Rant... Why I hate lending stuff

[Boris]

Right rant time

A year or so back Mrs H was looking for a new sleeping bag so I bought her a super dooper five season jobbie. OK it wasn't down but it was bloody expensive and worked really well.

Fast forward a bit and one of her work colleagues was going on a trip up Everest (well as far as one of the camps) and she was on the lookout for a decent bag as it wasn't worth spending hundreds for one trip and my wife offered her her one. So she goes up Everest and is nice and toasty but on the way back the bag goes missing and only when asked by my wife for it back does she admit such and offer to replace the bag.

Now she knows damn fine it was a bloody good bag she borrowed (as the expedition kit list mandated so) so what does she replace it with? Some shitty one season bag with a extreme rating of plus 20 degrees centigrade that must have cost a couple of quid of ebay. I'm pissed but my wife won't let me bring it up for the sake of work harmony.

Looks like we'll be needing to buy another new bag then. I'm done with lending my good stuff. Folk can borrow the shite from now on.

Rant over... And breath.

 

[Chewbadger]

I'd be at FL650 and climbing mate. Work harmony my arse, that's taking the p!$$

 

[Dee Dub]

Perhaps said "friend" will take another trip up Everest, and you can lend the cheapo bag! LOL

 

[africajim]

I know how you feel mate, brake pipe flaring tool, several rad bleeding keys, tools, I don't loan out anything any more.

Bloody people! Lol! ☺

 

[Chewbadger]

Yep, chain riveter came back with bits missing and broken, multimeter with knackered leads...the list goes on.

 

[Lutin]

"Work harmony" my arse! That is totally out of order.

I wouldn't dream of not replacing like with like.

 

[outrunner]

That is just not on, as Boris will testify I broke a pin on his chainbreaker but replaced it with a new part from the maker, admittedly they sent the part for free but at least I replaced like for like. If someone fecked something of mine I would expect them to do the decent thing and replace it.


Andy.

 

[Barftone]

It is bizarre. A few years back after trying to find a Valve adjuster tool and a spring compressor I realised they were lent out and not logged to who!! A kind email and a couple of calls later (politely) and nothing returned a month later and that was that. Tie downs, maps blah blah I feel for u Boris. People even take the piss when you offer labour for christsakes. Recently rebuilt and bled brakes (most of a day) for a work colleague and he was over the moon and with a thanks that was that. No fluid offered or 4 pack even a offer of a curry might have been nice? I,m an ungrateful sod. Send her a bill.......I know u won't but!

 

[Mark]

Boris, can I borrow your wife? If I lose her I can't guarantee what I'll replace her with

I'd be tempted to leave a print out from a website of what was lost with its price on it lying on her desk.

 

[Boris]

That is just not on, as Boris will testify I broke a pin on his chainbreaker but replaced it with a new part from the maker, admittedly they sent the part for free but at least I replaced like for like. If someone fecked something of mine I would expect them to do the decent thing and replace it.

Andy.

That's true.. Fortunately Andy didn't see the small crack in the pin when I lent him it.

Just kidding. Of course I'm sure we would all do the same. I just cant understand how she possibly think we would be happy. The bag is one season (if that) and there is no way I can see that bag being used outside of a bunkhouse. The problem is we were planning to go away this weekend and I'm now going to have to buy another new bag and that Rab ascent 900 bag at £165 (down from £250) is looking pretty appealing just now. Although the original bag didn't cost that much I'm just annoyed that it will still be 165 quid I shouldn't have to spend.

Boris, can I borrow your wife? If I lose her I can't guarantee what I'll replace her with

As long as like the sleeping bag it's one lighter and thinner then you'll get no complaints from me

 

[Whealie]

I know what you mean, but, in the main, I have lent people stuff and had it returned.

At the MAG Farmyard Rally a guy I had never met before mentioned he had a flat tyre. I lent him my expensive American compressor. He brought it back a few hours later.

I forgot all about it. We often do forget all about it when things are returned as expected and only remember the few times things aren't.

Unfortunately that leads to a Daily Mail view of the world, based on our worst experiences and fears.


Written with fat thumbs on my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[Barftone]

As sure as the Sun comes up.....the Mail has a negative headline......my guess today will be about those selfish public sector workers!

 

[Barftone]

That was tongue in cheek if u were wondering

 

[Boris]

I know what you mean, but, in the main, I have lent people stuff and had it returned.

At the MAG Farmyard Rally a guy I had never met before mentioned he had a flat tyre. I lent him my expensive American compressor. He brought it back a few hours later.

I forgot all about it. We often do forget all about it when things are returned as expected and only remember the few times things aren't.

Unfortunately that leads to a Daily Mail view of the world, based on our worst experiences and fears.


Written with fat thumbs on my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

I know what you mean and I've had few problems before (I did have a smashing trolley jack replaced with a heap of shit once and a torque wrench came back broken) but by and large folk have returned things as they were given them. It's embarrassing when you have to say no and I generally do say no now for tools now unless the person I'm lending to has a my confidence that they will do the right thing if it all goes wrong (just like Outrunner did).

It's the novices that I won't lend expensive or fragile items to any more as just like this woman they either don't understand or care about the value or treat the item like shit and I get it back all filthy and broken assuming I get it back at all. They can bring their bike over here and I'll help them with the work but I just cant see me giving out good stuff any more. Often it's not even the value of the stuff not being returned that's the issue. It's the inconvenience. As an example I lent my hammer to some bloke at the ABR rally in Ullapool and he pissed off home the next day and I never saw it again. It probably cost me about two quid from the pound ship (I know I know) but because he decided not to return I was without a hammer and had to make the effort to buy one before my next trip.

Hmm come to think of it I still hadn't got a decent one by the next trip so I borrowed Andy's one and bent it. See there you go.... Some folk just don't care. Sorry Andy. I owe you a hammer.

 

[Trada]

Can anyone lend me a rack and some panniers for my Vara 1000, only need them for a few years. I have some broken givi ones in the shed I can replace them with if I sell them with my bike though.

 

[Boris]

Can anyone lend me a rack and some panniers for my Vara 1000, only need them for a few years. I have some broken givi ones in the shed I can replace them with if I sell them with my bike though.

No but Sean is selling some and cheap too. Try sending him a PM

 

[Whealie]

I know what you mean, Boris. I lent someone locally my petrol container and they never returned it. It had sat there unused for two years, so I was only mildly annoyed - until I needed to get some fuel to get a bike started. You can't even buy fuel containers in petrol stations so it meant cycling (motorbike needed fuel) to Halfords (the next day, when it was open) and then going to the petrol station. It was the inconvenience, not the economic value, that was the problem.


Written with fat thumbs on my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[Mark]

Could lend you a Vango 350 escape mummy type bag for the trip, warm for all seasons but personally wouldn't use it in sub zero temps. Save you 165 pounds.

 

[Boris]

Could lend you a Vango 350 escape mummy type bag for the trip, warm for all seasons but personally wouldn't use it in sub zero temps. Save you 165 pounds.

Thanks for the offer Mark. In the end I think we will be going B&B this weekend as the weather is looking pretty poor.

 

[Traveller]

My snap on toolbox had a sticker on the lid that said "I make my living with Snap On tools so please do not ask to borrow them".
A long time ago I formed the view that I would only lend kit to like minded people. That means people who have spent good money on tools but have a one off neeed for a particular item that is not in thir toolkit. I generaly find that they appreciate and look after it.
Its the people who dont even bother to buy any basic tools, spend their money on other things and almost expect you to let them use your kit, bought with hard earned cash to give them free run.
A recent example that still irks was a neibours request to borrow my wheelbarrow. Its quite old, but still clean and sound. It came back caked in concrete no hint of an apology.