"Fix it" yourself

[Deleted member 113659]

I have wonderful memories of spending time with my Dad when I was a boy. He seemed to be able to fix virtually anything. His vast (pre internet) knowledge always amazed me and he talked me through every step. If I didn’t understand he’d take time out from the repair to explain until I did.

The best memory is of us renovating a bicycle. I’d asked for a new bike for Christmas (which my parents could never afford). One day around October time he can home with a bike from the local tip!!! He pulled it from the back of his van and told me we would restore it by Xmas. At the time I remember feeling very underwhelmed.

However, each weekend we worked on the bike together, including a full respray and replacement of most of the parts.

Apart from having a virtually new bike for Christmas I’d had the benefit of many hours quality time with dad.

It’s obvious to me now that money was a big issue for my parents back then and was the main reason for him having to fix everything.

I’m fine with any building related fix (as is my job) but I’d never attempt any car related fix nor white goods for that matter. I’m always in awe of members (@MancMike springs to mind, hopefully he will update his thread very soon) here that can fix things that would seem impossible to me. Hats off to you all.

I try to include my daughter in my projects at home but for some reason I don’t give her the freedom to use power tools like my dad did with me. Shame really as she is keen to learn.

 

[MancMike]

I've always made things and fixed things. My dad was pretty hands on with me in that regard in the weekends that I got to spend with him, so I absorbed as much as I could. He'd dismantle even irreparable things to salvage the screws, motors, belts, etc which all went into a wall of little parts trays.

He taught me to solder, wire plugs, etc when I was about 6, and the first book he gave me was "The art of soldering" which I still have today. It made me feel more grown up that he trusted me to know these things. He'd explain everything I asked. It'd be like "What's that? It's a capacitor, it stores and releases electricity very quickly, or smooths it out if it's erratic", What's that? It's a resistor, it impedes the flow of electrons and serves to reduce current flow". and on and on...

Now I've the attitude that if something is broken, what do I have to lose in attempting to fix it? It's broken ffs!

Given I've a desk job writing software for a living, I think the "workshop" I've got at home for predominantly woodwork is especially important as it keeps my brain working properly on practical issues, and both involve problem solving obviously which I need to keep strong.

I've two kids that despite my best efforts, and trying to get them hooked by using the drill press or bandsaw, just aren't interested. They're too into video games, hopefully that'll change as they get a bit older, and maybe it's my skills at engaging them that need to improve, although I don't recall needing any encouragement when I was their age. Time will tell.

 

[brucemillar]

I have wonderful memories of spending time with my Dad when I was a boy. He seemed to be able to fix virtually anything. His vast (pre internet) knowledge always amazed me and he talked me through every step. If I didn’t understand he’d take time out from the repair to explain until I did.

The best memory is of us renovating a bicycle. I’d asked for a new bike for Christmas (which my parents could never afford). One day around October time he can home with a bike from the local tip!!! He pulled it from the back of his van and told me we would restore it by Xmas. At the time I remember feeling very underwhelmed.

However, each weekend we worked on the bike together, including a full respray and replacement of most of the parts.

Apart from having a virtually new bike for Christmas I’d had the benefit of many hours quality time with dad.

It’s obvious to me now that money was a big issue for my parents back then and was the main reason for him having to fix everything.

I’m fine with any building related fix (as is my job) but I’d never attempt any car related fix nor white goods for that matter. I’m always in awe of members (@MancMike springs to mind, hopefully he will update his thread very soon) here that can fix things that would seem impossible to me. Hats off to you all.

I try to include my daughter in my projects at home but for some reason I don’t give her the freedom to use power tools like my dad did with me. Shame really as she is keen to learn.

Now that is a great post. Thank you for sharing that.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BTB 500]

I've two kids that despite my best efforts, and trying to get them hooked by using the drill press or bandsaw, just aren't interested. They're too into video games, hopefully that'll change as they get a bit older, and maybe it's my skills at engaging them that need to improve, although I don't recall needing any encouragement when I was their age. Time will tell.

Yup I have a 10 year old son who would be glued to his iPad/phone/laptop/Xbox 24 hours a day if we let him.

One thing that does seem to be sparking an interest in more practical stuff is the TV program "How it's made". This is shown on Freeview overnight - I record the episodes (which are only 30 mins each) and we watch selected ones together as time permits:

How It's Made - Wikipedia

 

[MancMike]

Yes, I've been watching How it's Made since it began, and watch them on Youtube regularly too, both the UK and American narrated episodes.

Other similar shows like HowStuffWorks, How do they do it, Mega machines, mega structures, etc are also extremely watchable.

It's fun when you recognise the brand of the product as they don't always make it clear. The episode on Starrett was good, as I have some Starett measuring tools and was very interesting to see their borderline psychotic attention to precision in the show.

Good idea though, I'll try pointing the sprogs at those and see if they show any signs of interest.

 

[wu56Shoozz]

I was 6/7 at the time and my mum always wanted a new hoover, she felt that her old one had lost its "Suck".

It was a miserable Saturday afternoon and I'd nothing to do.. so I snaffled the hoover out into the shed and set about repairing this. God knows what I was thinking - I'd have given anything for a phone to take piccies as I went along.. anyways I start stripping, cleaning this and that, replacing bits with what I thought were needed, my dad had an old junk box of parts some new some old and bits in between... so after a couple of hours and stinking of paraffin and Lusol (anyone remember that?) It was back, I felt I'd achieved something............
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FRANKENHOOVER!!!!!!!!

This "Thing" was alive alright.... It could sook the wallpaper off the walls at a thousand paces, worse still I had 3 crews left over that I had no idea what they were for.. needless to say it scared the Cr4p out of my mum as she went around the room wrenching the carpets off the floor with real ease.. I hadn't a clue what I'd done by my god! I could have gave Dyson a run for his monies.. the amazing part about it it was that it was so silent, a lot less noise than before.. probably because everything was cleaned and lubed etc.. but it was frightening as she pushed this carpet muncher to get under your legs or feet............

 

[Yugguy]

Not quite the same scale but here's how I fixed the stitching on my favourite slippers.

 

[flying haggis]

Not quite the same scale but here's how I fixed the stitching on my favourite slippers.
View attachment 80441

my kind of repair, excellent!!!

 

[BTB 500]

I rather liked this repair by the Motorsport company behind 'Project Binky' (check out their other videos if you've not heard of this) ...

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Posted on April 1st though

 

[br0ke]

'Project Binky' (check out their other videos if you've not heard of this) ...

Oh - that is just awesome. I haven't put my angle grinder down since watching this about a month ago. I especially love their CAD (cardboard aided design) system. What I would give to be able to fabricate and weld like that.

If you do watch it, just be aware that they have been doing this for about 4 years and may be slightly over half way through.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I was 6/7 at the time and my mum always wanted a new hoover, she felt that her old one had lost its "Suck".

It was a miserable Saturday afternoon and I'd nothing to do.. so I snaffled the hoover out into the shed and set about repairing this. God knows what I was thinking - I'd have given anything for a phone to take piccies as I went along.. anyways I start stripping, cleaning this and that, replacing bits with what I thought were needed, my dad had an old junk box of parts some new some old and bits in between... so after a couple of hours and stinking of paraffin and Lusol (anyone remember that?) It was back, I felt I'd achieved something............
>
>
>
>
>
>
FRANKENHOOVER!!!!!!!!

This "Thing" was alive alright.... It could sook the wallpaper off the walls at a thousand paces, worse still I had 3 crews left over that I had no idea what they were for.. needless to say it scared the Cr4p out of my mum as she went around the room wrenching the carpets off the floor with real ease.. I hadn't a clue what I'd done by my god! I could have gave Dyson a run for his monies.. the amazing part about it it was that it was so silent, a lot less noise than before.. probably because everything was cleaned and lubed etc.. but it was frightening as she pushed this carpet muncher to get under your legs or feet............

Your post reminds me of a time when I was a similar age, maybe around 6 years old, when I decided to fix the bathroom scales. Except they weren’t actually broken. Well they weren’t broken until I disassembled and reassembled them ;D

 

[MancMike]

Given we're telling anecdotes...

When I was probably 11 or 12, my folks were out. I thought I'd do them a favour and knock out all the ice that's formed in the freezer compartment of the fridge.

I got a small hammer and flathead screwdriver and started tapping it in and breaking off chunks of ice. All was going well until I gave the driver another tap and heard hissing, smelled a strange smell that I remember very well and the sinking feeling I felt as I knew fully well what I'd done. I'd pierced the lines of the refrigerant. Obviously it was ****ed. That compartment was the cooling for the whole fridge.

I "got away" with it by just keeping quiet. Nobody knew of my good deed and all the ice melted away anyway, leaving no evidence of the partial de-ice. Nobody noticed the little pierced hole. The fridge just packed up and we got another one.

It's the sort of thing you feel you can confess in a comedic anecdote around drinks with the folks 20 years later.

 

[ss201]

I've lost count of the number of classic steel lightweight bikes I've renovated, frequently a last nut & bolt rebuild + bare metal repaint. Keeps me out of mischief. Recently I've repaired a 40 year old pair of USA-built Electro-voice PA speakers - the foam surrounds on the 12" bass drivers had perished. Also found a couple of dry joints on the crossovers and re-soldered them. Sourced new foam surrounds from the States, stripped the old cones and repaired them. Good for another 40 years and they sound superb again.

I'll always try to see if something can be fixed before throwing it away.

 

[Railwayman]

Manufactures are increasingly doing there best to prevent any type of repair now days, have a pet hate for small electrical appliance cases glued together and don't get me started on "sealed for life" components (life of the common house fly), have mostly always found a way in.

Way oh why cant we have our grease nipples back on cars, nothing like seeing all the old dirty grease being expelled lol.