Projects So... Whos actively building a project as they're actively unemployed?

No shit ! That does RULE !

 

You built a great car for the money. We need more low buck success stories like yours.

 

My posistion was eliminated on March 31st,2009 after 22+ years in the Performance/Racing Division of Federal Mogul Corporation.
The automotive market has been slammed to bare bones. I travelsed the Eastern half of the country after I located to Florida 10 years ago.

Now! ... the county that I live in has the highest unemployment rate in the staeo f Florida....13.2% is what they report.

I have been networking as hard as anyone can, and all I can come up with are jobs that pay $9.00-$12.00 per hour and you can only get 14-20 hours of work if your lucky.

But to answer your original question, YES ... I customized my old Mini-Bike that I have had for over 42 years, so I would have something different to take with me to the 'Billetproof' Drags coming up in about 3 weeks here in Florida.
It's been a blast to do, and my youngest son Casey (now 22) came over the other day and took it out for a spin....and came back about an hour later with a HUGE grin on his face. He said, 'He Pops, it's so fun to do this again, it makes me fell like a kid again '.
Now I do feel old

 

Here are a few pictures of what it turned out like......

 

Work was slow 6 months ago , so I threw together one of my projects, and sold some of my spare parts to survive. Beats getting all depresed and mopeing around, and gives you a positive attitude.

 

Been laid off since Feb. Started going crazy on my truck, then the ungodly 105+ plus heat hit and didn't go away for months. And the truck just sat. Finally it seems the heat my drop into the 80's real soon!

I've been shooting some cars here and there trying to make some scratch, but nothing to write home about. Im thinking of leaving this fucked of state of california and finding a place to live where unemployment is not 20%.

I pick my son up from kindergarten around 12:00 each day, you should see how many adult men are there picking up their kids in the middle of the day. I went to a school assembly and all the men there were out of work too!

The worst part is, I ran out of gas for my welder and have to wait a week or two for some scratch to roll in so I can fill er' up and start back to work on the truck.

 

One last thing. Some ass hole keeps turning me into the city! I wheel my truck out onto my driveway to work on it. Leave it my driveway for a few weeks, and without fail, I get cited. I live on a deadened street and am friendly with all my neighbors!

The city guy told my wife that Im not even allowed to be seen working on my car in the drive way. It's illegal to be seen working on your vehicle??? What the hell!

 

Dude, that sucks. I've been worried about that here in Jersey, don't know if they have any laws about that here or not. Good luck finding the douche.

 

Quote from above:
One last thing. Some ass hole keeps turning me into the city! I wheel my truck out onto my driveway to work on it. Leave it my driveway for a few weeks, and without fail, I get cited. I live on a deadened street and am friendly with all my neighbors!

The city guy told my wife that Im not even allowed to be seen working on my car in the drive way. It's illegal to be seen working on your vehicle??? What the hell!
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Unemployed is one thing I don't know anything about. I'm been self employed since getting out of highschool always made my own way. I belived in myself(even when some close to me didn't) thats what kept me possitive.
What ever you have done in life!! NOBODY can take that away from you. Thats what makes you who you are. So if you can't sell that look for what makes you happy. Because you can't always count on the Money thing.
I disabled myself 3/28/08 Moneys got very tight and yes I get debressed so what do I do. I go to my shop and do what little I can. Ussally nomore than just swapen a battery around and get a few things runnin. Or takken things apart to find out what I can plan on latter when I do get back to worken.
Its tuff not being physically able to do things but some times the extra effort makes it seem more satisfying. But its real dishearting at times knowing that if you could afford that little extra tool to make things easyier.
Right now I'M tenkering around with a 40 chev sedan that I always plan to make a custom. Now I'V decided to keep it all orginal and try to low buck it back on the road. What the hell Seems like there are a group of fellows on here that like that Patinia Look.

 

Man I tell you this state is screwy. The code enforcement guy showed my wife the paragraph were it says you are not allowed to work on vehicles in your driveway. How the hell can they enforce that? Do they hide in the bushes waiting for you to stray a foot out of your garage with a wrench in your hand? It's not their property!

 

That is totally F'd up. I don't know if I could deal with that. Do they consider washing it, working on it as well?

 

I've been out of work for a few months as well. I find myself raiding the junk bolt bin instead of running to the parts store to buy shinney new stainless stuff. I'm also making my own gaskets from a sheet of gasket paper I had laying around. Now I'm fabbing the throttle linkage for my tripple deuce set up trying to use what scrap stuff I have collected over the years in the shed. This could get interesting.

 

Yes being unemployed is hard on you when you are used to working for over 30 years , I never thought I would see the day that a Ford Dealership would go bankrupt and all others laying workers off, its a bummer. 12-5-2009 "sucks"
But I was able to get at least one project up and running that had been mostly just sitting for the last 8 or 9 years. In the past I would always buy all new bolts and screws this time I had lots of time to bead blast all my parts so I saved hundreds of dollars that way, I also would spend lots of time at U-PULL IT yards figuring out what could be made to work for what, like 60's ford gas pedals, some of them bolt easily to almost any firewall and you just add a throttle cable and presto.
You would also be surprised how many brand new parts you find on cars in the junk yard, new alt., starters, brakes and such plus I always grab extra screws, bolts and hose clamps each visit (hose clamps alone really add up $$).
Had to sell my 1927 Dodge Roadster body to pay property tax and that sucked, but I did need to trim the heard I guess.

edsel

 

I was laid off in October of last year from a job making pretty good money. For the first time in my life I had to draw unemployment and that's when reality hit hard. Unemployment is right around 20% in my area right now and when jobs do come up there are HUNDREDS of applicants. I heard from a friend that they were looking to hire someone for an entry level job at their business and received over 700 applications! Now for the other harsh reality, if I take a job for less than $x an hour it will be a pay cut from unemployment lol... Oh yeah and my Girlfriend and I bought a house before I knew I wasn't going back to work for the company I had been laid off from so a pay cut really isn't an option! As for keeping my project going I have about 9 million holes to weld up in it and a lot of cleaning and head scratching to do and that's all free!

 

im not unemployed but i hardly work, being a carpenter and not union there isnt much going on, when i do get work its labor work which is a big pay cut but i have got some work done on my truck and built a bicycle and worked on my girlfriends moms house so atleast im busy

 

Well said, I could'nt said it any better myself.

 

Just how friggin' cool is that? It's not every day you see this setup. Thanks for not jammin' a SBC in it .. !!

 

Very well put. You are right, I haven't walked a mile in these guys shoes, but I feel I was very respectful in asking my questions. To be fair, I did not say everyone should follow my thoughts, it was more of a question than anything to provoke discussion. However, it seems several people lost their rationality and let emotions spill out on the keyboard, which is too bad.

 

I did not mean that statement as a slam, I guess I should have worded it as more of a question than I did. I do understand that you have to contribute to unemployment in order to receive it.

 

While I don't appreciate the language, I can only imagine what it's like to be on unemployment for over a year. Good luck with the interview!

 

Man this thread makes me feel really sorry for some of you guys.

I've ENJOYED the last year of free time after 20+ years of continuous employment. It's allowed unprecedented freedom to do time consuming projects, drink cheap beer, and chase ladies. You can't buy that kind of freedom.

Regardless how stressed out you other unemployed folks are, when you go back to work.......you'll reflect upon this time as either wasted, or a period of unprecedented personal growth. The choice is yours.

Back on topic, hell no my traditional project is stalled because it eats cubic dollars. On the other hand I'm neck deep in off topic street/strip projects, parting out cars, flipping cars, and generally working my automotive knowledge to it's fullest.

Any of you guys with $200 bucks in your hand can use craigslist & ebay to make a thousand bucks a month parting and flipping. Fuck working at McD's

 

like isaid ive been off since april and this week i got my second call for an interview

 

Unrelated to my original question, but I ended up bagging 5 interviews this week (one was a call back in my flip flops and shorts; that was pretty cool) and I'm happy to say it's starting to look a bit more encouraging out there. For those of you still looking don't give up, it just takes one opportunity and it will eventually come. Hang in there and fight the good fight and in the meantime, keep tinkering with those projects. It may be just the thing that keeps you sane....

 

when they try to cut off your wife's medicaid because you are out of work,it's hard to enjoy the time off,besides i would rather be working. It's not like i can pick up the bill myself, there's no possible way, not her fault either, when did the theme in this country become, "screw the less fortunate and sick among you, and help the able bodied but don't want to work or pay taxes leaches from other countries?. I should say I do know some of this group that happens to speak spanish, who would love to become citizens and do things legally, for those that do make them go through the same process my great grandparents did. for the leaches here who want everything for free and to live off the rest of us, ship em back and build a big fence. We have how many millions of people in jail we are feeding and housing? make THEM build the fence. maby then there would be enough money to help the rest of us who want to help ourselves.

 

Your welcome

 

Although I'm only 17, and been employed in some way,shape, or form. My apologies go out to everyone who is unemployed. My mom had got let off 2 years ago, and I've never seen her get stressed out about bills or anything until then. So, I decided that she needed the money I had saved up for cars more than I did. She never forgets that, and now were tighter than ever. I know this doesn't help you guys too much, but I just feel like everyone is getting crabbier and more selfish these days. And just trying to remind people to lighten up and remember you can only make life great when you make it great.

 

Laid off in may 2009 wife sends me out to get the 15 yr never had time done... unpacking the boxes and sorting new and old parts was like Christmas Day

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