Your first memory of tinkering.

[Terry C]

We had plenty of obsolete farm stuff to mess with.
There were many mechanical engineering experiments observed at the farm.
Dad always wishes that he didn’t show me how to run an acetylene torch.
But the most angry he got was when I made an giant slingshot out of strips from a brand new rear tractor tire innertube. This thing was right out of a road runner cartoon. I was just about ready to hook up the H and start pulling back. Then Dad saw what was going on. I had some big plans for flying cats when I was younger.

[ol'George]

Originally Posted by Terry C

We had plenty of obsolete farm stuff to mess with.
There were many mechanical engineering experiments observed at the farm.
Dad always wishes that he didn’t show me how to run an acetylene torch.
But the most angry he got was when I made an giant slingshot out of strips from a brand new rear tractor tire innertube. This thing was right out of a road runner cartoon. I was just about ready to hook up the H and start pulling back. Then Dad saw what was going on. I had some big plans for flying cats when I was younger.

That is not politically correct in today's world.
P.E.T.A will be all over it. (people eating tasty animals)
It would be necessary to provide a helmet/goggles & parachute along with an
extensive training session in aviation provided by Rocky J Squirrel.
I understand you were way ahead of your time in "pumpkin chunkin"

[zippy1]

Don't recall my age, but I was young. My uncle Harley did the majority of the wrenching at the company. I remember always wanting to hang out over there with him, working on the equipment. (get all grease)
My best guess would be 5 or 6, cause I recall mother always having me rescrub my hands in the mornings before going off to half days of kindergarten.
He would put me to work washing parts in the "parts washer". A cut off 55 gallon barrel, with gas as the washer fluid. That's what they used back then, so when in Rome, do what the Romans do...
Then I was an expert. Well with all the repair skills I learned, I started taking apart things that didn't need it, but somehow figured out how to put it back to a usable condition again.
At 14, my best friend from school, his granddad had a very large junk yard, with the majority of the vehicles being 40's and 50's. I would stay overnight on some weekend, so cool. Old Lee, his granddad would turn us loose, we had the run of the yard.
We would take a battery, gas can, pockets full of tools, and go out in the yard. Get a car running, and run around the yard roads. That/those were the best "tinkering" times ever.
Today. Uncle would be locked up for child abuse. Old Lee would be sitting right next to him, and I would have no tinkering memories forty some years from now.

[john hall]

Originally Posted by zippy1

Don't recall my age, but I was young. My uncle Harley did the majority of the wrenching at the company. I remember always wanting to hang out over there with him, working on the equipment. (get all grease)
My best guess would be 5 or 6, cause I recall mother always having me rescrub my hands in the mornings before going off to half days of kindergarten.
He would put me to work washing parts in the "parts washer". A cut off 55 gallon barrel, with gas as the washer fluid. That's what they used back then, so when in Rome, do what the Romans do...
Then I was an expert. Well with all the repair skills I learned, I started taking apart things that didn't need it, but somehow figured out how to put it back to a usable condition again.
At 14, my best friend from school, his granddad had a very large junk yard, with the majority of the vehicles being 40's and 50's. I would stay overnight on some weekend, so cool. Old Lee, his granddad would turn us loose, we had the run of the yard.
We would take a battery, gas can, pockets full of tools, and go out in the yard. Get a car running, and run around the yard roads. That/those were the best "tinkering" times ever.
Today. Uncle would be locked up for child abuse. Old Lee would be sitting right next to him, and I would have no tinkering memories forty some years from now.

Not as unsupervised but a couple years ago I took a junk lawnmower hydro (hydrogear I think) and a blown Kawasaki out of a Deere and put them in the shop. Let my son and cousins boy dissect them while my dad supervised. The boys had a great time.

[bocephus1991]

I can remember I was probably.....7-9 yrs old we had a junk pile like most farms. There was an old manual transmission that I took the top off and tried to disassemble, with no luck! Lol I did get a Sears 3/8 socket set that I can remember picking up from the catalog store. I used it to change the spark plug on our 1200 cub and tinker with my bicycle. I still have that set almost 40 yrs later!

[sawdustdad]

I can remember when my Mom got an electric can opener. I took it down to my Dad's workbench and took it apart. My Mom freaked out! I put it back together and it still worked.

Spent much of my youth making stuff out of the 1955 Popular Mechanics encyclopedia. Wood lathe, arc furnace, solenoid door latch, etc., etc.

Worked on and repaired my bike, my first cars, anything that needed fixed in the house. Just seemed like the thing to do.

[Lanceskene]

That just reminded me... somewhere around here i have quite a large collection of PM mags... starting in the late 40s and includes every monthly issue until the mid 70s... 8 or 9 plastic milk crates full of them plus the PM encyclopedia set. There is literally 1000s of differant things you can build using plans from those books.

[cubchub]

WE had a rider in the 60's that was a wind up, maybe a sears . lever under seat for forward and reverse, smooth tires , it did good forward to reverse in the wet grass with little fishtails . I thought I was bad ass doing that till I got caught. you know you are getting old when the stuff you used as a kid are antique/collectables.

[green 4 acres]

Does trying to break out of the crib count ?
I just needed a hacksaw

[cadetmike]

first memory...
I seem to remember taking a lot of my toys apart pretty young, I don't think I put many back together successfully.
Seems like anything that could be disassembled with a screwdriver didn't last long.
I do remember my dad building me a ply-wood drive on ramp for my Tonka truck so I could crawl under it and "fix it"... that was a blast!!
then there was the snow plow I made for my powerwheels
... the list goes on...