stingy with flashlight

How many people have had someone you know ask to use your flashlight and got mad when you said no.
Had a friend ask me to use one of my more pricey lights (it's nice and bright) and when I said no you can use this one (one of my loaner lights thats not nearly as bright) he kinda got mad. Mind you that any time it's dark now and somebody needs a light everyone looks at me.

Not me, I enjoy loaning my lights to others.
Why are you so stingy with yours?

I only loan out my cheap ones, ~$25 and under range. The exception is my immediate family. Everyone else gets my DX lights. Stingy... I don't think so.

That's why I always have fauxtons to give away. Just toss them around and there is no need to hand yours around.

Depends on the awareness of the friend in question, some I would trust with my life, while others aren't the sharpest or most mindful knife in the drawer.

I don't know if stingy is always the right word, but i get somewhat paranoid when expensive goods get treated very rough. I like to take care of things i have, especially the expensive ones. I'm very gentle with things to prevent drops, scratches or any dents . What i dislike is when i loan things like light, is that the user, thinks it's baton and can simply swing it around, toss it around, slide it on the ground etc and i recieve it back with scratches, dents that could have been prevented. I know it's a tool to be used, but i can't bear to see my favourite toys get damaged.

I agree with loaner lights, that way if there are any damages to it, i won't care.

For me it's not just lights... I have a real issue lending anything due to previous nasty experiences, I do however make exceptions and if I must borrow something I treat it as if it were my own (carefully) as far as I'm concerned it just 'good manners'

When I have enough lights, I have a set loaner light that I will not mind loaning out to people. I'm very careful with things, whether their mine or someone else's. If I had a friend I really trusted, I might loan out one of my better lights, if there was a good reason to.

I think most people think a flashlight is a $10 item, and treat them as such. While I have some responsible friends that I wouldn't think twice about giving the keys to my car or house to, most people get a loaner light from me. I usually have a 2xAA 3 watt Energizer in my knapsack or glove box that most people would think is a great light. If all I have is my E1B I just say no. If they push I just tell people I spent an insane amount of money on this light and wouldn't feel right putting that kind of responsibility on anyone else.

The problem with loaner is if I carry a loaner light, loaner knife, loaner multitool, I'd end up carry too many stuff. So my solution is be low key about everything so people don't know I have them thus won't try to borrow them.

Yes I am now...I have lost my best lights due to being loaned out to "friends" and never getting them back...the ones I lost were SF lights...never again. My mini maglites yes anything else is a "no".

ToeMoss said:

Not me, I enjoy loaning my lights to others.
Why are you so stingy with yours?

Click to expand...

Some of my most favorite lights where destroyed because I let others borrow it.

From Shakespeare's Hamlet, 1603:

LORD POLONIUS:
Neither a borrower nor a lender be;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.

From http://www.phrases.org.uk

I always like showing of and letting security guards at nightclubs use my lights. I make a flashaholic everytime

Reminds me of when people would ask me

if they can borrow one of my camera lenses . . . .



I'd always reply: " I never rent out my camera equipment "



(note: they never said anything about renting it)



Now, nobody even asks me anymore.




As for flashlights . . . .


Always carry a Fauxton in yer' pocket,

for the leeches.



_

For me it depends on the situation. If the person is with you and you are aware of the situation, I don't mind. I also don't have any expensive customs though. An event that changed my thought on friends and tools:

A couple years ago I let a coworker use a knife. I was busy working, didn't have time to think about it and handed him a Benchmade folder clipped in my pocket. We were working in a mechanical room together all day. This guy is actually a very intelligent person....

A few seconds later I looked over towards him and noticed him prying a huge staple out of a cardboard container. I stopped him and grabbed my knife. There was a pretty large chip out of the edge towards the tip. After I told him what I thought of his brilliant act with my $120 knife he said: "why in the h3ll would you carry a $120 knife!?"

If it were a flashlight I handed him he may of used it as a hammer.

NVBoy said:

For me it depends on the situation. If the person is with you and you are aware of the situation, I don't mind. I also don't have any expensive customs though. An event that changed my thought on friends and tools:

A couple years ago I let a coworker use a knife. I was busy working, didn't have time to think about it and handed him a Benchmade folder clipped in my pocket. We were working in a mechanical room together all day. This guy is actually a very intelligent person....

A few seconds later I looked over towards him and noticed him prying a huge staple out of a cardboard container. I stopped him and grabbed my knife. There was a pretty large chip out of the edge towards the tip. After I told him what I thought of his brilliant act with my $120 knife he said: "why in the h3ll would you carry a $120 knife!?"

If it were a flashlight I handed him he may of used it as a hammer.

Click to expand...

That's a scary story !! :huh: Did Benchmade by chance replace the knife under warranty ?

Haz said:

I don't know if stingy is always the right word, but i get somewhat paranoid when expensive goods get treated very rough. I like to take care of things i have, especially the expensive ones. I'm very gentle with things to prevent drops, scratches or any dents . What i dislike is when i loan things like light, is that the user, thinks it's baton and can simply swing it around, toss it around, slide it on the ground etc and i recieve it back with scratches, dents that could have been prevented. I know it's a tool to be used, but i can't bear to see my favourite toys get damaged.

I agree with loaner lights, that way if there are any damages to it, i won't care.

Click to expand...

+1 !!!

-Clive

I'd be stingy bout my lights too. Granted I currently own the SF G2LED. The one I own (stock P60L) has a beautiful nice white beam (no bluing to the tint) and throws surprisingly well.

Flashlight stingy? Yes!

I came from the Maglite world before seeing CPF and still continue to get cheap Mini-Mags as loaners, without really reminding anyone to return them, in some cases.

For my good buddies, I gave out a whole bunch of 6Ps and G2s last year to "pull them into the bottomless but superbright CPF blackhole." In fact, I just gave a few of friends some P60 LED lamps so that their lights can last longer during the next hopefully please-don't-come-again blackout.

Other than that, the most I did was letting some kindergarten kids in my church play with my C2 or C3's under my supervision. They did drop it a few times but of course those lights are indeed designed to take that kind of knocks.

I don't baby my tools with white gloves but at the same time, I don't enjoy letting ohers abusing them. All in all, it boils down to whether I can trust the borrower or not.

With Aloha,

Clarence

Note: None of the above applies to camera gears. The most I've loaned out were like tripods, filters, and some older tiny flashes.