Folks Of Interest Dads that made us who we are

Hey fellow hot rodders. I just wanted to say a little about our Dad's. My Dad was always a gearhead ever since he was young. It's taken me ten years to build the same truck he gave me when I was fourteen. Was hoping I would finish before he passed. I lost him 8 yrs ago. You know what though, Everytime I step into the garage to work on my 48 Ford F1 I am mentally having conversations with him. I feel so blessed to have had a Dad that took the time to show me how to mechanic among the many other things that make me who I am today. Sorry if I'm being to emotional. I really miss him. Thanks for listening.

 

Hey fellow hot rodders. I just wanted to say a little about our Dad's. My Dad was always a gearhead ever since he was young. It's taken me ten years to build the same truck he gave me when I was fourteen. Was hoping I would finish before he passed. I lost him 8 yrs ago. You know what though, Everytime I step into the garage to work on my 48 Ford F1 I am mentally having conversations with him. I feel so blessed to have had a Dad that took the time to show me how to mechanic among the many other things that make me who I am today. Sorry if I'm being to emotional. I really miss him. Thanks for listening.

 

I lost my Dad last October, and he was who made me what I am too. I feel the same way you do when I work in our shop or ride one of our bikes.

 

Hey 48FLTHDF1 your not alone. Lost my dad little over 20 yrs ago and I talk to him everyday. Between Pops and doing things over a couple of times he taught me everything I know.

 

Growing up, my Dad wasn’t into cars but he fixed them and maintained them. Along the way I learned. Same goes for fixing all kind of stuff around the house, built several things and so on. Along the way I learned. I wouldn’t trade those experiences for anything and sure do miss him.
Like you, I think of him whenever in the garage or fixing something around our house or my children’s homes.
Maybe through these memories, they “live” on.

 

I often blame my dad for the way that I am. Truth is that I am responsible for my own actions.

Dad started playing cars and motorcycles with me when I was really young. Like before I remember young. He acted like he did not want me to follow in his foot steps and was proud of me when I did.

I am so confused.

 

This man has forgotten more than I'll ever know about this shit, even though he did his damnedest to teach me. I just call him Dad.

 

A huge thank you to Ryan's dad.......

 

Honestly I can say my dad taught me how to take a punch....

He was very mechanically inclined, fix anything, build anything, high I.Q.

But at the end of the day.... he taught me how to take a punch.....

 

Blessed with a Great Dad, try to live up to his example every day

 

I wish I could shake his hand and thank him in person.

 

Dad is totally to blame! Can't thank him enough! Miss you Dad.

 

Damn I miss my Pops...
Ace mechanic, great provider, great father, true gentleman always down to help no questions asked.

 

Here is why I am so jacked up.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...dads-gasser-while-under-construction.1044812/

 

I'm glad you guys had a good dads. Some of us didn't.
Sorry, raw nerve.

 

Perhaps you should seek professional help for your bitterness, instead of dumping your hatred here, on a thread that was designed to honor and remember the people that formed our passion for the hobby. I'm truly sorry that you didn't have that in your life, but you don't have to bring other's down because of it.

 

I had a good dad but cars were just transportation to him, he was always on me about wasting money on old cars, I bought a 1932 Ford coupe when I was 12 years old, he made me return it.

Many years later he told me he really enjoyed seeing customers come in the store and commenting on the old cars in the parking lot, I didn't have any mentors, reading Henry Gregor Felsons books along with Hot Rod magazine, but the day I knew I was going to have a hot rod is when I saw Dean Lowes red roadster pickup on the cover of Hot Rod magazine made a huge influence on me.

Never would have thought one day I would find Dean much less correspond with him, he even signed that old magazine that I have owned all these year for me. HRP

 

My dad was and will be loved by anyone who ever knew him. He was the quintessential "Quiet Gentleman" who worked to support his family at a job few could handle today, in the pits servicing the production machinery at US Steel. He was a farmer at heart, but for forty years did the hard, dirty work because that's the best he could find at the time..

A memory we should all take to heart. He was a quiet man, didn't raise his voice, didn't curse, didn't ever have any trouble, because on the very rare occasion he ever got mad, ever raised his voice, anyone who knew him also knew they'd gone way too far. If they made Jack Vines mad, they'd better run for cover and ask for forgiveness on the way.

Jack Vines, Jr.

 

My dad didn't teach me to wrench or to weld, he didn't drink, nor did he swear. An Elder at church, he was married to my mom for life and they are still together in whatever comes next. But he did teach me not to cheat, steal or lie. In doing so he made me who I am today...a half ass mechanic that can't lay a stack of dimes with a welder, that swears and drinks as if they were viable hobbies. The other three ideals, I hold to and taught them to my children. They can't weld either. My son makes a mean Old Fashioned though.

 

Some are lucky, some not. It is the cards we are dealt. Every child deserves a good father, but not every child gets one.

 

A question for you guys who are older than I am (49). When do us younger guys get the wisdom and knowledge that our Dad’s had? I don’t feel like I will ever be as wise or knowledgeable as my Dad was. I’m trying hard with Little Truckdoctor to be wise and knowledgeable as my Dad was, but feel like I’m coming up short.

 

Sadly my Dad passed away when I was only a few years old so I never got to know him. My oldest brother Tony now 85 has been the reason I'm into cars my whole life Tony spent a lot of time with Dad. When we talk about Dad he always tells me how Dad liked cars that why I'm certain he was an influence on me for sure. Tony still has his unrestored Model A coupe he bought in 1956 everything I do I tell him its his fault but now thinking back its Dads fault.

 

I started reading Hot Rod about age 12. Asked my dad lots of questions he didn't know the answer to but he acted interested. Built tons of model cars. My Mom found a used Henry Gregor Felson book somewhere and I was ruined for life. My fav cousin bought a '61 Corvette and took me for my first Corvette ride in the snow. Things have never been the same. At an early age I complained about all the heavy traffic during Hershey car show week, which is about 2 miles away. My Dad said some day I might be part of that. He was right again.

 

Dont take this as a bitch. My father died when I was 14. He was an orthopedic surgeon. He wasn't into cars, they were just an appliance to get him from point a to point b. He was into boats, mainly to enjoy the sailing. Mechanical work was farmed out. What my brother and I did get from him was curiosity. We had some pretty good, sometimes strange, discussions around the kitchen table.

So how did he influence both of us, and kind of steer us? Well, it was with toys! Now not kids toys. We had about 30 acres outside of the small town we lived in, old farm land his father had bought. Our grandfather was an old world carpenter/cabinet maker/craftsman who had tremendous talent. And all 7 of his children made things out of wood growing up. For our father, it was 2 wood sailboats, Whee Scots, from plans.

Back to the toys. Here's one with me on it age 12:

We had lots of lawn. And Dad wanted even more, slowly cutting down a couple of hay fields. And having 2 sons, ages 16 and 12, well in the 60s what better way to keep us out of trouble, buying an airplane tug to pull gang mowers. And we were going to be the operaters. But first we had to get it running. Fortunately the local automotive salvage yard man knew our father and let us get all of the parts needed for the tug dirt cheap. As in $10 and take everything we needed. Yup, we did the taking...

Big brother (yes he still was for another year or so), had a basic Montgomery Ward tool kit, enough to let us get greasy. And we had friends that owned a gas station at the foot of the hill, father and son that were great mechanics. The son graduated from high school with my brother. And as you can probably guess, we got that tug running, with Sam's help. Dad's part? Buying it for us to mess with. Never did get the gang mowers. Dad passed about 2 years later.

And he had other friends who went to Lebanon Valley weekly, and we were part of the horde of kids that this one couple took every week. Dad went once or twice, it just wasn't his thing. We got hooked of course. I was 6, my brother 10 when we startedgoing, 1960.

So it's not a story like the rest of you, instead it's a story of a father letting us have the freedom to do things that interested us. And having those kitchen table discussions...

 

Very true, but this is not the thread for that.

 

My dad is why I am into this old junk for sure. He helped me rebuild my first car when I was 12 and I have had a couple more since then.

And, I am thankful to still have him around. My oldest son just went to see him and my mom this evening.