Loose Tools
After work today I went back to the new pawn shop in town to see if he had any new guns. Unfortunately, he had closed his doors early. I was near enough to Neil's pawn shop, so I drive on over. Neil was in the process of selling the nickel plated Smith & Wesson auto-pistol, and the rest of his handgun stock was gone. I was needing a 15mm wrench, so I wandered on over to the bins of loose tools. 
I managed to find a 15mm wrench among the rusty and greasy tools, but in the process I also found quite a few nice open end and combination wrenches, a small pair of Channelock pliers (I always wanted those but could never justify the cost of a small pair), and two 3/8 inch rachets. One of the rachets was a Sears Craftsman. I don't really go for Craftsman tools, I'm more a Snap-On, Proto and MAC kind of guy. I'm a stickler for quality tools. There is nothing worse than a screwed up job in the rain in the middle of the night....... Unless it's the same job with a broken tool. Still it's hard to ignore the Craftsman bring it in if it's broken no questions asked replacement warranty. Heck, I could simply take this old Craftsman rachet to Sears and get a new one. I tossed it into my pile. All would be good for modifying if needed, loaning out if cheap enough, and abusing if necessary.
Once Neil was finished with the gun sale, I ambled up to the counter. "How much do you want for these," I asked.
"How much will you give me?"
"Oh I don't know......." I started to say five bucks, but I decided to play Neil's game. He began to sort them, ordering them into piles. Then he moved a small wrench to the opposite pile and clucked his tongue. He looked up at me and I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't really need them I guess........"
Neil began to key numbers into his adding machine. They were nice tools, but truth be told, I only needed the 15mm wrench. Finally Neil looked back at me and ventured "How about three sixty-seven?"
I tried not to look too surprised. I was expecting ten bucks. Maybe I had heard him wrong. Maybe he said $23.67. I took four dollars from my billfold and handed the cash to Neil. He took the money, rang up the sale and put the tools into a paper bag for me. Daaaaum! I tried to act nonchalant, asking about the possibility of a Smith & Wessons in hock. As usual, Neil just smiled, and kept the possibility to himself.
As I got back into my car, I realized I will never buy tools the same way again.
I managed to find a 15mm wrench among the rusty and greasy tools, but in the process I also found quite a few nice open end and combination wrenches, a small pair of Channelock pliers (I always wanted those but could never justify the cost of a small pair), and two 3/8 inch rachets. One of the rachets was a Sears Craftsman. I don't really go for Craftsman tools, I'm more a Snap-On, Proto and MAC kind of guy. I'm a stickler for quality tools. There is nothing worse than a screwed up job in the rain in the middle of the night....... Unless it's the same job with a broken tool. Still it's hard to ignore the Craftsman bring it in if it's broken no questions asked replacement warranty. Heck, I could simply take this old Craftsman rachet to Sears and get a new one. I tossed it into my pile. All would be good for modifying if needed, loaning out if cheap enough, and abusing if necessary.
Once Neil was finished with the gun sale, I ambled up to the counter. "How much do you want for these," I asked.
"How much will you give me?"
"Oh I don't know......." I started to say five bucks, but I decided to play Neil's game. He began to sort them, ordering them into piles. Then he moved a small wrench to the opposite pile and clucked his tongue. He looked up at me and I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't really need them I guess........"
Neil began to key numbers into his adding machine. They were nice tools, but truth be told, I only needed the 15mm wrench. Finally Neil looked back at me and ventured "How about three sixty-seven?"
I tried not to look too surprised. I was expecting ten bucks. Maybe I had heard him wrong. Maybe he said $23.67. I took four dollars from my billfold and handed the cash to Neil. He took the money, rang up the sale and put the tools into a paper bag for me. Daaaaum! I tried to act nonchalant, asking about the possibility of a Smith & Wessons in hock. As usual, Neil just smiled, and kept the possibility to himself.
As I got back into my car, I realized I will never buy tools the same way again.
posted by Xavier at 7:54 PM
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