Comments on: Unitasker Wednesday: Pumpkin-carving drill kit

By: Beth

Beth — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:06:09 +0000

I actually saw this in a store the other day and immediately dialed my sister. We have a family get-together every Halloween and do a pumpkin carving contest. Her hubby, who had NEVER carved a pumpkin in his entire life, laughed at us the first year, became intrigued the second, and has declared this year he was breaking out his power tools to win (they’re a mechanical family, she’s a welder and he’s a machinist). So, it was great for a good laugh for us.

By: momofthree

momofthree — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 14:31:49 +0000

Golly, If you feel you really need this versus a good old fashioned knife to carve your pumpkins, there is a bridge in brooklyn that I believe is for sale too!

By: Richard Friese

Richard Friese — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 20:03:33 +0000

Actually the cheap plastic pumpkin carving sets are great. We bought one years ago, put the set in an old peanut butter jar and have reused them over and over. The little saws and knives work great for carving the little holes. Most kitchen knives get to big for any face details, and even carving the top is easier with a simple coping saw that comes with them. RJF

By: Christine

Christine — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 17:43:16 +0000

@Swaper
** Unitasker Wednesday posts humorously poke fun at the single-use items that seem to find their way into our homes.

Thanks for being the weekly Unitasker Newbie! I was beginning to think that we wouldn’t have one this week.

As far as the Halloween Dremel is concerned, I have to say that I’m impressed that they’ve cottoned on to the fact that there are a lot of Halloween fanatics out there. I know people who spend more time prepping for Halloween than they do for all the other holidays combined. Find somebody who has a jumbo storage closet just for their decorations and confront them the with absolute perfect tool for making the best jack o’ lantern ever? Cha-ching!

By: Swaper

Swaper — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 18:59:02 +0000

Um, I’m new to this site but this gadget seems the opposite of uncluttering. It is an expensive gadget for use once a year that does a job that you can do with smaller manual tools. JMO…

By: RadiantMatrix

RadiantMatrix — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 16:23:24 +0000

I have one of these — it’s a weak Dremel that runs on 4 AA cells, and you can use any standard Dremel bits with it.

For the record, it’s *terrible* at actually carving pumpkins, but not too bad at etching patterns on them. It’s also very useful for the task I actually purchased it to accomplish — my partner makes jewelery, and nothing polishes like a Dremel.

It may be *marketed* as a unitasker, but it’s far from it.

By: lucille

lucille — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 16:25:11 +0000

This looks exactly like my cordless Dremel, only mine is blue and black. The bit in it looks like a normal wood carving bit.

By: subgirl

subgirl — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 02:20:42 +0000

Re: the Dremel
I have this, not because it carves pumpkins (it’s not so much for carving as it is for cutting off the top layer of flesh so that you can illuminate the pumpkin’s inner flesh like a luminary) but because it’s a CORDLESS Dremel. It’s not as powerful as my corded one, but it’s CORDLESS. Plus, since it was “seasonal” it was cheaper after Halloween. Certainly NOT a unitasker, as I’ve used it for everything from drilling mannequins for art projects to engraving jewelry.

re: Serene -
Black and Decker has a stud finder that is… black and orange, just like ALL their tools.

By: Mike

Mike — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 23:49:37 +0000

All the Halloween colored gear you need. For the Serious Pumkin Carver: http://www.blackanddecker.com/ProductGuide/CategoryOverview.aspx?cPath=1496.1504 Serene here's your Stud Finder: http://www.blackanddecker.com/ProductGuide/Product-Details.aspx?ProductID=7841 Real Tool for same price (Still black and orange): http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/602-2751627-9644663?asin=B0001GUDRI&AFID=blackdecker&LNM=B0001GUDRI&ref=tgt_adv_XPNT0069

By: Cyrano

Cyrano — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 23:42:46 +0000

@Ryan – Dude, if an 80’s death metal band was reincarnated as pumpkin, it would like exactly like that.

Good job!

By: Serene and Not Herd

Serene and Not Herd — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 23:23:44 +0000

Halloween coloured tools are really cool, but A) This is a fairly low powered Dremel for my general needs B) I have a multispeed Dremel and C) I can just imagine the flung pumpkin skin and pulp on my ceiling and walls.

Anyone know where I can get Orange and Black Stud Finder tool?

By: Elaine

Elaine — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 19:19:30 +0000

Actually, I think I *have* a Dremel in festive Halloween colors. OTOH, I don’t think I would’ve ever thought to use it to carve a pumpkin.

By: supersocco

supersocco — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 18:12:48 +0000

Posting these items on here is like leaving a big pile of donuts in front of someone on a diet. It is too tempting for a lot of consumers it seems.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 17:27:11 +0000

The fibrous nature of pumpkin flesh makes carving with any tool that has a rotating bit (Dremel, Rotozip, etc) very difficult. IMHO, the best and cheapest way to carve a pumpkin is to put a coping saw blade into the handle of an Xacto knife. It's cheap, cuts through the pumpkin flesh with ease, and is small enough to give you minute details. I carved this pumpkin using the coping saw method, and it came out fantastic! http://static.flickr.com/112/281649319_fc92afcf4e.jpg

By: Kat

Kat — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 17:13:34 +0000

I am feeling very silly because I did buy this. We are auctioning off carved pumpkins for a fundraiser coming up. I understand these have their limitations but you are supposed to be able to get certain effects from them. I will be practicing. So far, though, I can’t understand the assembly directions. Not too mechanically inclined. This was probably not a smart purchase.

By: Brian

Brian — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 15:56:41 +0000

You’d be better advised to buy a thin filet knife or a cheap set of pumpkin-carving saws. This tool makes a mush out of the pumpkin because the bit runs too fast. Worthless, IMO.

By: Melissa A.

Melissa A. — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 15:38:51 +0000

Hmm…I wonder if I could use my regular drill for this?

By: LazyLightning

LazyLightning — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 15:10:17 +0000

I’m pretty sure you can actually get a set of little bits and pieces that work WITH a Dremel, if you’re going for the power-carving route. Alas, they would not be orange

By: Andamom

Andamom — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 14:55:02 +0000

What ever happened to knives? Seriously, it has always been a tradition that my daughter come up with a pattern for the pumpkin and I carve it with a kitchen knife. She supervises of course… Our pumpkins are always unique and interesting. No drill needed!

By: Jenny

Jenny — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 14:35:28 +0000

Hmmm…perhaps it does the same thing as a Dremel because…uh…it is a Dremel? Actually, this is a light-duty Dremel tool so while the things you could actually use this for are limited, it’s not a true unitasker. So, you can carve pumpkins and groom your pet’s nails with it, but you wouldn’t want to use it to engrave cast iron. That said, Dremels are fairly versatile tools anyway, so I imagine there’s more you can do with this tool, especially if you’re an artist. Watermelon engraving, anyone?