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Restoration Motivation

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Tinkerman

Tinkerman

Darth Vader
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Awhile back there was a thread about Inertia and Ennui. Rang a bell for me because my motivation teneds to sag from time to time. In that thread MARTX-5 submitted a post about ".....do SOMETHING every week no matter how small...."
I grabbed onto it big time. I have been trying to do something every day no matter how small. Today I finished the valve train assembly, installed and torqued it down. Fini, I "got er did" so to speak. This was after months of parts frustration a multiplicity of phone calls etc. etc.
Thanks, Art for those words of wisdom! I really needed them. I think I added a picture.

Regards, Tinkerman
 

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You're welcome Tinkerman, and that engine looks great. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cheers.gif
 
That's looking very nice. It is amazing how after years of just doing a wee bit each day you suddenly realise that it is time to start the engine and take the car for a test drive. And, then you notice that the car is almost finished. It kind of took me by surprise when it happened to me!
 
That's the best advice anyone ever gave someone in the middle of a restoration. When faced with big projects it is easy to put it off. Why not spend an hour cleaning a part, or painting a part, or doing a small unrelated item that now won't have to be done later? Good advice.
 
Beautiful engine. One other tip I am trying to follow, I am in the middle of turning a pile of rust into a MK2 Spitfire, is to always end the day on a success. Even if it is a small task, like Roofman suggested. Never leave working on your car feeling frustrated because it will only make it harder to start working on her again.
 
I like to make a list of 5 to 10 items to do. That way when I get one thing done I have other things to do instead of looking at the entire project to pick something.
It keeps me moving and I feel good as I check things off the list. When I get to one or two things left I make a new list. If I feel more motivated I make the list more aggressive. If I don't feel so motivated I make the list a little less aggressive. I also find that sometimes an item or two seem to stay on the list several times until I finally feel like doing them. But in the meantime I get other things done.
 
That is one sweet looking engine!

I have a double reason to keep motivated. After turning wrenches then going into management at the dealer level, I became very sick of cars, to the point of where I never even started the TR6 for a year. The best thing that I could have done was get out while I had my sanity.

You all may think that I'm not really sane, but that's my story and I'm stickin' to it!!

Every once in a while I get lazy and begin to put off doing things, so I then force myself to do some little project like the rheostat or heater case. It keeps me busy, has no time table requirement, allows for experimentation and may help others along the way. That is generally enough to get me onto another project and then I ready to roll into something heavier.

Now I have to get started on those four TR6 OEM primer type fuel pumps that I got off ebay. Easy overhaul and will keep me busy when it's 8 degrees outside. Good time to experiment with media tumbling the parts and anodizing the finish.
 
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