Have you ever done something so monumentally stupid....

.... that you just had to tell everyone how idiotic you were? Here is one of those stories. Feel free to laugh at my expense.

So with the snow beginning to fall, I came home from work and decided to put the snow blower on the front of the John Deere. Doing so meant moving the Massey Ferguson 135 that was in the way. At 20 degrees, that tractor doesn't like to start. I got it to fire once and then promptly flooded it. So, I grabbed the starting fluid, lifted the hood, and sprayed some into the air cleaner. The lid of the air cleaner is metal mesh, but I began to doubt that fact when it still wouldn't fire. After all, the other thing that refuses to start at 20 degrees are the antique T12 fluorescent light bulbs in the garage. To verify that the lid of the air cleaner was in fact mesh and not solid, I had to shed some light on the situation.

... with a bic lighter.

About the time I got close enough to verify that the air cleaner was mesh, it ignited with a puff taking a few beard hairs with it. I wrapped my gloved hands around it to choke the flames but only succeeded to ignite the gloves and melt them into oblivion. In the process of my flailing, I also ignited an old bird's nest between the air cleaner and gas tank. I quickly grabbed the burning bird's nest with my bare hands and flung it aside. In the process of extricating said bird's nest, one of the pieces of burning grass fell off the mass - as if in slow motion - landing on top of the vented fuel cap. With every turn I was just making things worse. By this point, I was sure I was dead. Thank goodness I keep fire extinguishers handy. That garage has 7 antique tractors, two RVs, and two ATVs

So what should have been a 10-minute job turned into a half-hour of cursing, multiple near-death experiences, an empty fire extinguisher, and a Massey carburetor full of powdered fire suppressant.

Time for a whiskey.

I'll put the snowblower on tomorrow.

Pics please... Oh, you may be a long list relation of mine.

Some people will do anything to stay warm.

Wow! Glad you made it. Enjoy that whiskey!

.

How much beard did you lose?

Glad you made it through it relatively unscathed.

Thata damned impressive.

Well, you told me to laugh, I needed that. Glad your mostly ok.

Meh, I've seen your video on YouTube.

Ok... so there is now more to the story in the form of delicious irony.

I went back up to the garage to get pictures for 84FSP and to put the charger on the battery since I drew it pretty low cranking. I took a photo and connected the charger to the battery. In the dim light I noticed an extension cord at my feet. At the end of the extension cords was....

A shop light.

Didn't need that lighter after all.

Some snow fell on the tractor since my fire extinguisher debacle, but it looks pretty much the same without the snow.

Kia_Racer wrote: How much beard did you lose? Glad you made it through it relatively unscathed.

Just a few tips of the beard hairs. I'm still handsome.

That's a three stooges grade accident, laughs were had at your expense.

At least it didn't backfire and light the ceiling on fire or something.

Kenny_McCormic wrote: That's a three stooges grade accident, laughs were had at your expense. At least it didn't backfire and light the ceiling on fire or something.

At least that could have been blamed on spark timing or something. This was just me being stoopid.

I was helping a friend do a fuel pump on his SLK.....and it kinda ignited.

Granted, that had more to do with the trunk carpet not being removable.

At least in winter clothing the danger of hootus involvement was relatively limited.

how many times have we been subjected to the "check the gas tank with a lighter" meme ??

thank you Curtis

oh how I wish someone had been there running a video of " how to do " this job

Glad you're ok!

However, I am quite sad that there was no GoPro footage of this event .

In an effort to help the GRM community, though, I'll leave this re-enactment:

https://www.youtube.com/embed/2RBRCaVjYrM?feature=player_detailpage

While reading your tale, I seem to hear Yakkity Sax, the Benny Hill theme song!

JohnRW1621 wrote: While reading your tale, I seem to hear Yakkity Sax, the Benny Hill theme song!

In hindsight I definitely hear Yakkity Sax. At the time it was more like the music from Star Trek where Kirk fights Spock.

Yep.

The original thread is years old, but I went to a car show at the Saratoga Museum and got all excited about primping up my E-30 track car.

I thought it would look nicer with the 5 mph bumpers tucked in closer to the body, do you just drill a hole in the piston behind the bumper and push it in, right?

Did you know those are under horrible amounts of pressure? Covered in blue fluid, I wiped myself off but dreaded doing the other side knowing what was coming. Did it anyway.

Then I wanted to glue a piece of hood gasket back on but the can was almost empty. Easy enough, just punch a small hole near the bottom and drip it on the offending gasket. BOOM!!! Glue all over my tool box, the counter, my face; I could feel my eye lids stiffening up so I rapid blinked until it hardened up.

Mrs. 914 just shakes her head.

Yeah, I've done monumentally stupid stuff.

Once ......

I've thought I've done some things in the past ... I don't even get on the show ... nothing to add to what's already been posted

Buddy of mine was doing a carrier bearing on his Tundra in his steep driveway. As soon as the pulled the last driveshaft bolt, truck started rolling over him. He flattened out against the ground, miraculously didn't get hurt, and the truck bounced off the curb in front of his neighbor's house, doing no damage. I bought him a set of wheel chocks for Christmas.

curtis73 wrote:

Kia_Racer wrote: How much beard did you lose? Glad you made it through it relatively unscathed.

Just a few tips of the beard hairs. I'm still handsome.

Or at least handy.

...maybe...

Not sure this beats my episode of rolling my Jetta wagon off ramps in my ex-g/f's garage... with the garage door closed... and the rear hatch open... that was one very expensive oil change and rear brake job...

Glad you survived, the family all had a great laugh at the dramatic reading I just performed of your travails. Thanks

I went on a skiing trip and we stayed in a WOODEN condo unit. I was about 18. My mom made us a big pot of chili so I brought my little Coleman camp stove. No white gas around but gasoline is kind of the same right?

Took the chili and stove and bottle of gasoline out to the patio to heat the chili, dumped some gas into the stove, (spilled some if I'm honest) tossed the container aside without replacing the lid and lit a match. I think I was probably a bit inebriated. As was everyone inside who had no idea of the drama taking place on the patio outside.

There was a WHOOF and the stove went up in flames. In a panic I grabbed it and flung it off the patio into the snow. In the process I kicked over the gas can(no lid remember) which ignited. I hosed the patio down with the burning gasoline that was now spraying from the container as I tossed it also into the snow. There was a bonfire in the snow below but it was relatively harmless but the patio was fully engulfed. I clawed frozen snow with my bare hands and desperately put the fire out. Haha I did eventually. And then I went back to the party to tell everyone we would have to go out for supper. Good times.