Geoff
Bush engineering, it's what I grew up with. My father used to make and fix everything, and so from a young age I saw all sorts of things being repaired.
Dad would often have to weld up the axles of his Land Rover as they were always breaking. Now that I think about it however, these repairs would always happen straight after one of my older brothers had borrowed it.
The repairs themselves always involved chamfering back the edges, so the weld would go right to the centre of the shaft to make it solid all the way through.
Dad also had this thing for sidevalve engines, so our family cars were old Hudsons. That always involved us having several more of them lying around for spares.
I would regularly be a spectator in the workshop, often to be dragged into being the gopher. I quickly learnt the difference between "hand me a 1/2" AF ring" and "no bugger you, not a bloody 1/2" Whitworth"
The Hudson sidevalve motor would always be doing head gaskets, a fundamental flaw in their design but it gave me repeated opportunities to see the insides of engines.
Ironically Dads favorite Hudson would end up being his 57 Hornet which had an over head valve V8.
Having been around first my Dad and then older brothers, who between them could do quite a bit around the old workshop, I found myself looking forward to secondary school which was a Technical College that focused on the trades, and from there I managed to find employment within a fabrication workshop that did a lot of custom type work in both mild & stainless steel. I did my Apprenticeship with them where I became qualified as a sheetmetal worker.
I changed companies over the years gaining a diversity of experience eventually being promoted to Foreman with some firms. These were good years when I did a lot of trail riding and entered a few Enduro's and also a bit of Motocross.
I quit everything in early '85 to take a trip to the USA with one of Steven Galls' tours. Eight weeks in California saw me come home more focused on riding. I made it my mission to ride Enduro's seriously. I put in a couple of good years but then I self destructed internally (Crohn's disease).
My focus then changed to work, I had registered GMC Geoff Morris Concepts in '85 although it wasn't until '91 that I went full time. I gained some more qualifications with a TIG welding certificate with endorsements in Cro-Mo, Stainless steel and Aluminium. I also gained my Advanced Certificate in Engineering.
GMC had started out working on normal fabrication work as well as motorcycle work, as the Vintage scene already had me building stuff through word of mouth. Eventually the motorcycle work overtook everything else, which worked out for the better for me as that is where my heart is.
My trade's experiences coupled with my racing experiences helps me understand what people are looking for, either in repairs or the manufacturing of frames and exhausts.
If you would like my help with your individual project, you can contact me via the information in the Contact Us link.
