Customer Horror Stories

[Rocket]

There is always the classic AFTO-350 stating the the item (in this case an o-scope) "Does not work in the O-F-F position...". True story! 

[howiesatwork]

Then there was the COMM Squadron at Laughlin AFB.
Real winners.  They were frying the attenuators in TS-510s by transmitting back into them.
Well, we thought we'd same ourselves some work, so the lab installed an external in-line RF fuse.
The bozos would pop the fuse, disconnect the thing at the input, then transmit into them again...
This is with a box of five spare fuses taped to the top of the units... 
I guess they decided it was easier to just burn the units up, rather than replace a fuse.
I never saw a spare fuse used...
We got tired of this and took it up the Chief of Maintenance.   He sent the C.S. 1st Lt. CofM a letter stating he personally was going to pay for the next one.
I guess the Lt. thought it was a joke - until he got the bill.   1st Lieutenants aren't the smartest animals.
We didn't charge him for the next one, but the one after that we did.  No problem after that!

Same bozos couldn't figure out how to get their counter working, as it was in external timebase after calibration.  Maybe they didn't want to work weekends, as it always happened on a Friday.  We wouldn't even receive them, and would make them take them back with them.

[Thraxas]

We got tired of this and took it up the Chief of Maintenance.   He sent the C.S. 1st Lt. CofM a letter stating he personally was going to pay for the next one.
I guess the Lt. thought it was a joke - until he got the bill.   1st Lieutenants aren't the smartest animals.
We didn't charge him for the next one, but the one after that we did.  No problem after that!

Sounds like your Chief really looked after his people. It's nice know that customers don't always get away with the moronic crap.

[LarryH]

We had the Comm Sq fried Spectrum Analyzer story too at Grissom.  On the THIRD time they sent the unit in with "Not reading right amplitude", I called them to remind them of what we talked about just one month earlier, "you are keying your mics into the spec an and blowing a $1000 attenuator."  When I told them it was going to be another two weeks to wait for the parts, they decieded we were not properly supporting them and their mission.  THey called their commander, who called the Air Force Comm commander who called the SAC commander who called our base commander who called the wing commander then the DCM then our commander then our branch chief.  Needless to say, we easily pushed this big pile of shiitte back in their direction.  The guilty TSgt was then stuck with a $6ooo bill for the three repairs.

[Thraxas]

PMEL OLd School.  WHen we ran the frickin base!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It must have been nice...

[Thraxas]

No more stories?

[cs137]

Customer horror story:  Watching a submariner bounce a newly cal'd wallace and tiernen down 3 ladders to the pier. Oh wait... that was a comedy.

[Thraxas]

Customer horror story:  Watching a submariner bounce a newly cal'd wallace and tiernen down 3 ladders to the pier. Oh wait... that was a comedy.

[Thraxas]

Anybody? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?

[MIRCS]

Customer horror story:  Watching a submariner bounce a newly cal'd wallace and tiernen down 3 ladders to the pier. Oh wait... that was a comedy.

How bout walking into the sheet metal shop and seeing all those mics you kept getting out of cycle for not properly working being used as C-Clamps..........................All the calipers from 31A having to be disassembled and cleaned due to all the chips that got into em from being laid in the chip pan until needed.

My all time favorites involve the 3666-10K-1.....too many to list...but here are a few.

Pulled a unit out of the case after it wouldn't operate to find 3" of Lube Oil (good ole yellow)..they had liquid traps, liquid seperators......but no...................................we had to regularly fix these things. With about 11 subs each having these.......well we were busy for quite abit on these items.

My all time favorite was the USS Chicago (SSN-721).......they had turned theirs in and got a new one............well the nukes came by to do the wannual radioactive survey on the shop and..........................BAMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A box full of contaminated fittings. We were shut down for a few days as we removed and had checked by Radcon every pressure fitting in the shop.......................then it began...............the USS McKee Nuclear Inquisition. Man the finger pointing going on in there. We escaped all blame..................never found out what happened to the Chicago people.

[flew-da-coup]

What sub-base did you work at and when?

[MIRCS]

Bangor TRF and San Diego 92-98

Oh yeah I forgot one about thos black sewage pipes of despair..............

The depth gages.......be in the control room and see a post it stuck to the depth gage saying refrence only use the digital..............

[flew-da-coup]

I was at NAVSUBSUPPFAC New London

[Old-Navy]

Ahhhhhh.. the 3666-10K.  When I was on the Hunley we had one come in with the intensifier all broke dick.  I emptied out the intensifier and went to wash my hands.  Funny, the "pink hydraulic fluid" started to get "sudsy". 
Some enterprising young bubblehead thought a good substitute would be HAND CLEANER!  I miss those days

USS Fulton 78 -80
USS Hunley 80 - 84
SubBase Pearl 84 - 87
                        91 - 94

[Old-Navy]

1983, USS U.S. Grant SSBN-631.  Spent two days aligning and cal'ing a King Nut 3605.  Boys picked it up, brought it to the boat, and Seaman Schmuckatelli drops the damn thing from the deck down into the Control Room.  Only time I ever got to RedTag a 3605.  It was actually a beautiful thing they brought back into the Lab 10 minutes later.  My Chief blew a gasket.