Previous owners
 

Back when there were still things like 911 parts cars, I acquired and parted out 13 of them. All of them would be saved today, then not so much. As previously loved cars, each one had major issues, many times from dereliction or a sale on drywall screws at Home Depot, which many had holding things together.

I started to restore a '71 decklid grille today. If you aren't familiar with them, there are 5 bars, upper and lower, that are riveted together sandwiching the black mesh. Left, center and right bars also have captive bolts, invisible from the top, that hold the grille to the decklid. One must have failed in some way so a previous owner, who knows when, drilled a hole through the top bar, countersunk it, and then shoved this screw in place. Both bottom corners. Those bars are now toast and rib #13 is probably junk too but I'll try to save it. The worst part is they bent the top and bottom bars to get the bolt out but then drilled the hole for the new screw which makes no sense at all. And then there's the screw head... Who does stuff like this?

There really should be some sort of test you have to take, and pass, before you can own certain cars.

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heli coil?

The bar is ruined, can't be used save for TIG'ing some new Al in the hole. I'll post pics tomorrow of what it's supposed to look like to give you a better idea.

I'm trying to sell something of mine right now that has questionable choices made by a younger version of me. The initial tour of the car is basically me showing off all my dumbass moves.

A well restored car is about getting the details right. The worst is "modified wiring" and "economic body repairs". :(

You should see some of the "engineering" I've seen over the years when I was in the irrigation business.

Talk about Rube Goldberg.

Not an exact analogy because what you are talking about is ruining something by mickey mouse tactics.

But the mindset is similar.....

I restored a Greene and Greene home sometime ago. It was a 4000Sq' home that turned into a rental with an addition attached to it. Built in 1908, over the years, neighborhood changed to the worst and now gentrification is bringing them back to their former glory. Windows, staircase and intricate woodwork through out the house had holes, plaster and big nails through them including burn marks. What a mess. Thankfully we were able to re-make most of that in our shop sourcing out the same straight grain lumber. Hardware is another story.

People will do just enough to get by. That's the way it goes.

That's why good ones cost what they do. I'm as guilty as anyone of that kind of behavior. Not that exact scenario, but definitely "Butcher of Boise" repairs because I didn't know any better or didn't have a choice because of money or time.

"Do no harm" isn't just for Physicians.

A lot of cool cars were once cheap and owned by people with little money or skills.

I have seen repairs like this done by professional mechanics and body shops.

After 44 years of ownership of my 1976 Harley Sportster, I'm finding it harder and harder to blame the previous owner.

If you buy a piece of crap, who's fault is it?

I don't think there are many of us who would be greatly impressed by meeting our much younger selves. :D
Go ahead and blame that dumb SOB. I do it all the time.

Best
Les

Hear ya, brother.

Well, then, don't just refinish it, restore it.SmileWavy

_

It's not cost effective to repair it Norm. I buy "junk" grilles all the time to have spare parts. I'm sure the owner of this grille would rather pay $30 for a new bar than $125 to TIG and surface it.

Here's what it should look like. This is a 72-73 grille where the entire thing was built and then black anodized. As such the bolts are aluminum vs. steel for 70-71 bright anodized grilles with painted black top bars. But it's the same construction. For 68.5 to 71, Porsche only anodized the ribs and top bars, then painted the bars and rivet heads, then set the rivets with raw aluminum lower bars and black anodized mesh.

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First, on previous owners, I did the first oil change on the 2014 Triumph Bonneville I picked up last week. I don't mean the first since I bought it, I am mean the FIRST oil change. WTF? Back tire was 10lbs low, front tire was 8 pounds high...kind of important schit on a motorcycle! Can't wait to see what the plugs look like tomorrow...

Second, @Higgins, my local shop took a 79 Sportster on trade for a new Guzzi. They were having a blast on this thing today. One of the owners was seriously thinking of keeping it. Made a really lovely sound.

Heh heh... one of the adages I drilled into my two young sons while working on our cars together was always "however you are going to do that, be nice to the next guy - I bet you know him".

So, yeah - I was that "next guy" on my old Sporty too many times. I finally learned to be nice to myself, about the second or third lap around that thing.

So, a good, running example then, I assume. Very cool. Fun old bikes, and a '79 has many worthwhile improvements over my '76. Might be worth looking into, just for something a little different.

I bought a clapped out 65 MGB in 1991 that some dumbass put a 6v battery in.

Wonder why it didn’t run...