young mechanics

oldford2

oldford2

Well-known member
There was just a long thread on Jiffy lube services that unfairly catergorized all young people as not knowing a crescent wrench from a plumb bob. It essentially said that we were a lot more mechanically inclined than the young folks are today. Well, I am 73 and can still remember how we struggled to keep our old jalopies on the road. We learned the hard way. The young folks today don't have a chance to fix their cars that are run by computers.
But, go to the cruise in's and shows and see what the young guys are building. I marvel at the cars ( chassis/steering/engines) they are building today. These guys are self taught "engineers". Times have changed. The old guys like originals and the young guys (girls) like the speed and flash. Nothing wrong with that.

JMO

John
 
I was taught over 40 years ago to never use a crescent wrench when you had the correct size available. I found crescents were always good for rounding the corners off nuts and bolts which meant when they no longer worked, you had to go the next best rounder, the vise grip.

If it had been called an adjustable wrench, they may have understood what was needed. Still, they should have had an open end wrench that would have fit.
 
Conversation in old shop.
Hey kid hand me a Crescent wrench.
What size?
It doesn't matter, I'm going to use it for a hammer.
 
I agree with you John, as far as the kids today being sharp when it comes to what cars they are into.:) The problem (as I see it) is that these "one size fits all" car care centers like Jiffy Lube, etc., around today, are staffed by people with at best a rudimentary knowledge and understanding of basic automotive systems operation, hence their limited ability to adapt when a car of earlier vintage pulls up. Changing oil has got to be one of the most basic of all automotive related task however; it is also one of the most important and should be treated as such. There is no excuse for sloppy work from anyone working on a customer’s automobile. :eek:
 
I recently saw my first metric Crescent wrench..seriously...there are lines on the face of the wrench so as you open the jaws you can read exactly the measurement you've opened it to.
 
I'm olny 23, Never did much work, On cars and trucks myself growing up, was more a wood worker.. But since owning my F1, I got it running and now am hooked on working on old trucks, Anything after 1950's I'll leave up to the other guys ;-)...

Cody
 
I was an aeronautics major in college. Part of the curriculum was A&P (Airframe & Powerplants).

We too were instructed that if you had a crescent or monkey wrench in your tool box, it better not be used for any purpose other than as a hammer.
 
I use a crescent all the time. We have over 5,000 acers that we farm and ranch. You make due with what you have. And when things on a tractor or any other equipment we have screws up that's what I use the most. If I can't fix it with it I can beat the hell out of it and tell my dad we need a new one.
 
I hate cresent wrenches, My dad would use one, but I never did. There no room in my 2 roll aways for one.
The kids today are into the flashy stuff, but all that stuff comes out of a box. Not like the old days when sometimes you had to make due or repair a part to keep your car on the road. Now you go and get a cheap replacement part and throw the old one away because they don't want the cores.
 
Scott H said:
I recently saw my first metric Crescent wrench..seriously...there are lines on the face of the wrench so as you open the jaws you can read exactly the measurement you've opened it to.
Click to expand...

Standard shop joke for years.
"Hand me my Crescent micrometer".
 
I like the crescent wrench for the tanny drain plug better than an end wrench because it's wider than an end wrench of the same size which would more likely round the square sides of the plug than the crescent wrench. It works better on the square drain plug than on a hex nut because there is more surface on the square plug than if it was a hex nut. I can put a cheater bar/pipe on the crescent and never round the square plug. I certainly would never do that with a crescent wrench on a hex nut or hex bolt head.
 
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Pete said:
Standard shop joke for years.
"Hand me my Crescent micrometer".
Click to expand...

I have a few of those "micrometers"

P1020352.jpg
 
I use original Ford labeled adjustables. Ive never had one slip like a standard cresent wrench. I find it hilarious to ask other mechanics my age (23) if I can borrow their ford wrench and then I get to look at a face of puzzlement for several minutes. I don't believe that the older generation is more mechanical just taught differently. When I was in high school we were told you HAD to learn computers, unless you went to tech school. I went to school to specialize in engines where the students who went for automotive weren't even taught how to set points.
 
As the customer stands by watching, you grab a 2 inch micrometer and say.
"lets see if this C clamp will hold that thing together".
 
Most customers today wouldnt know the difference between a micrometer and c-clamp anyhow.
This whole situation is largely due to the throwaway lifestyle we live in. No longer do we fix anything. When an appliance breaks, we replace it. We can buy another appliance made in Bangledesh for the same money or cheaper than having a repair man come to the house, diagnose, order and replace the failed component. We are nearly all guilty of this at one time or another. We always find a way to justify it to ourselves too. maybe because we feel we are due for a new one, or i never really liked that particular one, or the thought of once it breaks, it is falling apart and will never be good enough again.
It used to be that we worked hard and saved for stuff. Then when it broke we repaired it ourselves because it cost too much to replace. That was when labor was cheap and technology was expensive. Now it is the opposite. Labor is expensive and technology cheap.
Ever meet a farmer who couldn't fix something by himself in the middle of a feild with no appareant tools? Not until recent years with computer controlled equipment. How about all the old farm tractors still in use at local farms? Many are from the 1940s. Simple machines that have a low failure rate. Not fast, not super efficient, but more efficient than a broken machine that you cant afford to fix and cant afford not to fix.
It is our own fault...
 
I have a double ended cresant wrenck, about a 12in. long. My friend was in the service back when we were 18 yr's old and he brought it home and gave it to me. It still comes in handy once in a file on small things. Walt
 
Sad to say, it is all changing(although it would suck if it never did change).
My Dad always tells me of his chemistry class in High school, they would use Mercury, Sodium, and mix chemicals together that would have the EPA today cordon off the entire school, and call Homeland Security and put you in jail for being a terrorist.
I am glad there are many who still try to keep the old car hobby alive, and I always try to get the younger generation interested(although I'm not that old, I hope) to keep the fires burning.
 
I have and use "Crescent" wrenches from 4" to 18", carry a 4" in my pocket all the time. I also have open end and boxed end wrenches that I use for important projects. I am not ashamed to use them or to admit using them, grew up with them and know their short comings but also grew up using baling wire but can't find that laying around now so have to use tie wire. I have a few monkey wrenchs that also comes in handy sometimes.

Vergil
 
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