Us old Parts guys

[jakeallcars]

How did we survive in the prehistoric days before computers?

[Kern Dog]

You were smarter than the equipment that you used.
You used your brain instead of "google".
You were raised to be self sufficient, not reliant on others or the government.
You didn't live with a phone glued to your hand.
You knew how to fix things rather than to call a roadside service to help you.
You were a man, not some fagetty, limp wristed jerkoff with a beard and no manly skills.

[tan top]

How did we survive in the prehistoric days before computers?

You were smarter than the equipment that you used.
You used your brain instead of "google".
You were raised to be self sufficient, not reliant on others or the government.
You didn't live with a phone glued to your hand.
You knew how to fix things rather than to call a roadside service to help you.
You were a man, not some fagetty, limp wristed jerkoff with a beard and no manly skills.

 yep !!     what KD said  

[cooldude]

We used to have a saying in the army back in the day...You need to be at least 10% smarter than your equipment! 

And of course, we had our network of Mopar buddies, and the accumulated knowledge of generations of mechanics in our circles.

Heck, I knew one of the old car guys back in the day, who was a Model T mechanic when he first started out. Come to think of it, so was my grandpa, and he was the one who showed me how to change the brakes on my 67 Barracuda. And we did it up in the barn, and with some brake tools that he had made himself.

Computers just slow everything down, make everything less efficient, the results stupider, and have the same result on the weak minds of people who rely on them to tell them everything to do.

[Aero426]

The latest in certification.

[Charger_Fan]

Love that patch!

You were smarter than the equipment that you used.
You used your brain instead of "google".
You were raised to be self sufficient, not reliant on others or the government.
You didn't live with a phone glued to your hand.
You knew how to fix things rather than to call a roadside service to help you.
You were a man, not some fagetty, limp wristed jerkoff with a beard and no manly skills.

 yep !!     what KD said  

Yep, that pretty much covers it!

[69rtse4spd]

Need to get some of the patches, just to screw with people.  .

[CDN72SE]

I get the YouTube joke, but I'm 50 now and I have to say that YouTube helped me doing my timing belt, water pump, tensioner, belts etc on my '01 Intrepid R/T.

But it is amazing how little even today's mechanics know, can't even remember to tighten things up.

[Aero426]

I get the YouTube joke, but I'm 50 now and I have to say that YouTube helped me doing my timing belt, water pump, tensioner, belts etc on my '01 Intrepid R/T.

In general, I don't agree with a whole lot of what has been said in most of the posts above.   Yeah, yeah, everyone wants the good old days.    But it is foolish not to use ALL the tools available to you.   The internet and computer are just another tool.   Sure, there are pretty bad DIY videos out there.  Just saw TWO of the them for Dodge truck fuel pump change where he cuts a hole in the bed to gain access.     But there are some very good ones to help someone through a car you might not be familiar with, like your Intrepid.     It's just smart to do your homework.    

[Aero426]

Need to get some of the patches, just to screw with people.  .

Here you go.

http://karolb.com/

[tan top]

I get the YouTube joke, but I'm 50 now and I have to say that YouTube helped me doing my timing belt, water pump, tensioner, belts etc on my '01 Intrepid R/T.

In general, I don't agree with a whole lot of what has been said in most of the posts above.   Yeah, yeah, everyone wants the good old days.    But it is foolish not to use ALL the tools available to you.   The internet and computer are just another tool.   Sure, there are pretty bad DIY videos out there.  Just saw TWO of the them for Dodge truck fuel pump change where he cuts a hole in the bed to gain access.     But there are some very good ones to help someone through a car you might not be familiar with, like your Intrepid.         

that's true  also   

[Aero426]

And of course, we had our network of Mopar buddies, and the accumulated knowledge of generations of mechanics in our circles.

Yep, and when those guys assume room temp,  a LOT of their nitty gritty firsthand info not contained in the service manual is pretty much gone for the guy in the future.    The knowledge base gets smaller and smaller.    With technology and video, it's there pretty much in perpetuity.  

[alfaitalia]

No...there will always be experts and enthusiasts of the living and breathing variety...rather than the deceased and digital sort. There are folks around now that are experts in cars made in the early twentieth century..they were not born then..they just had an interest and learnt about them. There are experts in Roman times etc. I was only two when my 69 was made and am fairly knowledgeable (ok..not compared to many on here!) and my seven year old son will be too if he carries on being interested. There will always be experts and the knowledge wont be lost...just might take a bit more looking for!

[69rtse4spd]

Thanks.

[Aero426]

No...there will always be experts and enthusiasts of the living and breathing variety...rather than the deceased and digital sort. There are folks around now that are experts in cars made in the early twentieth century..they were not born then..they just had an interest and learnt about them.

It is true there are experts.   But they don't know it all.   And there are fewer and fewer of them.     There are mysteries and nuances of old cars that are left behind when the old timers leave.   We can "think it is what they would have done",  But it's not all written down.   

[birdsandbees]

If we had all that knowledge we still wouldn't be guessing how our cars went together on the assembly line! 

[moparnation74]

No...there will always be experts and enthusiasts of the living and breathing variety...rather than the deceased and digital sort. There are folks around now that are experts in cars made in the early twentieth century..they were not born then..they just had an interest and learnt about them.

It is true there are experts.   But they don't know it all.   And there are fewer and fewer of them.     There are mysteries and nuances of old cars that are left behind when the old timers leave.   We can "think it is what they would have done",  But it's not all written down.   

[69rtse4spd]

If we had all that knowledge we still wouldn't be guessing how our cars went together on the assembly line! 

Sometime you just don't want to know, I see stuff that is just amazing. If the customer just knew, they would not pay the price.

[HANDM]

If we had all that knowledge we still wouldn't be guessing how our cars went together on the assembly line! 

Sometime you just don't want to know, I see stuff that is just amazing. If the customer just knew, they would not pay the price.

Don't just leave us hanging! Details Man! Details!

[bristol]

The number 1 reason I don't let other people work on my cars is everybody seems to tighten every bolt with an impact. Makes it almost impossible to get drain plugs off with a wrench. The worst is lug nuts out on with an impact. Once they get some heat from driving a few thousand miles there is no way to get them off on the side of the road with a four way.

[Kern Dog]

Well, if your arms are the diameter of a radiator hose, sure...

[alfaitalia]

Since no-one will tighten ANY bolt in my car except me and I have three different size torque wrenches to make sure it's right them that won't be problem I will have. The only thing I pay to have done by someone else is paint.....I have done paint before (about 15 years ago I worked in a body shop for a while) but I'm out of practise and I'm sure things have moved on since then!

[69rtse4spd]

Well the line boss's are the worst, line workers are great, they catch a lot of stuff. Cracked I.P. parts that the boss say's are OK to put in, (out of sight out of mind) final repair guys that should never try to repair a broken bolt, should instead replace complete motor, head or intake. Will not buy a Chevy diesel ever, got a Dodge instead, it has gotten better over the years but 30 years of this, I just shake my head sometimes. I'm sure they all do it, but I didn't see my Ram built, so in my eyes it's all good. Since I am at work on their computer, don't want to many, well you get the point. 

[cooldude]

And of course, we had our network of Mopar buddies, and the accumulated knowledge of generations of mechanics in our circles.

Yep, and when those guys assume room temp,  a LOT of their nitty gritty firsthand info not contained in the service manual is pretty much gone for the guy in the future.    The knowledge base gets smaller and smaller.    With technology and video, it's there pretty much in perpetuity.  

There is something to that, good point.

We could probably today relearn all the skills of building a 17th century ship as it was done back then, by technology and video. But there would probably have to be a bit of a learning curve. 

The direct, hands on, supervised passing on of information from a master to apprentice, saves time, includes all the "little touches" and short cuts, and nuances that cannot be exactly taught in video or text.  

But, if no better means exists, then technology and video will have to suffice.

[alfaitalia]

And of course, we had our network of Mopar buddies, and the accumulated knowledge of generations of mechanics in our circles.

Yep, and when those guys assume room temp,  a LOT of their nitty gritty firsthand info not contained in the service manual is pretty much gone for the guy in the future.    The knowledge base gets smaller and smaller.    With technology and video, it's there pretty much in perpetuity.  

There is something to that, good point.

We could probably today relearn all the skills of building a 17th century ship as it was done back then, by technology and video. But there would probably have to be a bit of a learning curve. 

I would not mind learning that....those old ships had style that the modern ones just don't. You could keep all the left over bits if wood and rope after the ship is complete....and maybe convert them into a fuel to run your Charger on.....I recon you should get at least 200 miles per galleon................sorry!

[Kern Dog]

Ha ha.....

[cooldude]

And of course, we had our network of Mopar buddies, and the accumulated knowledge of generations of mechanics in our circles.

Yep, and when those guys assume room temp,  a LOT of their nitty gritty firsthand info not contained in the service manual is pretty much gone for the guy in the future.    The knowledge base gets smaller and smaller.    With technology and video, it's there pretty much in perpetuity.  

There is something to that, good point.

We could probably today relearn all the skills of building a 17th century ship as it was done back then, by technology and video. But there would probably have to be a bit of a learning curve. 

I would not mind learning that....those old ships had style that the modern ones just don't. You could keep all the left over bits if wood and rope after the ship is complete....and maybe convert them into a fuel to run your Charger on.....I recon you should get at least 200 miles per galleon................sorry!

I saw an article somewhere, that back in WW2, thousands of American cars were converted to burn wood for fuel. And I et there were some wood burning Mopars in there. Hmm, I think Ill start a thread on that, if I can find the article.