Merry Christmas everyone!

Beautiful day out. Tiger and I are going to do some yardwork in the back until it's time for dinner. We're having Sonny's ribs.

Speaking of dinner, this morning Mom's microwave went tango uniform. She says it's been taking longer and longer to heat stuff and this morning it didn't do anything. It's gotta be at least 10 years old, likely older. I guess we'll be reheating our ribs in the oven.

Slept in this morning then went to Awful house. The parking lot was packed. The place inside was standing room only. I didn't even stop, just turned around and went back home. A lot of people plan a big meal for the evening then go to Awful house for breakfast/lunch/whatever while it's fixing. And a lot of people don't want to fix a big anything and go to Awful house for their holiday meal. And some people don't have anyone to celebrate with and just go there. You know I make fun of the Awful house sometimes, and it seems to be the butt of a lot of jokes. But there's something about that place, it comes down to you just can't beat it.

Okay gonna go outside. I'm not going to run the chainsaw or the shredder, just clip some branches and maybe dig a little. Hope everyone has a great day.

 

Mike - Good you didn't fire up the chainsaw. Had you fired it up around my place today I'd flick boogers on your windshield.

 

My thinking was I didn't want to make a lot of noise if the neighbors were going to have people over for Christmas. Turns out someone a couple houses down had a tree taken out, with saws and equipment running, and dumpsters slamming on the ground all day. Well, it wasn't me.

Is there such a thing to put on tree stumps to rot them out, or otherwise soften them so they can be dug out? I've got a couple that I won't be able to pull with the truck and I hate the idea of grinding them. And I don't want to wait 10 years for them to break down naturally. I suppose I could pile some debris around them and burn them out.

 

A "dead" tree stump is an excellent candidate for two methods:

(1) Drill numerous large holes into the stump. Fill each hole w/ KNO3 (Potassium Nitrate) & add water to cover. A couple weeks to a couple months it will resemble a sponge - dig it out. Doesn't work so well on freshly cut tree stumps.
(2) Drill numerous large holes &/or make large numerous deep cuts into the stump. Several really large holes works great. Fill hole(s) w/ diesel fuel or kerosene then torch it. Best if you can drill/bore holes from both top and side where both top & side holes meet so you have an updraft.

EDIT: You can buy KNO3 dirt cheap on Amazon or other likely suspects.

 

I have to cut down a really nice looking pine that is under the power line and in my split rail fence. It's such a nice, full looking tree I hate to do it, but I know, now that it is getting bigger and threatening the power line, the utility will cut it down close to the dirt. I've had them do that before in the fence line and the low "stump" is a PIA to mow around and attempt to remove. When I cut it off I will leave it 3 ft or so up- then wait a year or so and rock stump back and forth with tractor and pull out with loader. That has worked well. Lots of stumps around here.... we rented a stump grinder once for big oak stumps- worked well but what a workout!!

 

Around here some years ago they stopped renting stump grinders for residential use. Stump grinder rentals for residential use are quite unwieldy. If you're going to grind a stump I think you're better off hiring/contracting a stump grinding service.

 

I like to broke my wrist trying to drill holes in black walnut stumps

 

Good morning everyone.

Hm feels like Monday. It sort of is. The lead is gone now through next week. Things will go smoother.

Going to get a new microwave for Mom this afternoon. Apparently it's a burden to heat coffee on the stove. Eh, I wouldn't want to be without one, either.

Things are going okay so far, I could use a lull in the activity so I can run down to the credit union.

Hope everyone has a good day.

 

It comes down to having the right equipment for the job (as it always does). Mom's brothers (Uncles) had hydraulic fence post-hole diggers (augers). You can't grind a tree stump w/ them but you can rip them apart fairly well. In most cases well enough to lift/drag the root ball free from the encasing soil. Not so much of an issue if you're clearing numerous stumps on your own over several weeks/months time not having to worry about tearing up lots of soil in the mean time e.g. clearing land per se. Even then it can be somewhat treacherous. Boy howdy you better be fast w/ your eyes & hands when/if that auger embeds itself into the stump - they sometimes have a tendency to want to flip the tractor to one side when/if they get locked into a stump or blow a hydraulic coupling.

 

My OBDII connector ($31.95) arrives tomorrow. It pairs via Bluetooth or WiFi to my iPhone. I downloaded the 'Car Scanner ELM OBD2' s/w (free). I upgraded the s/w to the Pro s/w for ($6.99 for life). So, I'm all in ~$40.00. I want to ensure the ECM is talking w/ the PCM & obtain data/status of all the many (~131) components/sensors, etc. (~200 w/ the Pro s/w). It's one thing to R&R the glow plugs but I really won't know if the new glow plugs are effectively communicating w/ the glow plug controller unless I can monitor the various engine components/sensors. So, I'm kinda like a little kid at Christmas w/ a new toy (so-to-speak). My GAWD what you need to do today to validate a vehicle's health, eh?

Tomorrow morning is a 2.5 hr drive for a two week follow-up check on my eye surgery. I really don't think it's necessary but I'm going anyways. I think the attending nurse is blowing smoke saying I need to have stitches removed since I'll bet he used dissolving stitches - oh well. There's been no complications & the surgery is a great success.

Saturday becomes an issue. Weather is supposed to be ~70°F w/ mild winds - perfect golfing weather. Weather doesn't look too bad for about the next 6-7 days with some rainy days but temperatures in the upper 50s to lower 60s. Do I not play golf Saturday and start in on the glow plug R&R or play golf? Dilemma. If it should start to get colder I bought another tank of propane just in case this takes me longer than expected. It won't heat the entire man-cave, but will make life quite bearable. I have one of those long sausage torpedo heaters to warm up the man-cave.

 

Norm - You certainly hit the nail on the head regarding the monitoring systems required for modern vehicles!
. . .
Glad to hear your eye has been healing nicely, but better safe than sorry with the recheck. Safe travels and I hope the recheck goes well.

 

Good morning guys,

Wife and I had a wonderful Christmas Eve and Day. We had a great time visiting with family and friends. I know I ate way too much good food both days and kind of feel like a slug this morning, but I'll work off the extra poundage. It was also fun to watch the Chiefs win and have an excellent game against the Steelers yesterday.

Hope everyone has a great day and rest of your week!

 

Norm are you going to take your friend to the eye doctor again?

 

A very nice victory for the Chiefs. Broncos vs. Chiefs should be entertaining.

Mike - That would be a death wish.

 

Yes, the Chiefs vs the Broncos should be a good game, especially since I believe the Broncos are still in the picture for a Wild Card berth. There is the possibility that since I believe KC has now secured Home Field advantage and a 1st round bye in the playoffs, they may sit several starters who are banged up after a brutal regular season.

What may turn out to be the best game the last week of the season will be the Vikings/Lions match-up. If the Vikings beat GB this weekend, and the Lions win against the 49'ers, both teams will be 14-2 going into that final regular season match-up in Detroit. That would be a real dandy if it plays out that way!

 

Anytime you have NFC North teams battling each other it's always a great game. Go Pack!

 

I'll definitely be rooting for the Pack this weekend against the Vikings!

 

Same here. The Amish mafia got me again. The Amish furniture store that I buy from, usually has sales a couple of times a year at a whopping 10% off. I ignore them. Well, I got a mailer from them late last week, 50% off of showroom furniture. Well hell, I'm in like Flint! Headed up this a.m. after getting new pads and rotors on the Hyundai. Picked up a coffee table that matched the end table that I bought last spring. So, it was cheaper than the end table. Not light, but I managed to carry it into the house w/o blowing my back out any further. I thought that maybe I would pick up a sectional if they had one that interested me, but that **** is still expensive even at 50% off. So, just a coffee table for now.

 

Nice buy Dan! It's great when you can get high quality stuff at a reasonable price. 👍

 

Dan - Nice catch.

 

Good morning everyone.

Kind of misty out but warmish. I think that's the best we're getting today. At least I'm not scraping the windshield before I can go anywhere.

Dan years ago I wanted to go to Arthur, IL, to a big Amish community to buy a roll top desk. The Amish around there had a huge reputation for beautiful and well made furniture. Then I found out they wanted thousands for the desk. I didn't have thousands so I never got the desk.

Norm good luck at the doctor today.

Things are hit or miss around here this morning. It seems people just don't want to work. Eh, I can see that, I sort of feel that way myself. I kind of like this schedule, work a couple off a couple. Plus we get paid today, you can't beat that.

Well I guess I'll go get a snack. Hope everyone has a good day.

 

John, I got 2 questions for you.
1) I just bought a AM-FM stereo radio for my 71 Cutlass that needs repair on the volume control, any tips either on who can do it, or if I could? Maybe take volume control out of my AM radio and use???
2) I have mentioned my old Sansui G5500 receiver in past threads. It is very "fussy" about tuner- fader and volume all seem to stop then if you tap on **** come back- Any advice on this? My wife is disgusted with it, she wants me to replace it, If I do maybe I will give it to you, if you want it....
I know you are a audiophile and have skills in tis area. Thanks Greg

 

Good morning guys,

Norm - x2 on good luck at the eye doctor.

Gloomy, cool, and wet here this morning. Seems like it's been raining here for a week and it's getting depressing. I'd better stop my bitchin, it's definitely better than snow and ice.

Grandson Gabe is traveling with his Mom and Grandma (my Ex) up to Des Moines, IA today for a 3-day hockey tournament. His Dad and younger brother Keegan are staying here in St. Louis because Keegan has his own tournament at his home rink. If I'd known early enough I'd of tagged along with my daughter Blaire and Gabe, but there's no way I'd want to make a 6-hour ride up there in a car with my Ex. I'll stay home this time and go cheer for Keegan.

Lots of great football match-ups this weekend, both college and pro. More College Football Playoff games this weekend (2nd round), with Boise State playing Penn State this evening.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

 

Have you tried any of the aerosol contact cleaners?

 

Major Correction - Boy, I don't know how I got my wires so crossed regarding the dates/times for the Quarterfinal Games of the College Football Playoffs, but I was thoroughly confused!

The Boise State/Penn State Quarterfinal match-up is on New Year's Eve on ESPN. The remaining 3 Quarterfinal match-ups are all on New Year's Day, all on ESPN. Those 3 games are: Arizona State/Texas, Oregon/Ohio State, and Georgia/Notre Dame. Sorry about that!

 

Mike - Thanks & yes roll top desks are very expensive.

Chris - All good, we've come to expect nothing less.

 

Chris - Thanks.

 

Whew, I thought my reputation might be tarnished!

 

BOY HOWDY!

This OBDII connector & s/w is the absolute shiznits. Fantastic stuff. I reviewed my DTC codes and each glow plug demonstrates a failure. I have two additional DTC codes: EGR & Turbo - worry about those later since I know the issue(s). Both effect performance, yet neither is a showstopper at this point. My only concern remains w/ the glow plug controller. Since all eight glow plugs demonstrate a failure I'm modestly suspect there could be an issue w/ the glow plug controller, as well. I know how to test the controller so I'll test it when I R&R the glow plugs which are definitely being replaced anyways. If the controller is Tango Uniform I can R&R the controller from top of the engine after I reassemble everything to change out the glow plugs. Getting to the glow plugs is by far the greatest majority of work.

I spent 2.5hrs driving to Wilmington, NC for my surgery follow-up. The follow-up took all of five minutes. I'm dead serious. All good, glad it's over & done.

I'm about zonked. I couldn't get to sleep last night for some odd reason. I have a couple things going on & I'll be damned if I couldn't fall asleep. I got all of 2.5hrs of sleep before I drove to Wilmington - ugh.

 

 

I've solved my dilemma. I'm not playing golf tomorrow. Weather looks outstanding but I'm going to jump-on the glow plugs. Learned many moons ago - make hay while the sun shines. Glow plugs have a higher priority (damn it).

 

Norm - That's a whole lot of effort, for not alot of hurrah, but certainly peace of mind knowing everything looks good! Very happy for ya pardner! 👍

 

 

You had a helluva surgeon, I see absolutely no incision line or bruising!

 

Dan,Yeah, I did on the volume control and it seemed to help, but John said it prolly would be back- and it is. How's things on the west side? Rainy and 40's here.

 

Weird weather. We had more rain overnight. Very overcast, but the rain has stopped for right now. More forecast for this evening and into tomorrow. The crap just won't stop. At least it's warm, 50 right now and headed for about 58, even without sunshine. I'm just thankful we're not getting all this moisture as snow.

 

Forgot I had no 1/2" pneumatic impact wrench - it went TU ~3 yrs. ago. My other pneumatic wrenches are too small. Tried to loosen lug nuts w/ 1/2" breaker bar adapted to a 3/8" extension fitted w/ a long hollow steel tube/bar over the 1/2" breaker bar - that broke the 3/8" extension into two pieces. I didn't have a 1/2" extension or I'd have tried another attempt. Last mechanic (who did some excellent work) likely over-torqued the lug nuts. Back home (from Ace Hardware) loosening lug nuts w/ a new Craftsman max torque 700 ft-lb adjustable torque pneumatic impact wrench & they were off in no time. Front-end now sitting on jack stands tires/wheels removed. I also purchased a couple 1/2" extensions & 1/2" knuckle swivel. Now the tedious job of removing the RH & LH inner fender wells. Got invited to play 18 @ 11:40am. Oddly enough I need to maintain a working vehicle more so than playing 18. Supposed to be 67°F today, 68°F tomorrow.

 

Ya think???

 

Both inner fender wells removed. Trending in a positive direction.

 

👍