battsup

I am learning how to work on cars from the forum and from my grandpa and dad. i was just wondering how all you other folks learned.

Schmucker

Books and my dad. Still learning and I just started I think, but I know a lot more than a lot of other people that like cars. Getting the Corvette gave me extra motivation to learn something.

Scott78

Started handing my Dad tools at 6 years old, he was a mechanic. Add to that 10 years on my grandparents dairy farm where you fixed everything there. So I guess I just grew up with a wrech in my hands.

Scott

bn7035

When I was 16 I had a 69 SS El Camino. I bought it myself from the sale of some livestock that I raised. About two months later I need a brake job that cost me about $100.00. My dad believed in making me pay my own vehicle costs and repairs. I made $47.50 a week at an after school job. That brake job cost me two weeks pay! :mad I had no gas money to cruise the local drag :eek: I had to stay home and watch Gunsmoke on TV :sleep: (I love that show now) From then on I did all my own repairs. I have bought lots of parts that did not need replacement. My uncle was a mechanic for DOT and I ask lots of questions. I read books, and asked even more questions. Since then I've done just about everything that you can do on a Chev rear wheel drive including paint and body work. I've screwed up lots of things along the way. The most valuable lesson I've learnt is patience and do it right the first time even if you have to tear it down several times to get it right. Some 30 years later I still ask questions and do not know as much as I want to. So ask questions and have fun.

spokewrench

I rebuilt my first 350 when I was 15 with the help of the book "How To Hot Rod Smallblock Chevys" because I needed a engine for the 68 Camaro I bought for $250.00, it had a worn out 6 cylinder- And I needed wheels! I just read books to learn!

RS69

I grew up on a farm and worked with my dad on his farm equipment. My father also worked for PPG Industries and was trained to use the full variety of PPG Paint products. My dad passed these skills on to me and my younger brother. I believe I started at first fetching wrenches for him when around 5. Things took off from there to motorcycles and then to automobiles. Between my brother, dad and I cant count how many cars/trucks we have painted over the last twenty some years. I have not worked with fiberglass yet, but will soon to repaint my vette. My brother has one on me, he has is just ready to paint his 68 vette.




[Modified by Cool427shark, 6:54 PM 1/16/2003]

Clink69

Started when I was 14 on my first Mini bike... It was a Rupp 3 HP. Blew it up in 1 week.. Found out you need OIL. Next several motocylces from 15 -16... drove em crazy and messed um all up.. Then it was the VW...Had a bunch of them.. I can do anything to a VW by my self . no one showed me how to do anything on a car. I learned the hard way, by trial and error.. Still do it that way... But now I do more research before starting the job.

Chris
:flag

Pete79L82

Started doing the maintaince on my dad's Peterbilts and Kenworths when I was around 8.(oil changes , grease jobs, kepping them clean) took a lot of positioning with the jack to change a 10.00x22.00 tire when you can't lift one.

Built my first motor when I was 12. A 1950 ****** Jeepster 4 cylinder.

Built my first motorcycle engine when I was 13. A 1954 Harley panhead.

Built my first race motor when I was 14. A 389 pontiac for my dads sportsman 65 GTO.

Been building race motors and race cars every since.

MotorHead

Learned on the muscle cars of the seventies when I didn't have two nickels to rub together so you had to do it yourself and if I had the money for a book it went for parts or gas instead.

Over the years you get better and better at it however I am still waiting for the day I finish a job and don't have any nuts or bolts left over. I am hoping that day will come when I finish the motor I am building the basement :D

stpman

I passed my dad wrenches when I was about 7, helped him change the engine in a van when I was 14 and rebuilt the top end of my Buick at 17. I've always repaired and maintained on my cars. frustration and relaxation all at the same time. cheaper than an hour with a shrink.

Steve C

Black Magic

Used to crawl under the car with my dad when I was four or five. Then I wanted to impress him, so I asked him to give me jobs to do. Could change the oil by six, full tune up by seven. Then I bought my first car ('64 Falcon) at 14 and rebuilt the whole thing with Pop's help.

After awhile, people started me doing stuff to their cars, which was nice because I was able to learn how to build engines and not spend my own money on it. Most of the time when I got paid I went straight to Sears and bought more tools.

My advice? Read as much as you can. And, thankfully, we now have the internet and forums like this to talk to yor peers around the world. I have learned a lot about my Vette just by reading all your guys' posts.

:)

PRNDL

Funny, my neighbors ask me the same question, and I tell them that just because I spend a lot of time under my vette doesn't necessarily mean I am really doing any meaningful work on the car, nor does it imply that I actually know what I am doing! :lol: MJ

PatsLs1vette

My dad owned several gas stations and was a mechanic too,he was always working on something and i sat and watched him when i was 14 i built my first 350 myself.At 15 i helped him restore my first car a 69 rs/ss pacecar camaro convertible,and the rest was history. :D i was addicted to cars .

71vettman

As far back as I can remember I was always watching and helping my dad work on the family cars. He used to build race engines and all types of car related stuff. Then when I was 16 I had enough money to buy my vette and do a complete body off restoration. Ive had some autoshop classes in highschool also. I worked at midas for a while and for the past 2 summers I worked in a automotive machineshop boring engines and all that fun stuff.
Currently I am in Ohio studying to get an associates degree in Highperformance Motorsports, along with another associates degree in Alternative fuels.
I read all the books on cars that I can find also.
Kevin

fauxrs

Books and my Mom. The tools that form the core of my current toolset are the same old snap ons and (American made Husky) that my Mom used to rebuild the Engine on our Triumph Spitfire.

She has done or tried just about everything - she built a room addition on her own, made money writing computer software for a few years after she retired from nursing. She is an accomplished artist, even had a showing in a local gallery in the 60's - I dont think I have ever seen her fail at something she tried.

She used to Rallye race, back when they did that sort of thing, she even has about a half dozen trophies from wins. These are some nice trophies too - Her 1st place trophy is about 2' tall.

She hasnt done that for almost 40 years now - and she isnt nearly as approving of my hobby as she used to be. I think she would rather I marry and raise a peck of children - but thats Moms for ya :lol:

She doesnt like the present vette - Didnt like my 84 either. but she has said she'll change her mind if I buy a '58 (man I would love a 58)

Nomad78SA

I started with trail/street dirt bikes and then started messing with cars out of need. When I went into the Army and was asigned a jeep my skills took off. I got in or started hanging with the maintenace group and never stopped.
Neil in Tenn

jackson

Though I'd been handing wrenches to Dad since I could walk ... my training really began at about age ten ... when I found a junk discarded lawn mower. I hauled it home ... took it apart myself in blissful ignorance ... put back together myself ( again ignorant) ... it ran OK enough that I earned a few bucks with it mowing neighbors lawns. Dunno what was wrong with it ... but I had to keep tinkering with it to keep it running ... so kept learning. During same period, I was an avid reader of both Popular Mechanics & Popular Science mags ... also tinkered with small model airplane gas motors. Basically, I taught myself ... that lawn mower really helped a great deal. From there I was into karts, small motorcycles, then big uns (Triumph, BSA & HD) ... then cars. Now I work on mine only when I have to or when I'm building a project ... as a hobby I help out building & crewing circle track cars & trucks. I really haven't changed so much ... I still haul way too much junk home.

JoeC427

Father
Books
Friends you can trust who don't care that your going to be going faster then they are :lol:

VolVette

I owe many thanks to you guys and gals on this forum. Lars, Zwede, Juliet are just a few that have been particularly unselfish and offered great help.

The rest, I learned on my own and one day I hope I can help younger generations, too.

Cheers to all of you. :cheers:

Stephen

Oldguard 7

Lincoln Technical Institute graduate I like the challenge of diagnosing problems of all years, makes, and models of vehicles both foreign and
domestic and fixing them. I really like the older vehicles as well.