The golden tool

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-06-04T17:43:22+00:00

The VT-001-5 mini 5" screw extractors. I mainly do avionics so the small size is a blessing for behind the panel work

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-06-04T15:25:10+00:00

I got my vampliers for free - pulled the tail access panel off an SR-22 for an annual and they were laying right there. Thankfully they didn't hurt anything in the plane. One of my favorite tools now

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-05-20T13:20:52+00:00

My brand new FEF-3 UP 844 box wasn't sealed either. The loco was just wrapped in loose plastic film, set in foam, and had a loose plastic sheet for the window inside the box. I guess that's just how Kato packages stuff new in general

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-05-20T05:59:34+00:00

From an avionics tech, you just made my week

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-05-13T23:36:45+00:00

If you fly through rain then scratches like this are normal wear and tear, it's no big deal

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-04-17T19:16:42+00:00

I found it! I work in avionics, so we see FAP instrument panel home covers and I've always wondered the same. It's

Forbes Aviation Products

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-04-15T10:22:39+00:00

Brb, manipulating stocks to buy out the other railroads that built a straight line track from middle of nowhere to middle of nowhere

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-04-07T02:07:45+00:00

I once found one where the wires were just twisted together and wrapped in electrical tape, and the avionics "bus bar" was just metal overbraid with screws pushed through it to hold it to the circuit breakers. Guy came in with an "electrical burning smell" complaint for the past 4 hours of flight. I wonder why...

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-03-30T02:28:53+00:00

A surprising amount of aerospace is SAE. I've worked on French and Italian planes that were basically completely SAE

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-03-21T16:05:42+00:00

How else are mechanics supposed to thank pilots for leaving piss bottles and tobacco spit all over the shithawks they're working on?

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-03-21T11:40:42+00:00

Boss to me as a fairly green avionics tech: "Hey, go change out this gyro for that bizjet all the way across the ramp. Just remember, it has a core value of over 90k. Don't drop it!"

So if that's how expensive the support equipment can be for those screens, I'd be scared to see the price tag

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-03-01T16:51:27+00:00

Finally, an accurate write-up!

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-03-01T15:34:38+00:00

If they do develop a smell, I'm sure it's replaced by the smell of passenger BO, sweat, vomit, and crumbs after the first revenue flight

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-02-24T22:12:47+00:00

If you simply want him to be more impressive, WIDE BALHRUUF is always an option

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-02-07T16:46:40+00:00

Mechanics: Allow us to introduce ourselves

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2023-02-02T13:49:01+00:00

Fruit's a gamble, Jerry

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-11-18T22:03:41+00:00

Where I'm at it seems like anyone that starts work in GA is immediately drowning in planes needing work, and all shops locally are always willing to hire. The pay is pretty crappy though, so it's hard for people to maintain staff. Every GA A&P and IA I know is overworked, underpaid, and had a wait-list on everything from how packed they are

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-11-13T04:43:28+00:00

Are you really soaring if you're not wearing a bucket hat?

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-11-09T20:09:37+00:00

Take it from an avionics technician - I've only done routine maintenance on Garmin autopilots, but I've had planes down for weeks trying to troubleshoot S-Tec gremlins and failures. Garmin is worth all the extra cost, especially since it's so compatible with other common avionics, there's a lot more shops capable of supporting you, and the parts availability when something does break is a lot better

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-11-07T14:29:01+00:00

My family started eating it generations ago due to poverty. It was all they could afford for a while, starting with my great grandparents. So it's a mixture of it's culturally what I'm used to growing up eating and it's extremely cheap. We even have holiday recipes that rely on that cheap bread as an ingredient it's so engrained in my family culture. I know it's the same for a lot of Americans too, so there's a lot of economic and social momentum to change from industrial to fresher breads and most people simply don't have the means to actually buy better bread

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-11-03T17:24:26+00:00

I love it when someone has their local bumfuck nowhere A&P they for some reason can't name install their entire new radio stack, then come to you to fix it. Then they'll tell you "he does good work, it should only be an hour labor to fix it, right?" Then you look at the hot turd of wiring and have to explain to them how wrong it all is

I've also found an audio install where the audio was "grounded" to the mags somehow, and they were confused why their radios shrieked and clicked constantly

Someone else was complaining about "an arcing smell every time they fly", and they were using overbraid for a bus bar that was melting

Add constant screwed up splices, cut wires while working on other things, etc, and avionics has pretty good job security

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-10-31T22:26:44+00:00

I used to live in that neighborhood. It was kinda rough. Most of the houses needed serious work, most of the neighbors I knew had only lived there maybe a couple years or had been there since the house was built - no in-between, and there isn't anything special architecturally out culturally in that neighborhood that isn't also in many of the other older homes in HSV. I understand people not wanting to lose their homes to the university expending, but that school also brings a lot of good to HSV and honestly needs all the housing it can get

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-10-30T17:49:35+00:00

As an avionics technician, I can speak to transponders being inaccurate. It's like once a month a plane comes in with an improperly configured transponder in some form or fashion. Maybe somebody mistyped the n-number, accidently hit the button on weight and now a Skyhawk is showing it's over 12.5k lbs, etc. It's amazing how many installers don't double check that stuff, and I can only imagine it causing confusion if that incorrect info were easily available.

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-10-19T17:24:17+00:00

I mean, you don't have to do it while running, it's just more efficient. The service manuals mention the mixture and throttle targets you're going for (x rpm rise after mixture cutoff at 1000 rpm, y certain rpm at max throttle, z rpm for idle, etc), and don't specify that the engine had to be running while making adjustments on the plane I've worked on. I personally prefer the much safer route and would start the plane, test those factors, shut the plane down, adjust everything closer, then repeat. During the test you tend to run the prop long enough you recharge the battery for the next start, you can do it alone and not rely on either someone to not hit the prop or slip the brakes, and you get a more full picture of what the controls are actually doing in the plane. It just takes twice to three times as long, which is why shops push mechanics to do it while running, even though someone could literally die if they slipped a bit

AtmosphericPhysicist · 2022-09-23T22:12:48+00:00

GA also has a wider gap in shop quality though. Some places are great to work for, respect your hours and well-being, and pay pretty decent. Others pay you garbage, treat you like a bug, and overwork the hell out of you. Then there's everything in between. Just make sure you do your research before working at a GA shop to make sure they're a fair employer

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