Welcome Will. Please add a signature and location to your profile so folks won't have to look for your intro down the road.
Dutch and Marty Constock will be having a regional gathering the 2nd weekend in July in Herkimer NY. Great event but attendence is limited due to space so don't wait too long to try and get in if you decide to attend.
As far as hand tools goes Dagger Tools may be a good one stop resource for you for beater bags and miscellanous hand tools. I'm not a fan of the plastic teardrop mallets but you can read up here on making a ball bat hammer.
http://daggertools.com