Good Garage/shop tips

[LadyDraco]

I'll start..



"Totally awesome " cleaner..
It's cheap a buck a bottle.. At the dollar stores and 3 bucks for a 1/2 gal ..
Get the yellow stuff , it's the best ..
You spay it on an alum. engine and all the grim drips off !
And if you use an old tooth brush WOW !
It also works great on the alum wheels...

Also is an awesome oven cleaner !

[Delicate Snowflake]

If you have sore joints / arthritis, spray WD-40 on and rub it in.

This is not a joke - it really works. Someone mentioned it on talkback radio one day, and they were flooded with calls from people with stories of using it.

[Delicate Snowflake]

When I stumble across some little doodad or supply and I think 'wow' I always go and buy a spare or two.

I've learned the hard way... you need it, go back to get it, and they no longer make it

Of course with higher-dollar items this might not be realistic, but for the little stuff just do it + make it a habit

[drlewall]

If you have sore joints / arthritis, spray WD-40 on and rub it in.

This is not a joke - it really works. Someone mentioned it on talkback radio one day, and they were flooded with calls from people with stories of using it.

a poor mans DMSO...works for me all the time!

[LadyDraco]

DMSO good stuff ...

[Seventy Won]

Drive new fork seals in with electrical tape.

Just wrap the tube about 6-7 times and slide the tubes together 'til it's seated.

[Delicate Snowflake]

Pay someone else to do it, while you enjoy a cheeseburger and a cold beer

[drlewall]

Pay someone else to do it, while you enjoy a cheeseburger and a cold beer

after I pay someone else, I can't afford the cheesburger....

[campfire]

Shop tips.

Cardboard.
Always keep some around for making templates, protecting radiators when doing that water pump replacement on the truck with a wrench in your hands, and keeping the floor clean.
I hate that oil residue all over the garage floor. It makes my wife yell at me when I track it all thru the house.



(felt like reviving this thread)

NEXT?

[diogenes009]

Speaking of cardboard:

A twice, or three time, folded refrigerator box makes a comfy (and surprisingly durable) ground pad for getting under vehicles. If you need more space than the creeper allows and don't want to roll around directly on the blacktop, or cement, it is worth having a large piece of cardboard stuck behind something in the garage when you aren't using it.

A piece of cardboard makes a good "organizer" for bolts or screws you need to keep in order. Just poke holes in the cardboard in the pattern of what you took them from and put them in the corresponding hole so you know which is which when you reassemble. Make notes and label the cardboard as needed.

Need to drive a car up onto a floor that is 6 or 8 inches higher than the ground outside? You can fold cardboard several times into an oblong roll that is, say, 10 inches and 5 inches around. Lay one against the edge of the floor where each tire has to climb and it works as a ramp. The cardboard actually holds the weight well. I used the same pair of rolls for many years putting a car away for the winter.

[campfire]

Buy more sockets.

Everybody needs more sockets.



That's about half of them, I was cleaning out & organizing.

[diogenes009]

Looking good!

And organizers for those sockets! There is nothing like fishing around in a drawer full of loose sockets looking for a socket by sight. I like the Hansen style, myself.

[anotherguy]

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Use torque specs. Always.

[Delicate Snowflake]

Use torque specs. Always.

Yup!

I am kindof amazed though at how many mechanical types do decades of work and never even own one, though.

[anotherguy]

That's $3400 US replacement value sitting there. The big one is pushing a grand by itself. I have relaxed a little as I got older. Don't torque spark plugs (excluding tapered seat) anymore. :D

[diogenes009]

I have had several baseball caps that i have worn until they needed an oil change. I liked them and I still wanted to get more wear out of them, but no method of cleaning I have found has worked. Most use the washing machine (some the dishwasher) and either leave the hat as dirty as it started or destroyed the brim, the band or both.

So, I got an idea: Make hat broth.

I put a large pot of water on to boil. Once it was at a full rolling boil I dipped the hat in, swished it and then pulled it out. I quickly rinsed the hat in cold water. Then I repeated the process for the brim and band. The oils and dirt lifted right out of the material and, since the hat hadn't been in the water long enough to soak into the brim or soften plastics, the brim is still firm and in shape. What we're doing is scalding the hat. Not even parboiling: This is a quick dip.

The hat is not like new, but it looks much better and isn't a greasy mess anymore.

I also ended up with a gallon of hat broth if anyone needs some. If only I was a young woman with an internet following...

[Trumpet]

Some clean and organized is good. Yard sale carpets make great garage additions. Easier on the knees, and 10mm sockets and stray fasteners don't bounce so far away...

Resized_20200928_140726.jpeg

[Camp Director]

With my luck, things would still end up in the hardest to reach place. But I like the carpet idea.

[LadyDraco]

Old dryer sheets for cleaning bugs off anything !

[campfire]

Neighbor with the 2011 1200 GS that has 212,000 miles on it walks over with a relay in his hand. Starts asking questions, and then asks if I can "check the relay to make sure it's bad". As I was in the middle of something, he left it with me to check later. It's good. But I returned it along with another new identical one I had in my stock.
Then he returns with another relay for me to check.
"But the guy on the phone says this could be the problem, and sometimes they go out."

So then I start the entire electrical class for him by drawing a schematic. I explain "source, load, ground" to him as I'm resisting the temptation to say "Oh, just bring it over here." I've told him multiple times that I'll only charge him "half of what the BMW dealer charges you". But he's funny about it will not pay me to work on his bike, thinking because we ride together and he's my neighbor, I should be a good neighbor and help him for free.



Since I won't fix it for him, he's taking it to his favorite dealer 3-1/2 hours away.
Yet when I asked him if he had the schematic for the driving lights he's trying to fix, explaining that would give "us" the road map to properly diagnose the problem, all he said was.... "Yeah, somewhere... I think... probably in the shed, I don't know."

It was at this point I developed the "Sorry my crystal ball is broken today" chip on my shoulder.

So, now the shop tip from a former/retired mechanic - -
If you ask someone for help with a mechanical problem, offer something. Anything. A $5 card to the local coffee shop, a bag of Hostess donuts from the grocery store, a homemade chocolate chip cookie, a beer (or a six pack if the job was worth it) just something to show that you appreciate their knowledge and ability.


Now for my crass, arrogant, asshole mechanic, self absorbed, sarcastic comment.

I might have an idea what I'm talking about.





And this one is my GS, so I have fixed a BMW before.




Thank you Banned Camp for letting me vent.