I work at a
theatre that does a variety of
practical installations depending on the show. For example our
current show has 8 standard A lamps on various pieces of scenery, but in November we mounted The Producers which had a whopping 1,200 lamps and 500 feet of rope light installed in the set. To help us work more efficiently I have built a special tool bag just for wiring practicals (and in-the-air repairs).
To start it has a good pair of
wire strippers/crimper. There is nothing worse that a sucky pair of
wire strippers! I also have a plastic organizer with small compartments that contains fork terminals, circle terminals, flag terminals,
butt splices,
wire nuts, and an assortment of replacement parts (screws and
strain relief) for 2p&g connectors. For my terminals,
butt splices and
wire nuts I always have a good amount of 12-10
AWG (yellow), 16-14
AWG (blue), and 22-18
AWG (red).
In the bottom of the bag I toss a few
Edison and 2p&g connectors, both male and female as well as Barbizon's Electricians Pocket
Book. Add a multi-meter and you should have a very solid repair kit/
practical kit.
As far as stocking bases and cable, it really depends on the job and I always consider that in my show budget when specing out a design.