In misc.rural Warren wrote:
wrote:

Am I the only one who buys better tools and doesn't have to return
them
at all? I just don't get this whole "They break alot, and this is a
feature" sales thing.

Well, you probably are one of the few who use a tool the way it's
designed. Most of us not only don't own more than one general use hammer
(as opposed to the correct hammer for various jobs), and a lot of the
time we don't bother getting the hammer out. We use whatever solid
object is handy as a hammer.

I'm not sure about that. Yes, I have an awful lot of tools, and almost
always try to use the appropriate tool for a job; breaker bar for stuck
bolts, the correct hammer, and so on. But, I'm pretty sure I'm not
alone here - I'd suspect that the majority of folks who have tools
that they rely on, will have and use them properly?

Also, with many tools, there are parts that are meant to wear-out, or
even break under stress. Wooden handles come to mind. It's simply
easier, and not much more expensive, to replace the whole tool than it
is to buy a new handle, and repair the tool.

It is? When I need a new handle, I go down to Farm & Fleet, pick one up,
drill/drive the old one out, and install the new handle. 15 minute job,
tops.

And finally, to many people, what the tool is used for is the activity
they are focused on, not maintaining the tool. When I work in the
garden, I tend to work until I'm ready to drop. I barely have the energy
to collect the tools and put them away, let alone clean them and
maintain them. On the other hand, you may fall into the category of
people who love their tools, and the activity is just a way to show how
you can use the tool.

Hm. I was always taught that the job isn't over until the tools are
put away.

To each his own. Personally I'm glad that there are inexpensive tools
that are never intended to be repaired that are sturdier than toys. It
means I don't have to feel guilty when I replace my shovel instead of
repairing it after I've used it to move a boulder instead of getting a
bar that was designed for the job. I can pound that nail with the side
of my ratchet wrench. I can open the paint can with the screwdriver, and
I can use the tiny bypass trimmer to hack through a woody growth twice
the size it was designed to snip. No way I could do this if my tools
were expensive. And I don't have to set aside time for tool maintenance,
either.

Just because they're expensive doesn't mean they don't get used,
and occasionally abused. I figure the difference is that the expensive
one will take more use and more abuse.


In my father's day, my attitude towards tools would have been in the
minority. These days, thanks to those inexpensive tools, I may be in the
majority.

I don't know - how about it? Are these two ways of looking at tools a
clean distinction, and who here falls into which category? I'll buy
a cheap tool for a one-time job, sometimes, but usually prefer to
"do it right".

Dave Hinz