A big step today

[DirtyComanche]

Today I did something that I don't think I ever could do before.

 

I threw away a tool. As in, picked it up, and tossed it into the trash.

 

Not a broken tool, but a tool that functioned as well as it did when it left the factory. There was no rage involved, only simple reasoning.

 

And it's opened up a whole new avenue to de-cluttering my life.

 

It was my PA (like Harbor Freight) water pump pliers that got the chuck. I used them once, found them to be terribly useless (water pump pliers are basically hack anyways, and these ones were especially poor) and left them in the bottom drawer of my 'extra' toolbox at work for the last year. I took that box home today and went through it. I managed to throw away my fried digital calipers (another junk tool bought in a pinch), along with half a pound of mismatched used hardware. I had managed to start throwing away most used hardware sometime last year, but this stuff had escaped notice as I rarely opened that box. Not new hardware though, I can't throw that out, regardless of how useless it is (I have a pile of 'special' bolts which do not fit regular sized holes, but they're NEW!) Nor anything that seems like it might be 'really useful'.

 

The next step I think will be buying a toolbox that actually fits my tools, then throwing this box in the scrap metal bin. I'm not there yet. I do still have the receipt for this box, and know how much money I wasted on it.

 

Hopefully at some point I can rid myself of all my bent/broken screwdrivers I keep thinking might be 'useful'. That's a distant goal.

[1990 Pioneer 4x4]

That’s bold, hope you won’t regret it later. I know I probably would.

[mopwrd340]

broken screwdrivers i can toss very easy I'm going thru 2 sets of tools now i started on cars at14 around 23 i started working on garbage trucks and i always had a bunch of tools at home and work I'm on disability now havent realy worked on anything hard in 4 years now i have sold or gave away all of my big tools to coworkers i will never use them agian i have a big bottom box thats full and still not for every thing i can't bring myself to get rid of them heck i just gave up my cdl when i renewed my drivers license the other day ive had since i was 16 now 45 hope fully my kids/grandkids will appreciate them

[Wildman]

Dirty........your starting to sound like Andy Rooney from 60 Minutes........ :doh:

 

It's hard for me to toss out any tools, but, I have in the past, somethings just don't get used, or I never like the "feel" of the tool, and got to make room for the new tools ya know :roll:

[HOrnbrod]

Dirty........your starting to sound like Andy Rooney from 60 Minutes........ :roll:

 

Ouch - that's harsh Bob. :yes: But I have tools much older than Andy Rooney; tools that my grandfather brought over from Sweden he gave me when I was a kid. Most are very rusty, overbuilt, AFU and I never use them, but just can't throw them away. Even when we were overseas for years I still kept them in storage. Just last week though I needed a 30mm deeeeeep socket for the bike, was about to go out and buy one, but checked Gramps old toolbox - there one was. You just never know when one of those old relics might come in handy. :cheers:

[Wildman]

No.........I didn't say that to make it sound bad.......

 

I like to hear what Andy Rooney has to say every Sunday night.........It's just the way Dirty wrote it, that it sounded like the way Mr. Rooney put his lines together.

 

No way was I putting down Dirty :cheers:

[HOrnbrod]

Dirty knows that Bob. But maybe he's sleeping now, Si? :brows:

[DirtyComanche]

No way was I putting down Dirty :cheers:

 

 

I didn't think you were :cheers:

 

 

Oh, I bought a new roll-cabinet today, and emptied my old box. We'll see if I can work up the courage to give it a heave. Well, maybe I'll ask around at work and see if I can get a case of beer for it first.

 

I find it very strange, but I feel guilt for owning things that I don't use. Oddly, throwing them away absolves me of that guilt. Which makes very little sense in the respect that throwing them out doesn't lead to them being any more useful than had I kept them lying around. :dunno: It was a 'liberating' experience when I moved out of my apartment as I used the 'Well, this isn't worth moving' excuse on about 70% of my stuff.

 

Maybe I'm gonna go all long haired earth muffin on everyone. :doh:

[dunl]

Clutter in my garage has led me on a similar quest, but instead of tools, I'm throwing out parts. :dunno:

 

Two willys in a single car garage has forced me to do it. And if you don't believe I had too many parts...check out the name of the jeep club I started:

 

www.reddeerjeep.com

:D

[DirtyComanche]

I have a friend that I give my parts to. He stores them for a small fee. Well, I give him a bunch of useless junk, he keeps it, I acquire more useless junk, I realize I need something that I previously gave him, I take recently acquired useless junk over and trade for the now needed useless junk.

 

But I've still got way too much junk lying around. I keep trying to sell things but people don't bite on it since they think all of my parts are heavily abused. :roll:

[Automan2164]

I'm going through some of the same stuff at the moment. I am insulating and drywalling my garage, and using it as a time to clean and organize the tools/parts... I am planning on buying an attic ladder and utilizing the unclaimed parts storage potential up there though.... :brows:

 

Rob L.

[DirtyComanche]

I'm going through some of the same stuff at the moment. I am insulating and drywalling my garage, and using it as a time to clean and organize the tools/parts... I am planning on buying an attic ladder and utilizing the unclaimed parts storage potential up there though.... :brows:

 

Rob L.

 

 

Careful on that one... The attic space might not be rated to hold any weight, and will sag out...