infant-mortality failure n.— «Dr. Ulrich’s analysis of NTSB data proves conclusively what I’ve long believed to be true: By far the highest risk of catastrophic engine failure occurs when the engine is young—during the first two years and...
motor music n.— «My favorite part of this bike: its sound. What Moto Guzzi refers to as its “motor music,” or engine and exhaust notes, was better than any new record I’ve heard recently, particularly the crackle upon roll-off...
snarge n.— «Snarge…The word is a combination of “snot” and “garbage.”…“It’s what’s left after a bird hits an airplane, goes through an engine. There are no feathers or any other kind of remains of the...
monkey shit n.— «Back in my Navy days, working in Aft Engine Room on an repair ship, we had lots of cables (electric wires) running around—and passing thru bulkheads and into junction boxes, etc. At each point they passed into or thru...
Googleganger n.— Note: From the German word “doppelgänger,” meaning a look-alike or a double of a person. «It was an honest mistake: Eve’s name kept showing up on X-rated sites when her mother Googled it to keep tabs on her...
bitza n.—Gloss: a thing that has a mixed heritage or is made of an other assortment of different things. Note: Also spelled “bitsa.” Both are shortened forms of “bitzer” or “bitser,” which in turn are...