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What did YOU do today?


Rick W

Lil Big Rig
Supporting Member
Truck of Month
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Joined
May 15, 2020
Messages
3,481
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6,248
Age
69
Location
Atlanta
Vehicle Year
1997 1987
Make / Model
Ranger XLT x2
Engine Type
4.0 V6
Engine Size
4.0 & 2.9
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
97 stock, 3” on 87
Total Drop
N/A
Tire Size
235/75-15
My credo
Never put off ‘til tomorrow what you can put off indefinitely
went out for some last minute shopping, needed a few other things that Id rather buy now than during the holiday break. Stopped at tsc for some pine shavings (chicken house) saw a nice bird feeder at the clearance area , thought “why not”- $5. of course grabbed a 35# bag of bird seed. next was harbour freight, rural king, meijers, got gas washed my escape & headed home. Wrapped my last minute gift , had dinner then went out to the garage to put some of the other stuff away. went looking for the bird feeder & its no where to be found. no tsc bag even. damn. got to thinking about it & the cart I used was one of those flatbed stlye you can easily load bedding, feed on. Had a small basket on the back. And thats where I put the bird feeder, in the bag-with the receipt. and its after 7. they closed at 7. Rural king has similar carts & I picked up 2 40# bags of chicken feed & $120+ worth of heavy carheart shirts for work wear. It just so happened the rural king cart had its small basket broke off so I had to carry the bag of shirts. Good thing I guess, Id rather lose a $5 bird feeder than over $100 in carheart shirts! Did happen to have a older bird feeder on hand. guess thats good or Id be mixing bird seed in with the chicken feed.
A couple thoughts. I took a few returns to Home Depot a couple days ago. There was a guy standing in the exit area, and a couple people before me. After the first one, the gal turned around and told him he was standing in the wrong place. So he came around and stood behind me. I told him to go ahead, he was there first. I know what the SOB was thinking, this gray old man will never make it if I get in front of him. But when my turn came, I insisted. He turned around and said merry Christmas.

Then I had to run down to Lowe’s to get some double-sided gorilla tape that they didn’t have at Home Depot. I parked near the exit, because I knew it was right down one of those aisles, and then I went to where the returns are handled because it’s right there, and I knew I could pay and not have to walk halfway across the city to get to the cash registers. This time there was a guy in front of me with a bunch of stuff to return, and I had my gorilla tape. The gal asked me if I was returning something and I said no, I’ve just got bad legs and I don’t want to walk to the other end. Then, the guy who was in front of me, probably thinking about this white haired SOB will never make it, told me to go ahead. We wished each other a merry Christmas.

It actually happened a third time, I’ll spare you.

It all reminded me about five years ago, when I got a flat tire driving one of those Lincoln town cars on the interstate. I was moving slow, but I had it under control. Then this 45 year-old snot nose, pulled up behind me, and changed my tire for me. I was thinking, SOB, you don’t change tires for me, I change tires for you when you’re broken down! But I really did appreciate it.

Here’s my point. It’s been crazy times, but people are still basically good, and I believe things are about to pick up considerably.When they open in the morning, give them a call. I’ll bet they still have it, someone brought it back in, knowing that someone forgot it. I don’t know how far away it is, but at least you can get it back. I’ll even say a prayer for it.

And, BTW, Merry Christmas!
 

scotts90ranger

Well-Known Member
RBV's on Boost
Joined
Feb 28, 2001
Messages
9,049
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5,932
Location
Dayton Oregon
Vehicle Year
1990, 1997
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Type
2.3 (4 Cylinder)
Engine Size
2.3 Turbo
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
6
Tire Size
35"
Spent most of the day dealing with the auction stuff from yesterday... Turns out the tractor with two forklifts my brother got has almost no clutch left, I had to push the top of the tire to get over the bump on the trailer ramps... that and it's a dang heavy mofo! We loaded it how looked balanced to me but it's hard to tell, should have looked at the air bag gauge... I think it only had a couple hundred pounds of extra tongue weight and for a 10k pound (estimated) tractor that ain't enough...

Conveniently with the blown clutch they're even available on Amazon, the tractor is an International 584 and looks to be one of the simpler tractors to split. All of the hydraulics do work which is nice, it doesn't have the side shift hooked up for the front mast but the cylinder is there so maybe we'll have to add that...

The second air compressor I got looks to be gently used and is apparently from 2021 and apparently is fairly spendy... It's a North Star with a 5hp motor and 3 cylinder single stage pump from the looks of it.

Annoyingly the cheap stereo I put in my F350 is dead, it wouldn't turn out a few days ago and we pulled it out today and the fuse was blown so we put another in and then there was some ozone smell... will investigate further later...
 

Rick W

Lil Big Rig
Supporting Member
Truck of Month
TRS Event Participant
TRS 25th Anniversary
Joined
May 15, 2020
Messages
3,481
Reaction score
6,248
Age
69
Location
Atlanta
Vehicle Year
1997 1987
Make / Model
Ranger XLT x2
Engine Type
4.0 V6
Engine Size
4.0 & 2.9
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
97 stock, 3” on 87
Total Drop
N/A
Tire Size
235/75-15
My credo
Never put off ‘til tomorrow what you can put off indefinitely
Go to the pull apart and get some kind of cool shifter, like Hurst or eight ball…
 

alwaysFlOoReD

Forum Staff Member
TRS Forum Moderator
TRS Banner 2012-2015
TRS 20th Anniversary
Joined
Apr 13, 2009
Messages
14,598
Reaction score
6,008
Location
Airdrie, Alberta, Canada
Vehicle Year
'06, '11
Make / Model
Dodge, Ford
Engine Type
3.0 V6
Engine Size
5.7, 3.0
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Back when shifter handles had threads on them, I would drill and tap pool balls for shifter nobs. Could probably glue them on nowadays.
 

Maritime Drag Racing

Well-Known Member
V8 Engine Swap
Joined
Jul 2, 2019
Messages
176
Reaction score
1,103
Location
Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Vehicle Year
1987
Make / Model
Ford Ranger
Engine Type
V8
Engine Size
355 Chevrolet
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
2WD
Total Lift
0
Total Drop
2" drop rear shackles
Tire Size
27 X 5 X 15 Hoosier front - 9X30 Goodyear rear(slicks)
My credo
Race it - Break it - Fix it - Repeat
Got my Maritime Motorsports Hall of Fame 2024 Inductee "bling" today. Don't really feel like I deserve it but I will gladly take the recognition for the small part I play in this sport.

MMHOF1.jpg

MMHOF2.jpg
 

racsan

Well-Known Member
TRS 20th Anniversary
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Joined
Aug 17, 2007
Messages
5,366
Reaction score
5,670
Location
central ohio
Vehicle Year
2009
Make / Model
ford/escape
Engine Type
2.5 (4 Cylinder)
Engine Size
2.5/151 I-4
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
2WD
Tire Size
235/70/16
My credo
the grey-t escape
Last day of work before the holiday, Im not going to know what day it is for awhile, Im off tomorrow & wednesday, work thursday, off fri/sat/sun, work monday off tues /wed again, work thursday then off until monday. Crazy. Not that Id want 2 weeks straight off, sure its nice- until you go back to work & havent for awhile.
On a good note , since the wife was off I had her call tsc & see if the left-behind bird feeder was found & it was indeed, right where I forgot about it. So I did get that took care of, or rather she did. My nebulizor came today too, feels like I need to try that out. still coming out of last weeks flu & the coughing & asthma dont play together well.
 

SenorNoob

Well-Known Member
TRS Event Participant
TRS 25th Anniversary
Joined
Oct 24, 2012
Messages
3,557
Reaction score
1,582
Location
Middle Tennessee
Vehicle Year
1988
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Type
4.0 V6
Engine Size
4.0
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
1.5" Front + 4" Rear
Tire Size
245-70-R16
That sounds like my schedule. Unfortunately we got everything the boss wanted done for six days finished today. We were going to work Monday, Thursday, and Friday both weeks.
 

scotts90ranger

Well-Known Member
RBV's on Boost
Joined
Feb 28, 2001
Messages
9,049
Reaction score
5,932
Location
Dayton Oregon
Vehicle Year
1990, 1997
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Type
2.3 (4 Cylinder)
Engine Size
2.3 Turbo
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
6
Tire Size
35"
Just kinda screwed around tonight after work... I pulled the compressor head off the compressor that was hard to turn, after a little cleanup and draining the gross goo out of the crankcase I pulled the bottom cover off and I found the issue... the lack of oil screwed up the big end of one of the rods... it's just aluminum and it just looks like there's aluminum stuck to the crank, I found a rod on ebay for $40, I have some muriatic acid which apparently is the way to get the aluminum off the crank so I think I'm just gonna give it a shot... Aside from needing a pressure switch I think I can get this thing going for just over $100 so I can sell it off and get it out of my hair...
 

scotts90ranger

Well-Known Member
RBV's on Boost
Joined
Feb 28, 2001
Messages
9,049
Reaction score
5,932
Location
Dayton Oregon
Vehicle Year
1990, 1997
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Type
2.3 (4 Cylinder)
Engine Size
2.3 Turbo
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
6
Tire Size
35"
I took way too long to test the motor on the smaller compressor but it does work! Got the crankshaft out of the compressor head and it has less aluminum on it than I thought at first look, the rod is FRIED but the crank looks salvageable... I ordered more gaskets so I'll end up with an extra set for the top end, the one for the crank plate thing tore and I don't feel like making one and might as well change the one for the oil pan/plate while in there...

The wiring took a bit since I scrounged through my wiring pile and found an extension cord that had reasonable ends, on the molded end the ground wire had no continuity so glad I checked with the volt meter before trusting it... then had to steal the end I had put on the plasma cutter so I could plug into my welder plug... but once I move the good compressor to the shed I can use this cord to power the compressor so it's not for naught...
 

Rick W

Lil Big Rig
Supporting Member
Truck of Month
TRS Event Participant
TRS 25th Anniversary
Joined
May 15, 2020
Messages
3,481
Reaction score
6,248
Age
69
Location
Atlanta
Vehicle Year
1997 1987
Make / Model
Ranger XLT x2
Engine Type
4.0 V6
Engine Size
4.0 & 2.9
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
97 stock, 3” on 87
Total Drop
N/A
Tire Size
235/75-15
My credo
Never put off ‘til tomorrow what you can put off indefinitely
A few days ago, I warmed up the Lincoln to figure out where the antifreeze was leaking out. It was the hose to the heater control valve. There was a pinhole right at the clamp, the clamp was one of those skinny cheap clamps, and I could tell it was tightened way too much. And I’m 99% sure I’m the idiot who did that!

Actually, not the heater control valve, it’s an incredibly poorly designed interlock that won’t turn the fan on inside the car till the antifreeze running through the system is hot enough. As the antifreeze heats up, that little valve works like a thermostat and starts to open. It doesn’t stop the antifreeze from circulating, it just pushes a bar as the antifreeze warms up. The bar has a little slot in it so that when it moves far enough, the bar will slide across the ends of two vacuum lines, allowing the vacuum to pass from one to the other. I would’ve done it the exact same way if I was hanging by my ankles upside down on the backside of the moon and I only had Martian parts to work with. It’s a constant source of leaking vacuum, so a couple years ago I just completely bypassed it and I just hold off flipping the fan on high till I drive a couple minutes.

I looked all around for two days for a replacement hose. I wanted the car for the Christmas holidays. Well, no new hose in the city of Atlanta, not even the big parts warehouse that’s down by the airport. The good news is, I could still order it online, but amazingly it will take over two weeks to get it. At 36 years old, it’s starting to happen more and more. I used to be able to get all the mechanical parts without issue, but God forbid you broke a window motor or something on the dashboard or such.

I did order the new hose. In the meantime, I reverted to my teenage street smarts, and I just cut about 3/4 of an inch off the end of the hose on the car, slid it up, and put a correct hose clamp on it. Worked like a charm.

Why do I suspect that the new hose will end up in the trunk of the car, for installation at a randomtime in the future…

IMG_3484.jpeg


Merry Christmas folks
 
Last edited:

Maritime Drag Racing

Well-Known Member
V8 Engine Swap
Joined
Jul 2, 2019
Messages
176
Reaction score
1,103
Location
Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada
Vehicle Year
1987
Make / Model
Ford Ranger
Engine Type
V8
Engine Size
355 Chevrolet
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
2WD
Total Lift
0
Total Drop
2" drop rear shackles
Tire Size
27 X 5 X 15 Hoosier front - 9X30 Goodyear rear(slicks)
My credo
Race it - Break it - Fix it - Repeat
Spent the morning making a load of potato salad and cooking a enormous ham for the annual Christmas eve feast at our Grand-daughter's house and a visit with the great-grandkids.
 

scotts90ranger

Well-Known Member
RBV's on Boost
Joined
Feb 28, 2001
Messages
9,049
Reaction score
5,932
Location
Dayton Oregon
Vehicle Year
1990, 1997
Make / Model
Ford
Engine Type
2.3 (4 Cylinder)
Engine Size
2.3 Turbo
Transmission
Manual
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
6
Tire Size
35"
So far I've picked up at least most of the lumber I should need to build the loft in the shop and it's now in the shop which is kinda annoying but it's raining so it would be best to keep dry...
 

Robertmangrum.rm

Wannabe Overlander
TRS Event Staff
Article Contributor
RBV's on Boost
VAGABOND
TRS Event Participant
GMRS Radio License
Joined
Mar 8, 2021
Messages
1,717
Reaction score
2,428
Age
49
Location
Tennessee
Vehicle Year
2020
Make / Model
Ford Ranger
Engine Type
2.3 EcoBoost
Transmission
Automatic
2WD / 4WD
4WD
Total Lift
2.5 level kit with rear add a leaf appox. 1.5
Tire Size
285/75r17
My credo
Buy it, build it, and drive it like you stole it
Well why I was at my dad's today I looked at the Areostar. It's actually a 98 awd. The 4.0 is locked up. It's probably been sitting for over 15 years. The frame is probably too gone to salvage. While I was there though. He has a 93 Ranger. It also has a 4.0 and a solid frame. It's been hit in the rear end and totaled. So I don't know if the frame is straight. Also I beleive it's the Cologne 4.0 and I think the Areostar is the Vulcan 4.0. OK question time. If the frame is straight on the Ranger (super cab) do you guys think it would be possible to swap the body off the Areostar to the Ranger? Or am I going down a rabbit hole that will never finish. With all that said. There is also a 84 turbo coupe and a 86 Cougar XR7 with a 5.0 ho. I think both ran when parked. I bought the Cougar for a parts car when I wrecked mine. It transmission was out so I picked it up back in the 90s for a couple hundred bucks. The Turbo Coupe was hit by a drunk driver in the passenger door when I was a kid. Probably be in the same boat as the van motor. But if you guys wete building the van which engine would you use?
 

Uncle Gump

Boomers gotta Boom
TRS Event Staff
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Supporting Member
VAGABOND
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TRS 25th Anniversary
Joined
Sep 17, 2018
Messages
15,309
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15,994
Location
Ottawa IL
Vehicle Year
2006/1986
Make / Model
Ranger/BroncoII
Engine Size
4.0L SOHC/2.9L
2WD / 4WD
4WD
My credo
Lead follow or get out of my way
All 4.0L were Colognes.

I would try to repair the Aerostar before i tried to swap body onto the Ranger frame.
 

Uncle Gump

Boomers gotta Boom
TRS Event Staff
TRS Forum Moderator
Supporting Member
VAGABOND
TRS Event Participant
TRS 25th Anniversary
Joined
Sep 17, 2018
Messages
15,309
Reaction score
15,994
Location
Ottawa IL
Vehicle Year
2006/1986
Make / Model
Ranger/BroncoII
Engine Size
4.0L SOHC/2.9L
2WD / 4WD
4WD
My credo
Lead follow or get out of my way
I scared the hell out of my grand babies...

IMG_20241224_165552.jpg
 

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