Old guy at the gas station fixed my starter with a hammer

I was stuck at a Shell station off I-35 in San Antonio about 3 years ago. This older guy in a stained coverall walks over and asks if I tried tapping the starter. I laughed but he handed me a ball peen hammer and said give it one good hit. Truck fired right up and he just nodded and walked away. Has anyone else had random roadside help that actually worked?

2 comments

2 Comments

sammurray1mo ago

Ain't that just a bandaid fix though?

gavinhunt1mo ago

Right, it's totally a bandaid if you're just slapping it on the surface without fixing what's underneath. But sometimes a bandaid buys you time to actually get to the real problem without bleeding out in the process. You gotta stabilize the situation first before you can do any kind of serious surgery. So yeah, it's a bandaid, but bandsids are useful tools if you use them right. The trick is knowing when to take it off and actually deal with the wound.