For anyone who's not sure, this is a bradawl, not just an awl.
A bradawl is distinguished from an awl - which is simply a spike in a handle - by its tip, which is a flat blade like a screwdriver and is rotated back and forth to make a pilot hole for brads, nails and screws and it's REALLY useful for making starter holes for cup hooks under shelves. It cuts on the forward and backward strokes and makes a "wide" hole which is actually cut and not just forced open as it would be with a needle point.
A scratch awl is used for, umm, scratching, like a scriber.
I've no idea what a click awl is but it's probably great for leatherwork and sailmaking and bookbinding and making perforate that which doth need an hole with nary recourse to divers engines of a drylle configuration.
A gimlet is generally threaded with a tapered helix at the tip and is screwed in like a screw/drill and then screwed out again to be followed by your cup hook or whatever.
A barn awl sits in trees and hoots all night.
The Stanley bradawl is comfortable, inexpensive and rather good at what it does. This is a very useful tool indeed and everyone should have at least one though it is not quite as useful as it once was, purely because it is no longer fashionable to prick sausages before cooking them though it's ideal for pre-drilling cheese for making cheese and pineapple skewered nibbles for soirées.
When used in wood, it doesn't hurt your hand and is quite easy to guide. Unfortunately it looks a bit like a screwdriver - DON'T! - which may explain why mine has gone missing again so I have added another to my shopping basket.
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