Took our son to his first real show, great trip out and back to the hotrodarama. I forgot about some pics I took earlier this summer, that were on one of the rolls. Somehow we don't get much done when we are together, but maybe thats the point of summer saturdays. He does like the air nibbler, I let he do a number on a 59 chev hood, maybe we should quit cutting stuff up but the look he gets on his face (like he's doing something wrong or getting away with something) Anyway enough drivel s.
Same here, I don't get much done when I have my boy in the garage with me, but it's always a good time.
I don't think anybody is going to condemn you for having fun with your kids. Don,t ever give that up man. Maybe they will figure out how to have fun while building stuff and the joy of that will be unsurpassed. I am jealous of y'all.
This is a timely thread. I had my son help me yesterday with an engine swap I am doing on a daily car. But when we got done, I let him start up the 58 DelRay and boy he was all smiles. Now he cant wait till its ready for the road again.
Don't know if it's justified but I like to take some credit for how my sister's boy turned out--his father was overseas in the military a lot when the boy was little, and I took the kid to car shows, and stuff . . . he went on to be pretty competitive on the dragstrip with a '68 Hurst Olds . . . then he knocked up his girlfriend, got married, and now has three kids of his own, struggling to make ends meet, you know, the same old story . . .
I like to have my son help me any and every chance he can. He loves to take stuff apart, but a little impatient when it comes to reassembly. Get 'em started young, that's what I always say.
This is a few years old now. I was tearing down my 62 chev when the gumboot ballerina showed up and started dancing in the puddles in my driveway. I laugh every time I think about it. Enjoy the time when they are little. Let them hang out with you and they always will.
I only wish my dad gave a shit about cars or bothered to teach me anything besides new swear words while he was under the hood. All the knowledge I've gained over the years has been gleaned from a book, people like you lending a hand, and a lot of trial and error. So my hat is off to you dads (and moms) out there who are taking the time away from the "serious" work on the cars to initiate the next generation into the wonderful world of kustoms and rodding.
Man I don't have any kids but I wish i did! I will never forget the lessons in Bondo carving my pops handed down. The first comlicated repair he taught me, changing U-joints out. I hope too someday pass all this useless knowledge down to the next generation. For now though I have my lil neice who always seems to be around when I'm striping or welding. She loves Going to Paso and the Primer Nats too, as you can see we spoil her with all the hot rod kiddie stufff we can get.
Least productive yet most enjoyable day in the shop for me. I absolutely enjoy days like this. its great that all of you guys do too...
I know where you guys are coming from. I was that kid, as I'm sure many of you were. Here I am at about 3 years old. I still never hear the end of how I broke that vicky's sunvisor, and how hard it was to find a replacement But now the tables have turned. I'm the one taking him to car shows. My dad who's 60 can't see well anymore. But he still knows his stuff. And although I do most of the work, I'd be lost without him.
Time with family spent doing something is the best. As they get older you at least end up with a common interest and THAT is something that many people wish they had. In this day & age when many parents are nothing more than "absentee landlords" with their kids it's important that they have the opportunity to do something like this. My son is now 22, out of college with his ME degree and working for a defense contractor. But we still work on stuff in the garage together. We restored a '47 Ford pickup back when he was in high school and it's continued on from there. The neat thing is that we still like to go to swap meets together and my wife gets involved as well. As a matter of fact I've found that he's better than me at certain things so it's sorta like a good partnership/team effort when we do things. Sure there are times when we don't see eye-to-eye but that's the way life is sometimes. Reminds me of a bumpers sticker my buddy has in his garage: "Kids that that learn to hunt & fish don't beat up little old ladies" Just insert "do things as a family" for hunt & fish and that''s the idea. Never a bad day in the garage when you work with kids. May not make much progress on a project but NEVER a bad day.
I found this one of my son. He is 14 now he likes to go to the shows and swap meets with me and my dad. It's nice to have three generations hangin out together. Trying like hell to get him into a model A for high school.
The HAMB drags ain't got nothing on the Hot Wheels races in the back of the 54. Actually Matchbox cars are a little faster than the Hot Wheels.
my 5 year old has his own stand up tool box in the garage next to mine.we go to the local auction house and instead of wanting toys he makes me bid on old tool boxes with tools in them for him.he get some good ones some times.my dad never showed me nothing growing up ,as far as how to wrench.my 3 kids know more now than I did when I was 16..hell they may know more than me now..
Here's my little guy. He's probably too little to know what we're doing out in the garage, but he sure likes it out there. Hopefully him and the bun in the oven will be the next generation of hotrodders.
Here's the "Boy Mechanic" At 16 he runs a better bead of weld than his old man. I blame it on the bifocals.
I was 14 and showing an interest in my dad's 31 Chevy coupe and sedan, both of which were in rusty piles of pieces. He'd been hanging onto those cars for over 10 years. He didn't blink once when I brought up the possibility of picking out a project for my first ride. He dove in, helped me locate the project (an old family farm truck - free for getting 'the eyesore outta the weeds' - thanks unc.), fired it up and drove the smoking heap home. As I remember it, we spent 4-5 nights a week for a year crawling around every corner of that truck until we were done. (BTW, I grew up on the family farm, and my dad was the mechanic as well as working in the orchards. Long, hot days before all of those garage nights.) The living embodiement of patience, my dad. Not only did he sacrifice time he could have spent on either of his decade-long projects to start (and then help maintain) my truck; 2 years later he did the same for my sister. I graduated high school, went to college and wasn't around much for the years following, so we'd catch a car show when we could. He'd update me on whatever progress he'd made, as well as be making notes and comments about his sedan and his plans. When he was finally able to take time for himself and his sedan - around the age of 48 or so - he'd gotten a frame and suspension set up, the engine built, the body ready to mount. Slowly closing in on it. Then died a month after turning 50. I'll always have the truck he built with my 'assistance' and endless questions. In fact, I've never stopped tweaking it. And I plan to do the same type of project (cars or anything else) with both of my kids. I'll cherish that time with my dad forever. So keep teaching the kids - we grow up loving it! And, it made me become a better parent. gilty - son of a hot rodder (who never got his own car built)
I was supposed to be fixing a rafter brace and putting up sheetrock. My three-year-old came out to help. We wound up playing with the shopvac -- "Oh, that's loud! "Turn it off." "Can we switch it back on again?" "Oh, that's loud! "Turn it off." Repeat. Then I showed him how to use the magnetic wand to pick up nails and toss them in the garbage. He really liked that and went at it with gusto. I later found several drill bits in the garbage can. I guess now is the time to explain the difference between drill bits and nails. We had a blast. .
Yeah. I have to stop getting pissed off at getting nothing done when my boys come out to the shed. We had a good day today. We built (another) timber aeroplane. I let Eddie use my saw this time. That kept him busy a while. Then while he painted his plane I striped my tap and die set. It was a good day. Pete
PLEASE help your kids learn stuff about cars! before i even got into them i was my dad's helper holding the light for him and lugs when he was changing tires and although at the time i didnt think i was learning,years down the road when i got flats I KNEW WHAT TO DO...if you just figure workin on your car is what YOU gotta do to maintain it and dont involve them,dont be surprised if YOU'RE always out there changing their tires or they drive the stupid thing without oil and blow it up.i know too many people with nice cars that will drive them till they cant and then say "oh well..i'll just call daddy" and forget it had a problem.my girlfriend may not be a shop mechanic but her dad was a car guy and if something is wrong with a car SHE'LL know and probably be able to fix it or explain it to someone else! creepy
The Jalopy Journal
