Old guys they need you

[NHUSA]

It might be me but I’m seeing a bunch of questions from newbies.
Some questions are so basic (to me) that it makes me laugh.
Many modern folks think Model T parts and procedures are plug and play like today’s vehicles.

Us old guys know T’s take a gentle but firm hand with an understanding of how and why it works.
We need to teach them .. one step at a time with patience… even if they don’t get it.

[Pat Branigan Wisc]

I totally agree, we all started some time but I think the older generation started when they were quite young. I know I was about 8 when I was fixing go carts and other such items. Questions are good.

[PSJ]

Yes Fred and Pat! We "young" guys (using this term loosely as I got a very late start at this) and newbies definitely need guys like yourselves to continue to help us out. I'm only a few years into owning a T and am absolutely loving the endless learning, tinkering and driving the one I've got. You and all the other old guys are what is keeping us sane and grounded and connected to the T community. My goal is to eventually be one of the "old" guys who pass along the knowledge to others.

[Daisy Mae]

Totally agree. I'm so happy to see an interest in these cars from the younger generations. The blessing of knowledge should be eagerly imparted to those seeking it. While some questions may appear to some as lacking basic fundamental knowledge, neither should we judge that...we should celebrate such questions are even being asked.

I was fortunate to be born into a family of SoCal hotrodders of the 40/50's. I was using a torch welding up go-cart & mini-bike frames at an early age. And as many skills as I learned from my parents generation, those before them had even more. My 100yr old great grandmother guided me in my restoration of my TT. Most in my generation also had metal & wood shop in school. In addition, it was a huge right of passage for my generation to get a license, a car, and work/mod it.

What do you have now. Younger gens have lived in a different world, have not had the same schooling, majority show no interest in cars, nor does the world of shade tree mechanics exist. Car repair is plug & play, heck you can't even get a kit to rebuild a brake caliper anymore...you just buy a new one. Fabrication and mechanic skills simply don't exist among the youth as it did for us. Honestly, I consider current gens as being wholly handicapped in these areas...simply because they had no exposure. Many skills can't simply be learned watching YouTube regardless of those who believe so.
When my 10 yr old grandson showed interest in spending time with me in my shop, you can bet I'm teaching him all that I can.

So ya, questions posed may seem basic, and we all know the realities of owning a T or A or whatever demands certain skills beyond what most have. Heck, even this old dog is dealing with curve balls. But.....at least someone is asking! Which means, our cars still have a chance to live on.
And we have the responsibility to impart our knowledge to those who seek it. Win win!
The biggest hurdle for the younger generations is translating advice without having requisite skills or availability of a local hands on mentor.

[frontyboy]

I qualify for the "old guys" name. Been restoring cars since I was 14, now 81.

I gladly mentor and help younger people getting into the car hobby. No difference if its a rice burner or a brass t. If they ask or show and interest I'm there to try and help. What is sad these days it seems they are impatient and want it same day like Amazon.

We older guys have learned by doing, trying failing and doing it over. I had a father that was a self-taught machinist and mechanical expert. I still remember his basic advice ,He told me,
I have 3 things for you to follow in life,

1) There are no stupid questions. Ask first if you are not sure.
2) There are 2 ways to do a job, the right way and the wrong way. If you don't know refer to #1.
3)His last word were, don't subscribe to the theory, there is never time to do it right, but always the time to do it over!!!!!! Do it right the first time!!

just sayin'

frontyboy

[Loftfield]

The problem is not skin deep, it goes to the heart. Today, nothing is ever repaired: broken... replace. With no repair shops, opportunities to earn skills and trades vanishes. How many times do i see queries on this forum and other antique car fora asking where to get a radiator repaired? How many know how to repair a radiator without melting every seam? One of the biggest problems working on a T is finding the port to plug in the computer. At 79 I did get wood and metal shop in junior high school, missed mechanical shop in high school because I was "going to college". Fortunately, a neighbor did antique cars. I began at 14 learning how to scrape old grease end paint from the rolling chassis of a 1911 Rolls Royce (still want a Silver Ghost but that college education did not lead to a job that paid well enough to afford one). Instead, II got a 1924 Ford Model T Fordor sedan on my 16th birthday, been in and out of Model T's ever since. Just bought a 1924 Ford Model T Fordor sedan yesterday to relive my youth. So, to the subject, I help numerous fellows with their T's, some young, some nearly my age, and a few even older. I also freely admit to learning constantly from folks with even more and deeper experience. There are no stupid questions, only stupid answers.

[Steve Jelf]

Like others here, I am from another planet. It's called the United States of America, 1950. If you are a man or a boy there you carry a pocket knife. It is a tool, not a weapon. You are familiar with Baby Snooks, Connie Brooks, and Chester A. Riley. People in general are unsophisticated (and innocent?) compared to folks of the digital age. An example of that is an incident recalled by Les Tremayne. In the thirties Les played Bob in a soap opera called Betty and Bob. One day some ladies who were regular listeners came for a tour of the studios, and while Les was making small talk with them one lady commented that she would love to see little Bobby. "You're in luck," said Les. "Here he comes now." Coming down the hall was a young woman in her twenties. The ladies were surprised, maybe even a little shocked, that the toddler they heard on their radios was played by a grown woman.

On the planet of the fifties, where I used to live, physical security was not the general obsession it became after homicidal maniacs with box cutters decided it should become central to our lives. You could arrive at the airport a few minutes before your flight, take a few minutes to buy a ticket, walk out to the plane, climb the stairs, show your ticket to the stewardess (not flight attendant) and take your seat.

If you made a trip, it could be by train, pulled by a real locomotive. When it rolled up to the station you could feel the ground shake. You knew it wouldn't hurt you, but it was still a little scary.

When you remember daily life 70 years ago, and features of that life that are unknown to younger folks, it reminds you that we now live in a different world.

[DLodge]

When you remember daily life 70 years ago, and features of that life that are unknown to younger folks, it reminds you that we now live in a different world.

As usual, Steve has hit the nail on the head. I can remember when young adults held doors open for old people, gestured for them to go first, and addressed them as "Sir." The custom has clearly changed. Now, young adults do that for me.

[TXGOAT2]

We used to have a civil society.

[TXGOAT2]

"Pop Culture" has never been more pervasive, or more toxic, than it is today.

[Original Smith]

I agree with Steve. I grew up in the same era. I have a difficult time with cell phones, and computers.

[George House]

Yep… Some of these Gen Z ers would unplug our life support just to charge their cell phones. So let’s teach them Right from wrong…