Grandpa's Advice

FC Andy

Member
So today I was putting the valve cover and gasket on my Farmall C project tractor, and I found myself considering whether to put the cork gasket on dry, or with Shellac, or #2 Form-A-Gasket, or even RTV. This debate has actually happened in my family. In my mind, I heard dad saying, Use Shellac! I asked why not use RTV? Then Grandpa chimes in, all we had was shellac, and it always worked for me. So, grandpa won, and I went up to auto parts, and asked for a bottle of shellac. They had it, but the other customer in the store looked puzzled when I asked for shellac. Had to explain it to him. We lost Grandpa a year ago, he was 82. With him went lots of knowledge on how to fix equipment. I tried to soak up as much as I could, but miss being able to ask him a question. Anybody else find themselves remembering their Father or Grandfather's advice? -Andy
 
I Miss mine ,,.Never Knew My Moms Dad ,,. But I was told alot, that i Look
more Like Granpa than Any of My Mothers Boys.besides uncles I Also had 7 great
uncles to bend my ear that were Dads Age or a little older. My Dad had a very
special kinship with that set of fellas. They are All Gone now . No Doubt they
are one of the best threshing crews in Heaven threshing sheaves for all the
Saints.. Maybe They Were Not Perfect Men , but they were GOOD men ,Willing to
work and earn their keep and to Serve Honorably .
 
Yep. I still have my dad, but sometimes it would sure be nice to ask Grandpa, he has been gone 13 years now.
 
When my uncle suddenly passed away, his son, my cousin said he had questions he wanted to ask him. Then he said I guess they are going to
have to wait ......
 
olgentdc, They were good men... Willing to work and earn their keep and to Serve Honorably. You got that right......Amen
 
I guess most of what I learned from my father was how not to do stuff. His repeated motto was, "Let good enough alone". Preventative maintenance was a concept totally alien to him. As long as something was working, he ran it until it quit working.

I don't think he ever replaced a full set of spark plugs in his life. If an engine was misfiring because of a bad spark plug, he figured out which one it was and replaced that one. A few months later, he'd go through the same thing with another plug.

I walked past their car once, and saw an inch long 3/16" stove bolt sticking out of the top. One of the sheet metal screws that held a sun visor had stripped out, and instead of just replacing it with the next size larger, he drilled a hole clear through and put a stove bolt in with the nut on the top outside. And then never even cut the excess off.

And so it went. In retrospect, I think my maternal grandfather influenced my life more than my father ever did, and I saw too little of him. I've thanked the Lord many times that I drew most of my genes from my mother's side of the family.
 
If the valve cover was so straight and true the shellac "sealed" it, the cork gasket would have done the job just as well without shellac.

Just say'in.

GOOD that you honored Grandpa's memory, tho!
 
My dad's dad said to me, as he took a pinch of Copenhagen, if you ever chew I will kill you. I think he meant it!! Jim
 
Ever since I can remember when ever a neighbor, uncle or grandpa would stop by and visit I would have to be standing right there listening to what was said. Did I learn anything I can't remember.
 
My older brother was a mechanic his entire life. He passed away before the rusty iron bug bit me. My how I've missed the guidance and help he could have been to me. But I have a lot of friends here (YT). I just ask them. thanks so much gobble
 
Never knew my grand pa on Mom's side. Grand pa on Dad's side left the family and moved away. Only saw him a few times. One thing I learned from Dad was if you are going to do a job do it right, even if it takes a little longer. Stan
 
The only advice my Grandpa on my Moms side was given to my brother. I was older as well as bigger so the natural thing was for him to get
picked on a lot by me. As I was doing so one day in Grandpas presence his words went something like: Shawn, the best thing to do with that
big galoot is wait till he goes to sleep tonight, then roll him up in his blanket, then take a ballbat to him. I left him alone the rest of the day and I
never got the ballbat visit, it just kinda surprised me when he said that. He did help me pick out my first shotgun. Did a lot of trapshooting with
him. Good memories. DP
 
Being the youngest can have its pit falls, one of
which is my grandparents were very old when I was
born. They all passed before I could ever know
them. While my parents lived long full lives, and
passed in their mid eighties, l was 39 when my
mother passed , and my dad passed 4 years later.
They were both in poor shape in their last 5 years or
so, and much of our time together was taken up
with their health issues. Would sure enjoyed having
had some words of guidance or support over the
years, like my older brothers enjoyed. And my wife?s
situation was almost the same, with her folks gone
earlier than we expected. Wife and I are always
dumb struck when someone in their sixties is telling
about going to their parents for help, or even dinner.
 
read dpittman's story about rolling his brother up in the blanket when he slept, brings back what my mother told me when I was a mouthy teenager, "don't forget, you have to sleep sometime". that ended the talking back for me.
 
I remember my grandpa always telling me to marry a girl with small hands 'cause it made everything else look big.
 
I remember when my MIL passed away. That's when all her children had all sorts of questions. Mostly; 'where's the money'.
 
my dad too has been gone for lots of years. he could be very disagreeable.
I don't think any of us ever understood why . I would have liked him to meant my second wife Susie and been able to see my Scotch Highland cows
 
I am 58, never knew dad's dad. I was 3 when he was killed. Was a Mich
farmer, not farm related was murdered for the wad of cash he always
carried . Mom's dad lived in Arkansas, [another farmer], saw him 3 or
4 weeks a year and spent a couple summers there, mostly fishing and
squirrel hunting in the fall. He has been gone 20 yrs. Lost my dad in
1990 at 58. And his brother at 58 three yrs earlier. Yeah I miss his
wit and wisdom and what I didn't learn or could have. I spun the
bearings in our vw powered buggy at 13. Made me take it apart and
repair, never got mad. Just said, you broke you are going to fix it.
Been a gearhead ever since. But still miss him. Just really got close
again after divorce in 1976. He was someone who could fix just about
anything. At about 14 I got all the car repairs with him standing
guard over my shoulder. Hated it then but now really appreciate the
time spent and wish I could have had a lot more. Dad's favorite was " if you are going to do it, don't do it half a$$ed, do it right".
 
You peopel are absolutly right when you say you have questions you would like to ask those who have gone before, parents, grand parents, uncles, friends, famiy members. I feel and know the exact same thoughts and feelings. Have, with help of a mecanic associate, over the phone, been able to complete the probkem why my reasembled engine was sluggishly difficult to crank, exchanged 3&4 conrod bottom bearing halves now spins freely, But still just a sputter. This is where I wish dad were still here. I may be fair mehanic, living on the farm, and working it as well as working for an IHC dealer in the 40s &early50s he could look listen and pin point.
Ow! Do I MIS HIM?
wm.
 
Regarding having another kid around when I had work to do, my grandpa always said: "a boy's a boy, 2 boy's are half a boy, and 3 boys are no boy at all." gm
 
I learned more from my Grandpa than I ever did from my Dad. We were a lot alike and I miss him. He passed when I was 16, too soon for me to fully appreciate him. He loved to get a bargain and fix it up to suit a need, and I do the same. I have far surpassed his skill as a mechanic , but I still use little tricks he showed me. I have all girl children, so I am hoping for a grandson someday to pass some of my knowledge and tools to.
 
Paternal grandfather passed when I was 6 or 7 and my dad when I was 22. Still learned a lot from my dad and wonder if he had lived longer if we would be going to machinery shows together. If he had lived he would have been 97 next week.
 

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