You Gotta Be Tough If you\'re Gonna be Stupid - or stupid gearhead stories

So says my good friend Ferg. Most of you out there have some stupid gearhead story to share. I have many, but my latest (tonight) was when I stuck my thumb in the little squirrel cage fan on my Craftsman air compressor.

Now most of you (at least one or two) have reached down & touched the fan blades on a running engine (sure that you know the right side of the fan blade). Whether it was to shock someone or to prove your manlihood to yourself. Maybe you've run your thumb across a belt on a running engine just for grins.

Well, I have the covers off of my Craftsman (POS) air compressor - just rebuilt it. I was standing at the workbench & decided that I needed to touch the blades on squirrel cage fan with my thumb. Damb that was a mistake. It was rotating the wrong way & it liked to ate my thumb up. So there I was bleeding like a stuck pig, holding my thumb, ready to run into the house so momma could doctor on me when I thought of Ferg..."You gotta be tough if you're gonna be stupid". So I went back to my measuring & grinding...

Any other "Stupid Gearhead Stories" out there?

I have not done anything like that ever [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_wink.gif[/img] . .. except for the time I caught a carb on fire.

Just the other day i was using a grinder and bound up and kicked back and gave me a nice bruise on my knee and a good lesson.
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68 stang...I won't ask how you caught the carb on fire. LOL
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We have all done some stupid things I am sure when it comes to this hobby. I will share one of mine. I was working in the garage cleaning up some stuff in the engine compartment and I was using some Lacquer thinner. Yes I know that was dumb in the first place on a finished car. I had some on a paper towel and I had a towel laid over the fender. Well I ended up laying the paper towel on the top of the fender and about 10 minutes later I finally realized what I had done. When I tried to pull the paper towel off the fender it stuck to the towel and the towel was stuck to the fender!!!! HOLY S!!! it made a nasty mark on the top of the fender. I was so pissed at myself I just couldn't believe I did something so dumb!! I had to repaint the whole top of the fender to fix it. That was one mistake that I hope never happens again. I am much more careful with what I use for cleaners now. Stupid me.

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1968 protouring Mustang 342 stroker, 205cc CNC ported TEA Trick Flows AOD/3000 stall 4.11 9inch posi.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: EricButler on 2/8/06 12:33pm ]</font>

Back in mid 80's I had a '81 D150 pickup that was giving me trouble for the last time...long story short, couldnt find intermittent trouble in 225 'lean burn' ignition(tried everything several times), almost got in wreck when it died, said screw it, pulled the thing out and gave it away...my 429 just wouldnt fit, but my 396 was easy...didnt have my driveway back then(still at same house) and there was a step into the garage...after pulling motor, pushed truck out(225-6 is loooooong- way up in rafters with hoist), hitched up the BBC but couldnt get the truck back in by myself...
Hmm...new suzuki quadracer(manual clutch)...heavy nylon rope...viola! so I tie the rope around the bumper, start pulling truck over the step- no go...stalls the bike or spins the tires...so slipping the clutch to roll out, jammin forward I start 'rocking' it...(I did have stop blocks in place). About the 5th tug, the bumper cuts the rope and I get a 'whipping' from the top of my butt diagonally up my back halfway up my neck. I cannot tell you how bad that hurt...turned into a 2" stripe bruise that seemed to take forever to feel normal...lucky it didnt knock out an eye or teeth as I was looking right at the truck when it snapped- stopped right at my neck. needless to say I didnt try that again...couple days later stepped blocks of wood at edge of garage and rolled it in easily...duh.

hit my thumb on a stainless flexfan accidentally one day back in highschool- barely touched it- lucky I didnt knock it or my hand off, just a good cut- those things are like knives on edge...

wasnt on a car, but think I was barely 18 adjusting a hydraulic tracer on a big lathe at work(stone ages compared to cnc), backed nosepiece out a bit too far and it wouldnt go up...looked over my shoulder and asked buddy to hit emg return(I'm holding as its slowly moving down) look back just as stylus/thumb slowly meet template...eeewww this is gonna hurt...came down slow enough I didnt feel a thing, but bent/broke the stylus off(luckily) and didnt even break the bone...but a couple layers of stitches were needed. didnt hurt at all till that night when it balooned up and stitches pulled... Hate to jinx myself but that was only time Ive had to go to hospital from working on something too carelessly. probably just dumb luck.

Once I was trying to change plugs on my 71 elcamino w/headers...ratchet/ext/swivel, you know- the old 'fun' headers...swivel broke and I punched myself right in the eye. I still remember that one well...one of those times where youre like 'I cant believe I just did that' and look around to see who saw you [img]/phpBB/images/smiles/icon_smile.gif[/img] then got to explain the shiner to guys at work for the next few days...

Dumbest thing I ever did was crawl under my 69 camaro to pick up a dropped tool-had just pulled stands out, as I slid out, pulled on the bumper and the POS floorjack I was using failed...tore it apart, and piston was a just a cracked piece of green rubber stuff...it blew and that car dropped like a rock. I mean the bumper brushed against my hair- now that was close...divine intervention?
I use bigger jacks that cost quite a bit more now, and always pull stands from clear area or using something.

speaking of hair...that reminds me of another non automotive example of stupidity...around '87 or so...i had just built deck on back of house- no railings yet. My model helicopter had been acting up (old OS 7h carb...nice till they act up)- brilliant idea- I hold the helicopter down sitting beside the deck and run it up to adjust the carb- 2x4s bolted holding it to deck, its not going anywhere...works like a charm...2-3 minutes tweaking its purring like it used too...didnt even have to risk another autorotation landing while tuning... last blast- full throttle/pitch, running great, so content, I pull throttle to idle...um below half stick pitch goes negative,umm this sucks hair into blades...again, devine intervention...didnt grab, just a flutter...those fiberglass blades have a tip speed of over 300 mph. A few months later running one up when fastened to ground again(but I'm not under it) I get a lesson in 'ground resonance'...blades can lead/lag/resonate from landing gear flex till the thing literally shakes itself apart- Ive seen videos of fullsized helicopters break up from it, and I saw my model beat itself to death that way too...had it done this when I was working beside/below it woulda been messy. the mess woulda been me. looking back- how friggin stupid...I used to hover right up almost to land at my feet...300mph...that things a lawnmower without a deck...they look so innocent just hanging there in hover, but they darn well better be respected...I'm getting old and am almost afraid to fly them anymore...

man, I made a whole list...looking back, I shoulda been elegible for one of those 'darwin awards'...

The only time I hurt myself, I was actually using a table band saw. Just cutting something small (don't even remember what it was.) I picked up a little pice from the side of the blade, and heard a faint (bzzt) and felt a little touch on my middle finger. Pulled back, looked at it, oh whoops. Bled like you know what. Wasn't very deep, but it was pretty long and wide. Got a clean rag and some electrical tape, got it nice and tight, and kept working. Still have a nifty scar about a half inch long.

The only time I've had to get stitches was pretty dumb - it was in 5th grade. Playing "baseball" in the gym with a tennis ball and a plastic bat (it was PE,) and was running, slipped on the plastic base, and slammed into the bleachers. 17 stitches later, i have a scar about 3.5 inches long on my leg, that looks like an arrow, pointing up my leg.

I also broke my arm jumping off the monkey bars trying to grab a chin up bar like a gymnast. I'm not a gymnast... that was in 7th grade

The only car related tip was not something I did but a lesson I learned from someone else -

Don't weld around rags soaked in lacquer thinner.
That, and wire brushes like taking of skin just like they do rust.

I was 17 when I found a 65 Falcon 4dr powered by a factory 289. Cool. Rebuilt all four drum brakes. I was putting the springs back on the brakes with a needle nose pliers. Almost had it on when BAM !! As much as I looked around, I couldn't find a single person in the area who could've kicked me in the face. No, the pliers let go and put an approx 1/2" hole right through to my gums between bottom lip and chin. Nice clean cut though, bled just a bit and healed right up. Now when I see all those special tools for doing drum brakes I just kind of smile.
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I kick my own a$$ quite often while wrenching... I'm almost always pulling on a ratchett or wrench and popping myself in the face with my own hand/fist/thumb... I laugh my arse off after threatening to beat to death the idiot who watched me do it....

I have often reached in to test clutch fans (I kind of have to...) I did put the back of my thumb on a serp belt one day to knock off a bothersome piece of refuse but all I did was heat up my thumbnail to supernova temperatures... That's it... I never do anything stupid with the rest of my limbs and whatnot due to wanting to go fishing when I retire... I'm a little overcautious sometimes, but's I'm still whole...

FE
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Too many to post. Suffice to say, been there done that, got the scars to prove it!

Later!
Mr. Ed
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