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A Mechanics Tips and Tricks


Precise1
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I was given a very good suggestion by andreus009 about starting a category of "Tips and Tricks" that we know/use in mechanics, electrical, hydraulic, etc. I can see this becomming its own category, but to get it rolling lets just use posts for now. Please just submit on topic and keep commentary constructive, parallel or expansive. Details, photos, etc much appreciated. :aok:

 

I'll start with removing broken bolts/studs.

 

1) Soak the offender with penetrating oil; This never hurts ! Give it a sharp rap or two with a hammer for good luck (it can actually help).

2) If possible, grind, mill, file, etc the top flat. This makes starting MUCH easier.

3) Use a spot drill or center drill to start the hole you are about to drill in the CENTER of the broken bolt. Make sure you are on center and parallel to the bolt. THIS IS IMPORTANT !! Rig up a guide with a piece of wood and C clamps or something if it helps. (if the item is removable, this is much easier to do on a mill or drill press !) Make the spot hole is slightly larger than the drill size.

4) Selecting drills: this has many nuances so bear with me. Always use quality drills: they work better, last longer and are less prone to breaking. Use left hand (counter clockwise) drills when ever possible. Sometimes due to heat and vibration they will break the bolt loose and unscrew it mid process !! You can use standard right hand (clockwise) drills but they can actually torque the bolt in tighter sometimes. Cobalt drills are harder and may be required for high grade bolts, but dont flex as well as HSS (High Speed Steel) drills so are less forgiving and more likely to break. Standard 118 degree web drills work fine if you spot the hole although they take a little more force and drill hotter. 135 degree split points start and cut much better with little or no spot hole. I make my own 140 degree carbide ccw spade drills that work wonders. I won't explain as if you don't know what this is, you wont have access to them.

5) Drill size is important ! OK, you are trying to remove a 1/4-20 bolt. Minor thread diameter is .196-.207". I like to keep .02" clearance incase you drilling crooked or off center. This means a good drill size for a 1/4-20 bolt would be about .16". It's well worth doing a little homework before you dive in. If you are reading this, you can find the info on the web EASILY.

6) Drilling the hole. USE OIL ! Thicker the better. If you don't have actual 'cutting oil' use gear oil, motor oil, household oil in that order. WD-40 or silicone spray is better than dry, but not much. Hand held drill speed should be 250-700 RPM, the bigger the drill, the slower you go. Pressure should be firm, but 'feel' it. Often you can tell there is a problem before the drill breaks. Dont drill too deep ! If you dont know how deep you can go, play it safe ! You can always drill a little more later. There may be a an oil channel or water jacket nearby ! If you are drilling deeper than 3x the drill diameter, 'clear' the chips by taking the drill out and restarting. The chips can load up the flutes and sieze the drill which=broken drill if you are not used to it.

Ok, you have drilled the hole and the bolt did not break free or back out. You have 2 basic options now.

7) Bolt extractors. EZ-out (spiral ccw bolt extractors) is popular with some, but I dont like them. Too brittle and weak; I have broken a lot of them and I do this stuff for a living. I like the square style, much more durable and if you bell mouth the hole and it doesn't bite any longer, you still have options. You insert them into the hole, tap them in with moderate force then put a wrench on (recommend tap wrench) and unscrew. Hopefully this works. Use feel and sounds to tell whats going on; when in doubt, back off a bit. DO NOT SNAP IT OFF IN THE HOLE !! This means starting over with a x10 dificulty level. Makes for a bad day folks !

Ok, the bolt extractor wont get the bolt out, feels like it will break or bell mouthed the hole and wont grab any longer.

8) Redrilling: If the hole is well centered and you have the #'s for the bolt diameters and a good drill selection, pick a drill much closer to the thread minor diameter and redrill the hole. Repeat if necessary. I have literally drilled out the entire core of bolts and all thats left is just the thread its self. This comes out easy like a helicoil, or you just grab it with needle nose pliers and unwind it out of the hole.

 

Good luck, and just be patient. Odds are, you wont need to get to the last step. In case everything fails, my next write up will be tapping and thread chasing. Enough for today. :takebow:

 

mws, there was a specific request for your grease/piston blind hole bushing removal method writeup. Feel free to cut and paste or elaborate if you wish. ;)

 

B

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If you haven't got a breaker bar handy and need extra torque...

 

Use a combination wrench (box and open ended) and put the box end on the stubborn bolt. Then slide another combination wrench's box end on the open end of the wrench that's on the bolt. It's a bit hard to explain w/o pictures, but if you try it you'll see what I'm talking about. Be sure to keep the wrenches in line with each other and you'll find that you can apply gobs of force to turn the bolt.

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If you haven't got a breaker bar handy and need extra torque...

 

Use a combination wrench (box and open ended) and put the box end on the stubborn bolt. Then slide another combination wrench's box end on the open end of the wrench that's on the bolt. It's a bit hard to explain w/o pictures, but if you try it you'll see what I'm talking about. Be sure to keep the wrenches in line with each other and you'll find that you can apply gobs of force to turn the bolt.

I'll second that one... and along the same lines I'll add that the box end of a wrench can also be slid over the end of a ratchet handle to give the same effect as a longer ratchet handle.

In this case a bigger wrench is usually best, but space limitations can effect what you can use.

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Ok, 1 step farther with the wrench trick. When you can't get enough leverage on an allen wrench (especially when the short of the L is the 'handle') slip the closed end of a wrench over the allen. Insto-handle !! Lever away !! Try it a few times and the appropriate size of wrench and direction will become plainly evident. ;)

 

Only warning about Red's ratchet extension trick. Ratchets rely on a cog/pin (gear/toggle) heads to lock. These can fail !! I have done it a couple of times !! Keep it in mind and where you are pointed; this can result in SEVERE bloody knuckles/busted hand. Still, thanks Red !!

 

I can tell already this thread will need it's own category, but keep them coming; we'll sort it out later... :aok:

 

:beer:

 

B

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ABOVE ALL ELSE:

K.I.S.S.

(Keep It Simple, Stupid!)

Good place to start, Bernard? ;)

 

Simply put: keep it simple and don't start with the complicated fixes before trying the simple ones. Some idling or driveability problems are symptomatically alike but the base cause can be different. Like vaccuum line leaks or totally missing hoses versus ignition problems caused by a cracked distributor cap or arcing spark plug or wire.

 

Also: good lighting will provide miraculous solutions to impossible problems sometimes. Sometimes simply looking at something from a different angle can solve your problems in an instant.

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I keep a 4 foot steel pipe in my garage. Fits over all my wrenches except those over 1". LOTS of leverage. I have broken tools this way but hell... they're Craftsman. I love the looks I get when I take tools in for replacement.

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I keep a 4 foot steel pipe in my garage. Fits over all my wrenches except those over 1". LOTS of leverage. I have broken tools this way but hell... they're Craftsman. I love the looks I get when I take tools in for replacement.

lol do they ask you if its commercial use? the last few times ive taken them in i get asked that.

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i saw a huge argument in sears over a torque wrench that some1 broke and they said it wasnt under their lifetime warranty b/c if they are used wrong they break and the guy was a lil PO'd and told them he was never buying craftsman again...so i guess dont break torque wrenches...

 

u can also heat bolts with a torch and quench them (pour cold water over them) and that will usually break them free due to the quick expansion and shrinking of the bolt usually breaking the bolt free...

 

u can also make ure rachet...wrench or nething work like an impact wrench...if u place it on the bolt and hit it with a hammer it'll break bolts free...i wish i had a pic of my socket wrench to show the handle...its a cheapo but it hasnt broken with a 6- hommade breaker bar and lots of action from the BFH

 

if u r on the trail and dont havea torque wrench handy but need approx foot lbs...have a 12 in bar put it over ure wrench and by using ure body weight u can get approx torques...ie if u weigh 200 lbs and need 100 ft lbs put half of ure weight onto the end of the bar...

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if u r on the trail and dont havea torque wrench handy but need approx foot lbs...have a 12 in bar put it over ure wrench and by using ure body weight u can get approx torques...ie if u weigh 200 lbs and need 100 ft lbs put half of ure weight onto the end of the bar...

good advice there.. my ratchets are 1ft long and that's what i do for everything.. the only place i am gonna use a torque wrench is on engines.. i used to do my lug nuts that way too, the torque wrench is way longer then a regular ratchet..

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saw a huge argument in sears over a torque wrench that some1 broke and they said it wasnt under their lifetime warranty b/c if they are used wrong they break

 

Yes, Craftsman Torque wrenches are warrantied for 3 months I believe. Thats because a lot of people use them as breaker bars which will destroy them in no time. I have been using the same torque wrench for 8 years (properly) and it still works great. IMHO anyone who does a fair amount of wrenching should have a decent 2', 1/2" drive breaker bar. A pipe and ratchet can work, but for the easy of use and safety factor, I'll take the breaker bar. It's not like they are expensive and its a drag to be 1/2 way done with a job with a broken ratchet, bloody knuckles and still have to finish the job... Been there before... :furious:

 

B

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if doing a clutch change in an apmt complex parking lot...to drop the tranny by opening both front doors....have 2 buddies (or 1 buddy and have the other end tied around a fairly strong tree or something heavy enough to not move) hold a tow strap thru the doors and run it around the tranny going down around the removed shifter/boot) and have some1 under the truck slowly kick,pull do whatever to get it off of the studs and slowly lower it on a floor jack if available...this was very effective

 

i belive it was a 92 pathy and i saw the torsion bars layin on the ground so i thought he was doing a lift and he said he was doin the clutch so i asked if i could help/watch cuze i have the 87 and wanted to see how to do a clutch since i havent ever done 1 and it was a good experience he was very thankful cuze it was his sons truck and he drove 4 hrs to fix it for him and his son wasnt the best mechanically inclined fellow nor did he like being dirty...but after some pizza and getting the 1st hand experience im ready to do mine when she finally wears out

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When it comes time for the pesky timing belt replacement and you have to take the pulley off the end of the crank shaft, its possible to use a breaker bar and cheater pipe wedged between the ground and the frame (unibody). Then just bump the starter a couple of times and its loose. Be cautious though, as I would think this could be a little dangerous. Worked well for me. :D

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When it comes time for the pesky timing belt replacement and you have to take the pulley off the end of the crank shaft, its possible to use a breaker bar and cheater pipe wedged between the ground and the frame (unibody). Then just bump the starter a couple of times and its loose. Be cautious though, as I would think this could be a little dangerous. Worked well for me. :D

disconnect the coil wire first. No chance of it starting on you.

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  • 1 month later...
Guest dberdusco

advice from a tranny man

 

 

when removing an auto tranny on a 4x4, you really don have to remove the torsion bars

there is a trick us tranny guys do. unbolt the four bolts on the crossmember the torsion bars slide into. then take a scissor jack. and put it in between the transfer case and the crossmember. then expand the jack and the the torsion bars will be pushed down. put some 2x4 s in the gap between frame and crossmember. close the scissor jack and move location to spread the jack again to get more clearance between frame and crossmember. once you spread it for the second time insert a 4x4 block of wood on each side to get the most clearance between frame and crossmember. once that is done u can unbolt transfer case from tranny and slide it back onto crossmember and slide it out.

 

when installing an external cooler, bypass the cooler in the radiator. it is usually plugged and cannot be repaired or flushed.

 

the starter is kinda difficult to remove, then there is a plate between between engine and tranny that has to be removed to get to the converter bolts.

 

if u have ADD like me you probably wont get this far so ill stop now and send a new one later

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I'd quadruple anything said about a 1/2" breaker and socket set. If you're not a mechanic and don't need the spendy good tools like Craftsmen, SnapOn, etc., buy a full 1/2" drive metric socket set and a breaker bar from somewhere like Harbor Freight. I picked up a decent enough set for $20 including an 18" breaker bar, and I had already bought another 24" breaker from them. Its been paid back in spades because of the saved busted knuckes and such.

 

Cheap #2: Go to Home Depot for a cheap cheater bar. I've got a 1" threaded steel pipe as a cheater that I got for like $5. That sucker will put enough leverage to crank anything loose (or break it while trying).

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  • 1 month later...
Guest peeny420

I was changing the timing belt on my 94 pathy for the first time and was really concerned with screwing up the timing so I wired the cam sprockets together using the holes that are in them.

After putting the number 1 piston to TDC and lining up the timing marks I wired from the top of the left to the bottom of the right and vice versa.

I then wrapped wire around the spot where both wires crossed until I felt they were tight enough to prevent movement. When I loosened of the belt tensioner not a thing moved. This is assuming that you are not replacing your sprockets.

I did a couple of years as a aircraft mechanic and alot of the bolts and such are wired together to prevent any loosening.

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  • 1 year later...
Guest SuperSon

The best trick to learn is PATIENCE. No matter how good of a mechanic you are or owns the best tools out there it isnt going to help you any if you dont have the patience.

 

Learned this virtue long time ago :D

 

Everytime I work on something and cant figure it out right away I would take a break and gather my thoughts and figure out a strategy on whats the best approach to take instead of getting all PO'd and start throwing my tools. :P

I also learned not to get drunk with a buddy while trying to figure things out cause it leads to a bigger problem . You guys know what Im talking about,Youd take a breather and have a couple while you sort things out and next thing you know you had one too many . Always remember that beer and snap on tools dont mix.

 

Always take your time :aok:

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if you have trouble getting a tight oil filter off, put a strip of electrical or duct tape on the side of it and hammer a screwdriver through tape on the side of filter can and use the screwdriver handle to twist off the filter. You put the tape on the filter to limit the oil from gushing out the hole you put in the side. It's sometimes messy, but it works like a charm :aok:

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  • 2 weeks later...

I was at work (3rd day) and the guy that was helping me was putting thread tape on some bolts to get them ready for me and I asked him "You have to put the tape on the same way that you put the nut on, right?"

He replied with "Holy #$^@, how'd you know that? Most people don't think of that..." :shrug:

 

So, if you're going to put thread tape on a bolt, put it on the same way you would screw the nut on, or else the nut will unravel it and it wont work properly :aok:

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Ok, here is one I learned when I first started wrenching. When doing a timing belt on any VG engine, before you pull the old belt off, set the cams up with the dimples on the gears to the dimples on the rear timing cover(AKA top dead center). Before or after removing the belt, mark over the dimples on the gears with some white touch-up paint, or colored marker(lighter the better). Now before you put the new belt on, if you use a nissan belt, there are 3 lines on the flat side of the belt. Take that same paint and mark on the side of the belt at those lines. After it dries, make sure the belt is pointed the right way with the arrows pointed to you. The marks on the belt will line up the marks on the cam. No counting belt teeth!

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  • 10 months later...

Took me a while to find this again.

When I did my oil relo kit I needed to get the nuts into a small space. So I used insulation tape to hold it in the spanner.

Nut1.jpg

Nut2.jpg

Worked great :aok:

 

BTW I :wub: telescopic magnets

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