My level just took a dive off a scaffold on a job site near Nashville

Had a brand new 4-foot Stabila level sitting balanced on a wall while I grabbed mortar, and a gust of wind knocked it off, snapped the vial clean out, cost me $120 to replace so now I'm back to using a beat up old one until payday, anyone else had a tool fail on you like that out of nowhere?

2 comments

2 Comments

harper_gibson21mo agoMost Upvoted

Man that Bosch story got me right in the gut. I had a similar thing happen with a Dewalt impact driver a few years back, bought it brand new from Lowe's and on the third job the clutch just stopped working entirely, wouldn't grab at all. Sent it in and they said it was "abuse" even though I barely had it a week. Now I swear by buying used tools from pawn shops or Facebook marketplace, at least if it breaks you're only out 30 bucks instead of a full paycheck. That sealed circuit board failure stuff sounds like a fancy way of saying "we don't want to fix it," and it burns me up. Sometimes the new stuff just ain't built like it used to be.

danieltaylor1mo ago

I had a brand new $140 Bosch laser level give out on me three years ago on a job over in Murfreesboro. It just stopped leveling itself mid-set and started blinking red. I sent it back to the factory and they said it had a sealed circuit board failure that wasn't covered under warranty. That hurt bad because I had just bought it the week before. Sometimes you get a lemon and there's nothing you can do about it. If you ask me, you're better off buying a used level for 40 bucks that's already proven itself than shelling out full price on a new one that might let you down the first time you need it.