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As I was busy in the lab tonight, a young boy working through the temp service came in and asked me where the metal stretcher was. Turns out the production supervisor had sent him in search of it. After a REAL good laugh from the whole shift, I got to thinking about all of the "fools errands" that youth have been sent in search of.

What are some of the errands that y'all have been sent on or that you have been in search of? I KNOW that there are some funny stories out there.

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I was sent for the "left handed smoke shifter" in boy scouts. Went where they "last saw it" looked and said it wasnt there. Then they sent me to search the adjacent cabin, and I realized it didnt exist, so I grabbed my gear and went fishing. Ended up with 3 brook trout! Delicious!

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At school we asked the one girl to find blinker fluid for the teacher's truck, she actually got a phone book and called NAPA about it. haha.gif

 

We also had the freshmen looking for the metal stretcher all year, and all over the school.

 

We had one help us bleed the brakes on a lathe.

 

We had a few thinking there was such a thing as a wooden welding rod.

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As I was busy in the lab tonight, a young boy working through the temp service came in and asked me where the metal stretcher was. Turns out the production supervisor had sent him in search of it. After a REAL good laugh from the whole shift, I got to thinking about all of the "fools errands" that youth have been sent in search of.

What are some of the errands that y'all have been sent on or that you have been in search of? I KNOW that there are some funny stories out there.

 

Joke's on the production super and all the rest of you who laughed at him:

 

http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/metal-shrinkerstretcher-combo-p-15013.aspx?gclid=CKTmo__7oboCFS9eQgodnjIAlw

aluminum file

 

" it was in the basement next door the last time I saw it "  is a good answer for them

 

http://www.simondsinternational.com/files/amp-aluminumflat.php?menu=mnuPFiles

 

In aviation, the classic search item is a can of prop wash.

Edited by Netpackrat
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From the Military side...

Send a troop to supply for chemlight batteries.

Send them to Airfield Ops for 500' of flightline.

Send them to the Aviation guys for a bucket of prop wash.

Back in the day when they painted water towers on Military installations with an orange and white checkerboard pattern, send a guy to get THAT checkerboard paint.

I'm sure I'll think of more. Hopefully someone else chimes in with more.

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Prick E-5, LOL


Grid squares

 

Keys to the basement(no basement)

 

HMMWV keys(military HMMWVs don't need a key to start, at best they have a steering wheel lock)


As I was busy in the lab tonight, a young boy working through the temp service came in and asked me where the metal stretcher was. Turns out the production supervisor had sent him in search of it. After a REAL good laugh from the whole shift, I got to thinking about all of the "fools errands" that youth have been sent in search of.

What are some of the errands that y'all have been sent on or that you have been in search of? I KNOW that there are some funny stories out there.

p37300.jpg

Metal shrinker/stretcher


http://www.messybeast.com/dragonqueen/fools-errands.htm

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Back in the construction days I always send the new guys to get me a coffee.. 

 

"Oh crap, the single setter (or other made up tool) needs a flush... The fluid is in my truck under the seat in what looks like a old thermos... Also bring the white paper bag, it has the filters, be careful and don't open the bag"

 

Just as annoying, but at least I got my coffee and doughnut out of it.. 

 

 

And a metal stretcher actually exists in many forms.. One is the sheet metal one. But there is also a larger one that stretches bar to a different size. And there is always the folding emergency stretcher which some shops have around for moving an injured person..

 

 

I've always been baffled that people will go looking for something that they have no description of.. Probably why I've never had this done to me.. I always would ask color and rough size.

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I've sent new guys to fetch me a metric crescent wrench a few times. Or for variety, a left hand box-end wrench.

 

My uncle once had an emergency on his boat which was a stern picker. He had to clear some gear on the back deck and do a high speed manoever to re arrange how his gear was attached. His wife asked how she could help so he unsnapped a bouy from the rail and told her in an urgent tone to hold out in front of the bow. She laid there clinging to the bow holding the bouy for about 20 minutes before she caught on. 

 

Tangentially, new owners of aluminum boats or crewmen sometimes talk about how salty they are. If that happens, you ask them if they've still got their "lucky bilge penny." If they bite, instantly make up some ancient tradition on the order of the crossing of the equator stuff about how all fishermen keep a penny in their bilge as tribute. People with aluminum boats should be able to figure this one out.


Dang. someone else posted the metric wrench while I was typing.


And these are by far the best files for aluminum: http://www.amazon.com/Aircraft-Tool-Supply-Nicholson-Vixen/dp/B005VR56SI

 

Great for cleaning up edges before welding. They look way too agressive, but one you get a feel for them, nothing is faster or smoother.

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Sent for a "wall-stretcher" when I was 18. The company owner "clued me in" and told me to go back to work.

 

Propwash and 500' feet of flightline, while in the USAF.... Most guys never fell for those.

 

How about the "studfinder" that always points at me!

 

Or the "manual nail gun".... (Used when the air-driven nail gun breaks).

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I've always been baffled that people will go looking for something that they have no description of.. Probably why I've never had this done to me.. I always would ask color and rough size.

Thats where I should of caught on, I asked for explanatons of its appearance, and answers were obviously vague. Is it veryome's experience that people dont ask questions?

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And these are by far the best files for aluminum: http://www.amazon.com/Aircraft-Tool-Supply-Nicholson-Vixen/dp/B005VR56SI

 

Great for cleaning up edges before welding. They look way too agressive, but one you get a feel for them, nothing is faster or smoother.

 

Concur.

 

 

My father is a jealous hoarder of vixen rasps. Fear for your life if you contaminate his clean one that is reserved for welding prep.

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I got a gullible little guy at work, Scott Miller, actually feeling sorry for the endangered nauga. A real bleeding heart liberal who thinks he's smart and superior. He bought it hook line and sinker. The nauga is the hairless male of the species, prized for its skins, used to make naugahyde while the female, known as the faux, is highly sought after for it's thick, luxurious fur. I was taking up donations to ban their senseless, brutal slaughter. You see, they are very trusting, and, even in the wild can be walked up to and picked up to be petted, (they love that) which hunters easily do, then either club them or break their necks. The rest of the guys at work backed me up and regaled him with many stories, describing the faux and nauga, and their habits. It was about 3 or 4 days before he caught on. We had a great time. Him? Not so much. He got really mad at me and sulked around about it, embarrassed for being too stupid to catch on. biggrin.png

Edited by patriot
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My father is a jealous hoarder of vixen rasps. Fear for your life if you contaminate his clean one that is reserved for welding prep.

 

 

Well, you can use them for that, but they have a much higher purpose in life...  A light pass with a vixen cut file will highlight high spots on sheet metal, without removing a significant amount of metal, so that it can be worked smooth.  In fact, the file itself can become a metal shrinking tool in skilled hands.  I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes.

 

Here is a picture of metal master Kent White using the acetylene torch and a vixen cut body file to remove a big crease from one of the doors for my MGA:

 

mgadoor1.jpg

 

And here is an after pic.  Kent assured me that the remaining little bit of crease could be removed given more time and effort, but that was outside the scope of the demonstration for the metalworking workshop.  But what he did will make the difference between having great gobs of filler (as it was before), and just a very small amount of filler.

 

mgadoor2.jpg

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I got a gullible little guy at work, Scott Miller, actually feeling sorry for the endangered nauga. A real bleeding heart liberal who thinks he's smart and superior. He bought it hook line and sinker. The nauga is the hairless male of the species, prized for its skins, used to make naugahyde while the female, known as the faux, is highly sought after for it's thick, luxurious fur. I was taking up donations to ban their senseless, brutal slaughter. You see, they are very trusting, and, even in the wild can be walked up to and picked up to be petted, (they love that) which hunters easily do, then either club them or break their necks. The rest of the guys at work backed me up and regaled him with many stories, describing the faux and nauga, and their habits. It was about 3 or 4 days before he caught on. We had a great time. Him? Not so much. He got really mad at me and sulked around about it, embarrassed for being too stupid to catch on. biggrin.png

 

Good one. You could make him feel a bit better and give him a memento.... http://www.naugahyde.com/promoitems_nauga.html

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