Young Guys Don't Know Everything

[rondog]

When it came time to set the timing the book said that they would need a timing light, they looked at me and said I was not going to drive home to get it so I used a broken tour signal from a parts pile and made them Buzz Box, works like one anyway.

Dude - A MacGyver timing light? That's awesome!

I've always enjoyed wrenching on my own shit, but I figured out long ago that I sure as hell didn't want to do it for a living. I have to admire those who do! It sure isn't a job for fat bastards with broken-up bodies.

[Ronin13]

I dunno about the blanket statement that "young guys don't know shit"- I know old guys who don't know nearly as much as some of these younger guys coming out of DADC or other tech schools. I, personally, can't do much else other than change the oil, maybe an alternator (depending on the vehicle- can't on my BMW but could on the Dodge Ram), brakes, and plugs... other than that, I'm not what one would call "mechanically skilled." However, one of my good buddies from HS worked as a mechanic at Christopher's Dodge World years ago, he's in his late 20's and really knows his stuff- probably why he left Christopher's . Age has nothing to do with it, I think it comes down to how skilled and humble someone is. OP, sounds like those guys gave way to ego rather than someone more experienced giving them advice. I saw it all the time in the Army, age didn't matter, had older guys who thought because I was young I didn't know what I was doing- and what happened when your rifle jammed on the range, oh yeah, because you had a carbon build up on the BCG that I told you needed to be cleaned properly... but that's right, I'm just a young buck that doesn't know shit because I'm under 30. It's not always age, but it is more common for younger people to be less accepting of a more experienced opinion... :/

[Circuits]

I've always enjoyed wrenching on my own shit, but I figured out long ago that I sure as hell didn't want to do it for a living. I have to admire those who do! It sure isn't a job for fat bastards with broken-up bodies.

This - there's not much I can't do by way of fixing my own cars or anything mechanical, but most of it's stuff I pay other people to get grimy and do for me now.

[buckshotbarlow]

I will tell you truthfully that I do not know which comes first. Because they stopped making those cars before I was born. And I work on Euro trash which went to multiport fuel injection when the big three were still doing carburetors.

Now you take one of those guys who knows which is first and ask him if he knows how to diagnosis the dwell I am intimate familiar with (i.e. reading a scope for the electrical signal from an injector) or how to diagnosis a bad high pressure fuel pump just reading the cavitation signal through the sensor using actual voltage not what the computer tells you.

Just because I don't know how to use a matchbook to "tune" a vehicle does not make me less of a professional at my job. Just means I have NEVER had to do it. Ever. Seriously.

that's why my truck is in his shop right now getting some of the European love ^^^^^

[jerrymrc]

As an old guy that has kept up somewhat I look at it both ways. In my current field I have some that want to learn and also want to understand some of the "old days" because some skills never go away.

Now when it comes to cars I learned the old ways, adapted to the new and embrace both. Many new cars have the ability to almost tell you what is wrong in 2 min. For the most part it has been evolution and all the basics that I learned 40 years ago still apply.

And applying new tech to old tech makes the old go much faster. Case in point. Some of my new stuff takes 5 min to hook up vs the 20 min to hook up this that I learned on. And yes, I have one in the garage complete with the HEI upgrade. Just saying.

[tmleadr03]

As an old guy that has kept up somewhat I look at it both ways. In my current field I have some that want to learn and also want to understand some of the "old days" because some skills never go away.

Now when it comes to cars I learned the old ways, adapted to the new and embrace both. Many new cars have the ability to almost tell you what is wrong in 2 min. For the most part it has been evolution and all the basics that I learned 40 years ago still apply.

And applying new tech to old tech makes the old go much faster. Case in point. Some of my new stuff takes 5 min to hook up vs the 20 min to hook up this that I learned on. And yes, I have one in the garage complete with the HEI upgrade. Just saying.

I know what this is:


And have used one against my will.

[rondog]

All I know is I wish I had a bigger, better shop....and I'd kill to have a car lift!

[dirtrulz]

Nothing better than a kid jsut out of trade school who thinks he knows everything because he passed his ASE exams. No offense to all the ASE certified people out there but ASE is a joke, and proves nothing as far as I am concerned. Have seen and been to school with guys who passed the tests with flying colors that I wouldnt let work on my mower and some great mechanics who were not good test takers who failed them. How do you certify a body man, real bodywork is an art, either you can do it or you cant, a test cant determine that.

Being a mechanic has changed a lot in the last 20 years. It is getting harder to find someone who knows the mechanical side of things, they just want to hook a computer up to it and have it fix things. I kind of miss the old days, but I dont work on cars any more, hated dealing with the stupid owners who want everything for nothing and think you are their punching bag. I have found farm and construction equipment much more challenging and fun and the owners are much better to deal with. Plus you get to go out in the field and get out of the shop periodically. To me field work is what sets you apart, there is no one to ask for help, it is all on you to know what to do.