Does tool karma exist?

[MaineGuide]

Went to put washer fluid in my car yesterday, and my hood struts are junk so I prop it up with my window scraper. When I pulled the scraped I noticed something shiny in front of the fuse box.

To my surprise it was a Cornwell JR30, in good shape but well used and very smooth despite being a 30 tooth model. I had my radiator replaced last week and my mechanic was able to get my car back to me in less than a day. He's a good guy and has done a lot for my family and our vehicles.

I had my brother return it to him this week, if it was a different guy at a different shop under different circumstances, I may have elected to keep it. Do the tool gods keep track of such deeds and reward with good tool karma?

On a related note, I am going to keep my eye out for an identical ratchet on the used market. That thing was comfortable and smooth as hell!

 

[Zrexxer]

There will undoubtedly be people who say something like "Well he should have kept better track of his tools" but, hey, you get busy and sometimes **** happens. Kudos for doing the right thing and returning it. Hopefully you earned yourself some good tool karma there.

 

[CJM8515]

I was at the shop on sunday blowing out a heater core. One of the mechanics and myself did the job. I go to leave and its sleeting so I hit the wipers, one of us left a 6inch extension on the cowl. Well at 55mph in the middle of traffic on a busy highway..thats a goner sorry to say.

I have found tools underhoods before, if its not one from our shop I keep them.

 

[rednotch]

There will undoubtedly be people who say something like "Well he should have kept better track of his tools" but, hey, you get busy and sometimes **** happens. Kudos for doing the right thing and returning it. Hopefully you earned yourself some good tool karma there.

I remember starting out, one tech said if your tools ever comes back in a customers hands play stupid. He had a customer bring in a screw driver asking if it was his, tech asks where he found it as he was looking for it. The customer said stuck threw in his radiator, as he hands him the bill for a new one.

 

[RunninOnEmpty]

Hopefully you don't get a free tool in this way: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4684149&postcount=1

 

[toolmiser]

I had some work done on my truck, which is about five miles from home. I was looking at the truck later that evening, and found a snap on torque wrench laying on the running board. I took it in the next day, and the mechanics wife thanked me, he had missed it and said it was one of his first tools. Keeping it would have been like stealing it. Plus it made me think that he was actually using a torque wrench rather than faking it.

 

[geojag]

It doesn't matter if anyone keeps track, you know what is right.

I had my power steering pump replaced a couple years back (I lived in an apartment complex that didn't allow auto work, needed it done quickly). When I turned off of the street the shop is on, I heard a distinctive metal clank. I pulled in a parking lot and looked around, found half of a pulley puller cup. I took it back to the shop and found out who worked on it and gave it to him, he was very appreciative. Apparently it had fallen down somewhere and he couldn't find it. I was a little irritated at first, if it had fallen out on the interstate that could have been someone's windshield wiped out. But it was a tool he needed to do his job, he had payed for it, it was his.

 

[rodsnratfinks]

When I was was still living with my parents, I suspected my mom's trusted mechanic was using her ignorance against her after she had multiple comebacks for some work, including two motor mounts and a trans mount. When I drove the car, it felt as if nothing had been replaced. My mom thought something was wrong, but couldn't quite tell the difference. I looked at her service records with that shop and found that several parts they charged her for had never been replaced. When I first went to open the hood to inspect the car, what was sitting right there on the plenum but a long Snap On pry bar. Normally, I would have returned it, but you better believe I kept that bar as partial compensation for their greed.

 

[Art From De Leon]

Another advantage to buying quality tools, is you make the extra effort to account for all of them at the end of a job, just because buying a replacement is so expensive.

The same rationale can be used for sunglasses and pens.

 

[classicJackets]

This is how I got my oil filter wrench, got left on the strut tower at Walmart. I was 16 and didn't even think twice about it.. If it happened to me now I'm not sure I would keep it, but I did then.

 

[LXCam]

I live in a rural area. One day the fire department was hauling *** down the road to a call. Right in front of my house is a dip/bump and when they hit it, the jaws of life head unit fell out of the back of the truck. So I picked up and gave it considerable thought, but knew deep down inside if I kept it, the one time they'd need to use it for me it wouldn't be there .

So I drive on down the road and find the engine. As I'm walking up with it in my hand one of the volunteer guys starts instantly giving me **** about why I had it. So I explain what happened and that POS didn't even bother to say thank you......I should have kept it.

 

[Sanny81]

A few years ago I found a Matco ratchet inside a machine I was working on. This was before I really knew the different brands and just how much that ratchet costs so I just threw it in my tool box and kept it.

Knowing what I know now I would have made an attempt to find out which other road tech could have left it but now almost 2 years later there's no way of really knowing who was there on some random day in 2013.

 

[66354dream]

Im sure there is, I left my almost brand new Stinger flashlight in a customers vehicle once ( the guys truck was a service truck, so he knew what it was) and thankfully he came right back and returned it, I sure as hell learned my lesson though.

 

[K-Dog]

Do unto others.....

 

[Farmall 1066]

Had a customer bring in a tractor that I'd recently done some transmission work on, including rebuilding the shift linkage, complaining of hard shifting.
I started looking down inthe quadrant, and fished out a beautiful shiny new, but gouged up Victorinox Swisschamp knife.

Fished it out and wrote up the work order, with a note that I had the knife in my toolbox, and to send him out to me when he picked it up.
Never forget the guy sheepishly asking if he could have it back!

 

[Spudland_Dave]

The tool gods may not keep track...but what goes around comes around...'specially in a small state like ME.

I don't personally frequent a Cornwell truck, but I've heard one of the bigger franchisee's runs in Maine...the sale flyers are posted online, my brother runs mostly all Cornwell rats, like you said, one of the most comfortable designs available.

 

[JAKE-THE-TOOL-MAN]

You did the right thing IMO, I love my cornwell ratchets. I reach for them more than my Snapons. I want to try one of the fine tooth models

 

[dclassical]

I want to first say that my vehicles only go to a garage for two things... alignment and state inspection. That is it, there has been no exception.

So you can understand I was curious when one day I found a T-pin in the engine compartment of one of the car. I guess it could have fallen from someone's shirt pocket during an inspection.

But if I took my cars in and found a tool I do believe I would return it. Even if I got bad service. I do believe in karma.

 

[2jz4me]

No, there is no such thing as karma. Any scenario that exists that would support such a claim is merely coincidence. There are many horrible people in the world that do horrible things to others and don't ever get "whats coming to them". From the richest to the poorest, there are people that live horrible selfish, self serving lives and never get sick, a disease, have things stolen from them, get beat up, etc...

 

[4xdog]

No, there is no such thing as karma. Any scenario that exists that would support such a claim is merely coincidence. There are many horrible people in the world that do horrible things to others and don't ever get "whats coming to them". From the richest to the poorest, there are people that live horrible selfish, self serving lives and never get sick, a disease, have things stolen from them, get beat up, etc...

But what about their NEXT life? That's where karma will really get ya...

 

[4xdog]

I've even paid it forward returning tools... (smile)

There's a great independent shop not far from me that's been my go-to for almost twenty years. When I found this Mac tie rod adjusting tool in the road not far from my house I gave it to them, for either their crib or one of the techs who could use it. In a hundred years I'd have never used it myself, so better to see it get put to work.

 

[HammerMechanic]

When plowing my drive on Sunday, I saw something shiny. About 15 feet up my drive, buried under 6 inches of snow was a Proto 5449XL in very good condition. I have to believe it must have been in the road and was hit by a city plow truck and launched into my drive. So there is no way to know whose it could to be to return. But I have to believe in tool karma, otherwise it would have landed in my lawn. Then this spring I would have surely nailed it with my freshly sharpened lawn mower blades. Thus causing my to shoot tons of obscenities and more than likely throw stuff.

 

[Zeke]

I remember starting out, one tech said if your tools ever comes back in a customers hands play stupid. He had a customer bring in a screw driver asking if it was his, tech asks where he found it as he was looking for it. The customer said stuck threw in his radiator, as he hands him the bill for a new one.

That *****. At that point I would have walked the guy over to my box and said, "Well, I tried, but as you see that screwdriver doesn't match my others. So, we're both jerks, now get the f.., out of here." What is the possibility of the fan tossing the driver 'threw' (sic) the radiator? If it was through the front side, well, the ex wife is to blame.

Do tools have karma? Use your ratchet as a hammer and wait for it to slip and bust the **** out of your knuckles.

No, that's not really karma, but close enough.

 

[Bobaloo22]

I look at it this way, we look for an honest mechanic and are happy when we find someone we can trust, so how can you even think about "stealing" a tool left behind.

 

[Dave455]

I've lost a couple of tools over the years, and it really pisses you off! Certainly out of all proportion to the value of the tool, so I think you did the right thing!

My Dad was an airline pilot for nearly 40 years, and he had loads of stuff that he found on, or wedged in, various aeroplanes over the years! Sockets, wrenches, and even a Snap On short bit driver!

He swore he'd never own anything black or grey himself, as it becomes invisible on the flight deck! Good policy, and applies to modern cars too!

The bold colours that firms like Snap On tend to use are well thought out in this respect!

 

[bluebolt]

Then this spring I would have surely nailed it with my freshly sharpened lawn mower blades. Thus causing my to shoot tons of obscenities and more than likely throw stuff.

Wait until you run over a pistol in tall grass with the riding mower, think it's a toy and realize when you pick it up is a real gun! Unloaded thankfully. Apparently someone tossed it on my lawn from a car. The cops picked it up but never tied it to any crime.

 

[Jim_No_Garage]

A long time ago I found an SK Flex Ratchet and a 36" extension bar under the hood of my Mom's car after it was worked on. I still have the ratchet. Someone grabbed the extension out of my box at works years ago.

I was 18 at the time and an arrogant kid. If it happened today I would return the tools. I still feel guilty periodically.

Jim