The Jury Is In

Well we did nudge the can a bit with the blog on loaning out hand tools. At least my thought on it is the same as before. Don't loan out tools. But one or two had a different perspective too, which I understand.

Whereas a couple of people said something like, "Life's too short." or ,"if you can help someone out." I realise that the difference is how you perceive the tools and then being super tolerant of flawed perceptions of tools and how they should be cared for. Most people seemed to think the same way and that is not to loan out tools either. Of course it is wrong to say that all programmers don't work with woodworking hand tools and therefore have no idea of how to use or take care of them. That's far from true, but the reality when you use your personal tools so carefully and rely on them for producing good work to earn your living with you have a different perspective altogether. When you are busy too, to the point that you can't put right the wrongs done to the tools by others because of time constraints, this also affects your view too.

The fact is that most of the time tools deteriorate when loaned out to people even with the best intentions. The fact is that borrowers don't understand because they can't. Someone mentioned being a hobbyist woodworker and so it mattered less to them. I think that that plays into it too. Perspectives have changed and I personally think that borrowed tools returned in a poorer state than when borrowed reflects how people view implements used by people who work using manual skills. I also think that tools are now cheaper than ever in the history of the world and so their value has been cheapened in the general minds of people.

The majority of responses to the blog were indeed not to loan out your woodworking hand tools. Suggestions to own some loaners with added instructions and expectations seems like a possibility but I know loaning out surgically sharp edge tools to a novice is an extremely scary thought to me.