Huh, you really think it's pointless? I've had that white lithium grease trick hold up for months on my own truck, and I live in Florida where the sun is brutal. What kind of climate are you in? Because I'm wondering if the heat and humidity down here actually helps the grease soak in better than somewhere dry like Arizona.

Nah I gotta disagree hard on this one. Saying it's "just extra fluff" is kind of a slap in the face to people who actually read the full book and loved it. I bought the movie tie in of Ready Player One without knowing they cut out a whole side quest and it totally changed how the story flowed. Felt like I was missing inside jokes.

Actually, tin whiskers don't usually hide in that exact spot inside the backshell. Usually they grow from the metal surface itself, and they can bridge over to the pins or the shield. I've seen them more in the crimp barrel area where the wire meets the contact, or along the braid where it's been cut. The fan-out point is worth checking, but in my experience the real trouble is further back toward the termination. Just something to keep in mind before you dig around in there.

Nah I checked the solder joints first, cap was toast.

Man, I feel your pain on that one. I finally gave up on mastic for anything larger than a 6x6 subway tile after a similar mess in a restaurant kitchen. What worked for me was switching to a medium-bed thinset and troweling it on with a 1/2 inch notch instead of the standard 1/4 inch. The deeper ridges give way more grab and stop that creep. Also, I started backbuttering every heavy tile, even ones that were pretty flat it makes a huge difference.