Shop Time w/T.W. Friends. Torque wrench on spark plugs, we need answers so cast your vote now

Thank an Engineer...

 

I don't really know how it got that screwed up. Sure, engineers are involved, but who actually wanted it that way?
Did marketing make the artists that design the front end so it? And all visuals are designed by creative designers who are definitely not engineers.
I think, I don't know, but I think that the engineers were hamstrung by the adamant design and marketing team and this was pretty much the only solution. Maybe it was the crash test people who did it.
I pay attention when doing stuff, like fasteners, location, fit, etc.
Was not impressed.
Everyone talks shit about Tesla fit and finish but there are a whole lot less parts and fasteners, and welds, in a Tesla than a Toyota. Much simpler mechanically, much more complex electrically.

 

I had some very small holes in the gutters of my shop; my neighbor gave me some FlexSeal and said it would fix me right up. It didn't.
So I removed the gutters, put rock around my shop and things are now groovy....

 

Oh, I thought you meant the holes you shot in there with them arrows…

 

Okay, so now we know to blame everything on the overly creative designers... And no one is ever going to trust a marketing team, they'll lie about anything six ways to Sunday.













I think we should go back to having headlights mounted on top of the finders...

 

This hole?

 

Lol let me make a fact statement.
There is nobody, and I mean nobody, who would drive a vehicle designed and built entirely by engineers. Why?
It would be dog ugly and misshapen.
Proportion would be logical, which means it would be horrible visually.
It would be one of the slowest vehicles built. Engineers are all about efficiency.
It would last absolutely forever.
It would cost as much as a house.
The tires and wheels would be about three inches wide.
They would spend hundreds of millions on a speedometer that was precisely correct no matter if you had new or bald tires.
It, and I know this is going to be controversial, would have every part easily accessible and replaceable. If you leave an engineer alone, they are all about maintenance.

So there you go.

 

This is precisely why we have our trades guys look at the plans for new buildings and renovations instead of just letting the architect do their thing.

One makes it look pretty, the other makes it usable.

 

Many years ago I had an 1984 AMC Eagle, this car was built at the height of the "hang stuff on the engine" emissions control era and combined two words that should never be used in the same sentence: computer & carburetor.

The federal gov't was big in designing cars around this time - pushing the manufacturers (all the domestics) hard with new regulations and they didn't have much for tech beyond ported vacuum switches, solenoids and relays - most of that stuff didn't work all that well when new and the majority of mechanics of the day didn't know how to repair it.


I told you that so I could tell you this: That car was an absolute pig to work on because of all the hoses & etc, crammed in the engine compartment. Also the Eagle body dated back to 1970 and was updated with a 4x4 system in 1980 - quite cleverly I might add.

As I worked along (enhancing my vocabulary with every turn of the wrench) I realized that if I looked carefully there was always a path for long extensions and swivel joint sockets - the engineers did their very best to provide access under the worst of conditions.
I would never say it was easy, but they made it possible.

 

Spent all day fighting with the last window left to replace in our house. The previous installer used liquid nails and screws to attach the vinyl trim around the window. Ended up having to use an oscillating cutter and my air hammer with a scraper to break it off bit by bit. Thrilled to be done

 

Exactly. Usually, engineers try to make the most of the handcuffs in which they were placed.
I know it's not a popular opinion, but, if you have been in the trenches like I have, they do their level best.

 

One of my favorites from earlier today. The jetties in the background funnel the Merrimack River into the Atlantic. The headwaters of which start up in the White Mountains in my neck of the woods. The shore wind helped keep us dry. The storm was quick moving at this point and things calmed significantly in a few hours. No significant flooding or precipitation where I was. I’m figuring out how to convert .mov to .jpeg so give me a bit to post some videos.

This one is from underneath a band that you see all the time on hurricane radar:

 

You should build a picture frame around that.

 

Goodnight everyone, sleep well

 

Seconded

 

Ahh, love...

 

Morning all have a great day, @Hunterdc1 good luck in that stand

 

Good morning everyone, have a great and blessed Sunday.