knocker
Well-known member
Well Ive haven't lost much but today I left a 1/4" 12mm6 pt. deep Snap-on socket in a customer's car and now I have to pony up about $20 for a new one. What tools have you "left behind"?
What tools have you left behind........
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Mr.Nutcase
Well-known member
None so far yet, i need a cart
mrbreezeet1
Banned
It's nice when they come back like that.
Good They didn't find it, they might have bitched or took it.
I "Try" to never set anything under a hood.
Outlawmws
Well-known member
I've left several hatchets in tree stumps in the mountains, as well as a lantern hanger on the last trip, and several pairs of reading glasses at yard sales. Mostly I'm pretty good about not losing tools unless it's in my garage...
jjjrmx5
Well-known member
LOL.
I have a mechanic I use now all the time for specialty work but when I first used him and his shop, he or his guys left a dozen tools including Snap-On picks, mac ratchets and a few hard handled screwdrivers and sockets under the passenger side floor mat that I found after driving the car home that I didn't notice when I got in.
The next morning I stopped by on my way to work to return the tools. He looked at me sideways and kinda mortified that I even returned them.
My response was , "Hey, you need your tools to fix my car next time it is in here and you also make your living off of those tools. If I need some, I'll buy my own.
the owner still fits me in no matter the work load.
Edit: also had a buddy help do some engine work on a non-daily driver that I took out after working on and noticed a rattle under the hood. Two months later it seemed he had left his metal Snap_on telescoping magnetic pick-up tool in the cowl and rain collection area at teh bae of the windshield and under the plastic windshield cowl screen after I put everything back togheter. A half hour of digging and tear-down/reassembly got it out. Then I wanted to beat the s%^$ out of him with it.
It goes both ways. LOL
I have a mechanic I use now all the time for specialty work but when I first used him and his shop, he or his guys left a dozen tools including Snap-On picks, mac ratchets and a few hard handled screwdrivers and sockets under the passenger side floor mat that I found after driving the car home that I didn't notice when I got in.
The next morning I stopped by on my way to work to return the tools. He looked at me sideways and kinda mortified that I even returned them.
My response was , "Hey, you need your tools to fix my car next time it is in here and you also make your living off of those tools. If I need some, I'll buy my own.
the owner still fits me in no matter the work load.
Edit: also had a buddy help do some engine work on a non-daily driver that I took out after working on and noticed a rattle under the hood. Two months later it seemed he had left his metal Snap_on telescoping magnetic pick-up tool in the cowl and rain collection area at teh bae of the windshield and under the plastic windshield cowl screen after I put everything back togheter. A half hour of digging and tear-down/reassembly got it out. Then I wanted to beat the s%^$ out of him with it.
It goes both ways. LOL
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KNS Autosport
Well-known member
left my FL80 in a customers car today 
good thing he works next to me
good thing he works next to mecanuckian
Well-known member
Lost a 10mm wrench inside the console of an 85 Honda prelude I once owned . Took the console out, no wrench. Thought it may have fallen through the slit in the floor for the parking brake handle. Looked on the ground, no wrench. Jacked the car up and crawled under, figuring it got hung up somewhere in the tunnel - no wrench. Drove that car for 2 years after and the wrench never turned up. I figure there was some little hidden black hole under there somewhere......damn foreign car! Lol
darkk
Well-known member
In 45 years, only one tool. A pair of mini vise grips. It was holding the upper edge of a mud flap to the quarter panel on the inside. Forgot about it until I needed them again. that was back in 1991...
muddyjoe15
Well-known member
None so far. However my buddy had his pick up worked on (had the transmissio/t-case seal replaced) in the winter. We went to put it in 4 wheel drive and it poped out right away. Thought nothing of it then pulled on the stick again and WHAM!!! Here the mechanic left his heel bar in the front drive shaft after tighenting the u joints! Bent the heel bar in almost 90 degrees!
I usually lose between $500 and $1000 in Snap on tools every year, when you're in a hurry and working 16 hour days out in the field. I usually lose most of them when working in the dark. I have left cordless grease guns and impacts but luckily people have gave them back the next time I saw them.
bgott
Well-known member
The only tools I have left on a vehicle in the last couple of years have been a Matco pick on a Kia and a 10mm semi-deep 1/4" drive Snap-on on a Chevy van. I didn't know I'd lost the pick because I'd just started back to wrenchin' and was disorganized. I spent 2 hours looking for the socket with a borescope before I finally gave up. It didn't even head somewhere critical, it just pisses me off to lose tools on a car. IIRC, that little pissant socket was almost $20 to replace.
greasemonkey44
Well-known member
dental style picks; i put them down on the cowl and they roll under; dont see them again til next time its in(lucky they are stainless)
lost an extension in a friends suburban when i did a fuel pressure regulator; son of a ***** really got in there good! never did get it out, was a cheapy northern tools one
lost an extension in a friends suburban when i did a fuel pressure regulator; son of a ***** really got in there good! never did get it out, was a cheapy northern tools one
EricF
Member
I lost a Mac 10mm 1/4" socket in an engine bay on an 86 Olds, lost a 15mm crowfoot in an Altima (recently) when changing the serpentine belt, 8mm craftsman combo wrench in an F-150, don't ask me how that happened.. and last a no-name generic 1/4" drive 10mm socket that just seemed to fit in the tightest places... I really regret losing that.
Bronson
Well-known member
I opened the cowl on a Beechcraft Bonanza for inspection, and found a brand new long Snap-On screwdriver......It was not marked, and no one ever mentioned missing one. A big No No in Aviation.
strnjss
Well-known member
I lost a small socket once. I was working on my car, and it fell off into the engine bay somewhere. I looked like crazy, couldn't find it in there, or on the ground. I drove back and fourth up and down the driveway slamming on the brakes to try and dislodge it, no luck.
I assume after all these years it's gone, but I still wonder if somehow it's still lodged under the hood somewhere.
Then there's a lot of voluntary "left behind" stuff. Like if someone borrows a cheap tool of mine, I'll just tell them to keep it.
I assume after all these years it's gone, but I still wonder if somehow it's still lodged under the hood somewhere.
Then there's a lot of voluntary "left behind" stuff. Like if someone borrows a cheap tool of mine, I'll just tell them to keep it.
wafrederick
Well-known member
A 16mm flarenut crowsfoot underneath the engine compartment of a Ford F150,it was out of a set I bought from Harbor Freight.Replaced it with a Matco and the lost one came back a few weeks later finding it in the same spot.
thooks
Well-known member
I had my '98 Chevy Z71 in for a warranty repair one time. Drove it home, went to turn left into the driveway and the steering wheel locked up on me. Everything worked out ok, but it could have been a disaster on a busy highway/etc.
Got it unlocked, found a Snap-On 14mm wrench in the steering u-joint...
Sorry to all the mechanics, but I went back to the dealership, told the service manager, held up the wrench and told them it would cost them dearly to get it back.
Could have cost me my life. Please take care to keep up with your tools.
Got it unlocked, found a Snap-On 14mm wrench in the steering u-joint...
Sorry to all the mechanics, but I went back to the dealership, told the service manager, held up the wrench and told them it would cost them dearly to get it back.
Could have cost me my life. Please take care to keep up with your tools.
balane
Well-known member
Haven't lost any but I found a Snap On 13mm combo wrench under a hood once. I asked the owner where he's had the car in for repairs recently, hoping to track down the owner but he just bought the vehicle and didn't know so now I have a spare.
bad_idea
Well-known member
when i first started working in ship repair i lost a pair of vise grips in the bilge. i dropped them, they went splash. i couldn't see through the water (or whatever that was) to find them.... i just left those behind.
woody 73
Well-known member
One day my brother-in-law asked me to buy him a new 28oz. estwing hammer and send it to him overseas. Turns out my wife was going on a trip that I gave her the hammer in order to save on the mailing costs.
Well after a short time time of about six weeks while talking to him by phone I asked how he liked the new hammer that he so wanted and you could hear crying in the background...Turns out on a roofing job he laid the hammer down and they put on the plywood and then the tar paper followed by the new shingles; well that hammer now has a new place to call home!
Never thought I would see a grown man cry so much!
Well after a short time time of about six weeks while talking to him by phone I asked how he liked the new hammer that he so wanted and you could hear crying in the background...Turns out on a roofing job he laid the hammer down and they put on the plywood and then the tar paper followed by the new shingles; well that hammer now has a new place to call home!
Never thought I would see a grown man cry so much!
A 15mm and 16mm Craftsman ratcheting combo. Was working on an S-10 Extreme front facia/air dam. Worst part was it turned out I didn't need them for the job, but to this day, I've got no idea what I did with them. My kids will probably find them while cleaning the house/garage after I cash out.
Moose-LandTran
Well-known member
That i remember, there were 4 trim tools and one little prybar. 3 of those trim tools came back, i don't think the 4th will as my boss was very rude to the (first time) customer.
The prybar came back recently, the guy returned the other day and gave it back to me. It turns out that he's a badman gangster locally, and has been friends with a good mate of mine for 20 years!
The prybar came back recently, the guy returned the other day and gave it back to me. It turns out that he's a badman gangster locally, and has been friends with a good mate of mine for 20 years!
jeffmoss26
Well-known member
I've lost screwdrivers, wire cutters, toners, you name it doing phone wiring over the years!
keen
Well-known member
in the few years that I worked in a sunroof shop we'd lose a number of bits and pieces - sockets, extensions, the occasional ratchet, probably hundreds of 1/8" blade screwdrivers I swear, the usual misc. Probably more than a typical mechanic since the shop owns the tools, not us...so less motivation to keep up with them, I suppose.
OTOH, that's the reason we used junk tools for those jobs, too. the good trim tools, hog ring pliers, etc never got lost. or when they did, we'd track the car down and go get them. when we'd lose a screw gun, those usually came back on their own.
but by far the single most common item left in a customer car (and by the boss) was the shop -telephone- (usually returned, too, but we had probably a dozen cordless phones in rotation to support that habit). heh.
OTOH, that's the reason we used junk tools for those jobs, too. the good trim tools, hog ring pliers, etc never got lost. or when they did, we'd track the car down and go get them. when we'd lose a screw gun, those usually came back on their own.
but by far the single most common item left in a customer car (and by the boss) was the shop -telephone- (usually returned, too, but we had probably a dozen cordless phones in rotation to support that habit). heh.
illmatyk
Well-known member
-screwdrivers
-10mm socket
-3/8 adapter for my impact driver( was together with said 10mm socket ).
-magnetic pick up tool.
Since June I had been wondering what happened to one of my flat tipped screwdrivers and checked just about everyone in the shop. Fast forward to last week, turned out that I had left it in a customer car and the customer gave it to the service advisor who never gave it to me until last week when he took it out of his drawer and I wqas like
thats my screwdriver!
-10mm socket
-3/8 adapter for my impact driver( was together with said 10mm socket ).
-magnetic pick up tool.
Since June I had been wondering what happened to one of my flat tipped screwdrivers and checked just about everyone in the shop. Fast forward to last week, turned out that I had left it in a customer car and the customer gave it to the service advisor who never gave it to me until last week when he took it out of his drawer and I wqas like
thats my screwdriver!My favorite flathead screwdriver got left behind when I made dramatic exit from the tin knocking industry. Damn thing was indestructible and I don't even remember what brand it was. Grey tinted clear handle with black stripes. Square shaft.
plinker
Well-known member
So far the only permantly lost tool has been a 1/2 drive 30mm impact socket. I have no clue what happend to it.
I have "lost" or "misplaced" different tools for up to a week or so sometimes, recently a pair of vise grips I found under the seat of my car. They slid under there apparently and were mising for about two weeks. I also lost a chainsaw wrench in the snow, my Dad found it a month later.
I have "lost" or "misplaced" different tools for up to a week or so sometimes, recently a pair of vise grips I found under the seat of my car. They slid under there apparently and were mising for about two weeks. I also lost a chainsaw wrench in the snow, my Dad found it a month later.
PowerGenGuy
Well-known member
Left a 3 D Cell Maglite on a job once, but no one returned it. Also left a 5/8" universal socket on a job, returned to the job site the next time I was in the area, and it was right where I left it.
PowerGenGuy
Well-known member
I have found tools in the bush when I was a tree planter in interior BC, a 18" wright adjustable and an axe on a tree stump. I found a ratchet sitting between a injection pump and block on a genset, and a pair of slip joint pliers on the road, Matstercraft.
Slob, is this it? Just a guess, but your description matched that of one of my screwdrivers:
http://www.enderes.com/catalog/index.php?SCREEN=item&sid=VoNuZQ2fnLBNWT81&department=19&item=34
The Dutchman
Well-known member
I'm afraid to admit what tools I've lost through absent-mindedness over the years. Well, alright, here goes:
An FAR72C Snap-On air ratchet.
A 56 oz. dead blow hammer.
I'm a LOT more vigilant nowadays.
At the Chrysler dealer I worked at there were 2 shop DRB III's, Chrysler's 3 or 4 grand scanners. Someone left one in a customer's car, apparently, but by the time anyone in management knew we were missing one, (if there was only one scanner up at the parts counter, they would assume the other was in use), I guess they figured it would be impossible to determine which car it had been left in. The service manager & foreman were too scared to tell the dealer principle, who found out by accident MONTHS later!
Boy did he go off like a Roman candle!
An FAR72C Snap-On air ratchet.
A 56 oz. dead blow hammer.
I'm a LOT more vigilant nowadays.
At the Chrysler dealer I worked at there were 2 shop DRB III's, Chrysler's 3 or 4 grand scanners. Someone left one in a customer's car, apparently, but by the time anyone in management knew we were missing one, (if there was only one scanner up at the parts counter, they would assume the other was in use), I guess they figured it would be impossible to determine which car it had been left in. The service manager & foreman were too scared to tell the dealer principle, who found out by accident MONTHS later!
Boy did he go off like a Roman candle!
Hammer1963
Well-known member
Numerous 10mm 1/4" drive sockets in quarter panels of cars when working in the Sail panel area. I keep 3-4 cheaper (Craftsman/Kobalt) deep well 10mm sockets around when I am going to work on the interior quarter panel area. I can't afford to spend a ton of time trying fetch a $4.00 socket, hence why I keep the cheapies.
Snap On red hard handle T20 driver
Snap On stubby phillips
Snap On 90 degree pick
Snap On #2 phillips
Snap On IM 31 impact (stolen I think actually)
Mac 6 in locking 3/8 extension
Mac 8 in locking 3/8 extension
Mac 5/8 universal spark plug socket
Cman 10, 15,18 mm sockets
5in Vise grip
Snap On 10mm FDP wrench (2)
Test lights, of various brands
Thats what I can recall for now
Snap On stubby phillips
Snap On 90 degree pick
Snap On #2 phillips
Snap On IM 31 impact (stolen I think actually)
Mac 6 in locking 3/8 extension
Mac 8 in locking 3/8 extension
Mac 5/8 universal spark plug socket
Cman 10, 15,18 mm sockets
5in Vise grip
Snap On 10mm FDP wrench (2)
Test lights, of various brands
Thats what I can recall for now
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jeffmoss26
Well-known member
How about things you have found from other people...my favorite was discovering a scratch awl in the ceiling before it landed on me...or an innocent bystander!
bradleykd
Well-known member
Reminds me of my job.... I work in an engine machining plant and there is underground coolant swarfs that flow under every machine and into a 30,000 gallon tank.... If i ever drop a tool when i'm working on a machine, it slides right down into this hell... Lucky for me, my company buys all my tools, so i dont care as much.. haha
mrbreezeet1
Banned
I know I did not have the gear wrench set from Advance Auto very long, the small 5 piece metric set they had on sale for $15.00. Maybe 2 months ago.
I lost the 13mm already.
Waiting for the set to go on sale again.
I lost the 13mm already.
Waiting for the set to go on sale again.
Damian
Well-known member
I dropped my MOST used off-set combination wrench (13mm/15mm) in the front clip of a Trailblazer I was working on, and made a mental note to dig it out once I got done with the job......
It wasn't until the truck was shipped back to it's owner in Arizona, that I realized I forgot to dig out my wrench. Ouch.
It wasn't until the truck was shipped back to it's owner in Arizona, that I realized I forgot to dig out my wrench. Ouch.
JMartel
Well-known member
I'm sure it'll count as a tool to a lot on here, but in college parties during the winter, people would bury cases of beer in the snow to keep cold. They'd sometimes get snowed over or forgotten about, and wouldn't reappear till early spring. Always a nice find.