Learn from my stupidity.

[old salvage]

I picked up a nice old Williams s-51. Great pawl, gear teeth and average amount of play. All it needed was to be cleaned. I unscrewed the cover plate and removed the gear. Then I squirt some oil at the pivot point of the pawl and flicked the selector back n forth . Like a useless moronic automaton I thoughtlessly flicked the selector lever too far over and the pawl got stuck. Everything was press fitted together at the factory so I couldnt take it apart and put it back together the right way and no amount of tapping and prying would get it back around. The more I tried, the more I mangled the thing.
Finally in a fit of rage I let my explosive, ripping, pounding temper get the best of me and I finished off the rachet.
So if you ever take apart your Williams s-51 DONT flick the selector farther than the on-off position.
Learn from my thoughtless imbecillery.

 

[ratchet_gear]

Sorry to hear that. I promise not to make any jokes, it sounds like you've already been through enough.

 

[dxdexter]

That *****. Hope you got a deal on the ratchet.

PS: Your story immediately reminded me of my first chainsaw, which I got for free after its previous owner threw it against a tree and busted the case because the cord pulled out. Temper.....Temper

 

[Merkava_4]

Tony, I keep wanting to reach into my screen and get that ratchet out'a there.

 

[KenS]

Learn from my thoughtless imbecillery.

Old,

Don't be too hard on yourself. At least you didn't forget to put oil in a new $5,000 engine before you started it up the first time.

We've all done things like this and can come out ahead if we learn from our mistakes. Look at it like another $30 investment in your continuing education fund.

...And when you cool down take a look at the parts under a magnifying glass and see if you can figure out a way to salvage the ratchet. You might be surprised.

 

[ToolGlutton]

Man, take it easy. You should be able to get it fixed under warranty, am I right?

I picked up a nice old Williams s-51. Great pawl, gear teeth and average amount of play. All it needed was to be cleaned. I unscrewed the cover plate and removed the gear. Then I squirt some oil at the pivot point of the pawl and flicked the selector back n forth . Like a useless moronic automaton I thoughtlessly flicked the selector lever too far over and the pawl got stuck. Everything was press fitted together at the factory so I couldnt take it apart and put it back together the right way and no amount of tapping and prying would get it back around. The more I tried, the more I mangled the thing.
Finally in a fit of rage I let my explosive, ripping, pounding temper get the best of me and I finished off the rachet.
So if you ever take apart your Williams s-51 DONT flick the selector farther than the on-off position.
Learn from my thoughtless imbecillery.

 

[dxdexter]

You should be able to get it fixed under warranty, am I right?

Not if a hammer was involved.

 

[ratchet_gear]

Tony, I keep wanting to reach into my screen and get that ratchet out'a there.

 

[old salvage]

Thanks guys. I'm not mad about money as the ratchet was only 5 dollars. It was more valuable as a nice old tool that only could have helped. It survived probably 65 years only to be wrecked by me.
Thanks for the stories too. It helps to hear that I'm not alone.
Tool glutton, dxdex is right . Even if it were a Craftsmans the warranty wouldnt cover the old girl now.
Oh well.
I've still saved more than I've ruined.

 

[billymade]

Is this the one your referring to?

Can you post a picture of where you are at with the problem? Maybe someone here has some good advice or ways you can getter' back on the road! Would a hydraulic press help? Don't give up the ship!

 

[SpiderGearsMan]

bath it in super lube , thats what I do

 

[old salvage]

Billymade
That was the one.
The carnage is too graphic to post pics.
I should have posted a help question here first.

 

[dxdexter]

Billymade
That was the one.
The carnage is too graphic to post pics.
I should have posted a help question here first.

I would be interested in a few pictures.

 

[bchee]

I would be interested in a few pictures.

I would be interested, too. Like Faces of Death with tools.

 

[Treeman]

Sometimes it's just best to put things out of their misery, rather than have it sit forever more in some dusty place never to be used again.

A proper burial or melting is probably in order. Or, maybe turn it into jewelry or grind it into some other useful tool so that it can keep on giving, like an organ donation.

Kudos....that your concern is not about the money, but the loss of a good old friend.

 

[cruiser808]

I picked up a nice old Williams s-51. Great pawl, gear teeth and average amount of play. All it needed was to be cleaned. I unscrewed the cover plate and removed the gear. Then I squirt some oil at the pivot point of the pawl and flicked the selector back n forth . Like a useless moronic automaton I thoughtlessly flicked the selector lever too far over and the pawl got stuck. Everything was press fitted together at the factory so I couldnt take it apart and put it back together the right way and no amount of tapping and prying would get it back around. The more I tried, the more I mangled the thing.
Finally in a fit of rage I let my explosive, ripping, pounding temper get the best of me and I finished off the rachet.
So if you ever take apart your Williams s-51 DONT flick the selector farther than the on-off position.
Learn from my thoughtless imbecillery.

Old, I feel your pain, been there, done that. Not only on a ratchet, but on a two story commercial building in my past life.

What I do now when some old ratchet refuses to budge with proper manipulation, rather than try to force seperation of parts, I just dunk it into a vat of Kroil for a month. Works every time unless stuff is broke to begin with.

 

[MachineTech]

KANO Kroil is some of the most amazing penetrating lube I have seen

 

[old salvage]

Sometimes it's just best to put things out of their misery, rather than have it sit forever more in some dusty place never to be used again.

A proper burial or melting is probably in order. Or, maybe turn it into jewelry or grind it into some other useful tool so that it can keep on giving, like an organ donation.

Kudos....that your concern is not about the money, but the loss of a good old friend.

I'm saving the cover plate and the gear . I may someday come across a ratchet that has a broken tooth or something.

Old, I feel your pain, been there, done that. Not only on a ratchet, but on a two story commercial building in my past life.

What I do now when some old ratchet refuses to budge with proper manipulation, rather than try to force seperation of parts, I just dunk it into a vat of Kroil for a month. Works every time unless stuff is broke to begin with.

A building itself ? Aww man.


There was plenty of oil so it wasnt a case of friction just the face of the pawl not being able to fit past the detent ball. I think as I drove the pawl back its teeth actually pulled the ball out and wedged it against the ratchet body.

 

[cruiser808]

Old - you are a rock on this board. Please continue to share your tool stories as we all become a little smarter after our discussion and your experiences. I don't know about the rest of these mooks, but after loggng in, I want to leave GJ board board a little smarter than when I signed on. That dosen't always happen. Sometimes, in my job, I end up leaving work more stupid than when I walked in.

 

[wrenchr]

That is a very nice ratchet design!! Tough break though!!

 

[old salvage]

Old - you are a rock on this board. Please continue to share your tool stories as we all become a little smarter after our discussion and your experiences. I don't know about the rest of these mooks, but after loggng in, I want to leave GJ board board a little smarter than when I signed on. That dosen't always happen. Sometimes, in my job, I end up leaving work more stupid than when I walked in.

Thanks for the kind words.
I promise my next rambling will be on a positive note about a ratchet that I actually fixed.

That is a very nice ratchet design!! Tough break though!!

Indeed it is. But hey remember that tiny little plomb you sold me ?
I did manage to fix that.

 

[jay50]

Billymade
That was the one.
The

carnage is too graphic to post pics

.
I should have posted a help question here first.

Just get out the torch and cut it to pieces; put it out of its misery...

 

[wrenchr]

Thanks for the kind words.
I promise my next rambling will be on a positive note about a ratchet that I actually fixed.




Indeed it is. But hey remember that tiny little plomb you sold me ?
I did manage to fix that.

Cool!! did you have spare part's??

 

[old salvage]

Cool!! did you have spare part's??

Not for that excact ratchet but I had spare pawls from another that were close and I ground one down to fit.
I'll post some pics tomorrow .

 

[wrenchr]

Not for that excact ratchet but I had spare pawls from another that were close and I ground one down to fit.
I'll post some pics tomorrow .

Cool, I'm looking forward to them.

 

[Bolster]

What good are tools, if you can't take out your testosterone-fueled rage on the ones that do you wrong? The turncoats, the backstabs, and the tools that you thought were on your side, but really aren't?

Think about it. You can't beat on your wife, kids, or pets. You can't beat on your car, it's too expensive. You can't beat on your employees. You can't beat your boss or the cops, there's jail. But you can smash the heck out of a ratchet, and some times it's worth it.

Although if you are cheap like me, you generally take it out on the fasteners. I have smashed nails and screws absolutely flat in fits of ape-like rage.

 

[jay50]

What good are tools, if you can't take out your testosterone-fueled rage on the ones that do you wrong? The turncoats, the backstabs, and the tools that you thought were on your side, but really aren't?

Think about it. You can't beat on your wife, kids, or pets. You can't beat on your car, it's too expensive. You can't beat on your employees. You can't beat your boss or the cops, there's jail. But you can smash the heck out of a ratchet, and some times it's worth it.

Although if you are cheap like me, you generally take it out on the fasteners. I have smashed nails and screws absolutely flat in fits of ape-like rage.

They now have medicine to control that inner rage; sounds like you turn into the Incredible Hulk when a tools shows its *** to you....

 

[nissan_crawler]

Old,

Don't be too hard on yourself. At least you didn't forget to put oil in a new $5,000 engine before you started it up the first time.

I can laugh at this. In the 1.5 years of changing oil on cars, I left a drain plug out three times before filling (never started, caught it right away).

What vehicle? MINE. All three times. I would pull mine in when it was slow, get it draining, and Murphy would rear his head, and a bunch of cars would show up. So, I would change the oil in those, get them out, then walk over to mine and dump that first quart of amsoil in... Only to hear the $8/qt oil head right back out the engine and into the drain pan.


A friend of mine had a new motor built for his race car. His first night out, we're side-by-side, and I notice water coming out of his car (found out after that the new radiator hose blew wide open). I try to get him to go to the pits, but he's too caught up in the race. Sure enough, his engine locks up solid in the feature. He gets hauled off, and we finish the race. When we went back in, I told him I was trying to warn him to get off the track.

"I just don't get it, the gauge never got hot, but the manifolds were glowing." "Ummm, what does your temp sensor read?" "huh? water temp." "Ok, and what poured out of your car?" "water.." "mmhmm, smell what I'm cooking?" "Oh, f#$%! That's why the needle twitched."

 

[eschoendorff]

I would be interested, too. Like Faces of Death with tools.

You guys are sick.... SICK!

 

[wilbilt]

What good are tools, if you can't take out your testosterone-fueled rage on the ones that do you wrong? The turncoats, the backstabs, and the tools that you thought were on your side, but really aren't?

When the second HF angle grinder melted in my hand on the same day, I swung it by the cord like a dead cat and flung it out into the neighbor's orchard, where it probably still lies.

I am generally pretty patient and easy going, but once in a while, I just snap.

 

[dxdexter]

You guys are sick.... SICK!

It time for one of these: