I’m a DIYer and love working on equipment and I’ve got a two-part question: are there particular jobs that home mechanics mess up that y’all end up having to fix later? If so, what things are usually wrong with what the DIYer did or missed that they should have done or should’ve done differently?
DIYers get stuck on seized spark plugs, sheared off valve cover bolts or complex repairs like timing chain or head gaskets.
Common sense isn’t always common. For example it’s critical to check a cylinder head for cracks/warpage when changing head gasket, it’s critical to bleed brakes/cooling system properly, and don’t try to torque valve cover bolts to 30 ft/lbs because they will shear off.
98% of my sheared bolts are from torque wrench misuse… “Hmmm this doesn’t feel right but it hasn’t clicked yet”
A little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing.
I’ve done this on my own designs. Never done it with anything that had a torque spec, but I made the mistake of looking at the wrong table for the wrong metal and stripped the threads right out of something I’d tapped. I felt like an idiot afterwards. :P