IndustrialDictionary

Shop talk and trade slang

100 terms in this trade.

ABC

phraseShop talk and trade slang

Initialism of always be charging, a recommendation to remember to charge or be left without use by a low battery at an inopportune time.

angel gear

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

The neutral gear when used while a vehicle is moving, especially when it is used to freewheel so as to save fuel or to coast downhill faster than a vehicle can go in gear.

barnacle

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

On printed circuit boards, a change such as soldering a wire in order to connect two points, or addition such as an added resistor or capacitor, subassembly or daughterboard.

blackwash

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

Public campaigns and advertising funded by the coal industry to draw attention away from environmentally unsustainable practices or to justify exclusion from carbon taxes.

buttinsky

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A robust portable one-piece telephone instrument with clips, used by technicians and lines staff for testing telephone circuits or making a temporary connection to a telephone line.

capacitor plague

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

Premature failure of an electrolytic capacitor, especially when several are beginning to fail at the same time in a piece of equipment (due, for example, to high demands imposed by the circuit design, such as in a switchmode power supply), necessitating "re-capping" (i.e. replacing many capacitors after disconnecting the power and waiting for lethal charge to dissipate).

cauldron bottom

nounShop talk and trade slangobsolete, slang

A large, round mass in a coal seam that forms part of the roof of a coal mine passage (usually being a fossilized root or stump); considered a hazard due to being prone to falling without warning.

dead-bug

adjectiveShop talk and trade slanginformal

Relating to a form of electronic prototyping where integrated circuits are stuck upside down to the breadboard and soldered to directly.

dinosaur juice

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

Any liquid (gasoline, diesel, mineral oil etc.) derived from fossil fuels (especially petroleum), commonly used in vehicles as fuel or lubricant.

flash for cash

adjectiveShop talk and trade slangidiomatic, informal

Pertaining to a scam where a motorist flashes their headlights to indicate to another driver to proceed against normal give-way rules, then runs into them and sues for damages.

heavy equipment

nounShop talk and trade slangidiomatic

Any of a diverse class of large machines used in construction and mining for earthmoving tasks (e.g., digging, grading), logging, and other heavy-duty applications.

heck

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

An apparatus for separating the threads of warps into sets, as they are wound upon the reel from the bobbins, in a warping machine.

hole

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A passing loop; a siding provided for trains traveling in opposite directions on a single-track line to pass each other.

honorary steam locomotive

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A diesel locomotive that outputs a large amount of exhaust, to the point it resembles the exhaust from a steam locomotive, particularly those produced by the American Locomotive Company.

ICE

verbShop talk and trade slangslang

To occupy a reserved electric car parking space (especially one equipped with a charger) with a traditional car equipped with an internal combustion engine.

idiot light

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

Any warning light or indicator on the dashboard of a car, designed to alert the driver to problems, such as the parking brake being on or the oil being low.

jeweller's shop

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

An exceptionally rich pocket or seam of gold-bearing ore, or, of high-quality opal; a find so rich, dazzling, and valuable that it resembles the stock of a jewellery store.

kludge

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

An improvised device, typically crudely constructed to test the validity of a principle before implementing a finished design.

last mile

nounShop talk and trade slangidiomatic

The portion of the infrastructure that carries communication signals from the main system to the end user's business or home, often involving greater expense to install and maintain, and lower transmission speeds.

Ma Bell

nameShop talk and trade slanginformal

Collectively, the family of companies associated with American Telephone & Telegraph, providing telephone service in the United States for many years through 1983.