Hot take: I spent a solid month using a 3/8 drive on a 1/4 inch fitting before a new guy in the hangar asked why my ratchet sounded like it was chewing rocks.

He just pointed at the wall chart of drive sizes and said, 'The big one goes in the big hole, right?' and I felt my whole face get hot.

2 comments

2 Comments

linda_knight517d ago

Did we all just collectively forget that sometimes you have to make do with what's in your hand? I get what @jamieburns is saying about not wrecking tools, but in a real pinch, a little force on a bigger drive can get a bolt moving when nothing else will. That new guy might have saved your ratchet, but there's a time and place for using the wrong tool. It's not always about being lazy, sometimes it's just getting the job done.

jamieburns7d ago

Honestly, that line about the big one going in the big hole would have wrecked me too. I used to be the guy who thought forcing a bigger drive was just getting the job done faster. Tbh, I saw it as a sign I was working hard. Seeing that wall chart and having someone point it out so simply just flips a switch. Now I get that the right fit isn't about being fussy, it's about not wrecking your tools or your hands. That new guy did you a solid.