[img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] I am by nature a "fixer". I'll drill out the holes and tap them to a larger size and find screws that fit and that will hold the case together instead of tossing a drill in the trash. And even THEN when I do toss a drill I salvage the final drive arbor and the chuck to use as an extension. So that's kind of my approach to stuff; tossing it is a last resort. HOWEVER, there are limits to everything, and sooner or later I have to be "hard" or I would need a much bigger place to park all this stuff. It is getting so hard to find "good" stuff; stuff that isn't made in China to the lowest standards of quality; that auction sales and even antique stores have become my prime sources for good tools. [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] There ARE some things that you can rebuild endlessly, so unless getting a new clothes dryer is key to enhancing your r'lationship, don't buy a new one. The washer, on the other hand is way more pesky to fix, and unless it's something simple, you're probably going to have to get it repaired by others, or replace it. [img]/forums/images/icons/frown.gif[/img] MOST power tools have either bad brushes, or a bearing has gone dry. Both of those problems can be fixed fairly easily as long as the tool wasn't otherwise damaged. I find that when I bring a drill or a saw home from an auction sale, that it is best to take it apart, clean it up, and repack the bearings. I also make any repairs to the cord or outright replace it before the cord can give trouble. Usually people wind the cord too tightly around the tool and wreck the strain relief section. [img]/forums/images/icons/frown.gif[/img] Older table saws with cast iron tables are usually worth fixing, HOWEVER, on some models the motors are special-to-that-tool and replacements are hard to come by. Just about any air compressor is worth fixing as long as the tank isn't rusted to where it will "pinhole" soon. You can buy a two-cylinder compressor, with flywheel, for anywhere from a hundred to three hundred depending on how big it is, and how many stages it has. [img]/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif[/img] I know it's a greasy mess, but nothing can restore the power of a conventional in-line or Vee configuration car or truck engine like replacing the timing chain and sprockets. That is one "fix" that will convince you to keep the vehicle for another hundred thousand miles. If you have a water pump seal go out, and you have to "go in" anyway, consider replacing the timing chain. [img]/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif[/img] Home air conditioners will run for ages and ages if you get out there and wash out the coils real good and clean up the interior of the condensing unit so it can handle the air better. A condenser fan motor is less than a hundred bucks, and you can pay for a set of refrigeration service gauges and the freon pretty easily by adding gas yourself when you give the unit it's the annual pre-season physical exam. [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] Some kitchen stuff is worth working on and some isn't. I have a Sunbeam Radiant Control Toaster that I just used this morning. This toaster was bought new by my parents in 1956, and I have overhauled it twice. I overhauled my Bunn coffee pot twice before it was too beat to go any farther. Mainly I had to remove deposits and touch up the electrical. Vacuum cleaners are easy to get parts for so if the unit is a good one, it's worth fixing. Also, when you see one sitting by the curb for the junk man; stop and cut the cord off of it. THEN go get a nice caged trouble light and put the newly-acquired vacuum cleaner cord on THAT. [img]/forums/images/icons/crazy.gif[/img]
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