On Wednesday, February 15, 2017 at 12:59:26 PM UTC-6, philo wrote:
On 02/15/2017 12:26 PM, Uncle Monster wrote:

It's real information derived from real life experience not theory. That's the best kind of information I look for. I got a call one time from a grocery store where there was a problem with the small electric forklift in the stock room. I know it may appear to be cliché but I whacked an electric solenoid with a hammer and the forklift started working again. The store manager asked,"You're charging me $65.00 to hit it with a hammer?" My response was,"No, I'm charging you $65.00 for knowing WHERE to hit it." It's a true story which repeated itself on more than one occasion. I always resisted the urge to whack store managers on the head with my hammer. ヽ(ヅ)ノ

[8~{} Uncle Hammered Monster

I usually referred forklift repairs to the dealer, but if it was an easy
problem I'd fix it.

I also had seen a few pallet jack trucks that used a cheap car solenoid
that would weld shut. Though a temporary repair was to give it a whack,
I would replace them with a very heavy duty version and AFAIK they never
had a problem again.

By the time I retired we were charging $100 and hour but since I worked
fast and did it right got close to zero complaints.


My brother and friends are taking up my slack since I can't get out in the field anymore. What I have been doing is helping them by finding material online and writing proposals and bids. I can't walk but I can help with the business anywhere there is an Internet connection. Last year, Stinky and Pork Chop ran 800 feet of fiber optic cable and 1,600 feet of Cat6. They installed a gigabit switch and fiber optic connection cabinets plus fiber to Ethernet converters that connected the networks and phone lines which were 800 feet apart. Darn it, I wish I could have been in on the installation but my part was to find and order all the material plus write the proposal/bid. I get mad when I hear someone say they can't find a job because I can find work and I'm in a wheelchair! What they can't find is a skill that's in demand. Before I became to sick and disabled to work, I was doing work as an independent service tech for several national service organizations that had service contracts with places like Sears, Walmart, AutoZone and a lot of other retail stores. I installed electrical circuits for a lot of Redbox vending machines and before I had to stop, I was installing a lot of VoIP systems. It's very frustrating to be unable to get up and go. ヽ(à²*_à²*)ノ

[8~{} Uncle Frustrated Monster