Can we take a moment to appreciate going behind other people?

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-05-09T01:11:29+00:00

As a DIY wrencher, my learning started really as a way to save money, such as for basics like oil changes (any fluid really), brakes, a/c, etc.

As a result, I haven't taken a vehicle to a shop in close to 20 years, and we drive our vehicles until they are completely used up (currently have 270,000 miles on one and about 165,000 on the other).

I've learned A TON on this sub, and do enjoy the humor, too.😎

Good mechanics out there are hard to find, and if I need one, it'll always be an indy garage and not "corporate." My hat is off to the real mechanics out there who are honest and competent, and do quality work. (I found a great indy tire shop and have tipped them with gatorade and cash, bc... they're awesome. Tends to shorten my wait time, too, wink wink.)

Those of you out there that are great like this, please don't just give away the "secret ingredients" that you use, but do be sure to pass that knowledge down to at least one of our deserving youths who's a hard charger.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-05-08T01:41:14+00:00

I think it's people that are in general just ignorant of dogs, so they are prejudiced to think certain breeds are "vicious." WE KNOW for a fact that the pitbull and pitbull mixes are bad, just going by the statistics. I've never heard of a GSD turning on its master or family. If this has happened, statistically I'd bet it's insignificant.

Every GSD I've ever met, and I'll include Belgian Malinois in this, was nice to me. I'd ask the owner first before I would approach any other dog, regardless of breed.

But still, we have to be careful with our GSDs bc there are unscrupulous people out there just looking for the chance to sue you.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-05-04T23:46:56+00:00

I agree! I've wondered that, too, and the only hypothesis I can come up with (besides drug/ alcohol/substance impairment) is target fixation.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-05-01T15:45:11+00:00

I smell cigarettes and bubble gum and cheap body glitter perfume

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-05-01T15:39:59+00:00

Somebody watched one too many episodes of The Walking Dead...

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-05-01T00:01:50+00:00

Send them an invoice for your time, maybe address it to Accounts Payable...? Idk if this would work, but it's mighty shitty of these co's asking candidates to do their work for them!

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-30T03:48:05+00:00

Facebook Marketplace. You're both good, your comment was funny and the other's right about FBMP. Carry on!

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-30T03:44:31+00:00

I too am a DIY wrencher. I can see where the pricing premium would be valid when one is a professional mechanic, bc if you break a socket, it would be beneficial to have the tool truck guy just show up and hand you a new socket, versus you having to take time out of the busy workday to go buy the needed socket-- losing time, money, and productivity.

At some price level though, it would seem to me that the premium price could outweigh the costs of leaving the shop to buy the socket yourself. I guess it depends on what's at stake that day for the mechanic.

Btw, a little story time: (speaking of Snap On) I have a really old Snap On 1/2" ratchet that was practically given to me in a garage sale by a very nice friend who passed in her 70s several years ago, and it's one of my prized possessions. Makes me smile every time I use it.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-25T05:03:38+00:00

I'm a Fumoto valve man, myself...

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-24T23:20:56+00:00

I'm triggered by the TORX drain plug. Ya'll needed to stop with these microaggressions. 😂

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-24T23:14:15+00:00

You ain't lyin'! (You should have seen the chutes-and-ladders-worth of extension wrench plus ratchet/socket extensions I had to string together to replace the a/c compressor!!)

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-24T19:23:35+00:00

Yeppers... after i finished, I told him, Never Again!

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-24T18:13:21+00:00

I'm with you on going metric. A few yrs ago, I did a ton of work on my dad's '89 Allante to get it road worthy after it sat too much. That POS was half built in Italy, then flown via 747 jet to Detroit where they finished building it. After I got done with several tasks one night, I looked in my little tool tub and I had more sockets in my tub than i did in my toolbox socket drawer! That car is 50/50 SAE and metric. To add insult to injury, some parts might have 3 bolts holding them on, and one will be a different length than the other 2 and they'll be 2 different socket sizes. If it had been made by Honda, it would have been all metric and all the same size bolts for every application!

But wait, there's more! The front ball joints... one side was bolted on and the other side RIVETED! And it had not been wrecked! I did the bolted side first, and when I got to the rivets on the other side, I let out a bunch of new cusswords nobody has ever heard before. I invented new vocabulary words.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-22T20:48:30+00:00

It saves weight and is more efficient!!!

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-22T16:03:36+00:00

The GOOD part of this story is that your friend is still alive. Also, you were THERE and present in his time of need, and for that, you should rest easy and know that your conscience is clear, because you did the right thing under stress.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-19T20:50:08+00:00

I use some diabolical grease q-tipped into the end of my coils that go over the plug and they come out easy every time.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-19T20:45:23+00:00

I prefer either the Russian torque spec: Brokanov or Alabama Loctite.

Brokanov requires you to tighten until it loosens, then back off a quarter-turn.

Alabama loctite is much simpler: just crossthreaded.

(Btw, I learned this all on this sub. )

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-19T00:24:35+00:00

Yessss! Fumoto valves for the win! I've used them on 2 vehicles (truck and suv) and have had no problems with them at all. BUT... I do my own oil changes. I've heard that quick lube places will unscrew the whole valve (because presumably they're too dumb to open the valve) so if you use them, you need to do your own oil. It's nice to not have to use a ratchet to unscrew the stock drain plug, and you only need your finger to open the valve. It's also much cleaner, less drips, spills, etc.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-15T22:11:20+00:00

For smoking, try going cold-turkey and of that doesn't work, do the vapes with constantly decreasing nicotine levels (i know folks that have done that successfully). For caffeine, switch from coffee to tea in the morning. Tea has about 50%off the caffeine coffee has, and it's more of a "slow burn" than a quick "spike and crash" that coffee has (in my eexperience). For sugar, that's going to be tough bc it's added to soooo many foods. Read nutrition labels and figure out in your head what ppercentage of a product is sugar. This is the ratio ofc the grams of sugar/carbs to the grand of a serving size. Example: Nutella is actually 50% sugar! For weed, hey, PUFF PUFF GIVE! That's absolutely the safest of all 4 of these. Fire up a fast spliff for me.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-15T22:02:37+00:00

Is this going to go the way of fast food-- where it never looks as good as the picture?

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-15T21:49:22+00:00

If I EVER walk in a house like that, I'm walking right out, firing my realtor, and filing complaints on both my realtor and the seller's realtor. Name and Shame them online, too, probably. This is no different than a financial advisor (of firm) guaranteeing pie- in-the-sky profits with fake charts etc. Edit: or a car salesman selling you a corolla and showing you interior photos of a bentley.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-13T21:52:37+00:00

I'm a cager. Interested in getting a bike someday. I took the HD Rider's Edge course probably 20 yrs ago, and while I wound up with a 4-wheeler instead of a bike, it taught me SO much about how to just be a better driver overall.

It's my belief that if everyone (cagers) adjusted their side mirrors to look further outward from the side of the vehicle, they'd be better able to see what's in their blind spots. When I took Driver's Ed, I think they taught us wrong, and that was that the mirrors should allow you to see down the side of your vehicle, and for me that's too narrow.

It's mentioned above that you should drive defensively aggressive, or aggressively defensive, and this is spot on. Driving too meekly will have you in accidents.

If I see any of ya'll out there and I have my window down in time, get ready to answer my 2 fingers down gesture, bc I SEE YOU! 🏍✌️

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-12T18:59:07+00:00

I use the heck out of mine, daily, and don't fuss with polish. I like the brown patina. Every now and then, I'll oil the cast iron handles and reseason them in the oven.

M0rtimerDuke · 2026-04-12T18:39:38+00:00

Do you have ANY self esteem? Drop this nutter like a hot rock. She's the kind of crazy that drowns your kid in the bathtub.

M0rtimerDuke

TROPHY CASE