That fancy laser level I swore was a waste of money - 6 months later I eat my words

Last spring I was framing a deck in Denver and the old guy I was working with kept pushing me to buy a rotary laser level instead of my old bubble level. I told him it was just a gimmick and that I'd been fine for 15 years without one. After about the 10th time I had to re-string a chalk line because the wind blew it, I borrowed his Bosch GLL to try out on a patio retaining wall. Set it up in like 2 minutes and the line was dead nuts across 40 feet - no squinting, no guessing. Turns out I was spending an extra 20 minutes per job just re-checking levels the manual way. Anyone else have that one tool they resisted forever and then regretted not buying sooner?

3 comments

3 Comments

aaron_perry5d agoRising Star

Holy crap, 20 extra minutes per job? That's insane when you add it up over a whole season. I mean, I get being stubborn about spending money on tools, but that's literally hundreds of dollars of your time just burning away. I had a similar thing happen with a nail gun years back - kept thinking my hammer was fine until I borrowed a buddy's and realized I was a complete idiot. Did you end up going with the Bosch or did you find another brand you liked better?

sean_green445d ago

I see your point about the time and money... but honestly, I think sometimes we get too caught up in saving minutes. There's something to be said for knowing your old tools and not having to learn a new system. I've used the same hammer for fifteen years, and my speed comes from muscle memory, not the tool itself. Plus, that extra 20 minutes might just be quality time on the job, thinking through the next step instead of rushing.

susan_adams5d ago

Wait, are you really saying 20 minutes per job isn't worth saving? I get the whole muscle memory thing, but 20 minutes adds up fast. That's time you could use for an extra job or just getting home earlier. It's not about rushing, it's about working smarter, not harder.