Lesson learned!

The most important thing I learned at school today is that you really have to be super careful with the high tech tools that mechanics use. It takes a steady, graceful hand and some very precise tools.

Today, at school, I worked on a Harley-Davidson V ROD motor. All I had to do was take the cam covers off, remove the cam caps, roll the cams to the side, pull out the buckets and shim, measure the shims, and reinstall it all. Sounds easy enough, right? If you know what I'm talking about that is...

Anyway, when I rolled my first cam back, I couldn't get it to stay in place. I was fighting it, and I just didn't have enough hands. So I grabbed my fancy cam keeper tool (thats what we're gonna call it, it was really a cheap plastic mechanical pencil) and the plan was to kinda jam it in there to hold the cam in place while I did my measuring.

It was a good plan, really. I had one of those moments where I thought I had it all figured out. I was gonna take the easy way out. Maybe get ahead on my work for the day. And it was all going so smoothly, until I dropped the pencil. Inside the motor. Thats right, I lost my pencil today inside a V ROD motor.

Now, its hard enough getting taken seriously as a girl in this industry. But how do I explain a hot pink pencil that fell down into the cases? Here's the best part, we couldn't see it, even with a flashlight. So my instructor said I didn't have to take the whole motor apart because he wasn't completely convinced the pencil was in there. The good news is that this bike will never be run. So no one is in danger. But someday, someone will find the prize inside the motor, and get a good laugh at my expense. Just like everyone in my class did today.

I'll just keep my head up, and laugh it off with them. It was kinda funny.... I guess.