21 Mom-Approved Gifts for Dad in 2022

DFACKTO makes a whole series of burly chef's knives, combining many of them into different collections, including the trio of rugged chef's knife sets I'm spotlighting here. The 11-piece Mobility, 11-piece Nomad, and 16-piece Base Camp sets are built and packaged with camping, off-grid living, and even super shi-shi outdoor kitchens in mind.

Trade in the ax for a Jerax. The Jerax Tools Kindling Cracker doesn't have the same heartwarming story behind it as Ayla Hutchinson's Kindling Cracker, but as a wood-splitting drill bit, rather than an entire apparatus unto itself, the Jerax Tools solution to feeding a fire might be the more space- and cost-conscious option for many.

Available in 32mm and 42mm sizes, Jerax Tools Kindling Crackers are made of carbon steel with a titanium coating.

Available in 32" and 64" lengths, Nite Ize Mega Gear Ties look like the twist ties I use to keep my bread fresh got pushed through a portal into World 4 of Super Mario Bros. 3. That is to say, they're huge!

The reusable ties are made of the same durable waterproof rubber exterior and bendy wire guts as Nite Ize's original ties, but with a 16.5mm diameter, and porn star spans, they are ready to take on your burliest wrapping, hauling, and organizing tasks. Once, twice, thrice, and many times more, according to Nite Ize.

"With RotoShovel, you can drill it, dig it, scoop it, or plant it!" Ugh, battery-operated automatic shovel making it easier or not, none of those activities sound fun to me. But, alas, I have a mama, and my mama has demands. And come the first day of Spring, those demands are all going to require this dude to drill it, dig it scoop it, and plant it in her yard.

The 22" electric RotoShovel is designed to drastically reduce the grunt work involved in cutting and scooping out holes 3" wide, and up to 7" deep. You can use its power auger to help you: plant bulbs, flowers, vegetables, and small shrubs; install mailbox posts, fence posts, and real estate signs; and perform small excavation projects.

When you spill your Coca-Cola, clean it up with...more Coca-Cola! Yuk, yuk, yuk. This Coca-Cola Vending Machine Paper Towel Holder is fronted by a 1950s-era Coke dispenser that would make the perfect nostalgic gift for dads who remember the 50s. Or dads born a decade or two after the 50s, who are just reaching that dad age of digging corny and uncool things. Crocs, jokes, free restaurant toothpicks, New Balance Casual Comfort sneakers, and now, retro Coca-Cola Vending Machine Paper Towel Holders.

Drop a wad on the Aranet4 HOME wireless indoor air quality monitor to find out if you need to drop another wad on an Airmega smart air purifier. The Aranet4 HOME uses a non-dispersive infra-red sensor (NDIR) to measure CO2 concentration, along with additional sensors for temperature, relative humidity, and atmospheric pressure, precisely and in real-time. An e-ink display shows constant readings, along with a quick-glance color indicator that rates the air quality as good, average, or unhealthy.

If your home's CO2 concentration gets too high, the Aranet4 HOME emits visual and sound warnings, alerting you to GTFO. And maybe call the gas company. Or evacuate like the authorities have been telling you the past 3 days because you're in the path of a forest fire.

It's a little smaller than your average bat'leth, but this ode to Klingon weaponry still serves its purpose as a 6-in-1 EDC multi-tool.

Measuring in at 5" x 2", the Klingon Bat'leth features a bottle opener, 3 hex wrenches, a flathead screwdriver, a Phillips head screwdriver, a cord cutter, and a butterfly wrench. It also includes a carabiner and keyhole for attachment.

The heading says "Wolf & Grizzly Fire Safe - Portable, Foldable Fire Pit," so what the hunk of metal are you actually looking at in this dude's hand? It's the fire pit. For real. Wolf & Grizzly's Fire Safe consists of a stainless steel insert and frame, and the two separate and fold down to the flat, headboard-shaped object you see here. It's less than 2" thick, and weighs just under 2.2 pounds. The foldable fire pit also comes with its own carry case - so it won't poke anything else in your pack - with extra room for matches, tinder, and other fire-starting needs.

Ooh, get part lawnmower, part Back to the Future with Sun Joe's Electric Hover Mower. The plug-in grass barber's 10-amp motor spins at up to 7,000 RPM, creating a cushion of air, and its namesake hover effect. Look, Ma! No wheels!

The ClampTape, a clothespin-shaped tape dispenser you can clip on any narrow edge, is some good stuff. Well-conceived, seemingly well-executed, space-saving stuff. I think the idea's gonna grip consumers, and stick with them.

While not as small as the Zyp-Zyp Tape Dispenser, or as fun to have at the office as the Fallen AT-AT Tape Dispenser, the ClampTape is a great solution for anyone who wants it all: their tape out of the way, yet also always at hand. Secured to the edge of a desk or shelf, the ClampTape won't clutter up a desktop or get lost in a drawer, but will be at the perpetual ready to feed you custom lengths of Scotch up to 0.7" wide.

I doubt it's as easy as opening an umbrella to install, but this umbrella-style car sunshade sure looks dandy in use. Not to mention space-saving when in not-use, since it does mimic its namesake's collapsed size and ability to store in your glovebox.

I don't even know where to begin with Power Idolz Wireless Charging Docks. How about, that they're wireless charging docks is the least interesting thing about them? These "characters" from iconic 70s and 80s movies, plus a Sonic the Hedgehog thrown in for good measure, feature the arms, legs, and notable accessories of ET, Marty McFly from Back to the Future, one of the Ghostbusters, and Quint from Jaws. But instead of heads and chests, maker Numskull has given the Power Idolz exact miniature replicas of the VHS cassettes and gaming cartridges they represent.

Does your old man like to hunt or fish? Watch live sports? Spy on the neighbors? Well, well, well, have I got a pair of hands-free Binocular Glasses for you.

The opera-style binocular glasses magnify anything in your viewing field, from theater performances, to football games, to dumb birds of North America, without the need to tire out your arm holding a pair of binoculars to your face. They're especially helpful for those whose hands aren't so steady these days, and so can't get much more than a pukey feeling from using binoculars anyway.

With his Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America author Matt Kracht, well, takes a solid Kracht at convincing me to buy a book about a topic I'm otherwise uninterested in. Birds, bird watching, bird feeding, knowing the names of birds and what they look like - unless we're talking about a woodpecker that's waking me up at 4:30 a.m. or a Canada Goose that's aggressively pursuing me as I run around a lake, I'd rather go sock shopping than read a field guide to birds.

But.

The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America throws in snark, and profanity. And acknowledges that the Canada Goose should really be called the Goddamned Canada Goose. Plus that a bird called the White-Breasted Nuthatch, which I've never heard of, would be better received as the White-Breasted Butt Nugget. Ha! Haha! Calling a bird a butt nugget! Now that is some aviary humor I'd like some more of.

Blaze a trail of flame-grilled burgers with GRILLBLAZER's GrillGun, a torch and lighter for charcoal grills, chimney starters, backyard fireplaces, and even campfires. The GrillGun is portable and, according to GRILLBLAZER, easy to use, shooting a jet of fully consumed propane gas that lights its target in seconds. Also according to GRILLBLAZER, "all this while looking awesome."

OK, this one is probably definitely not Mom-approved.

I don't have a NOCO Boost X Portable Jump Starter, but I do have a different portable jump starter - a much cheaper, albeit less powerful one, by the way - and I gotta say, it has saved my negligent ass at least, like, 8 or 9 times over the past 5 years.

And compared to the one I have, this version of the portable jump starter from NOCO is a behemoth. It has a massive 4250-amp rating suitable for starting 12V batteries in all different types of vehicles with up to 10L gas and 8L diesel engines. In addition to cars, you can use it on motorcycles, trucks, ATVs, boats, RVs, SUVs, vans, and tractors.

Finally, a camera tripod that can truly capture the kids' peewee soccer games so you can watch them over and over again throughout the years! The Sky High 20' Camera Tripod from Glide Gear telescopes to a whopping 20' tall, or high enough to record the entire field/court during sporting events, take sick landscape photos, and meet people like me eye-to-eye when we jump straight up in the air.

The Sky High Tripod comes with a 1/4" bolt thread for attaching various models of either video or still cameras. An optional thread adapter also allows for the addition of a ball head or panoramic head. The tripod's 20' height is divided into 5 x 4' air cushioned telescoping sections. You can stop along the way at any of them, with a minimum Sky High height of 5.6'.