DO you Remember When?????

[LittleBigFoot]

First thing I did on my truck solo was the t bar crank. Nothing major, but it was interesting.

First big thing I went at alone was the body lift, and that was a big project for a 17 year old noob.

I had started building my Jeep and was getting the feel for things, and then I bent my rear end being retarded and did an Exploder 8.8" swap with the help of OatmealMan.

I got a few words of wisdom here and there from 86Ford and Mhughes. Props to those guys. Nothin much from the pops till he got out of jail a bit ago

 

[CJREX]

I don't quite remember the first time I wrenched on my vehicle, but I remember when I decided to do it myself.

I had taken my car to a Pep Boys for some problem.

Sitting in the waiting room with a big window so you could see your car being worked on, I watched the tech look at my car, then go look at a book, look at my car, look at the book, over and over.

I thought, "I'm paying $$$ per hour for this guy to look at a book? I can do that myself."

Since then, I'm the most honest mechanic I know.

 

[RedneckLutheran]

ahhh yes...changed the fuel filter on my Ranger...it seems like just last month...oh wait...

it was...

ok...so I'm a gear head in training...

 

[rangerbum]

First Time ALONE, ok. It was just spark plugs and a timing belt(all at once). The plugs are in a rediculous spot as all you other 8 plug head 4 banger owners know, and timing belt Was something I shouldnt have done at all, but I got HELLA LUCKY and it worked out.
I also did a Drive shaft swap from a F-150 Into the ranger. That was another PITA I shouldnt have attempted myself but got lucky.

I guess growing up with my grandpa owning a wrecking yard gave me a "dive right In" attitude toward mechanical things.

 

[86ford]

I got a few words of wisdom here and there from 86Ford and Mhughes. Props to those guys. Nothin much from the pops till he got out of jail a bit ago

you are plenty welcome Adam, happy to help. i am far from a certified mechanic but i do know my RBVs, particularly the ones with TTB.

i think my first automotive project that involved more than an oil change was about 5 or 6 years ago when i put an new alternator and belt on my 94 4cyl cavalier.

short of pulling my motor in my b2 i have removed or replaced every part from the head gaskets up and any drivetrain part imaginable.

86

 

[jobar]

My first time was when I had to change the brake pads, calipers, and rotors on my jeep CJ7. That was a long day. The owner before me had'nt changed them since 1980. I was surprised when I drove it 2 hours home with brakes that old. The bleeding alone took about 3 hours because of all the rust in the lines.

 

[gizmo_21]

These are great!!! it's funny, though i look back and i use to leave a whole weekend open to fixing my car/truck... then it became a saturday... and now it's like Saturday Morning... all for very similar things... (don't worry i'm defiantly not a mechanic) but thanks to this site my truck is well maintained...

O and i remember my first brake install.... FISRT i hate drum breaks!!!!.... with all those springs.... although now i have the right tools... but i sure remember trying to do that with a screw driver... lol (haha thats why i switched to dics!!!!)

 

[Beanmachine7000]

Other than oil changes my first real wrench time with no help was to change pads, calipers and rotors on my old Ranger when they locked up, then on the next Ranger when they locked up on it, then on my BII when they locked up on it, lol... My dad was watching me the first time though, just didn't help. My first time with absolutely no help was changing a belt tensioner, transmission mount, and transmission filter and fluid change in the same day on my Z28, not a fun job when you only have 8" of ground clearance, lol....

 

[ranger_mclaren]

wow, i thank the first wrench time solo was on my second ranger '90 2wd 2.9 i replaced the alternater belt and radiator hoses as well as a full tune up. but i used to work in the kitchen at a retierment community and i was known for driving my beat up ranger and always wrenching on it. and being a nursing home over 90% of the workers were female and did not work on there own cars, trucks, or suvs. so one hired me to do the brakes on her pontiac bonniville gtp and after that i became the resident mecanic for the whole place they would call me i would go to the house and fix there problem. over half the cars i worked on i had never even been under the hood of, i just wanted the experince and i never took anythng apart i couldn't fix. i loved it and i was cheap anything from a pizza and pop to 60 bucks, pluse parts!

 

[gizmo_21]

Ha thats kinda what i've turned into for my nieghbourhood, they stop by while i'm working on my truck and ask.. would you like to do the breaks on my..... and i go sure.... got anything to EAT!!! lol

wow, i thank the first wrench time solo was on my second ranger '90 2wd 2.9 i replaced the alternater belt and radiator hoses as well as a full tune up. but i used to work in the kitchen at a retierment community and i was known for driving my beat up ranger and always wrenching on it. and being a nursing home over 90% of the workers were female and did not work on there own cars, trucks, or suvs. so one hired me to do the brakes on her pontiac bonniville gtp and after that i became the resident mecanic for the whole place they would call me i would go to the house and fix there problem. over half the cars i worked on i had never even been under the hood of, i just wanted the experince and i never took anythng apart i couldn't fix. i loved it and i was cheap anything from a pizza and pop to 60 bucks, pluse parts!

 

[Shran]

My first time wrenchin was when I was around 12 or 13 when I did shocks and some other stuff on my '79 Datsun. After that I was always helping people work on something, usually my buddy's Maverick or his pickups. We were replacing engines and transmissions at 15 and about the only things I am not comfortable messing with right now are automatic transmissions and gears.

 

[superdave1984]

First was probably when I was 10 and thought the lawnmower really should go faster. And after I tinkered with it, it did. A lot. Then about 4 years later my dad bought my sister a car. A 69 Mustang fastback. I played with that car for many many years doing small stuff like points and plugs. Then one day it became MY car.So clearly that meant it was time to pull the engine and do a total rebuild. Never done it, no manual. Put all new parts in there, hot cam, forged pistons, etc. I miss that car. I still refuse to pay anybody to do anything that I can do myself.

 

[Mark_88]

Not sure if it was my first, but it was a memorable experience that taught me a valuable lesson about what way to crank a ratchet...

I was trying to remove the air pump and had been 'wrenching' it towards me with everthing but it wouldn't budge the nut on the bracket...I moved to the other side to try to push it and the ratchet slipped off the nut...my fist went right into the upper bracket and took a huge slice of my skin in the process...



I think I exhausted my vocabulary of swear words that day...

 

[wrecking-crew]

my first wrenching time? hmmmm.....too many to remember. i think i was messing around with my 65 rustang(Flintstone-mobile) i was trying to get the grill off of it myself. still working on it. just too lazy to get to it. i got the thing out of the back of a junk pile after it was underwater for 2 years or so. it was my "first car".

 

[Ozwynn]

taking the spark plug out of my 1980 Honda XR100 (first dirt bike), replacing it and it started when I was done, first thing I took apart with wrench was a dead lawnmower....... several infact.

first wrenching on a car/truck....... when I was 13 I bought a 76 Ford F-100 2wd with a 302 and C4 for $500 and a honda 110 3 wheeler that barely ran. the "old man" made me dig a pit in the yard and park the truck over it and completely dis assemble it and put it back together before I could drive it. 2 years later It had a 460 and 5spd from an 89 F250, carter 900 CFM afb carb, edelbrock torker 2 manifold, full lentgh headers, dual 4' glass packs exited out the rear, built 9" with 3.73's with 215/75/15 Grand Am GT's from Les Schwab mounted on 15" craiger slotted mags,Clarion 160 watt cassette deck with 6" Pioneer tri-axles in the doors and Pioneer 90 watt 6x9's in the back, fixed all the rust and painted it Beer bottle metalic, maintained stock height with trac bars to keep the rear end under it.