EVERY MAN MUST KNOW HIS LIMITATIONS
Most male kids growing up in the 50’s probably were into cars and things mechanical. Not me, I was working. I started working when I was 14. Got a driver’s license at 13 and bought my first car for $75 at a car lot on Washington Ave in Houston, Texas. I think I was in the 10th grade. It was a 1931 Chevrolet. 4 doors, red, with mechanical brakes.
I know nothing about cars and never had the time to learn. The Chevrolet ran great, but was terribly uncool in the late 50’s. My dates in River Oaks didn’t seem too impressed with my vehicle so I traded the one that ran great and needed zero fixing to a 1953 Ford that broke down only on date nights. This was before cell phones, so I would have to call my best friend to tell me what I needed to do.
Then into the Army and sent to Korea where I was assigned to a tank and a jeep. I will skip over the other 6 old cars I have bought besides these 2 I have just described and only focus on the jeep.
About 3 years ago I ran across a restored 1952 jeep, just like the one I drove over in Korea. I bought in in good faith thinking how hard can this be to keep up? I should be ok with this one now that I am retired and have some spare time.
I should have stayed in my lane and remembered my lack of success with my previous attempts.
Let’s face it, I am not any good at this stuff and should know better, but here I am again.
My wonderful wife knows that my history of auto repairs goes something like this:
“Honey I fixed 2 things on the old car”
Pause….
“But I broke 3 more trying to fix those 2.”
So, this week, I decided to flush the radiator on my perfectly good running 1952 military jeep. I mean how hard can this be? But in doing so I must have dislodged some bad crud and gunk that might have been there for 40 or 50 years. This stuff then proceeded to stop up the radiator and cause the engine to overheat. I am now faced with locating a antique radiator and trying to replace it without breaking more things in the process.
I am not a brain surgeon, and I dang sure am not a mechanic.
I moved here for less stress, not more….I won’t do this again.
See you next week….Peary Perry
