n9emz
06-15-2005, 12:18 PM
I realize that most of you here didn’t come up through life like I did, and I’m proud of your parents and your initiative and determination. My upbringing was different, and I came up under the ever-vigilant eyes of a demanding, taskmaster father and grandfather who were determined to either equip me with skills and tools to survive in the world they lived in, or watch me shrivel on the vine if I didn’t suck it up. Problem is, the world I’m presently living in requires an altogether different set of tools and skills than that any of us imagined back then. However, some of them were just as applicable today as ever.
I’ve recently come under fire because I ignore contemporary technology and still accomplish some tasks the “old and hard” way; some going so far as to presume I’m ignorant and stupid for doing so. To those I respond that although the wheel has been reinvented ad nauseum and it’s admittedly better; or for those of you comfortable with walking into a shop and waving Bens around to have tasks done for you, a wheel is still just a wheel and I can work with it myself, as was. As a sidenote, I’m grateful I no longer have to beat split rims apart.
Far be it from me to under-rate or otherwise poormouth the technicians who perform these tasks, but there’s no mystery or magic involved in installing hitches, brake controllers, or even building your own trailer….as numerous people have repeatedly demonstrated in this forum. All these tasks require are the proper tools, the ability to read and take accurate measurements, attention to detail and, most important of all….the desire to perform the tasks yourself. And there are sound, practical reasons for performing these tasks.
In my case, every week arrives with the possibility I will have to pull either a tag, gooseneck, or 5th wheel trailer; and, when I wore out my last Chevy towrig, I found a steal of a deal on a stripped down (no towing equipment whatsoever) low mileage, unmolested F-250. I saved upwards of $1,500.00 in parts/labor costs in finding my own hitches and doing all the installs myself. Have I done a better job of it than the professionals who do this stuff daily? Probably not. Do I begrudge anyone for charging $60 to $100 and upwards per hour to do it? Absolutely not, as it ain’t by no means fun and I doubt anyone other than family or a really close friend could talk me into doing any of the hitch installs for them.
http://members.aol.com/n9emz/5thwheelstuff.JPG
http://members.aol.com/n9emz/readyandwaiting.JPG
http://home.bluemarble.net/~n9emz/Miscellaneous/5th%20wheel%20hitch%20install/left%20brackets.JPG
http://home.bluemarble.net/~n9emz/Miscellaneous/5th%20wheel%20hitch%20install/right%20brackets.JPG
http://home.bluemarble.net/~n9emz/Miscellaneous/5th%20wheel%20hitch%20install/hitch%20is%20in.JPG
On the other hand, the money I saved went into trailrig parts, a winch, and expense money to attend events rather than into someone else’s pocket to enjoy. The additional satisfaction involved comes in the shape of knowing the mechanics involved in hitch systems and the confidence I have in my systems when I hook up and take off down the highway. Money alone won’t buy a large measure of that. And, there’s a personal benefit to doing all this stuff yourself, in tried and true methods that span a few generations.
Last year, on the way back from picking up a trailrig I purchased down in Miami, FL over Father’s Day weekend, I stopped by the old man’s place to give him a hug and chew the fat. He’s followed my towrig shenanigans closely and naturally he had to take a look at my system…..at 83 years old, he not only looked it over, he popped the hood, crawled it, and then drove it. I don’t know how you folks feel about your pops, and call me immature if you wish, but the big grin I got out of him still makes me feel warm and fuzzy.
So, when I appear to veer radically from the beaten path and you’re ready to laugh and/or criticize….I can take it. There’s more working behind the scenes than any of you would ever imagine.
By the same token, you might try the old school approach sometime. It only hurts for a little while.
I’ve recently come under fire because I ignore contemporary technology and still accomplish some tasks the “old and hard” way; some going so far as to presume I’m ignorant and stupid for doing so. To those I respond that although the wheel has been reinvented ad nauseum and it’s admittedly better; or for those of you comfortable with walking into a shop and waving Bens around to have tasks done for you, a wheel is still just a wheel and I can work with it myself, as was. As a sidenote, I’m grateful I no longer have to beat split rims apart.
Far be it from me to under-rate or otherwise poormouth the technicians who perform these tasks, but there’s no mystery or magic involved in installing hitches, brake controllers, or even building your own trailer….as numerous people have repeatedly demonstrated in this forum. All these tasks require are the proper tools, the ability to read and take accurate measurements, attention to detail and, most important of all….the desire to perform the tasks yourself. And there are sound, practical reasons for performing these tasks.
In my case, every week arrives with the possibility I will have to pull either a tag, gooseneck, or 5th wheel trailer; and, when I wore out my last Chevy towrig, I found a steal of a deal on a stripped down (no towing equipment whatsoever) low mileage, unmolested F-250. I saved upwards of $1,500.00 in parts/labor costs in finding my own hitches and doing all the installs myself. Have I done a better job of it than the professionals who do this stuff daily? Probably not. Do I begrudge anyone for charging $60 to $100 and upwards per hour to do it? Absolutely not, as it ain’t by no means fun and I doubt anyone other than family or a really close friend could talk me into doing any of the hitch installs for them.
http://members.aol.com/n9emz/5thwheelstuff.JPG
http://members.aol.com/n9emz/readyandwaiting.JPG
http://home.bluemarble.net/~n9emz/Miscellaneous/5th%20wheel%20hitch%20install/left%20brackets.JPG
http://home.bluemarble.net/~n9emz/Miscellaneous/5th%20wheel%20hitch%20install/right%20brackets.JPG
http://home.bluemarble.net/~n9emz/Miscellaneous/5th%20wheel%20hitch%20install/hitch%20is%20in.JPG
On the other hand, the money I saved went into trailrig parts, a winch, and expense money to attend events rather than into someone else’s pocket to enjoy. The additional satisfaction involved comes in the shape of knowing the mechanics involved in hitch systems and the confidence I have in my systems when I hook up and take off down the highway. Money alone won’t buy a large measure of that. And, there’s a personal benefit to doing all this stuff yourself, in tried and true methods that span a few generations.
Last year, on the way back from picking up a trailrig I purchased down in Miami, FL over Father’s Day weekend, I stopped by the old man’s place to give him a hug and chew the fat. He’s followed my towrig shenanigans closely and naturally he had to take a look at my system…..at 83 years old, he not only looked it over, he popped the hood, crawled it, and then drove it. I don’t know how you folks feel about your pops, and call me immature if you wish, but the big grin I got out of him still makes me feel warm and fuzzy.
So, when I appear to veer radically from the beaten path and you’re ready to laugh and/or criticize….I can take it. There’s more working behind the scenes than any of you would ever imagine.
By the same token, you might try the old school approach sometime. It only hurts for a little while.