Do you loan equipment out?

You funny.

 

Sure...might need a spark plug...or sumptin...

 

Short answer.. No

But.. there a few good friends that I'd loan what they need, or more likely go help out at the asking.

I'm not really a "bumper sicker" kinda guy, but if I were it'd be..

"Yes, this is my truck. No, I won't help you move."

I've been entangled too many times.

I let my BIL borrow our quad trailer, 1000 lbs max capacity, he bent the tongue to about a 30° angle with 1 TON of pellets.

He was all.. "I didn't even notice that, are you sure it wasn't already like that?"


Not overly surprised when it comes to him, but it does leave a mark.

 

I agree with loaning only to folks with the moral strength and financial ability to fix or replace. I dont have too much to lend, but what I do have, keeps us warm (saws etc) or makes us income (truck). So none of those get lent without me.

 

Part of my mindset must come from my up bringing on a small family dairy farm. Farmers were always loaning equipment, tractors and/or tools to other farmer neighbors. I'm going to be much more selective moving forward.

 

I get it...I come from the same background...but the difference is that in the past, none of our neighbors would have ever dreamed of bringing something back in anything less then "as good as, or better than" the condition that they received it in.

 

It is a different age than when we grew up, and certainly far from what our forebearers dealt with.

Communities were built on pulling together to achieve goals. Survival depended on cooperation, not so much these days.

 

They weren't terribly expensive to fix. The tiller took a lot of time, wire cutting and pounding of a "Wonder Bar", typically used in home construction projects, to break up the clay.

The tailgate bottom hinges were time consuming but I was able to use a couple of 3/4" bolts, cut a window out of the lower gate stiffener, and weld them in place. The repair looks to be much stronger than the factory job. Top hinges just needed torch heat, large Cresent wrench and a little force.

So far, I don't have much invested in the hoe, although I expect $200-300 in hoses. Those were likely damaged from being pinched under the weight of the unit sitting on the ground. That very much irritates me.

The biggest thing is the time and effort needed before I tackle something where I need it, and it's out of service. What a pain.

 

I don't loan out anything. People use stuff and if it breaks, they either screw it up or pay someone else to fix it wrong. Most people don't know how to use stuff anyway.
You can loan out a log splitter and someone will figure out a way to break it. I take me equipment to help people sometimes, but it never leaves my sight. Too many times where stuff gets "fixed" by someone who had good intentions but no idea. I'm not grumpy about it, but it is the norm more than the exception, and I have learned to expect it.

my neighbor asked to borrow my disk for his "field". I had seen it the week before. It was sand and river rock, lots of rock. I declined and explained that disking rock would damage it. He didn't know. He is an awesome guy and is eager to learn how to live in the country. We help each other out a lot.

 

The list who I will let borrow stuff is very short. My best friend and his dad are on the anything anywhere anytime list. Pretty much everyone else is on the list of I come with the borrowed stuff if I have time and I usually don’t have time.

 

Right!

 

I loan out plenty of stuff, but not chainsaws typically as i don’t want someone getting hurt. Anything I loan out I just have to be ok with basically giving it away. If and when it comes back, it’s a bonus.

 

This pretty much sums it up, I think.

 

Ive loaned my PU to my friend where i store wood. Came back the same day and full tank of gas. He helped move some stuff for his son. Hes a minister and would give the shirt off his back for anyone. Loaned my saw to a neighbor years back. Came back in one piece but chain was duller than my love life is now. Dont know why amatuers like to cut dirt and with saws? No way id loan a saw out today.
Im not one to borrow stuff either unless something cheap and i know how to use with damaging.

 

A friend's friend borrowed his (my friend's) saw because his was broken. When it was returned the chain had been severely rocked and the bar was full of dirt. When my friend explained that the chain and bar were trashed, his friend admitted that he knew the chain was dull because he had to use own saw to buck the tree up!.....???? Apparently his own saw was only broken enough that it couldn't cut the stump out of the dirt but could still manage to buck the tree up. My friend asked for a new chain but never got it. I'm afraid that someone as calculating as that would forever be on my blacklist!
Sorry about your chain and love life buZZsaw BRAD , I hear that buying more chainsaws helps!Your chain may still be dull and your love life may not improve but you will have some new chainsaws!

 

$308.62 in hoses later and we're back to digging.

Grabbing some bank gravel, hopefully rain will wash some of the fines out.

 

Holding a quick prayer for all of us, for whom our love lives are duller than Brad's chain. And that those love lives, while they may not be easier to restore than a dull chain, will bear much more fruit.....keeping our insides....not merely the outsides.....warm.

Blessings!
Sca

 

LOL!

 

Very rare that I will loan something out. I have an old 029 that I will let someone I trust borrow, but I mix a gallon of gas to send with it along with a couple sharp chains. Tell borrower to swap the chains when not getting good chips and to come back to ME if they need more gas. I’m not afraid to let them know it is a $350 saw and I expect it to be replaced if they screw it up. Won’t loan my good saws out. I have a Chinese x-bull that may become my loaner…but it is a pretty good cutter, surprisingly. I hate to borrow more than I hate to loan. Seems like every time I borrow something, it breaks. I would rather spend the money and buy my own, or rent it.