What is your mechanical history and aptitude?

[alderman]

I've always been amazed by the people with a mechanical aptitude, especially those who seem to fix just about anything.
I struggle with the most basic things. I've torn a few saws apart but so far my experience as far as repairs islimited to carb rebuilds and fuel line replacements
I would find it interesting to hear about your mechanical abilities and also whether this was something you were exposed to growing up or was learned later as a necessity to financial survival.

Don't be afraid to brag a bit as even though I might not understand it all I still find it interesting.

 

[nmurph]

If you write the instructions on the heel of a boot, I can usually get most of the pee out. But, keeping it off my feet is another story.

 

[blsnelling]

My Dad has a genius level mechanical aptitude. I grew up with my Dad capable of fixing anything. It's natural to me to just tear into anything that needs fixing. It doesn't really matter if it's something you've done before. You just study up, and go do it. Dad also instilled in me to do it right, or don't do it at all.

 

[jerry quinn]

I was tearing things apart in my diaper, My parents would get so mad at me. Every time I got something new I tore it apart. Rebuilt many dirtbikes when I was 12-16 years old. My first small block chevy when I was 16. Auto trans rebuilds. Big trucks fast cars, I`m a carpenter on a bridge crew now, And A certified structural welder. Always use my own best advice, Put it back together the opposite you took it apart. But after all that these poulan 3400 oilers are giving me fits.

 

[jerry quinn]

My Dad has a genius level mechanical aptitude. I grew up with my Dad capable of fixing anything. It's natural to me to just tear into anything that needs fixing. It doesn't really matter if it's something you've done before. You just study up, and go do it. Dad also instilled in me to do it right, or don't do it at all.

Do a job big or small do it right or not at all, If I had a dollar for every time I heard that.

 

[pro94lt]

I'll never forget cross threading the spark plug on my 3.5hp Briggs go cart I was crushed was scared to tell my dad so I pulled the head off an old blowed up tiller. Put it on first without the head gasket never forget that sound either. Realized what I had done and fixed it not sure how old I was but wasn't in school yet... growing up on a farm theirs always something laying around that needed fixing so it was my play time. The only thing I haven't been able to fix was I tried to make my own brushes in an old trolling motor they'd last just not long. I can guarantee I am the way I am because my dad could first show me but was lazy enough to let me do it all or at least try. He let me fail many many times without scolding me so I kept learning. My son is 6 learning how I did...

 

[pro94lt]

Give me a 1965 Chevy 3 on the tree 250 straight 6 too at maybe 12 or 13 that was in the mid 90s. Learned alot on that truck Times have changed. I'm 30 and all my teacher's smoked at school as well as bus drivers.

 

[AKDoug]

My first mechanical mistake when I was 6. I was so sick and tired of the chain on my Honda 70 dirt bike coming off I decided to adjust it myself. My dad was too busy to help me. I managed to get a wrench on the adjuster, but it wouldn't budge. So I got a cheater bar and managed to snap the adjuster off. Along came dad and pointed out I needed to loosen the axle nut first, along with scolding me for being impatient. We fixed it together the next day with a new adjuster. From that point on you couldn't keep me out of the tool box. I rebuilt every part of numerous dirt bikes and snowmobiles, clutches, engines and transmissions in cars. My folks never said "no", they encouraged me all the time.

Throughout my two careers my mechanical abilities have aided me in making myself and my businesses successful. My first real job was working as a land surveyor. In Alaska this meant a ton of chainsaw work, along with travel in boats and snowmobiles. I quickly became known to be a good hand to have around to fix chainsaws, snowmobiles and boat motors. It kept me employed when many guys got laid off.

When I got married I went back into the family business so I could be home every night. I purchased the business in 2000. We operate a hardware and building materials business that has a tool/equipment rental and Stihl dealership. Even to this day, even though I am the boss, I am still the guy that does much of the maintenance. I couldn't stand a life where I don't get my hands dirty. Through necessity I have learned to be a welder, be proficient in repairing heavy trucks, and work on hydraulics. The nearest heavy equipment mechanic is 60 miles away and we still don't have enough work to keep a guy on full time. If I have a book, I can figure it out. My motto is.. a human put it together, I can put it back together too. I am a voracious reader and will spend days reading everything I can get on a mechanical subject. (like this website)

In 1996 my wife and I were blessed with a son. He has my mechanical ability times two. He's a freaking genius when it comes to anything mechanical. He has a difficult time reading and that's the only thing holding him back. He can look at a pile of parts, though, and instantly seem to know how it all goes together. His first engine rebuild was a two cylinder 2 stroke 250 snowmobile engine at the age of ten. He is attending school to become an Airframe and Powerplant mechanic for aircraft this fall. For the last two years he has virtually replaced me as the welder and mechanic for the business. I am going to miss him as he moves on to his dreams. Maybe someday he'll come back to the business, but it's his choice.

 

[fearofpavement]

I grew up fixing stuff because I enjoyed it. My dad was "handy" but not a mechanic. Learned a lot by watching the mechanic work at the local gas station/service station. (this was when I could buy a bottle of pop and a candy bar for a quarter)
I am an aircraft mechanic by training but don't really like working on planes (shhh!) I like engine work (any kind of engine). I do a lot of automotive/truck repairs and work on all sorts of other equipment from lawnmowers to bulldozers and backhoes. Some of my day is spent in the office (which I detest) and the rest I try to spend getting greasy (or covered in wood chips). I have done a lot of different types of construction, equipment operating, mechanics, etc. but I have made my living by flying airplanes.

 

[Scoutillac]

At age 4 I was under a 36' chev with my old man, always just kinda knew what to do. I look at something and want to know how and why it works, this led to a lot of torn apart things through out my youth.

 

[framzit23]

My dad kept me away from anything mechanical. He was a diesel mech in the navy. Then I bought my first truck and my uncle gave me my first saw when I was 14. I learned out of necessity because I couldn't afford a mechanic. Now I'm hooked

 

[blsnelling]

I love this thread. The stories are inspirational. It comes down to natural aptitude and a mentor to foster it...usually a Dad. I love that.

 

[R/C Pilot]

At a very young age I had access to my Dad's tools as he had went from auto mechanic to service manager of a Pontiac, Buick and GMC dealership. I remember taking the training wheels off my first bicycle. Brought home a blown up Harley Hummer when I was 13. Brought it back to life in the basement of our home in less than a year. Now my bike had a 2 stroke engine that would run both forward and backwards. Went to work in a motorcycle shop at 17 years old and got a small raise at the end of my first day of work. Bike shops, Saw shop, Auto, Marine, Heavy Equipment, Crane's you name it I never backed down. Keep a clean work area, lay things out in order if your unfamiliar with your project and forget you own a hammer. PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOUR DOING

 

[Wagnerwerks]

I had two g-pas that literally fixed everything. One was a maintinence man for the Bayer aspirin co and raced speed boats and the other was an engineer in the army in Korea, then a farmer..... He built everything from rc planes to tractors to circuit boards. My dad is mr fixit too. I watched EVERYTHING and always had dirty hands. It pays off...

 

[CR500]

Like a FearofPavement said "My dad was "handy" but not a mechanic" That's how my father is as well lol. My older brother is a mechanic and he would help fix my bikes and sleds when they broke lol.
I was actually considered a "punk" in middle school and early 9th grade (played guitar, listened to older rock,grunge,punk, etc). I always rode bikes and sleds though to get my mind off of what I was supposed to be doing (homework). I was actually just waiting to drop out of school to be honest, I had like a 50 average in some classes (ended up passing that year with the help of summer school), I missed about 30 days of school during my freshman year of high school. In my area of NY there is a program called Boces and in 10th grade you go there and tour around and see if you want to take a "trade" I wanted to take welding but I stepped inside the "Power Equipment" shop and the smell of diesel, flux,grease and 2 cycle mix just coated my lungs in a euphoric sense!!! So I decided to take it.

Going into that class I was not that mechanically inclined and became interested in just about anything I could do from grinding valves on a Tecumseh cast iron engine to helping a best friend build a round bale wagon from scrap steel his dad found. Rebuilt a Subaru engine fixed some cars for a couple chicks, learned to weld somewhat, helped build quads and bikes and helped restore a sunken bulldozer. I was just loving what I was doing and my grades in the academic sense showed as well. I graduated with a 89 average and was accepted and ready to head to Ohio for Diesel school.

Went to Ohio for 18 months and strangely became drawn to all 2 cycle engines and saws and just keep learning about them and the "porting" process that Brad,Randy, Mitch, Terry, & Stumpy have been so kind to share with us. Graduated Ohio with "honors" and was ready to start a job and as luck has it I broke my ankle and they decided to "let me go". After having surgery and healing for a few weeks, my local Stihl dealership needed some extra help and wanted to know if I could help? I accepted and they gave me a chair and a spot do carb work on and do what I could at the time. Summer went on the ankle healed I fixed anything 2 cycle that walked through our shop and the occasional mower and stove. Still looking for a job in the heavy equipment/Agriculture field.... There is something about diesel that excites me like nothing else. So hopefully the next coming weeks I'm accepted at a logging supply shop. I just wanna conquer the world it seems like some days hahaha

That's about it I guess lol

 

[anlrolfe]

I was tearing things apart in my diaper

Mom said that I would take the screws on my high chair apart by hand.

Dad was Electronically and Mechanically skilled. He would say "It's already broken. What's the worse we can do to it?" We had a good track record even though we didn't fixed everything. In the process of tinkering we usually learned what made things tick and that knowledge helped us(me) out down the road a time or two.

Dad brought home a military enlisted paycheck. With four kids in the family it wasn't raining lettuce. Fixing things was a matter of simple "home economics", a subject that needs its place back in schools Nation wide. Put simply, if I can fix it more money stays in my household not the mechanics. It didn't matter whether it was carpentry, masonry, roofing, car repair or appliances. If we could buy or make the parts we'd give it a go. Heck, Dad fixed a cracked washing machine agitator with epoxy resin and an old pair of Mom's nylon stockings. Anyone can have a MacGyver moment! As they say, "Necessity is the mother of invention". Want a solution bad enough and something will fall together.

Mechanically I've worked on a good variety of automotive, small engine and marine equipment. I would rather diagnose OBD-II troubles than tear into automatic transmissions or 1980's vacuum actuated carb from #&!!. The first injection systems that I worked on were VW's with Bosch K-Jetronic(CIS) and L-jetronic. Dabbled with enough of the VW diesels to earn some money helping with heavy equipment repair. It was the same types of parts and technology just bigger and rearranged. The biggest diesels that I've maintained were waukesha, a machine steeped in tradition and excellence.

I took a welding class as continuing education while I was in the USMC. I had a dream of making a kit "AC Cobra". I still haven't made the car but I teach fundamentals of electric arc welding at an NJATC Electrical Vocational School. I can also thank Uncle Sam for the foundation of my electrical and electronics knowledge. Not just from my service but also what my Dad passed down from his Air Force training. In the latter 70's when CB's were big we made a DIY SWR(standing wave ratio) meter to tune the length of CB antennas for optimal transmission. No telling how much money(or beer) Dad made from those installations. What he taught me at the repair bench was far more than fixing things...... I miss him.

 

[Chris-PA]

I took all my toys apart when I was a kid, and eventually learned to put some of them back together again. Dad was a fair mechanic but he never enjoyed working on things, so he was happy to let me take over that chore for the most part. I kept all the equipment running, and built mowers from the pile of old broken ones he didn't care to fix. I was modifying the carb on his old Mustang before I was old enough to drive it.

My one grandfather was a skilled plumber and woodworker, and a real craftsman in many areas. My other grandfather was building heat pumps out of surplus compressor systems in the 50's.

These days I am quite tired of working on cars, but still do it to save money. I will take most anything apart and try yo fix it, and have a decent success rate. I'm typing this on a savaged laptop built out of the parts of about three others (in combinations never originally offered).

Chainsaws were something I just never bothered to learn much about until recently, but we now heat with wood exclusively and I got tired of not having a reliable tool when I went to cut wood. So I determined to learn how they work, and AS has been a wealth of information. Now my saws are all reliable (and modified), and I found that I really enjoy tinkering with them. It's has been a challenge to learn the details of how they work, and they exercise a lot of different skills in the shop.

 

[redfin]

Just as some above I have been tearing things apart since I was little. Failed a lot but learned a lot also. Mainly now I repair everything at home just because I'm to dang cheap to pay someone else.

I bought my boy a complete set of tools and box to avoid him using mine. That was one of the complaints my pops had when I used his is they wouldn't end up where he had them.

 

[Str8six]

I love this thread! Seems there were quite a few of us that liked to take things apart in our younger years. My dad was not a mechanic but could take care of anything that needed fixing when he was home. He drove a truck all of his life and taught me more by not being there than he ever could have by being there. I had to take care of things while he wasn't home and I guess that sparked my interest in mechanics. One side of my family was always in cattle farming and dad's side was always in trucking and cattle farming. I was lucky to find an OEM dealer that was willing to give me a chance to prove myself two weeks after I got out of high school and I'm am still employed by the same dealer today. I worked my way up through the shop, became master certified both OEM and ASE in heavy trucks and now I am their corporate trainer. I teach the new and old guys current techniques, diagnostics and anything else they want to know. I also go out to our different locations and help troubleshoot problem trucks at times. I owe all of my success to my dad for the work ethic he instilled in me and a great company for taking a chance.

 

[Frogfarmer]

I have my grandfather to thank for my mechanical abilities. I had tools and things to take apart before I could talk or so Im told. I remember disassembling propane regulators when I was very young and kept that box of parts for 20yrs. Took everything apart that would come apart and several that wouldn't come apart. Im sure it caused grief for my parents but I had plenty of toys. As I got older I watched as my father tried to fix things but just exploded and threw tools. He wasn't mechanically inclined and was only fixing because he couldn't afford to have it done so most of the time it flopped. My grandfather wasn't mechanical either but for some reason he decided I needed tools and even a box with my name custom painted on the top. I still have that box but most of the tools were lost or misplaced long before I hit 10. Started working on lawn mowers and small engines well before my teens and had a neighbor who was a maintenance supervisor for the mines that would give me a project once in a while. That neighbor showed me what patience and skill was needed for the bigger jobs and the toys got more expensive. Built several engines before I could drive and several more after I started driving. Been on a couple of winning race teams and had the pleasure of knowing Rusty Wallace and his family. Somewhere along the line the trucks turned into heavy equipment and I have been working on everything with tires or tracks for the last 20yrs. I am very thankful I was given the opportunities I had at an early age and for the memories I have of those who helped along the way.