Biotope Biologist Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 Hey all I thought maybe I would share this with you all in case someone on this forum is struggling with wanting to stay in whatever hobby it may be, including fish keeping. As some may be aware I enjoy working on cars and I have a heavily modified sports car. I sent my car to the dyno tuning shop after a long 3 years I had finally gotten my car where I wanted it and this was the last thing I needed to "finish" the project. On the final pull on the computer I blew an oil gasket on the timing belt side of my engine. This had me a little defeated but I figured it's not a big deal I can just replace the gasket and be good to go. I had to pull the entire front end of the car apart to get to this gasket. All timing components, exhaust, drive shaft, oil pan, and driver side axle. After doing this all by myself I put my car back together and started it only for the paper gasket to fail (likely due to my incompetence) and oil seeped all over the place. At this point I was beyond frustrated and fed up after a long month of waiting for new parts and researching and wrenching. I wanted to just throw in the towel on the whole hobby itself, after being burnt for my love too many times. I felt like I have done everything by the books and only bought the best things and poured so much energy into this that I should be rewarded with everything just going right. When nothing has gone according to plan. I am also the only one in my family and friend group who enjoys this hobby, so it's hard to keep moving forward when there is no one else in your corner so to speak. It's especially hard when your hobby is supposed to be the place you go to relieve stress, only for that hobby to be the sole cause of all your stress and anxiety. Anyway, I thought I would share my frustration in my hobby with y'all to provide some catharsis, especially for those of us who are experiencing more failures than success in the hobby they hold close to their heart. Hopefully these failures only strengthen our resolve in the future towards our hobbies and make us appreciate the success even more. TLDR; hobbies suck sometimes. And a supposed environmentalist and biologist is a car guy, there goes his credibility in my eyes. I would love if this topic became a place where we could share some frustration/failure stories and reassure each other that it's not us being "bad" at our hobbies, just happy little accidents. 4 5 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick_G Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 I’ve actually learned tons from wrenching on my own vehicles. It’s helped me learn about complex systems and how to go about troubleshooting them in a systematic manner. I don’t want to hijack the thread but I’m curious as to what kind of car you’re building up? I’ve had a few sports cars and driver oriented cars myself. Oldest to newest: MG Midget, Fiat X19, Celica GTS, Subaru WRX and Mini Cooper S. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotope Biologist Posted June 16, 2021 Author Share Posted June 16, 2021 (edited) Not a problem I always welcome a chance to talk about it: It's a 1997 Eagle Talon TSI AWD. It has been turbo swapped and tuned to a very conservative 23psi max boost at 6300 rpm. Redline is 7350rpm. Edited June 16, 2021 by Biotope Biologist 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick_G Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 @Biotope Biologist, nice! I’m a huge fan of the Diamond cars (except that last gen Eclipse). I saw a beautiful 3000gt survivor the other day. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aubrey Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 Failure is only failure is don't learn from it or you give up. I make things from coins. Some older coins and special minted coins are made from silver. Silver is valuable by itself but there are only so many older coins minted and their condition makes them valuable and suitable for projects. Not to mention they also hold the monetary value of whatever they are. So mistakes are often costly and the price of practice can add up. One of my last projects was turning a silver dollar into a ring while keeping the details on both sides as unmarked as possible. Something I have done multiple times with quarters and half dollars. The thickness of these coins varies and the techniques used vary accordingly. I had a slight off center punch which meant that the ring would look a bit off from round the more that I worked it, but I could sand out the variance because I had made this mistake before and knew how to work around it. I also have to heat the coin to make it workable, but this thicker coin needed more heat(yes this hobby involves literally burning money). The goal is to heat it just before red hot. Well that didn't seem to be working. In an effort to make my job easier I went to full red hot and ended up scorching the ring. Now it is covered in small imperfections and merely scrap silver. Instead of turning a near perfect collectable coin into a wearable piece of art and history, I just mangled and destroyed it. At the best I can sand it down and polish the entire surface and have a plain silver band that cost much more than using silver stock. A good way to measure your skill is by the amount of mistakes you've made. Often those who have made more are the more skilled. Just don't keep making the same mistakes. And sometimes s happens. What's that Edison quote? "I didn't fail 1000 times, but found 1000 ways not to make a lightbulb." Or something like that. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefty o Posted June 16, 2021 Share Posted June 16, 2021 ive been wrenching on, and had hot rods most of my life, and there is no doubt about it, they can rip your heart out. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guppysnail Posted June 19, 2021 Share Posted June 19, 2021 On 6/16/2021 at 5:58 PM, Aubrey said: Failure is only failure is don't learn from it or you give up. I make things from coins. Some older coins and special minted coins are made from silver. Silver is valuable by itself but there are only so many older coins minted and their condition makes them valuable and suitable for projects. Not to mention they also hold the monetary value of whatever they are. So mistakes are often costly and the price of practice can add up. One of my last projects was turning a silver dollar into a ring while keeping the details on both sides as unmarked as possible. Something I have done multiple times with quarters and half dollars. The thickness of these coins varies and the techniques used vary accordingly. I had a slight off center punch which meant that the ring would look a bit off from round the more that I worked it, but I could sand out the variance because I had made this mistake before and knew how to work around it. I also have to heat the coin to make it workable, but this thicker coin needed more heat(yes this hobby involves literally burning money). The goal is to heat it just before red hot. Well that didn't seem to be working. In an effort to make my job easier I went to full red hot and ended up scorching the ring. Now it is covered in small imperfections and merely scrap silver. Instead of turning a near perfect collectable coin into a wearable piece of art and history, I just mangled and destroyed it. At the best I can sand it down and polish the entire surface and have a plain silver band that cost much more than using silver stock. A good way to measure your skill is by the amount of mistakes you've made. Often those who have made more are the more skilled. Just don't keep making the same mistakes. And sometimes s happens. What's that Edison quote? "I didn't fail 1000 times, but found 1000 ways not to make a lightbulb." Or something like that. I actually just sent that quote to someone on here yesterday. Being retired I have a myriad of projects going on all the time and these sound like some of mine that go completely sideways. Thanks for helping me not feel like a loner in my try harder have more issues attempts with my projects. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chiclid addict Posted June 22, 2021 Share Posted June 22, 2021 (edited) On 6/16/2021 at 12:32 PM, Biotope Biologist said: Hey all I thought maybe I would share this with you all in case someone on this forum is struggling with wanting to stay in whatever hobby it may be, including fish keeping. As some may be aware I enjoy working on cars and I have a heavily modified sports car. I sent my car to the dyno tuning shop after a long 3 years I had finally gotten my car where I wanted it and this was the last thing I needed to "finish" the project. On the final pull on the computer I blew an oil gasket on the timing belt side of my engine. This had me a little defeated but I figured it's not a big deal I can just replace the gasket and be good to go. I had to pull the entire front end of the car apart to get to this gasket. All timing components, exhaust, drive shaft, oil pan, and driver side axle. After doing this all by myself I put my car back together and started it only for the paper gasket to fail (likely due to my incompetence) and oil seeped all over the place. At this point I was beyond frustrated and fed up after a long month of waiting for new parts and researching and wrenching. I wanted to just throw in the towel on the whole hobby itself, after being burnt for my love too many times. I felt like I have done everything by the books and only bought the best things and poured so much energy into this that I should be rewarded with everything just going right. When nothing has gone according to plan. I am also the only one in my family and friend group who enjoys this hobby, so it's hard to keep moving forward when there is no one else in your corner so to speak. It's especially hard when your hobby is supposed to be the place you go to relieve stress, only for that hobby to be the sole cause of all your stress and anxiety. Anyway, I thought I would share my frustration in my hobby with y'all to provide some catharsis, especially for those of us who are experiencing more failures than success in the hobby they hold close to their heart. Hopefully these failures only strengthen our resolve in the future towards our hobbies and make us appreciate the success even more. TLDR; hobbies suck sometimes. And a supposed environmentalist and biologist is a car guy, there goes his credibility in my eyes. I would love if this topic became a place where we could share some frustration/failure stories and reassure each other that it's not us being "bad" at our hobbies, just happy little accidents. I’m so sorry that happed bit could you post some more pics of the car I would love to see as another car enthusiast who (even though it’s completely unrelated) dream to have a rx7 or a dodge ghoul it actually comes out someday Edited June 22, 2021 by Angelfishlover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotope Biologist Posted June 22, 2021 Author Share Posted June 22, 2021 Here are a couple more. Full custom interior with real bamboo. I like the 90s and all but man were the interiors ugly. And a lame sideshot I took of my car for specialty insurance. Since I only drive it maybe 1500 miles a year. I haven't gotten a photoshoot in yet because I was waiting for the final iteration. With my paint color (monarch green pearl) a photoshoot with a real camera under a blooming sakura tree is in order. I love the FC RX-7, especially with a pandem widebody kit. Bring back pop up headlights as impractical as they may be in the modern era. Anyway, to all the non-car people keep the stories coming. I am glad that there are other car enthusiasts on this forum, but I would love to hear from others. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted June 22, 2021 Share Posted June 22, 2021 I fail at most things I try. What I enjoy is the journey, so I do not focus on whether there is success or not. I do not have enough time to do all the things I want to, so I relish every second I get to spend with each endeavor. Must be a getting old thing... 🙄 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biotope Biologist Posted August 17, 2021 Author Share Posted August 17, 2021 Well I got my car back today and I have to say the drive back from Bellevue... I could not wipe the smile off my face. I was so afraid of losing my appreciation for this hobby, but as soon as I got back behind the wheel all that fear and anxiety evaporated. I suppose it's that age old saying the hardest part is getting back on the horse that bucked you. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefty o Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 happy to hear its working better now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JettsPapa Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 On 6/16/2021 at 4:58 PM, Aubrey said: . . . A good way to measure your skill is by the amount of mistakes you've made. Often those who have made more are the more skilled. Just don't keep making the same mistakes. And sometimes s happens. What's that Edison quote? "I didn't fail 1000 times, but found 1000 ways not to make a lightbulb." Or something like that. Back when I was working as a carpenter I was told "The sign of a good carpenter isn't how few mistakes he makes, but by how well he fixes them." 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARMYVET Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 I am in the process of slowly building a fish room. I am a die hard planner. I plan and plan and plan some more just to make sure I have thought of all of the potential problems in a project. I just finished the water filtration part of my room build. I planned it of over a months time and drew out blueprints labeling every component and making a materials list so I would have everything on hand on the day of the install. Let me tell you...the end product is fully functional but looks nothing like "THE PLAN". Things I had never even considered came into play. Noting fit the way it should have and needless to say it took 3 times longer to finish then I thought possible. Again the ending works exactly like I wanted but sometimes I wonder to myself why plan everything out if it never actually goes according to plan? Maybe I could just skip the plan and not have wasted a month and I would be a month further ahead. Then the other side says if you hadn't planned you would not have been as well prepared to handle the obstacles you had to face. I can tell you one thing...my wife deserves a medal on that day....I was beyond rational midway thru and she just coming in and bringing me drinks and food and saying how great it all was coming and couldn't wait to see it all working. God bless that woman!! In the end again it works exactly like I had planned but the journey was a lot more scenic then I though it would be. If one learns thru failure...I must be the most knowledgeable scholar on the planet....or just an idiot that keeps making mistakes but I just keep on going. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARMYVET Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 On 8/16/2021 at 9:24 PM, Biotope Biologist said: Well I got my car back today and I have to say the drive back from Bellevue... I could not wipe the smile off my face. I was so afraid of losing my appreciation for this hobby, but as soon as I got back behind the wheel all that fear and anxiety evaporated. I suppose it's that age old saying the hardest part is getting back on the horse that bucked you. Awesome car and I love the color. Your interior is incredible. Enjoy every moment with her! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 On 8/17/2021 at 7:37 AM, ARMYVET said: Let me tell you...the end product is fully functional but looks nothing like "THE PLAN". Oh, I can relate to that! 🤪 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARMYVET Posted August 17, 2021 Share Posted August 17, 2021 On 8/17/2021 at 11:00 AM, eatyourpeas said: Oh, I can relate to that! 🤪 I swear I sometimes I look at the end result and wonder where it came from ... because my brain did not think that up🤷♂️ but there it is. Its been up and running for 2 weeks now and so far it is all functioning the way I wanted so I must have done something right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanked Posted September 1, 2021 Share Posted September 1, 2021 As a hiker I encountered talus trails where it was normal to slide backwards one step for every three forward steps. My journey to a planted aquascape is a lot like that. Unfortunately I usually slide back two steps. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tihshho Posted September 1, 2021 Share Posted September 1, 2021 Glad to see other car people in here, especially import owners. I've got too many car projects that need to be finished... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalmedByFish Posted September 1, 2021 Share Posted September 1, 2021 On 6/16/2021 at 4:58 PM, Aubrey said: A good way to measure your skill is by the amount of mistakes you've made. Often those who have made more are the more skilled. This is such an interesting thought. (Among other things, parenting comes to mind. ermahgerd) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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