What to do about a neighbor

markiz41

Member
who borrows your chrome sockets and uses them on an impact gun? Hehe.. I mean, I've been known to do that myself a time or two, the only difference being they were my sockets. Doing this to someone else's tools is either ignorance or bad manners. It's a dice roll between the two with this guy.. I believe this warrants a total cutoff from any future tool borrowing, everyone agree?
 
I guess I need schooled here on this one. Is an impact tool any harder on a socket than putting a 24" breaker bar on it? I always thought that good sockets could be used in whatever manner to remove rusted /tight nuts/studs.I would think that prolonged use on an impact might result in a socket splitting and I have broken sockets,a cheap set and using a breaker bar. Im not sure on this issue,but loaning out tools have never worked for me,some don't come back,come back missing something,or in the case of saws,dull blades..I try to not lend things anymore. Rigjht now I have no idea where my Sawsall is....
 
It's a GOOD policy to NEVER lend out anything !!!

My wife loaned a neighbor a shovel and darned if I didn't have to go fetch it ! Really a $ 10.00 shovel they couldn't have one of their own ?
 
... anybody who has to borrow sockets probably shouldn't be USING sockets...

Unless they were some crazy size?

Of all the tools out there that every human should own, sockets are up there next to screwdrivers.

no?
 
The stress it causes me to loan is not worth it.I would rather look like a jerk say no and be happy. I did lend tools at one time and after I couldn't find them I would find out they were at a friend s garage when helping them work on stuff. Hey there's my this and there's my that. Can't do it anymore because people don't return and I don't remeber. It also makes it alot easier to find stuff when you already know it is not lent out and not returned . You just forgot to put it back in your own shop proper place. As far as the impacts the guy probably didn't know he screwed up like the guy that cut my brass screen outa my gas funnel because the 60 weight Harley oil was taking to long to get through the funnel.Or a guy adjusts his carb and drops my Snap-On screwdriver on the pavement.,Then I explain I don't treat my screwdrivers like that and he thinks I'm weird and a jerk.Ain't worth it.On the other hand at work any apprentice can go in my box and use stuff because electricians tools are consumables that have to be replaced anyway and I have two of everything. That won't bother my one bit.But my mechanics stuff or any special service tools NO WAY.
 
Yes,
But at least the guy didn't steal them.
I have mega-loser for a neighbor, He asked to borrow a 100 ft 12/3 extension cord, over 10 years ago, never got it back. Then get this.....This fricken loser was putting his garbage out with mine for years, getting free garbage pickup, my wife eventually ratted him out. He would take his garbage out after my wife and I left for work. He was being all sly about it, never even asked to put a bag or 2 out with my crap. But, he got greedy and started putting construction material out with the bags and then drywall scrap, metal pipe too. We got a call from the garbage pickup place, ummmm.....Metal pipe aint allowed, well it isnt our stuff............."Oh really"
 
If this guy is good about returning, and you have been known to borrow his things, don't cut him off from borrowing anything all together. You might be shooting yourself in the foot someday. Like when you have a fire and need to borrow his garden hose. If you figured out he is using chrome sockets in impact guns, maybe just loan him your impact sockets next time, even if he claims he's using them on ratchets. They'll fit on ratchets too, and won't get tore up, and you won't get your neighbor all p1$$y with ya, & everyone wins. My 2 cents.
 

The neighbor owns an impact, but has to borrow YOUR sockets? Kinda looks like he REALLY got his priorities reversed.
 
Yeah , what the heck . I didn't even think about that before. Tell him to buy some sockets.He has a darn impact ??? As far as being neighborly you can be a good neighbor without being a tool supply for everybody too cheap to get their own stuff.
 
I find it hard to say no to people who ask to borrow things. I usually do say no, but I find myself trying to come up with some reason for not lending, as if I owe them an explanation. Miss Manners (Judith Martin), the etiquette advisor, has the best advice for people who are tempted to do what I do (offer an explanation). Her advice is---Don't. An explanation for why you won't lend is like an invitation to debate the matter, and it creates the unwanted impression that you WOULD lend if the circumstances were different. Miss Manners advises that you say no, and don't explain. If the would-be borrower is crass enough to ask why not, she suggests that you say something along the lines of, "Because it's simply impossible", and keep saying it until they go away. You can put it in your own words, but I've found the basic advice to be pretty good.

Stan
 
Damages the square drive end. Raises the corners and flakes the chrome. As noted by others, causes sharp edges and opens the square hole up till it might not stay on a regular extension if its been badly beat on enough.

I've done it a time or two in desperation, but with my own socket and replaced it afterward. I had a full set of impacts, fractional and metric, and deep fractional.

Even cheap impact sockets hold up well, I built my deep set from ones and twos at the pawn shop, cheap ones.

Charles
 
Chrome sockets, at least good ones are much harder than impact sockets. That's why impacts are so much thicker, to regain the strength. Much more likely to crack, damage the drive end as others mentioned. And, you can tell the borrower that the hardness of the socket also damages the impact wrench's drive end. That is why you find so many older impacts that no longer will retain a socket. the drive gets so hammered that the retaining ring no longer works.
 
I have upgraded a couple of times and have my GOOD tools in a chest and another GOOD set in my field service box. I have assorted/cheap out by the work benches. Borrowers and friends using my shop use the stuff out by the benches.
 
My brother and I don't loan tools to each other. Weeven keep are tool boxes next to each other. He has Snap Off tools from when he went to a diesel school. I use craftsman. I was helping him work on his truck. I broke 3, 1/2" rachets . I took the gears In half, broke the square end off where a sock it attaches of the other two. I use my 3/8" craftsmanhaven't broken anything. On story short brothers don't even Share
 
If he asks to borrow chrome sockets ONLY do it if you can borrow his impact at the same time. If he's that good of a friend and you're worried about it get you a rail of those $9.99 lucky dragon brand sockets at the flea market and loan those, if he complains explain that's all you currently have 'cause the good ones somehow got messed up on an impact wrench and you haven't run into a good set at a price you're willing to pay yet.
 
You hit that one on the head, Ted--I can replace any tool I own by just paying money. Good friends are a whole lot harder to come by, and a whole lot more valuable than any tool. Of course, by some strange coincidence, my good friends won't beat up the tools I loan them, or if they do, they'll make it right. My garage stays locked after one too many episodes of things getting borrowed when I wasn't there, but my neighbor and one of my good friends have a key and know, because I told them when I gave them the key, they're welcome to borrow anything I own at any time. That kind of trust doesn't come overnight, but they've both been there enough times when I've needed them and the stuff I've loaned them always comes back without me having to track it down so I figure their friendship is worth enough to me to let them use my stuff if they need it.
 
He probably borrows the impact from someone else. And a compressor from a third party. Who would own an impact and no impact sockets.

I had a neighbor when I lived in town who borrowed an old lawnmower from me for years. I kept that old clunker around just to loan it to him. He was an otherwise good neighbor, but always one dollar short of making it on his own.
 
Only loan him impact sockets. If he wants a 3/4, loan him an 11/16, 3/4 and a 13/16 to cover the bases. I write it down when my neighbor leaves so I don't forget. Give it a quick look over when he returns them. You may need your neighbor in the future.
 
It's simple, just tell him not to use chrome sockets with impact. Why lose a friend over a couple of sockets, he's wrong but it doesn't have to go to war. :>)
 
I have a few friends/neighbors I'd lend anything to without question, and few more that I will lend to after warning them that if they break it they bought it and a bunch that I will go and help and use my own tools. The ones I wouldn't lend at all or help pretty much know enough not to ask in the first place.
 
If he is a good friend get him a cheep set of impact sockets for Christmas. Sams club, harbor freight, etc.
 
Well, I am guilty of having an impact, and do not own impact sockets. I use my impact very little, but admit I broke a 3/4 socket last summer with it, but since it was Craftsman, I just got it replaced. Probably not the best plan, but worked for me so far. I do plan on getting a cheap set of HF impact sockets at some point.
 
My initial reactions are:

He must not be that great of a friend if your willing to lose him over that.

Having said that I have some "friends" that I won't loan anything or help with anything other than advice.

If he needs to be borrowing common tools he must not be doing to well economically. I've been on both sides of that fence. I had no choice but to borrow tools back in the day. Now have given away far more tools than I can remember. I get great satisfaction out of helping young people do their own repairs and giving tools to them. It's also a good excuse to upgrade my stuff.
 
tools or equipment,
anybody asks to borrow my stuff, they know they get me too.
"let's get it done" as I'm putting tools in a bag

if you do lend tools, just ask.
sockets?
drive?
ratchet or impact?
If they are inexperienced, just scare em a little.
"ya know, a chrome socket with an imperfection means you
are holding a spinning razor blade with an impact attached."
works!
 
Few things are as dear to me in this life
as the tools of my trade
and the dear little wife
so if you don't ask to borrow my tools
I won't ask to borrow your wife!
 
I would at least have a word of prayer with him. Maybe he doesn't realize what he is doing. When I got married I had a set of standard wrenches and another set of metric. When my wife's cousins across the road found out both sets were borrowed.(One boy had a Ford the other had a Fiat). After a reasonable amount of time passed, I asked for my tools back, the boxes came back minus a lot of tools. I went over there one day when no one was at home and looked through the cars, both of which were not being driven, since they had "repaired" them to the point of being junk. Each car had sockets and wrenches under the hood, in the floor board, and just about everywhere else. I found most of my tools, and after that they did not leave my sight!
 
The sockets which he ruined are the answer to both problems....... Give him that set of sockets and tell him that he may as well keep them because you don"t want those damaged tools in your toolbox....... Get yourself some new sockets and don"t loan them out.... Humbled thanks should be in order....
 
Hi doctor,

Yeah, the takes-matters-into-his-own-hands screen removal guy. Hard to say whether that falls into the category of stupidity, or gross stupidity.

Many years ago, I saw a fellow employee do something like that. He needed to use an extension cord but the outlet was an old, ungrounded one. No problem, he just broke off the cord's grounding prong. He acted very surprised when I informed him that he had just severely reduced the usefulness of a previously good quality piece of his employer's equipment. I think he thought he was being resourceful, and that might have been right if it had been an emergency situation, but it wasn't.

Stan
 
The easy answer is never loan your tools. But since you've already loaned the guy stuff it could cause hard feelings if you cut him off now. You need to educate him.
 

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