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Memories for us old truckers

Truck Shop

Truck Shop

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Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
17,126
Location
WWW.
Was working on installing electronics Log/Camera today, needed some gromets.
I pulled into Napa, two juniors HS they looked were monkeying around this car
they had jacked up--broken wheel studs { been hanging around Vetech}. I walked
up they were trying lamely at removing the broke ones. You need a real swatter
& a drift and walked on. In the store they came, bought a hammer and punch.
As I left I walked by to check, Give me that hammer/punch---You got to put some
stink on it! Knocked them out. Go inside and get the cheapest oil you can get.
Kid comes back hands me the oil for stud--Kid says to the other-Guy inside says
we got it dicked--that's truck shop mike out there helping you guys, you guys
really lucked out. I just sat there for a second didn't say a word. Showed them
how to do three--left them to finish the last two. Wouldn't learn anything if I did
the whole thing. Actually two grateful young guys.
*
finish E-log tomorrow.
 
skyking1

skyking1

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Joined
Nov 3, 2020
Messages
7,723
Location
washington
Love that Mike. It reminds me of all those first lessons, like packing throwout bearing and the end of the crank with grease and taping up a bolt until it fits tight, and giving it a good whack. I remember the the first time I saw that. I hope I get to show somebody again.
Or wrapping 20' load chain on an axle and using it as a slide hammer.
 
DMiller

DMiller

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Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,622
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
Have heard it from so many people, just shrug it off as is what I have always seemingly done. Comments as to ‘How do you know to do all this’ or ‘You did everything?’
Time and many screwed up attempts I had to fix twice or repair the hard way. Nothing was Free, none was always Easy. Everyone coming to this line of work will walk that same path.
 
O

Old Doug

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Joined
Oct 16, 2013
Messages
4,573
Location
Mo
DMiller said:
Have heard it from so many people, just shrug it off as is what I have always seemingly done. Comments as to ‘How do you know to do all this’ or ‘You did everything?’
Time and many screwed up attempts I had to fix twice or repair the hard way. Nothing was Free, none was always Easy. Everyone coming to this line of work will walk that same path.
Click to expand...
The other day when I met the new owners the old boss was talking me up the new boss asked me were I learned I said I never had anything and had to learn or do without.
 
Truck Shop

Truck Shop

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 7, 2015
Messages
17,126
Location
WWW.
Finished that electronics installation crap this morning, and rigged up some other things.
*
I hung around a kid in high school-his dad had a foreign car repair shop and the gran-dad
had a machine shop in the other half of shop. Learned allot there fiddling the hours away
into the night working on typical car crap. I started at 14 washing parts and sweeping
floors at a truck shop three days a week plus pearl diving at the local truck stop. At the
truck stop I got lessons on how to make a log book {mostly crooked}, used that later on.
The shop led to greasing, tires & brakes. But the most important was learning how to cuss
forming a proper sentence.
 
skyking1

skyking1

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Messages
7,723
Location
washington
^ mine was working evenings and weekends though my junior and senior years of high school.
Gary Mclean's place was Tire King and Arco in Selah. He had a real tire shop and was a skilled mechanic.
Paul Henry was the Snap-On guy in Selah, and I wandered into that den of chromium addiction and had credit from him before anywhere else.
I learned a ton watching Gary and he was good to share it. On a slow Sunday I would roll my mustang onto the single post lift and leave the bay door open. I called that "baiting the hook". If you wanted time to do homework and dink around, keep the bay doors closed.
Open the doors and people just naturally stop in. I learned a lot from doing.
 
DMiller

DMiller

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Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
16,622
Location
Hermann, Missouri
Occupation
Cheap "old" Geezer
My Dad set me up with a Sears set of hand tools in 1975, added to them with SnapOn and MAC with a few odd others over the years. Still have considerable remaining of the old Craftsman wrenches.
Pearce Mann was the salesman in my area, they broke up his route to three trucks, finally retired two years ago.
 
Pops52

Pops52

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Joined
Jan 19, 2016
Messages
294
Location
Penn Valley, CA
Occupation
Worn out lowbed driver "retired"
Truck Shop said:
Finished that electronics installation crap this morning, and rigged up some other things.
*
I hung around a kid in high school-his dad had a foreign car repair shop and the gran-dad
had a machine shop in the other half of shop. Learned allot there fiddling the hours away
into the night working on typical car crap. I started at 14 washing parts and sweeping
floors at a truck shop three days a week plus pearl diving at the local truck stop. At the
truck stop I got lessons on how to make a log book {mostly crooked}, used that later on.
The shop led to greasing, tires & brakes. But the most important was learning how to cuss
forming a proper sentence.
Click to expand...
TS, this sounds similar to my start, L&L Trucking in Santa Maria, April 68. Washing, greasing, tire work and learned to cuss the right way. My boss was a sailor on a destroyer in the war and he taught me how include "ethiopian" in a long line of words not usually spoken in mixed company.......
 
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