Cold Weather On It's Way

[electra225]

Those little Rangers were not the best built vehicles Ford ever made, but they were tough as nails. The landscapers out here loved those things. They pulled trailers twice as big as the truck, massively overloaded, day after day. Rust doesn't get vehicles out here, but those trucks got so beat up the doors wouldn't stay shut. You simply couldn't kill one. They got their lineage from the Model A and the Falcon, Ford products equally as tough.

[Conelrad]

"God's country". That's funny.

Better pass the plate, Pinal County property taxes are due.

[electra225]

Our taxes were higher in Missouri than they are here.....

And we don't have to look at weeds high as the window sills and 2.2 junk cars per front yard..... And bugs. And humidity......

Dennis, I'm further east than you are, closer to the sun.....

[walyfd]

Low 50s and overcast in NEPA today. Perfect opportunity to wash, polish and wax the daily driver for winter. Amazing how filthy paint can get.

I use maguires 7 and a professional B&D buffer I got used 30 years ago when I did the '57 cadillac. Had to change pads 3 times. A good coat of wax and I'm set for another 6 months.

Car looks great for 125k miles and 13 years old. I like being able to chop 6 inches of snow off the roof with my fist and have it slide off the car... then I have to shovel a foot off the driveway if I don't shovel it first...

Oh, and it's not even 6 PM (reset the clocks early) and it's pitch dark... I hate winter.

[TC Chris]

Oh, and it's not even 6 PM (reset the clocks early) and it's pitch dark... I hate winter.

I like winter because it gets dark early and I can actually tackle those indoor projects that can't get done when it's light outside and there are outdoor activities. I've got two boat projects-- a varnished mahogany hatch cover for one boat that needs to be taken down to zero and stained and varnished, and a companionway drop board for the other that will probably just get a sanding and a couple new coats of varnish.

As to electronics, I'm still undecided where to start. The other day the Heath console came to mind. It was a curbside find. One channel is out. I suspect that there was a short in the rats-nest headphone wiring that was probably cobbled in. Maybe it's in need of output transistors. And of course solid-state devices can always add a bunch of new electrolytics. I had bought new speaker drivers for it a few years ago. The sealed speaker enclosures also need new backs.

The short days mean that I need to charge up the bicycle lights because it will be dark one way or the other, and then both, for a while.

Chris Campbell

[walyfd]

Plenty of indoor stuff here, too. I'd LOVE to figure out why these sony r2rs for the Fisher lose right channel. I have 3 and every one has done it. Recapped, gone over tubes, rolled tubes, swapped out pots and always the same thing...

First thing I have to do is shampoo the carpets. Kill the dust and mold before the allergies kill me when the heat kicks on...

[electra225]

Three R2R's did the exact same thing, exhibited the same symptoms? The exact same brand, style, model, etc? I know you have researched this, but could your problem be somewhere other than the R2R decks?

[walyfd]

Absolutely... they were a 40 pound portable unit. Speaker, mic, line hookups on the front panel.

[TC Chris]

On the weather front, yesterday's forecast was for "partly cloudy"and it was sunny.Today's was "partly sunny" and it has been cloudy.

Chris Campbell

[TC Chris]

Update on weather inaccuracies.... Not only had it been cloudy all day, but as I drove out to buy a new tarp for the local sailboat's winter cover, it started raining. And it rained with some enthusiasm. Talk about insult/injury. That put the kibosh not only on the primary plan for the day after raking leaves--drive the Mustang for a last fall run and then fill up the tank with rec gas for the winter snooze--but so on the secondary plan, which was finishing the boat cover-up, and folding a sail out on the lawn. So now on to plan C, which is to wait for a sunny day and take the afternoon off to use up some of the vacation time that I will lose anyway. One afternoon for a Mustang cruise, one for the boat cover. And then one more for the snow tires and truck bed weights. Why does the nice weather happen when I'm at work?

Chris Campbell