Shop talk and trade slang

100 entries in this trade.

ABC

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

Alfa

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A car made by Alfa Romeo.

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.

bakehead

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A fireman (person who keeps the fire going underneath a steam boiler on a railroad locomotive).

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.

bubble car

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

a single-car multiple unit

burn rubber

verbShop talk and trade slangidiomatic, informal

To accelerate so rapidly from standstill that it leaves a mark of burnt rubber on the road from the tire.

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.

buzzie

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A hand-held pneumatic drill used in mining.

buzzin' dozen

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

The Detroit Diesel 12V71, 12V92, or 12V149 engine.

California roll

nounShop talk and trade slangcolloquial

A rolling stop (when a car slows down at a stop sign, but does not come to a complete stop).

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.

channeled

adjectiveShop talk and trade slangslang

Of a vehicle: having the height reduced by lowering the body with respect to the frame rails.

chopped

adjectiveShop talk and trade slangslang

Having a vehicle's height reduced by horizontal trimming of the roofline.

chugger

nounShop talk and trade slangcolloquial

A heavy-duty locomotive whether electric, diesel, hybrid or steam-powered

cop magnet

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A vehicle that unusually draws police attention, often due to reckless behavior, flashy appearance, or speeding stereotypes.

crash gearbox

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A transmission with a sliding mesh, used in older vehicles; gear changes are often accompanied by loud noises.

curb appeal

nounShop talk and trade slangidiomatic

The visual attractiveness of an automobile, as viewed from street level.

curbstoner

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A freelance used car dealer who places for-sale ads and meets a prospective buyer at a designated curbside address.

daily driver

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

Any tagged or insured race car that is too slow to be used competitive racing.

Darth Vader

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A British Rail Class 460 train.

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.

destash

verbShop talk and trade slanginformal

To remove (a yarn, fabric, equipment, etc.) from one's collection.

diff lock

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

locking differential

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.

ditchfinder

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A poor-quality tyre for a car, usually one made and sold cheaply.

dizzy

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A distributor (device in internal combustion engine).

doghole

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A mine worked by fewer than fifteen miners, which is small enough that some safety laws do not apply.

drive stick

verbShop talk and trade slangcolloquial

To drive a stickshift vehicle.

fanny pad

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

An unsprung separate pillion seat on a motorcycle.

finger-light

adjectiveShop talk and trade slangidiomatic

Of a vehicle, easy to steer.

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.

flyboy

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A man employed to clear the printed copies from the printing press.

four foot

nounShop talk and trade slangcolloquial

the space between the rails on a standard gauge railway line.

four-seater

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A motor vehicle designed to accommodate four individuals.

Geep

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A nickname for the EMD GP series diesel locomotives.

GOBLin

nameShop talk and trade slanginformal

Acronym of Gospel Oak to Barking Line, a railway line in north London.

grice

verbShop talk and trade slangslang

to act as a trainspotter; to partake in the activity or hobby of trainspotting.

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.

helicopter ear

nounShop talk and trade slangslang

A form of Helmholtz resonance experienced in a moving vehicle, when one of the windows is rolled down.

hello girl

nounShop talk and trade slangdated, informal

A female telephone operator.

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.

hot hatch

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

A high-performance hatchback small motor car.

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.

jacked up

adjectiveShop talk and trade slangslang

Describes a 4x4 automobile that has a "lift kit", raising the body and/or frame higher than stock.

jellybean

adjectiveShop talk and trade slangslang

of an electronic component, or software algorithm: generic, standard, vanilla, easy to find

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.

knitting

nounShop talk and trade slanginformal

overhead electrification wires, OHLE

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.