I think......

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RustyRatRod

RustyRatRod

I was born on a Monday. Not last Monday.
FABO Gold Member
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I think I am going to get out of the hobby. This latest fiasco with my truck has made me realize that I do not have the mentality for it anymore. We barely can afford for me to make necessary repairs on my dd....and it has been down almost a solid month now. Pus, now I need another set of intake gaskets that I cannot afford until Wednesday. It is just too much to expect that I can afford this as a hobby, when I can barely afford the necessities involved with regular repairs and maintenance. Also too, my disability seems to be worsening with age and that only compounds everything. Soon as I get my Coronet rolling again, I am going to put it up for sale at a price that will move it. Same with my Hemi I think. I believe I want it all gone. Even my rat truck project and my 63 Dart and all my slant six stuff. I have been trying as hard as I can for more than the last ten years to get another Mopar project going and I keep having hurdles thrown in my way. It's time to stop jumping. I'm tired of it.
 
I understand completely where your coming from Rob. Being out of this stuff for 25yrs or so, and after lurking for years, i finally joined this site hoping to get my mojo back. But life/health etc. just seems to always get in the way. When i think about having to replace quarters, pans and such, along with the mechanical issues, just to have a driver........I'm not sure i'm up to it anymore. I really love this stuff, but at 54yrs old and the wife at 65yrs, i'm not sure it will ever happen for us. At this point, i'm just glad I can chime in on a few issues and still feel like i'm involved.
 
it can be very stressful at times. I know. Sorry for your troubles. I hope you get your truck runnin soon. if i was closer, id work on it for ya.
 
You have to do what you have to do. Some things are more important than others. I'm certainly not "flush," here, and one little medical glitch may very well send me off the deep end, so to speak.
 
Aw, c'mon, Rob. How about just take a break until you get the desire to start back into your Mopar addiction! Seriously, I hear what your sayin, but maybe you could thin out the herd just a little, then it won't seem overwhelming.

Fwiw, the help you have provided here on this site has been excellent, and much appreciated. I don't know much about your situation, but a while back you offered to tackle some carb rebuilding for members of this forum at a very reasonable price. Can we get that going again? It might help a little with the budget(?)
 
I understand how you feel. For instance, spotted a '69 Charger R/T the other day, 440 4 spd car, Lemon Twist, black top, black gut, needs lower quarters and no telling what else, but overall not too bad. At first I was excited, got the guy's number off the door of his welding shop, started to call then reality set in. I thought hell I can't even get the 360 on the engine stand done. Just needs to be bored and new pistons, have everything else. Just seems every time I get in the notion, I talk myself out of it. Need the money worse somewhere else, or just don't want to fart with it.

Seems the want to just isn't there any more to go through the hassle and expense. Let's say I had the money, if I could buy the Charger for $4-5000, spend another $10-15,000 and 2-3 years on a complete go through, I think why the hell would I not just buy a decent driver that's done for $20k and drive the snot out of it?

I do this all the time. Was thumbing through the Thrifty Nickel the other day, found a builder '56 Plymouth 2dr for $1200, and a running '87 Fifth Avenue parts car for $200. My wheels started turning, got to thinking about the '55 Plymouth I built years ago, all that rust repair, cutting grinding sanding bracket making etc. and I decided meh......hate to admit it but maybe I'm gettin' old.
 
Rob, I understand the feeling. I have been thinking the same thing for quite a while. My health isn't going good either and the times I feel decent I have things I have to do. I don't have enough feel good days to do what I have to do so why worry and stress over some car that is going to be a money pit even after it is 100% restored? What is a real shame is I have 99% of the parts (less paint) to build my car.

Sometimes it is better to let it go and move on with life instead of keeping the albatross hanging around our neck. Why do we want to continue to punish ourselves with baggage that just continues to drag us down?
 

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bighammer said:
Aw, c'mon, Rob. How about just take a break until you get the desire to start back into your Mopar addiction! Seriously, I hear what your sayin, but maybe you could thin out the herd just a little, then it won't seem overwhelming.

Fwiw, the help you have provided here on this site has been excellent, and much appreciated. I don't know much about your situation, but a while back you offered to tackle some carb rebuilding for members of this forum at a very reasonable price. Can we get that going again? It might help a little with the budget(?)
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Agree with both areas.

As I age, I find that just because I CAN (or could) do something doesn't mean I want to or enjoy doing it any more.

Within the past 2 months, I've come to the conclusion that both my 73 and 74 cars are parts cars. Could I fix the 73- probably, but the time involved is ridiculous, and the result would not recapture the value.

I'm still on the fence about the 72.

So now, my goal is to strip off a load of parts to take to Don Garlits, and clear out room so I can either part out more cars or get going on my 66.

I also find I sometimes have to find a finite block of time and or set a fairly small goal for myself in a given time period. Yesterday it was "remove front bumper" That's it, just that one thing. I did have an optional, secondary objective of "remove instrument cluster, of which I managed to get about 2/3 of the trim off and a few more screws out.

I'd say focus on one vehicle, perhaps the one with the least to be done, and get some "easy victories".

I know you had at least one carb job. Get any more?
 
I went through the same thing. I got rid of all the projects and got a car I can drive. I still have to do some repairs, but at the end of the day I can get in my Dart and go for a drive which makes it all worth while. JMO
 
I,m also a disalbed mopar lover.I,ve had to use a wheel chair for the last two years. Had to have a 20 year old artifical hip replaced two years ago and another shunt placed in my spinal cord the first of march and a below knee amputation abour 4 years ago. Two kids in college. My son's daily driver is a 73 dodge dart.Just bought a 74 vw super beetle for a project for my daughter. My project is a pro street 63 dart that stays on the back burner. It's a strugle but my theory is NEVER GIVE UP. My 63 dart may never get finished by me but I keep gathering parts and trying to find a few bucks to work my car but for today I'll work on my sons dart and maybe alitte on the vw. NEVER GIVE UP. Sandy
 
dont feel bad bro. just take some time off the project or something. i dont think you can ever shake it, it's in your blood :D

all i can say is hang on to what you got, get to it when you can. sell some stuff to pay off the other or whatever.

i had a pretty bad setback on my project. after over a year the body guy started on my duster again. got the old quarters off putting new ones on and tells me the tail light panel is rusted through on drivers side and is falling apart. so i called AMD...
out of stock. "when you gonna get them back in? " "end of the year at the earliest"

so i went to carlisle this weekend. stephens performance had a booth. they had 1 and only 1 and it was promised over the phone to someone who was coming to the show to buy it. so i was out of luck.

then i found out the chrome tail light trim for the '74's is $350+ (mine is badly badly pitted and rotten). my bumper is rusted really bad too

so i researched things and i decided to go with the '70/'71 tail parts. so i called AMD this morning. they hooked me up with everything. a thousand bucks!!!!!! dammit. thats a lot of cheddar. on the bright side they told me the were looking further into the '74 stuff over the weekend and it's discontinued indefinitely at the factory.

so i made the right decision but i'm really biting the bullet on this latest episode.
another bright point is i found out the '74 bumper (with the 5mph shocks and stuff) weighs 60 pounds MORE than the earlier stuff. so i'm dropping 60 pounds.

anyways, no sense in giving up. just hold out for a while maybe things will turn around for ya. the health stuff.... dont know what to say except take care of yourself. i've quit smokin and am trying to quit eating bad stuff. all that fat and meats aint good for nobody.

good luck bro
 
I hear you rob sometimes I wonder if its all worth it myself but im going to stick it out until my son gets old enough to find out if he is a car guy or not.i hope things get better for you financially.
 
Besides my dirtbike, the Dart is the only real toy I have left.
The bike will go long before the Dart.

One thing I found out is that if I have any little thing on order for it that it keeps me exited about it.

Personally, I think you should keep at least one project, as it is too depressing to not have any toys at all.

Over the years I have lost a TON of things I really enjoyed to raising four kids, house payments, bills and stuff like that.
The Dart is my toy and I'm pretty damn selfish about it sometimes.

Keep at least one for your sanity.
 
Thanks for the kind words yall. I also appreciate the offers to buy intake gaskets. lol But we'll have the money Wednesday. The money isn't really what this is about. It's the frustration. Obviously, if I have people offering to buy gaskets for my DD, I certainly have no business trying to build cars on our budget. It's simply not in the cards for me anymore and the sooner I come to that realization, the better and easier it will be.

When all of you got together on my benefit auction, yall gave to help Kitty and I get some debt off of us. And I did that. Yall may not know it, but you kept us from really sinking. Although barely, we have a little daylight now, because of all of you. I cannot have this expensive hobby on the side dragging us back into the abyss. I cannot allow that to happen.

As for the carburetor thing.......my offer on that still stands. I want to help my friends and I like building carburetors. But, because of my truck tearing up, I am further behind than I ever was. I already have four to do. The first is cleaned up and at the point of assembly. Just know I WILL get them done. I am just slower than normal right now. I hope yall understand. Thanks.
 
well honestly dude, I don't contribute much in this place, what I do is take, I take a lot. I've gotten information from you and others when you guys take the time to answer questions for other people. you may or may not have been talking to me directly but I still got the answer none the less. I understand what you're saying I understand your position I only hope that things shake out for you the way you want them to. you and AbodyJoe have anin your face no bullshit way of answering someone's question. some folks need that othersuch as myself appreciate that. I guess what I'm trying to say is whatever your decision I hope that you choose to stay on and continue to guide some people with their problems questions and ideas. your input and that of others is invaluable around here.
 
I've read a lot of your advice and info and as someone getting back into this after many years, I sure appreciate it. That's what makes you a Mopar man... your experience, knowledge and enthusiasm. I'm sure you have it figured out, but I hope you can figure out a way to keep just one toy to relax with, maybe whatever you have that's closest to being done, and get rid of the rest. Sometimes that's probably best anyway. Whatever you chose to do, best to you and hope you hang around.
 
funwithfuel said:
well honestly dude, I don't contribute much in this place, what I do is take, I take a lot. I've gotten information from you and others when you guys take the time to answer questions for other people. you may or may not have been talking to me directly but I still got the answer none the less. I understand what you're saying I understand your position I only hope that things shake out for you the way you want them to. you and AbodyJoe have anin your face no bullshit way of answering someone's question. some folks need that othersuch as myself appreciate that. I guess what I'm trying to say is whatever your decision I hope that you choose to stay on and continue to guide some people with their problems questions and ideas. your input and that of others is invaluable around here.
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x2 rob your a wealth of info.and i know the feeling,look at my car,i've had it 11 years....
 
Rob I think you show great integrity. The easy decision is to make no decision, but which person do you want to see in the mirror?
 
goldfish65 said:
Rob I think you show great integrity. The easy decision is to make no decision, but which person do you want to see in the mirror?
Click to expand...

The person that at least has a Rat Truck just for the fun of it. :glasses7:
 
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