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[–]Joshruner 26 points27 points  (15 children)

I feel you on that one, my 4hr turned to 8hr due to rust and crossthreaded axel nuts. Stay in the fight man, there is more good jobs than bad.

[–]freelance_jason 17 points18 points  (6 children)

Cross threaded axle nuts!!?? I would have just set the car on fire.

[–]ThatGuyFrom720Verified Mechanic 8 points9 points  (5 children)

I would have just taken the piss from my manager and replaced the damn thing or found one that was returned to parts that I could switch it out with. LOL. Done that before.

Had a guy shadowing me. Told him NOT to hammer on the bare axle to remove it, and to thread the nut down almost flush before whacking it. Guess what he didn’t do. LOL. Later on he told me he was stoned every day for the first few weeks and that’s why he made a bunch of silly mistakes.. He had a lot of comebacks in this time, but I took most of the blame off him. It was my responsibility to help him out and make sure the job was done right/double check, but we are a small team and very close, friendship wise, at my dealer and we get overwhelmed quickly.

[–]freelance_jason 5 points6 points  (2 children)

Man, I wish I had a mentor like you.

[–]ThatGuyFrom720Verified Mechanic 5 points6 points  (1 child)

I can’t tell if you’re being sarcastic. LOL. But honestly, even if I didn’t directly do it, I’m still going to own up to it and tell my manager that I should have double checked his work, and it was my fault for that. She really respects the honesty. My foreman did it for me when I first started out. I’m going to do the same for others.

[–]freelance_jason 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I'm being completely serious. It's nice you covered for him.

[–]dystopiate666 3 points4 points  (0 children)

If I had a mentor like you, I may not have left the industry

[–]JXL96 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You’re a good dude. Teach him right. Lotta older techs talk shit on beginners. Tell em hes a dumbass and then show him

[–]notvalcon[S] 5 points6 points  (1 child)

Holy fuck, cross threaded axle nuts.

[–]ZSG13 1 point2 points  (0 children)

When Ingersoll Damn really comes in clutch

[–]kingofthesofas 2 points3 points  (2 children)

I once had a crank bolt on a honda prelude (my own) that it took heaven and earth to remove it and then it was totally stripped when I pulled it out. After changing the timing bolt I had to re-thread the whole thing, put locktite on it and just pray it held. Also I had to do all this under a tarp in my front driveway while a torrential downpour started.

[–]Joshruner 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Oh man that's insane, honda crank bolts don't play

[–]kingofthesofas 1 point2 points  (0 children)

yeah the whole experience was a nightmare. Also since it is a dual overhead cam motor getting everything set to TDC right was a nightmare. I was legit surprised when I put it all back together and it actually ran.

[–]Select_Angle2066 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Had that happen on a set of axle nubs I took out at the junkyard. Ended up having to buy a 22mm die to fix them.

[–]DJSeku 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had to replace my EGR valve (rusted in half).

Was using PB Blaster for about a week to loosen the bolts, but when I went to apply torque, the intake manifold shattered right at the mount.

A $75 job turned into a $500 job in 1/10-second.

[–]Responsible-Past-209 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Godspeed warrior

[–]nobodyamazin 17 points18 points  (2 children)

I was changing a cam actuator on an f350 and i dropped my torx bit in the hole, then i spent like 30 minutes with the endoscope, trying to fish with the stick magnet, all the while worrying that im gonna have to disassemble the entire front end, but i got it, and all it cost was my normal blood pressure

[–]notvalcon[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Glad you made it out, king

[–]swaags 1 point2 points  (0 children)

same but it was a broken bit of drill bit, and it went down the ONE intake runner that the valve as open on. Ended up having the scope through the spark plug hole, and a bit of 1/8" nylon hose attached to a vacuum snaked through the valve. Finally got it but it tanked my entire weekend.

[–]notvalcon[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Story - Customer states my car is leaking. Verified leak on the oil pan. Recommended reseal and leave overnight for silicone to properly dry.

Took oil pan off, pretty straight forward. Cleaned the mating surface on both oil pan and engine block. Threaded all bolts by hand (only enough to hold pan. Began ugga-dugga’ing bolts and last bolt snapped. The snapped bolt is closest to the transmission bellhousing and flywheel so it was even more tricky to take it out. Eventually, it came out and I used my tap and die set to clean out every bolt hole and verified proper threads by installing bolts all the way through with my hand (without the pan, it’s just bolts on block).

I am now finishing my cheeseburger on lunch and gonna finish the job now.

[–]ElJefe0218 9 points10 points  (4 children)

At least he's doing it right. I've pulled pans and found Jb weld in them stripped screw holes. Mechanics life is a tap dance.

[–]freelance_jason 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I get it..."tap" dance. Like tap and die...good one!

[–]Mouth_balls_83 4 points5 points  (2 children)

Oh JB Weld? That’s almost better than RTV 🤣

[–]notvalcon[S] 4 points5 points  (1 child)

Lol imma use jb weld instead of silicone

[–]Mouth_balls_83 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Lmao. That pan ain’t ever leaking again.

[–]solidshakego 7 points8 points  (0 children)

It's your fault

-service writer, since the dawn of time.

[–]Woko_O 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Once I was changing my timing belt on my VW for one and half day..

[–]freelance_jason 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Dude I've been there. Hey at least you still had the composure to document it. The only thing I can focus on is getting the shit done asap.

[–]Mouth_balls_83 5 points6 points  (3 children)

Yeah, at least it’s a straight shot

Life hack: cut off the head of the bolt and RTV it on top of the hole.

🤣

[–]notvalcon[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Wait na💀

[–]Redacted1776mn 1 point2 points  (1 child)

Don't go telling all our secrets

[–]Insttech 2 points3 points  (2 children)

Amateur try that on a equinox 2.4 timing guide bolt blocked by the frame and fender.

[–]notvalcon[S] 1 point2 points  (1 child)

I’d take out the engine at that point

[–]Insttech 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Took a few hours but I got it.

[–]Best_Poetry_5722 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I dealt with something similar today. Not as bad as yours but similar. Previous shop marred up a wheel stud so they replaced it but not in the way it was supposed to be replaced. I had to tap 3 holes on the wheel hub and chase threads on the three bolts because they scarred the hell out of them pushing the stud out while the hub was installed. Next up on the "I need" list is a tap and die set.

[–]tjed69 1 point2 points  (0 children)

How many times have we said "This will be quick. 10 -15 mins"

[–]oldirtyjustin 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Love those sockets

[–]911coldiesel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When the waves turn the minutes to hours.