NEW MEMBERS - Read this - I'm sorry, but c'mon people.

[Drewski]

Watch, listen and learn... great advice. 

Take a chance... try it yourself... also good advice. 

[pterodactyl]

I agree with the writings that have been written here!!!

[YogiBear]

First off, the phrase "fuck the haters". Ok, I get it. Sometimes people are dicks. Sometimes people will talk shit on your bike no matter what you do. Those people suck. But when folks spend their time to show concern about your safety, or point out a possible better way of doing things... That's far from hate. Why don't we stop acting like insolent children and listen? I know it sucks when you put your all into something and someone points out that it may not work. It's a bummer. But before you get all riled up and decide that the person telling you that there's an issue is an asshole, LISTEN for a minute. You might pick something up... I know I do overtime I let my brain do the thinking and not my ego.

I Like this especially, VonYinzer

[beachcomber]

I've been at this building lark [ bikes and cars] for over 50 years - 40 + of those years in a professional design / manufacturing capacity [ replica sports cars ].

I certainly don't know it all, and frequently have to ask others for advice / help, but I don't consider myself "dumb".

I can whip up a true spaceframe chassis design in a morning - but wouldn't even attempt to tack it together given my lack of welding skills.

To me a "Dumb" question is one in a situation that you've never come accross before - but to others may be matter of fact - to you it's a valid question - to them it's "dumb".

"Explain the theory of relativity young Beachcomber" - a question from my science tutor 50 odd years ago ..........."How the fuck do I know", was the instantaneous response.

Ask the same question to some guy called Einstein and no doubt he'd have said "what a dumb question".

It's all a matter of your knowledge / experience level against someone else. 

When I was sixteen I managed to break a pushrod on my AJS 250 CSR. Simples, take the head off and replace offending item. There I sat outside my Dad's garage - but do you think that effin head would come off ? 

It appeared to be "stuck" - unlikely as the bike was only 3-4 years old, but I'd encountered a similar problem once before with an old Velo Racer where the steel studs had corroded against the alloy head. Several broken screwdrivers and a broken alloy fin later, I eventually I stopped a guy who lived around the corner and who rode a Black Shadow to ask for help / advice.

Within 2 minutes he discovered the internal nut that held the last fixing bewixt head and barrel. I suppose he could have thought I'd asked a dumb question - given the OBVIOUS answer, but he just spent the next 2 hours overseeing as I carried out the repair.

Now, when I'm stripping something down for the first time [ without the benefit of a manual ] I look for hidden / non-obvious fixings !

I'm also NOT embarrassed to ask questions, that may well appear dumb to those who know. Yes of course you can have a go yourself, and you may stumble accross the correct answer - then again , you might not ...............

The other day I asked the guy that does our plating - "Can we Gold passivate aluminium " - a dumb question ? He obviously knew because it's day to day business, but I'd never encountered the situation before. I now know the answer and will not have to ask such a "dumb" question again.

My point [ and probably the concencus ] is that the first time you ask the question, to all around it might appear dumb ............personally, I don't have to ask it again.

Is it maybe just the "level" of dumbness that offends ?? 

[Fix]

When I got my XS11 (my first bike that was really mine.) I knew nothing about bikes other than I wanted one.  Everything I know about my bike, and bikes in general, has been through forums, websites, youtube, and manuals. I learn about my bike by working on my bike, and asking questions.

The only thing I'd consider dumb would be NOT asking if you don't know.

[Drewski]

To me, it only makes sense to ask questions. Especially if you don't have experience or expertise in ANY area of life. 

It's foolish to expect to proceed into the unknown, without assistance, and expect smooth sailing. You will almost certainly run into issues/make errors. It's up to you to decide if the potential errors/issues are an acceptable risk.

That said, sometimes it's fun to explore the unknown, and discover for yourself.  I have some broken parts as "trophies" and scars as "reminders". 

Wrench On!! 

[VonYinzer]

All extremely valid additions. Thanks all.

My point was simpler than that though. More of a "step back and realize what's happening around you" kind of thing.

Ask questions. And when you get an answer, really listen. Don't be so reactionary all the time. Also realize the full scale of what you're doing.

There's a massive wealth of knowledge and amazing people online that are more than happy to help, but isn't the whole point of this thing to get back to basics. As in, holding that wrench in your dirty hands to make shit work?

Isn't the point to build a rad machine that acts a vessel to parts of your world you may not have noticed before? To get out on the road and smell the air, meet new people, form real bonds? You have to take all of that into consideration. If you're only playing the game for the trophy you'll always lose. Look at the big picture. Realize that when someone like Beach tells you something, it's from 50 years of real world experience. Listening to that advice, even if you have no practical use for it at the moment will make you stronger AS A PERSON.

If we don't all stop to respect the traditions and the culture WE HAVE DECIDED AND CHOSEN TO BE A PART OF than what's the fucking point? All I'm saying is that there is some deeper stuff going down than we allow ourselves to really feel. Maybe it's the hustle bustle of modern living, or some other crap along those lines. I'm certainly not smart enough to decide the reasoning. I am (for whatever reason) beginning to see past the killer one off parts and amazing paint that forms the outer shell of this "bike thing" recently though.

We are all part of something bigger and we've CHOSEN TO link to it through our love of these machines and the creative and literal freedom they allow us. Some folks knit, some paint, other write, some drink and screw. Some do all. Whatever the activity, it's all partof the same central core. A core built of humanity and linked by history.

Be a part of it. Embrace it. Stop worrying about "haters" and "hipsters" man. Stop giving a Damon of you look stupid to someone else. Worry about proving yourself YOU.

[VonYinzer]

The rest will work itself out in time. Less worry about appearing to know it all and more about being real.

[JustinLonghorn]

I don't know shit about shit.

[Wolfie]

yeah, well... well... ummm....