Great forum here and a great education! I just picked up a Homelite 150 Automatic model UT 104324, serial number 380600059. It appears to have had little use, is completely old-school as far as safety brake and that sort of stuff, but I put a tank of 50:1 regular gas in it and it fired right up, idled just fine, and cut as well as its not-so-sharp chain could be expected to do. I have a couple of questions as I get to know and trust the saw, and any input is greatly appreciated. 1. Did I injure the engine with a short run of 50:1 fuel, and should the octane be higher than regular fuel? Should I definitely be using a 32:1 mix? 2. How do I know if the automatic oiler is oiling? The oil tank had oil in it, and I topped it off with bar and chain oil: how much oil residue should I see on the bar? 3. Does the safety tip wheel fit onto the roller tip bar on this saw, and can Bill Walcott send me one? 4. Is there a retro-fit toothy-poker plate available to mount on the engine face like more modern saws use? That seems like a good stabilizing/safety device. 5. Is the Oregon 72 the proper chain? The bar protrudes 16 inches past the engine face. Thank you all so much for what you have created here: this has been a great tool! Glen Moore, Seattle WA

deeredoctor, I'm not an engineer (though I did get to sit in the engineer's seat of a locomotive once. 8^) I'm a mechanic (for about 40 years now, started at age 16 and had 1 year in trade school to that vocation). I have an incurable compulsion to read and study and experiment and build and on and on (shut up already!!!!) I have worked as a professional electrician (2 year stint with a good sized electrical contractor in the early 1980s) and as a welder (1 year at trade school to that vocation). You are correct to point out that the OEMs don't always "get it right the first time". I have seen addendums to the addendums of Factory Service Bulletins throughout the years that make you wonder just how many committee members were actually in attendance when the first bulletin was written. You are also correct in that many things do come down to a "matter of choice" in how one does their work/projects and such. I don't want you to think I was belittling you or the work you have done. I just wanted to make sure every reader got the point about what a fuse/fusible link/circuit breaker is needed for and why it really should be a detail to consider when modifying circuits on ANY type of electrical system. Just as I would NEVER suggest anyone remove or defeat any overcurrent device provided by an OEM, neither would I suggest that new or add-on circuits be rendered without addressing the aspect of short circuit/overload protection. Your highlighting the odds of getting struck by lightning are good too. We all know that it could happen and thus don't (I hope) do things to to increase the chances of being a "lightning rod". Glad you mentioned the part about Ford (though probably not the only OEM "guilty" of being off the predicted mark). That their fuse DID NOT prevent every possible scenario shows (at least to me) either the original estimate of amp draw in that circuit was wrong...or somewhere between concept and production, the parameters changed (like maybe the ampacity of those ignition switches or the associated wires on it) and nobody caught that or went back to change the rating of the fuse/fusible link.

This year I'm posting the best list I've found on the net. Certainly reply with any tips you might have to add although this list is quite impressive. The original file for these low-cost equipment/ideas/fixes for Scouting and camping in general was originally found on a F-Net Scouting board and was reposted on Fidonet on Nov 11/92 by Steve Simmons. The file originated with BSA Troop 886 in the USA. 1) Channel lock pliers make good pot holders. 2) Make an oven by lining a moving box with aluminum foil and pushing coat hangers through both sides about half way up the box to form your grill. Put coals in a pan and put the pan on three stones on the bottom of the box. Close the doors (lid) and bake away. 3) Canning rings can be use to cook your eggs in for egg sandwiches. (Works well for English Muffins or Hamburger buns). 4) Nylon rope can be used as shoe laces. 5) Use a large zip lock plastic bag, filled with air, as a pillow. 6) Plastic butter tubs make good storage containers for your camp kitchen. (Not a good idea to use in a backpack). 7) A plastic bottle makes a good latrine for cold weather camping. (You don't have to 'go' very far from your sleeping bag). Keep it just out side the tent flap. 8) An old closed cell foam exercise pad will make a passable sleeping pad. 9) Plastic bottles can be used for canteens. Make sure the lid does not leak before using in a backpack. 10) The pins which hold the backpack and shoulder straps to the frame can be replaced with a small piece of coat hanger threaded through the hole and twisted around itself. 11) Twist ties can be used to hold up another tarp from your dining fly to form a wind screen. 12) A small automotive water hose clamp can be used as a stop for your dining fly's upright poles. 13) Drill a hole in the bottom of nested poles and put a screw in to stop inner poles from sliding out. 14) Short lengths of coat hanger or wire can be threadd through the holes and springs of the summer camp cots to replace the missing springs. 15) Carry several pieces of lumber cut into 2 inch squares to summer camp and use these to level platform, tent and cot. 16) If for health reasons you must sleep on a cot in cold weather insulate yourself from the cold air under the cot with several layers of newspaper. 17) Old shower curtains make great ground clothes. 18) Make a double boiler for melting paraffin from a 1 lb. coffee can and a 2 lb. coffee can. Bend a coat hanger so it will support the 1 lb. coffee can inside the 2 lb. can. Pour some water in the 2 lb. can and put the paraffin in the 1 lb. can. 19) Waterproof matches by dipping in melted paraffin. 20) Make fire starters by filling paper condiment cups with saw dust and pouring paraffin into the cup. 21) Put matches in corrugated cardboard strips (about every other hole) and dip into paraffin for fire starters. Cut off what you need to start a fire. 22) If your hand warmer came without a bag or the bag has been lost, replace the bag with a sock. 23) A length of chain and a piece of coat hanger bent into an S-shape will allow you to hang your lantern from a tree limb. 24) Use a cookie tin as a dutch oven. 25) Keep batteries in an appropriate size prescription bottle to insure that they cannot run themselves down by accident. 26) Prescription bottles make good match safes. 27) Prescription bottles or 35mm file containers make good storage places for small items. 28) Grills from old ovens can be used for fire grills, refrigerator shelves cannot be used as they will release toxic gasses when heated. 29) A frisbee will add support to paper plates when the plate is place inside the frisbee. 30) Make a camp washing machine from a five gallon bucket and a toilet plunger. 31) Placing a plastic garbage bag over logs in a triangle will create a wash basin. 32) Making a slit in a trash bag large enough to let your head through will make an emergency poncho. 33) Laundry lint makes good tinder. 34) Cutting slivers off scrap lumber and heating in the oven to dry out the wood will produce some very dry tinder. Remember to store in plastic bags for your next trip. Save candle stubs for fire starters or to use as paraffin to make other fire starters. 35) Insulate your backpacking stove from the ground in cold weather with a 6" X 6" piece of plywood. 36) Cover the ice in a picnic cooler with foil to help it last longer. Keep the water in your canteen cooler by wrapping the canteen in foil. 37) Use foil ring dividers for frying eggs. Put rings in the greased pan and drop eggs into each ring. 38) Find it hard to put patches on straight ? Tape them in place first with two-sided tape. When you are half-way done sewing, remove the tape. 39) Save a handbook that's getting battered looking by putting on a transparent contact paper cover. 40) Run candle stubs along the edge of a saw to help it glide better. 41) When it comes time to pack up at the end of a camp, a wet toothbrush, face cloth and bar of soap wrapped in foil won't dampen the other things in your kit. 42) To prevent night accidents in camp, use phosphorescent paint to mark the edges of latrines, the top of corner pegs of tents, etc. 43) Before starting to sew a tough material like denim or canvas, stick the needle into a bar of soap. The coating will help the needle slide more easily through the fabric. 44) To make sure you don't sew a pocket together while sewing a badge to the front, slip a jar lid, preferably plastic, into the pocket, then fearlessly sew away. 45) To help shed burrs easily, rub the laces of your hiking boots with paraffin before hitting the trail. 46) Keep a dry bar of soap in your sleeping bag to combat musty odors which develop during damp-season camping. 47) Waxed milk cartons are an excellent source of emergency kindling. Cut cartons into slivers, wrap a bundle of them in plastic and carry them along in your pack. 48) If a Scout has to take medicine, give him a break by letting him suck on an ice cube to numb his tongue before swallowing the vile stuff. 49) Ice cubes are handy when you have to remove a splinter from a hand or foot. Use the ice to numb the area around the splinter before operating. 50) Make your own insect-repelling candle from an ordinary thick candle. Drill a 1" deep hole near the wick, fill the whole with citronella and cover it with melted wax. 51) When handling evergreens or pine cones, they can remove the sticky sap from their hands easily if they use baking soda instead of soap to wash. 52) Water proof matches by dipping them in nail polish. 53) To prevent batteries from wearing down if a flashlight is accidently nudged on while you're traveling, put the flashlight batteries in backwards. 54) Kitchen foil can add extra warmth to your boots. Trace each foot on a piece of foil and add a 5 cm border. Place the foil inside your boots, shiny side up so you benefit from radiant heat. 55) The little plastic tags from bread and bun packages are great for pinning up wet bathing suits and towels at camp, and they take up a lot less packing space than clothespins. 56) To protect your feet from blisters, smear soap on the inside of your inner sock at the heel and underneath the toes. Carry along a bar of soap and, when you feel your feet become tender, give it a try. 57) Wear nylon footies next to your feet to help prevent blisters. 58) To keep mosquitoes away rub the inside of an orange peel on face, arms and legs. 59) Waxed-paper milk cartons have several lives left in them after the milk is gone: - make a drinking cup by cutting off the carton about three inches from the bottom. - make a water scoop by cutting off the top. - cut a container into slivers, wrap them in plastic and put them in your pocket for emergency kindling on a camping or hiking trip. - make a leak-proof mini-garbage can by opening up the top of the container and putting in your scraps. 60) Discarded roll on deodorant bottles make an excellent insect repellent applicator because it enables you to keep 'bug dope' off your hands and out of your eyes. Snap off the plastic top or snap out the ball, rinse out the bottle and refill with your favourite liquid repellant. 61) Make handy fire-starters by filling egg carton cups with lint from the dryer and pouring melted paraffin over the lint. Break the cup off to start each fire. 62) Keep your toilet roll dry by packing it in a coffee tine with a snap-on lid. 63) Remember that mosquitoes and biting flies seem to like dark coloured clothing and the perfumed scents of many grooming products (soaps, shampoos, colognes, etc.) Dress so that you won't attract the biters, and try using unscented grooming aids. 64) Certain fibers can be damaged by insect repellants. Don't apply repellants to spandex (from which bathing suits are made), rayon, or Dynel fabrics. Tent fabrics, plastic and painted surfaces also can be damaged by insect repellents. 65) An insect repellant will not keep bees, wasps, or hornets from stinging you. Your wisest move is one away from stinging pests. 66) Try using a 35mm film cannister when collecting insect specimens. A drop of alcohol makes the canister a fine killing jar. Label the cannister with tape and keep the specimen in it. 67) It is easier to cut plastic containers if you soak them in very hot water immediately before cutting them. 68) Wrap fishing gear in foil to keep line from tangling and hooks from rusting. By lining the compartments of a tackle box with foil, you can prevent rust damage to plugs and other equipment. 69) Wrap a wet washcloth in a foil package and put it into your pack. You'll have a handy 'wet-wipe' for cleaning hands and face after a satisfying camp meal. 70) Foil provides good packaging material for a campers personal toilet articles. 71) Waterproof matches by dipping them in shellac. 72) Tor remove musty smell from canteen, put three teaspoons of baking soda into the canteen with a bit of water. Swish it around and let sit for an hour, then rinse out the canteen. 73) An empty plastic soda bottle, cut off to a convenient height, will work as a camp bowl. You may want to sandpaper the cut to smooth the edge. 74) Make a survival fishing kit out of an empty 35mm film cannister. Wrap fishing line around a small empty thread spool. Tie the end to a fishhook, and place in the cannister. When ready to use, take the spool of line out. Lay the line across the opening of the cannister and snap the lid back on for use as a bobber. 75) Make a fish scaler by nailing metal bottle caps to a wood block. Scrape against side of fish against direction of scales. 76) Make a flag stand using a 2 pound coffee can filled with cement. To make hold, wrap flag pole in wax paper. 77) To conserve rope, mark each length of rope with a distinctive colour and make a rule that the rope is never cut. 78) A rope tied to a bleach bottle with an inch of water in it will make an effective water rescue throw line. 79) Save inner cardboard tubes from kitchen and toilet rolls, stuff with waste paper and use as fire-lighters. 80) Cut a rubber glove, when discarded, into thin strips to create varied rubber bands. 81) Did you know that the egg whites left in empty egg shells makes good glue ? Use it for scrapbooks, etc. 82) When using a bucket for a messy job, line it with a plastic bag which can be thrown away afterwards. 83) Do the handles get hot on those old cooking pots you take camping ? Buy plastic coated fuse wire and make a neat job of winding it all along the handle, tuck the ends in. 84) A large sheet of plastic, carried on long trips, is useful in many ways - from ground sheet to an impromptu tent. Similarly, always carry a folded plastic bag for taking home interesting finds, for carrying water in emergencies, etc. 85) Give your boys a head start on spring. Cut off large plastic bleach or detergent bottles, fill the base with soil and use it as a starter tray for seedlings. 86) Small seedling trays or pots can be fashioned from aluminium foil. 87) Slit a piece of old garden hose lengthwise to use as a sheath for your saw or axe, use twist ties to hold it on the saw blade or axe. 88) Make mini-fuzz sticks from wooden kitchen matches. Leave the heads on to strike the match. (A very sharp knife is a must for this.) 89) Save your wooden kitchen matches after you use them, they can be used as tinder for your next fire. 90) Carry some sanitary napkins in your first aid kit. They are inexpensive, sterile and very absorbent. Use them as compresses to stop bleeding. 91) Pants legs from old jeans can be made into stuff sacks by sewing up one end. 92) A 25-gallon oil drum cut in half (watch for sharp edges) and placed on cinder blocks will make a good fire container when you cannot have fires on the ground or in high winds. A wire mesh can be placed over the top to allow cooking or contain sparks. 93) Soak charcoal briquettes in paraffin to make fire starters. 94) A metal trash can may be used as a water heater by placing it on cinder blocks over a fire. Install a metal faucet near the bottom of the can to make it easier to draw off the water. 95) A pop top liquid soap container can be used to store vegetable oil. (Be sure to make the contents of the container on the outside.) 96) When travelling you can heat frozen T.V. dinners on the manifold of your car. 97) Deepen a shallow pan with heavy duty aluminium foil. 98) Make fire starter from paper condiment cups filled with saw dust and melted paraffin. 99) Waterproof your own matches by dipping them in melted paraffin. 100) Use candle stubs as fire starters. 101) Glue your whetstone to a wood base to hold onto instead of the stone itself. This will help to protect your fingers when sharpening your knife. 102) Use a 9-volt transistor radio battery and fine steel wool to start a fire by laying the steel wool across the battery terminals. 103) (If carrying a battery, make sure the terminals are not crossed by keys, coins, etc. in your pocket by putting it in a large empty medicine bottle.) 104) Put matches in corrugated cardboard strips (about every other hole) and dip into paraffin for fire starters. Cut off what you need to start a fire. 105) Add a cap full of carburetor cleaner to the tank of your white gas stove every once in a while when you fill it. This will help reduce the gum deposits and help keep the generator clean. 106) One of the 2 1/2 gallon compressed air nsect sprayers can be used as a shower, it is not wise to use one that has been used with insecticide. 107) Old worn out nylon tents can be recycled as stuff bags, tent bags, bear bags, etc., with a seam across the bottom and up the side to form a bag. 108) If you want a draw string just sew the top over on itself and thread a thin nylon rope through the hole. Use a coat hanger to do the threading. 109) If you have stored your white gas stove with the fuel in it for a long period of time, empty and refill the tank, water and gum deposits will effect the efficiency of the stove. 110) A couple of drops of vegetable oil can revive the leather or rubber gasket in your lantern or stove long enough for you to finish the trip. Replace the plunger unit as soon as possible as there is a limit to the number of times this trick will work. 111) Use zip-lock bags for mixing foods, be sure it is closed tight and the top is held shut before shaking or kneading. 112) Recycle your torn dining tarps as ground cloths or make stuff sacks out of them. 113) Remember to use seam sealer on any seam to waterproof the sack. 114) Use ski bags to hold your dining tarp, poles, pegs and ropes together. They are relatively inexpensive at the end of ski season. 115) Aluminium foil can be shaped into bowls, cups, plates, etc. in an emergency or for ease of cleaning. Rember to recycle the used utensils. 116) Duct tape can be used to repair most everything on a trip. Use it to patch tents, mend poles, hold up schedules, patch torn shoes, hold poles for mosquito nets to cots, etc. 117) Make a box for your binder's twine. String the twine through a hold in the top of the box. This will keep you from having multiple ends and tangling. Mark the box in inches so twine can be measure to reduce waste. 118) Mark your dining tarps dimensions on the edge so you know which tarp is which without having to unfold them. 119) If you want to make some tin can stoves, pans, pots, etc., a good source of the large tin cans are restaurants, cafeterias, and catering services. 120) When making your own equipment it is an idea to prototype the design in cardboard or paper to get an idea of the size you want. When sizing, remember that smaller boys will also have to move and use the equipment. Keep it as small and light as possible. 121) Melt snow in a black trash bag by filling the bag with snow and laying the bag in direc usn. (Water can be warmed up by the same method.)

I want to know what is the matter with the mechanics, especially at the dealerships - Chrysler Dodge Jeep to be exact? This scenario is lengthy to say the least! I had the radiator flushed and pressure tested at the local Chrysler dealership who has been servicing my Jeep since my purchase in 2004, last tested and flushed two years ago @ 64,000 miles because I was experiencing pouring coolant into the reservoir every time I turned around. Funny thing was there was no evidence as to where it was going because it didn't show up on the ground. I kept asking, "Where's it going, back into the engine?" Chrysler looked all over under the car and couldn't locate any drips! Funny thing is a few months later when I became extremely aggitated with the local Chrysler mechanic, and the problem worsened and when I took it back to the local Chrysler dealership, they stated nothing was found once again, I took it to a supposedly 5-star Chrysler dealership in another town, and I was informed there was a hole in the radiator. The local Chrysler service manager said, as I thought he would, "You could have gotten a hole just from driving from here to there if a stone popped up." Jeeps have a grille that protects the radiator. I was advised by friends to go to a local mechanic so I had a new aluminum radiator installed (2 yr warranty on parts only). I was still adding coolant and kept complaining to Chrysler and the local mechanic. All of a sudden, all the lights came on the dash, I popped the hood and checked the coolant - it was empty. Checked the radiator after it cooled down and there was no coolant - it was all on the ground. Called the local mechanic who said to take the car to his shop right away. So, a friend filled the radiator and reservoir as full as possible since it came out as fast as put in, so I could quickly drive 5 miles down the road. The plug popped out of this new radiator. And, by the way, the local mechanic swore the radiator was a Chrysler product, yet the Chrysler mechanic couldn't find any emblems that would indicate that fact. The coolant leak continued, now putting coolant in every few days. The local mechanic said it was going to the floorboard under the mat on passenger side because I need a new heater core. Do you see where this is going? After that installation, the coolant still needed to be added every 5-8 days. I was advised that is normal until things get back to normal flow. Now my dash was not reinstalled properly and I have flapper air ducts added to my console in front of the manufacture air ducts that the local mechanic stated was part of my system and it was always there, a busted speaker, a resistor that has since been replaced because I was advised by the local mechanic that is why the A/C and Htr were sporadically operating. Meanwhile the coolant is still being added by me every 5-8 days, and once in a while sooner as soon as all the lights come on and I find the reservoir is empty. The out of town Chrysler mechanic looked at the underneath when I showed them pictures of the puddles in my driveway, and advised me the undercarriage is showing no signs of dripping. The next morning, the drips caused even a larger puddle overnight that I took pictures again. the local Chrysler dealer mechanic installed a new heater hose that was supposedly defective (but I asked for all hoses and belts to be replaced at 100k miles and was told they were all fine and the local mechanic replaced the upper and lower radiator hoses). I still was adding coolant every 10 days or less. Finally, after nearly a year of putting up with the incompetency of the mechanics, I demanded a new radiator from the local mechanic who did not guarantee his labor. Mind you, the dripping was now larger than just puddles in the aluminum tray under the car in my carport. I picked up my car this morning, except it needed jumping because the service rep at the Chrysler dealership advised me the WalMart 1 year old battery with a 3-yr life expectancy (3rd replacement in 5 yrs) is bad. Walmart tested the battery with the hand held tester then took the battery out and retested, and it was fine. So, I replaced the connectors to see if that would make a difference. I drove it home, parked it in my carport, went in the house for a few minutes after turning off the engine, and what did I see after 4 hrs of having my SUV in my possession, but new coolant on the white towel I placed on the carport to catch the residue the local Chrysler mechanic told me I would most likely experience. The radiator removed yesterday was returned to the local mechanic, who turned it into the parts supply house for a replacement. The local mechanic was extremely insulting when I advised him today that I was returning the 2nd radiator for a complete refund because both radiators blew at the seams (the clamps holding the radiator's aluminum wires in tact-1st radiator on the right and the 2nd one on the left). The local Chrysler mechanic pressure tested the last radiator and checked under the carriage and saw no leaks before he released it to me. When he pressure tested it upon my return, we could hear water running and see it squirting all over the top of the radiator. I thought my radiator experience starting more than 2 yrs ago was highly unusual, but what do I know? The local mechanic, at my insistance, called the parts supplier - refund will be delivered in a few days and the radiator will be collected. In the meantime, I sit with no radiator and a dilemma. I saw white drops all over the previous radiator and this last one that was removed today. When inquiring of the local Chrysler mechanic and service rep, when I picked up the last removed radiator to deliver to the local mechanic, I was advised that it was nothing, just splatterings. Chrysler parts dept ordered a new radiator from 1-800-radiator because the price was $200 compared with nearly $400 if I ordered a Chrysler radiator. I paid Chrysler $285 for labor including coolant to install the previous radiator that the local mechanic wanted $300+. The removal was free today, but I paid for a rental car now for 2 days. When Napa quoted me $150 today for their radiator with a lifetime guarantee, I immediately called 1-800-radiator to see how much I would have had to pay, instead of Chrysler, for that radiator. The salesperson knows mechanics and warned me, after I told him briefly my dilemma of installing another radiator, and he advised me about electrolysis and the cost will be on me if that is the culprit for my radiator problems. After researching on the Internet, I am now thinking there is something to that analyzation. I've been complaining about an electrical problem for a very long time - more than 2 yrs., but no one found anything wrong; and as I said, the battery has not lasted its warranty periods, and yesterday the license plate connector was burnt. Supposedly, after uninstalling an after market alarm system the previous owner had installed, it was to prevent any electrical problems from occurring. I replaced the heater core about 6 months ago, which three years ago the local Chrysler dealership replaced as well. Do you see the picture? Who in the hell can I trust with my vehicle if the two dealerships don't know what they are doing when one of them is a 5-star????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????????? Any ideas? I even tried to get Chrysler Corp involved. The next thing I knew the Service Manager was replaced with another, but I didn't get anywhere else with them, no recoup. The next thing is BAR and BBB for all four of them including Chrysler Corporate!!!!!!!! And, maybe Fox investigative team would like to hear about this!!!!! What do you think? I had a similar problem with my rear differential, and although I complained to Chrysler Corp because I had just paid for the differential service 6 months prior and they should have seen the metal flakes. Now, I read that the crankcase and metal flakes can have something to do with the electrical system and grounding that can also cause electrolysis in the radiator. WOW!!!!!!