Repair/mechanic tricks and or tips?

[bamatoolmaker]

If you dont have any anti-seize handy for bolt threads. Malox can be used as a substitute.

 

[BTDT]

Boy, you guys are good. A trick that was pulled on me and some of my coworkers at the rental co. I used to work for: field mechanic would go out on job to make a repair. If he thought there would be further problems after his initial visit, (or equipment was junky and nasty and he did't want to go out on it again), as he left he would say, "if you guys have any more problems just give a call" as he handed them a business card with one of the other mechanics name on it. Then when they called they would ask for whoevers name was on the card. Boss would usually send back whoever went last time, not who they requested. Some bosses know what's going on.

 

[BTDT]

Just remembered after posting in another thread, you can soak a stuck cable (like a choke cable) in antifreeze and it will usually free it up.

 

[Soundguy]

Hmm.. I wonder if it is capilary action that draws the e/g - p/g down the cable/ and then the water pump lube greases it up??

Soundguy

 

[BTDT]

Here's another I haven't seen posted yet. Mount vise to plate attatched to tubing that will fit in receiver hitch. Then you can use it on truck, tractor, or several places around shop bench/welding table (if you have receivers there also). The more portable the better.

 

[Ifixcars]

Here's one that I like to use... When removing hoses that are stuck on like say a radiator hose that has been attached for a long time, I insert my hose removal tool (kinda like an awl with a 90 degree bend at the tip) between the hose and the radiator neck, and spray penetrating oil so that it runs down the tool between the hose and the rad, and then run the tool around the neck. This works on smaller vacuum hoses too, I use a smaller 90 degree pick to get between the vacuum hose and nipple and send some penatrating oil down the pick. I now know that spending a little more time removing hoses without breaking vacuum senders or plastic rad tank necks is better than buying broken parts.

 

[MrJimi]

Here's another I haven't seen posted yet. Mount vise to plate attatched to tubing that will fit in receiver hitch. Then you can use it on truck, tractor, or several places around shop bench/welding table (if you have receivers there also). The more portable the better.

Do you mean like this?

Jim

 

[BTDT]

Good job. I looked at some of the photo's you had posted about the home made crane, interesting. I am thinking of putting a winch on a plate that has a boompole attatched to help with moving stuff around. What do you use your crane for, looks kind of "light" using angle iron?

 

[MrJimi]

My red crane I used for lifting my trusses on my building, the white one. the trusses weigh around 5oo pounds each and a 40 foot wide schedule 80 4 inch pipe to use as a spreader bar, I strapped the truss to the pipe in 4 places and up it goes. It was 32 feet tall and I made it so I could use it inside after my roof was on, and it lifted the 16" tall 24' long H beam you see in the pictures. Its made of 4" channel and pretty strong.
Thanks for asking
Jim

 

[Volfandt]

Good ideas

Use a 6" or longer section of vaccum/fuel hose to start a spark plug. You'll never cross thread a head again and it makes it easy to get to those nearly impossible to get at plugs.

If you've got to start a hexhead screw and the driver is worn to where the screw falls out just before you can get it started, tear a small piece of paper and place it over the nutdriver then press the hexnut into the paper into the socket, the paper will hold it tight. Works for phillips also....

Easy way to clean off heavy corrosion on top attach battery terminals is to pour some Coca-cola (or Pepsi etc) over the terminal, walk away and get your air compressor air sprayer then come back and spray the battery/area off with air, it'll be clean enough to work on then (I keep an old flat bottle of Coke in the shop frig just for this purpose.

Need a cheap voltage/current tester? Solder 2 wires to a std 1156 auto lamp, one to the caseing and the other to the soldered nipple on the end.
Series it in to the suspected circuit to see if current is flowing (especially handy in troubleshooting battery drain) it'll light up if current flow is present. Or place one end on a good circuit ground and the other where you hope to find voltage, it'll glow if it's there.
A cheapo continuity meter can be made with the above lamp tester and a 12v battery charger/ power supply set on it's lowest power setting. Circuits, fuses etc can be checked. Don't use this on circuits with CPU's, MCU's etc as it could damage them.

One of the handiest tools I have is a pr of 13" channel locks that'll open to at least 5". They make a handy universal oil/hydro filter wrench and disc brake caliper piston depresser. It's never met a filter it couldn't get off

Volfandt