Jim Warman

Mine looks close to Dwaynes.... - and he's a LOT closer to Ca'gry than I am.... I've been with telus since about '92 when I got my first "turtlenet" connection. Before that, I would occasionally "superkermit" in to various locations with my 9600 baud modem.... The long distance charges were somewhat painful. At that time I lived in Fox Creek, Alberta... To get there, you'd have to go to Anus, Alberta and then go up about halfway /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/smirk.gif At that time, I also had a Husky gas station - and THAT, boys and girls... is a whole 'nother story....

Try the Kroil... this is the stuff in the orange can for the 5.4 spark plugs... this stuff can be amazing... Try to get the sensor to turn. This will help break the O-ring loose.

My loving bride isn't what I could call a trphy wife, though she is a trophy to me.... She's a beautiful woman and she has aged well (though we both have to admit that "gravity works"). Come January, it will be (I'm told) 34 years of "wedded bliss". Without a lot of hard work, perserverance, patience, understanding and Gawd knows what else... we wouldn't have lasted 5. It's been a magical ride.... and I still love her madly.... couldn't imagine life without her.... even if she does piss me off to no end at times... And THAT is an important thing to remember.... just becuase you're mad at somebody doesn't mean you don't like/love them... We all have a life and it will be what we make of it....

I haven't had the pleasure - but here's what I'd probably try... Using about a 1/8th bit, drill into it about 3/4 inch or so.... bottom a #8 sheetmetal screw in it (choose one long enough so you have a good purchase point for later....). Soak it with Kroil and leave it for a while.... Soak it with Kroil again and leave it for another while. See if you can get it to turn using your embedded screw.... Getting it to turn will be the first step towards success...

Back at ya, Larry... the bigger the cushion, the better the pushin'.... push once - ride three.... This is getting crude....

Tony.. I am proud that I helped make a difference in your life... But I can't take the credit.... that belongs to you and you alone... We are all capable of wonderful things... all we need to do is apply ourselves. I carry your thinking a step further... I forever "replaying" things in my mind. I used to recheck bolt torques out in the parking lot... I've even gone back to the store in the middle of the night because I can't remember locking the door (strange - because my routine is to lock the door, remove my key and shake the door... without fail). Rules of thumb... never "start" a bolt if you aren't going to "finish" it. For wheel nuts, I will place my torque wrench and the socket near one of the wheels or on top of a hubcap as a visual cue... (Why on earth is that there? Oh, I remember). Not everyone shares our vision... and we are going to have to deal with it one way or another... The shoddy guys wear coveralls (much like ours), have tool boxes (much like ours) and get paid in the same vein as we do.... Unfortunately, the good guys get painted with the same brush as the bad guys all too often. Even having a Journeymans licence is no assurance that workmanship will be acceptable... It's a social problem... perhaps, someday, consumers will rebel.... only to realize that shoddy attitudes are something that have permeated every nook and cranny of the business world and that they, themselves, may be carriers of the "disease". Through it all, we will still be allowed our pride.. and what rewards having that pride may bring. Disclaimer.... in the Fire Service, Las Vegas Fire Chief Allan Brunicinni came up with a model called "fail forward". The basic premise is that sh!t happens. The idea is that we learn from our failures and refuse to repeat them.... no fault - no blame.... unless we demonstrate an inability to learn from our failures....

I'm reminded of a sign I once saw.... "Beer.... helping ugly people have sex for over 100 years....".

There's an "addendum" to that, Kieth... how many guys find something someone else has screwed up and think "OMG, they're gonna think I did that!!! I gotta hide it better!". Plastic parts... everyones favourite... If we break it, we replace it - no questions asked. We don't pass the cost along to our techs but we do remember it happened and we pray that something was learned... If we try to hide something, it can come back to bite us - destroying our integrity in the process. I've broken stuff (I think we all have) and I stand up and say "I broke this".... And that allows me to say "Some @sshole broke this and tried to hide it" without fear of getting any blame. Back in grade school, they taught us the "golden rule"... "Do unto others.....". Sometimes the truth isn't pleasant.... but it's still the truth.

And the front of the 08 SD is a thing of beauty? I've seen auto styling that had to "grow" on me.... Hell, I can remember the Edsel AND the Ford Frontenac (stick that in your bong and light it). Fugly is in the eye of the beholder... Who is going to be the first to say they never took home "11:00 stuff" after a hard night of bar hopping? (Never went to bed with an ugly girl... but I woke up with a few....) or "OMG.... It's 3:30.... I gotta go to work... don't turn on the light when you leave...". She may be fugly... but she swallows, she does windows and she can cook a mean streak.... Denial is such an ugly word....

Not mentioning that was my belated Xmas gift to Larry.... In real life, I LOVE onions.... Bermuda Onions, Videlia Onions, White Onions, Red Onions.... I love 'em all.... I even make Onion sandwiches. Trade Onions are, unfortunately, unpalatable.... even the good ones are no better than the bad ones making it hard to tell what you're buying.... On occasion, you may find a Trade Onion that should have reached full maturity... be sweet and pungent and full of Onion goodness.... only to find out that it remained tart... it's only claim to fame being that it paid it's Onion dues and now feels that it should take it's place amongst the videlias and bermudas.... Is anyone else getting hungry? Onion rings...... must.... have.... Onion rings..... But not Trade Onion rings.... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/poke.gif /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/poke.gif /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/2cents.gif

Mike... this is where it takes a gnarly turn.... When you opened up the HPOP and compared what you saw to the OASIS history... and seeing what Tony has written... what is your gut reaction? You too, Tony... How do you guys feel when you see people milking the system like this? You guys try to be the very best you can ever be.... but you will be judged as if you were the guys that say they did something they didn't.... And the really disgusting part.... any one of us could be working beside the guy that does this kind of shit... I'm pissed off because we aren't treating this the way we should.... Installed a new STC with girdle... and it ain't there? That's f@cking fraud... That's a criminal code offence. Let's chew on that for a bit...

Very good points, Dwayne.... One of the important things we must consider (and this is going to have to be on an individual basis).... "intellectual property". We cart this along with us... just like our hands, our backs and our toolchests... Not as tangible but it shows in our product.... Save your records (something I never did and continue to avoid, for some reason)... A football team hires a quarterback on his scorecard.... Use customers as references.... if a tech has no customers that will do this for him.... what can I say???? Any sane employer is going to ask "Is this person going to be a valuable member of my team?"... they aren't looking for someone to come in and start rocking the boat... but they should be open to fresh ideas... An employer is going to ask "Is this guy going to make me money without bringing too much "overhead" ?". For our part.... we can be swept up in simply looking at a different shop. And forget to ask things that are important to us.... training.... What's available... how easy is it to get? Any pay involved (shouldn't really matter for some stuff - web based courses, for instance - but it can be icing on the cake)? Do you fit in with the rest of the staff.... are they there because it's a job or are they there because they can do well? (Bear in mind... a few sluggards at a store can affect the whole store - we need to learn to separate "difficult" from "impossible"). Is the pay scale in step with your "intellectual property" and your productivity quotient? Somewhere out there, there is a job that you can turn into your dream job... as long as your dream is viable to begin with. Used to be that a signing bonus was a way to entice techs in to stores that were less than "palatable". Now, in western Canada at least, signing bonuses are a way for employers to say... "look at me!!! I'm hiring!!! I'm serious!!!".

I dunno, guys... we can call them ugly or or concentrate on their weaknesses to the point where we forget that people ARE buying them.... and the few people that I know with them are happier with the trucks good points than they are pissed about the bad... And there's a lot of SuperDuty owners around with the same perception. Their trucks still piss them off - but not enough for a brand swap..... yet.... And this is important for us dealer techs to know... because a customers perception of his truck is also affected by our successes and failures.... And our futures as Ford "specialists" can hinge in the balance. I'm always telling guys to "cultivate their retail"... but too many feel they have a captive audience... "I don't have to be good... I got them until the warranty runs out"..... A recipe for disaster, if I ever saw one. Every time you see a Toyota on the street (or a Nissan or whatever brand) - that isn't some sucker that bought sh!t - that's one that "got away". Like fishing, it doesn't take too many to get away to spoil your day on the lake. Full size Japanese trucks? They aren't a joke..... they're a wake-up call....

If you guys supply me with a barrel of Old #7, I'll gladly see that it get's emptied /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/thumbup.gif We leave the same kind of paper trail that many do... Old parts are tagged and returned and the RO is stamped and initialled. If the partsmonger wants the old part to "disappear", I still want the RO stamped and initialled. I have a lot of younger faces in the shop.... Even though I keep after them, we are often side-stepping stuff that should be in the warranty return bins. Nothing quite so strange as watching these kids walk past a garbage can so they can drop stuff on the floor - but that's a whole 'nother topic..

Tony.. I think this may, sadly, be something we will "have to get used to".... We have a high incidence of "transient" labour... crews come in and crews go... consultants in the patch.... new people to town... And so many are unknowingly packing "baggage' from their previous shops.... Most prevalent (and we used to see it too often on the old QuadraJet carbs) is a tech failing to use a back-up wrench when necessary... Lower fan stator bolts, f'rinstance... We sell a LOT of fan stators - and you have a hell of a time convincing someone it wasn't you that broke the old one.... We see too much stuff put together with impact wrenches... leaving difficult to access bolts with damaged heads... or holes with just enough threads left in them to embarrass us... Silicon, crazy glue, mechanics and tape.... all so some speeding dork doesn't have to admit he screwed up....

That's "Molsons", Tony.... iam.ca... eh?

Food for thought.... "OASIS Quick Start"..... No shame in not knowing this.... A simple show of hands and we can open up a wonderful thing. I use it all the time, now... Even deeper.... tell me about TIS.... It's coming, I'm told, on Jan 2nd... Broadcast messages... I read 'em every day.... I pray for memory jogs.... "I dunno.... didja check OASIS?".... this is the sound you will most likely hear from my lips.... This is a knee jerk reaction to almost any question..... "is it snowing out?" <insert answer> "can I borrow????" <insert answer>..... If my loving bride were to ask "are you feeling frisky tonight?"... I would probably answer..... ayup (but not before checking OASIS). Who knows where to find SVBs? TIS is covered in an SVB.... SVB2007-62N if I remember right..... Powerstroke Central - job aids - WBTs - Tech Time ... how many guys have a real good handle on this stuff? I'm not here to embarrass anyone... Like I tell "my" techs.... My main job is to give you the opportunity to be the best that you can ever be... Disclaimers.... I'm a grade 8 dropout..... I'm far from perfect .... my best qualities are desire and wits (well... that and I'm extremely good looking... ask me, I'll tell you...). And I make more than most university grads.... I don't do flushes and I don't cheat my customers. I have my own laptop at work.... nowhere near as useful a I thought it would be... but still an asset.... But we ARE top-heavy in scan tools compared to a lot of shops. We use the Toughbook for our IDSs (two) and have turned on the wireless connections (BONUS!!!). If I've mentioned something anyone doesn't know about, it's not a bad thing... but here's your chance to find out... and look GOOD!!

Check out monster.ca (I think that's what it is). You might be surprised. Canada is a land of opportunity. Western Canada is aching for people. Good people that want to work.... Let's put it this way..... McDonalds is paying $12/hour for burger flippers.... We're paying $18/hour to more than one guy that had to ask what my wheel alignment machine was. A conversation from this afternoon.... "is anything going to come out when I pull that (faulty) block heater out?". "?? yesssssss...". "What?" "Coolant" "How much?" "Most all of it" Gawd help me....

Sorry, Larry... we have a full complement of partsmongers... three plus the parts driver/stock clerk/whatever else comes along girl... Not sure what the pay is these days, but I tried partsmongering at this store for about three years back in early 80s.... $2500/month was the rate back then... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/sick.gif suddenly realized I pay more than that in income tax, now.... /forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/crybaby2.gif

Dwayne... I guess you missed the Edmonton Sun article on Crosstown Motors? 'Bout a month or so ago.... $12G with a one year employment stipulation... Everyone is so hungry for warm bodies that you can damned near write your own ticket if you play on the right team.... Our boss is willing to discuss sign on bonus AND moving expenses with suitable applicants - and I don't see us as having a really high shop turn-over (if the boss would stop with the entry level kids for a while). We were just given a one time $2G tool allowance (hand in your receipts, they photocopy them and give them back with a cheque for what you spent... the "catch"? Continued employment for the next year... fail and you have to pay back a pro-rated amount... Some of the stuff we will probably see in the thread started by Eric Stewart (Yearly Contracts) will probably revolve around the idea of finding a job to keep rather than finding a job that will allow us to find another job. A new employer is going to check out his applicants... wouldn't it stand to reason that an applicant should check out a possible new employer? Some guys seem to spend more time deciding what toppings they want on their pizza... How's the noggin?

Well, then... have a happy birthday.... Doesn't that suck having your birthday and Xmas together? Mines in July and I can always tell what's b'day present and what's Xmas present....

Sorry, Tony... I missed that... to this day, I am still guilty of "flat rate reading"....

Bruce!!!! you just spake of one of those other "no-brainer", "why didn't I think of that?" deals.... Flip the gasket (and the UVC harness) downside up to prove out the wiring and IDM..... This is the stuff that is "too simple" to think of... You da man!!!!

Tony... not sure if you know or not.... When you run the injector self test, the most important tool in the box is your ears.... The self test can only indicate the electrical condition of the injector and it's related circuits. It's vitally important that we listen to the sound that each injector makes.... Some will have a very sharp BZZZT... most will be kinda "medium" but a few will be almost inaudible.... I've never had the opportunity to disassemble one of these down to it's "bare bones".... but I imagine sludge and varnish play a big role in the sound of an injectors response... HTH

Bruce... some of those things that cloud the line between "repair" and "maintenance" are taken on a case by case scenario.... Other stuff is outlined in the warranty and policy manual. Wheel alignment is covered for 12 months/20,000 kms - Fords stance being that if it didn't bother the customer for the first year, why would it bother him now? There have been times where I've machined or replaced rotors for free while the customer pays for the brake pads... I'm sure that this would be dealt with in the W&P manual so I hesitate to add any timeline to it.... As for the mines in the north.... Kingland Ford supplies the techs for one large mine that I know of. IIRC, this is a crew that hires on for this and doesn't not work in their store. I believe they are flown in for a three week tour and have one week off. Perhaps I can entice one of them to sign up and describe life in the mines to us. What I do know.... one reason the Ford is so attractive is the beam front axle... The trucks I have seen from there have the sway bars removed to allow the axle to articulate over rough ground easier....