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I also also thought it would be fun to own an Army issue, bare bones, HumVee just to go off-roading in.
Last week on the way to work I saw a fella driving one of those on I-10. Apparently he was headed to work also as he was wearing a nice white long sleeve dress shirt. No windows, soft top flapping in the wind, 100º at 8:30 am - no thank you. I was driving the Jeep, but mine has a hard top, full doors, real windows, and cold AC.
Beautiful out. Blue sky, not stifling. I think it's going to rain the rest of the week but for now I like it.
Norm that's quite a bill for your truck. How many times could you rebuild the engine before it equals a new truck?
Dream the 6.2 in the military trucks is a military specific engine. A little more power and a little less emissions. I used to have a CUCV with the 6.2. I didn't notice the extra power because it had 4.56 gears and was slow as a dog. By the way, when that motor gets cranked up at 60mph, it no longer sounds like a diesel. It sounds like a screaming banshee. I have an M35A2 that is a multi-fuel diesel. Loads of fun but also slow. If that one were to go 60 you'd only hear one sound. Bang.
So yesterday I sat down on the couch and slept over two hours, then went to bed before 7. Woke up fine but couldn't keep my eyes open at work. I'm no conspirorist, but I think someone sprayed something around my desk like chloroform or something. I don't know how long that stuff lasts. Can anyone get chloroform easily?
Kenneth instead of running the AC on the way home from work I put all four windows down. Of course it's only 90 here. I had thought about getting a Jeep, but the top is not convenient.
Jamesbo that would be a nice run-around vehicle around he cemetery. And it's green, just like the cemetery.
Okay gonna go get gas for the mower. Not even going close to the couch. Might take the Mercedes and put gas in it as well. Doesn't everyone tote gas cans around in their vintage Mercedes?
Kenneth instead of running the AC on the way home from work I put all four windows down. Of course it's only 90 here. I had thought about getting a Jeep, but the top is not convenient.
The soft top is easy to raise/lower, and even more so if you don't install the rear windows.
In between my regular work schedule which involves watching the lawn grow, I have been sealing expansion joints and cracks in the driveway for the better part of three weeks. This is seriously digging into quality golf time.
Hi guys,
Hope everyone had a great day. Whoa, there have been a lot of posts since I headed out this morning.
1969w3155 - Thanks for the link to "govplanet.com", I've actually checked out that sits before. I'm not serious about getting a HumVee, although I do think it would be a fun toy if I had the cash and the space. There is another factor, my wife says if I get another toy, she gets another bulldog. I love our dogs, but 3 in the bed is too crazy to contemplate!
Slantflat - Thanks for the additional info on the Army HumVees, much appreciated.
VC - That is a whopper of a service bill for your truck, but you're right, a helluva lot cheaper than a new one. My old 2000 Ford F150 just keeps chugging along. Never had to do anything to it other than normal maintenance. I don't have anything to tow anymore so it just sits most the time unless my kids need something hauled.
Had another good ride today through the Ozark hill country. First pic is from a scenic overlook. Rode through this kind of terrain and scenery all day. In the second pic we are actually on the dam at Clearwater Lake near Piedmont, MO. We rode further than I thought we would today, a little over 250-miles. My buddy planned the ride and he usually doesn't like to go that far because his Harley isn't all that comfortable for that kind of mileage.
Norm, that is a whopper bill... But I've noticed as a older guy I still tend to think in 1970 dollars. Or maybe even 1960's dollars. For example, 1965 Cutlass new- $3000.?? Comparable 2020 car- $30,000? 1965 gasoline .30 a gallon? 2020 gasoline $3.00 a gallon? So your $7000.00 repair was comparably $700.00 in 1965?? 10x.... I think that is why deals are still out there especially if a older guy owned his old car for 30 years and hasn't followed up on current prices. Anyway...
Washed and completely waxed the Olds yesterday. Forgot how much work that is but sure looks nice! Tomorrow we are going to go on part of the US27 Motor tour. This will be the 14th we've went on. I'm really surprised it's not cancelled with this Covid 19 thing. I'm sure it will be much smaller.
Weather has cooled down and scattered showers are forecast for tomorrow. Put top up and going to leave it unless it gets warm and sunny. Have a good one guys!!
Good morning Olds friends,
Jamesbo - That's an amazing and hilarious picture! We are starting to get more and more sittings of both bears and mountain lions in the rural areas like the hill country I was riding through yesterday.
Greg - Hope you enjoy the Motor Tour, I'm sure your excited to get your car out to a real event!
I just got in from waxing and detailing my Yamaha (pic). I got the bugs off it when I got home yesterday evening, but saved the waxing for the cool morning. I usually ride it when I'm not riding with the Indian Rider's Group just to keep the miles off my Indian. That's my old 2000 F150 4x4 in the background that I commented on yesterday. The poor thing is relegated to life in the driveway these days with no garage space for it. I watch the rust grow day by day, ugh! No big plans for me today. Still debating whether to go to the charity car show near us Sunday.
Hope everyone has a great day!
I'm annoyed as hell. I've driven the Mercedes about 6 miles in the 5 weeks I've owned it, because it wasn't convenient to drive it. Raining, in a hurry, long trip without a shake down, whatever. Today, I had some errands to run and I thought, this is the perfect day. I wrestled with that top for 20 minutes before I gave up and took a different car. I'm not driving a convertible with the top up on a beautiful day. And this is exactly why I wanted a power top. Push a button and it's all automatic. I'm going to try it again in a few minutes, at least until dark. That's when the baseball bat comes out. Anyone want to buy a slightly dented Mercedes?
Jamesbo that would make a good Tshirt. And the bear, too. Kind of reminds me of Fantasia.
Dream those pictures of the view are beautiful, especially the lake. If it weren't so far from work, I'd live on Lake Logan Martin in Alabama. Looks a lot like your picture. The bike looks like it's moving sitting right there in the driveway.
I'm not sure CW, cough cough, zzzzzzzzz.
Not a bad day at work. We are supposed to be doing 130 wheels a day now. That is what we did on straight time last year. Our traffic is down 80% from that time, yet when I asked why the same amount of wheels, I got no answer. This was the third day we didn't hit the mark. Oh well.
Okay! Let's see if this car lives up to "I really should have known better."
Turning to good ol Bob Seger to say it better than I ever could:
"Out past the cornfields where the woods got heavy.
Out in the back seat of my '60 Chevy.
Workin' on mysteries without any clues.
Workin' on our night moves."
Slantflat , that wasn't even a rebuild according to the parts list .
Maybe a head gasket ?
Charlie - The issue w/ a diesel is the fact it's a diesel. It has torque out its A$$, can pull mother loads. It has been used many times pulling my 26' cabin cruiser (I no longer own) literally tons of equipment, building materials/supplies while renovating my home, trailers, etc. Nearly every moving piece operates via oil. It takes 15 quarts of oil for the engine alone. And, it has two oil pumps - low pressure (75psi) and high pressure (3500psi). The fuel injectors all operate via the HPOP (high pressure oil pump) - I won't go into the milieu of other engine components which operate via high pressure oil. It has 185K miles - a baby by diesel standards. At any rate, the HPOP went belly-up. To R&R the HPOP you basically pull the intake manifold and the head. Many of the other components I elected to replace while the head was off the engine e.g. new head bolts, new fuel injectors, new oil dummy plugs, new high pressure oil stand pipes/hoses, etc.
In between my full-time job of watching the lawn grow, filling expansion joints & filling cracks in the driveway I took my Booger apart over the past couple of weeks. It was manufactured 8/13/83 & is one of the finest guitar amplifiers ever built - hands down. It's referred to as a Mesa Boogie Mark II-B. I believe it's the 3rd time I've taken it completely down to bones i.e. removed/cleaned circuit board with detail, etc. etc. blah blah blah. Yesterday & today I sanded the original speaker & painted it today. The circuit board weighs 20lbs, the speaker weighs 30lbs, the cabinet weighs 7lbs. It's a beast. I replaced all the potentiometers and ***** the last time I took it down so they only received a good cleaning this time.
D442 - It was about the time the Beatles became popular (1964/1965) I noticed they used this huge mother VOX Super Beatle amplifier - it was about 4.5' tall w/ six 10" speakers as I recall. I took keyboard lessons ~7 or 8 years, then moved over to take guitar lessons about the same time. My next door neighbor played bass, so we noodled around quite a bit. He noticed somewhere (Popular Mechanics, Heathkit, I don't recall) sold the schematic, all parts and cabinet to make your own VOX Super Beatle amplifier. To be honest, it was not a VOX Super Beatle, but was advertised as a VOX Super Beatle made by someone other than VOX. Anyways, I think Heathkit sold it. I had already built one or two Hamms radios as a young teenager (driving my mother to fits) & between my neighbor and myself we talked me into buying the VOX Super Beatle kit. There isn't much to this stuff, a bunch of soldering of various components onto a circuit board they provided w/ the purchase, assemble the cabinet and slam in the speakers and you're done. It never really got any live band time (we eventually formed a couple bands), it remained in the basement living room for jam sessions at my neighbor's home. It was too big to be transporting anywhere, by this time I had a decent job in H.S. (delivering paint) so I picked up a used Fender amplifier which I carted around when we played - mostly sock-hops, YMCA 10-12 club nights (F & Sat) and house parties. We spent a considerable amount of time speaking w/ the police discussing when we performed for house parties - can we play without the amplifiers was the #1 complaint by neighbors where the house parties were located.
I'm going to try it again in a few minutes, at least until dark. That's when the baseball bat comes out.
Mike - Where did you begin - front windshield (they call them windscreens over the pond you know), door windows, rear window, headlights are way fun w/ a baseball bat, but so are the tail lights. Take pictures.
Well the car lives another day. I don't know how, but I went back out, did the exact same things, and the top worked beautifully. Not beautifully enough to not be a pain whenever I want to put it down in a hurry, but at least as advertised. I'll have to study this thing because I know something had to be different.
You're right, Charlie, that wasn't a rebuild because they didn't do anything with the rotating assembly. But at 185K, it probably didn't need much. Norm, how much more would it have been do you think to change out pistons and rods etc. for a full rebuild?
I think Norm must have driven a limo in high school. Even the biggest Cadillac, the back seat was a foot and a half away from the front seat, not FOUR FEET. Or maybe "four feet" wasn't a distance measurement...
Well I finally met my new neighbor. He was out retrieving his mail when I was out with the car. We talked for a few minutes, nice guy. Storm clouds brewed up from I don't know where so I finished up the top real quick and came in, now it's raining.
Good time to go to bed. Two more to go then I'm on my own for a couple. Hope everyone has a good evening.
Mike - I was wondering if anyone was going to catch the 4 feet in the back seat innuendo. Nothing gets past you Mikey. You know what day it is Mikey, huh...you know what day it is?
Surprisingly excellent condition of the jugs on the beastly F-250 after popping the top.
VC - Great story about the amp. Funny you said the build date was 83. Got my first quality stereo system in 84. Harmon Kardon 200W amp, Harmon Kardon tuner, Koss tower speakers, and the unique Sansui linear tracking turntable. What is unique about the turntable is it has a laser that can count the tracks and allows you to program their order of play. The amp, tuner, and turntable still operate fine to this day. They don't make them like that anymore. The speakers are long gone. My wife doesn't share my love of old vinyl, and we don't really have room in our living room for a big stereo system anyway, so now when I get the urge to listen to some vintage vinyl I use the vintage reproduction stereo in the attached pics!
VC - Great story about the amp. Funny you said the build date was 83. Got my first quality stereo system in 84. Harmon Kardon 200W amp, Harmon Kardon tuner, Koss tower speakers, and the unique Sansui linear tracking turntable. What is unique about the turntable is it has a laser that can count the tracks and allows you to program their order of play. The amp, tuner, and turntable still operate fine to this day. They don't make them like that anymore. The speakers are long gone. My wife doesn't share my love of old vinyl, and we don't really have room in our living room for a big stereo system anyway, so now when I get the urge to listen to some vintage vinyl I use the vintage reproduction stereo in the attached pics!
Great story! I remember my first record player. It played a single 45 RPM record and that was all it played. My next record player played either a single 45 RPM record or a single 33 1/3 RPM record. The really big step-up came with the big box record player where I could stack a half dozen 45 RPM records or a half dozen 33 1/3 RPM records. I don't know how many times I fell asleep listing to music only to wake up in the middle of the night listening to the needle grinding down at the end of a record which never automatically turned off the record player or didn't change to the next record.
Great story! I remember my first record player. It played a single 45 RPM record and that was all it played. My next record player played either a single 45 RPM record or a single 33 1/3 RPM record. The really big step-up came with the big box record player where I could stack a half dozen 45 RPM records or a half dozen 33 1/3 RPM records. I don't know how many times I fell asleep listing to music only to wake up in the middle of the night listening to the needle grinding down at the end of a record which never automatically turned off the record player or didn't change to the next record.
VC - Great story and memories! Right there with you. When I was little my brother and I would stack a few 33's before bed. We didn't have our own records so we listened to Dad's. Mostly country, the icons, Johnny Cash, George Jones, Merle Haggard, Patsy Cline, and Glen Cambell were some of his favorites. He did like Neil Diamond, but that's about as close to rock as it got. I still listen to a lot of country today, but I think most folks true taste in music is engrained in their early teens so I'm a Beatles, Stones, CCR, and Bob Seger kind of guy. Rock and Roll Never Forgets!
Mike, I took my bride and the drop top out today also, perfect day to cruise. Tried to get the Super model in the back seat but No dice
. When I was a pup, I'd fall asleep listening to a crystal radio clamped to a window screen antenna
.
Jamesbo - I love your car, absolute gem! Is that your actual radio that you saved from childhood? I remember a couple of friends who had those when I was pretty young (mid 60's).
I've never seen one of those space rocket crystal radios that's pretty cool. James' 4-4-2 is a great looking car. An ABC store might help improve the Super Model's reasoning abilities. I certainly went through a number of these listening to baseballs game with my Dad.
Good morning Olds friends,
VC - Great pic of the vintage radio. Nothing like the memories of listening to ballgames with your Dad! I miss "real" baseball. It's hard for me to get excited about this bastardized season they've concocted just to make some TV bucks!
I just got in from detailing my car in case I go to a show this weekend. It was perfect for doing it this morning because we had an overnight low of 55 and it was great working in the garage. I just found out from my neighbor there is a second show close by on Saturday in addition to the one I was thinking of going to on Sunday. While I was out in the garage I snapped an pic of the rear of my car so you could check out the license plate in case you haven't seen it in any of my other posts. Also snapped a pic of the "Olds bay" where she lives, and me too now quite a bit.
Hope everone has a great day!
Non-event of a day. Lead gave a big speech about not stretching out breaks, keeping working and not "just stopping," wheels are back ordered and we need to keep up, and it worked. We finished an hour or better early. We might do the same tomorrow but it will be lost on the minions over the weekend and we'll be back to normal (normal being slow) on Monday. Honestly, I'm all for working until everything is done and not lollygagging around, but we've just finished months of small numbers and easy street. Now the one guy that no one likes is back and immediately he's saying we need to pump out this much and we need to have this much and no one is buying it. I'm not the only one who asks why we need 130 wheels a day when 3/4 of our planes are parked.
Jamesbo the Supermodel doesn't want to become another notch in the headrest. I assume she knows why the whole car was restored except the back seat?
Dream all those country music names you mentioned, were what my parents were listening to when I was growing up. I hated it. But when you don't own the radio... I listen to country now and the stuff I like the most is what I was hearing when I was a kid. Odd.
Norm I probably had a dozen of those little radios when I was growing up. But mine were from Kmart. All different colors. Mike Mike Mike Mike Mike.
Oh by the way the Mercedes' name is Jerry. I should get that on the license plate.
Okay, gonna see if I can get the water out of the gas tank on the mower and mow a little. I have little motivation and it looks like rain so I'm guessing if I don't succeed in the first pull of the rope I'm done. Wish me luck.
August 18th, 2020, 09:41 AM
