The PS Preventive Maintenance Monthly articles from August 2004

The PS Preventive Maintenance Monthly archives from August 2004

Give it time!(for preventive maintenance checks)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... To do a good, thorough PMCS takes time. In the case of something like a tank, helicopter or missile system, PMCS takes lots of time, as in hours. Time is in short supply in most units. There's often too much work for too few people. And...

Keep your cool!(Stryker ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Open the front service and engine cover hatches and eyeball the sight glass on the surge tank. The sight glass should be completely full. If it's not, carefully remove the pressure cap on top of the surge tank and add coolant until the sight...

Use less jam on boresight.(Stryker ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Boresighting the MK19 or .50-cal machine gun on your Stryker is easy with the sight alignment tool kit, NSN 1240-01-512-4531. That is unless you're too heavy-handed. Some operators have a tendency to jam the boresight telescope, NSN...

Beware of bolt busters.(Stryker ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Checking the differential bolts on your Stryker is a before- and after-operation PMCS check, drivers. And it's an important one. Vibration and collisions with brush, rocks and other debris can be a bolt buster. And that's enough to make...

Cargo hatch loses its spring.(M2/M3-Series Bradleys ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Crewmen, the cargo hatch on your M2/M3-series Bradley is quite heavy. That's why it comes equipped with a leaf spring system to help open it to the pop-up, TOW load, uptight and full-open positions. Unfortunately, like everything else,...

How lucky are you feelin'?(M1A1/A2 Tanks ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... For careless tankers, pure luck is the only difference between a main gun elevation lock that works and one that creates an unsafe tank. Careless tankers don't pin the lock to the gun mount assembly bracket after releasing the cannon from...

Plates and plugs in place?(M88A1/A2 Recovery Vehicles, AVLB ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The air filters on your recovery vehicle and AVLB won't be worth a hill of beans if the vehicle's hull access plates and drain plugs aren't installed properly. A loose or missing plate or plug lets the vehicle's fans pull dust directly...

New CARC easier, safer to use.(Chemical Agent Resistant Clothing )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The Differences There are a lot of differences between WD CARC and the old solvent-based CARC. And you'll be very happy with most of 'em. * Solvent content. The solvent content of WD CARC is less than half that of solvent-based CARC....

No drift with wheel lift.(Tactical Wheels ...)
August 1, 2004... Mechanics, not getting everything lined up when you wrestle a truck's wheel and hub assembly back onto an axle can cause axle damage. That damage includes mangled threads, leaky seals and leaky bearings! Head off wheel and axle damage...

Avoid the fuel cap follies.(HEMTTs ...)
August 1, 2004... Before you screw the fuel cap back in place on your HEMTT, take a look at the cap's gasket, operators. Dirt and sand around the rim of the filler neck--and just plain old wear and tear--can cut, gouge and wear away the gasket. Enough damage...

HMMWV turnbutton.(HEMTTs ...)(High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... NSN 5325-00-823-5999 gets the turnbutton fastener that's used to secure the soft cover to the vehicle's bow enclosures. This NSN replaces the parts info shown as Item 11, Fig 318 of TM 9-2320-280-24P-1.

Turn in FITS.(HEMTTs ...)(fuel Injection pump Test Stand)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... If your motor pool has a fuel injection pump test stand (FITS), NSNs 4910-01-194-7667 or 4910-01-316-6176, that's no longer needed or is unserviceable, TACOM-Rock Island would like to know about it. They have a contract to upgrade FITS and they...

Everything you need for mounting.(Machine Guns ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... M240B Tripod USER EITHER M192 lightweight ground mount, NSN 1005-01-503-0141 OR M122A1 machine gun tripod mount, NSN 1005-01-433-1617 M240B HMMWV Pedestal (M998-series only) USE ammo adapter bracket...

Engine compartment PM.(M9 Ace ...)(Preventive Maintenance)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... A Little Cleanup The fan shroud makes a convenient shelf for tools and coffee cups. No sweat, unless you leave those items sitting there when you close the rear access panels. Anything left behind bounces off the shelf--then ends...

A grip on safety tips.(Deuce ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... * Make sure the rear window guard is down during the winching operations. The screen protects the window--and you--from thrown debris or a snapped cable. * Use leather gloves, NSN 8415-01-394-0208, when handling the cable. The gloves will...

Let water out!(Deuce ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Condensation forms in the DEUCE's fuel tank when hot days and cool nights come together. That means you operators have to get the water out of the fuel system. If you don't, the engine runs rough... or not at all. Fuel/Water Separator ...

Everything you need to know about computer PM in the desert.(Preventive Maintenance)
August 1, 2004... LET'S BE HONEST, PEOPLE. OFF-THE-SHELF COMPUTERS AREN'T TOUGH ENOUGH TO STAND UP AGAINST THE HEAT AND SAND OF A DESERT ENVIRONMENT. YOU KNOW IT... AND, THESE DAYS, I SURE KNOW IT. WE WERE MADE FOR CLEAN, STATESIDE OFFICE USE, RIGHT?...

A whole lot of shipping goin' on.(OH-58D)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Mechanics, shipping Kiowa Warrior components to depots and contractor repair facilities without the proper paperwork just means you'll see them again--unrepaired. Parts without mandatory historical records like the DA Forms 2410, 2408-16...

Tail rotor balance chart.(UH-60A/L/Q ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Dear Rotor, Correcting tall rotor balance on our Black Hawk is a tedious maintenance procedure. It requires having the right hardware stack-up of bolts, washers, and nuts for each quadrant and use of a gram scale for ensuring the...

Aircraft cleaning the right way.(All Aircraft ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Mechanics, washing your aircraft's exterior with just any old type of cleaner is not authorized. "Have it your way" is not the way to clean your bird. Never use unapproved industrial cleaners, detergents and degreasers (including Simple...

Sounding off about SINCGARS.(Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System )(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Dear Editor, A SINCGARS is made to operate up to 25 miles (or more) at 50 watts, but many of them can't communicate beyond a handful of miles. Some of that loss comes from terrain or buildings in the signal path or weather, but a lot...

Repairing the RT-1539.(MSRT...)(Radio Transmitter)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Dear Half-Mast, I have an RT-1539A in need of repair. I have heard there is a shop set up for mobile subscriber receiver/transmitters (MSRT) repairs where Reserve units can send their RTs. Do you have the address? SGT D. R. W. ...

Tilt the rod!(AB-1373/TRC Antenna ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... If attaching the lower lightning rod, NSN 5920-01-377-9518, to the AB-1373/TRC antenna positioner requires the King Kong treatment, you're screwing it in wrong! The lightning rod mounting bracket on the positioner is tilted. This means the...

Halfway is not the way.(SINCGARS LS-671 ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Halfway is not enough when you unscrew the primary power cable from the LS-671 loudspeaker on your SINCGARS vehicular radio. It's all the way or nothing. You need to unscrew the cable's connector the whole way before trying to unhook the...

New S & S container.(AN/PVS-5 NVD ...)(shipping and storage)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Drop NSN 1240-00-137-7768, shipping and storage container for the AN/PVS-5 night vision device, from your component-of-end items list. Check any of those "special NSNs lists" you have and make sure that NSN is deleted on them, too. That...

NVG mount for ACH.(AN/PVS-5 NVD ...)(Night Vision Goggles, Advanced Combat Helmet)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Dear Half-Mast, We were issued the advanced combat helmet; (ACH), NSN 8470-01-476-2524, but there's a problem. The mounting bracket for the AN/PVS-14 won't work with the ACH. The mount is unstable and sticks above the curve of the helmet....

Being drained is good.(Fox NBC Vehicle ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... When you are drained after a long day's work, that's not so great. But for your Fox, being drained is great. If it's not drained on a regular basis, it develops problems doing its job. The most critical drains are the three under the...

Diesels is coming.(M12A1 Decon ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Dear Half-Mast, We want to convert our M12A1 decons to diesel. How do we do that? CW4 E.S. Dear Chief E.S., Well, you can't do that. There is no MWO for converting M12A1s to diesel. But the Army through the Depot Rebuild...

Experiences from a teacher.(M17-Series Decon ...)(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
August 1, 2004... Dear Editor, Teachers learn from experience, too. Through teaching soldiers at the U.S. Army Chemical School, I've learned a few tricks on keeping an M17-series decon running. * TM 3-4230-228-10 says to shut down the M17 by pushing the...

Fits and parts.(PAGST Kevlar Helmets ...)
August 1, 2004... Fit First, make sure the helmet fits. You don't want a helmet so big it blocks a soldier's vision. On the other hand, it shouldn't be so small that you sacrifice safety, comfort and ventilation. The clothing issue facility will...

Mobile kitchen trailer help.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Setting Up the Kitchen * Tow the MKT with a 2 1/2-ton truck. A bigger truck can beat up the corners of the trailer when you turn. * If you can't find firm ground and have to park your trailer on soft ground, the leveling jacks can sink...

Raise your sights.(Lensatic Compass ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Your new lensatic compass, NSN 6605-01-196-6971, has a floating dial. If the dial's not floating, don't assume it's damaged. Try lifting the rear sight until it's vertical to the compass base. You see, when you fold the compass, the rear...

The right direction.(Magnetic Compass ...)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... If you're still navigating by your old aluminum magnetic compasses, NSNs 6605-00-151-5337 or 6605-00-846-7618, turn them in before you get lost. These compasses gradually lose their illumination over time. After 12 years you can't read them in...

Make interactive work for you!(FED 1st of 5 LOG)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Some PLL/ULLS clerks may not be taking full advantage of FED LOG. Here's how to make FED LOG work for you. The first FED LOG Interactive screen is the CD Scanning Console. Green checkmarks identify which disks are available in your...

Deploying? What are you taking?(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Your unit's received deployment notification. Now the commander wants you to find out what equipment should go with your unit and what you can obtain in the area of operations (AO). U.S. Army Forces Command funds the Deployment Asset...

2005 SEA nominations.(Supply Excellence Awards)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The Army Chief of Staff Supply Excellence Awards (CSA SEA) boost logistics readiness and supply effectiveness. The program recognizes extraordinary supply and support operations, outstanding property accountability, direct support and resource...

The 2003 Chief of Staff Army Award for Maintenance Excellence.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... ACTIVE TOE UNITS Small Category Winner: 11th Sig Det, 2d Sig Bde, (NETCOM) Runner-Up: HHC, 501ST MI Bde, (INSCOM) Medium Category Winner: 3d Ml Bn, (INSCOM) Runner-Up: 524th Ml Bn, (INSCOM) Large Category ...