Harmless practical jokes?

[lucky1974]

A journeyman i had loved to pull this trick. He would ask if you thought he could shock you with 2 d cell batteries( might have been 3). When you said no he would hook these up to the coil of a nema 1 starter, and manually push it in. having you hold your fingers on A1 nad A2.Then would pull the batteries off, and let go of holding the coil in. Thus causing a pretty good shock. Something with the field collapsing generates a voltage. Now don't go shocking anyone with this trick now though. Jason

 

[ArcNSpark]

Was this before they started making this? http://www.hubbellcatalog.com/raco/raco_datasheet.asp?PN=911-8&FAM=RacoBoxes&P=12842,11447,10016

Good God, they DO make red jbox covers.

I once saw a newbie apprentice make four trips across the site to our trailer searching for the fluorescent lamp bender. He swore he had seen it the day before and now it was gone.

He learned quickly though...about a year after that, he secretly put a sign on the front grille of my truck that, shall we say, would have "outed" me, had I been in the closet. It had a big pink heart on it and everything. I drove it around all day and all night and didn't have a clue until I got back to the shop the next morning and everyone was still laughing.

I stole a few of his hand tools later that day, took them home, and cemented them into the bottom of a five gallon bucket (don't worry, I used hydraulic cement so it wouldn't be too hard to get them out).

We called a truce immediately after that.

 

[boyle78]

how about swapping the blade in thier hack saw uside down or backwards! I think I might bring that back very soon.

 

[LLSolutions]

I can't believe no one did this one, Old timers call it the test of strength, you take two hand benders any size just make sure the end of one is sealed at the shoe. Fill one up with water half way and have some one in on the joke hold it then get a few men around take the clean bender and hold it so the end of the handle is under your arm at your bicep, shoe on ground, then slowly lift your arm away from your body and raise it in the air then when some cocky guy says he can do it hand him the water filled bender and step back. If you can get your hands on some dry ice, cut them into circles with a hole saw, use eye protection and gloves then drop them into all the urinals of the porta-johns a cold day, get in a good spot and watch, all you'll hear is backs hitting the opposite walls then guys running out.

 

[Chris6245]

Had one of those annoying "know it all" helpers once (you know the type, just out of school) anyway the guys were complaining about him so much that they begged me to let them teach him a lesson. He was always bragging about how good he was at troubleshooting. So we had a 42 space 200 amp panel that was used for temporary power on job sites. They took it and mounted it to a wall in the shop over the weekend, made it look real good, had pipe coming out of the top going up behind a headder for a loft, pulled scrap wire into the pipes and taped them off and tied knots at the top of the pipe. They made a panel ledgend for it that showed circuits for the whole shop area. (real panel was upstairs in an office). The fed the main breaker with a 20amp single pole circuit fed through a remote fan controller. (wireless remote) The #12 was hidden and could not be seen going into the main and there wasn't any evidence of a feeder into the panel. they put a receptacle under the panel and hooked it to a breaker. The next monday morning they had him cutting som plywood for panel backing and told him to use the receptacle under the panel. One of the guys was off to the end of the shop with the remote and every time he started to cut the power would go off. He would go over and check the breaker (not tripped) thest the recept, (hot) go back and saw worked, then quit again. He did this maby 5 times then yelled to the guy at the other end of the shop that the saw must be bad. (the guy with the remote). He came over to see what was up and looked at the helper and at the panel and at the cord and back to the helper and said "You been had" The kid said WHAT? and then he explained to the kid that the panel didn't even have a feed to it, it was a dead panel. The kid said it was hot he even checked it. So the guy went over and took the panel cover off and the flash shield and showed him there wasn't even a feed to the panel. The kid sweared that the recept was hot and he was using it. He wasn't able to proove it because he never got to make any saw dust. The kid was dumbfounded. A few days later one of the other guys went over and plugged in his battery charger and set it on the floor to charge. The kid started laughing at him and called him an idiot because that panel was dead, then he looked at the charger and it was charging. He never figured it out and it shut him up

 

[busman]

My best was the guy who swore that he kept tabs on the "health" of his engine by keeping meticulous gas mileage records. So gradually over the course of a month, I add a gallon or two per day to the point that he's getting 50% better mileage than before. He's thrilled and trying to figure out what he did. Tire pressure? The route to work? Everything? Then I change and start siphoning it out every day (back in the 80's). Now he's getting like 6 miles a gallon and freaking out. Needed a bodyguard for a month when I finally broke it to him.

He passed about 5 years ago, so it's safe to post now.

Mark

 

[electricdave]

I was on a job and the plumbers new helper approached me and asked if I had seen the bucket of solder. I said I thought they kept it behind their trailer and off he went...

 

[Jim W in Tampa]

Was taking my turn driving sister in laws KIA from FL to KY, asked cat (kathy) how to put it in overdrive. What's that ??? no wonder gas milage was so bad. Keep in mind her home town was in KY but then so was my wife.

 

[joebell]

Phistoris Valve

Phistoris Valve

We had a guy on the job that never parked in the spaces assigned to the construction workers he always parked closest to the door of the building where he was working. One day the prankster of the crew decided to pull the coil wire from the distributor.When the owner of the car went to start his car it would not turn over. The prankster waited for this moment and went outside to help the kid out. He had him lift the hood as he continued to try and start his car. After several attempts he shouted to the kid "I found the problem". He removed a screw driver from his pocket and made like he was adjusting something while he was replacing the coil wire.

The kid asked what he thought the problem was. You have a bad Phistoris Vavle the prankster told him. That really needs to get fixed. That night the kid brought his car to the shop for a new phistoris valve.



Joe

 

[M. D.]

a long time ago early eighties,.. the concrete guys had a new young bull of a football player working for them , first day on the job they were removing the forms from a foundation when one of the older guys says ,

" ohhh sheet look at this ,.. this wall is two inches out of plumb,.. Hey Pete grab the the wall puller"

Pete comes back with this harness wit about thirty feet of chains attached at various places ...

Older guy:
"Hey kid, come over here so I can attach the wall puller to you ,..I'm getting to old for it these days,.. "

They strap the kid into this thing and then attach the chains to the bolts for the sill plate..

Pull Kid ,..pull ,.. that's good just like that ,.. a little more ,... a little more

minuets pass the Big football player kid is inside the will be basement puling like hell against cured concrete walls ... for a long time ,.. time enough for word to spread around the site bringing all the tradesmen together to watch.. I felt bad for the kid ,as he was my age,.. when the chorus of laughter and jeers broke out ,.. he was purple ,..not sure if it was embarrassment or from the exertion ,.. probably both .

 

[monkey]

A small piece of scotch tape covering the holes on the telephone earpiece can be amusing......hello...hello...HELLO???

Don't know if it works on cell phones.

Does anyone remember calling payphones that you could see from your office?

 

[joebell]

Sprinkler Guy

Sprinkler Guy

I was the electrical forman on this job and we had this wise guy sprinkler contractor that would mess with everyone on the job site. One day I decided to pay him back. He would fill the sprinkler system everyday at 2 pm if there were no leaks he would take off. For about a week when he would go to fill the system I would go upstairs with a bottle of water and pour it over the elbow leading to the sprinkler head. This poor guy must of replaced that fitting about five times. The best part was everyone was in on the joke but him,the plumbers the carpenters even the Super.

Joe

 

[c2500]

Years ago, I did some work for my uncle. I had not billed him, and one day he was at my parents house talking to my mom (his sister). He ask me when I would send him a bill, and we got into a huge arguement (so it seemed). Finally my mom realized we were cutting up, and kicked us out of the house. When I actually gave him the bill, he paid me cash, but he was $4.00 short. He said I will buy you lunch, but you wil never see the $4. Anyway, it has cropped up over the past ten years at various times. He has been helping me some these days (no textile industry bailout you know) and went to the supply house to get some bulbs and fixtures. I tolds the counter guys the story, and they said they would get him for me. When he went to buy four t-8 fixtures and 8 flourescent tubes, the guy told him there was an environmental charge on the tubes... $.50 a tube. Also, he had to pay cash. While I was coincidentally on the phone, (he called me on the way to the supply house) he paid the the $4.00 all while complaining to me about government intruding into or lives so much.

I said genius, think about the amount. When it clicked, we all got an earful. The counter guy returned the money, and I can only wonder what the payback will be.....

c2500

 

[ceb58]

Back in the days of hubcaps....fill 'em up with 3/4 stone...music to my ears as you drive away.

In the early 80's I worked around a bunch of pipe fitters that were always pulling something on someone. One day they did the rock in the hubcap trick on a young kid working as a helper. They got a good laugh at him as he drove off that afternoon. The next morning the guy came walking into work with a lost my best friend look on his face. They ask what was wrong and he said " some one put rocks in my hubcap yesterday, and I didn't hear it, my wheel came off because the rocks ground off the studs on the tire and I went into the ditch" He then went on about they had just had a baby and such and couldn't afford the $100.00 it was going to cost to get the parts from a junk yard and get it fixed. He went on about him and his wife and baby would have to walk to the store and he just didn't know what he was going to do. For all there joking and BSing the guys were good people. They really felt bad about what they had done, so in there pockets they went. They gave the guy $200.00 and told him not to buy parts from the junk yard and get the truck fixed. The kid looked like he was going to cry thanking them for there help. He told them he would be back in about 10 minuets and walked away in a little while he came driving in with a smile on his face. Thanks for the diaper money. The kid should have received a Oscar for his performance and the pipe fitters quit screwing with people.

 

[mattsilkwood]

there was this kid one time that worked for the gc, he would cut up all day long.
keep in mind he was a good kid, everybody liked him on the site.

well there was a few of us talking one day after work and he said he could whip us all, so the next day we planned it all out, after lunch the super told him to follow him to the basement so he could show him what needed to be done.
when he got down there we came out on both sides and got him with packing tape,by the time we were done we had him taped up from his feet to his neck then left him there for awile.
he never said he could whip anybody again

 

[acrwc10]

I was on a job 1 1/2 years ago, the sheet metal guy was a real A-hole and kept messing up our work. When he went in the out house I put a 2x6 against the door and a wall, he spent no less then a 1/2 hour in there(on a hot day). The funny thing is I don't think any one else liked the guy because about 4 people saw me do this and no one went to let him out. I don't know how he finally got out. :grin: I guess he is lucky no one turned it over with him in there.

 

[iaov]

Many years ago when I still worked at the mill I had a room mate who worked there also. I'm not sure who started the "war" but it started with fish guts being poured in the bed of a truck. This was followed by muskrat carcasses being left in the perps truck.This was followed by dead northerns being lodged in the square holes of the panels of truck. (They froze in place) Next, I believe, was a bucket of chicken excrement. Two days latter Scott came home with two dead (road Kill) deer in the back of his truck, and a day latter with a deer head bolted to his exhaust system(I watched him drive in the yard with it and I thought he had hit the dog). Scott found a large dead skunk(we had a warming spell in Feb. so they had been out) and hung it out behind the wood shed for a couple of weeks. WE used a copper pipe to pound a hole through it and ran a chain through it and Scott talked me into putting on a Tyvec suit and crawling under his opponents truck and pad locking the chain to the guys exhaust system. I had to work that night and at about five thirty in the AM just before shift change the whole end of the mill where I was working started to reek like skunk! I couldn't imagine how the guy had gotten the skunk off his exhaust and gotten into my work area so quickly. Well it turns out a guy who worked in another part of the mill, and who was not the sharpest tool in the shed had been sprayed by a skunk while walking to work and came in to work anyways. The next day I negotiated a truce between Scott and Denny!!:grin:

 

[spoon]

Not sure if this has been said yet, but one of my coworkers took someone's bags and shot them into the +20ft. pan deck concrete ceiling with a Hilti gun. Then moved the scissorlift to the other side of the job.

Another time, my brother-in-law took someone's bags and stapled them to the subfloor. He took all of his tools out and stapled them to the subfloor too. Everything down to the wirenuts.

Big wastes of time, but it was laughs.

 

[mxslick]

When I was working at a four-screen cinema as projectionist, I purposely spliced all four of our "No Smoking" trailers upside down, to see if the staff was paying attention (as well as my relief projectionist). It took 4 full weeks before anyone noticed..one of our regular patrons mentioned it to me in the lobby.

Needless to say I had some words with both the staff and my relief operator..they are supposed to check the screens every show when the "No Smoking" comes on, as it is the last thing before the feature.

My other fav was while I was in the Air Force..one pilot and I were engaged in a practical joke war (his fav was to detach the practice bombs from the racks and complain that the bomb was loose and "just fell off"). Well at a party the pilots hosted, I pulled the center table out from under him during a game of "carrier landing." (They run across the room and belly flop onto a series of table, trying to land as short as possible.)

The next day the poor guy could hardly move, and after his flight he was very pale from the pain. We called an official truce on the spot.

 

[quogueelectric]

When I was working at a four-screen cinema as projectionist, I purposely spliced all four of our "No Smoking" trailers upside down, to see if the staff was paying attention (as well as my relief projectionist). It took 4 full weeks before anyone noticed..one of our regular patrons mentioned it to me in the lobby.

Needless to say I had some words with both the staff and my relief operator..they are supposed to check the screens every show when the "No Smoking" comes on, as it is the last thing before the feature.

My other fav was while I was in the Air Force..one pilot and I were engaged in a practical joke war (his fav was to detach the practice bombs from the racks and complain that the bomb was loose and "just fell off"). Well at a party the pilots hosted, I pulled the center table out from under him during a game of "carrier landing." (They run across the room and belly flop onto a series of table, trying to land as short as possible.)

The next day the poor guy could hardly move, and after his flight he was very pale from the pain. We called an official truce on the spot.

Reel change!!! Or are we platter these days. My friend dropped the entire Silverado platter on the ground a few hours before the opening.