bigron - yes, pitch is what i meant. someone said above that WD-40 doesn't have silicone in it. my mistake. i thought it did. looks like i forgot to look for some tech tips last night. if my oldtimer's disease isn't active tonight maybe i'll remember to look around.
[ QUOTE ] You'd be amazed what kinds of neat shit you can find in a dumpster or on the curb... [/ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ] - Magnetize screwdrivers... It helps when you're removing screws from hard-to-reach places... It also helps to hold the screw on when you're trying to get it back into it's hole... [/ QUOTE ] If you already have a set non magnatized screwdrivers, you can rub the screwdriver on a speaker magnet to magnitize it. It will stay magnitized until you drop it
a "bad" fact about WD40, my neighbor decided to stop the squeak in his wife's dryer, and when it got nice and hot it caught fire.just a reminder thats its quite flammable. On the other hand if you have a wasp nest and a lighter, makes a great blowtorch
The Propelant in wd40 is propane.I've seen it blow up HEI dist.caps when used to dry 'em at the car wash.
Can't you do the same by taking the screwdriver and touching it to the 2 posts on a solenoid? On some models you might have to do 2 at a time, and you'll usually get a nice divit in the side of your new midified tools, if it doesn't tack them together. Please corect me if I'm wrong.....
The speaker magnet works great to hold a ready supply of cotter pins on the lift if you pull a lot of front rotors. They never spill.
Couple of more uses for ratcheting Nylon straps: Installing Bias ply tires on rims. If you can't get the beads to expand to the rims, wrap a strap around the center of the tread and tighten it until you crush the tire. This will expand the bead. Lifting a tranny up to the engine while laying on your Ghreeper© in the snow underneath the car. Run the strap around the trans and the frame rails on either side. Start tightening and the trans will lift up to the floor pan.
[ QUOTE ] On the other hand if you have a wasp nest and a lighter, makes a great blowtorch [/ QUOTE ] Turns them into big fire flys. Another way for killing those mini dragons, headliner or upholstery spray adhesive (like 3M 90). I spray it on a nest everytime, I feel like spiderman. Stops them right then and there, from a good 3-4 feet away. A little messy, but WTF.
I gots a couple of wasp's nests in my backyard. There's a couple piles of bricks they call home, and I wanna destroy those little buggers. Unfortunately, my father put the nix on the fire idea, and orkin does the bare minimum. DAMMIT! -Crew
This has gotten a little off topic, so I'll contribute my wasp killer: nothing exotic, just a good can of cheap Wasp and Hornet killer. Work'd from like 8 feet away, and I don't know what that shit is, but it just had to get CLOSE to the nest to kill the bastards. (I took the SUNOCO letters off a building last week, and got stung 7 times before someone gave me a can. Every letter had big nests behind it. Moving slow didn't distrub the first two, but when I dropped the second "O" they went fucking nuts) Not as fun as a torch, but damned effective. Here, we'll make this tech-week friendly: Keep a can of wasp and hornet killer in your tool box for junkyarding trips. Keep a can of OFF in there, too, for skeeters and ticks. (I always had the Off, never thought to put the wasp killer in) Now for real fireball fun, let's talk brake cleaner and Florida's 2-inch long flying cockroaches! -Brad
next time you have the misfortune to go to the dentist swipe (or ask nicely) one of the teeth picks/scrapers, they are great for getting broken keys out of locks, adjusting and cleaning washer jets and heaps of other stuff- wouldn't be without one in my tool box - one of the guy's i worked with, his missus worked for a dentist so we got heaps for free)- if nothiung else you can always clean your teeth i've always had problems with stiff door locks and ignition - mostly cos when i go surfing i hang the key round my neck - salt and metal don't mix - anyways rather than trying to squirt wd40 in the barrels of the lock i squirt it on the key - saves ending up with little puddles on the carpet or overspray on the paint - dunno what you'd do with your keys if you've got shaved locks
OK, I'll throw in a REALLY basic one here... When you start to disassemble a car (or any portion thereof...) Ziploc bags and Sharpie markers are your best friend. Put each set of nuts/bolts/washers into a Ziploc, and label it clearly enough that you'll be able to identify it later. For more involved systems, you may even want to use a Polaroid or digital camera to take pics of the disassembly, so you can reference them during reassembly.
my uncle was digging ditches with his backhoe to drain the back 40 and he'd keep a tiger torch on board and when he'd open up a wasp nest in the ground he'd bail off and fire that thing up and fry the lot of them, when I was there helping I'd drag it around and keep it lit and do the dirty deed, felt like I was trying to defend myself from hundreds of kamikaze pilots overy 10 minutes, an not one stinger got thru my wall of flame
1)put a 6" piece of garden hose on a spark plug to make it easier to install in tight places. 2)buy junk brand name tools at yard sales and trade them in for new ones. 3)use rustoleum brand gloss black paint and a good soft bristle brush to paint bike frames or undercarriage pieces. it lays down a good thick layer of paint and the brush marks disappear when it dries. 4)put some dish soapy water in a spray bottle or pressure sprayer for an "organic" wasp killer. it knocks them down and kills them on contact. 5)use a muffin tin to keep small parts and screws organised and seperated when rebuilding carbs, switches etc.
Having a hard time pin pointing that noise? Use a 16"-24" piece of garden hose, put one end to your ear and move the other end around. Poor man's stethoscope. You can also kill wasps with it.
The only way I have ever managed to get the smell of gas off my hands was listerine(the yellow stuff). Use it just like you're using soap, it works.
I had a few tips yesterday to add but when I checked it out today they were alredy on here. Oh well. for stuck on hoses I use a cotter pin extractor. It has more of a curve than a traditional hose removal tool and gets smaller hose off better. I use that damn tool probably more than any other tool in my box at work for stuff like removing clips and electrical connectors, prying stuff apart pulling up stuck gaskets (be careful not to gouge the surface though) and anything else you can think of. I have one in all my tool boxs. They are about 5 bucks for a craftsman version. Using dumdum on the end of your screw driver will hold on screws where a magnet cant. Again dumdum has about a million uses so be creative. for a quick plug to plug off fuel lines and such use a short length of hose and hose clamp a bolt in one end and clamp the other end to what ever needs to be plugged. I use white grease on the ring of Oil filters before I install them it seems to do a better job of keeping the filters from getting stuck than oil does. When your using the box end of a combo wrench and you need more leverage take another wrench of similar size and slip the box end over the open end of your wrench to be used so that it locks into place and it will give you a lot more leverage.( I will try to take a picture of it later kinda hard to explain) Ok thats all for now gotta eat dinner. SLAMIT
I keep a super soaker water gun filled with water and about a spoonful of liquid dish washing soap. Pump it about 10 times can wipe out wasp nests in my old car parts stored in the rafters of my tractor shed. Cheap, too. Very effective. Can get 'em about 20 ft away. WD 40 also works good as starting fluid. Also good for hand cleaner, gets off grease, gasket sealer, paint etc.
here's one i found out that i use quite a bit.if you're on a linoleum floor,and you see a mess of ants (or some similar insects) i usually grab my can of scrubbing bubbles and shoot at em till there's a nice,sudsy pile where they once were..that kills em rather quickly,and as you're wiping them away with a paper towel,you're actually cleaning your floor,too Creepy
[ QUOTE ] The only way I have ever managed to get the smell of gas off my hands was listerine(the yellow stuff). Use it just like you're using soap, it works. [/ QUOTE ] Ill have to try that but the best stuff I keep at the station to keep gas off my hands is any kind of cleaner with orange citrus added to it. Best soap to remove anything else from hands, regular dawn dish soap. All the farmers come in and always say "that soap works great" and they are all suprised when I tell them its ordinary dish soap. Plastic storage containers are the absolute best alternative to throwing stuff in boxes. Everything is protected from the elements that may get in "Humidity, dirt, water" and protect from other things getting it, such as bugs and mice. They are pretty cheap now if you go and find them on sale at wally world and are reuseable. If you are a cheap mofo and like to get every last drop of oil out of your quarts of oil, I just cut open holes to set the quarts of oil into a 2.5 gallon jug and let them sit overnight. Also a good way to drain funnels. Shelving, ask around at gas stations and pop distributors and such, when I started working at the station im at now we had tons of old pop display shelves and such laying around in storage so I took them out and used them all over the shop. With as many as we had and as small of station we were Im guessing larger places are probably throwing away something like this all the time. Cheap crappy wrenches can still serve a purpose, when I got to this shop, all the tools were missing the original wrenches, so for grinders for example I took some of the cheap wrenches and ground them down to work. I also took one and welded it to a chain that I hooked to the tire machine, so when i need to take off bolt in valve stems I always have it there and dont have to go looking for one. Theres probably more, but im tired.
[ QUOTE ] OK, I'll throw in a REALLY basic one here... When you start to disassemble a car (or any portion thereof...) Ziploc bags and Sharpie markers are your best friend. Put each set of nuts/bolts/washers into a Ziploc, and label it clearly enough that you'll be able to identify it later. For more involved systems, you may even want to use a Polaroid or digital camera to take pics of the disassembly, so you can reference them during reassembly. [/ QUOTE ] Exactly what I do. But when the parts are not familure to me (like a telescoping/tilt steering col) I draw diagrams of how the pieces go back together, and place the drawings in the Ziplock bags along with the parts. Use photos too, but sometimes the drawings (exploded and the sequence) make it easier to remember how it goes back together. (especially after a year has gone by!) If there is more than one bag (of small parts) then I put them in ONE big Ziplock and tape or tyrap it to the main assembly. (ever spent three days looking for the parts bags!?)
When I used to open POR-15 cans, I used WalMart bags between the can and the lid. Now I never open the can at all. I put a self tapping screw in the lid and another in the side of the can. Pour out of one, the other lets air in. I always refrigerate the cans and have had metal to metal and POR-15 last for years.
ok, a couple of no-brainers for all of you... first off... plastic milk crates are the best thing around for storing medium sized parts in. they're availible at any grocery store for free if you go around the back of the store after they close. they stack real nicely, you can put screws through the bottom and into the wall to give your garage or storage area that cubby hole look. need more storage space? once you've filled them with junk and stacked them on top of one another, throw a piece of wood on top or between 2 stacks for a new workbench or shelving unit. they also work well as a stool, or step ladder. next.... use saran wrap (or any plastic wrap ) to cover open valleys, intakes, heads, etc. it clings to just about anything and will keep dirt, water, or even wasps out. another.. empty laundry detergent jugs work well for storing used oil. last one... for those of you with garage heating issues. an oscillating or box fan placed in the rafters blowing down GREATLY improves heating...heat rises, the fan blows it back down. just a few stupid tricks i've learned.
The correct way to magnetise a screwdriver is to wind some insulated wire tightly around the shaft in one direction and then touch the ends briefly to a battery Will then be extremly magnetic
here is a good one for getting lifters out of harley's.take a paper clip and bend it into a u and take the ends and slightly bend them out.squeeze the clip and insert into the oiling holes on the lifters,and pull them out.i have a half a box of paper clips in my toolbox just for this.here is a picture
Here's something I just did last night. (I had forgotten about it) Need to take small "nicks" and "burrs" off motor parts (rods and pistons); use the kind of emmory boards that are used for doing finger nails. (or toes) The boards are flexible and usually come with two different grits. They don't last long, but they are cheap. WARNING, the grit comes off easily, so make sure to clean the parts when your done.
To prevent the front tire from catching the lip of the fender and bending it, bend a length of 3/4 inch electrical conduit, that galvanized stuff, to fit inside the fender lip. Weld the conduit to the fender lip. Remove the galvanizing from the area where you will be welding it. The tire will still hit the fender but the conduit prevents the tire from catching the lip. I did this to my 50 Merc and would work on the cars with the rounded lip. Neal
Here are some cheap jack stands I make to hold up stuff to prevent me from becoming mushed. You put two 2x4s one way and put two the other way and nail them together and repeat until you have the desired height(I like 14"x16"by 9 courses high) If you dive in construction dumpsters you can usually scrounge enough to make them for free. They're cheap, easy, store nice, and are virtually indestructible.
The Jalopy Journal
