why won't you teach us?

everyone has to admit are calture is dying with gas price's, cash for clunkers,scrap car prices,junk yard going out of biz. im a young guy at 19 and know some stuff and learn more each day but im not the type that can learn from a book ive tried trust me. no one in my area will teach me and ive heard it from alot of other young people.
ive asked alot of people in my car clubs and no one has time or anything for us i have 10 to 15 friends that would pay for a welding class our a eng. building class
we dont want a carrier out of it but we want to know are own cars and work on them is all. i just want to know what i can do to make a older club member respect me wanting 2 learn enough to give me a chance. ill work in a shop for free ill sweep the floor idc just teach me  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife

you're a rare breed, man
not many young guys think like you do...and that's where the hobby went
seems like you've learned a good bit from your dad, maybe not all that you want to know though...at least he has taken the time to feed you're automotive interest...my dad always told me i was wasting my money and time, his tools came from the flea market while mine came from craftsman, snap-on, and matco...

i had a close friend years ago, he was actually a surrogate dad/mentor, he had three sons that wanted nothing to do with cars, (like you mentioned, give me something to drive and it better be cool to the other kids)...i remember bugging the neighborhood hot rodders when i was 2&3.

alright, if i keep going down that road, i'll start crying in my beer

two ways i know of to learn to weld: 1)take a class at the local community college
2) buy a welder, a book (the book is just to get the idea of what you're supposed to be doing...i don't learn that well from books either) and some scrap metal and start practicing...the book will tell you to practice on scrap until you get the hang of it

don't get me wrong, you may be able to find someone that has a welder and be willing to teach you how...i got lucky in a sense, the job i was working required some welding and my boss tauhgt me a few things and then let me try my hand at it...a couple of years later i bought a  gently used stick welder for a fraction of the price of a new one...used it, got comfortable, and last year i found a  small lincoln mig for less than $300 at sears, read the instruction book, started on some scrap and got comfortable with it...not comfortable enough to replace body panels yet but maybe soon

as far as respect from the older guys, build your nova without a wing and that stupid coffee can tailpipe, be realistic with the wheels...no dink donk stuff...it's a good place to start  
-
the red-headed step-child of the mailing list

fuzzy dice, air shocks & N50's rule

hahha ya im puting 24's on it lol not. i wish i could keep working on the nova but work is drying up i gota pay the bills before the car u know how it is lol  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife

i can relate to your situation...im 24 and building my first engine from oil pan to carb... i think alot of the not wanting to help is based on the laziness of others our age,  a lot of younger guys just want everything done for them or do them half assed... my dad never helped me with anything on my cars,  he told me what needed to be done,  then expected me to know how to do it...dont bother asking him how,  he would just tell me to figure it out for myself...if someone would sit down with me and share some knowledge,  id be more than willing to learn,  but for now,  i am just learning from my mistakes,  pretty costly,  but at least i am learning something from them...

my advice is to show them you arent lazy,  show them youll get the job done right,  if they have something to work on on their car,  offer to help,  good luck finding the help you seek  

corcor67, sounds like you're learning the hard way too...

you never forget the mistakes that cost money

i took 2 years of auto-shop in high school and got a job before graduation at a local import dealer (it was better than at the tire store), did that for four years before my driving record helped me join the military where i learned the finer points of heavy equipment maintenance, at which point i had heard enough of everyone complain about their vehicle's problems and couldn't stand for people to know that i knew something about "cars"...my car makes this weird noise, what do you think it is?...where to start

i've found it much more relaxing to work on my own stuff, however i have had many "side" jobs over the years

if i had it all to do over again, i would have learned to be a machinist and gone to college for mechanical engineering but you can't turn back time  
-
the red-headed step-child of the mailing list

fuzzy dice, air shocks & N50's rule

i found someone 2 teach me but it isn't a older gent. one of my friends is going 2 teach me 2 build a motor  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife

congrats...there are still people willing to teach the younger generation but they're getting harder to find  
-
the red-headed step-child of the mailing list

fuzzy dice, air shocks & N50's rule

def are hard 2 find  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife

You young 'uns are the future of the hobby.  Keep askin' and learnin'... I have built countless SBC's over the years, and dang near learn a new trick everytime I build another one.

I started out with a feeler guage, a ring compressor, a framing hammer (no kiddin' LOL), and a small set of Craftsman tools.  I rebuilt my first engine that way... it went into a 71 ElCamino SS.  I miss that car dearly...

I had lost interest in the hobby for awhile... divorce, kids growing up, new job, no time... then I made the time... The flame was rekindled when I was visiting my old man and BSing about cars.  He had a copy of Car Craft on his workbench.  I hadn't read Car Craft in eons... and was thrilled at what I found in it's pages.  I subscribed the next day, and went lookin' for a project.

I found a 1972 GMC truck... so a hot rod/rat rod truck was born.  I have a friend that is 10 years my junior, and he is fairly new in the scene... That still makes him over 30... but a rookie is a rookie.  I helped him with his 1972 Monte Carlo buildup.  Now he has one of the wickedest Montes around these parts.  I had fun teachin' him about the engine rebuild, and some of the other aspects of roddin'.  Anyways... he had the truck, and he sold it to me for a song.

So it was fitting that he helped me out on my truck build.  He was bright eyed and bushy tailed with every part of the project I was doin'.  Especially rebuliding the TH350... The truck is now on the road... not complete... but hey, it's a rat truck... no need to drill fake "rust" holes and spray "rust" color on it... it's already got enough of that.  Everytime I fire that 400hp Small Block up, more rust falls out of the rocker panels and floorboards.  I love it!

My point is... even guys in their 30's are still learnin'.  Plus some of the gearheads in their 40's are still amazed at how we still make mistakes with stuff we've done 100 times over.

Never be scared to ask.  If I wouldn't have asked about rebuilding a 350 back when I was 20... I would have never came this far.

Enjoy the hobby, and pass it on to your friends...

Gary  

hard to pass a hobbie like this to other teens i have a good job but others are making 6.50 u know what i mean lol  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife

Dude... my first car was a 1969 Buick Riviera... got it from my parents.  Wasn't really a hot rod.  But we hopped up the 430 big block a little, and found an aluminum dual plane intake for 25 bucks, and I got a Holley Spreadbore carb at a swap meet for not much more.  EZPZ...

The best part about the hobby is makin' somethin' out of nothin'.  Usin' what you have, and not givin' a rip what everybody else thinks.  Cars are cool... even newer cars.  My next project is gonna be an early 80's Malibu street/strip monster.  Why? because there are a ton of them out there for CHEAP!  They take a small block easy, and have been proven to be good drag cars.

Again, my point is that even mom's grocery getter can be cool... no need for high dollar parts and high dollar cars at every turn.  If that is all anybody wanted, then there would be no swap meets and junk yards.  

Gary  

im 2 young and nieeve to know what to look for to tell u the truth in the eng conpartment lol im learning tho  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife

As long as we have young people to teach some of us older kids will give you all the knowledge we have. We bench race, burn rubber and never stop showing off for the girls even if they are nice older units. When I was 8(1969)my dad started a salvage yard. That is where I got my interest however cars were different then. I could watch but not touch. When I turned 10 he gave me a 63 Fairlane to use as a field car since the place was so busy I was the dismantler. My love for cars grew and today I work for a truck salvage yard. I would be honored to share all my knowledge with as many kids as I can because you will inherit this mud ball called earth and our passion for the hobby. As far as respect from the older members of your club F them. If they don't want to tell you anything they are not leaders they are followers and probably didn't build their own rides anyway.  
ITS A GAS!!!!!!!!!

true that
it's hard to pass on knowledge you don't possess

you can tell the posers by the names they drop when talking about the build up of their car

it's one thing to pay for some body/paint work or some custom upholstery, but basic mechanic work...no talent, no skills, no car  
-
the red-headed step-child of the mailing list

fuzzy dice, air shocks & N50's rule

hahah lol def man  
don't crush restore
chevyforlife