Pixelmaster Loc: New England

One of the quirks in life is to know what was always was is now no more. For some twenty five years I have known
a local small engine repair shop owner who recently passed away. Out here in the Green Mountains of Vermont
there are still a few people who can fix small engines. He could repair machines that a few others could try and
fix only run into the vague problems with no answers as to the cause and the solution. There were Briggs & Stratton’s, Kohler’s, John Deere, Case, Craftsman,Stihl, Husqvarna, Jonsered, Echo and so many others that he knew backwards
and forwards. So many of the machines he would have to repair were due to the over neglect by their owners. Asking
the rhetorical question of “What were they thinking when they left the machine outside all year long?”left him angry. The engine shroud was a perfect place for mice to build a nest. The storehouse of information contained in his life time of experience equaled a Phd in Mechanical Engineering. When working on an engine that would try to out fox his knowledge he would stop work and like a surgeon in the middle of an operation he would look for a different solution. It was then that
he would go into the dark corners of his shop and bring out a tool that he had made to fix the problem. There
are no schools that teach that on the job experience where he could summon it from his mental library. Each
part of the tightly packed cabinets and shelves were known to him. Even the overhead contained rare
engine parts, cables, a host of rubber drive belts hung in profusion. Those who did not understand his
collection of parts contained many things that were no longer available. We would often talk the talk of
engine repair touching on subjects as to the why and why not of using ethanol gas. Out would come a
dissected carburetor where he would show me the green gunk in its innards. His words of wisdom saved
me hours of unnecessary work by using only non ethanol high test fuel in my small engines. To anyone
looking at these photographs you may or may not understand this shop was loaded with solutions to the
problems that people brought him.The shop was divided into many catagories. Each one with its struggle
to maintain order and selection until what it contained was needed to do a repair. His large collection of
spiral bound parts books held the answer and in some instances it even gave the cross references to what
ever parts were needed. In the early days of his life he and his brother loved to race cars. That lead to working on
boats until he settled on having his own small engine repair shop. The repair shop business comes with a lot of
stress at times so he and his wife enjoyed motorcycle rinding on weekends. As good as he was as a mechanic
he was just as adept at running a full size motorcycle. My problem now is probably using YouTube to get partial
answers to the small engines that I use. Much more than that is dealing with the loss of someone who was
irreplaceable to me.

CindyHouk Loc: Nw MT

So sorry for your loss of your friend. And what a beautiful tribute to him here as well.

Manglesphoto Loc: 70 miles south of St.Louis

Great set of Images!!!
I'm sorry for the loss of your friend,\
I worked as a mechanic for over 60 years and for 59 of them I hated working on small engines especially 2 cycles.
I retired at 77 yrs old working on cars, trucks, large and small and finally med duty construction equip., and I usually have someone else work on my small engines.

bikinkawboy Loc: north central Missouri

I’ve found that you can learn a lot about a person by looking at what’s hanging on his shop walls. Not the OCD super neat and organized ones, but the cluttered up ones (like mine).

yssirk123 Loc: New Jersey

Wonderful tribute to a life well lived.

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

If a woman were to put order in this seeming chaotic shop when the man was on a week-long trip, the gentleman mechanic would not be able to find anything when he returned from the trip. Speaking from personal experience, I knew where things were in my work area... the last place I used it.

Photo #2 says do not discard anything "I may find a use for it someday." As stated in your story about these "MAN" photos, "he would go into the dark corners of his shop and bring out a tool that he had made to fix the problem."

jaymatt Loc: Alexandria, Indiana

Great tribute!

This post reminds me a lot of my father-in-law. He could fix about anything that didn’t run but should.

Nitroclimber Loc: Nebraska

Thanks for sharing Pixelmaster! I spent that last few days trying to find someone in Lincoln, NE to fix my Briggs & Stratton engine on my Dixon mower that I was unable to fix myself. I was surprised to find out that most repair shops now only repair one brand of engines - ie. Honda or other. They must have some kind of exclusive contract that bars them from repairing other brands! Ah, the good old days - I should have appreciated shops that were real pros like your friend!

phlash46 Loc: Westchester County, New York

Great series! Sorry about your loss; I'll bet he knew where everything was.

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

People like this and their shops are a treasure. In this throw-away world, fixing something isn't a possibility.

jederick Loc: Northern Utah

Sorry about your friend and enjoyed reading about him. Your photos bring back memories of old shops in our neighborhood back in the day...nicely done, interesting, colorful and sharp!!

Curmudgeon Loc: SE Arizona

Great shots. I hate someone who can keep a shot that orderly

PhotogHobbyist Loc: Bradford, PA

Sorry about your friend, it must leave an empty place in your life. Your story and photos reminds me of my maternal grandfather. He passed away in the 1950s and had a similar shop in the shed behind his house. My mother told me stories of how he would repair small tools, engines and even automobiles for friends and neighbors. He machined pieces for repairs and could tell if something was millimeters too thick or too thin just by feeling it between his fingers. He proved it to some disbelievers by having them us a micrometer to check.

DakotaColt

Sorry for your (our) loss Pixelmaster. His shop looks familiar, I note two very important tools among your pictures. No. 2 shows his lathe and No. 3 his torch. Quite a few parts which are unavailable can be made or modified when needed using those 2 tools. When an Uncle passed his Atlas lathe on to me he commented 'you may not use it very often, but come some weekend when something breaks you'll be glad you have it', also the torch came in handy when Brother-in-law came up with the seat frame broken from the floor; a couple minutes with the torch (yes I stayed away from the gas line) fixed it so he wasn't looking at the inside of the roof. I'm sure a lot of folks in your area were grateful for his wisdom. Blessings to you both. JimM

jpgto Loc: North East Tennessee

WOW! Sorry about your friend. Great photos and narrative.