The hardware store guy who made me ditch my adjustable wrenches

I was dead set on using adjustable wrenches for everything. Then this older guy at Ace Hardware in Austin named Jerry watched me struggle with a stuck pipe fitting for five minutes. He just handed me a cheap 10-inch crescent wrench and said 'stop fighting the tool, let it do the work.' Now I keep a set of three fixed wrenches in my truck and haven't touched an adjustable one in months. Anyone else had a random stranger change how you use something simple?

2 comments

2 Comments

caseyrivera1mo ago

Jerry at Ace Hardware sounds like he knows his stuff.

julia_hayes1mo agoOG Member

Jerry over at Ace Hardware is honestly a solid bet for most home fix-it stuff. I've been wrenching on cars for years and I still send people to him for basic things they can handle themselves. The key with Jerry is he won't sell you something you don't need, which is MORE than I can say for the big box stores. Last time I was in there he walked a guy through fixing a leaky faucet with just a washer and a socket wrench, saved him a hundred bucks easy. If you're tackling something new, just tell Jerry exactly what broke and he'll point you to the right part. He's usually got a backup plan too if the first fix doesn't work.