Gotta replace the leaky water pressure regulator in my basement. It's
mounted near the ceiling along a straight run of 3/4" copper pipe. At first
glance, I thought it required soldering (a skill I've never bothered to
learn in 30 years of owning a home). But, on closer inspection, I noticed
that the regulator has wrench fittings, and that the pipes are threaded in,
not soldered. The fittings are a part of the cast body, not rotating
compression collars.

So, my next thought was that the pipes must've been rotated into place at
the regulator, and soldered at the opposite ends where they meet their next
junction. But, that seemed silly. Then, I figured maybe the threads in the
regulator body were designed so that turning the regulator would cause the
pipes on both sides to tighten simultaneously, like a turnbuckle. This would
eliminate soldering.

Now we need Jimmy the Greek: What are the odds that this repair is as easy
as it sounds?

I'll throw in another factor: I'm in Rochester NY. This weekend, it may
FINALLY get over 40 degrees, so in theory, I could get out of this $!~*&^
HOUSE and go FISHING. This usually means that the aforementioned repair will
be cursed by demons and end up taking 6 hours, instead of the 1/2 hour that
it should take.