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Follow up to the NAPA discussion in machinery talk
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ihmanky
Posted 3/17/2021 10:38 (#8898817)
Subject: Follow up to the NAPA discussion in machinery talk



KY

I think a whole lot of it is a sign of the times.  Seems to me, growing up in the 80's, there were no younger folks working in parts places unless they were delivering parts or maybe stocking shelves, cleaning up, things like that.  Countermen seemed like they were always 40-50 or better, likely shop guys that likely had had all their backs and knees wanted and transitioned into the parts business.  Just like the old parts guys at the equipment dealers that could rattle off the part number when you say "need a belt for the sickle drive on X header".  Prior to the early 80's, 1 year, 3,000-5,000 mile warranties were the norm, and dealers didn't get the service/repair business they do now.. service station garages and independent mechanics were more prevalent, and they got a lot of their parts from the local parts houses instead of the dealers, even on relatively new cars.  Interchangeability amongst many parts was commonplace, a small block chevy was a small block chevy, small block ford was a small block ford, and so on.  Carb kits, points, coils etc. flowed out of those parts houses like water then.  

Today, walk into any of the national "big box" auto parts stores, and 10-1 odds it'll be someone under 25 working there.  50-1 that that person has any idea what you're looking for if someone hasn't recently purchased one.  If the computer doesn't show it on page 1, you're SOL... and I don't mean an internet search, I mean whatever comes up within their system when they punch in your vehicle info.  The days of the rack behind the counter with cross-references and binders filled with thousands of pages of parts are all but over.  Partially because that's not how the big stores do business, and partially because they're probably not producing many of those books anymore.  The internet is so big, yet there's stuff in those books that'll never be found on the internet if you don't know exactly how to find it.  I looked high and low for a specific u-joint last fall, wound up at 4 parts places and two dealers before one guy at one of those dealers just happened to know a guy at a Napa that was pushing 70 and would know.  Walked in, laid it on the counter, guy said "Pretty sure that's such-and-such, but let me double check this book back here before you spend the money cause it won't be cheap".  Guy was right.  I spent probably 2 hours on the internet, and 150 miles and a few hours hitting different places, and that one guy ID'd it in less than 10 seconds and verified in less than 2 minutes.  The internet can never replace "that guy" once you can locate him.  Problem is, "that guy" might retire tomorrow, or 10 years from now...  "That guy" has been slowly disappearing for the last 15-20 years across the map, and we probably have less than 10% of them out there left.  

Radiator guys, starter guys, alternator guys, all but gone.  I wonder how much longer the transmission guys can hold on as transmissions continue to get more and more sophisticated.  They're about like baler knotter guys, not many of those guys left that can make one sing like a new sewing machine even with a book to go by, never mind the old guys that could do it with their eyes closed.  

Nostalgia is an SOB, I'm excellent with technology as a necessity of my "real" jobs over the years... but I do long for simpler times.  I'm on the younger end of the spectrum of folks who aren't a huge fan of big tech, but here I am anyway.  

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