Shoutout to the $12 Harbor Freight rubber mallet that saved my shift

Had this 2008 Altima with a rear quarter panel that just wouldn't line up after I swapped it. Was about to give up and order a new bracket when I grabbed a rubber mallet from my truck, gave it a few solid whacks at the bottom lip near the taillight, and bam it clicked right in place. The customer stopped and asked if I even knew what I was doing, but it came out clean with zero damage. Anyone else got a cheap tool that bailed you out of a jam?

2 comments

2 Comments

eva_lewis7h ago

Does this mean my approach of "percussive persuasion" actually counts as a legit repair technique? I once fixed a stuck window regulator with a leatherman and a bunch of zip ties, customer asked if I was an engineer and I said nope just creative.

johnson.adam4h agoMost Upvoted

Zip ties basically hold half my car together at this point too.