Repair Tips, Short-Cuts - Page 3 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

riethoven · #1 07-11-2006, 04:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haasman

Source: http://homerepair.about.com

_______________________

Haasman

PB Blaster is the best bar none penetrating oil I have ever used. I used to change logging truck tires and they would come in with rusted on lug nuts and the PB Blaster broke them loose faster and easier than Liquid Wrench and always better than WD40

Kebowers · #2 01-21-2006, 01:09 PM

I use an 'impact wrench' tool to loosen bolts and screws in alloy and cast irom. This device is used in all motorcycle shops--you put the right socket or bit (3/8" drive) on the tool, mount on the fastner of interest, turn the tool in the direction you want to ture it, and whack it smartly with a hammer. This drives the tool firmly into/onto the fastner while also turning it a fraction of a turn. You can actually twist off the head of a large phillips screw before it will 'slip'

Kebowers · #3 01-21-2006, 01:10 PM

Buy and use Borg Warner SL-85 contact enhancer for all electrical connections and never again had a 'bad connection' issue

vstech · #4 03-31-2006, 09:28 PM

always remember if you don't know the correct tourque specs, just tighten it until the bolt shears, then loosen it 1/4 turn...

haasman · #5 04-07-2006, 11:07 PM

Many European cars use an expansion tank instead of an overflow bottle in the cooling system. This means the tank is pressurized, along with the rest of the system. It should not be opened while the system is hot and, most importantly, the proper pressure cap must be installed.

Why? Replacement American brand name caps may not be sufficient in pressure setting and/or fit to maintain proper system pressure. We have had many overheated customers who have replaced the water pump, the radiator, the thermostat and fan clutch and still had their cars overheating. They swore they had a new cap on the system but the system kept losing water and overheating. The problem? They used an American cap!

European cooling systems vary in pressure by year and manufacturer but many are 1.2 bar, 1.4 bar, 1.5 bar and now even 2.0 bar pressure. The 1.2 bar system is approximately 17 psi and the 2.0 bar is approximately 28 psi of pressure. A simple replacement American cap that fits might only hold 7-10 psi of pressure. This would allow the water to overheat and run out at less-than-normal summer operating temperatures.

If your car has an expansion tank, notable by having the pressure cap on it instead of on the radiator, you MUST replace the cap with the proper pressure-rated OE replacement. Too much or too little pressure can spell disaster at the worst possible moment - in the middle of nowhere on a hot summer day! Always use OE/OES (original equipment) pressure caps - those rated for the specifications on your car.

Haasman

Monomer · #6 04-09-2006, 09:10 PM

One that I applied today:

When replacing the voltage regulater, replace the screws also. Instead of the standered screwdriver screws, I used SHCS (socket head cap screws) of the same thread and length.

This allows you to use those ball-end allen wrenches, which are nice in the tight space provided.

Ron Johnstone · #7 04-10-2006, 07:25 PM

TOOL DEFINITIONS (For all you Handy Guys Out There...)

DRILL PRESS:

A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it smacks you in the chest and flings your beer across the room.

WIRE WHEEL:

Cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light. Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned guitar calluses from fingers in about the time it takes you to say, "Ow!!"

ELECTRIC HAND DRILL:

Normally used for spinning pop rivets in their holes until you die of old age.

PLIERS:

Used to round off bolt heads. Sometimes used in the creation of blood-blisters.

HACKSAW:

One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board principle. It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes.

VISE-GRIPS:

Generally used after pliers to further round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available, they can also be used to transfer intense welding heat to the palm of your hand.

OXYACETYLENE TORCH:

Used almost entirely for lighting various flammable objects in your shop on fire. Also handy for igniting the grease inside the wheel hub you want the bearing race out of.

WHITWORTH SOCKETS:

Once used for working on older British cars and motorcycles, they are now used mainly for impersonating that 9/16 or 1/2 socket you've been searching for the last 15 minutes.

HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK:

Used for lowering an automobile to the ground after you have installed your new brake shoes, trapping the jack handle firmly under the > bumper.

EIGHT-FOOT LONG DOUGLAS FIR 2X4:

Used for levering an automobile upward off of a trapped hydraulic jack handle.

TWEEZERS:

A tool for removing wood splinters and wire wheel wires.

E-Z OUT BOLT AND STUD EXTRACTOR:

A tool ten times harder than any known drill bit that snaps off in bolt holes you couldn't use anyway.

TWO-TON ENGINE HOIST:

A tool for testing the tensile strength on everything you forgot to disconnect.

CRAFTSMAN 1/2 x 16-INCH SCREWDRIVER:

A large prybar that inexplicably has an accurately machined screwdriver tip on the end opposite the handle.

AVIATION METAL SNIPS:

See hacksaw

TROUBLE LIGHT:

The home mechanic's own tanning booth. Sometimes called a drop light, it is a good source of vitamin D, "the sunshine vitamin," which is not otherwise found under cars at night. Health benefits aside, its main purpose is to consume 40-watt light bulbs at about the same rate that
105-mm howitzer shells might be used during, say, the first few hours of the Battle of the Bulge. More often dark than light, its name is somewhat misleading.

PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER:

Normally used to stab the vacuum seals under lids and for opening old-style paper-and-tin oil cans and splashing oil on your shirt; but can also be used, as the name implies, to strip out Phillips screw heads.

AIR COMPRESSOR:

A machine that takes energy produced in a coal-burning power plant 200 miles away and transforms it into compressed air that travels by hose to a Chicago Pneumatic impact wrench that grips rusty bolts which were last over tightened 50 years ago by someone at Ford, and neatly rounds off their heads.

PRY BAR:

A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding that clip or bracket you needed to remove in order to replace a 50 cent part.

HOSE CUTTER:

A tool used to cut hoses too short.

HAMMER:

Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate the most expensive parts not far from the object we are trying to hit.

MECHANIC'S KNIFE:

Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on contents such as seats, vinyl records, liquids in plastic bottles, collector magazines, refund checks, and rubber or plastic parts. Especially useful for slicing work clothes, but only while in use.

DAMMIT TOOL:

Any handy tool that you grab and throw across the garage while yelling "DAMMIT" at the top of your lungs. It is also the next tool that you will need.

EXPLETIVE:

A balm, also referred to as mechanic's lube, usually applied verbally in hindsight, which somehow eases those pains and indignities following our every deficiency in foresight.

ericzacha · #8 07-14-2006, 03:02 PM

For dry stiff leather seats: I used Franklins glove oil, for baseball gloves. It softened up the leather nicely and doesn't change the color.

haasman · #9 11-28-2006, 04:48 AM

Got a camera? Take pictures as you dismantle ..... be sure to take several from different angles.

I took my camera once to a parts person and quickly identified the part.

Haasman

Saint · #10 11-30-2006, 01:20 PM

I second the headlamp idea. I bought one on ebay from some hong kong company for around $15. It has something like 21 LEDS, and has 3 or 4 settings. I use it often. I also bought AAA rechargables (it requires 3) so I dont care about leaving it on the brightest setting.
I also carry in my pocket at all times a small LED light that I got from harbor freight for .99. Small and light enough to hold in your mouth when you need hands free at a moments notice.

Nitrile/latex exam gloves. Forget all about washing the gunk off your hands when you use these.

I just read probably the most useful book ever. I got it from the library..and about emptied a post it pad marking all the pages I needed to copy. I finally gave up and just bought the book(a rare thing for me). See if you can get it from the library first...if not..I guarantee you will find tons of useful tips in this book. It is called "Shop Savvy:Tips, Techniques & Jigs for Woodworkers & Metalworkers" by Roy Moungovan. You will not believe how many tips you will find that are just excellent for anyone with ordinary tools. Seems like it was written in the 70s, and published in the late 80s. You can get used ones at Amazon.

Use fluorescent bulbs in your drop lights. They dont get hot, they rarely burn out from being dropped, they last a mighty long time, and a 23watter is supposed to output 75watts of light. Dont know about that...but the light is very satisfactory, especially since you are not supposed to exceed 40 watts bulbs anyway...or is it 60 :-)

I need to read back through this entire thread. So many great tips from folks sharing what works.

Monomer · #11 11-30-2006, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saint

I second the headlamp idea. I bought one on ebay from some hong kong company for around $15. It has something like 21 LEDS, and has 3 or 4 settings. I use it often. I also bought AAA rechargables (it requires 3) so I dont care about leaving it on the brightest setting.
I also carry in my pocket at all times a small LED light that I got from harbor freight for .99. Small and light enough to hold in your mouth when you need hands free at a moments notice.

On lighting: I bought two MIT brand LED work lights, they were $22/ea. and bright enough to light the backyard up. I purchased them from Production Tool Supply (locally) Comes with a DC adaptor (for car use) and an AC "wall-wort" adaptor, along with rechargeable NIMH batteries.

I keep one around the house, and one in the Boot; just incase I get a flat at night or something.

dlssmith · #12 09-21-2009, 12:50 PM

Tip for removing oxidation from plastic headlamp covers:

1. Wetsand with 400 grit using a circular pad for a few minutes. Depending on the amount and thickness of the oxidation layer, this might take a while.
2. Wetsand with 1000 grit same as above
3. Wetsand with 2000 grit same as above
For all three steps above, let the sandpaper do the work and keep it wet with a spray bottle.
4. Polish with a commercially available lens cleaner paste.

For the giant lenses on my E320 which were quite yellowed and actually crusty, this procedure worked well. I was ready to buy new lenses after trying some of the polish compounds alone. The wetsanding was necessary and sped the process.

michakaveli · #13 09-21-2009, 01:00 PM

A good thread I found addressing headlamps..

Headlight Restoration-new UV sealant idea

strelnik · #14 03-09-2012, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dlssmith

Tip for removing oxidation from plastic headlamp covers:

1. Wetsand with 400 grit using a circular pad for a few minutes. Depending on the amount and thickness of the oxidation layer, this might take a while.
2. Wetsand with 1000 grit same as above
3. Wetsand with 2000 grit same as above
For all three steps above, let the sandpaper do the work and keep it wet with a spray bottle.
4. Polish with a commercially available lens cleaner paste.

For the giant lenses on my E320 which were quite yellowed and actually crusty, this procedure worked well. I was ready to buy new lenses after trying some of the polish compounds alone. The wetsanding was necessary and sped the process.

This is how aluminum and bakelite are rectified, and how telescope mirrors are polished, but in the latter case, they go to 8000 grit

haasman · #15 03-18-2003, 12:49 PM

csnow

Great tips!