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Yeah I think the grief OP was getting over that statement in some of the other comments is unwarranted, I understand completely what they mean about tools. You have people who buy expensive guitars and barely play them for fear of scuffing them for example, depriving themselves and the tool of the thing it's actually for. I'll never understand that mentality.

I don't like to be precious about my tools either, scratches and so on are evidence it's being used for what it's made for!

4 comments

Hmm, I sort of get this but I also think people fetish treating tools badly and then complain when they break.

I have a micrometer. It's delicate and lives in a velvet lined case.

I could treat it like a hammer but I know that once the surfaces get damaged it will be less useful.

It's no less of a tool just because you take extra care of it. I don't treat it well because I want to hand it down to my grand kids, I treat it well because it's delicate I want to keep it working.

Likewise, I don't baby my laptop but also don't throw it around, drop it or use it as a step to reach high shelves.

I don't sweat dings but I do use a proper fitted case when I transport it because I don't want them either.

I bought a 1973 Fender Jazzmaster that was immaculate and should have been my forever guitar. I was so afraid of "ruining the value" that I sold it. I couldn't play it, I was so paranoid. It got into my head. Instead, I ended up buying a '65 AVRI Jazzmaster body and put on an EGC aluminum neck and a Tuffset bridge. The price was about 2/3 of the vintage one, but I have no qualms about playing this one. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

You remind me of Nigel Tufnel of the Spinal Tap rockumentary fame and his guitar collection. The clip on Youtube is a must watch if you're not seen it.

my 14 year old recently got into guitars and has been teaching himself how to play. I went to my sister's house while they were out of town for an errand and her husband plays in a band. There was some guitar on a stand in her living room my son would not let anyone get within 5 feet of. It must have been important hah.

...and don't even get me started on people who buy a Rolex Submariner - the quintessential tool watch (and luxury symbol, by all means - but it wasn't always so) and then ask whether they should take any special precautions after accidentally showering with it...

Sigh.

I'm probably missing something here but if I have to worry about getting an expensive watch that calls it "Submariner" wet of all things, at the very least, it's badly named.

I think the bigger point is that people think they “afford” a luxury item as soon as they barely afford to buy it and forget that owning also has a cost. They are too afraid to use the damn thing out of fear that they damage it somehow. Their luxury item loses all meaning and use beyond showing ownership of an expensive thing.

Like those fancy luxury cars some people buy but are too expensive to drive, maintain, insure, or repair. One scratch wipes out their savings so the car sits in the garage.

Can't argue there. The first time I visited the US, I bought expensive calligraphy paper. I brought it back home to India and saved it for when I would be "Good enough" and practiced on cheap copier stock.

Fast forward a few years, I gingerly took out the pad and pulled out a sheet. I didn't do it right and tore the sheet down the middle and had to take fresh one. Then I dropped my pen while writing (since I was so "careful" with the paper) and had ink droplets fall onto the sheet. Finally, when I put pen to the paper, I found that it had absorbed moisture from the air and the the ink bled into the paper ruining everything.

Yeah, I don’t understand buying a car to sit around. It’s a car, if you aren’t driving it, you aren’t getting the full experience.

I daily drive what some think are just for special trips.

Haha, we need to talk. (Current garage: Land Cruisers BJ42 and HZJ78, SI 80" Land Rover (full grille, thank you very much), 1972 RRC, a 1966 MGB V8 (retrofit, not original).)

Oh, and a Passat for the missus. The kids call the Passat 'The muggle car'.

I really could do with a couple cars less (mostly to make room for a Toyota Century, I have wanted one for years), but I love all of them for different reasons, so...

close04 pretty much nailed it with his comment below. There is nothing wrong with the Submariner - quite the contrary, it is an iconic design and exceedingly well made.

The 'problem' is that as it migrated (much like, say, Leica cameras and optics) from being tools for professionals into status symbols, a lot of its owners went from basically banging it about, relishing each and every battle scar obtained to (sigh) worrying about resale value.

Thanks for the encouragement, glad you like the background :-) Yeah I phrased it a bit badly initially. But what I meant was pretty much what you stated!

> Yeah I phrased it a bit badly initially. But what I meant was pretty much what you stated!

This is part of the fun of reading other peoples writing - thanks for sharing your work!

Definitely, thanks for the reply! :-)