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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:15:25 AM EDT
The mighty Red Army lies in shattered ruins at feet of the fascist AT&T mega-conglomerate. How could it come to such a debacle for Marshal Zhukov?
It all started when the People's Internet went down suddenly on Monday night. The router/gateway could not find a DSL signal. Thinking quickly at STAVKA headquarters, Zhukov marshals his forces and deploys his cellphone via USB tethering. A minor skirmish via AT&T support chat erupts with Achmed, who wastes half an hour of time trying to get me to make sure my wireless switch is on.  I finally unleash the 8th Shock Army, telling him in ANGRY RED LETTERS what I thought of his proposal. Shortly thereafter, he agrees to run some line tests and informs me that it's not just my connection, but affects more people and should be fixed within a couple of hours.Feeling this initial battle signaled the end of this conflict, Marshal Zhukov retires to bed, only to awaken to the same red angry light flashing on the router. Time for battle. The entire Eastern Front is mobilized and henceforth a direct phone call is placed to the fascist swine. After some rudimentary debugging (reset the router), the corporate crony suggests I replace the router which is out of warranty. Prepared for this insolence, I give her an ultimatum: You will not touch my router, this has happened before, it wasn't the router then, it's not the router now, and get a technician out her pronto. She acquiesces and says that she has an appointment for later in the day from 12-4. I check with her to make sure "It's for TODAY, right? I have to take off of work?" Err - ready my troops for battle. She confirms the appointment and I hang up, partially satisfied. Around noon, the internet connection has been restored. By 5, no technician has shown up. Checking online, the service appointment shows for 12-4 on WEDNESDAY, not Tuesday as promised. The Red Army has been misled and is twiddling their thumbs while the enemy wreaks havoc. I alert Voyska PVO to look for intruders and prepare yet another shock assault on customer service. Corporate lackey #3 informs me there's nothing she can do, and that the appointment shows for the following day. No goodies are offered for the insolence. This morning, the broadband light is once again flashing red. The Red Army is in ruins, completely destroyed by an unseen enemy. Only a few combat forces remain. Can Zhukov rally the remaining troops to extract victory from the jaws of the fascists? It's too close to call... [ETA] To clarify: I did want the service guy to show up even though my internet was working again so I could have him check out the wiring anyway. There was a problem last time this happened on their side. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:18:02 AM EDT
[#1]
That's what you get for hording pics of your iwife.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:18:59 AM EDT
[#2]
Quoted: That's what you get for hording pics of your iwife. This isn't over yet. I'm preparing my strategic rocket forces.  |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:20:43 AM EDT
[#3]
Quoted: Quoted: That's what you get for hording pics of your iwife. This isn't over yet. I'm preparing my strategic rocket forces. Ha! Commie rockets. Make sure you aim 45 degrees to the left if you hope to even get close to your target. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:22:52 AM EDT
[#4]
Your first name is Marshal?
I forgot to compliment you on your well worded and amusing post. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:23:01 AM EDT
[#5]
Comcast, despite being overpriced, has good service, just don't bother using their tech support.
Considering a switch to Wide Open West. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:23:23 AM EDT
[#6]
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:23:59 AM EDT
[#7]
I laugh at your well-worded misfortune.
Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:25:09 AM EDT
[#8]
We have ATT Uverse....
I really believe their customer service reps are located in Pakistan 
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:28:37 AM EDT
[#9]
edit
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:28:55 AM EDT
[#10]
Quoted: Comcast, despite being overpriced, has good service, just don't bother using their tech support. Considering a switch to Wide Open West. Not available in Texas glorious Soviet Union. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:30:08 AM EDT
[#11]
Quoted: edit You'd think the CEO of AT&T would take a personal interest in my problems?  |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:31:33 AM EDT
[#12]
Quoted:
Quoted:
edit You'd think the CEO of AT&T would take a personal interest in my problems?
Yeah, he gets stuff done. I know several people who have used that route with great success. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:31:58 AM EDT
[#13]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Comcast, despite being overpriced, has good service, just don't bother using their tech support. Considering a switch to Wide Open West. Not available in Texas glorious Soviet Union. Your state would probably open up to the ways of the modern world if you all would just accept that chilli is suppossed to have beans in it and stop holding on to your antiquated ways... Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:32:46 AM EDT
[#14]
Quoted:
Quoted:
edit You'd think the CEO of AT&T would take a personal interest in my problems?
Sibling is in your general area and uses Uverse too. I've not heard him complain but you can bet he'd be raising hell if in your same spot. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:33:00 AM EDT
[#15]
Just about everyone I've met who used Uverse hated it and canceled it ASAP.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:39:53 AM EDT
[#16]
Uverse is teh debil.
We try to steer clients away from it unless there is no other wired broadband option available to them. Been fighting with their product for months on a job. Service just goes away for a couple of minutes to a couple of hours at a time. Sometimes it just comes back, other times it doesn't. Modem has been replaced, keeps happening. I suspect it is because the customer is right on the bleeding edge of the available service area (old rural neighborhood) , they deny it and chalk it up to old, bad wiring inside the house. Problem is we rewired the entire friggin house during a remodel. Also, you cannot turn off the DHCP server in their new modem/router/wireless thingas.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:42:49 AM EDT
[#17]
Quoted: Just about everyone I've met who used Uverse hated it and canceled it ASAP. I've had it for about 3 years, been very reliable. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:43:34 AM EDT
[#18]
I have U-Verse and love it to death.
That said, I've seldom read a finer account of calling customer service. Well done.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:45:07 AM EDT
[#19]
My problem is a recurring outage just liker I'm experiencing. I'm a pretty good distance from the neighborhood box, but he said I'll get 12M reliably - just not any more than that.
Three or four times the signal has simply been lost. The gateway is hunting for a signal. 1) First time, the problem resolved just about the time the technician showed up. 2) Last month, the technician got here and confirmed no signal at the router, no signal at the network interface, but a signal at the pole out in the corner of the yard where it splits off to several houses. Turns out that it appeared to be a damaged wire at the terminal. 3) Yesterday, it resolved itself once again before the technician showed up, so I canceled the appointment. 4) When I called this morning, the automated system said it was a area-wide - at least I believe THAT explanation when it comes from the automated thingy. I seriously doubt it's my router/gateway. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:50:21 AM EDT
[#20]
I took an entire day off work to have U-Verse installed. Per their website and talking with them on the phone my address was available for service. Technician comes out, and wouldn't you know it - NO GO! Technician says it happens all the time. People take off work and come to find out they're too far away from the box.
FUCK AT&T |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:53:49 AM EDT
[#21]
DSL is just the method fate has chosen to allow POTS lines their revenge on us for progressing to finer methods of data transmission.
The syphilitic, rancid, putrescent effluent of the telecom wars that calls itself AT&T today is merely DSL's unholy minion. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:55:40 AM EDT
[#22]
Quoted: DSL is just the method fate has chosen to allow POTS lines their revenge on us for progressing to finer methods of data transmission. The syphilitic, rancid, putrescent effluent of the telecom wars that calls itself AT&T today is merely DSL's unholy minion.  Yeah, Uverse is still DSL, isn't it? Unfortunately, it's either AT&T or the cable company for me. I have satellite, and the cable stand-alone internet service just doesn't look attractive. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 7:57:54 AM EDT
[#23]
Bad things happen to bad people.
TRG |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:04:01 AM EDT
[#24]
I feel your pain. I tried to switch to U-verse DSL last Monday since they promised it would be faster and cheaper than my existing AT&T DSL.
Day 1: Activation day. I plug in the equipment, and –– it doesn't work. The service light never comes on. AT&T asks me whether my old DSL still works. It does. AT&T suggests that I cancel my old DSL. You'd think they'd do this for you automatically since they were my existing DSL provider, but apparently they don't. Day 2: Old DSL is canceled, but U-verse DSL still doesn't work. AT&T agrees to send a tech out the next day. Day 3: Tech #1 says there is no signal. Schedules a second tech visit. Day 4: Tech #2 claims the signal should be working now. It's not. Schedules a third tech visit. Day 5: Tech #3 rewires my switch-box thing, saying the signal must really be working now. I still can't get signal, though. Tech suggests it's a wiring problem with the building. Landlord says he's not rewiring anything and suggests getting cable internet. Day 6: AT&T agrees to try to reactivate my old DSL and promises to call me back when when they do. Days 7-8: President's day weekend. I hear nothing. Day 10: AT&T gives me my old DSL back at a discount, but it won't be activated for another four days. AT&T promised to cancel all equipment and service charges for my U-verse debacle. I just know they will screw it up and I'll get a giant bill. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:04:36 AM EDT
[#25]
ATT had a huge outage this morning, from about 4am cst till about 9-9:30cst this morning. It affected some users all over the country. Mine was down, was on hold for hours waiting to talk to someone. Had a never ending ping running and all of a sudden it was working again.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:07:16 AM EDT
[#26]
Quoted: Quoted: DSL is just the method fate has chosen to allow POTS lines their revenge on us for progressing to finer methods of data transmission. The syphilitic, rancid, putrescent effluent of the telecom wars that calls itself AT&T today is merely DSL's unholy minion. Yeah, Uverse is still DSL, isn't it? Unfortunately, it's either AT&T or the cable company for me. I have satellite, and the cable stand-alone internet service just doesn't look attractive. It's a proprietary form of VDSL, yeah. And in my area, it's better than TWC. I consistently grab torrents at 1.2MB/sec. That's plenty fast, and I'm a telecom dude for a living. Spending any more, is just waving my e-peen around. What I love about it, is it's consistency and reliability. My available bandwidth and latency never wavers, and except in the case of an extended power outage, it never goes down. I've had circuits at work with contracted SLAs go down more often.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:11:04 AM EDT
[#27]
Quoted: What I love about it, is it's consistency and reliability. My available bandwidth and latency never wavers, and except in the case of an extended power outage, it never goes down. I've had circuits at work with contracted SLAs go down more often. Agreed. I'm happy with the service - when it works. I guess 3-4 times in 1 year and a half isn't terrible, but they need to figure out if there's a problem with my wiring or find a better way to report network problems. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:11:49 AM EDT
[#28]
Quoted: Bad things happen to bad people. TRG I'm sorry that your day is worse than mine.  |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:11:58 AM EDT
[#29]
Quoted:
My problem is a recurring outage just liker I'm experiencing. I'm a pretty good distance from the neighborhood box, but he said I'll get 12M reliably - just not any more than that. Three or four times the signal has simply been lost. The gateway is hunting for a signal. 1) First time, the problem resolved just about the time the technician showed up. 2) Last month, the technician got here and confirmed no signal at the router, no signal at the network interface, but a signal at the pole out in the corner of the yard where it splits off to several houses. Turns out that it appeared to be a damaged wire at the terminal. 3) Yesterday, it resolved itself once again before the technician showed up, so I canceled the appointment. 4) When I called this morning, the automated system said it was a area-wide - at least I believe THAT explanation when it comes from the automated thingy. I seriously doubt it's my router/gateway. If you are towards the end of the run a bonded cable pair might be the fix. Someone could have cut a fiber or cable to cause an outage for everyone. ** I maintain and install the transport equipment. Of the 100 or so sites we maintain for our area, I rarely have problems with the equipment. Had a couple cards go bad in the past year. Not that other techs in the crew haven't experienced it also. Cut fibers happen, nice weather, people dig. When you call in, ask for a supervisor and explain to them all of the troubles you have been having. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:13:25 AM EDT
[#30]
Quoted: AT&T promised to cancel all equipment and service charges for my U-verse debacle. I just know they will screw it up and I'll get a giant bill. THAT is a big no-shitter right there. It took me 4 months to get random charges removed until it finally charged what they said they were going to. Prepare for billing nightmares... |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:16:16 AM EDT
[#31]
 My area has been held captive by Knology for the last 5 years I've been here.
I absolutely the worst cable I've ever had. AT&T Uverse rep went door to door and I signed up just to tell Knology where to go. It's been good so far. My biggest issue so far... You can't set a reminder for a program on the channel guide. You have to set it to record and the littl red light on the box tell you when it's recording. 
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:19:43 AM EDT
[#32]
AT&T and Customer Service are oxymoron's no matter what AT&T service you have...
ETA: Good Post OP! |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:21:33 AM EDT
[#33]
Quoted:
I'm happy with the service - when it works. I guess 3-4 times in 1 year and a half isn't terrible, but they need to figure out if there's a problem with my wiring or find a better way to report network problems. What cable of yours are we talking about here? The above statement, and talk of penis, has me confused. TRG |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:24:54 AM EDT
[#34]
Quoted: Quoted: I'm happy with the service - when it works. I guess 3-4 times in 1 year and a half isn't terrible, but they need to figure out if there's a problem with my wiring or find a better way to report network problems. What cable of yours are we talking about here? The above statement, and talk of penis, has me confused. TRG You're confused? Call me, and I'll STRAIGHTen you out. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:25:53 AM EDT
[#35]
You're going to end up with a Grandson with a Dog Collar!
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:52:30 AM EDT
[#36]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Comcast, despite being overpriced, has good service, just don't bother using their tech support. Considering a switch to Wide Open West. Not available in Texas glorious Soviet Union. Didn't TWC buy out Comcast in TX? I have TWC and it's meh. I wish I could have Verizon FiOS where I live. I can go half a mile down the road and get it, but it isn't in the immediate area where I live yet. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 8:59:59 AM EDT
[#37]
I have ATT U-verse too, been down the road with their POS customer service too. Problem is, they ALL outsource customer service to "Peggy" so in essence were all screwed, sorry to tell you.
FWIW, considering jumping ship to Charter to hit that 100 meg internet. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 9:01:43 AM EDT
[#38]
They put teh fiberz to mah houses. I love me some uverses.
Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 9:12:59 AM EDT
[#39]
I just wish I had the option to switch to someone else. Out here in the sticks, It's podunk telephone at ~$100 a month for 3mb down, 768k up, or satellite.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 9:17:37 AM EDT
[#40]
Quoted:
I feel your pain. I tried to switch to U-verse DSL last Monday since they promised it would be faster and cheaper than my existing AT&T DSL. Day 1: Activation day. I plug in the equipment, and –– it doesn't work. The service light never comes on. AT&T asks me whether my old DSL still works. It does. AT&T suggests that I cancel my old DSL. You'd think they'd do this for you automatically since they were my existing DSL provider, but apparently they don't. Day 2: Old DSL is canceled, but U-verse DSL still doesn't work. AT&T agrees to send a tech out the next day. Day 3: Tech #1 says there is no signal. Schedules a second tech visit. Day 4: Tech #2 claims the signal should be working now. It's not. Schedules a third tech visit. Day 5: Tech #3 rewires my switch-box thing, saying the signal must really be working now. I still can't get signal, though. Tech suggests it's a wiring problem with the building. Landlord says he's not rewiring anything and suggests getting cable internet. Day 6: AT&T agrees to try to reactivate my old DSL and promises to call me back when when they do. Days 7-8: President's day weekend. I hear nothing. Day 10: AT&T gives me my old DSL back at a discount, but it won't be activated for another four days. AT&T promised to cancel all equipment and service charges for my U-verse debacle. I just know they will screw it up and I'll get a giant bill. I cancelled and got the giant bill. I returned their equipment just as they requested and then got a bill for about $800. I had proof they received the equipment I returned via UPS tracking, but still argued with them for several months. They even sent a bill collector after me. WORST CUSTOMER SERVICE EVER. Never AT&T for anything again. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 10:30:56 AM EDT
[#41]
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Posted: 2/22/2012 12:17:19 PM EDT
[#42]
Quoted:
Quoted:
edit You'd think the CEO of AT&T would take a personal interest in my problems?
Especially with the number of referrals you could give out.... 
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Posted: 2/22/2012 1:10:39 PM EDT
[#43]
A relative of mine recently went through hell with AT&T in SC. He already had DSL with them, but said they called him stating that they were disconnecting his existing line and replacing the equipment to reduce the money they were paying to AT&T South to rent the line and equipment. He went over two months without service and has been double-charged for both DSL lines for the entire time. It finally works after he said he spent more than 120 hours with them in person and on the phone. When I talked to him last weekend, he was over 80 hours into getting the bill corrected. AT&T was upfront that they caused this problem to reduce their cost. It wasn't something he asked for.
I don't understand companies can afford to just throw away money for labor like that. How can it be profitable to spend hours on the phone with someone that spends less than $50 a month? It's like Wells Fargo I've been hassling with for almost a week over a CD that matured. I wasted nearly a dozen man hours so far in their local branch on a simple issue that should take five minutes. How can they afford to keep people busy from customer service reps (hi Ryan) to the branch manager (and thanks for nothing Diane Johnson) for an account that has less than $10k in it? Even if labor is only costing them $20/hour, they have wasted more in labor than I made in interest. Why did Wells Fargo decide as a policy to throw away money like that? |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 1:18:32 PM EDT
[#44]
Quoted:
We have ATT Uverse.... I really believe their customer service reps are located in Pakistan And they are all named STEVE!
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Posted: 2/22/2012 1:19:09 PM EDT
[#45]
Quoted:
They put teh fiberz to mah houses. I love me some uverses. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile Most uverse is not delivered as fiber to the home. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 2:14:00 PM EDT
[#46]
Quoted: True, but it is in his case. It's actually pretty cool, and I wish they had plans to do it here. Quoted: They put teh fiberz to mah houses. I love me some uverses. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile Most uverse is not delivered as fiber to the home. EDIT: And it really is fiber to the home, as in, they trenched and brought fiber to the side of his house.
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Posted: 2/22/2012 6:02:19 PM EDT
[#47]
Quoted: ATT had a huge outage this morning, from about 4am cst till about 9-9:30cst this morning. It affected some users all over the country. Mine was down, was on hold for hours waiting to talk to someone. Had a never ending ping running and all of a sudden it was working again. Sure enough - it was working again when I called my wife around lunchtime. Now it's out again; it went down a few minutes ago. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 6:17:25 PM EDT
[#48]
Quoted:
Quoted:
They put teh fiberz to mah houses. I love me some uverses. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile Most uverse is not delivered as fiber to the home. This is something I have been made aware of. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 6:19:52 PM EDT
[#49]
I love Uverse, but when it was first installed it was nightmare. It would only come on for about 4-10 hours during the middle day. The main issue was finding out what was causing it.
"OK, its the line, but where?" This went on for 3 weeks. Not sure what tier of support it was at towards the end. One of the engineers finally isolated it by shorting out the line with his multimeter. It ended up being a loose wire a couple blocks over. It would work when the copper heated up and expanded to make contact, but die when it cooled down again. |
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Posted: 2/22/2012 6:22:13 PM EDT
[#50]
Quoted:
I love Cool. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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