On Fri, 13 Nov 2020 21:04:09 +0000, wrote:

snip

When I was 17'ish my dad and I rebuilt the engine in his tired Lotus
Cortina - he didn't know anything about engines, I knew everything
(bul****ting, based on my experience of rebuilding a BSA C15 engine).

Hehe.

When I was about 15 I bought a Fiat 850 for 15 quid with a seized
engine. Just armed with a basic socket set, some of Dads tools (RIP
about 10 years ago) and the HBOL, I stripped and rebuilt it on my own.

This was about 1971. RIP dad.

Yeah, mine wasn't really into mechanics (he was more a carpenter) so
wasn't really into helping me do such stuff either. My Uncle was a bit
more mechanically minded and was more interested in helping me do
practical stuff. ;-)

My 'interests' in stuff was often born out of necessity and my own
personal interest. My fist Moped was bought off one of my teachers at
secondary school (not economically viable to repair), repaired by me
and then used to rite to college / girlfriends / everywhere. ;-)

My second moped was given to me when I saw it in a heap in someone's
garage. Turned out to be her husbands, he'd taken it to bits and
hadn't got round to putting it back together before he died. The lady
gave it to me and I borrowed her wheelbarrow to take it home. I had it
together and running later that afternoon. ;-)

It was funny, when the Mrs and I decided to build the kitcar, I didn't
really have any reservations about doing so as I'd done all it
entailed over the years on other vehicles, ether for myself or with /
for mates at the time. I didn't *know* I/we could do it, I just
couldn't see why I/we couldn't. ;-)

Cheers, T i m