A new guy at the shop in Toledo showed me a trick with a 0.001 shim

We were setting up a tricky job on an old VMC and I was fighting chatter on a thin wall. This quiet guy named Leo, who just started last month, saw me about to scrap the part. He grabbed a 0.001 brass shim from his box, slid it behind the part in the vise to add support, and the chatter just stopped. I've been doing this for 12 years and never thought of that. What's the best simple fix you've seen someone else use?

3 comments

3 Comments

ninaw883mo ago

My foreman used a rubber band to dampen a rattling coolant line once.

oscarthompson3mo ago

That's the official factory fix... page 47.

dylan2652mo ago

Wait, you really think that's the same as what's on page 47 of the manual? I get what you're saying, but that rubber band trick is just a quick patch, not a real fix. It might stop the rattle for a few days, but it won't last. The factory fix on page 47 uses a proper bracket that actually holds the line steady over time. @oscarthompson is right about that being the official solution. I've seen too many of these quick fixes fall off or cause worse problems down the line. A rubber band will dry rot or snap, and then you're right back where you started. Better to do it once and do it right.