So was there ever a thread “worst mistake I ever made” ?

[Wedg1e]

I loath and detest baling heavy hay crops rowed up with an Acrobat. Worst things in the world like ever!!!


I lost a cheap Timex auto wind watch in the early seventies, baling hay on my then Dads farm. I was about 14/15. Took it off cuz I was delving into the intricacies of Rasper? Knotters on an MF 20 baler. Left it on the bale chamber I think.

About 15 or 20 years later it was ploughed up by someone else and it got back to me.


Wound it up and it worked.

I lost a fountain pen on my way to school only a few weeks after starting the comprehensive. Looked up and down this grass verge for ages, I knew exactly where it had fallen, couldn't see it.
Five years later, mere weeks before O-levels, whilst walking on the same path a council ride-on lawnmower was coming towards us, trimming the verge.
Spat the fountain pen out almost at my feet. Not a mark on it, and with fresh ink it was fine. I'm pretty sure I still have it somewhere...

 

[Wedg1e]

Anyway, in the spirit of the thread, do ex-wives count?

 

[8ob]

Anyway, in the spirit of the thread, do ex-wives count?

Only the ones that went to school

Bob

 

[500e]

Apprentice first job alone at a Vauxhall dealers row of Victor's 6 of them there to fit radios read instructions measure for aerial hole in front wing drill all 6 with 1/8 hole then big drill to fit Ae all OK big drill was a bit strange going through but now to put the Ae in can't find the hole wrong side or right on closing plate under wing no access, luckily was only spot welded one side big hammer wait till foreman was other end of workshop or in office, never sweated so much before or after
,

 

[northwest]

Anyway, in the spirit of the thread, do ex-wives count?

I was wondering how long it would be before @Matt-H had an honourable mention.

Anyhow, here is one for those of you up in Teesside. A guy I knew really well was running Cock O' the North car sales on Portrack lane, remember that? I was helping out during the holidays (anything to get away from the family business) and this guy came in wanting a car as he had just moved up from Birmingham. The guy running the place decided to sell him one of the rather dodgy ones that all had an MOT but the same car had been taken three times, with different plates on.

Long story short, the guy drives off with his purchase: Day one, breaks down. Day two, breaks down, you see the pattern? Anyhow the plan was we were told to fob him off when he called. Listening to Radio Tees later in the morning, the announcer, who had a brummie accent invited "all the lads at Cock O' the North Car Sales" to take a look at his car. Which had broken down. Again. This was quickly rectified by the boss giving him a really nice motor:-)

Although I wasn't involved directly in this it taught me a very good life lesson.

 

[Red'n'Black]

I was wondering how long it would be before @Matt-H had an honourable mention.

Anyhow, here is one for those of you up in Teesside. A guy I knew really well was running Cock O' the North car sales on Portrack lane, remember that? I was helping out during the holidays (anything to get away from the family business) and this guy came in wanting a car as he had just moved up from Birmingham. The guy running the place decided to sell him one of the rather dodgy ones that all had an MOT but the same car had been taken three times, with different plates on.

Long story short, the guy drives off with his purchase: Day one, breaks down. Day two, breaks down, you see the pattern? Anyhow the plan was we were told to fob him off when he called. Listening to Radio Tees later in the morning, the announcer, who had a brummie accent invited "all the lads at Cock O' the North Car Sales" to take a look at his car. Which had broken down. Again. This was quickly rectified by the boss giving him a really nice motor:-)

Although I wasn't involved directly in this it taught me a very good life lesson.

Wasn't there some TV advert along the same lines a few years ago? But set on some Caribbean island, not Oop North.

 

[4String.]

Then there was the time when I went to the long gone Camford (Pre Star) Engineering in Bedford to collect a press.

Boss gives me a line with the serial number of said press and tells me it's one of a pair he's bought, about 50 tons each, both laid down ready to load, "...and ffs make sure you get the right one. I've sold the other one straight from site and Heanor Haulage should be there to collect it so keep an eye on them"

I duly arrive at Camford, back in and load the press, chain it down and wrestle with the sheets. Job done, just about to head north when I had a pang of doubt so I crawled under the sheet and sure enough, wrong one . Off with the sheets and chains then back to the foreman's office for a slice of humble pie . Numerous hours later I arrive back in Sheffield and the Boss asks if I had any problems, "Not at all" says I trying not to blush. "Oh" says the Boss laughingly, "The foreman down there rang me to let me know you were loaded and on your way and he must have confused you with another blue and white Scania pulling a 4 axled low loader that went in to collect a press for me....." Got a lot of stick for that and had to stand the first round in the local that night .

And there was the time I went into a works in Trawden in Lancashire (shudder ) to load a planer. About 30 tons, we had to jack this one up and skate it outside to load with a mobile crane. Heading for the doorway I noticed that the main 3" oil return pipe that ran down the outside of the bed would hit the door so as the machine was scrap anyway I put the torch through it, failing to realise that it had residue in it. As soon as the torch cut through the inner skin of the pipe there was an enormous bang and a flash and a cloud of smoke. I carried on regardless and it was only when I got home that I noticed I had no eyebrows or eyelashes...

 

[mike os]

7 years ago this week, took on a job I didn’t really need but it would have led to a lot more work. Instead I nearly cut my right hand off and had 18 months off work

 

[mtt.tr]

Haven't really got anything worthy of mentioning, by nature im pretty cautious so will spend a long time checking and double checking.



Only real cock ups involve motorbikes, like the time i decided to jump a humpback bridge missing the car hidden at the bottom, made contact at abot 40mph after braking.

Fairing blew apart, front wheel met the engine block, i launched over the rear of the and landed 2m from the bike.

By some good luck i was absolutely fine, and he even better the chap wasn't insured so i never had any come back, just had my bike to repair.

 

[Morrisman]

Getting married when I knew damn well I didn’t want to. I knew it was the wrong thing to do,I knew I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life with the girl, but I felt sort of obliged to as we had been together several years already. In the end it all fell apart, years later, cost me a fortune, both financially and mentally, the biggest mistake, and the biggest regret I’ve ever had.

 

[James1979]

Haven't really got anything worthy of mentioning, by nature im pretty cautious so will spend a long time checking and double checking.



Only real cock ups involve motorbikes, like the time i decided to jump a humpback bridge missing the car hidden at the bottom, made contact at abot 40mph after braking.

Fairing blew apart, front wheel met the engine block, i launched over the rear of the and landed 2m from the bike.

By some good luck i was absolutely fine, and he even better the chap wasn't insured so i never had any come back, just had my bike to repair.

Go big or go home Matt!!!

If that was me I’d have got shafted for his new car and about 15 passengers with whiplash :/

All my big Frank Spencer moments and most of my broken bones are bike related but off road

 

[Bravheart]

Signing up to this forum!!!!
Right friggin offput of time

 

[Bryan Williams]

I loath and detest baling heavy hay crops rowed up with an Acrobat. Worst things in the world like ever!!!


I lost a cheap Timex auto wind watch in the early seventies, baling hay on my then Dads farm. I was about 14/15. Took it off cuz I was delving into the intricacies of Rasper? Knotters on an MF 20 baler. Left it on the bale chamber I think.

About 15 or 20 years later it was ploughed up by someone else and it got back to me.


Wound it up and it worked.

Takes a lickin, keeps on tickin!

 

[Bryan Williams]

Just a quick one, don't ever get curious as to what is inside an inertia reel seat belt mechanism.

 

[RWD3M]

Back in the late '70's, relatively fresh out of my apprenticeship, I got sent to the North of Scotland to work on the last of the sports models, the Hawker Hunter.

I got tasked one evening to reseal an air conditioning pipe inside the fuselage, just behind the cockpit. A simple task that required the loosening of a connection using a couple of 'C' spanners, popping out the old seal, and putting a new one in. Simples! Of course I'd been shown previously how much easier it was to just go in through a tiny access panel with a long screwdriver and give it a couple of taps with a hammer rather than remove two much larger panels to gain access with said 'C' spanners. Obviously, the screwdriver slipped off the connection and went straight through the thin walled aluminium pipe

Now, when Hawker built these aircraft I swear, they began with that pipe, hanging it in the jig with a couple of pieces of string and then building the entire plane around it!

It was another 3 days before that aircraft came out of the hangar. I did a lot of overtime on account of that one.

 

[grim_d]

Now, when Hawker built these aircraft I swear, they began with that pipe, hanging it in the jig with a couple of pieces of string and then building the entire plane around it!

It's remarkable how they cram pipes and stuff in these tubes

 

[RWD3M]

It's remarkable how they cram pipes and stuff in these tubes

Oh yeah, no space wasted!

 

[Munkul]

When I was an apprentice, I was working on a slurry roller press overhaul, and i dropped a bolt into the gearbox. The gearbox sump was 5 feet deep, and the press was almost reassembled, 100's of man-hours of work. Told my chargehand, and went home friday night feeling bad, but not impossibly so. They decided to fish with a magnet until they found the bolt.
Sunday afternoon, got a phone call... "Are you SURE you dropped a bolt in there? We've been fishing for your bolt for 16 hours!" To which I replied, yes, I'd 100% seen it drop in, it was one of those slow motion moments as the bolt went flying and I saw it bounce and land in one of the access holes.
The press went back into operation, no problems.
The press has since been overhauled twice more, no-one has found "my" bolt, and they clean the sumps out to spotless clean.

I still swear to this day I saw that bolt drop into that gearbox sump! My theory is that it came out with the next oil draining!

 

[Bornfree]

All my big Frank Spencer moments and most of my broken bones are bike related but off road

Mine all started on road but ended off it.

 

[Cobbler]

I lost a cheap Timex auto wind watch in the early seventies, baling hay on my then Dads farm. I was about 14/15. Took it off cuz I was delving into the intricacies of Rasper? Knotters on an MF 20 baler. Left it on the bale chamber I think.

About 15 or 20 years later it was ploughed up by someone else and it got back to me.


Wound it up and it worked.

reminds me of the late 60s joke,
they have found Donald Campbell’s body ............. & his Timex watch was still going
Who remembers the Timex advert with the watch tied to the lifeboat prop?