you're shipping, you can probably find a similar type of gift on line, but I would probably just make it easier and go with a beer-of-the-month club.

[phunluvin82]

All of these ideas are already better than anything I could think of, lol. You ladies are seriously the best at this, thanks!

[Deleted]

I bought my FIL one of those hand crank/solar powered radio and emergency phone chargers. He loved it. I found one for $40 on Amazon.

[ellipses84]

Is he the type of guy who never goes shopping? If so, a gift card may just sit in his wallet and he probably doesn't buy himself clothes often so flannels, sweatshirts, sports team clothes would be useful. Otherwise I suggest tools that relate to his job that need to be replace often, like drill bits. Add a 6 pack of beer as something fun.

[Deleted]

If he is into grilling/cooking, I like the Omaha steaks idea