Pivnic
Well Oiled
Thanks John. He's sixteen, going to be 17 in July. If the engine stays that clean for any length of time, either something is wrong or he's not using it as intended. Wrenches will be taken to the freshly painted bolts. Modifications should be made over time as he uses it and his wants and expectations change. Maintenance and repairs will add their own character.
As you, I, and many of the builders on this board are aware, the pretty paint is only the superficial result of what went in. We could have left most things "as found" but then we would have missed some things, the cracked thermostat housing being just one:
It wasn't leaking prior to the engine's removal from the donor vehicle, but had we not sandblasted part, the painted-over crack surely would have revealed itself at a most inopportune time later. He caught it now.
More important - to me - than the looks are the habits being developed by a young man entering into industry. The time spent cleaning & inspecting parts, chasing threads prior to assembly, etc. won't prevent every surprise down the trail, but it should help to minimize them. The investment-of-effort made here adds to the pride of ownership, the knowledge of a job done to the best of one's ever-expanding abilities, furthering valuable experience.
Speaking of gained experience: If/when you meet him, ask about the hardware-store quality bolt he was using to fasten the cherry picker chain to the block while lifting the engine off the stand. I wasn't there as he was working towards hanging the engine from the hoist to bolt the flywheel on, probably thinking "clutch, pressure plate, transmission, in the truck, down the road, girl at my side."
You can tell someone all day long that bolts really do break... but until they have something the weight of an automotive engine almost crash to the ground at their feet, our words just don't have the same impact. While we were re-securing the dangling engine back to the hoist, it hanging precariously from the build-stand by 2 of the 4 bolts that had not yet been removed, he recounted watching that cheap bolt just give way under weight... almost quicker than he could move, bending like butter, it snapped. Up went the chain and down went the engine; fortuitously, just not all the way.
When I asked, "Which way did you move when you saw it going?"
"Like this!" he replied, motioning hands-up and backwards, adrenaline still not fully dissipated.
"Good!" I said, "Do you know how many people would have instinctively reached for it and tried to save that stupid hunk of metal? We can always build another."
Invaluable.
And then there's the little things, the creativity that makes something our own, the things we do with our own hands because we can, things that will acceptably go unnoticed by the casual observer, like making an adapter for a carbureted air filter so the finished product fits with the rest of the vehicle:
I mean who would really care, right? The plastic square box from the donor would fit right alongside the wheelwell and do the same job. Why bother? You can probably buy a nicely fabricated communist one cheaper online somewhere anyway and have it delivered right to your door with little-to-no effort.
Bother because you can, son, and that gives you exercisable options.
What we're building here is much more than a truck.
Well Said John! I would guess that a lot of "Us" have the Scars to show the results of the experiences that we went through in our Journey of how we got to where we're at. I can see from the good work that your Son does that he had a great teacher and that he will do well in all his travels. Looking forward to more project updates. John (aka: Pivnic)
