Swanny

I have a couple comments for you to do with what you want. I had one of those great Dad's. He was lucky to install a spark plug without breaking it but he could paint. My truck is suspiciously close to the same color as a well known brand of Farm tractor. He painted them for 30 years and always bragged you could tell the ones he did because they had nice hoods.

Anyway, find something he is good at or at least interested in and try to go with it. My little sister and I were masters at pretending to enjoy things he was good at. I lost my father before I could finish my first Ford for him. I wish I had done one sooner.

Hopefully your Dad will come around but if not, remember it when you have a child. I spend a lot of time with my 6 year old daughter working on the truck. She has contributed a few mystery dents and a very nice silica sand castle on the air cleaner a while back. It's all good though. I can hardly wait to get on the road so she can spill a cherry slurpy on my new seat.

'fenders

 

Swanny,

... life has good and bad stories about this father/son thing. Unfortunately I also experienced a bad one and my parents and I 'split'. Have not seen them for a long time. Don't even really know where and how they live.

I myself try to be better. But who does not or at least does not pretend he does not. I got a daughter. She's ten now. She likes old cars, too. Guess that's my bad influence. Just yesterday she called home from school. She missed the bus and asked me to pick her up. She knew that my wife was gone shopping with the family car and she knew that the only way to get her was taking the 67 Mustang Convertible. So I did it. NOt really te perfect ride at temps in the 20s. She was waiting outside the school sure hoping that there was a few around to see her go. And guess what, I enjoyed the ride, too.

I really hope she's not changing over the next 10 years, but guess there's not too much I can do about it. I just hope that she still wants the Mustang rather than a plastic soap box. I'll dig out a pic and post it here.

Keep going, Swanny !!!

 

This has grown into a deeper thread than most.

Our Dad got us in the garage working on his 64.5 Mustang, bought in '72. Both of my brothers got under that baby ,sanded panels, saw the research. Sometimes he worked himself, sometime 1,2, or all of us were there. Lots of non-auto yakkin, an odd beer when we were older. He died suddenly at 56- by then there were 3 Ford converts and each of us has one. We all still tinker on each others when we can or talk about them .
I added to the family fleet with the effie. My 13 year old is starting to work with me some. Toolbox under the tree this year.

Have patience, show the work being done. Pushing it as an obligation is hard. Picking some 'Aha' quick progress parts of it helps too. Months of wire brushing a frame can sap the yeeha out of most of us.

Good Luck

Midnite Cruiser

 

I got my '52 F1 when I was 17, I am now almost 19. My dad an I both went to look at it and both fell inlove with it after we heard it run and did a compression test. He helped me haul it the 2 hours home and does about 1/3 the work. He has more experience as he has been a journeyman heavy duty mechanic for 20 years... so when it comes to the real technical stuff where most people get stuck, he knows what to do... and has every tool you would ever need. I do all the paint and fabrication, for some reason that stuff just comes natually... I do about half the mechanical work and he does the other half. We both redid all the wiring and we will both be doing the suspension and engine pull to restore/repaint it. It is nice having someone around who knows exactly what the easiest and proper way to do something is. It is also great because stuff gets done twice as fast.

I guess that is better than my cousin's situation. Him and his dad THINK they are big car guys, they bought a '83 Camaro w/ a 305 without doing any tests on it... I think they just got blinded by the sucky but decent exterior... and the thought in thier mind of "duuuuh... Caaaamaaaaroooo". Anyway, to make a VERY long story short, we looked at it after they got it and found the compression was 70 and there was dirty tricks done to make it seem better.. just the obvious stuff though, any car guy would know them. So, we told them sell it, they decided to buy a '78 350 which is VERY different than the '83 305... they got the 305 out in about 3 days (oddly long), got stuck and we had to drag all thier junk to our shop and bail them out.. we did 100% the work to get the 350 in with everything bolting up... which meant fixing all thier mistakes, tapping 2 new bolt holes for the ex-maifolds, putting on all new gaskets, finding a 305 starter because the 350s didn't fit the 305 bellhousing and tapping a new hole in the block for that, bending the dipstick tube around the 305 ex-manifolds, rebuilding the carb, and the list just goes on and on. Even after all the work we put into it, my 16 year old cousin drives the car really hard and doesn't show any respect toward it... even if it is just a Chevy.
If there is one thing I can't stand, it is a kid and his dad who really THINK they know it all but can't back it up.

Sorry for the long post, but I thought some of you would get a kick out of my cousin's situation.

 

i liked the story.
i know alot of people like that around here.
my friend dont know anything about working on cars and ive grown up in a garage.
ive had a chevy beretta all the way to the push rods i think 3 or 4 times.
only over a stupid little oil leak.
i didnt have to go down there it was just a little o-ring.
learn from your mistakes.
ill learn to look for the simple things.
but my friend argued with me over every part i put on my 89 truck.
but he is starting to guiet down, but he still tries to make me wrong.
he got in auto so he can get some experience.
he thinks his teacher it always right and i prove he's wrong.
we all have our mistakes and im not afraid to admit to mine.
but some people need to learn they are wrong some times.

swanny

 

SWanny, keep your head up your dad might come around, who knows?
He is probably proud of the efforts your making even though he doesnt acknowledge it.
My Father and I decided to build the 56 I have now, But right before the purchase he died of a sudden heart attack at the age of 54. I sure wish he could just be around to see the build up of this great truck. Im going to continue with our plans cause I know he is watching with a smile on his face, this ones for him!
Be glad that your dad is still here even if he does not help out as much as you want, you never if they will be around tomorrow