I'm finally starting to work on Bella.

[mcbassin]

Originally Posted by Pick

It is a cool job most days! (now)

Up until a little over a year ago, my job for the past 10 years had been primarily fixing broken stuff or mechanic's mistakes: removing broken bolts, broken taps, stuck parts, broken/stripped borescope plugs, heli-coils, etc. but I got tired of standing on my head or hanging off of a ladder trying to cut a stuck inconel bolt out of a $250,000.00 engine case with a pencil grinder and a dental burr.....without dropping anything inside the engine that would require a tear-down and without touching anything except the offending bolt......while someone else told me that they NEEDED the engine done yesterday and that I should hurry every chance I got. (seriously!) That got to be no fun anymore.

Some days I miss just cranking handles.....

Dang! if I had a dime for every broken screw, tap, helicoil I've removed I have enough money finish my project plus some. I have been using the Tig weld a washer method for as long as I have been in a machine shop....1989...long time anyway.
I can relate to the "need it tomorrow" statement too. Sounds like some interesting work.

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Wow! I did aerospace stuff but nothin' like that! Old School Trick: Get the bolts good and hot, the take just a plain ol' kids birthday candle and jam it into the threads and watch it wick it up like solder. Then take 'em apart. The liquid wax penetrates, then lubricates. Works like a bandit. I liked the Front end work description, my favorite suspension work tool is a 12# sledge head on a standard hammer handle. Is it sad when you ask for the BFH, your kids know exactly which one to grab?

I appreciate the tip about the wax, I have never used it but I will in the future.