Wren Wilson (u/wrenwilson)

Posts

Crane mats on soft ground, who else has had a close call

We had a 130 ton job last month in Portland and the ground looked solid from the truck but it was all old fill dirt. The outrigger pad sank about 8 inches before we even picked up the load. I called the foreman over and he said it'll be fine, then we did a couple test picks and the whole front end tilts over a degree. That 10 grand in crane mats we skipped to save money almost cost us way more. Now I walk the site every time before setup, even if the GC swears it's compacted. Has anyone else had a rig settle mid-lift after a visual check?

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c/auto-repair-and-warranties•

wrenwilson•10d ago

Shop teacher said factory intervals are a scam, now I question everything

Tbh I always followed the manual for oil changes like it was scripture. Then last week my buddy's dad, who ran a shop in Akron for 30 years, told me he never trusts factory intervals because they're designed for the average driver, not real use. He said my 6,000 mile schedule on a truck that hauls a camper every summer is basically neglect. That hit different because I've got 112,000 miles on my F-150 and I thought I was doing it right. He showed me the oil from a customer's car that followed the computer, and it looked like tar. Now I'm second guessing every maintenance light and warranty clause I've ever trusted. Has anyone else dumped the factory schedule for shorter intervals and seen a real difference in engine life?

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c/broke-but-building•

wrenwilson•10d ago

Cracked tool box drawer, saved with a soldering iron and zip ties

Ngl, I was at my buddy's garage in Tucson last weekend, we were swapping a water pump on his 03 F150. I handed him my 10mm socket and the plastic drawer on my cheap tool box just cracked clean in half. Sockets went everywhere, under the car, in the oil pan, one bounced off his dog. I was ready to toss the whole thing, then he grabbed his soldering iron and some zip ties, melted a little brace along the crack, and screwed a scrap piece of aluminum angle under the base. It's not pretty but it's held up through two more jobs since. Got me thinking about all the gear I've given up on that just needed a bit of weird thinking instead of a replacement. Has anyone else saved something with a method that made no sense on paper but worked anyway?

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c/appliance-repairers•

wrenwilson•15d ago

Gas range igniter swap: OEM part vs. the cheap knockoff

I had to choose between a $45 OEM igniter for a Whirlpool range and a $12 generic from Amazon last Tuesday, so I went with the cheap one to see if it'd hold up. It clicked and lit fine for about 40 cycles, then the electrode cracked and left the customer with a cold oven on Thanksgiving prep day. Has anyone else gambled on the budget parts and regretted it, or do you stick with factory every time?

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c/ancient-tech-fixers•

wrenwilson•19d ago

Finally gave up on my 2008 laptop's trackpad after 4 months of rage

My Toshiba Satellite's touchpad started double-clicking on its own last spring, and I kept pushing through it with external mice and keyboard shortcuts. Yesterday at a coffee shop in Portland I watched a stranger's cursor do the same dance and realized it wasn't just me being cheap, it was the sensor ribbon degrading. Has anyone here actually replaced those ribbon cables on a vintage board, or is it smarter to just tape the trackpad off and live with a USB mouse forever?

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c/daily-build-battle•

wrenwilson•20d ago

Backwards fan setup blew dust into my GPU for 6 months

Built a rig in January and put the top fans as intake by accident, my 3080 was caked in dust by last week when I finally checked temps. Took 2 hours to clean and flip them around, plus a dose of canned air for the radiator. Anyone else catch a dumb airflow mistake way later than they should have?

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c/auto-body-repairers•

wrenwilson•21d ago

Cheap paint gun gamble in St. Louis, actually worked

Picked up a $60 HVLP gun off the truck last month, figured it'd be worthless for clear coat. Laid down a full fender repair with it and the finish laid out flatter than my $400 Devilbiss. Anyone else had luck with budget guns holding up past a one-job weekend?

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c/abandoned-places-photos•

wrenwilson•21d ago

That $140 drone I bought for roof shots is now a rusted paperweight

I got it last spring to check gutters and chimney flashing on abandoned farmhouses I scout. Flew it maybe 8 times, then the battery swelled up and stopped holding a charge. Replacement battery was $60, but I forgot it in my truck bed during a rainstorm in Ohio. Tried to power it on after drying it out, and the thing just smokes and twitches. Anyone else have gear die from storage mistakes, or is it just me and my bad habit of leaving stuff in the truck?

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c/cable-clutter-confessions•

wrenwilson•22d ago

Tried velcro ties AND twist ties, one is clearly better

I cleaned up my TV stand yesterday and used velcro ties on the power cables but twist ties on the HDMI ones. The velcro ones are so much easier to remove and add when I swap consoles, plus they were like $6 for a 100 pack at the hardware store. Anyone else converted fully to velcro after hating it at first?

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c/concrete-finishers•

wrenwilson•23d ago

Tried a $20 power trowel blade and was shocked at the difference

I've been finishing concrete for about 12 years now and always used the same brand of blades, figured expensive ones were a waste. Last week my supplier was out and I grabbed a cheap no-name blade from a hardware store in Tulsa just to get through the day. That thing left chatter marks on a garage floor and I had to hand trowel the whole thing over, cost me 3 extra hours. Swapped back to my usual mid-range blade the next day and the finish was glass smooth. Anyone else ever get burned by off-brand blades or is it just me?

2 comments