My step-dad is as much a mechanic as a mushroom is. I used to fix bicycles for all the neighbor kids when I was about 8 or 10. At 12 or so, I started hanging around the Texaco station on main street. That was in 1955. There were a few older kids there who had things like chopped ford coupes and the like. That got me interested, and the following year I got a 40 chev sedan with a bad motor given to me. I bought the parts from my paper route money, took the car to my grandparent's six stall garage and tore down the engine. I did not know a thing about what I was doing, so naturally the car would not run after I was done. Sold it for 25 dollars. When I was 14, my best friend had a Modle A coupe ( he was 13) We totally restored that coupe over the next three years. After that we ( my friend Phil, another friend Joe and myself)really got into cars. Joes dad had a small shop in the back yard that was heated. At Joes, we built another A coupe that we put a Riley four port conversion in, then a willys drag car with a destroked injected 265. After a few runs at the drags, other people started asking us to do work for them. When I turned 18, I went in the Air Force as a jet engine mechanic. My friends continued to work the shop at home, they were both draft exempt. Over the years, I have worked on everything from B-52's to lawnmowers. Today, I am helping my step son with his CJ5 project, teaching him engine, trans and body work. He is just 17, but now wants to become a certified mechanic.