poking at the busted thermostat with a screwdriver and a knife until it suddenly comes back to life makes it feel like repairing other things should now be done following Sims rules

poking at the busted thermostat with a screwdriver and a knife until it suddenly comes back to life makes it feel like repairing other things should now be done following Sims rules
Separately, there was a Dr Who pen and paper role playing game which described a skill called "bench thumping" aka "percussive maintenance" and this concept has stuck with me.
The idea was (somehow absurdly?) based on The Fonz from Happy Days where the character was blessed with an innate ability to fix (or otherwise influence the operation of) mechanical devices by banging, punching, hitting...