So, what's your biggest dummy moment??

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Here's one I forgot about. I the early 70's, my part time job at the auto hobby shop at NAS Miramar. I had a 70's "Judge" on the scope, and was ready to start it, but the owner had stepped away somewhere. I was a bit dirty, and did not want to get into the car. I don't remember I think I had a pair of clean rags around my hands.

I opened the door, reached in, and pulled the 4 speed into neutral. Reached around the column and twisted the key.

Nothing happened. !!DOH!! Clutch switch!!

So I was balancing on my left foot, reached in with my right foot and pushed in the clutch, twisted the key, and it fired up.

Then I let off the clutch pedal to get out of the car.

I found myself !!!! Hopping backwards !!!!! On my left foot !!!! As the car headed out the door of the building !!!!

The reverse lockout was sloppy enough that I thought the gearbox had come out of reverse, but of course it had not.

Yeh. It banged up the door, which was open, on the Judge.

My boss at the time was zero upset. Hell I figured I'd get fired. They just paid for it, insured, I'm sure. I don't remember what it cost.

Looked just like this one

834_main_f.jpg
 
Installing and testing an internal GPS unit for a car lot, on a Dodge Ram, I lost balance and touched a solid ground point on the dash, while still touching the exposed main hot wire.

I saw a hefty arc from my hands.

The Ram wouldnt start after that... after tracing fuses i realized I blew a 50 amp fuse with my hands.
 
Let's see...

Running myself over with a car...

Running over a co-worker...

Or hitting myself in the left nut with the ball end of a ratchet and having to walk with a cane for two weeks.

Which of the three would you like to hear about first?
 
Let's see...

Running myself over with a car...

Running over a co-worker...

Or hitting myself in the left nut with the ball end of a ratchet and having to walk with a cane for two weeks.

Which of the three would you like to hear about first?


Oh.....number 3 without doubt!
 
I can tell one on somebody else.

Back about 1982 I worked for this stoner who was......and still is a pretty good mechanic. Anyway, He had this bout 78 I guess Trans Am on the lift.

"Somehow" he needed to turn the car on the lift 90* from where it was to fit more stuff in the shop. It was formerly a two stall Texaco station.

I have a lot of previous experience.......literally as a kid rebuilding old air over hydraulic lifts, as I helped my old high school auto instructor rebuild all of them in the old vo-tech building.

I "knew" this particular lift was called a "quarter turn" lift. In other words, you turned the lift a full quarter turn and it unlocked the post for removal for service.

Needless to say turning the lift was NOT something you did with air pressure applied.

With me shouting as loud as I could "DON'T DO THAT!!" it was too late.

As the lift reached the 90* mark with the poor old Pontiac on it, it shot through the ceiling and into the roof. It got hung in the roof and the fire department had to be dispatched to remove it.

We were able to eventually laugh about it, but to this day he will not work on a Trans Am.
 
Oh.....number 3 without doubt!

I was working for a local Ford dealership and had a truck come in with transmission issues. The F150's in the mid to late '00's had problems with the converter seals leaking and allowing the converters to walk a bit. This truck had less than twenty five thousand miles on it and needed a new converter, new converter seal, and because it would walk a bit, a new pump and pump seal.

Was pulling the trans out and it got hung up a bit. So, I started rocking the transmission to pull it back and onto the trans jack. I had a Craftsman "professional series" 3/8" drive ratchet in my left hand as I was pulling on the trans. I went to drop the ratchet so I could get a good grip with both hands. It was just a flip, but the transmission fluid on my hand made it a bit slippery and the ratchet slipped out of my hand and the ball on the end of the handle hit my left nut. It had some force behind it, because it was intended to be a flip, not a drop.

I realized after about thirty minutes that something was wrong as the pain didn't go away. I finished the day and got the trans out and the pump pulled, but when it came quitting time I drove myself to the ER. Urine sample showed blood in my piss and every step felt like someone was stabbing my nut with a knife.

It got funnier from there. Followed up with my PCP and he prescribed a ball supporter. Not a jock strap, but something similar that's meant to be worn without a cup and does a better job of supporting the nuts. Of course, no one has them and these have to bought from a medical supply store. I went to one.

Told the young lady behind the counter what I needed and she was unfamiliar with it. She called the main store to ask what it was and where she could go in the computer system to order one. She's on the phone, looks at me and asks, "What size?"

What do you mean what size? They come in different sizes? I point blank asked her, "how would I know what size? What do you want me to do, drop my pants so you can measure 'em?"

I've never seen a woman blush so hard.

And then she proceeded to ask this question of the person on the other end of the phone. All the sudden I could hear the other person and all I could hear was laughter. Seems the supporters are compared to fruit. The one the other store had in stock was meant to fit nuts the size of grapefruit. And that's each nut!
 
I was working for a local Ford dealership and had a truck come in with transmission issues. The F150's in the mid to late '00's had problems with the converter seals leaking and allowing the converters to walk a bit. This truck had less than twenty five thousand miles on it and needed a new converter, new converter seal, and because it would walk a bit, a new pump and pump seal.

Was pulling the trans out and it got hung up a bit. So, I started rocking the transmission to pull it back and onto the trans jack. I had a Craftsman "professional series" 3/8" drive ratchet in my left hand as I was pulling on the trans. I went to drop the ratchet so I could get a good grip with both hands. It was just a flip, but the transmission fluid on my hand made it a bit slippery and the ratchet slipped out of my hand and the ball on the end of the handle hit my left nut. It had some force behind it, because it was intended to be a flip, not a drop.

I realized after about thirty minutes that something was wrong as the pain didn't go away. I finished the day and got the trans out and the pump pulled, but when it came quitting time I drove myself to the ER. Urine sample showed blood in my piss and every step felt like someone was stabbing my nut with a knife.

It got funnier from there. Followed up with my PCP and he prescribed a ball supporter. Not a jock strap, but something similar that's meant to be worn without a cup and does a better job of supporting the nuts. Of course, no one has them and these have to bought from a medical supply store. I went to one.

Told the young lady behind the counter what I needed and she was unfamiliar with it. She called the main store to ask what it was and where she could go in the computer system to order one. She's on the phone, looks at me and asks, "What size?"

What do you mean what size? They come in different sizes? I point blank asked her, "how would I know what size? What do you want me to do, drop my pants so you can measure 'em?"

I've never seen a woman blush so hard.

And then she proceeded to ask this question of the person on the other end of the phone. All the sudden I could hear the other person and all I could hear was laughter. Seems the supporters are compared to fruit. The one the other store had in stock was meant to fit nuts the size of grapefruit. And that's each nut!

Yikes!

:burnout:
 
pre pay at the gas pump . I had to drive 120 miles round trip its 95 outside no breeze . I went and paid for the gas got 20 miles up the road in the middle of nowhere and ran out of gas . DAMMIT
I payed and forgot to pump it dam altimers settn in 10 years ago
 
changing brakes from manual to power on wife's 69 coronet and thought, hey, why don't I just pull it out of garage so it will be easier to bleed. Duh? no brakes. drove it straight into back of my Dakota pickup pumping on pedal the whole way. not my brightest moment.
 
12" slicks....7500rpm...side step the clutch pedal.....in REVERSE. It pitched the driveshaft after it bent the leaf springs up by the front eye.
Hole Shot Rule #1.....make sure you are in 1st gear.

Almost as good as showing off my new line lock to my fellow carry out workers in the a joining parking lot. In 1971, most had never heard on one. Little did I know a Deputy Sheriff had pulled up nose to nose to my GTX.
No wonder all my buddies were laughing their asses off. Fortunately, the Deputy did not know what a line lock was either and bought my explanation that the front brakes had froze up.......sucker!!!!
 
Towed my car to the track. Borrowed truck, paid gas and tolls and entrance fee (2.5 hr ride), ran one time trial. Smoked hard after 1st gear, pulled back to the trailer, back on, towed home pissed off. Unloaded the car pushing it, stuck it in its parling spot in the garage. About a week later my buddy says " what broke?" I said i was so pissed i havent looked. So we pulled the hood off. The oil cap i pulled off to add a little after i warmed it up was sitting on the intake. Oil everywhere. Nothing broke.
 
at the time i had a VW Passat
me and the wife had to go to Philadelphia, about a 1500 mile round trip
i knew the brakes were getting close so replaced them, new pads and rotors on all four corners
car ran flawless there and we were on out way back
we just passed by pitsburg on the way back when toe brakes went out
and i mean OUT
pedal trhough the floor and nothing
so i pulled over, crawled underneath and saw notting wrong
no leaks, nothing
fired her back up, pumped the pedal several times and it came back to working order

i was anxious the entire drive home and get her up on blocks as soon as i got in

and there it was, clear as day, the front left caliper had come off
i must not have tightened the bolts and they backed off and fell out
the pads were missing BUT the caliper had wedged itself onto the mount and this restored pressure to th system
 
My dummy moment wasn't really caused by me but it happened to me.

Many years ago before becoming a Mopar tech I worked in a small shop. One of the other employees was working on a F250 4x4, he had done about 4 hours of work on it and went to lunch. All that was left was to put the spare tire back under the bed. The customer came(police chief) and wanted to pick up his truck. I was told to put the spare back under it. It was still on the hoist. As I started to put the spare back the LR hoist leg came out from under the frame. The rear shackle hanger hit me square on top of the head when the truck dropped. Fortunately truck stayed on the hoist rocking on two legs. It really didn't hurt(I was probably in shock) after getting the truck down safely I went to the hospital and was told I only suffered a concussion. After a day off of work I returned and I was leaning over to work on a car that needed a water pump but after about 5 minutes I would forget why I was working on the car. I went back to the hospital and was told that was just a side effect of the concussion and to take 2 weeks off of work to get some rest.

About 14 years later I found out I had suffered compression fractures on 2 vertebra which caused a bunch of bone spurs to grow inside of them blocking off my spinal cord. I had to have a 4 level neck fusion to remove the spurs. During a follow up MRI they also found an inoperable brain tumor directly below the impact point from the truck.

In other words I actually suffered severe brain trauma which resulted in a brain tumor(most likely from a brain bleed) and 2 broken neck vertebra from that truck falling on my head.
 
Sold my 1968 Hemi Roadrunner, that I purchased NEW, and my 1969 GTX that I purchased with 1600 miles on it when it was just over a year old, in the same year.
 
Married twice. To the same woman.
Old man ray,

ok, you win...

But since you ask, maybe not the most - but most recent boner was: I'm re-doing the (drum) brakes on my new (to me) 65 Cuda earlier this year and had all four tires off at once. I went to put them back on and HALF THE LUG NUTS WOULDN'T WORk!!! It took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out that there were both left and right hand threads. Righty-tighty, Lefty-loosey failed me...

I'm a newbie, but learning - slowly but learning the hard way. I'd be lost without FABO, maybe I am lost but I'd be lost and alone without FABO.

65Cudafix
 
Using a 130T ring gear flywheel for a 10&1/2" clutch on a big block 4 speed conversion. And using the 11" bellhousing.

I turned the key, heard the bendix kick out, and go Bzzzzzzzz. At that point i realized my flywheel was too small diameter, and i would be pulling it all apart again.
 
Old man ray,

ok, you win...

But since you ask, maybe not the most - but most recent boner was: I'm re-doing the (drum) brakes on my new (to me) 65 Cuda earlier this year and had all four tires off at once. I went to put them back on and HALF THE LUG NUTS WOULDN'T WORk!!! It took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out that there were both left and right hand threads. Righty-tighty, Lefty-loosey failed me...

I'm a newbie, but learning - slowly but learning the hard way. I'd be lost without FABO, maybe I am lost but I'd be lost and alone without FABO.

65Cudafix
Knock out all the LH lug studs and replace em with RH studs and never worry about it again.
 
Back when I was not so mechanical inclined, I was putting together my 340 that had just come back from the machine shop, my service manual had a mistake in it, should have read inch pounds instead of foot pounds, the first rocker shaft bolt I torqued, stripped, had to heli coil it. That's when I learned about general torque specs.
 
Married twice. To the same woman.

That's great, I knew a guy named Terry in the Marines who did it 3 times!

I changed the oil in my truck and never put the plug in before filling it up...

...no I didn't start it!
 
I had a fender mounted solenoid go out on my bronco
Swapped it out and sure enough, the battery is no lo get charging
So I figured whatever did in the solenoid also killed the alternator
Pulled it off and took it in to AutoZone to get a new one
I figured since I have it, I might as well have them test it...and the alternator passed

So, home I went and installed the alternator again and now it's time to start tracing and checking wires

Sure enough, I found a hot wire coming from the alternator that should go to the hot post of the solenoid...laying on the fender
I guess I missed that one when I replaced the solenoid
 
ok here is one that will make you smile.
back in high school when I was working a long shift pumping gas I got home about 2:30 3:00 am I had a few beers and was working on my 67 chevy II ss that I put a new sun tack in. so I was working on the wiring for the tack I put in that morning before school after getting most of the wires set I was still under the dash and hit the key well I forgot the ground wire was in my teeth well that woke me up and killed my buzz

I guess your high school never taught basic things like capitalization and punctuation. Sure would make for an easier read.
 
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