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How many do you have vs can find

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4K views 50 replies 46 participants last post by  joeyinsouthaustin 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Ok, after a short tirade filled with noise pollution trying to find a tape measure in my shop, i was wondering how many most people have bought vs how many you can actually find. I know i have bought a dozen. I can find three. And what really happens to the rest?
 
#27 ·
I play hide and seek all the time in the shop. Nine times out of ten they are usually hiding in plain sight. LOL

One day I spent 15 minutes looking for my safety glasses, after getting another pair off of the peg board I found my safety glasses, on top of my head.

Pencils are scattered about the shop. I can find the unsharpened pencils its the stubby ones that hide on me knowing that I'm trying to use them up before grabbing a new one.

More often than not I find my tape measure's every where but in the shop.

Electrical tape I bet I have at least 10-15 rolls but can never find them when I need them, till I buy a new roll then they all come out of the woodwork.

Then there's chuck keys that always get laid down and you spend 15-30 minutes looking for.

So where else can a guy play hide and seek and get away with it. LOL
 
#28 ·
I have four tape measures. The crappy cheap one with only 1/4" markings seems to be the easiest to find. I have a small one that stays in my purse, and two other ones that wander around the house and shop (see, I'm calling it my shop now, no longer the garage :) )

Since I'm the only one in the house who knows what the silver thing with the long tape in it is for, I can't blame anyone but me. Our 8 yr old son is interested in how things work, and building things, so I'm fostering that as much as I can. If he pilfered on of the tape measures, I'd be so proud! Dear hubby is NOT handy. It took him years to admit it, but he's been banned from touching my tools and he's okay with that.

I bought a box of flat pencils from HD, sharpened them all and never seem to use the same one twice, but can always find one.

But if anyone has solved the mystery of my socks, I'd be glad to know!

Sandra
 
#30 · (Edited by Moderator)
I currently have just one tape measure and I keep pretty good track of it.

I just know that if I ever bought a second one, I would never find one when I needed it.

For me, it is the one size Allen wrench, or drill bit in a set, which I need, that is invariably missing from the index.
 
#31 ·
With today's technology, it's possible to embed tracking sensors in tools or anything we want to keep track of. It would just be a matter of pressing a button, like on car security remotes to find the tool. Of course you would need another remote one to locate the first one. Sensors are used all the time in stores to prevent theft.
 
#35 ·
Pencils - has anyone noticed just how hard it is to find decent pencils anymore? One of the first additions to my shop was a pencil sharpener but it is almost useless anymore! The cheap Chinese junk they sell now doesn't have the lead centered well enough that the pencil sharpener does any good! I tend to sharpen them with a knife now to get a decent point.

I have about 6 tape measures in the shop and, like everyone else, I can't find one when I need it! Ditto using the same tape measure all the time. I find that the biggest difference between tape measures is that damned slip joint on the hook end - they don't all slip the same amount - adding up to about a 1/16" difference between tapes.
 
#36 ·
Tapes, at least 15 around the shop… I built little wood baskets where the main machines have a place for a tape and pencil…. If I am doing serious work I only keep one tape in hand. Or use a Metal ruler. Love the Fast Cap ones….

Pencils, I have used the ones from LV and they are nice, but mainly get the Black Widow ones you can get at Wally World….

Pencil Sharpeners, I buy the Old School type off fleebay… Crank the handle type… My Girls love them too much cause they always sharpen them after the sharpen them and just a little more longer they will hit the eraser…..

Even with all these precautions in place when I do need one fast I can never find them and when I do they are usually all in the same area…. I guess some things are just not meant to be…...
 
#43 ·
I used to do the multiple tape measure deal but then I discovered how much variance there was between tape calibration. Now I use one and just keep it on my belt.

As far as pencils, I don't know where they go! I did buy a bunch of these sticky-back pencil holders at the dollar store one time. I stuck them on my saws and bench and most of the time there is a pencil on them.
 
#45 ·
Having worked in the trades so many years, I have the habit of clipping them on my pants pocket, so I'm generally not looking for a tape measure. Pencils, on the other hand, tend to disappear. Like you, Monte, I should have a drawer full of them. It's like they grew legs and walked away.
 
#46 ·
I know exactly where all but one of my 6 tape measures are. I have a good idea where the one I am not certain of is. My wife used it 2 days ago, and I think it's actually in the laundry room on the dryer, but I'm not certain…

I have clamshell cabinets in my shop, with pegboard doors, set up after the Wood Magazine design. On the outside of one of them I have an array of pegboard "baskets" that hold things like utility knives, sharpies, tape measures, bench dogs etc… My tapes are in there.

On the other hand. What the devil I did with all my pencils I haven't the foggiest idea. Probably got sucked up into the DC and are in the dust bin for all I know… I mean I do HAVE the little peg board pencil holder bucket, but the pencils never seem to find their way back into it…

I think the Gnome that keeps stealing one sock out of a pair is stealing my pencils too!
 
#47 ·
Two 12'
One 50'
One 50'

However, I find myself using my 3', 4' and 5' aluminum yardsticks for all critical measurements that won't fit in my digital calipers. I hate the end of "tape measures" because the "hook" wiggles and throws off the measurement by as much as 1/16", just enough to be a PITA. My 2-cents…
 
#48 ·
I am convinced I have a shop ghost who delights in hiding pencils, tape measures and whatever I happen to be looking for next.

I have three tape measures but generally can lay my hand on one without too much fuss. Pencils I gave up trying to keep up with. I just bought a big bag of #2's and grab a fresh one when the shop ghost hides the last one.

Now if I could just find one of my pencil sharpeners. . .
 
#49 ·
I have about 12 tapes all over the shop, with three in my tool caddy. I usually take the free tape measure coupon when I go into HF. But I mainly use aluminum rules like Mike, or Starrett 6" rule with metric for really good measurements. The tapes are mostly for initial cuts off the plank.

Pencils? What pencils? I must have bought 100 pencils, including a POUND of them at the flea market, US made that when I do run across one of them, I really like it when I put it through my old style pencil sharpener. I seem to find the same three pencils all the time, which are getting shorter and shorter, since I have no idea where all the others are!
 
#50 ·
I keep a bin next to the door and light switch to my shop, where I can empty my pockets of everything that should stay in the shop. Then on my way back in the next time I'll put the tools/pencils back where they belong. A lot less stuff gets washed this way..

-Pete
 
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