My buddy in Boise checked his tape against a yardstick last month and found the hook was off by 1/16. He's a cabinet guy, so that little bit adds up fast. A lot of tapes get dropped or bent at the hook and quit reading true, and you won't see it unless you lay it next to a fixed ruler. Takes ten seconds, so there's no good excuse to skip it. Sounds like your neighbor did you a solid.

That $180 gamble on a 2011 Civic sounds like it paid off, I was a full MIG guy too until now.

I once watched a guy at a hostel in Lisbon spend 20 minutes repacking a 70L bag just to find his charger, and that sold me on going small more than any fee ever did. When everything has one spot and you can see it all at once, you stop digging and stop losing things, which is worth more than the few euros saved. The sink laundry is just the trade you make for that kind of calm.