Why do you think I recently stocked-up on paper grocery bags?!?!?! :eek:

Plastic is too kinky?

He is a gentleman. He gave her the choice.

What is this, the WRX forum?

As I am definitely not clever enough to compete with the posts from Bob, Ronnie, and RSBob, I'll just post my little tips and slink off into the night.

1. When I am diagnosing a problem, I always check to see what was recently worked on or could have been disturbed by a recent service. It's amazing how often that can lead you to the problem.
2. I discovered a flip-down magnifier recently and what a difference that makes to an old guy like me. I can read the imprints on the sides of drill bits, and really examine sealing surfaces, worn parts, etc. I recently wired my office and could have never used the Cat-5 crimper without the magnifier.
3. Earlier this year I went crazy at Home Depot and bought all sorts of new fluorescent light fixtures for my garage. It is truly bright in there and my bench is flooded in light. I am much less tired after a few hours of work, particularly when I'm working late in the evening.
4. When using a torque wrench, spotlessly clean threads with no burrs are important. The threads should be either lubed or dry, depending on what the specifications call for. Tightening with a smooth and steady motion gives the most accurate, repeatable results.

Went to the "Freight" today. Was going to buy a cheap one for a trial run after reading this tip. It was way too cheesy. It also had a flip down monocle to super amplify.

Where did you get yours?

Comparable to this one? Test, Measurement & Inspection | Optics & Visual Inspection | Carson Optical Mv-23 Magnivisor™ Magnifier | B496012 - GlobalIndustrial.com

If you're going to do actual electrical work, suck it up and spend the money on some good electrical tools.
I rarely want to drop coin on tools when they are 3 or 4 times the price, but once I switched to a high end ratcheting crimper with changeable jaws, and an automatic wire stripper my life was changed. Throw that yellow handled cutter/stripper/crimper POS away.

Get a katapult type stripper: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0035KF232
And a ratcheting crimper with a few sets of heads: http://www.amazon.com/Tool-Aid-18920-Ratcheting-Terminal/dp/B0002STTTI
And a heat gun: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003N3G4WY

Buy bulk heat shrink in a few sizes, and bulk connectors (female and male, no insulation).

For the $150ish investment, you'll be making factory level wiring fixes that will NOT be gremlins later on...

Edit: I picked that heat gun because it's small, so you can shove it into places (like behind the dash...) where you can't get bigger guns. It's PLENTY hot enough for even the heaviest shrink wrap.

camber gauge
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1433356345.jpg

ground up 24mm wrench for spring plate height adjusting bolt
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1433356500.jpg

Use a mirror when doing a two-man brake bleed, so that the guy pumping the pedal can stay abreast of the fluid level. Align the mirror using a laser pointer, eg. an infrared thermometer. A flashlight helps to make the fluid level easier to see in the reservoir.

It's easier to demonstrate this on a non-911; hopefully, this image needs no rotation.

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/06...62f3cc0d3e.jpg

Bob, do you need one of those to help with personal grooming, and other errr, ummm, "personal" activities?!?!?!


No such thing as "too" when it comes to kink!

Sometimes it takes 3 hands to install a plate, washer, etc...
I use a dab of grease on the item and "stick" it where it needs to go. The grease will hold long enough for me to install the nut(s) and tighten in place using both hands when required.

Hi Stormin... This drove me nutz too... Here's what I came up with: http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/816525-easy-left-side-hood-shock-install.html#post8119649

Rob

Regarding that mirror to watch the brake fluid level....
An alternative is to use the bottle that comes in this HF kit

The vacuum part is garbage and doesn't work,
but I ended up using that upside down fill bottle.
It auto fills the reservoir as it empties. Works great.

ALWAYS suspect the battery first on slow start, no start etc..

Get a good volt meter.

Get a good CCA tester I have this one and love it!
Worth every penny.....
Digital Automotive Battery Analyzer

No, Bob, the one I bought wasn't that nice but it does help a lot though. Bought it from a local indy new and used tool shop.

I was removing one of my trunk lid struts
I put a towel underneath to catch any nuts or washers that inevitably drop out of your hand

http://i59.tinypic.com/dmuyzd.jpg

I have one, opposite of what was posted earlier in this thread, use caution when using others advice from the Internet.

I can't tell you how many times I read something on the Internet by those far less mechanically inclined or experienced than I, that simply led me down a rabbit hole - going against what I'd learned from the past.

Why? The Internet creates a lemming situation. One person does something, others follow, then the practice becomes accepted and the "expert" method.

I've seen it here on the board many times too, not just other forums.

Caveat emptor!!!!

Best valve adjustment tool for cheap goofs like me.. Buy a feeler gauge set like this; make sure you buy one that has the most gauges possible as the remaining gauges not used will become the handle. Snip about a half an inch off the end of the gauge you will be using, place the remaining gauges back in handle, tighten down. Place a band aid on index finger; this will help as the edge of feeler is kind of sharp. Grab the gauge in your hand (the part with all the gauges locked in place.), this becomes the handle, point your index finger, place it on edge of bent, snipped off remaining gauge and push it through using index finger. Learned this from old VW mechanic, works amazingly well, and don’t knock it until you try it.http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1437585509.jpg
P.S. I tried the POS tool with the handle and the little itty bitty gauge on the end, snapped that thing in 10 minutes.

1) I keep a 6" piece of brake booster vacuum hose in my tool kit. This comes in handy for removing/installing the plugs as it grips the tip perfectly and helps to align the plug for screwing in. I can remember the days when a plug would fall out of the socket wrench and I would spend 5-10 min trying to fish the plug out - Never Again :)

2) 50/50 Mix of Acetone and Automatic Tran Fluid makes a great penetrating oil. Works much better than PB blaster and others that I have tried (not sure about Kroil but I can never find that at the store).

3) Gibbs Oil - Best stuff for restoring aluminum and magnesium. Spray it on and in a day, all the oxidation will be gone.

4) Obenauf Leather Oil - Great Stuff!

5) Separate toolboxes - metric vs. standard uggh!

I have a bad neck. I found the best thing for neck support while working on my car was a bag of kitty litter. My creeper often leaves little room to work so lying on the garage floor with my neck supported with the kitty litter bag worked great (just in case you ever have to replace the slave cylinder on the G50). Bag cleans off easy too.

Funny you should mention kitty litter. I was in a situation where neck support was needed and I used the first thing next to me in the garage: a 40lbs bag of dog food!
Worked like a charm and could somewhat easily be reshaped to fit. :D

A handy tool for for adjusting/checking valve lash using the backside method is a Popsicle stick with the the go gauge on one side and the no/go gauge on the other, the stick keeps the gauge stiff and allows for an easy reach.

To make it even better attach a small led light to the stick with a finger momentary on press button.

Guitar strings are strong and have specific diameters. The smaller gauge strings work well to poke into carburetor jets etc to check for, or clear blockage.

Probably one of the best pieces of advise so far... Also I loved Reddog's tip about not buying a lift..:rolleyes:
One of my tips: If you plan on doing your own A/C work, buy a vacuum pump that will "suck the chrome off a trailer hitch" and buy a set of Digital Gauges...

These came in very handy today. Made the whole job more pleasant.
Mostly the jacking step, where you're kneeling to check and adjust jack stands.

http://i62.tinypic.com/nmn38x.jpg

the rope trick
 

Despite the previous disclaimers, this one requires another. If you lose a limb attempting this, remember this warning: This technique is demonstrated for entertainment purposes only!

Seriously, do not do this thing unless there is no one around to watch you. You really don't want laughter to be the last thing you hear. :D

This particular demonstration is somewhat contrived -- I had to wait until a scenario presented itself -- but consider the following problem involving a steering rack outside the car and with no vise in sight.

We want to remove the tie rod "heads" from the ends of the rack:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1438715185.jpg

...but our one-armed mechanic doesn't have enough leverage to squeeze the two wrenches together:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1438715341.jpg

(sidenote -- crescent wrenches are the province of hillbilly mechanics; we are located in Pennsyltucky, after all)

So we take a rope (I like to use a tow strap, but to make this easier to see, we demonstrate with some 99 cent camo rope that likely came from HF) and create a loop around the wrenches, secured by some design features of those tools:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1438715714.jpg

Next we stick a long object into the loop in order to twist it about and shrink the loop. This is not a good place to put your finger, unless your finger is made of hardened tool steel.

Don't do it exactly as it's being done here; you want the twist to be between the wrenches, not behind one or the other. Keep twisting the hardened steel finger until the loop shrinks enough to squeeze the wrenches and break the nut loose.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1438715968.jpg

I'm embarrassed to admit how many times I've used this technique; usually when loosening, say, an oil line between oil tubes, or something where if it suddenly gives way, I could end up damaging a part. But this is almost never the right way, which you'll figure out once you try it. ;)

And that said, this is kinda like a form of inception. Now that you know about the method, you will find occasion to use it when you shouldn't. Save yourselves! Resist the temptation! :)

Porsche have lots of hardware foof. By this I mean you don't just have a nut and bolt but sometimes bolt, nut, washer, lock washer, Schorr washer, anti-vibration washer and on an on.

Sometimes you have to put all this on studs in limited access areas. Put everything on a screwdriver and touching the tip to stud let everything slide down the shaft. Start nut with fingers and remove driver. Works good on deep steering wheels and buried intake pipe studs, etc.

^^^

Jeff, are you trying to give me a run for my money in the innuendo/double entendre department?!?!

Looks like you've thrown down the gauntlet right thar - well done!!! :D

Ronnie, are you a replicant?

Tell me about your mother...

Jeff, for all questions about my mother, I must refer you to Bob K, as he has on several occasions claimed to have specific, and troubling, knowledge in that area.

Use a pencil soldering iron to make holes for screws and bolts when installing a carpet kit or other interior panels. It melts right through the carpet sealing it as it goes. Works really well for trim screws through seat belt bolts.

Icepick works for that. Or a sharp awl. I have a bunch of pics from a similar thread that I posted on years ago.

Love the pencil iron tip.

Nothing irks me like fabric threads wrapping around the screw you're trying to drive home.

Hmmmm, a fan of laser grooming, eh?!?!

Not sure if this was mentioned yet or not but i use this often when a bolt is a little difficult.
http://etischer.com/dropfolder/doublewrenchtrick.jpg

I see you have it configured in tighten mode. I have several lengths and diameters of pipes that fit over ratchet handles and wrenches to get extra leverage. I made most of my special porsche tools out of strapping (rod end and chain positioners, flywheel immobilizer) and various pipe fittings from HD (seal drivers, bearing press tools).

Also very useful for making new RS door pulls. If you don't want to ruin gunk up the tip of the soldering iron, heating up an old screwdriver with a torch will do it as well.

The removable tube handle of a hydraulic floor jack will slide over a lot of wrench-like tools providing you a big-ass breaker bar.

Also buy a lift, dollar for dollar the best money I've ever spent.

Not a mechanical trick but a spiffy trick. Wheel painting and you hate to mask?
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1438978049.jpg

+1 It is a game changer even if you are a noob car fixer with the intent of expanding your skill set.

Also, you add a parking space.