"Mechanical timidity" is an excellent term! I have experienced it and I am sure everyone has regardless of experience. I think my Dad was the one that taught me! He was, however, very competent in just about anything he tackled including porting a Yamaha 80 he was racing in the 60s. He would Dremel just a bit here and there, put it together, run it, then do it over until he was satisfied then go race it for final proof. Whew! All of you know what would happen if he went too far with the Dremel! Other things he would procrastinate for the longest times. He would wait until he was ready and not before. Seems to make some real sense! He was also a craftsman. He would not do anything halfway. Projects should be carefully chosen, properly planned and carefully executed. Routine maintenance needs to be done carefully each time, no exceptions. That brings into question businesses like "Jiffy Lube" who seem to be in such a rush that they are prone to stripping bolts and holes, putting oil filters on way too tight or forgetting to put the new oil back in. Brings also into question any "repair shop" that does things halfway or not at all but charges for the service. This is why WE dote on our rides. Our machines were made correctly and we try to do whatever as good or better than Kaoshiung. I think we are a bit careful about what we do to our rigs, how we do it and when. I see that as more professional than procrastinate. I think it is a more long-term relationship we have. The LAST thing we want is to make some change that either does not work or works worse than before. That's where a lot of the "mods" result. That's why some of the scoots are sold to get rid of the "mod problem" that cannot be restored.
I recall the days of the "hot rod" and the magazines, one with that name. All us "highschoolers" would drool over the pictures of sometimes really neat creations and slick use of ordinary stuff to make a car run better. Most of the real hot rodders did their own work and did it very carefully. They made engines like they should have been originally that were stronger and more powerful. They did wiring and plumbing that were works of art. Also it seemed if it was not done in California it was worthless, if it was not "billet" it was worthless and if it was not made in Azuza it was not worthy of consideration. These magazines never shared how much money these guys spent on these creations or how impractical or uncomfortable some of these things were. There was some good and some bad about this activity but we had no idea. It was unusual that the hot rod was used in daily transportation. The magazines also taught us a new language, one that never called a thing what it really was: pistons were "slugs", Chevy was "bow tie" and brakes were "stoppers" or some such nonsense. A great deal of the hot rod philosophy is VERY significant in that it is the essence of development and improvement. Without "cutting and trying" there is none. You cannot engineer everything.
So it boils down to what do you want to do today. Do you want to ride or mod? How much you wanna spend? What result do you want?
Karl
