What did YOU do today?

[scotts90ranger]

Ok, I lied, I actually got something done until I ran out of daylight... I jumped on the tractor and moved dirt that I'd previously worked up with the tiller at the pond... since I already had the box scraper on I pulled the dirt off the top of the berm to lower it like I wanted and put it at the corner that was sketchy on the tractor while I was tilling then the bulk of the dirt I got from just scraping the bottom of the pond into a pile then moved that to some holes on the outside of the pond that I've nearly gotten the tractor stuck in before, then while I was on a roll I took the 8' orchard scraper thing (two adjustable angle plates 3' apart) and flattened out the piles I'd made in those holes, now it's way nicer in a few spots... re reading that it's a lot of blabbing incoherently, I'll see about pictures tomorrow or Monday...

Now I'll just go fiddle fart around the shop for a bit and come inside again for the night

 

[Rick W]

I gave up fiddle farting around trying to restore the clearcoat on the cap on Big Red. I could’ve probably gotten it 90 or 95% OK, but there were some bad marks where it was easy to see. Truck paint is near perfect.

You’ll never guess what I did. I sanded the whole thing, good job on the sides and the back, just functional up on the roof, and I painted it with sunrise red rust oleum. I’ve used that color to touch up a half a dozen dings I’ve gotten over the years, and if I just feather it a tiny little bit with a fine brush it’s almost invisible.

I did a really good job on the sides, and I used a fine foam roller with a technique. I’ve developed over decades. After the first coat, I used a half inch nap roller on the roof, just to get the color to match and get a very good thick coat quickly. With some texture. It was 90°, clear and low humidity today, so it got pretty well set after a few hours. Then I went back out and did a doubly good final coat on the sides. Unless it needs another final final coat when I look at it.

I put it out front with the masking still on it since I had to get the Road Ranger coupled up and ready for caffeine and octane tomorrow. I’ll have before during and after pictures of the F250 tomorrow or Monday.

As close as the paint is, my only teeny concern is that with the whole cap being the sunrise red, it will be too noticeable. Not that I care that much, but it’s a pretty nice truck. My solution will most likely be some little graphics and pinstripes if it’s too far off.

As promised:

If guys like us really look at it, the color red is just a tiny hair off. If you weren’t looking for it, I doubt you would ever notice. Suits the hell out of me.

I have a couple little places where the Red got under the masking tape or I went a little past it on the black trim. That should come off with a little gas/diesel mix today.

There are also two little spots, about the size of a silver dollar, where the paper masking blew up from the wind and touched the side of the paint. I’ll deal with that today or tomorrow as well.

Then I just did a walk around for what’s next on the to do list.

Oh oh. What’s wrong with this picture?

It never ends…

 

[broncc]

So.. gotta drive all rEsPoNsIbLe until I can get that done. Booooooo!

I'm getting wayyy too good at clutch jobs. A month ago I did my slave cylinder with a timer running. It was almost exactly three hours. If I wasn't checking my phone and had a little more optimal tool choice I suspect I could do it in 2:30.

I'm not sure what your tool setup looks like, but if you could benefit from saving the money DIY isn't bad. I don't even use a transmission jack.

 

[pentode]

My Ranger likes doing truck things so went to pick up a snowblower that wife's coworker was going to send to the dump. Had a work tag on it from a shop in 2011 saying "won't start". They weren't able to get it running so it's been sitting outdoors in their yard 13 years.

Had it running in 15 minutes.

 

[SenorNoob]

What did you have to do it? Gas, spark plug, and spray through the carb?

 

[Rick W]

My Ranger likes doing truck things so went to pick up a snowblower that wife's coworker was going to send to the dump. Had a work tag on it from a shop in 2011 saying "won't start". They weren't able to get it running so it's been sitting outdoors in their yard 13 years.

Had it running in 15 minutes.

View attachment 116487

Is that why there’s no snow in that picture?

 

[pentode]

What did you have to do it? Gas, spark plug, and spray through the carb?

I took the plug out- it was carbon fouled. Cleaned that with a brush, sprayed a bit of wd40 down the hole and checked for spark, which there was. Checked for compression with my thumb. . Checked for fuel getting to carb, which there wasn’t. Fuel lines are badly rotted but removing air/fuel mix screw got some fuel into the bowl, at which point it fired right up. Carburetor is badly gummed up, I’ll have to rebuild it tomorrow. The whole machine will need a once over, belts, tires, paint, oil change, but at least I know it’s worth saving now.

 

[pentode]

Is that why there’s no snow in that picture?

If you think it’s silly to get your snowblower running before Labor Day, you’ve obviously never lived in Canada.

 

[holyford86]

Went wheeling with some friends, which was mostly just me pushing rocks around with my d35, haha.

 

[holyford86]

If you think it’s silly to get your snowblower running before Labor Day, you’ve obviously never lived in Canada.

I'm in almost Canada and have one repaired and for sale currently, haha.

 

[Rick W]

If you think it’s silly to get your snowblower running before Labor Day, you’ve obviously never lived in Canada.

I could joke around and say “what is snow?” I’ve heard about it, and I’ve looked up in the convertible, but I’ve never seen any…

I was raised in New Jersey and went to college and upstate New York, so I really do know what snow is. The reason you visit college in the summertime is if you knew what it was like in the winter you’d never go there.

But I do have a funny story from when I was in Africa. The guys working in the plant had seen snow on the ground in pictures, but when you told them it fell from the sky in white flakes, they would laugh and say “the bwana is so funny!” I don’t mean anything mean or prejudicial, but it was like wonder woman in the movie, the first time you see it it’s magical if you’ve never seen it before.

But I will live with my memories, and I’ll leave it to you guys to shovel it and blow it

 

[pentode]

I could joke around and say “what is snow?” I’ve heard about it, and I’ve looked up in the convertible, but I’ve never seen any…

I was raised in New Jersey and went to college and upstate New York, so I really do know what snow is. The reason you visit college in the summertime is if you knew what it was like in the winter you’d never go there.

But I do have a funny story from when I was in Africa. The guys working in the plant had seen snow on the ground in pictures, but when you told them it fell from the sky in white flakes, they would laugh and say “the bwana is so funny!” I don’t mean anything mean or prejudicial, but it was like wonder woman in the movie, the first time you see it it’s magical if you’ve never seen it before.

But I will live with my memories, and I’ll leave it to you guys to shovel it and blow it

I knew you were kidding around. . I don't think Buffalo is exempt yet but I'm afraid Jersey isn't going to see many more white Christmases going forward.
Whereabouts in Africa were you? I've always wanted to spend some time there but it seems complicated depending on where you're trying to go.

 

[CamTheHedgehog]

Crammed myself in a standard cab ranger for like 10 hours with a 4yo and loved every minute of it.

View attachment 116431

Out of curiosity, knowing you are also in Iowa and knowing the distance…

Did you drive to LBL already?

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Out of curiosity, knowing you are also in Iowa and knowing the distance…

Did you drive to LBL already?

Running the Kentucky Adventure Trail for a couple days first.

Near Stanton Kentucky tonight

 

[Rick W]

I knew you were kidding around. . I don't think Buffalo is exempt yet but I'm afraid Jersey isn't going to see many more white Christmases going forward.
Whereabouts in Africa were you? I've always wanted to spend some time there but it seems complicated depending on where you're trying to go.

In Jersey, after a few moments, the snow was gray and piled up on the sides of the road, mountains of slush

My brother set me up to visit when he was plant manager for Colgate Palmolive in Ndola in Zambia. I’m not saying anything prejudice, but it was an agricultural community with no knowledge of machinery. From my work in the hardware store and fiddling with cars and following my father with real estate, after the three day Christmas party, I went into the plant, and I got several machines working that hadn’t been working in a while.

Colgate made me an offer on the spot, and I stayed for nine months, and then I went to Tehran, Iran for three months before I came home and finished my last semester of college.

To your question, I worked in Ndola, But I saw Victoria Falls in Livingston, I travel to Nairobi and Mombasa in Kenya, and Cairo, Egypt on my way to Iran. Of course that was 3000 years ago when the shah was in charge.

Absolutely changed my life and my perspective. One of the big challenges with Americans is they think everything is like we have it here. It is actually America that is very different, very exceptional.

My career has always been international, but I say this from the heart and I say this very sternly. I would not go back to those places now. It is a different world.

I went when if you dreamed of touching the hair on American head, you would pay the consequences. Not that way anymore.