Filed under: Maintenance, Etc., Safety
A shotgun does not a lug wrench make - Darwin contestant
What do you do when you've got a lug nut that just won't budge? While you might want to blast it to smithereens, lots of dirty words, some mechanical finesse, a breaker bar, and heat usually get the job done. Of course, swearing like a truck driver is wholly unsatisfying when you compare it to the joy of firearms. A 66-year-old Washington resident had been dealing with a recalcitrant Lincoln Continental for two weeks when he decided he'd had enough.
A 12-gauge shotgun is not exactly effective at delivering a shock to a wheel nut, even with all that powder behind it. What did ensue, though, was a potentially deadly and certainly injurious shower of buckshot. Shooting a car wheel from an arm's length is a guaranteed way to create plenty of ricochet. The shot found purchase in the much softer organic material that comprises a human being, and the man sustained injuries from his feet to the middle of his abdomen. Next time, whack it with the BFH.
Thanks for the tip, James!
[Source: BBC]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Willem B 11:08AM (11/16/2007)
natural selection 1
66-yr old man 0
Reply
Jerk Face 11:26AM (11/16/2007)
LOL
You win!
Nathan 1:33PM (11/16/2007)
A good idea does not some whiskey make.
Tyo 11:09AM (11/16/2007)
BFH LOL
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chop 11:12AM (11/16/2007)
is the title supposed to sound dumb or does Dan Roth have horrible grammar?
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Dan Roth 11:19AM (11/16/2007)
I'm sorry, did I confuse you?
Tecmec 11:33AM (11/16/2007)
Have you never heard "A x does not a y make"?
http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=%22a+*+does+not+a+*+make%22&btnG=Search&meta=
DriftPunch 11:33AM (11/16/2007)
It's a play off poet Richard Lovelace's quotation: "Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage. "
Either you need more edumacation or you need to watch more Bugs Bunny (How I first became familiar with the quote). Bugs says: "Iron bars do not a prison make, but they sure do help eh doc?!!!"
m 11:38AM (11/16/2007)
Yes Dan. You confused me. Because you said it backwards. I assume that's what confused chop too.
Dan Roth 11:50AM (11/16/2007)
M, it's not backward, that's how I intended to write it. It's a common way to structure a phrase. See above.
DAMurphy 12:20PM (11/16/2007)
I hate to add fuel to the fire, but this might just put it out. I think that it should read "A shotgun does not a lug wrench make." The way I read the title I thought that the guy tried to make a shotgun out of his lug wrench, but apparently he just used the shotgun. Am I wrong?
Monkey 12:30PM (11/16/2007)
"M, it's not backward,"
... only it definitely is.
"that's how I intended to write it. It's a common way to structure a phrase. See above."
Your phrase is the reverse of those examples.
DAMurphy has shown you how it should be correctly stated.
Dan Roth 1:14PM (11/16/2007)
Wait a sec - DA Murphy is right - oopsie.
Fixed now. Thanks for letting me publicly humiliate myself :)
Dan
henrykrinkle 11:14AM (11/16/2007)
It's a Lincoln Continental. Should have used a high-powered Italian rifle - preferable from a high perch.
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Ryan Zerbe 11:14AM (11/16/2007)
It's suppose to sound like that. I actually heard this on the radio the other, dumbass guy.
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mikomi 11:18AM (11/16/2007)
He's alive, thus disqualified for a Darwin. Which, depending on your view of this, is either fortunate or unfortunate. Still... a shotgun... -_-
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BirdmanSTX 11:30AM (11/16/2007)
If he keeps up like this, he won't be alive for much longer.... surprised he made it this long.
Nathan 1:33PM (11/16/2007)
He may be alive but from the injuries "foot to abdomen" it sounds like the tender bits in the middle may have been injured beyond repair, so I am assuming that this means his chances of reproducing are low.
That's a win, right there!
John B 11:23AM (11/16/2007)
I guess the Brits would love this story. Anyone have ideas on how the gent would tighten the lug nuts after changing the "tyre".
Reply
nissanfreak87 11:31AM (11/16/2007)
it was already on Top Gear's website, they were bashing Americans because we made it easy for them.