Sunday, October 4, 2020

Wait.... 4 October?

 Where are the weeks going??


my calendar

 

Last post almost a month ago, and it seemed like just last week.  What a ride this year has been so far.

Wheee! AAAARRRRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!

 

Projects:

1999 Suburban: 5.7 Vortec, 100K miles, base unit, factory options: no carpet, crank windows, dual a/c.  Simple and rugged.  Right after I paid for it and got it home, it quit starting.  It would try, then quit.  Original owner could start it right up.  I figured it was in love with him.

busted ear on cap let in moisture

rotor didn't like the atmosphere either


Every plug had the same gap,  0.125"!!

It started and ran for a bit, but the next morning it was back to it's tricks.  After replacing the coil, it ran good... Next morning, it was acting up.  Couldn't find my fuel pressure gauge, so now I have a missing one and a new one.  Pressure is good.  New spider is going in soon, as is a new ignition controller.

The real McCoy

So I'm still using the 94 Toyota pickup with the 22RE.  Crank windows, 5 speed standard, no a/c, Armstrong steering.  It's been a Godsend this summer.  And I don't even need a sweat lodge for purification!!

Kenmore 253.22042410: Freezer started moaning the other day.  It's too new to do that, and too old to be in warranty.  Only one fan in it, so "one day" a new fan motor.  Found the bottom of the partition in the back frozen solid, so no air could get in.  The fan was moving the rotor around in the near vacuum, and I guess rubbing on the bearing.  Clean, deice, and reinstall / reload the freezer and it's quiet like it should be.  New fan motor in the box for when it fails for the reals.

I've been a house mouse for a while now, getting the honey do's did.  No honey though, just chores.  

Oh, and spent some quality time on the wire wheel with the die wrench!  The knurling is still sharp enough to grab back, like a good handshake.

 

looks like a browned black powder rifle

I just managed to get the handle off, still need to brush the threads down, and do inside the ring where the die goes.  But man, that is pretty isn't it?  Still have a ways to go.  Phil, this rust just goes so far... Then it works like a cocoon.  It protects the part rather than just eating it up like salt spray rust does.

Tomorrow is a doctor appointment to see the MRI, EEG, CAT, EIEIO shows any issues with the pudding in my head.  It seems it's never ending.  I hope his kids don't ruin all that dental work I'm helping with.

It's looking like I may NEED to have a second job.  And I may have a line on one.  I will know more this week.  I'm afraid November 2020 through 2021 is gonna be uglier than the first 10 months of 2020.  I hope I'm wrong....

Happy New Year, 3 months early!



8 comments:

  1. I had an '73 Datsun pickup that would start running rough if you mumbled the word "moisture" near the distributor cap.
    Hmmm. Distributor cap. I haven't spoken that word in a long time. Just for giggles I'm going to say, "points and rotor."

    Take care of yourself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Doctor was encouraged. He said it appears everything that I'm working through is minor. And maybe one day, wake up and the limitations are gone. We'll see.

      Thanks for stopping by. I can't tell you how encouraging your comments are. I don't want to seem needy or hook for comments, but knowing you are reading my scribbling is intrinsic encouragement.

      Delete
  2. You are a handy fellow STxAR!

    Hopefully the second job comes through.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "If women can't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy." I live by that motto.

      Delete
  3. Phil has a couple of cars he can tell you many stories about .....

    Back in the old days, I swore by silicone spray to protect the cap, coil and wires from moisture.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Phil has... a gift. I have never seen anyone with that kind of luck. Hopefully I won't give him a run for his money....

      Delete
  4. I've been lucky. Buying that early seventies Fiat 850 on a whim started a love/hate or was it hate/hate/love relationship with that car that taught me a bunch.
    The biggest lesson was don't ever buy a Fiat, and the other lesson was that convertibles look good in the advertising, but a convertible just isn't what you want for everyday driving.

    The only other bad car was a gasoline VW Rabbit.
    That experience taught me that even a company with a normally good reputation can crank out the occasional lemon.
    A very long time after getting rid of the car I found out that VW had started a Rabbit factory somewhere and there were a lot of teething problems. If I remember right, our car was part of the problem run.
    When I worked as an Immigration Inspector the occasional VW engineer would pass through my line. I'd casually mentioned that I'd once owned a VW, they would get excited and ask which one, and when I said I had a VW Rabbit they would look down and mumble and apology.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Contrition for a poor job is good. I remember driving a diesel Rabbit with a broken window in a really cold winter trip. It ran like a top.

      I can't imagine their chagrin when a uniformed officer says I owned something you didn't get right.

      Delete