The Green Machine Diaries: Never underestimate a 10-year-old
/December 20, 2021 - January 3, 2022
“The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair.”
You’ve heard it: “Youth is wasted on the young.” I disagree. Jake, my 10-year-old grandson and shop helper for the week, got grimy, got greasy, and helped pull the engine out of our 1966 Ford Econoline van, known among the family as The Green Machine.
Last time on the Green Machine Diaries
Last time I invited you to take a peek into my Shop Journal, I shared my joy of bringing the Green Machine back to life. Reflecting on that experience, I had hoped my efforts would satisfy my power plant needs and keep this build “on the cheap.”
Not happening!
The Econo still leaked oil in quantities that would make early prospectors rub their hands in delight. It still had an unwelcome “tick-tick-tick” under the valve covers. It still started like an octogenarian climbing out of bed on an icy winter morning.
I’m off to see the Wizard
When I took off the valve cover and pulled the oil pan, the engine looked pretty good on the inside but with definite signs of wear. Added to that, I didn’t know the van’s history. I wasn’t confident the old horse could deliver the consistent START-RUN-HAVE FUN kind of lake vehicle I wanted to build. It was time to get a second opinion. I was off to see the Wizard, my mechanic in Heber Springs.
The morning was icy cold and foggy. No heater. No problem! Old Man Winter wasn’t going to ruin this trip around Greers Ferry Lake. Then Shannan (who was following me in our EuroVan) called to inform me that I had no brake lights. WHAT?! They used to work!
Despite slowing to a crawl at times to navigate the heavy fog, we made the 35-mile trip to the other side of the lake, where Greg the mechanic recommended rebuilding the Ford 300 power plant, or stabbing a “new” crate engine underneath the doghouse.
I had been wrestling with just that, but was having a hard time making a decision. Sure, I could mend the 300, but I had visions of a 351 Windsor dancing in my head. I was dreaming big horsepower dreams only to awake to the reality of measurement and money.
Measurement: Would that big engine fit without a lot of modification?
Money: Did I really want to invest that kind of money on this kind of project?
Back and forth I went until I saw what the boys at PowerNation did with their Ford 300. They coaxed a whopping 522 horsepower and 597-pound-feet of torque out of six cylinders of old Ford that looked a lot like mine. A deeper perusing of the web led me to Larry and Clifford Performance. WOW! What those guys do with six cylinders was impressive!
Decision made. I was going to rebuild the 300!
The Ford 300 built on PowerNation TV. Impressive!
December 27 - Three Generations At Work
Shannan and I celebrated 41 years of marriage the day we began the engine pull. I know, I know . . . How romantic! Believe it or not, I’m really not that kind of gear head. Circumstances what they were, we decided to postpone the anniversary celebration for about a week. So three generations of Kiedis boys got busy.
Now you see it. Now you don’t!
Joel helped for a day then left with his sweet wife for some much-deserved time away. For the next four days it was all Jake and me. We disassembled components big and small, wrestled rusted bolts, bagged and tagged a ton of parts, cleaned fifty years of crud, and finally managed to hoist the engine out of its cradle.
By New Year's Eve we had the engine pulled. Two happy mechanics!
Next Stop: C & A Engine Rebuilders
A guy’s got to pick his battles. As much as I wanted to rebuild the engine, we opted to send it to a builder to help ensure the quality and speed the process. I loaded the 500 pounds of Ford 300 onto our little utility trailer and hauled it to Charlie for him to work his expertise.
By week’s end, any doubts about the possibility, ability, or tenacity of our ten-year-old grandson to engage and stay the course were gone. Jake earned his Wrenchin’ Badge. I know he learned a lot. So did I!
So here’s what I learned:
1 — Never underestimate a 10-year-old.
Jake worked for hours on end. One afternoon, he and I were shoulder-to-shoulder for a good four hours. He worked and worked and worked. During that week, as the minutes turned into hours we pulled the doghouse, disassembled the radiator core, dropped the driveshaft, pulled the transmission, removed the bell-housing, clutch and pressure plate, hoisted the engine, and cleared away a lot of grease and grime and crud. Jake could have opted for other “fun,” but he happily (well, mostly “happily”) took on the challenges and got lost in the work. We had a great time! I learned, “Never underestimate a 10-year-old.”
2 — The “inconvenience” is worth the investment.
One of my dad’s great strengths is that he always had me at his side. He taught me how to turn a screwdriver and how to swing a hammer. He designed and built things — and my brother and I were always there watching and helping. Dad gave me responsibility way past my pay grade. He modeled for me and taught me the importance of “figuring it out.” My dad (now gone almost 40 years) didn’t let the inconvenience that comes from working with a youngster (me) keep him from investing the time necessary to teach and equip me. I experienced the same working with Jake. I could have powered through many of the tasks without Jake (to save me time), but Jake would have lost the experience and I would have missed the joy.
3 — Life moves at the turn of a wrench. Ecclesiastes 3:11 reminds me, “He has made everything beautiful in its time.” Turning a wrench takes time . . . and sometimes . . . a lot of time. Hurry and efficiency need to take a back seat to these moments. I saw again the importance of slowing down and being present in the moment. There’s a lot of learning going on in the slow.
4 — A little “sacrifice” goes a long way
More than fifty years separate the young gun and me. Needless to say our tastes in music are considerably different. Early on, I surrendered control of the bluetooth speaker to help coax my young protege to hang with me. After awhile we went back and forth “bearing with” each others musical tastes, but also discovering a little bit more about each other. In the end it led to good times, a few laughs, and helped us both press on to get the engine pulled. A little sacrifice on both our parts went a long way to a better relationship, a lot of fun, and “mission accomplished.”
5 — The well earned smile of satisfaction.
As you can tell, I’ve taken a lot of pictures and video (you’ve only seen some of it). As I glance through my photos I like seeing the smile on Jake’s face. It’s not the portrait smile, but what I call “the smile of satisfaction.” I saw it more than once. It’s the joy that only those who push through and “finish it” get to experience. I’m proud of you Jake, that’s a different kind of smile and one that only comes from working through the tough stuff to get to the other side.
