A troubling Christmas - metal/mental related

I was just sent a cell phone picture of my two grandsons, five and seven, on their new Christmas present, an ATV.

I am very troubled by this, having expressed my feelings on this heretofore, and knowing that the strong willed son-in-law would do whatever the f*ck he wanted, thank you very much for your input months ago.

I broke my back two years ago on an ATV, and I'm an adult. I was doing something stupid, and got caught. But we ride in some very remote rough areas. We have since toned down our riding to just putt putt old fart stuff.

These two had a little electric John Deere atv that was even rated for children older than they were when they got it, four and two IIRC. They, and their Mom and Grandma, insisted that it was okay for both to ride at the same time, so one of the motors burned out recently, and that was all she wrote. In the meantime, they would not follow instructions on where or where not to ride, wearing helmets, or using the safety strap for the second rider. They were constantly getting stuck in places they were told not to ride.

My heart is heavy this Christmas.

Does anyone have any personal experiences with children and atvs and negative situations?

Statistics of major injuries and death across the country tell me that I am not being hysterical about this.

They are males, five and seven years old.

It is an internal combustion four stroke engine, not sure of the horsepower, but usually kids atvs are limited to 70cc, and even 50cc engines have 5 hp. Oh, and I was reminded that it has a governor, but that just means it is mostly in low gear where there is more torque.

Steve

Reply to
Steve B
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Geez, the real problem is the son in law, not the ATV. The newspapers are full of horror stories about this kind of stuff, I assume you can look these up online if you want to.

Jon

Reply to
Jon Elson

A suggestion. On your next visit, do a little reverse engenering on the machines. A small sheet metal screw in the carb, a little battery acid in the crank case, a ball bearing or two in the gear box.

Logic or stories of other kids tragedies will not be effective in convincing, but if the thing just doesn't seem to work right the problem might just go away.

Reply to
RS at work

I hear you on that - have a good friend that almost lost a grandson on an ATV - racing home with a friend - he turned and the steel post (drill pipe) knocked him over backwards. Lost spleen broken ribs, head, and pelvis. Just a real fast stop against a 4" pipe.

He is for the most part ok now. It took a year of prayer to get him that far.

Good luck.

Mart> I was just sent a cell phone picture of my two grandsons, five and seven, on

Reply to
Martin Eastburn

Just add abrasive dust to the fuel.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus4804

SIL is a police sergeant in a city with more than a million people. As I posted, I have been reading about this online since I got wind of this three months ago. Statistics are sad and voluminous. When something happens, it is usually bad.

This evening, the five year old pulled out his newest Christmas present, a Nerf multiple fire dart gun. The first thing he did was shot his brother in the face. On the gun it says AGES: 8+.

ATV manufacturers suggest 16 years of age on most safety placards on their machines.

I managed an "Oh, really" when notified of the news, given in the same tone of voice as a parent who's son had just made the local high school varsity football squad.

We'll see, and I wish them the best.

Steve

Reply to
Steve B

I would be more upset about the ATV than the nerf gun. Nerfs do not have the energy to do any damage and the projectiles are very soft and rounded. My kids have a nerf gun, getting shot in the face with one is not that big of a deal.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus4804

Well this is just about the stupidest thing I've ever heard. This goes way beyond "You'll shoot your eye out."

If you can't talk the parents into taking these things away outright, you can limit their power. Many years ago (early 1970s) Mitsubishi was importing mopeds. They were making too much horsepower to be legal for unlicenced use. A friend came up with a very simple fix:

He made an aluminum plug that fit tightly in the exhaust pipe, and drilled a 1/4" hole in it. Surprisingly, the engines ran fine, the mixture was fine and the power was limited just enough.

You'll probably want a much smaller hole - zero sounds like a good size.

Reply to
rangerssuck

I think he should let them run wild until they nominate themselves for the Darwin award.

Cheers! Rich

Reply to
Rich Grise

***************************************************************************= ***************** Gunner is right on this one, a gun is NOT A TOY. I grew up on a farm and I got my first BB gun when I was still riding a trike. By my sixth birthday my Dad and Mom got me a bolt action Stevens single shot .22. I was my Dad's bird dog on hunting trips and by the time I was six I had spent hundreds of hours alongside him in the fields. I was the oldest and only boy in the family and Dad could not handle all of the fieldwork on his own. The summer before I turned ten in September my Dad let me operate a tractor by myself in the same field he would be working in. Of course by that time I had ridden and operated a tractor for many hours with him by my side. This is AGAINST THE LAW now! In Nebraska the law says a farm kid has to be either 15 or 16 to operate farm equipment, I am not sure.

I would be more concerned with a young kid that is given a NERF GUN to play with instead of a BB gun or a real .22 rifle after hours of proper instruction.. Like the one poster mentioned the first thing that happened when the one kid got a NERF GUN was to shoot his brother in the face. That kid is will have to break poor habits that he learned by being given a TOY GUN. An ATV is going to teach these kids respect for machinery IF THEY HAVE A GOOD TEACHER. IIRC the OP was against the kids having an ATV because HE did something stupid on one and got hurt. he assumes his Grand Kids are stupid also. It sounds to me like maybe the S.I.L knows what he is doing with these kids. They may break a few bones and get skinned up but when they grow up they will have a huge advantage over the candy assed kids that had scaredy cat parents. A heavy dose of MYOB would be advised for this Grandparent.

DL

Reply to
TwoGuns

Methinks you don't understand the dangers inherent in riding a 4 wheeler . Further , you might have skipped over the part about the kids getting into places which put them in danger or where they were explicitly told NOT to go while on an electric model . This tells me that mom & dad aren't teaching/monitoring the boys as they should be . IMO Steve is rightfully concerned about the safety and well-being of his grandkids . I know in this situation I damn well would be !! Not that I overprotected my kids , but they were well supervised when they were doing things that could seriously injure them .

Reply to
Snag

Steve B wrote in rec.crafts.metalworking on Sat, 25 Dec 2010 12:31:59 -0800:

One idea: To get the kids to wear helmets, see if you can find a pair of helmets with a built in radio intercom. To use the intercom, they have to wear the helmet.

Another idea: Take the family to see a victim of a head injury. This may take some doing to find someone willing. A child of similar age would be best. It will have more effect on parents than kids.

Reply to
dan

Reply to
Glenn

C'mon, guys. Those are criminal acts, and if the father tries to get it covered under warranty, you can be sure to be prosecuted.

Dumb idea.

You spoke your mind, now live and let live.

-- Remember, in an emergency, dial 1911.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

We have BB guns, but only to be used under supervision.

i

Reply to
Ignoramus27085

Twelve years ago, I worked with a fellow who was in a similar situation. His grandkids had received new fourwheelers for their Christmas. They, three of them on two fourwheelers, ages from 6 to 8, were chasing each other on his front yard. They were so distracted in their play that BOTH drove right out into the street in front of a car. Killed all three. Parents were devastated but considered the driver of the car to have been in the wrong, because he killed their children. They shared none of the blame for giving their kids fourwheelers and allowing them to ride unsupervised next to a busy road. I sincerely hope that you never have to experience what my friend went through at the death of his grandkids.

Reply to
Gerry

I knew a young lady who decided that a helmet wasn't needed. She was my cousin. She was buried one week prior to her graduation from HS. The ATV she was driving flipped over and snapped her neck, killing her instantly.

Reply to
Steve W.

It's also a criminal act to allow operation of an ATV by children in many states. Most have 16 as the youngest legal age.

Reply to
Steve W.

That is Darwinism at work. It sounds cold but if the parents don't care enough to watch the kids then the lack of the kids may be better.

Reply to
Steve W.

This brought to mind that scene from "Pet Sematary." But I agree, it's the Darwin effect; I was just too chicken to say so before.

Thanks, Rich

Reply to
Rich Grise

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