The real kick was, I didn't even have to buy the
screwdriver. There
was no visible damage to the screwdriver tip from my careful work,
so it went back on the shelf.
I find this mroally very wrong. I can't believe
yor tool shops offer a
free lending service for tools, I know ours don't. It's one thing to
take the unit to the shop to find what tool will remove the screws
(I've done that many times when I've wanted something obscure), but
once you've found the right tool you should darn well buy it.
AutoZone, an
automobile parts place around the US, offer free tool rental
(and they also sell tools if you want to buy them). You give them a
deposit when you pick up the tool, and they give you back 100% of it
when you bring back the tool. Of course, I'm sure they wouldn't give
you the whole/any of the deposit back if you broke the tool before
bringing it back.
And how about a store that sells tools as NEW, after they've
been used, and abused, such as use of the wrong size screwdriver,
or even using a flatblade screwdriver on a torx screw? I don't
like having to do a detailed inspection of "new" tools looking
for damage that they hadn't noticed, in addition to the normal
inspection for manufacturing defects.