Goldstar

[nickname23]

Hello
Goldstar was a gift from my grandfather who is an old war vet, gave up working and rig driving because grandma passed and I was needed at home.

The two toned and weird looking guy is me with my old 4.0 and while that truck dropped a valve it got sold
This forum helped me out so much went from not knowing how to change a tire to tearing a engine down in a day!

So.. when I turned 31 was tired from helping my family..
Got blindsided by Papaw giving me the key to my first stick.
We never saw eye to eye until now, mainly due to my POS mother and some horrible people in our family. Him and my Dad made it right, hell I was thinking this truck was for him

It's the perfect mate to my wife's F150, may her old 99 rest in piece in pickup truck heaven!
Taught myself how to drive it, I'm high functioning autism and watched my grandfather, father and his brother drive stick growing up and they would teach me by letting me shift while they did the footwork and steering.

Even though I just now decided to join the forum, it should go without saying how useful and meaningful these posts exist.
Realized I wasn't alone and more importantly even though having a learning impairment it reinforced the idea that I'm not stupid. Even my wife's father was caught off guard because I can hear an engine, every part and got a diagnosis right based on just sound he made a living turning wrenches.

Love Ford's not all but many of them are good and a vehicle is only good as it's owner.
Driven and been in many vehicles but Ford always had an interesting atmosphere and popping the hood to see a Pushrod again, well it took me a few days to wanna even touch anything after my white one.

Now my family recognizes my aptitude, I wanna see how far I can go with turning a wrench and put my school, knowledge and experience on another level.
Also because these trucks made me remember why I liked turning a wrench, because usually "it's something stupid"

 

[nickname23]

Never ever thought I could turn a wrench, grew up a lot in children's hospital. I'm a gamer, terrible in school and always thought that I'd never be good at anything.
Especially vehicles in the 90s and early 2000s could never tell you what a vehicles make was.

Yet now here I am and can tell you from a distance especially the engine too..
Life has not been very kind to me in the early years, literally fought for every breath and I like to think that made me a monster of sorts. In order to fight I developed PTSD and rage, but I never wanted to be like those before me who abused others. I've never been afraid of what's right and even stood in-between someone with a firearm at work who was drunk and pissed off at someone else.

It's been a long road.. but I'm here and found a way to be happy

 

[nickname23]

Think the biggest reason to keep trying, along with a supportive wife who literally waits next to me while I'm trying to fix something..
Is my grandfather trying to fix his old truck.. Being crippled at a young age I desperately wanted to help back then but I was just a kid who couldn't breathe...
He could fix just about anything.
With Autism I did find an advantage through the insanity. If I can handle it and learn to focus my brain takes in ALL the information at once. Started to notice that even though it tired me out quickly like the flame that burns twice as bright, it's also a gift.

I'm just different and that's okay

 

[MaicoDoug]

You said "but many of them are good and a vehicle is only good as it's owner." So true, so true. Keep up the good work! Sounds like you're a natural, and a darn good mechanic too!

 

[nickname23]

Not the best pictures and I've been lacking but here he is from the front!
Definitely not my favorite gas station but it was close and I'm trying not to run my new fuel pump too low

 

[nickname23]

Willowtree Smith on Reels

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Clip from the gas station before I cleaned IAC
Percussion method