Repair Repair is a " Fallout " , " Fallout 2 " , " Fallout 3 " , " " and " " skill . In " Van Buren " and J . E . Sawyer ' s Fallout Role - Playing Game it was renamed mechanics . " Fallout " , " Fallout 2 " and " Fallout Tactics " . Example : A starting Intelligence of 5 . " Fallout 3 " . Example : A starting Intelligence of 5 and Luck of 5 . Repair is used to fix damaged equipment ( bringing up its condition ) by using up a second item identical or similar to the original . Repair also determines the starting condition of custom made equipment . Maximum condition . The Repair skill level controls the maximum condition the equipment can be repaired to . This is equal to Example : A Repair skill of 50 . In other words , every 5 points in Repair raises the maximum condition by 3 % . For example with skill level of 10 allows items to be repaired up to 46 % , skill level of 15 allows repair up to 49 % and so on . This is important because weapons and armor in poor condition are not as efficient and their value is decreased . Low quality weapons have less accuracy and damage , which reduces effective range and often causes more ammunition to be used to kill enemies when using ranged weapons , or more hits when using melee or unarmed weapons . Ranged weapons in low condition are also more likely to jam , which lengthens the reload animation . Armor in low condition has a lower Damage Resistance ( DR ) rating . If the condition of a weapon or armor / clothing is completely neglected , the item will break , making the item unusable until it is repaired ( armor and clothing will remain on a character after it breaks , but can not be put back on if taken off ) . Repair efficiency . Furthermore , repairs become more efficient . The final condition of the item being repaired is equal to Where formula _ 8 is equal to the % of the highest of the two item and formula _ 9 is equal to the % of the lowest of the two item , and Repair skill is expressed as a percentage . Example , combining two miniguns with a condition of 20 % and 10 % , by a player with 10 points in Repair : The same repair performed by a player with 50 points in Repair will give : Other than determining the item type , it doesn ' t matter if you repair item A with item B or the other way around . The formula also works when the two items have different item HP even if one of them is unique — the item conditions are taken into account , not HP . As can be deduced from the formula , the player ' s Repair skill is the determining factor , the item used for repairs contributing 5 % max to the final state . This can make using or even buying items in good condition for repairs uneconomic . On the other hand , using broken items , which are worthless at 0 % condition , is still quite effective . " Fallout : New Vegas " . In " " , items can now be repaired to 100 % regardless of the player ' s current skill . However , Repair still governs the effectiveness of repairing one item with another . A higher Repair skill unlocks recipes for different types of ammunition and other gear at reloading bench es and workbenches , most notably the Weapon repair kit with 50 skill . High Repair also allows the player to repair mechanical or electronic world objects ( elevators , doors , computers , etc . ) . Notable Repair skilled non - player characters . " Fallout " . Smitty , blacksmith of the Adytum district of the Boneyard . " Fallout 2 " . Vic , pre - War stuff trader and possible companion of the Chosen One .