Honestly, those apps are more trouble than they're worth half the time. I’ve had better luck just grabbing a handful of fittings and matching them up by eye. Once spent a good chunk of my lunch break trying to ID a weird elbow—turns out it was from some old irrigation system, not even plumbing. My shortcut now? Keep a small caliper in the toolbox and measure the threads directly. Not perfect, but it saves me from wild goose chases with outdated catalogs or glitchy apps. Sometimes old-school methods just work better.
Sometimes old-school methods just work better.
Yeah, I hear you. Those apps always seem to freeze up right when you need 'em most. I keep a thread pitch gauge in my bag for the weird stuff, but sometimes I just end up eyeballing it too. Ever run into those random fittings where even the caliper doesn't help because the threads are so chewed up? Wondering if there's a trick for those or if it's just trial and error at that point.
If the threads are mangled beyond recognition, I’ve honestly just grabbed a handful of random fittings and tried ‘em till something felt right. Not the most scientific, but sometimes you gotta MacGyver it. I’ve even used plumber’s tape to fudge a fit once or twice... not proud, but it worked.
I’ve honestly just grabbed a handful of random fittings and tried ‘em till something felt right. Not the most scientific, but sometimes you gotta MacGyver it.
Been there, done that. Last week I was working on an old copper line where the threads were basically fossils. Tried matching by eye, but nothing was lining up. Ended up using a thread file to clean things up just enough to get a brass union started—then loaded it with Teflon tape and crossed my fingers. Not textbook, but it held pressure overnight. Sometimes you just have to improvise when the textbook goes out the window...
Sometimes you just have to improvise when the textbook goes out the window...
Man, textbook’s great until you’re staring at a pipe that looks like it survived the Titanic. I’ve used more Teflon tape than actual fittings some days. If it holds, it’s fixed… right?
