Toolbox: Simple Self-Leveling Laser

There’s a lot of gee-whiz appeal in high-tech leveling instruments. That first time you pull out a beeping, digital level, or a stick level with a laser on one end, you get a lot of attention from other crew members and all the subs on site. But I have to wonder if some of these devices won’t end up like the Betamax and the 8-track player. After all the “wow” has worn off, will that instrument get buried in the truck under a pile of tools that get used more frequently? More important, what are the VHS and CD equivalents of the tool world — the second-generation electronics that we’ll still be using years from now? Enter