How something easy becomes a mpia

[GOLDCYLON]

Originally Posted by ScottZ95ZR1

my fat butt wasn't sitting up on the plenum like Marc does when it came time to remove the MAP sensor bracket.

Yeah I said wow thats a way however not me me as well for the same reason lol

[scottfab]

Originally Posted by captcorvette

Been there. Done that. Got the T-shirt. Seen the movie, and read the book. None of which helped me to not drop stuff. Sometime in my late '50's I noticed that my dexterity wasn't what it used to be and neither was my sense of touch. Mental note! Be careful as you will be prone to drop stuff! Didn't help.
(snip)

Ain't it the truth about "sense of touch".
I now grab things and apply a little more force than my muscle memory thinks I need. Helps to an extent.

In my 30s I had a 73 454bb. After rebuilding the engine I dealt with an annoying rattle in the exhaust the would come and go.
Then one day while under there I used a BIG rubber hammer to pound on the exhaust right after the manifold. That found it.
I pulled the exhaust right at the doughnut and bingo......
there was a 7/16in wrench. !!!
MORAL OF THE STORY....
It's not the ones you drop and know it that's a POS.
It's the ones you drop and don't know it !!!

[mike100]

I used to be in the trade and even with experience, you will lose some stuff from time to time. I replaced my map sensor bracket screws with conventional 10mm bolt heads after I lost one of those. I found the one I lost about a week later on my garage floor.
Another time, more recently, I lost one of the small nuts for the throttle cable cover. I didn't even try to find it. I know it fell out on the street somewhere- I need to try to find another one- or maybe a similar pair with the same thread.

[XfireZ51]

I wish I had $5 for each time I said, "Oh this will take just a few minutes" and 3 hours later....

[Paul Workman]

Putting my air ratchet on one of the 10mm bolts on the water pump to remove it...and have the back of the wrench (the place where the key is to change direction) slam up tight against that box frame piece that runs across there...turned a simple 2-hour water pump change out into a 6 hour ordeal!!!

As a kid, I was replacing pistons in my 327 SBC. I was using a metal pan to keep all the bolts together. But, un-beknownst to me, my practical joker dad put a big 7/16 x 5" bolt in the pan with the rest of my bolts. When I get all done (I think) assembling the bottom of the motor, here's this big bolt left over...WTH!!

Dad still gets a chuckle out of it, every time it comes up.

[vilant]

Originally Posted by Paul Workman

Putting my air ratchet on one of the 10mm bolts on the water pump to remove it...and have the back of the wrench (the place where the key is to change direction) slam up tight against that box frame piece that runs across there...turned a simple 2-hour water pump change out into a 6 hour ordeal!!!

As a kid, I was replacing pistons in my 327 SBC. I was using a metal pan to keep all the bolts together. But, un-beknownst to me, my practical joker dad put a big 7/16 x 5" bolt in the pan with the rest of my bolts. When I get all done (I think) assembling the bottom of the motor, here's this big bolt left over...WTH!!

Dad still gets a chuckle out of it, every time it comes up.

Lol, that's a pretty good one. I'll have to remember that for when my son gets older

[Mystic ZR-1]

Today that would be child abuse...

[tomtom72]

Okay, I'm sure glad I'm not the only one that has the dropseys or the ability to turn a seemingly easy job into a monumental job!

[QB93Z]

I try to remember to stuff a shop rag between the engine and the firewall when I am removing the Map sensor (or other bolts near bottomless voids). When the rag is there I rarely drop the bolt. Forget the rag and I will drop it for sure.

Jim

[A26B]

In reading these posts, I thought "How cool is this? We all love working on our ZR-1's and even enjoy sharing our snafu's with each other!"

In the last few(quite a few in fact) years, that I'm working more by touch & memory on some of these "close" jobs. my near vision ain't what it used to be & my fingers should have come with some lube zerks.

I laughed at Paul's jammed air wrench..... but only because I did the same thing. It's a real problem when you can't reach the rachet reverse. It is one of those never forgotten lessons though.

BTW: I do have those little MAP bolts & throttle cover nuts & throttle cable screws, etc.