Repair/mechanic tricks and or tips?

[Eaglebait Ranch]

I hope this fits in this thread. I have four places where I keep tools: a shop next to my house, a shop down by the barn, an area where I store my tractor, and a tool box in the house. If I don't have these tools color coded, I would wind up with 3-4 of the same tool "always" together in someplace where I don't need them. So, all tools which are stored in the shop next to the house have a red stripe on them, tools kept in the barn shop have a yellow stripe, tools kept in near the tractor are green, tools for the house are blue.

This way, when it comes time to put tools away, I know where they need to go and I don't have to walk from the barn to the upper shop in order to get it.

 

[BTDT]

I hope this fits in this thread. I have four places where I keep tools: a shop next to my house, a shop down by the barn, an area where I store my tractor, and a tool box in the house. If I don't have these tools color coded, I would wind up with 3-4 of the same tool "always" together in someplace where I don't need them. So, all tools which are stored in the shop next to the house have a red stripe on them, tools kept in the barn shop have a yellow stripe, tools kept in near the tractor are green, tools for the house are blue.

This way, when it comes time to put tools away, I know where they need to go and I don't have to walk from the barn to the upper shop in order to get it.

Great idea. I used a variation of this when I used to have my service truck. I spray painted all the heads on my hammers (ball peens, sledge) yellow, so that when it came time to go, and myself and some other guys from our shop were out working setting up a crane, I could tell at a glance which ones belonged to me. On a side note, are your sheep color coded to fields they are supposed to be in, or the barn they are supposed to sleep in?

 

[patrick_g]

patrick g, How do you get "falling balls of fire" and "sober adults" in the same location??? MikeD74T

Hopefully you won't get the adults (or anyone else) in the SAME location. The display is NOT TO BE DONE in a wind more than a couple MPH. You are safe at a distance where you can still and see the effects quite well. With no wind you should be safe 3 ft from the bucket and plastic.

Sober is a good idea so no one tries to catch the cute blue things.

I do confess there have been hoards of people entertained by this display at one time or another and I can guarantee they were not all straight and or sober.

Pat

 

[Soundguy]

The non-sober one's don't bother me much.. but those non-straight ones though!

Soundguy

I can guarantee they were not all straight and or sober.

Pat

 

[SnowRidge]

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I write the miles/hours and date on oil and air filters with a Sharpie when I change them. That way you always know when you're due.

And so may the next owner.

A friend of mine bought a used Bobcat that had just been traded in at the local dealer. The dealer's salesman said that their shop had gone completely through the machine checking and servicing everything. When my buddy got the machine home and really started going through it, he found dates and hours written on all the filters that were almost a year old.

He put the machine back on his trailer and took it straight back to the dealer. Long story short, they ate a complete service while he stood there and watched over them.

 

[Danno1]

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Ya, I thought of that SR. But I'm not a dealer so w me it would be just a private sale from my house. And I like to be honest when I sell a used vehicle.

Oh, well if I trade it in to a dealer then it's on him to be honest w his customer.

.

 

[patrick_g]

tools which are stored in the shop next to the house have a red stripe on them, tools kept in the barn shop have a yellow stripe, tools kept in near the tractor are green, tools for the house are blue.

Aboiut 20 years ago I bought a set of Craftsman screw drivers, probably a dozen or so in the set, 0, 1, 2, 3 in Phillips bunches of straight in many sizes and lengths and a couple star thingies I may never have used. I painted them '84 Ford Pickup blue. I told my wife I was allowed to borrow them but must return them in a timely manner and that if she used any to promptly return them to the walll mounted rack. Somehow while moving I lost track of the rack and built a new one out of wood. The collection is still intact, is installed in the pantrility room's closet door and is relied on when I don't know where I hid one of my hundred + screwdrivers. It has become second nature to borrow them and return them promptly. I have oodles of tools and still frequently have to borrow a "house" screwdriver every once in a while.

My color code is simple. If it is blue it is the "HOUSE" set. NO paint? Then it is mine.

Now if I could only come up with a way to get ME to track MY tools 1/2 as carefully as the HOUSE tools (not likely, unfortunately, unless it involves something like an industrial strength cattle prod.

The technical types I worked with when doing field service engineering lost a few tools to the installer types. I marked all mine with my drivers lisc number. One day I wandered out of the electronics shop out into the mechanical shop to use a big vise. There was a 10 inch crescent there by the vise so I used it and when done started to walk off with it and took a verbal broadside from a mech tech. I told him if he didn't want me to walk off with tools to not etch my drivers lisc number in the handle and kept walking. It was a tool of mine they "borrowed."

Pat

 

[drivadesl]

Great tips on here, almost to many to read. My 2C:

Buy a tap/die set to keep around for when you gum up a threaded hole, nut or screw. How may times have you looked for a replacement screw and couldn't find the right size. Even a cheap set to use as a thread chaser will clean up gummed threads, and has bailed me out countless of times.

Always thread screws back into their holes until ready for final assembly, say after removing a valve cover, or the like. You'll never lose them this way.

I highly recommend using those cheap painter type gloves when working on vehicles, engines, etc. Keeps hand clean up simple, and will minimize damage to your hands from bangs, splinters, etc.

 

[Soundguy]

A thread repair file is a great tool to go with that cheap chase set!

soundguy

 

[BTDT]

Using a small mirror (small cosmetic mirror from dollar store) is a good way to see how things are where you can't get your head. I used this today to check how pto shaft was mating together with pto coupling. You can see how much wear and slack is there.