nother new guy

[badmuther]

Hey guys, quick intro here. My names Russ Basham (pronounced BASH’em) I am 43 and other than 5 years in the army, a life long resident of the thriving metropolis of South Bend, Indiana. Home to notre dame (big whoop) and Studebaker. I have been around and working on cars and trucks and bikes pretty much my whole life. I can remember when I was about 5 or 6 not even being able to pick up the tools to hand to my dad working on a dump truck and because of my ten year older gearhead brother, I could adjust the valves on a sportster when I was in the seventh grade. By my freshman year a neighbor ( who was a member of the “Michiana Mustang Club”) finished his 69 fastback with 351 Cleveland , Four speed and 5:13 geared nine inch running in the 11’s. I seen just about every late 60’s and early 70’s FOMOCO muscle car there was come over to visit him, I could use plastigage to measure bearing clearances by my sophomore year and just about everything else mechanical. seen the inside of almost every engine that powered every one of my rides. So somewhere along the line I see this “Metal Fabricators Handbook” by Ron Fournier, looking at it now it seems like a 8th grade shop book but at the time I was like “Holy Moly! You can do all this?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? Fast forward past the army and a year of driving truck(YAWN. . . . . ) I use my GI bill to go to IVY Tech (Indiana trade and tech school) for machining and it turns out I’m totally a natural at this. I get a good job with a big international company and some really sharp and cool bosses who repay my go-get-em and git-er-done attitude by letting me have my way with Gubmint work! Also got a part time gig teaching at my old school and met some very capable new guys along the way. Made me a nice harley frame jig, an English wheel, tubing bender(with Pro-Tools dies), Stands for my beater bag, Eastwood shrinker/stretcher, bead roller (also Pro-Tools), and most recently, my Recip. Machine. Wouldn’t have ever been able to finish that with out you guys, the info that you have posted on thumbnail dies and speeds and more than I can remember not knowing is all priceless!! So I’m gonna try to repay you all with pics of my setups and work I’ve done. Be patient as I only have very limited internet time so it will be a here and there kind of thing. I was on the westcoast choppers website and seen an open invitation from Johnny Arial for this place and I sure am glad! I don’t have to try to be cool enuf for anyone to share info, and I don’t have to have to know the super secret handshake to get to see behind the curtain like other sites. I’m not gonna steal anyones ideas or designs for profit but I may incorporate them into my own tools. I will share Ideas that I have, if they’re good people can use them, if they won’t work maybe you older timers can explain why not.

Thanks

Russ