Amata Bene
Well-Known Member
I own several modes of transportation, trucks, Jeeps, bikes and now the bird. And let's not forget the wife's vehicle. Two are for recreation the rest are just that, transportation. Some haul things (*** is one of them) and the others get us from point A to point B and back again. My wife's GMC is stock as is my Ram 3500. The Ram 1500 is close to stock (and getting further away) the 09 soft tail is almost stock as is the 96" 1200 sporty. The trucks and those two bikes are close enough that the board peckers at the parts counter can still find what I need. When it comes to the Jeeps, not even close. The frame and bodies are pretty much factory, minus some sheet metal. Both have SBC"s and GM trannys. Both have Dana T-cases and diffs. The o-12 FLH has a real healthy 120 ci motor and trans to back it and lowered. The chopper has a rebuilt 1983 1000 cc motor in a chopped and raked Paugo frame. So yes I modify ****. It's mine, I paid for it, I cand do what I want to it.
My point is: if I walk into the parts store and say I need a water pump for a 1965, 327 SBC. They inevitably say, "what's it in?" I say, "a 1978 CJ7". Then they look at me like I have 3 heads. WTF? So I explain to them (I'd say junior but some of these people are close to my age) just look up something from 1965 that came with a 327 and we're golden. Now I'm not singling out the auto parts people, it's the same for motorcycle parts. You would think that anyone that work in a parts store has some interest cars or bikes. Therefore knows that people modify their vehicles. They take motors from A and put them in M, and axles from D and put them in R. The thing is if I tell you what part I need and what it fits why can't they look that up. When I was younger and just getting into being a little bit of a motorhead (they rock) I could walk in tell the guy or gal at the counter what I was working on and they would start flipping pages in a book. If you knew the year and what motor or tranny or axle, that was all they needed, and it was probably on a shelf in the back. I very rarely ever had to come back because something didn't fit.
Now when I walk into the parts store I know for my mostly stock vehicles I got a 50/50 chance of walking out with the part. "we'll have to order it". F### me running backwards up hill. "I can order it. I need it now though. And if it's for anything made before 2005, just order it yourself and save some money. The last time I went to a parts store and walked out with what I needed was Dec of last year. Doing a trans service on the 1500. Gave them year make and model and included that the trans is a 545RFE. They had a kit with both filters and pan gasket. We looked at it, I said it doesn't look like the right pan gasket. He showed me the computer and that's what it was saying. Later I came back with the actual pan gasket and filters so they could compare them. YEP! They had to order it.
So now it's just oil, carb cleaner, batteries?, and other shop supplies. I try to plan ahead and order everything in advance. Just to be clear this isn't one particulate parts store. It's all of them in my area, even the bigger names like Napa and so on. Kick the f###ing computers to the curb and bring back the books. I guess technology isn't all that great is it. Or is it the people. Here's an idea, in the interview ask what they drive and what have they done or want to do to it? If they say "Nothing, I've put gas in it" ... NEXT!
Oh yeah this all started with upper and lower rad hoses for a 74 RR with a 340
My point is: if I walk into the parts store and say I need a water pump for a 1965, 327 SBC. They inevitably say, "what's it in?" I say, "a 1978 CJ7". Then they look at me like I have 3 heads. WTF? So I explain to them (I'd say junior but some of these people are close to my age) just look up something from 1965 that came with a 327 and we're golden. Now I'm not singling out the auto parts people, it's the same for motorcycle parts. You would think that anyone that work in a parts store has some interest cars or bikes. Therefore knows that people modify their vehicles. They take motors from A and put them in M, and axles from D and put them in R. The thing is if I tell you what part I need and what it fits why can't they look that up. When I was younger and just getting into being a little bit of a motorhead (they rock) I could walk in tell the guy or gal at the counter what I was working on and they would start flipping pages in a book. If you knew the year and what motor or tranny or axle, that was all they needed, and it was probably on a shelf in the back. I very rarely ever had to come back because something didn't fit.
Now when I walk into the parts store I know for my mostly stock vehicles I got a 50/50 chance of walking out with the part. "we'll have to order it". F### me running backwards up hill. "I can order it. I need it now though. And if it's for anything made before 2005, just order it yourself and save some money. The last time I went to a parts store and walked out with what I needed was Dec of last year. Doing a trans service on the 1500. Gave them year make and model and included that the trans is a 545RFE. They had a kit with both filters and pan gasket. We looked at it, I said it doesn't look like the right pan gasket. He showed me the computer and that's what it was saying. Later I came back with the actual pan gasket and filters so they could compare them. YEP! They had to order it.
So now it's just oil, carb cleaner, batteries?, and other shop supplies. I try to plan ahead and order everything in advance. Just to be clear this isn't one particulate parts store. It's all of them in my area, even the bigger names like Napa and so on. Kick the f###ing computers to the curb and bring back the books. I guess technology isn't all that great is it. Or is it the people. Here's an idea, in the interview ask what they drive and what have they done or want to do to it? If they say "Nothing, I've put gas in it" ... NEXT!
Oh yeah this all started with upper and lower rad hoses for a 74 RR with a 340
