Date:         Wed, 17 May 2000 18:10:28 -0700
Reply-To:     Doktor Tim <doktortim@ROCKISLAND.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Doktor Tim <doktortim@ROCKISLAND.COM>
Subject:      Re: So what went wrong with Sharkey's "Todd Hill" tranny? (fwd)
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>To: David Raistrick <keen@LENTI.TYPE2.COM>
>From: Doktor Tim <doktortim@rockisland.com>
>Subject: Re: So what went wrong with Sharkey's "Todd Hill" tranny? (fwd)
>In-Reply-To: <Pine.BSF.4.05.10005171417380.8221-100000@lenti.type2.com>
>
>At 02:18 PM 05/17/2000 -0700, you wrote:
>>Just more FYI re: good ol' Todd.
>>
>>--
>>David Raistrick  '66 SO-44 Westy                keen@type2.com
>>                                                        in Guyton Ga
>>
>>Subject: So what went wrong with Sharkey's "Todd Hill" tranny?
>>
>>To those of you I have cc'd into this post, I apologize if this brings up
>>bad memories.  Unfortunately, I installed my tranny before some of you back
>>in October 1998,
>
>3 years to result=failure
>
> but was unable to find out about Todd's craftsmanship
>>until just recently.  You can rest assured, however, that you are not the
>>only ones he has screwed.
>
>Obviously you have had relations with the man.
>
>>
>>Erin, could you please post this to the various Bus lists?  Gilbert, could
>>you do the same to the KG lists?  Someone can let the guys on the ACVW list
>>know too.
>
>EXTRA!!! EXTRA!!! Read all about it.
>
>Raistrick Gets Sodomized, evidence not found for 4 years.
>
>>
>>
>>========
>>
>>
>>This post has been a long time coming.  It wasn't until last month that I
>>managed to bother getting my tranny rebuilt by a local guru, and it wasn't
>>until then that I found out the *real* reason why my tranny packed it in
>>after less than 1,000 miles of non-abusive driving:
>>
>>It was built by an incompetent boob named Todd Hill.
>>
>>Normally boobs are pretty neat-o.
>
>Bozos, too. Don't forget the Bozos on the Bus.
>
>  I'd say that they are up there on my top
>>ten list of favourite things.  Not this boob.
>
>Dicriminatory about boobs. Ok, but don't forget the Bozos.
>
> At first my dealings with
>>Todd were great.  He was wise, knowledgable, and willing to spend the time
>>to explain things I haven't had the opportunity to experience with regards
>>to transaxle rebuilding. We corresponded via email, ICQ, and telephone for
>>months picking options and alternatives to my needs.
>
>Sounds like value received by you. Did you pay for this value by the hour,
or do boobs charge a flat fee, or do they wrap it in the cost of the
eventual product if sold? How much was this boob compensated for this high
value added service?
>>
>>I live in Vancouver, BC, while Todd lived in Olympia, WA.  Todd was willing
>>to deliver the tranny to me in Vancouver as part of a 400 mile round trip
>>(saving me probably $100+ Cdn in shipping charges) and "smuggled" the
>>tranny through customs so that I wouldn't have to pay duty, import taxes,
>>etc.
>
>Value received by you. Same question about value received by the boob.
>
>He also acted as a mail box for me, allowing me to order things and
>>have them delivered to him in Olympia (like SAW axles, many Berg parts,
>>etc.) so that he could bring them up with him when he brought up the
>>tranny.
>
>Value received by you. Same question about value received by the boob.
>
>At first he didn't even ask for a deposit, until the total owed
>>exceeded $1,000 US (that includes the axles, Berg parts, etc.).  Did I
>>mention that *he* ordered the axles and Berg parts for me and simply added
>>their cost to my final bill?
>
>Hope the boob knew enough to mark up his cost. It is apparent this boob is
very clever at setting up a Bozo in a facade of added value. The use of
Berg parts seriously detracts from his boobness, however.
>>
>>I thought I was dealing with a really nice guy,
>
>Who could blame you with so much value received all up front?
>
>>My first concern, however, was when he arrived with the tranny
>>that first evening in late September, 1998.  He made the comment that "the
>>tranny was stiff, but that it would break in over time".
>
>Boob admitted results iffy, didn't try to hide it, spoke the truth, even
before you paid him. He was all in and risking it all, and still didn't
spring his trap on you.
>
> He wasn't kidding
>>about the tranny being stiff... I could barely turn the tranny over while
>>using a clutch disc on the input shaft for leverage!
>
>Bozo inspects the work. Is good to do so before you pay, very prudent, and
very fortunate to have found a boob who allows same. Value received by Bozo
somemore.
>>
>>My next concern happened after I installed the tranny.
>
>Did you forget to put in the line, 'I accepted the work and paid the boob.'
>
><snip> = nothing relevant to the boob
>
> I bolted it in and
>>began reconnecting all the rear suspension components.  I then went inside
>>the car and "tapped" the shift coupler on to the tranny's "hockey stick".
>>It wouldn't shift.  The tranny seemed to be stuck in gear somehow.  I tried
>>everything, but was eventually forced to pull the tranny again.  Luckily I
>>didn't have the engine installed yet (that didn't happen until the spring
>>of '99).
>
>Bozo accepts poor work and installs it anyway, now he's a boob, too,
screwing himself.
>
>>I took the nose cone off of the tranny and discovered that all three shift
>>rails were indeed in the neutral position, just as they should be.  What
>>apparently happened, however, was that one of the shift fork set screws
>>either came loose or was tightened down when the rail was not lined up
>>properly.  While the three shift rails indicated that the tranny was in
>>neutral, one of the shift forks had shifted and wouldn't disengage from one
>>of the gears.  The tranny had to come completely apart.  Argh...
>
>Speculation: boob was so busy on the phone providing Bozos with added
value he didn't have the time to check function.
>
>>I contacted Todd and he offered to drive all the way back up to Vancouver
>>in order to pick up the tranny and return it to his "shop".  I felt that
>>this was w-a-y too generous and offered to drive the tranny back down to
>>him, with the agreement that he would bring it back up.
>
>How very nice that Bozos and boobs can work together so well. (Whew)
>
> I wasn't 100%
>>positive that the shifting problem wasn't something I had caused when I
>>installed the tranny so I didn't want him wasting *his* time if it was
>>indeed my fault.
>
>Bozo knew he might have pinched something. Needed boob to confirm.
>
>>Todd never did point any fingers with regards to what had caused the shift
>>fork to slip on the rail.  He tore it apart, fixed it, and brought it back
>>up.  The tranny was still "stiff", however.  It still wouldn't turn over
>>without using the clutch disc for leverage.
>>He drove off and I immediately proceeded to begin installing it.
>
>Boob still lacking time to do it right and willing to deliver anyway. Bozo
still inspecting and accepting and installing. Boob still adding value.
This boob is a sting artist. He was probably still using honesty as a ploy
as well, I'll wager.
>
>  For
>>reasons I can't remember, I decided to remove the nosecone again.  Voila!
>>The tranny was no longer stiff.  When I reinstalled the nosecone, the
>>tranny tightened up again.  WTF?  How come a veteran ACVW transaxle builder
>>couldn't figure this one out, yet it took me only about ten minutes to
>>stumble upon it?
>
>Why does a Bozo hire a boob if he can do things better himself?
>
>>If you got your Haynes, Muir, or Bentley available, you will notice that
>>there are two large bearings in the front of the gear carrier.  One of
>>these-- the large one with the flange-- was protruding ever so slightly
>>from the carrier housing that when I bolted the nosecone on, it would apply
>>force to the outer bearing race (thereby increasing friction and causing
>>the tranny to feel "tight").
>
>Sometimes a tranny can take on the characteristic of the Bozo who owns it.
>
>>I hopped in the car and chased after him (he was dropping another tranny
>>off a few miles away) and managed to catch him going the other direction
>>onto the main bridge leading out of Vancouver.  I frantically turned the
>>car around and chased after him but I never did catch up to him.  I wasn't
>>about to chase him all the way into the USA...
>
>Bozo goes for a Bus ride but does not follow up and confirm exile of boob
from country.
>
>>Anyway, I called him up that night and we discussed a possible solution:
>>get some gasket paper (1/32") and make another nosecone-to-gear carrier
>>gasket to create the necessary "clearance" to prevent the nosecone from
>>pressing on the large flanged bearing.  It worked, or at least I thought it
>>did.
>
>Bozo thinking again, but it sounds like it 'couda been hopin'. Boob still
adding value.
>
>>I installed the tranny, but by this time it was October (of '98) and I
>>still hadn't finished building my motor yet.  The car sat for eight months
>>before the engine went in and I was able to drive the car.
>
>Time for project completion not an issue to Bozo.
>
>>Immediately, I noticed a slight gear whine in third gear and a slightly
>>louder one in 4th.  After all the trouble I've had in the last eight
>>months, coupled with the fact that I had *finally* been able to drive my
>>car after five long years of construction, I decided that it wasn't worth
>>tearing everything apart to solve what I thought was simply a noisy bearing
>>in the tranny.  I wanted to drive my car...
>
>Bozo accepts his work by assuption. If it goes wrong, he can always blame
the boob.
>
>>The car drove fine after that, up until January of this year.  Then that
>>whine I mentioned grew into a very quiet ticking sound.  Ticking led to
>>clicking, which led to clacking.  Clacking eventually let way to clanking,
>>with the occasional clunking sound.  This all occurred over a period of
>>less than 30 miles of actual driving.  Then it started experiencing severe
>>shifting problems.
>
>Bozo accepts mounting evident of failure and continues to drive to make
sure. How do you blame the boob for this if he can't reach your pedal to
hit the brake?
>
>  During that final drive home it sounded like I was grinding
>>gravel inside my tranny.  It would even stall out sometimes while waiting
>>at traffic lights and it would crank over very slowly.  Yikes!
>
>The Bozo creed: If some is good then more is better and too much is just
enough. (Pellow, HPC Research, but he called Bozos turkey necks.)
>
>>Bad weather, laziness, and a lack of funds ended up causing a four month
>>hiatus.  The tranny finally came out about six weeks ago, but a good used
>>3.88:1 ring & pinion was three weeks away via UPS.  The builder had the
>>tranny for two weeks and I just installed it last weekend.  He discovered a
>>whole bunch of problems with my tranny that could only be blamed on the
>>incompetence of Todd Hill.
>
>Suggest that all the problems rest with the Bozo who accepted the work
with obvious problems, several times.
>
>"the tranny was stiff, but that it would break in over time".
>>Furthermore, no qualified ACVW transaxle rebuilder would suggest making up
>>a thicker gasket to compensate for the protruding flanged bearing.  At
>>least no honest one would.
>
>Boob provided much boobness in work. Bozo noted non spec evidence (too
tight, obviously) and accepted work with assurance of boob. If boob is a
rip off, why did he put so much extra effort into the tranny after he had
the Bozo's money? If just doesn't make sence to this ape.
>
>>I corresponded with Todd once or twice between the moment I installed the
>>tranny back in October '98 and June of '99.  Shortly after that, however,
>>he told me he was moving back east to Cincinnati, Ohio to be closer to his
>>father in-law.
>
>Boob is still not hiding? If he's a rip off, he's not a very smart one.
>
>  When I presented him
>>with my final ultimatum on May 9 regarding what I believe he owes me for
>>crappy workmanship, I *finally* got a bounce back from his email account.
>>Sometime between Feb 1 and May 9 his AOL account was closed.
>
>After several inspections and compromises by Bozo, he finally claims foul,
serves ultimatum showing sins of the boob, and their value, and accepts
there is nothing he could have done to mitigate the damages. Sorry, this
ape ain't buying it.
>
>>So that's it.  Todd Hill owes me $225 Cdn (plus taxes) for a "good used"
>>replacement ring & pinion gear set.  He also owes me $200 Cdn for labour to
>>rebuilt my tranny, and $50 Cdn in miscellaneous parts (like new 1st and 2nd
>>gear hubs, synchros, and a few bearings).
>
>Only if the Bozo can both prove it in court before a MukMuk ape, and
collect the judgement.
>
>>That's the story.  Not much to update on my website because of this
>>setback.
>
>Be sure to add some damages for all setbacks suffered due to boob? You
won't have to prove it till you ask the MukMuk and can claim anything you
want till then.
>
> The moral?  DON'T BUY ANY TRANSAXLE FROM TODD HILL.
>
>Revisited: Don't buy any transaxles from boobs, more especially if you are
a Bozo.
>
>>James W. Lindsay
>
>Don't know if James wrote this and David passed it on or vice versa but
your both Bozo's, and Mr. Hill is a boob. I am 3/4 Bozo and 1/4 boob.
That's how I know how to tell them apart. Accept that all of us are apes.
It will loosen your sphincter and all the shit will fall out and you will
feel much better, refreshed. Have you ever considered the concept of Zen?
When you cast flames in public you are gonna' get wet. There are apes out
here like me surely within range of your shotgun approach. Your Bozo's
throwing flames at a boob. And I'm just a fellow ape with a firehose.
>
>There's no boobfraud here I can see, no malice aforethought to get a
windfall off a stupid Bozo. When a boob gives so much value added gratis,
there's no more time/money left for the work, to do it right everytime, and
certainly nothin' left as a windfall taken with malice. The boob was just
too kind with giving his time away, consequently, the business needs for
earned profit were not met. So the boob is a business bust. And you bought
what you inspected and paid for. And it was wrong on it's face, and was
junk, that's why your a Bozo. Climb on the bus with the rest of us Bozos.
It's a lot more fun than casting stones at the wrong target and missing by
a mile.
>
>Learn from your mistakes or repeat them as you will. That's the way me and
every ape I know do it. We learned it from our ancestors the Neanderthals.
It's a long lived tradition.
>
>T.P. Stephens, <doktortim@rockisland.com>
>Feedback appreciated, good, bad or ugly.
T.P. Stephens
San Juan Island, WA