Hank Watson's Garage Hour podcast

The Garage Hour does good interviews (whether or not Hostus Maximus Justin Fort is any good at interviews), and we did a semi-sneak beer attack on Chris Hefty at the eponymously named Hefty Fab last month.  Unfortunately, with the hillclimb and about a gajillion client to-dos on the front burner, we're a little late with the upload.  Sort'a sorry!  No matter: it's worth the wait - we puzzle out the doin's of keeping a serious shop going when times get tight (as our hero Hunter S. once opined, "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.").  Chris details the art of shifting the lift when retail production took a hit post-Scamdemic, the intense and varied demands of the "Please make my truck work" customer, and what it takes to chase the market when the market takes a left turn at Albuquerque. Because it's the Garage Hour, we've got more: bicyclists who just don't get it, whether cleaning soap is a procedural singularity, Nate's efforts to reinvent the Brady Bunch, how you can ruin a good message with too much creativity, the Hefty Internet Café, and dropping $40Gs for serious parts that don't get serious use.  There's also shock rebuilds, F-150s, Cherokees, an F-350, 80-Serieses in a big pile, Miatas versus S2Ks, and of course, 4Runners.

The Garage Hour does good interviews (whether or not Hostus Maximus Justin Fort is any good at interviews), and we did a semi-sneak beer attack on Chris Hefty at the eponymously named Hefty Fab last month.  Unfortunately, with the hillclimb and about a gajillion client to-dos on the front burner, we're a little late with the upload.  Sort'a sorry!  No matter: it's worth the wait - we puzzle out the doin's of keeping a serious shop going when times get tight (as our hero Hunter S. once opined, "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro.").  Chris details the art of shifting the lift when retail production took a hit post-Scamdemic, the intense and varied demands of the "Please make my truck work" customer, and what it takes to chase the market when the market takes a left turn at Albuquerque. Because it's the Garage Hour, we've got more: bicyclists who just don't get it, whether cleaning soap is a procedural singularity, Nate's efforts to reinvent the Brady Bunch, how you can ruin a good message with too much creativity, the Hefty Internet Café, and dropping $40Gs for serious parts that don't get serious use.  There's also shock rebuilds, F-150s, Cherokees, an F-350, 80-Serieses in a big pile, Miatas versus S2Ks, and of course, 4Runners.

You can't get this kind of goodness without a prescription (or a warrant) - it's a roundabout look at the upcoming 2025 Pike's Peak International Hillclimb [PPIHC.org (or .com - choose your adventure)], with everything from drivers, racecars (because racecar!), viewing (in-person or on TV and online), spectating (because you're not going to choke on race fuel fumes in your living room - probably), course info (best turns and, well, there are no worst turns here), and a little bit of history (because you can't do 100+ years of racing without having something historic happen).  Also, Hostus Maximus Justin Fort makes up a few words, describes a few things, and hits on a few highlights from the upcoming JF Summit #3. What's more? A head's up on an upside of the "big beautiful bill" - seems there is a little good tucked in this monstrosity for shooters, hunters and Second Amendment fans.  Also, backgrounds and full-on Euro club-hop weirdness from "This Is Everybody Too".

You can't get this kind of goodness without a prescription (or a warrant) - it's a roundabout look at the upcoming 2025 Pike's Peak International Hillclimb [PPIHC.org (or .com - choose your adventure)], with everything from drivers, racecars (because racecar!), viewing (in-person or on TV and online), spectating (because you're not going to choke on race fuel fumes in your living room - probably), course info (best turns and, well, there are no worst turns here), and a little bit of history (because you can't do 100+ years of racing without having something historic happen).  Also, Hostus Maximus Justin Fort makes up a few words, describes a few things, and hits on a few highlights from the upcoming JF Summit #3. What's more? A head's up on an upside of the "big beautiful bill" - seems there is a little good tucked in this monstrosity for shooters, hunters and Second Amendment fans.  Also, backgrounds and full-on Euro club-hop weirdness from "This Is Everybody Too".

Tools are for humans (and super-smart animals, apparently), garages are for cars, countertops are for food, and rollaways are for organizing!  This esoteric episode is all (mostly) about embracing the perfectionist - just a little - and making your tools and shop space match your intellect and style.  Because so many good projects and necessary repairs get hog-tied by bad organization, and a lack of operable tool enhancement can be submarined by a lack of organization, we want you to scratch that itch and embrace the OCD (if just long enough to put the nut drivers in the correct drawer). While we're at it, there's Jerry Reed and "Amos Moses", Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, Ninja Tune and Funkungfusion, Electronic Excursions in Hi-Fi and Meat Beat Manifesto, and more "Kashmir' covers than you can shake a two-headed guitar at.

Tools are for humans (and super-smart animals, apparently), garages are for cars, countertops are for food, and rollaways are for organizing!  This esoteric episode is all (mostly) about embracing the perfectionist - just a little - and making your tools and shop space match your intellect and style.  Because so many good projects and necessary repairs get hog-tied by bad organization, and a lack of operable tool enhancement can be submarined by a lack of organization, we want you to scratch that itch and embrace the OCD (if just long enough to put the nut drivers in the correct drawer). While we're at it, there's Jerry Reed and "Amos Moses", Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass, Ninja Tune and Funkungfusion, Electronic Excursions in Hi-Fi and Meat Beat Manifesto, and more "Kashmir' covers than you can shake a two-headed guitar at.

Catching up with the backup - it's a timely episode of the Garage Hour (not to be cornfused with the usual when-we-can upload freakout).  There are still a few more further-behind  units to be kicked into production, so don't worry - you won't miss a thing. What's in this 'un?  Good electronics versus new, "dumb" appliances versus robot vacuums conspiring with the 'fridge, and the importance of having a good TV repairman up your sleeve.  There's a stint with the inevitable: electric cars and why taxpayer dough makes them soft and flabby (and inevitable losers); a possible breakthrough in small trucks (because it's simple), the spy on the counter, the spy in your solar panels, the spy in A.I., and how Carl Sagan called this 50 years ago (and Asimov did 100 years ago).  Add on a few thoughts about the freedom to roam (and boat, when you're in Florida (man)), and more from JFS3, and you've got a show. While we're at it, this episode's got a few Excellent Weirdo R.I.P.s for some high-Q fellows who left us (and it's not okay): Joe Don Baker, George Wendt and Bruce Glover.  Make it more: music from Karma to Burn, KMFDM, Deadbolt, Fatso Jetson, I Mother Earth, Dire Straits, Rev. Heat, Clutch, the Allmans and Fun Lovin' Criminals.

Catching up with the backup - it's a timely episode of the Garage Hour (not to be cornfused with the usual when-we-can upload freakout).  There are still a few more further-behind  units to be kicked into production, so don't worry - you won't miss a thing. What's in this 'un?  Good electronics versus new, "dumb" appliances versus robot vacuums conspiring with the 'fridge, and the importance of having a good TV repairman up your sleeve.  There's a stint with the inevitable: electric cars and why taxpayer dough makes them soft and flabby (and inevitable losers); a possible breakthrough in small trucks (because it's simple), the spy on the counter, the spy in your solar panels, the spy in A.I., and how Carl Sagan called this 50 years ago (and Asimov did 100 years ago).  Add on a few thoughts about the freedom to roam (and boat, when you're in Florida (man)), and more from JFS3, and you've got a show. While we're at it, this episode's got a few Excellent Weirdo R.I.P.s for some high-Q fellows who left us (and it's not okay): Joe Don Baker, George Wendt and Bruce Glover.  Make it more: music from Karma to Burn, KMFDM, Deadbolt, Fatso Jetson, I Mother Earth, Dire Straits, Rev. Heat, Clutch, the Allmans and Fun Lovin' Criminals.

If you've got a year's worth of 'froading fun (ie: dirt) crammed into every corner of your truck, reaching a "perfect" clean might not be a thing. Instead, aim for "maintenance clean" - the body is rinsed off, the two-bucket method is in overdrive, the dirt is gone, and the rig is neat enough that you can go back to work fixing what you broke on-trail (or wash it again to a state of "show detailed").  The Garage Hour discusses how.  We also chat about the need for a good fabrication guy, and why a good can of Krylon can be essential to your truckly appearance. There's also fun times with worn out electronics, worn out tires for White Mark the Diversity Hire's Grenader, worn out hi-po factory parts, and worn out old Metallica.

If you've got a year's worth of 'froading fun (ie: dirt) crammed into every corner of your truck, reaching a "perfect" clean might not be a thing. Instead, aim for "maintenance clean" - the body is rinsed off, the two-bucket method is in overdrive, the dirt is gone, and the rig is neat enough that you can go back to work fixing what you broke on-trail (or wash it again to a state of "show detailed").  The Garage Hour discusses how.  We also chat about the need for a good fabrication guy, and why a good can of Krylon can be essential to your truckly appearance. There's also fun times with worn out old electronics, worn out tires for White Mark the Diversity Hire's Grenader, worn out hi-po factory parts, and worn out Metallica.

Hostus Maximus Justin Fort and White Mark the Diversity Hire got lost in the hills (and their minds) for this one: two-lane blacktop uphill to see our old friends at Freedom:30 Arms for some lasers and weirdo rounds spurred the conversation about what makes a bullet a boutique round instead of a fad, and why .40 Smith & Wesson has staying power versus Mark's freaky LE-favorite .357 Sig Sauer.  We also get some Dude Food going, with a debate about how meat patties can be a loaf instead of a patty, and why the meat's more important than the shape of it.  There's also mountains to four-wheel for the upcoming JF Summit (#3!), and which is worse (a question): camel spiders or vinegaroons, and what stick to hit them with in either case. Let's just blame our busy days for the shortage of episodes...  The pace will get better (even if it doesn't look it).  ...With Fluke, pistachios, Otter Boxes and redneck North Koreans, it's so much Garage Hour, even if we had the attention spans of a gnat for this one.

Hostus Maximus Justin Fort and White Mark the Diversity Hire got lost in the hills (and their minds) for this one: two-lane blacktop uphill to see our old friends at Freedom:30 Arms for some lasers and weirdo rounds spurred the conversation about what makes a bullet a boutique round instead of a fad, and why .40 Smith & Wesson has staying power versus Mark's freaky LE-favorite .357 Sig Sauer.  We also get some Dude Food going, with a debate about how meat patties can be a loaf instead of a patty, and why the meat's more important than the shape of it.  There's also mountains to four-wheel for the upcoming JF Summit (#3!), and which is worse (a question): camel spiders or vinegaroons, and what stick to hit them with in either case. Let's just blame our busy days for the shortage of episodes...  The pace will get better (even if it doesn't look it).  ...With Fluke, pistachios, Otter Boxes and redneck North Koreans, it's so much Garage Hour, even if we had the attention spans of a gnat for this one.

It's not hard to make fine gearhead talk (TM) when the world lines 'em up like this: wicked and nasty Mercedes W196R Stromlinienwagen nets $54 mill on the block (and why modern go-fast cars can't hold a candle to the brutal elegance and sexual attractiveness of the classics), more failures of modern OEs as they try to avoid testing their hardware before selling it (and why WE aren't going out like a guinea pig), how BYD's going to use AI to make their customer experience ever worse, another story about how nothing makes things worse than the government, and how to avoid letting bad writers ruin good opportunities for gearhead behavior. While we're at it: cyborgs versus robots, STi versus 911, securing your home with smart children (and a kid from Kentucky who did just that), gardening for the head, sun tea for the old growlers, John Paul Jones on "Zooma", and an Excellent Weirdo R.I.P. for Air Force ace Bud Anderson.

It's not hard to make fine gearhead talk (TM) when the world lines 'em up like this: wicked and nasty Mercedes W196R Stromlinienwagen nets $54 mill on the block (and why modern go-fast cars can't hold a candle to the brutal elegance and sexual attractiveness of the classics), more failures of modern OEs as they try to avoid testing their hardware before selling it (and why WE aren't going out like a guinea pig), how BYD's going to use AI to make their customer experience ever worse, another story about how nothing makes things worse than the government, and how to avoid letting bad writers ruin good opportunities for gearhead behavior. While we're at it: cyborgs versus robots, STi versus 911, securing your home with smart children (and a kid from Kentucky who did just that), gardening for the head, sun tea for the old growlers, John Paul Jones on "Zooma", and an Excellent Weirdo R.I.P. for Air Force ace Bud Anderson.

With the throwback gratification of Failure's "Fantastic Planet" rolling throughout, the gearhead goons at the Garage Hour start out gritty with the bucket (or well-sorted trays) of backup bolts that every good geek has in the garadtch.  Note: if that pile of bolts (and rags, and parts, and tools) is getting dusty, you're not making enough - time to build, boys and girls.  There's also a look at the trannie nutjobs who are blowing up cars and dealerships, the politics of production (with perspectives from pinko China and politicized capitalism), and why race fans have very little interest in electric race cars (and still line up for vintage Trans Am, Thunderboats and NASCAR). Want more?  Miniaturized spyware in your USB cables from Tom's Hardware (and a look at when Western civilization figured out that SMALLER is more G-resistant), a retreat from cashless society in Europe, and the importance of protecting your data from the crazies, because they are what they do.

With the throwback gratification of Failure's "Fantastic Planet" rolling throughout, the gearhead goons at the Garage Hour start out gritty with the bucket (or well-sorted trays) of backup bolts that every good geek has in the garadtch.  Note: if that pile of bolts (and rags, and parts, and tools) is getting dusty, you're not making enough - time to build, boys and girls.  There's also a look at the trannie nutjobs who are blowing up cars and dealerships, the politics of production (with perspectives from pinko China and politicized capitalism), and why race fans have very little interest in electric race cars (and still line up for vintage Trans Am, Thunderboats and NASCAR). Want more?  Miniaturized spyware in your USB cables from Tom's Hardware (and a look at when Western civilization figured out that SMALLER is more G-resistant), a retreat from cashless society in Europe, and the importance of protecting your data from the crazies, because they are what they do.

So much afoot we've got two: there's the Avro Vulcan howl, the Corsair whistle, Hellcat .50s and tanks with cats, and a cool story about two F-14s that scrambled to blow up an egg salad sandwich.  Then there's tales of Tesla owners attacking each other when there were no protesters around, Honda and Nissan moving in and out of the US but not each other, and failure after failure of electric car greenthink when the "free" taxpayer bucks dry up now that reality is back in charge (ie: American mail trucks and Canadian busmaker bankruptcy). More?  Re-Soviet Russians doing what Russians do (serious wartime innovation) in their ongoing effort to take over their equally corrupt but less offensive neighbor, an anniversary look back at John Glenn hitting the skies for a quick trip around the planet 60 years ago, and Clutch all over.

So much afoot we've got two: there's the Avro Vulcan howl, the Corsair whistle, Hellcat .50s and tanks with cats, and a cool story about two F-14s that scrambled to blow up an egg salad sandwich.  Then there's tales of Tesla owners attacking each other when there were no protesters around, Honda and Nissan moving in and out of the US but not each other, and failure after failure of electric car greenthink when the "free" taxpayer bucks dry up now that reality is back in charge (ie: American mail trucks and Canadian busmaker bankruptcy). More?  Re-Soviet Russians doing what Russians do (serious wartime innovation) in their ongoing effort to take over their equally corrupt but less offensive neighbor, an anniversary look back at John Glenn hitting the skies for a quick trip around the planet 60 years ago, and Clutch all over.

Hostus Maximus and sometime savant Justin Fort goes full brain-dump on the kind of history that makes pre-teen kids deep-dive science for all the wrong reasons.  Obviously, when folks die because a ship full of ammonium nitrate or radical WW1-era explosives goes kablooey in the harbor, it's a damn shame, but you can't help but marvel at the sheer magnitude of serious industrial accidents (be they jet fuel, fertilizer, munitions or just leftover mine gas).  It's not just manmade disasters, though - Mother Nature (or Father Nature? Turnabout and all...) has a pretty good market for things that go BOOM too, like whole mountains and entire islands.  Join the show for an hour of train-of-thought goodness (and a reminder that mailboxes are federal property, "because you can" doesn't always mean you should, and if you want to blow stuff up, go pro and do it for a living). To max out the spicy, we've got the mine in Mike's basement, the legitimacy in Stephen King's short stories ("Langoliers" and "Night Flyer", for instance), some WW2 in Europe and the Pacific, submarines & "Das Boot", the return of the D2HIE1WHCII rule, and enough Monster Magnet to explode a horse.

Hostus Maximus and sometime savant Justin Fort goes full brain-dump on the kind of history that makes pre-teen kids deep-dive science for all the wrong reasons.  Obviously, when folks die because a ship full of ammonium nitrate or radical WW1-era explosives goes kablooey in the harbor, it's a damn shame, but you can't help but marvel at the sheer magnitude of serious industrial accidents (be they jet fuel, fertilizer, munitions or just leftover mine gas).  It's not just manmade disasters, though - Mother Nature (or Father Nature? Turnabout and all...) has a pretty good market for things that go BOOM too, like whole mountains and entire islands.  Join the show for an hour of train-of-thought goodness (and a reminder that mailboxes are federal property, "because you can" doesn't always mean you should, and if you want to blow stuff up, go pro and do it for a living). To max out the spicy, we've got the mine in Mike's basement, the legitimacy in Stephen King's short stories ("Langoliers" and "Night Flyer", for instance), some WW2 in Europe and the Pacific, submarines & "Das Boot", the return of the D2HIE1WHCII rule, and enough Monster Magnet to explode a horse.

...With an "Orange Goblin" backer (Frequencies from Planet Ten), we've got a good assortment of gearhead supersauce on this burger: blind squirrel finds a nut (bad gov't radio ads get one right while missing the point on distracted driving); speed limits for asteroids (does it apply to meteors?); weird foreign terrorist Toyotas in Wyoming (hat tip, "Cowboy State Daily"), taxpayer funding and corporate automaker interest drying up for electric cars (BMW on its lead foot and Porsche on its rear); Nissan gets caught on the wrong side of the border and its checkbook; a return to favor for gas stoves and incandescent light bulbs; small Japanese seats and brakes; HIDs versus LEDs. There's fries with that: scary words in your shampoo ingredients, honest humanity in your "Blazing Saddles", Mexican light bulbs, Korean stoves, the 1911's birthday and at least one sammich.

...With an "Orange Goblin" backer (Frequencies from Planet Ten), we've got a good assortment of gearhead supersauce on this burger: blind squirrel finds a nut (bad gov't radio ads get one right while missing the point on distracted driving); speed limits for asteroids (does it apply to meteors?); weird foreign terrorist Toyotas in Wyoming (hat tip, "Cowboy State Daily"), taxpayer funding and corporate automaker interest drying up for electric cars (BMW on its lead foot and Porsche on its rear); Nissan gets caught on the wrong side of the border and its checkbook; a return to favor for gas stoves and incandescent light bulbs; small Japanese seats and brakes; HIDs versus LEDs. There's fries with that: scary words in your shampoo ingredients, honest humanity in your "Blazing Saddles", Mexican light bulbs, Korean stoves, the 1911's birthday and at least one sammich.

So much good stuff!  Don't be a menace to fellow motorists when failing to use your headlights in the dark - and don't mind while the Gearhead Consultancy laughs its pretty heads off when you get lit up (pun intended) by the Johnnies for DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY IN THE DARK WITH NO LIGHTS.  ...Way to act drunk or stoned or just dumb.  There's also some cop-on-politician violence (good), the Colorado Highway Patrol versus the CHiPs, a few thoughts on why motorcyclists' shoes fall off all the time, how the $5 billion spent by Joke Biden's DOT bureaucracy (under the deleadership of Pothole Pete) created exactly eight electric car chargers (and how the failure was caused by... bureaucracy...), and an analysis of how ineffective little beta "trucks" like Ford's Maverick are a wonderful analog for the weakness of pajama-clad pepperoni-armed top-knot beta boys. A few thoughts for the gearheads: Do jury duty.  It's so much fun (and you'll see law from it's unseemly underside). If you need your car to think for you, you're dumber. Remember when people bragged about being an elitist? Police bodycams are backfiring on politicians. While we're in there - and because the Garage Hour's audience appreciates folks who showed up and brought their A-game - we've got a heartfelt sendoff and Excellent Weirdo RIP for two great neighbors, George and Betty.  The world needs more folks like this, and we'll miss them.

So much good stuff!  Don't be a menace to fellow motorists when failing to use your headlights in the dark - and don't mind while the Gearhead Consultancy laughs its pretty heads off when you get lit up (pun intended) by the Johnnies for DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY IN THE DARK WITH NO LIGHTS.  ...Way to act drunk or stoned or just dumb.  There's also some cop-on-politician violence (good), the Colorado Highway Patrol versus the CHiPs, a few thoughts on why motorcyclists' shoes fall off all the time, how the $5 billion spent by Joke Biden's DOT bureaucracy (under the deleadership of Pothole Pete) created exactly eight electric car chargers (and how the failure was caused by... bureaucracy...), and an analysis of how ineffective little beta "trucks" like Ford's Maverick are a wonderful analog for the weakness of pajama-clad pepperoni-armed top-knot beta boys. A few thoughts for the gearheads: Do jury duty.  It's so much fun (and you'll see law from it's unseemly underside). If you need your car to think for you, you're dumber. Remember when people bragged about being an elitist? Police bodycams are backfiring on politicians. While we're in there - and because the Garage Hour's audience appreciates folks who showed up and brought their A-game - we've got a heartfelt sendoff and Excellent Weirdo RIP for two great neighbors, George and Betty.  The world needs more folks like this, and we'll miss them.

So much exhaustion...  Caffeine fixes what the Sawzall can't, so we're here: the Gearhead Consultancy may be intriguing or offensive, but we're never boring.  This episode's got a micro look at the baby Superfund sites left at every house in LA that burned with an electric Statusmobile (TM) in the garadtch, a bigger look at where the makers of these toxic messes are heading (prior to burning), some of the shame of a city like LA that's got classic cars in every backyard, and the DOT's possible return to reality with a sane human at the helm. Once the room's been softened up a bit, we've also got underwater oxygen rocks, the National Guard and local PD turning a blind eye towards locals who've chosen to defend their homes and neighborhoods against the professional-grade looters raiding LA post-inferno, the mess on the US-Mexico border in even relatively safe areas like San Diego (can you say "cartel snipers"?), the LA DWP not letting a crisis go to waste, and how the radio outfits being bought up by leftist creep George Soros are already making America less safe.

So much exhaustion...  Caffeine fixes what the Sawzall can't, so we're here: the Gearhead Consultancy may be intriguing or offensive, but we're never boring.  This episode's got a micro look at the baby Superfund sites left at every house in LA that burned with an electric Statusmobile (TM) in the garadtch, a bigger look at where the makers of these toxic messes are heading (prior to burning), some of the shame of a city like LA that's got classic cars in every backyard, and the DOT's possible return to reality with a sane human at the helm. Once the room's been softened up a bit, we've also got underwater oxygen rocks, the National Guard and local PD turning a blind eye towards locals who've chosen to defend their homes and neighborhoods against the professional-grade looters raiding LA post-inferno, the mess on the US-Mexico border in even relatively safe areas like San Diego (can you say "cartel snipers"?), the LA DWP not letting a crisis go to waste, and how the radio outfits being bought up by leftist creep George Soros are already making America less safe.

Don't flinch or you'll miss it: squashy gumdrop Hyundais and crosseyed-cubist Land Rovers, dirty grabby D.O.E. palm-greased double-dealing from former Gov. Hatchetface, details of more battery "storage" plant (pile) fires set to poison the air and water (and dirt and neighbors), minivan idiots and their self-awareness fails (headlights for fun and profit), as well as tales of melted classic cars in Los Angeles garages and a border fire south of San Diego that's ruining lots of great four-wheeling trails and a bunch of sneaky Border Patrol hideouts. While we're at it, how about some support for the folks who were able to (or smart enough to) hold back and protect their homes and neighbors during LA's latest Dem-fired inevitable tinderparty, Hunter S. Thompson, William Gibson, bubbled mongoloids and DC staffers (as if they're not the same thing).

Don't flinch or you'll miss it: squashy gumdrop Hyundais and crosseyed-cubist Land Rovers, dirty grabby D.O.E. palm-greased double-dealing from former Gov. Hatchetface, details of more battery "storage" plant (pile) fires set to poison the air and water (and dirt and neighbors), minivan idiots and their self-awareness fails (headlights for fun and profit), as well as tales of melted classic cars in Los Angeles garages and a border fire south of San Diego that's ruining lots of great four-wheeling trails and a bunch of sneaky Border Patrol hideouts. While we're at it, how about some support for the folks who were able to (or smart enough to) hold back and protect their homes and neighbors during LA's latest Dem-fired inevitable tinderparty, Hunter S. Thompson, William Gibson, bubbled mongoloids and DC staffers (as if they're not the same thing).

Slather on the Justin powa - from Canadian marionettes to catching up on your Orange Goblins, from dickheads with their high beams (and why is it always a Jeep or a Tesla?) to the rules about passing a snowplow, from Ford's exploding batteries to its self-disassembling front suspension (a case of the Teslas?), from Charles Bronson "fixing Emmitt" to the Israelis confiscating a lot of nice shotguns, from crashing into smaller things than you to Honda buying Nissan (why?), it's classic Garage Hour supersauce - spread it on. ...With Orange Goblin, Dire Straits, Masters of Reality, Soundgarden, Kyuss, Solarized, The Sword, Mastodon, Man or Astro Man and High on Fire.  There's also bears, crocodiles, birds and Dad's poor Buick Century.

Slather on the Justin powa - from Canadian marionettes to catching up on your Orange Goblins, from dickheads with their high beams (and why is it always a Jeep or a Tesla?) to the rules about passing a snowplow, from Ford's exploding batteries to its self-disassembling front suspension (a case of the Teslas?), from Charles Bronson "fixing Emmitt" to the Israelis confiscating a lot of nice shotguns, from crashing into smaller things than you to Honda buying Nissan (why?), it's classic Garage Hour supersauce - spread it on. ...With Orange Goblin, Dire Straits, Masters of Reality, Soundgarden, Kyuss, Solarized, The Sword, Mastodon, Man or Astro Man and High on Fire.  There's also bears, crocodiles, birds and Dad's poor Buick Century.

Whether you're smart enough to know we're going to have some wind and fires in SoCal (duhh) or it's about a healthy distrust of government (kind'a like "technology", "gov't" is not on your side), a good gearhead just needs a reason not to be the meat in the seat.  A gearhead also needs a good soundtrack - how about some Monster Magnet, with drops from Pelham 1-2-3 (one of the best NYC-based caper movies ever made - it nails '70s NY atmosphere). Take a dive - logic's fine: prepping for disaster is a badge of honor (plus, you get to keep your house and classic cars).  You'll also avoid being one of the CA sheeple who 50 years of bad fire-prevention couldn't teach.  May you broadcast in interesting times...

Whether you're smart enough to know we're going to have some wind and fires in SoCal (duhh) or it's about a healthy distrust of government (kind'a like "technology", "gov't" is not on your side), a good gearhead just needs a reason not to be the meat in the seat.  A gearhead also needs a good soundtrack - how about some Monster Magnet, with drops from Pelham 1-2-3 (one of the best NYC-based caper movies ever made - it nails '70s NY atmosphere). Take a dive - logic's fine: prepping for disaster is a badge of honor (plus, you get to keep your house and classic cars).  You'll also avoid being one of the CA sheeple who 50 years of bad fire-prevention couldn't teach.  May you broadcast in interesting times...

Take a cautionary stance as gearheads, geeks and the great unwashed makers look forward to 2025 - it's our year to make great, but some of that tin needs straightening.  From the evil of your refrigerator conspiring with the dishwasher to convince the thermostat to drop the house to 42º, to the sloppy software from fool programmers on the wrong side of the wall allowing your data to be hacked by your car before you even get out of the driveway, it's time to get paranoid and understand that bad governance won't fix itself.  We've never seen so much of the tail of hidden corruption than we can now, so take a running start. It's in there: Sagan's theory on why tech without morality can end worlds (where's the stop sign?), why bad governors in sad states will still push failed technology (because it benefits them), and how the companies you shop need to be held to your standard (because Costco won't fix itself).

Take a cautionary stance as gearheads, geeks and the great unwashed makers look forward to 2025 - it's our year to make great, but some of that tin needs straightening.  From the evil of your refrigerator conspiring with the dishwasher to convince the thermostat to drop the house to 42º, to the sloppy software from fool programmers on the wrong side of the wall allowing your data to be hacked by your car before you even get out of the driveway, it's time to get paranoid and understand that bad governance won't fix itself.  We've never seen so much of the tail of hidden corruption than we can now, so take a running start. It's in there: Sagan's theory on why tech without morality can end worlds (where's the stop sign?), why bad governors in sad states will still push failed technology (because it benefits them), and how the companies you shop need to be held to your standard (because Costco won't fix itself).

If you want to celebrate your mechanical success before you've succeeded, don't expect much success - Hostus Maximus Justin Fort and Ryan the BMWery Guy test their livers with a debate of all the excellent mistakes they've made when the sips start before the work stops. From the Perrin charge tube that's supposed to take a half-hour to install, not a half-week, to the little things we miss like which way the brake pads go (and what sort of sparks they throw), there's a way to do it and a way you shouldn't (and we've tried both). Not to get too far afield, there's more gearhead goodness to be had: thinking out tube bumpers, sliding your truck into a snow drift before you crash into it, loud and noisy thug trucks, SVT's good old days, verbicide, Mitsubishi Outlanders, vintage Garage Hour cohosts, plus tasting Bushmills and Breckenridge whiskeys, Peach Crown Royal, Absolut Vodka and High Country Lager.  There's also a host of tunes from Karma to Burn, 16 Volt and Deadbolt.

If you want to celebrate your mechanical success before you've succeeded, don't expect much success - Hostus Maximus Justin Fort and Ryan the BMWery Guy test their livers with a debate of all the excellent mistakes they've made when the sips start before the work stops. From the Perrin charge tube that's supposed to take a half-hour to install, not a half-week, to the little things we miss like which way the brake pads go (and what sort of sparks they throw), there's a way to do it and a way you shouldn't (and we've tried both). Not to get too far afield, there's more gearhead goodness to be had: thinking out tube bumpers, sliding your truck into a snow drift before you crash into it, loud and noisy thug trucks, SVT's good old days, verbicide, Mitsubishi Outlanders, vintage Garage Hour cohosts, plus tasting Bushmills and Breckenridge whiskeys, Peach Crown Royal, Absolut Vodka and High Country Lager.  There's also a host of tunes from Karma to Burn, 16 Volt and Deadbolt.

Well, it's that time of year - time for the Garage Hour to cram the episode full of silly holiday fun and outros.  How about some good gearhead up-to-stuffs while we're at it?  Tesla is facing another recall, but this one's full of shed.  Street-takeovers are violent, stupid, dangerous affairs, which we'd usually encourage so long as they are away from people, but crowds tend to get stupid in the worst places.  The postal service's electric trucks still suck.  Automotive journalist of great repute (and high-Q oddball) Jean Lindamood/Jennings gets a classic Garage Hour excellent-weirdo sendoff.  Also, Upslope Brewery's Draft Lager joined in for sips and grins. While we're at it, there's some fun thoughts about Christmas movies and family time (because it matters), the so-called government eradication of the Chinese murder hornet (and what could happen if they joined up with the desert helicopter wasp), Dennis Farina, Ray Liotta, and a set of chintzy Chinese (is that redundant?) foot warmers that cooked some ice-fisherman's toes.

Well, it's that time of year - time for the Garage Hour to cram the episode full of silly holiday fun and outros.  How about some good gearhead up-to-stuffs while we're at it?  Tesla is facing another recall, but this one's full of shed.  Street-takeovers are violent, stupid, dangerous affairs, which we'd usually encourage so long as they are away from people, but crowds tend to get stupid in the worst places.  The postal service's electric trucks still suck.  Automotive journalist of great repute (and high-Q oddball) Jean Lindamood/Jennings gets a classic Garage Hour excellent-weirdo sendoff.  Also, Upslope Brewery's Draft Lager joined in for sips and grins. While we're at it, there's some fun thoughts about Christmas movies and family time (because it matters), the so-called government eradication of the Chinese murder hornet (and what could happen if they joined up with the desert helicopter wasp), Dennis Farina, Ray Liotta, and a set of chintzy Chinese (is that redundant?) foot warmers that cooked some ice-fisherman's toes.

This episode's got all sorts of trafficky truckin' road-interface goodness to assist you in your daily gearhead existence, but it's mostly about how to understand your tires and what's right when the white stuff is falling down in Front Range fashion.  Or any range...  We've got the grok on tire width, suppleness, temperature range, snow treads, chemicals and materials, ice versus snow driving, why it's a fine idea to have a second set of llantas for the off-season, and why you probably wouldn't wear hiking boots to a formal dance.  ...And why all that and a bucket of fish heads still won't save you if you aren't good at driving. Not to put too fine a point on it (we're ALL fine points here at the Garage Hour), there's also a little free gas (at the pump), a few thoughts about why that guy is following you (such a nice bumper), plus Floyd, FLeppard and Pantera.

This episode's got all sorts of trafficky truckin' road-interface goodness to assist you in your daily gearhead existence, but it's mostly about how to understand your tires and what's right when the white stuff is falling down in Front Range fashion.  Or any range...  We've got the grok on tire width, suppleness, temperature range, snow treads, chemicals and materials, ice versus snow driving, why it's a fine idea to have a second set of llantas for the off-season, and why you probably wouldn't wear hiking boots to a formal dance.  ...And why all that and a bucket of fish heads still won't save you if you aren't good at driving. Not to put too fine a point on it (we're ALL fine points here at the Garage Hour), there's also a little free gas (at the pump), a few thoughts about why that guy is following you (such a nice bumper), plus Floyd, FLeppard and Pantera.

It's tired and we're late.  No, wait a minute...  Okay, that's right.  There's much afoot at the Circle J, and the Garage Hour goons have another insightful batch of geekbrain excellence for you: the other side of the coin of our skillset episode a few weeks back, thanks to a gal in the #3 lane who couldn't look up from her Distractomatic 5000 long enough to not drive into the bumper of the truck in front of her.  Don't be the anti-inspiration for our incompetence episode (and don't be a Carl).  There's also guidance on measuring up to 100% you, avoiding the shallow end of the tool pool, using your head to avoid the obvious, and trying to use your capabilities once in a while instead of sucking all the time. Moving beyond the need for being the best you you can do (coocoo k'choo), there's insight on more electric car fails by the OEs (begging the G for good money to keep spending on bad ones), wildebeests and crocodiles and educational television (back when it was worth a beer), and steering clear of incompetence multipliers (and bent pliers).

It's tired and we're late.  No, wait a minute...  Okay, that's right.  There's much afoot at the Circle J, and the Garage Hour goons have another insightful batch of geekbrain excellence for you: the other side of the coin of our skillset episode a few weeks back, thanks to a gal in the #3 lane who couldn't look up from her Distractomatic 5000 long enough to not drive into the bumper of the truck in front of her.  Don't be the anti-inspiration for our incompetence episode (and don't be a Carl).  There's also guidance on measuring up to 100% you, avoiding the shallow end of the tool pool, using your head to avoid the obvious, and trying to use your capabilities once in a while instead of sucking all the time. Moving beyond the need for being the best you you can do (coocoo k'choo), there's insight on more electric car fails by the OEs (begging the G for good money to keep spending on bad ones), wildebeests and crocodiles and educational television (back when it was worth a beer), and steering clear of incompetence multipliers (and bent pliers).

It's one of those episodes that seemed totally disjointed but turned out GREAT (kind'a like good ribs)... White Mark the Diversity Hire had Hostus Maximus Justin Fort down to his dungeon for some 6.5 Creedmoor loading and a dissertation on the goodness of bad times - learning to be better (geek it!) with what you can get, such as when the Obama gun shortage taught builders and loaders to make excellent firepower out'a what they could find. Whether it's Winchester, Sta-Bal, Hornaday, Benchmark, Lever Revolutiopn, IMR, Accurate, Hodgon, or CFE, a shooter's got to shoot and a loader's got to load, and everyone got smarter. The original point of the episode was to visit another good side of Uncle Donald getting back into office: brooming the useless bureaucrats like Buttgig and Granholm who've been making a corrupt mockery of the job of the American government (and shine a little light on the effects of four years in Biden's basement). Then it's trucks, rocks, ribs, rubs, a Garage Hour sendoff for excellent weirdo Bernie Marcus of the Home Dee Pot, and a little bit of Herb Alpert, because beer (Red Leg's Spring's Lager).

It's one of those episodes that seemed totally disjointed but turned out GREAT (kind'a like good ribs)... White Mark the Diversity Hire had Hostus Maximus Justin Fort down to his dungeon for some 6.5 Creedmoor loading and a dissertation on the goodness of bad times - learning to be better (geek it!) with what you can get, such as when the Obama gun shortage taught builders and loaders to make excellent firepower out'a what they could find. Whether it's Winchester, Sta-Bal, Hornaday, Benchmark, Lever Revolutiopn, IMR, Accurate, Hodgon, or CFE, a shooter's got to shoot and a loader's got to load, and everyone got smarter. The original point of the episode was to visit another good side of Uncle Donald getting back into office: brooming the useless bureaucrats like Buttgig and Granholm who've been making a corrupt mockery of the job of the American government (and shine a little light on the effects of four years in Biden's basement). Then it's trucks, rocks, ribs, rubs, a Garage Hour sendoff for excellent weirdo Bernie Marcus of the Home Dee Pot, and a little bit of Herb Alpert, because beer (Red Leg's Spring's Lager).

You know what to do, so do it!  It's all about the skillset today: remember to smile when you pull a fast one (or a perfect one), because that's the sort of geeksauce that makes life worth doin'.  Did you save some cops from a deer-blood shower?  Did your old buddy Baris from Turkey pull a neato Euro-style brakestand to get parked in the snow?  Did you use your bumper and a little bit of tire-drag to descend a nasty hill full of ice?  How about everyday heel-and-toe?  Tools and devices for amplified powa?  Setting the skillset loose?  Keeping skills sharp and avoiding the more-tech skill suck?  Remember, tech isn't on our side, but your killer instincts and capabilities are. Yeah, so the episodes are out of order - trying to put to some of the newer stuff up and get back on schedule.  ...So much phooey.  From trapezoidal shelves and musical gambling to rental trucks from Arizona (because Kalifornistan) and humine encephalitis (because deer), this one's got it.

You know what to do, so do it!  It's all about the skillset today: remember to smile when you pull a fast one (or a perfect one), because that's the sort of geeksauce that makes life worth doin'.  Did you save some cops from a deer-blood shower?  Did your old buddy Baris from Turkey pull a neato Euro-style brakestand to get parked in the snow?  Did you use your bumper and a little bit of tire-drag to descend a nasty hill full of ice?  How about everyday heel-and-toe?  Tools and devices for amplified powa?  Setting the skillset loose?  Keeping skills sharp and avoiding the more-tech skill suck?  Remember, tech isn't on our side, but your killer instincts and capabilities are. Yeah, so the episodes are out of order - trying to put to some of the newer stuff up and get back on schedule.  ...So much phooey.  From trapezoidal shelves and musical gambling to rental trucks from Arizona (because Kalifornistan) and humine encephalitis (because deer), this one's got it.

Alright, so there are a few things on your plate today that may involve the fate of America, but the Garage Hour is nothing if not distracting (with all the cars, trucks, beers, guns, parts, fixing, kerplosions and awesomeness) - let us help you escape, if just for a minute: lithium battery fires don't just kill people, they kill fire departments, household spies hiding in your vacuum, how diamond mines can tell you about cars and trucks being stored instead of sold, and how Kalifornistan keeps taking steps to kill itself. There's also some Hunter S. Thompson goodness, the human body (and why some more efficiency would be good), coyotes versus dogs (and their poop!), and a brief history of commies in government. Now go vote.

Alright, so there are a few things on your plate today that may involve the fate of America, but the Garage Hour is nothing if not distracting (with all the cars, trucks, beers, guns, parts, fixing, kerplosions and awesomeness) - let us help you escape, if just for a minute: lithium battery fires don't just kill people, they kill fire departments, household spies hiding in your vacuum, how diamond mines can tell you about cars and trucks being stored instead of sold, and how Kalifornistan keeps taking steps to kill itself. There's also some Hunter S. Thompson goodness, the human body (and why some more efficiency would be good), coyotes versus dogs (and their poop!), and a brief history of commies in government. Now go vote.

We'll trade you a four-pound sledge and a twitchy STi for the time to get more episodes published...  This one's full of traffic thinking, with a knobby-tired look at why good alignment matters (and dying end-links don't).  There's an in-depth analysis of how it's essential to be in an offensive state of mind when commanding your place in the flow (and why bubbling yourself off from those selfsame traffic physics makes you the problem we've been waiting for).  There's also a few thoughts about how "Broken Windows Policing" could do wonders for incompetent motoring. Don't fret: how about some Amon Tobin, Die Krupps, Deep Purple and Blue Oyster Cult (no "White Room" or "Yellow Submarine", however), plus killer Bronco audio, Mom's Camry, cars in garages and TVs in dashboards.

We'll trade you a four-pound sledge and a twitchy STi for the time to get more episodes published...  This one's full of traffic thinking, with a knobby-tired look at why good alignment matters (and dying end-links don't).  There's an in-depth analysis of how it's essential to be in an offensive state of mind when commanding your place in the flow (and why bubbling yourself off from those selfsame traffic physics makes you the problem we've been waiting for).  There's also a few thoughts about how "Broken Windows Policing" could do wonders for incompetent motoring. Don't fret: how about some Amon Tobin, Die Krupps, Deep Purple and Blue Oyster Cult (no "White Room" or "Yellow Submarine", however), plus killer Bronco audio, Mom's Camry, cars in garages and TVs in dashboards.

...A data-heavy slacker-upload episode for you - too much to do, so go do it. We did: wrasslin' animals and eating' bears, recalling Fords and Fords and DEIs and Toyotas and Fords and GMs and pickups and some junk in the trunk, as well as recalling a run from El Paso to Wisco in one of BFGoodrich's fleet of jacked-up Suburbans, and revisiting the Garage Hour rule that if you dig two holes in England (or Europe) there will be a skeleton or a bomb in at least one of them. There's also a Dude Food shout-out to liverwurst, a warning tear for DeWalt (what's trying to pull a Bud Light), and a serious discussion about how artificial reinsertion of apex predators into environments from which they've absconded (ie: Colorado's wolves, which are being eaten by cougars, and Italian bears, which are eating liberals). More goodies: cheap akiya homes in Japan, awesome actors in "Copland" and "Demolition Man", terrible flame throwing pinko battery deaths from scooters and other electric deathtraps worldwide, essential electronics repair and the necessity of having a wiring and circuitry guy in your stable, plus Sinister, Fishbone, Cheap Dates, Alien Faktor, U2 (really), Earthlings?, Desert Sessions, Butthole Surfers, L.S.G., Sausage, The Dead Elvi and Incubus.