What do you guys carry your cell phones in. I haven`t seen anything on the market that is heavy duty and easily accessible. I bought one of those leather covers with the clear panel and detachable belt clip and broke the clip off just getting out of the truck. The salesman assured me that it would be durable enough for crawling around on the roof, etc., but in 20 min. it was in pieces. Any ideas?
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One of the numerous reasons I wear carhart pants is the fact that the pocket on the side of the right leg is perfect for carrying my cell phone. It never interferes with tool belts, sitting in the truck, etc and is always accessible. I have never had it fall out (it would if I hung upside down). When I wear levi's my phone drives me nuts trying to find a comfortable pocket to put it in.
karl
HAvent had a cell phone in six years. No reason for one...JMHO
Be a smoke signal
Namaste
andy
"As long as you have certain desires about how it ought to be you can't see how it is."
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I've gone to wearing a vest for abpout the past three years. I get one that has a high breast pocket sized to fit the cell phone. That way it is closer to my ear to hear it in the din of job noise and out of the way.
Excellence is its own reward!
Pants with a ruler pocket. However, having your cell with you on the site is counter productive and will adversely affect your mental health. If they or you can't wait until a regular break, counseling is recommended. Uninterrupted work is therapy, it's obvious we're not doing this for riches.
I believe I bought my cell holder at Lowes. The tag on it says Nite Ize (I think they make a lot of accessories for maglite flashlights). It has a long flap that goes over the belt and snaps. Although I do occasionally not hear the phone if power tools are in use, the phone beaps at me when I get a voice mail. It also has a pocket to hold a small maglight flashlight, which has been as useful as the phone.
I think it was about twenty dollars.
Another day, another tool.
Bucket Boss makes a cell holster that works pretty good for me.I got it from duluth trading company.I carry the phone with me pretty much all the time. With tools on, I put the phone in the holster and then clip the holster INSIDE one of my bags----stays pretty secure there. With no tools on, I just put the phone (no holster) in my front jeans pocket.Using one of those dinky little flip phones that don't seem to be much bigger than the old ZIPPO lighters so it fits fine.
For some reason, I thought this might strike a nerve. You love `em, you hate em`. I`ve had a bag phone in my truck (insert joke now) for years and it just isn`t practical anymore. Nothing like hearing the truck horn blow and thinking 'which kid got a finger chopped off now?' or 'where`s she stranded along the road?', only to climb across the ridge and down two ladders and two flights of stairs to find out it`s a wrong number. That`s productive!
I`ve returned the cover and clip for a refund and am weighing my options. I like the idea of having a semi-permanet cover and a quick-detach clip but haven`t seen one HD enough to handle the job. Not sure if I want to put my faith in the velcro flap either. I do sometimes find myself upside down and other orientations. Nothing like watching that new tape measure smash off the floor 20' up with 30 mins. on the clock. I`m not doing this for a living yet and smashing expensive tools doesn`t help get me there...I`m on a tight budget. Thanks for the many responses.
Mine came from Lowes also, but it was in the same area as tool belts and safety gear. It's brown Cordura with a clip to hook it on your belt or pocket, and it was around $10
I've tried the belt clip things, with mixed results. The kind with the velcro closure are O.K. Anything with a plastic clip is worthless, as you found out.
I also use the ruler pocket on my pants quite a bit. I turn the keypad in towards my leg, and lock the keypad so I don't accidentally call somebody.
During cooler weather, I use the vest pocket on my bib overalls.
Last night I shot an elephant in my pajamas and how he got in my pajamas I'll never know.
If you get one of the Motorola V60 phones (with new service, you can often get them for $50) they come with an excellent sturdy plastic clip that swivels on your belt. It holds the sucker firmly. I haven't knocked the phone out of it yet (although, I have to admit, I haven't visited any crawlspaces yet with the thing.
http://electronics.cnet.com/electronics/0-20497514-1304-20715574.html?tag=pdtl-img
Since the one I had fell apart, I got a real good look at the way it was designed. It really didn`t look too badly designed, the metal clip itself was sturdy enough, and it was held captive in slots molded into the side of the plastic part of the clip. I guess the slots just aren`t deep enough to withstand the massive force of bumping it against the seat back of a pick-up. Another decent idea that is poorly executed at a rather high price. I think the design would be great if it were built with the right materials.
I got mine at (don't tell) HD. Its brand is CMC. Canvas cover with velcro closure and metal clip. Been abused pretty bad. Throw it in the wash once in a while. Velcro starting to wear a little.
Worth the $9 I paid year and half ago. Better yet I can still read the screen on my phone.
I bought a great one that has lasted for years now. It is neoprene wet-suit type material. It is stretchy and it hugs the phone I used to lose them often. I haven't lost one since I bought this holder. I can't tell you where to get one though, Office Max no longer carries them. They were made by a California company (for surfers). Maybe you can find them online. Or maybe another poster can help with a source for them.
I found the little "flip" phones are completely useless if you don't carry it in a purse to go shopping with (I assume that's what they're designed for; they certainly aren't designed for working people). They just aren't durable enough. I got a Motorola that has a cover over the keypad. It's very good. The case I got is the kind that you have to take the phone out of to use it, but it protects the phone. It does tend to pop off the belt, so I use one of those little straps so if it pops off, it will hang loose.
The case protects it when I drop it on a concrete floor in a pulp mill. Of course, Motorola doesn't make it anymore. Their new phones are trendy but cheap.
Yeah, I`ve seen those. In fact, I came close to buying one today at Staples. The clip was a similar design to the Nokia one I returned so I passed. Today I tried Lowes, WalMart, Staples, Ollies, Cremos, and Circuit City on the way to work. All in a half hour! I am ashamed about taking advantage of urban spawl, though. I`m not going back for six months now. I`ll show them! How dare they put so many stores so close together for my convenience! And not one had what I wanted. Grrrrr!
I don't use the clip it has a loop and I always slip my belt through that.
I don't use a cell phone. Or a beeper. If you want to get in touch with me you call my home and leave a message. When I have business pending I check my answering machine from either a pay phone or the business phones where I eat lunch. I have a working relationship with quite a few restaurant and hardware store managers and they let me use the phone as a matter of course. Buy stuff or eat there regularly and most are happy to help you out.
Sure it takes me up to four hours before I call back but I am usually closer to the materials I need to give them a sound answer and I get to work without cell phones interruptions. In fact the only advantage I can think of of carrying a cell phone is safety. If I were to fall off a ladder on a remote site it would be nice to call in the cavalry to save my hide.
The mobile telecommunication devices are, in my mind, like a string left dangling all the way around the world. A GC I was working with got a wrong number from Pakistan while on a roof. LOL.
All that said I have seen two methods of toting around cell phones. The first is a flip phone slipped deep into a nail bag. The second was a neat nylon shoulder holster that carried the phone tucked up out of the way. I saw it on a roofer. He said it was comfortable.
In fact the only advantage I can think of of carrying a cell phone is safety. If I were to fall off a ladder on a remote site it would be nice to call in the cavalry to save my hide.
Yep, that`s the main reason I have one. I work alone every day and while I try really hard not to get dead, one never knows when ones guard will be just low enough for some learning to take place. It really dawned on me this year when I was out hunting alone in the middle of the week miles from another human. It`s a long crawl back to the truck. Though it`s been proven it can be done with only one leg and missing several pints of blood, I really don`t want to go for the record. It just makes sense to have one now. I don`t open too many cans with my Swiss Army knife anymore because we have a can opener now. I played a lot of phone tag with people from a land line and wasted a lot of time waiting for calls that never came when I could have been working. I see cell phones as another tool to work more efficiently, though I can see the possible down side too. Like if a lot of people are calling you all the time. Luckily, I`m not that important. Hope I never am.
I didn't know there was anyone in this business that didn't have a cell phone. Just because you have a phone doesn't mean you have to answer it when it rings. I use the voice mail features, and return calls when I have the time. Sometimes while walking; sometimes while on a break. Sometimes while sitting in a park looking at the river. However, if you need to track something or someone down, it's convenient. It's a tool, and should be used appropriately.
amen