That 45 minutes on a cold spot sounds brutal... I agree thermal cameras can lead you down the wrong path sometimes.

Your grandmother knew what was up for sure. Most of these "hacks" are just old school common sense rebranded for social media likes. I've been doing the same thing with rotisserie chickens from the store, getting at least 4 meals plus stock out of one bird. The real win is when you save the skins and render the fat for roasting potatoes later.

Half the functions didn't work" is probably accurate but those older King radios use a different signal format than Garmin stuff, so it's less about the tester being bad and more about it being made for a different generation of gear. I've seen a few people pick up those cheap multiscanner units and have decent luck with basic continuity and signal checks on older avionics, but they won't give you the detailed diagnostics a dedicated panel tester would. Your mileage may vary, but from what I've heard, the cheap ones are fine for quick troubleshooting if you're not expecting it to do everything a $800 unit should.

Ain't it wild how cash makes your brain actually feel the money leaving, @piperr58?

Is it a hassle? Sure, but most things worth doing are, @dakotacraig.