flagmanruss

Just curious... is there any wear / unexplained damage to the end of the intake hose? Like might be caused by starting up with the hose rubbing against the turbo vanes?

When we pick vehicles up, we check under the vehicle (for puddles of fluid) & lift the hood check oil & to make sure caps are in place. Start it up & wait for oil pressure, then shut down & check under the truck again for leaks. Family has had a vehicle returned with no oil (step-son, pre-med student, engine burned oil badly ever after that. Got no satisfaction). Another with wrong oil filter my Ford Ranger with 2.2 natual diesel (lost all oil before step-son got half way home, had AAA tow it back) forunately engine wasn't damaged. I've had my trailer plug destroyed & damage concealed by a shop... by the time I found it, it was too late to call them on it. I've had the hood blow open on the Dodge after leaving the DEALERSHIP. Had OEM filter box cracked by DEALERSHIP when hood hinges were replaced from above. A shame there is no QC but I've learned to be the final inspection.

Reportedly Ebay has had this policy for a while. I logged into Ebay and found the Communications Options link. I easily unchecked boxes I did not want. I don't think I checked those boxes... I wonder if they were added with default checked boxes. Any rate they are NOT checked NOW. I still can not find any way to OPT OUT of Pay Pal's Spam options. I read that one could download 7 print out a form, sign it & mail it in. Not making it easy. I used Pay Pal's Customer Service Phone. Eventually got to a real agent & opted out of their telemarketing. They have my (separate) email for opdering uses... Lately my cell phone has been getting UNKNOWN callers (despite being a cell & being on the Do Not Call list). I Google all unknown calls... just to be sure.

Never knew I was supposed to take pictures when I was turning wrenches... A buddy's Chris Craft (twin 283's with flywheel forward... drove the marine gear (transmission) off the damper keyway) blew a rod right through the heavy cast aluminum oil pan. It was like a hardware store in the bilge. There was only an inch between the pan & the lapstake planking. Not the strongest bottom. Were it not for that pan, he's have blown the bottom out. There there was the guy with the 26 foot CC express cruiser (fiber glass)... was trying to tag a big Mako shark. It objected & reportedly breached 3 times. On the third jump, it came down on the foredeck & cabin windshields. The fish went off the other side, breaking the leader. The entire cabin roof & deck was smashed, the glass all over. They were happy the fish left feeling that it was strong enough to sink the boat & the guys were kind of leary about going over the side into a pool of fish blood & chum. [ Guy left his wife in truck while he went to get boat... launched truck, wrecked trailer. Wife jumped. When I arrived the rack was submerged. The truck was off the end of the built up ramp in the mud except the bumper which was on the edge of the gravel & seashell ramp. I had trouble getting the winch cable around the bumper That's me with the diving gear... Guy was saving money by working on his engine. Removed the exhaust risers & manifilds from the engine block... Ooops, the bilge pump was grounded to the manifild. Heavy storm settled the boat enough that the water flooded in through the wet exhaust. This is how we found it on Monday morning. I used our yard launch & the dock for floatation... got it up enough that our pumps could float it. He had more work to do on the engine.

No doubt it does stress the drive train some but my biggest concern would be lugging the engine. I wouldn't use it towing anything heavy... listen to your engine. If it is lugging, you need to shift down. Such low RPM is out of your power band.

Once upon a time... I wass hanging out with the guys at my then Br in Law who (like several members on the family were in excavating business). This night the Br-I-L was no whjere to be seen but there was a gang of guys in front of the garage with a cooler in the bucket of his big dozer sticking out the door. I picked a beverage of my choice & stepped over a big pipe sticking out from under the bucket. The bucket was up on blocks making a nice table for the cooler. Eventually there was a call from inside (recognized voice as B-I-L) and everybody reached down, picked up that pipe & walked as far as we could until it hit the block. Then we put it down. Another call & we walked it back to the original position... then back again. Yep, That was a cheater. A 20' piece of 2" water pipe & the other end was was back under the machine. What ever it was, we eventually did unscrew it...

http://www.ftediesel.com/store/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=4&idcategory=7 My exhaust is all SS from turbo back. I'm not buying another Darn exhaust for this truck.

I bogyht a turbo back 4" SS "kit" off ebay quite a few years ago... after my stock system rusted out. I have the 4" glass pack "muffler" that you can stick your arm through. It wasn't too loud around town but towing on the highway the drone was a headache inducing. (Wife wore ear plugs) I bought a SS 4" x 36 FTE twister & never looked back. For best effect, it's recommended to mount as far forward as possible. My shop couldn't get it over the cross member so it's as close behind as possible. I'm surprised the cat isn't quieting it some... if it is indeed a cat. It might be just a resonator. If I had it to do again... I'd install the FTE resonator in the first place. I might omitt the straight through "muffler". I wonder if there is a low back pressure SS muffler that would work?

I had manual factory tow mirrors... the glass came off the driver's side. I put the flat piece back with double sided tape when we got home from our trip. I could never get the curved piece to sit right. So I bought new power mirrors but need to get a helper to install them. Maybe my Son-in-law some nice day...

Wife departed on a trip this morning, this trailer in tow. I watched from the window as she checked the lights before launch. I like the way the double tail lights look... nice & bright with brakes. I could verify the tell tale side lights when she checked the turn signals too. Nit-Picky, I know, but pleased with the result.

I think PayPal shot themselves in the NUTS! They came very close to sneaking this by. Once the calls start, how long to stop them? I mean, I'm already on the SUCKER... I mean Do Not Call... list. That the telemarketers simply ignore. My favorite is to toss the reciever on the chair next to me & wait until it's beeping before I hang it up. PayPal creaped me out with several schemes to get me to link my BANK information, which I refuse to do. I only have a CREDIT CARD linked & the fork with me & they'll have Mastercard to deal with. I like the comsumer protections that all major CC companies offer. The mere fact they TRIED, pisses me off.

Since this has gone public... There's been a lot of push back. There will not be ROBOCALLS & TEXTS until after 1 July. By then it will be too late. UNLESS the FCC's new proposed rules go into effect making it illegal. I hope so but if not, I'll be closing my account.

PayPal user are furious with the new Terms of Service which allows PayPal to ROBOCALL YOU, SPAM you, TEXT YOU with promos, questionaires, polls, not just account business... with no option to opt out... and not just on phones & emails you provide but ANY account they feel like. New TOS to take effect July 1. If this stands, I'll be closing my account. Period.

I still have an open "Landscapers" style trailer 16' deck... my former hay trailer... when I need an open trailer. SOoo.. back to the enclosed trailer. I had spent a lot of time with a heat gun, softening the transfers for the previous owner's group... & peeling them off with a plastic putty knife & fingers I left some transfers which could equally apply to US. Re-enactors value patina & the fading of the finish will not go away without a spray gun. Besides, every one in OUR group will recognize the trailer... maybe some will actually notice the improvements. I got wintered out of this project... but I'm B-A-C-K. I had replaced the oval in gromet lights with LEDs. The old cut outs & new parts were a bit of a dicey fit but I made it work. The steel in this trailer is very hard, almost bullet proof. I wanted a second set of oval rear lights but opted for surface mount LEDs above the originals. I drilled for the wires and drill & tapped the bolt holes. Still none of the lights are (legally) side markers... OK, this older trailer with it's side reflectors is exempt but I still think side markers are a good idea for a couple of reasons. Most obivious is one can verify the lights are still connected while moving. (The trailer plug came out of the road when I picked the trailer up.) I mounted small LED markers high on the trailer sides. I removed an interior trim strip so I could scope out the steel side frames. Well, don't you know, the frames were not the U channels I thought & I hit the darn frames. My drill skidded some so the fight was on. The SS selt tapping screws only work on the sheet metal sides where the framing isn't. I ended up drilling & tapping the side frames for one SS machine screw on each of the marker lights. I also wanted a tell tail on the turn lights, so I mounted an additional red side marker under the first... wired to the turn. Again had trouble with hitting the frame so I'm annoyed they lights are not perfectly lined up. I did all solder splices & shrink tubing, wired everything off the original trailer tail light wiring which was in good shape after I elimated the fold over 3M splices... at least they were inside & somewhat protected. I had quite a bit of trouble doing my spices (bad hands) but I persevered. In the end, I spliced extensions on all the wires so I could better work on them. Should have done this in the first place. The lights work like a charm. It's nice to be able to verify my light plug connection from the driver's seat, saving me precious steps when I'm having a bad day... or more likely after pushing & overdoing. If I didn't over do, I'd accomplish nothing. We've spotted some odd assembly on the roof which needs recaulking... to be continued...

You are only going to do this once... I hope... use the best.

I rely on various step stools & seats to save me precious minutes on my feet. But lately I've broken a good plastic folding stool... my fault & was pushing back on it to reach something & it couldn't take the diagonal pressure. And I'm no light weight, either. I've noticed a reasonably nice aluminum step stool at Harbor Freight... http://www.harborfreight.com/step-stool-working-platform-66911.html but the latest ads were still higher than I wanted to pay. ($29.99 off a "list price" of $34.99... no one should pay list at HF) I Googled "Harbor Freight step stool" and came up with http://www.retailmenot.com/coupons/stepstool which showed a coupon code 85492649. Since I don't have a printer, I copied all the info onto a 3x5 card & drove to my nearest HF Store. I was prepared to leave the item but I got it for the price. $25.99. Not cheap but it paid for my gas. I had a go round with the manager a year or more ago after leaving items when I didn't have a printed out coupon... this is what he said to do & I have been doing so ever since. Same at another discount store as well.

Lack of water at station sure explains a lot!

I'm not a participating FD member (though wife & I keep memberships, just to support). Almost all of our town & really many in our state do not have pressurized hydrants. There are several dry hydrants or other drafting stations located throughout our town. It's standard proceedure to call out mutual aid... the first pumper on scene sets out the water tanks. Mutual aid tankers drop their water... by then a pumper is set up to draft at a nearby water source & all the tankers refill. All our Fire Dept first trucks out have CAF foam now, since the Fire District separated from the Town. Abbutting Districts are adding the foam since seeing how well it has worked. Our FD has had some spectacular saves... deploying foam from front turrets before the Firefighters are even off the truck.

Where do you get a fone for 99 cents? At WM they cost 14.99 (flip phone). A flat style fone is 9.99 (I think). Typo? I haven't checked the prices atr gas stations lately... more or less... How could they be any less?

I sent a Track Fone to a woman who was alone. I had been given it, activated it briefly. But I got a flip phone from Verizon, wife got a great deal through her Hospital employer... so all the family is on it. Track Fone does not own any towers but buys minutes on other networks. However, they might not activate it or switch the sim card IF their currant cntract is with the wrong carrier (since phones are network specific in the US). I did not remove that given away phone from my account properly & it later caused me trouble. I believe a subsequent owner was late payng bills as a bill collector kept calling. I still keep a Track Fone around... even a deactivated phone can call 911. NO, no smart phones for me. I only talk on my phone so a flip phone is fine.

I appreciate the thoughts, guys! I think the nearly 3000 miles (one way) might do me in! Maybe we could just leviate me & the Toyhauler to your location. (Beam Me Up, Scottie!) Wife went up on the roof & exhamined the edges of the rubber roof which goes over the roof edge moulding. It's hard to understand how water is getting in, but it is. THe awning has tears starting so we don't use it... but I wonder if the screwed on track is leaking. It still doesn't explain the other side. A friend is using a horse type mounting block in place of her steps... which have failed similarly. We have a hunk of plywood over the soft spot at the door for now. I'm thinking of bolting an angle bracket to the partition (where the floor is pulling away) to support a floor patch. I think this unit is too far gone to reverse... unless I clear it to a deck & build a new cabin on the frame. (not happening)

I have to admit I'm from the boat world... which shares systems with campers but not the shell. This Trailer was a mistake. Besides the lack of title (which I should have walked away right there)... so the trailer can not be properly registered. The last title was a SALVAGE title out of California... and there are obivious signs of repairs. Besides all that... there has been a steady stream of problems. The biggest is the roof leaks & even after having a rubber roof put on ($1000), continues to leak. The leakage has apparently run down... and continues to run down... inside the walls, causing a bunch of problems. There are leaks in the main bed room, wetting & staining the paneling from the back. But the biggest problem is the floor & sill has rotted inside & under the entry door & extending to the hinge side under the wall. The refridgerator is on the inside. The entry step is half falling off. I could pull the door threashold to try to patch the floor but I don'tr see anyway to repair the sill under the wall beyond the door. I am pretty disabled & don't have help... If I take this appart, I'm afraid it won't go back together. I spent a year chasing the mice in this rig... I think it's time to quit. At least stop spending money I can't afford on it. Thiswill mean the end of my "camping". But this day has been coming as my MS has progressed.

I received the "Fastway" dust cover for the 7 pin Rv plug from Progress Mfg Inc 82-00-3316. http://www.fastwaytrailer.com/shop/7-pin-plug-cover/ I bought 3 for my trailers... all fit fine. I found it to be a soft rubbery type material which was easy to work over the trailer side of the plug. I don't think I'll use the lanyard which would have to stretched over the plug... and leaving it dangling where it might get hung up & lost. Going forward, I'm planning to use some dielectric grease & this should keep it where it where it's put. I'm still waiting for the combination marker / turn lights which I want to install on the landscaper's type trailer. I want to install under the side rail above the tail lights. I found a galvanized L bracket at Home Depot, all ready made. I'll bolt that under the top rail & wire to the tail ilghts.

Unfortunately, I need a lot of doctor visits... not always as many as they want however... and they sure like to play careful with testing when they can bill the insurance. I don't think I made the best insurance choice this year & have been surprised a few times already. I'm only a 2 weeks from having a kidney stone dealt with... I stalled it for over a year... my body chemistry just makes them. The previous time I did the ESWL shock wave but wasn't as successful as previous times so THIS TIME the urologist threaded a cath all the way to the kidney (yes starting THERE) & zapped it with a laser. I had the stent out a week ago. Sorry, this is really TMI (Too Much Information). I told this doctor her wasn't one of my favorite people when he took the stent out. He seemed disappointed. He clearly has not been on the recieving end. It occured to me the reason they want you to chamge into a silly "johnny" is so they know you are not armed. I'm actually doing better now. Might just have to forgive him.

I don't think the wires are corroded at the lights. I did all solder splices & shrink tubing the first time. I didn't have the time on the rework. If there's corrosion, it's likely just oxidation in the plug contacts. Just particularly tough this year. I really liked the way the rear lights matched the steel like they were made for it. I'm thinking I'm gonna add the clearance lights under the upper rail above the tail light.