Mission Control told veteran spaceflier Mike Fincke that he'd have to settle for a partial lube job, after the bolts holding down covers on the joint started popping off unexpectedly.
The spacewalk — the second of four scheduled duringt the shuttle Endeavour's final space station visit — started out well, with Fincke and partner Andrew Feustel topping off a leaky radiator line.
They successfully added ammonia to the space station's coolant system, after rerouting jumper cables and opening valves. One line leaks slightly, and the astronauts needed to recharge it.
Ammonia is extremely hazardous, and the two did their best to avoid contaminating their spacesuits while replenishing the system with about 5 pounds of the substance.
Some frozen ammonia flakes floated toward Feustel as well as a small icy chunk, but he didn't think any of it got him.
Fincke moved on to preventive maintenance on the massive joint that rotates the space station's solar wings on the left side. He was removing his first cover when a bolt popped out and got away from him.
He caught it, but another bolt ended up floating away, and a washer got stuck between the cover and an attachment.
Mission Control worried that the washer might get into the gear mechanisms of the joint and damage them.
Fincke was advised to use "gentle backhand sweeping motions" to get the washer away from the gears, and the astronaut replied he could try to coax it out.
All this came as a surprise, and Mission Control later told the astronauts that the washers might be bent and flimsy from previous repair efforts.
"Sorry you're having such a hard time with those bolts, buddy," Feustel called out to Fincke.
"Yeah, man, I was being really careful, too," replied Fincke, one of NASA's most experienced spacemen.
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