Clever fixes or workarounds?

I always enjoy hearing clever technical people tell stories about how they ran into a problem, and how they fixed it.

For instance- I worked with some guys that had to install a custom machined part into a fitting, and the custom part was too big to fit into the opening. Inside the opening was large enough to accommodate, but getting the part in was the problem. They couldn't go back to the machine shop for some reason, deadline or whatever, so they sat the part in a bucket of liquid nitrogen for a few minutes. The extreme cold contracted the part enough that they were able to fit it. A simple and cheap fix.

Got any stories to share? Anything is fair game- simple to complex.

Friend of mine was fixing a car , the driver/passenger windows would not match up to the roof line, he used a body grinder to grind down the top edge of the glass to make it fit. We all expected it to shatter but it didn't, only problem is if the owner ever breaks a window the replacement will never fit.

Where the hell do you Just "grab a bucket" of liquid nitrogen? Not to mention just dunking a room temperature part into it... I've freed a stuck lug by gassing it with 134a before tho. Don't tell the epa....

On the flighline/ramp LOX etc. is pretty easy to come by...

What ever happened to Oxy/Acet to free up a rusty bolt. The old fashion way.

I have see AC guys clear a plugged drain line with a freon tank. But you are right, don't let the EPA know about that stuff.

The company had a good relationship with the welding gas supplier, so getting liquid nitrogen was just a matter of a phone call. Supplier sent a truck over with a big liquid nitrogen container on the back, opened a valve, and filled a bucket.

Zoomie, did you say liquid oxygen is available on the flightline? With all that jet fuel around?

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Originally Posted by DaveO

The company had a good relationship with the welding gas supplier, so getting liquid nitrogen was just a matter of a phone call. Supplier sent a truck over with a big liquid nitrogen container on the back, opened a valve, and filled a bucket.

Zoomie, did you say liquid oxygen is available on the flightline? With all that jet fuel around?

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I would guess you would need a means to top off passenger and crew O2 vessels in that environment. Or fuel liquid rocket engines, depending on what sort of flight line your on....
;)

I can say for sure liquid O2 is available on a carrier flight deck.
Sure fire way to get a chit was to have a frozen soda….HeHe.