Whats the best "trick" or tech tip a mentor showed you?

I like these!!

Give me more!

Thanks

 

your not welding, your only melting

 

especially if the titles in your wife's name

 

I had an older mechanic show me to use a pair of channel locks to adjust an alternator belt a long time ago. Put one end on the alternator the other the the mounting bracket and squeeze the two together to pull the belt tight. Do this on one hand and tighten the bolt with the other hand. It beats trying to pry on the alternator and break something.

 

Either way you are putting a heat affected zone into the metal. where is the benefit? I'm from Missouri the show-me state. so show me some proof of how this would make any improvement at all? Melting the edges of machined holes sounds hokey at best. This is the Hokey Ass Message Board, but come on thats just nuts.

 

Use flush cutters to cut the ends off of zip ties, use a zip tie to keep a spare key somewhere on the vehicle, and it's easier to keep extra fuel in the tank than push it to the gas station. Know your limitations and when to ask for help. The most useful tool in the shop is located right between your ears.

 

Cutting off the heads of old bolts and using them as guide pins for installing transmissions is a good trick I've use for years, especially if you work by yourself. One improvement on this basic trick is to make the two bolts different lengths. That way, it's easier to get one transmission mounting hole on the longer bolt first, thus relieving some of the transmission weight and making it easier to then swivel (rotate) the transmission and catch the second mounting hole on the shorter bolt and then push the transmission in place.

 

If you're using a zip tie tool to tighten them: before you pull it tight and break the end of the tie off just spin the tool a couple times around the tie and pop the end off, that will leave you with an end that has no sharp edges (it seems like I always drag my arm across the end of a zip tie when working)

 

Here's mine;
-Easy mess- free way to adjust valve lash while engine is running.(sbc & similar)-Grab an old steel rocker cover and cut a long slot out of the middle so you can access the rocker nuts. Adjust them, then wait a few minutes for the oil to clear from the heads and replace with your good rocker cover.
-We have a stuff here called "Blue tack" which you can use to stick posters to walls, ect without peeling off paint. Roll up a ball of this and stick it inside a socket and it will stick to a nut when trying to start it in a bastard of a place.
A little will keep screws on the end of your driver till you get it started.
-When drilling through something that you can't get to the other side to clean away swarf, coat the drill bit in grease and all the crap will stick to this rather than fall in the hole.
-A hex-headed bolt of the right size with two nuts locked on will serve as an allen (Hex) key when you haven't got one.
-Before you throw out any speakers, knock off the magnets with a big soft hammer (they are usually epoxied on). They are strong and do well to hold awkward stuff when you have to spot weld it. Stick the magnet in a small plastic bag to pick up steel swarf from around your lathe-when it's all stuck to the outside of the bag, hold it over your bin and remove the magnet from the bag-all the crap falls in the bin and the magnet stays clean.
-If you ever find a dead computer hard drive open it up and remove the 2 kidney-shaped magnets. These are incredibly strong and can be used for a million things .
-Keep a yard of electrical wire with an insulated alligator clip on each end in your toolbox in your car-ideal for hot wire starting, getting electric fans or lights going, etc.
-Keep a car door key in your wallet. Then hide an ignition key Inside your car (if they are different). This one has saved me a few times.
As for wisdom, this one has always been proved correct-
"there are no stupid questions - just stupid people"

 

One of the timeless things passed down from my grandfather to my dad and then down to me was when my grandpa told my dad "I don't care how far you drive the car without gas but please don't drive it without oil". There was a real old time guy that worked out of a barn in my hometown named Glade Hayes probably in his eighties when I knew him. He had been around the Chicago area before he moved to Michigan a real sharp old guy who had known the Granatellis. Seemed he could fix most anything. One time we were talking and he said 95% of the time it's either igneyeshun or fuel when your car won't run!

 

Here's some more:

easy test an alternator to see if its charging on the vehicle, while it's running take a screwdriver or knife and a place at it the backside the alternator...if it's working correctly you will feel a magnetic force pull the tool the center point of the unit...however it's hard to tell if its over charging this way...but it lets you know there is a field charge

Car won't start? turn the key and nothing? wont' turn over at all? turn the lights on....(sometimes you need a helper to stand at the front of the car...as in the daytime)...do the lights stay bright while you turn the key? if they do then probably issues on the primary side of the starting circuit (the little wires to the solenoid or key switch...neutral safety etc) if they dim or go right out ...weak battery or connection probably at the posts...also look at the starter end of the cable and for corrosion under the battery cable coating too...these are the most common symptoms..

Rip in the headliner? with a 4 to 8 inch or so rip/slice...take a piece of cardboard....in the center of said cardboard run a 8? inch length of fishing line looped through so there are 2 strands hanging out of it..place the cardboard in the ripped area on the inside with the lines hanging out...now you can gently pull the ripped area together to glue the seam...yes the card board will forever be there but so what?...pull the line out when your done

more to come

 

I can't remember how many times I've had to ask myself: "Am I going the right way on this bolt?". Hehehe gets me every time.

 

Thanks to all for the great wisdom!

 

You will find that its a lot easier to clean up the mess when the bushing finally pops out if you use peanut butter instead of grease...no joke.

 

How to break a tire bead and how to re-bead it at home.

1. De-bead: Deflate the tire. Lay a strong board on the rubber (not the rim). Drive up on the board with your vehicle. The weight of the vehicle presses the rubber off the rim. The board puts the weight on the bead where it will do some good.

See the first 30 seconds of this video. (The last part is boring. He's just inflating his tire with an air compressor. Yawn.)

http://youtu.be/QdDD78xZXKI

2. Re-Bead: Spray some flamable liquid shuch as starter fluid, carb cleaner or WD-40 into the tire. Spray some around the rim. Stand back at a safe distance and light it. It should re-bead with a loud, "POP!" You now have a few seconds to get some air into it before the hot gasses inside the tire cool off and it deflates again.

"Hold my beer and watch this!"

http://youtu.be/JtWgeGfBSSk

http://youtu.be/_M0GNLvPmAg

 

Umm before someone blows themselves up trying this, I've used this method in the field when I've popped the bead on a implement tire, but when I worked in a tire shop I would wrap a ratchet strap around the tire and squeeze it. Make sure your valve stem core is removed and inflate. Soap and water around the beads help too.

 

No clutch aligning tool? No problem. Use masking tape. Place clutch disc on clutch cover. Center the clutch disc on the clutch cover. Take a few strips of tape and apply them to the perimeter were the disc and cover meet. Apply the tape carefully so none of it folds onto the clutch disc surface. Make sure this edge is clean and free of any oils or dust. Carefully lift the assembly and attach it to the flywheel. It's worked every time for me on a variety of different clutch diameters. The tape is made of paper so it will disintegrate quickly.

 

I cut the damned thing twice....and it's still too short!

 

Microwaves have good strong "O" shaped magnets in the top left rear of the case.
BE CAREFUL NOT TO GET THE HELL SHOCKED OUT OF YOU! There's a labeled diode in there right near the magnets...

 

"you might beat the rap but you ain't gonna beat the ride", i.e., you may be 100% in the right when the nice officer pulls you over and it's even though it's not illegal for you to question the validity of his parents' marriage certificate at the time of his birth it might just cost you a ride down town and a day or two out of your life so be polite to everyone.

 

Ball peen hammer works great making a gasket, but set a ballbearing over a hole you want and hit the bearing with your ball peen. The tap mentioned above is four flute.
If you can get a hold of one, use a gun tap, two flutes and much stonger. And they
"shoot" the chips out in front of tap. You just have to plan for blind holes

 

When working with fender to door, door to quarter etc... gaps where to need to add or take away material from a panel edge it is much easier to put a piece of material such as a length of 3/16" threaded rod in the gap as a gauge to see where to make the adjustments. This is much easier than trying to site the gap, takes the guesswork out of it.

I know this is an old thread but I think that it is a good tip but not good enough to justify a new tread. Only thought to post it now because I am fitting the doors on my current project and utilizing this method to dial the gaps in.

 

Back years ago when all cars had chrome bumpers my wife and I and another couple were stranded with a dead battery late one night. A guy came by and and asked me to take out my jack handle. We then put our front bumpers together for - and then touched the jack handle to + battery post and she busted right off. Have used it a few times since.

 

1. Patience
2. Torque wrench
3. More patience
4. and then his patience teaching me more patience. Thanx Frank Z

 

when painting around alot of wires or hoses, like an engine bay or chassis that isnt dismantled, use aluminum foil instead of paper to mask the lines. You can squeeze it tight around the hoses instead of trying to wrap paper and tape it up.

 

Removing old rear axel bearings . remove axel from car , put on safty glasses, take a sledge hammer and smack the outer race and brake it off. heat the inner bearing race in one spot until red and then use hammer and cole chisel striking it at the red spot a couple times . cool it off and slid the inner race off the axel slik as you no what. warm the new axel bearing 150 degres or so ,not to hot, spray the axel with co2 fire exting#@*& on the race seat freezing it. Then slip the new bearing on . Slik as you no what absolutly no press needed. Just a torch , hammer and chisel,and fire exting@*^#...Back yard mechanic tech

 

BTDT....
Ever pull a 2" shard of hardened axle bearing outer race stuck 2&1/2" straight into your leg?
Without anesthesia? With a pair of needle nosed pliers?
BTDT.....

 

Carry a 2 inch long paper clip if you run points-type distributor. The 2 inch ones are exactly.035" in diameter. Sound familiar? It's the plug and points gap for a points type sbc dist. Can throw it in the glove box or clip it to a sun visor.

Go to your local walmart. Talk to the guy that stocks the toilet paper. On the skids of 36 and 48 roll packages of toilet paper, they put 4 X 4 ft sheets of cardboard between the layers. This cardboard is just like the cardboard on the back of lined writing tablets. Works FANTASTIC for making patterns for sheetmetal, brackets, anything you can think of. Holds its shape, and you can cut/shape it with scissors. Can tape it together to make 8 ft long sections or tape up mistakes too. You'll want to keep 5-6 sheets of this around. They just throw it away, so ask nice and its free!!!

I use chunks of carpet to lay on the ground to work under the car. Fuzzy side up if I'm working on big stuff. Fuzzy side down if I'm working with small stuff or a lot of small fasteners, cause they're easier to find on the backing. Set the trans on it and you can just drag the whole works out from under there. Throw it away when it gets too dirty.

 

1) When drilling a hole GO SLOW. I always see guys running the drill full blast, all that does is wear out the drill. Slow right down, when you get the speed and pressure right you will get 2 long curls of metal curling off the bit, provided it is sharp.

2) For adjusting old brakes with square adjusters, or removing pipe plugs with square ends. Use a socket wrench extension turned around backwards. It will hold tight and not slip or round off. Use a 12 point socket or box end wrench to turn the extension.

3) Take Vitamin C. If you work around cars you will always have a cut, burn or scrape on your hands. I noticed after I turned 30 these would get red and angry looking and take a long time to heal. So I started taking Vitamin C, in 3 weeks I was healing up as fast as in my teens. Take at least 500 Mg per day. Or get serious and buy the powder and take as much as you can without running for the bathroom.

If you don't want cancer take some Vitamin D too, 1000 IU per day. Do just these 2 things and you will live longer.

 

You can braze sheet metal bodywork and it will not fail if you do it right. You have to get all the flux off. The flux is what makes the filler lift.

I like to braze a few inches then rub the seam with a wet rag. This shrinks the metal, controls warpage and makes most of the flux pop off. When you get done sandblast or use a wire brush in a drill to clean the seam. Inspect carefully and if there are any gaps or holes braze them up, a pin hole will allow moisture to penetrate and lift the filler.

Did lots of bodywork with a gas torch and brazing rod in the old days and never had a problem. If you do not have a MIG brazing works fine.