Topic: What did you do to your non-motorcycle vehicle today?

[Stev-o]

Steve….. what do you clean the exterior of the hull with? Assume it’s ‘glass?

Hi John...yes, it's fiberglass, I use Simple Green for everything except the windshield.  I like the "lemon flavored" variety, leaves a nice odor for while on the vinyl seating surfaces. At 11 bucks a gallon, it's a bargain.  And as mentioned, it's biodegradable so I feel no guilt with the runoff going into the lake.

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Simple-Green-1-Gal-Lemon-Scent-All-Purpose-Cleaner-3010100614010/202255371?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&pla&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-APT-GGL-Multi-Multi-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-PRP-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NEW-RES_PROP_MNGR&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-APT-GGL-Multi-Multi-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-PRP-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NEW-RES_PROP_MNGR-71700000115165060-58700008567481942-92700078179660123&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwiYOxBhC5ARIsAIvdH50tKjveJTbYEDp2RyqOky7fqsTBgtwg-scrzzu-ICMNgv8D1wgVM9MaAtrlEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

[Stev-o]

The utility trailer had 12 year old tires so off they went to Discount Tire for new ones, $250 out da door! [mounted, balanced, tax and disposal fee]

Borrowed my buddies '56 F-100 for the trip into town....



Oh, and re-registered the trailer, only $9.50 for a year, bargain.

[BenelliSEI]

Steve….. what do you clean the exterior of the hull with? Assume it’s ‘glass?

Hi John...yes, it's fiberglass, I use Simple Green for everything except the windshield.  I like the "lemon flavored" variety, leaves a nice odor for while on the vinyl seating surfaces. At 11 bucks a gallon, it's a bargain.  And as mentioned, it's biodegradable so I feel no guilt with the runoff going into the lake.

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Simple-Green-1-Gal-Lemon-Scent-All-Purpose-Cleaner-3010100614010/202255371?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&pla&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-APT-GGL-Multi-Multi-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-PRP-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NEW-RES_PROP_MNGR&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-APT-GGL-Multi-Multi-NA-NA-NA-PLALIA-NA-PRP-NA-NA-NBR-NA-PRO-NEW-RES_PROP_MNGR-71700000115165060-58700008567481942-92700078179660123&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwiYOxBhC5ARIsAIvdH50tKjveJTbYEDp2RyqOky7fqsTBgtwg-scrzzu-ICMNgv8D1wgVM9MaAtrlEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

And looks good too! Thanks.

[Kelly E]

The utility trailer had 12 year old tires so off they went to Discount Tire for new ones, $250 out da door! [mounted, balanced, tax and disposal fee]

Borrowed my buddies '56 F-100 for the trip into town....



Oh, and re-registered the trailer, only $9.50 for a year, bargain.

Nice truck!

Your trailer is the first commercial built trailer with a brace from the hitch to the railing that I've seen. We put two on the 12' flatbed when we built it. The braces ended all flexing between the yoke and the deck. Here's when we redecked it in diamond plate and installed bigger fenders to run 15" wheels.

[dave500]

Ive been on holidays all this month,one week to go,been tinkering with ride on mowers,bought and flipped a couple,plus parts and gathered spares for mine,i have a 2009 Toro xl440h wheelhorse,the plastic hood is brittle and getting brittlier as it ages,I managed to keep a steel hood from a mower i got with a blown motor,and its red!!bit of measure measure measure,square it up then combining the new hood with the steel hinge part of the old plastic crap got it looking good,even used the old air funnel for the fan cooling and got that squared away aswell as saving the wheelhorse badge im gonna paint silver and put it on the black grille,im pretty happy that plastic one was pissing me off.

[grcamna2]

Ive been on holidays all this month,one week to go,been tinkering with ride on mowers,bought and flipped a couple,plus parts and gathered spares for mine,i have a 2009 Toro xl440h wheelhorse,the plastic hood is brittle and getting brittlier as it ages,I managed to keep a steel hood from a mower i got with a blown motor,and its red!!bit of measure measure measure,square it up then combining the new hood with the steel hinge part of the old plastic crap got it looking good,even used the old air funnel for the fan cooling and got that squared away aswell as saving the wheelhorse badge im gonna paint silver and put it on the black grille,im pretty happy that plastic one was pissing me off.

I love having plenty of time to choose what I want to do 

[dave500]

You said it Bill,i fixed up a neighbours ride on mower deck,we got talking said he still had his old one under the house,been there 12 years,he gave it to me,boy,it was filthy,i pressure washed it and got the honda motor going and sold it as it was,it drove,broken clutch cable though,these where made in new zealand,kingcat "cheetah"

[BenelliSEI]

The LEXUS had a lumpy idle and stumbled at low revs. Tim discovered the VVT solenoid was malfunctioning. Replaced it and threw on the dealer plate. 6,700 rpm in the bottom four gears and it is running better than ever! “6 more sleeps”!

[Stev-o]

The utility trailer had 12 year old tires so off they went to Discount Tire for new ones, $250 out da door! [mounted, balanced, tax and disposal fee]

Borrowed my buddies '56 F-100 for the trip into town....



Oh, and re-registered the trailer, only $9.50 for a year, bargain.

Nice truck!

Your trailer is the first commercial built trailer with a brace from the hitch to the railing that I've seen.

Thanks, I love that truck, and I'm not a "yellow guy"!  Runs great with an upgraded 351 Cleveland motor.

The trailer is from Cen Tex Trailers, a company near Dallas.  Seems they install that brace on all of them, I hadnt paid much attn to it.
It has served us well and I'll be using it later this week to pick up a load of mulch for the wife's garden.

https://www.equipmenttrader.com/Centex-Trailers-Utility-Trailer-Trailers/equipment-for-sale?make=Centex%20Trailers%7C765341268&category=Utility%20Trailer%7C2003644&class=TRAILERS%7C2356642

[Bankerdanny]

The utility trailer had 12 year old tires so off they went to Discount Tire for new ones, $250 out da door! [mounted, balanced, tax and disposal fee]

Borrowed my buddies '56 F-100 for the trip into town....



Oh, and re-registered the trailer, only $9.50 for a year, bargain.

My brother-in-law has the Harbor Freight manual tire machine and bubble balancer. Both have paid for themselves many times over the years with mounting and balancing (at least here in Chicago) hitting $50+ per tire.

[Bankerdanny]

Sunday I removed the plow, weights, and chains from the John Deere 445 and reinstalled the mower deck. Then the hydraulics that raise and lower the deck stopped working. I ran out of time to diagnose why. It worked when I was installing the deck, so it is odd. That is a project for next weekend when I am back in Michigan.

Got back to the JD on Sunday (was looking at pontoon boats Saturday as we were able to find a dock for lease at Gull Lake near our house). Before I left 2 weekend ago I added hydraulic fluid because nothing was registering on the dipstick (I know there was a small leak), but the deck still didn't want to go up and down. Disconnected the mower deck from the lifting arms and was able to cycle it up and down, working out any air that might have gotten in when it was low on fluid. Re-connected the arms and it moved like it should.

2 weekends ago I found that the spark plug cap on one of the plugs (the engine is a Kawasaki made V-twin) was so loose it was barely connected to the plug. I tightened the connection and pulled off the cap, cut the wire down, and re-fitted. Yesterday I checked the other side, it was just as loose, so I did the same thing, but I also cracked the insulator, so I ordered a new pair off Amazon.

I took it out in the dark (thanks to headlights) to test the mower deck and get the hydraulic system up to temp so I could check the level. The engine runs so much better and the tractor is noticeably faster. I am going to have to pay closer attention to the fluid level.

[Stev-o]

The utility trailer had 12 year old tires so off they went to Discount Tire for new ones, $250 out da door! [mounted, balanced, tax and disposal fee]

Borrowed my buddies '56 F-100 for the trip into town....



Oh, and re-registered the trailer, only $9.50 for a year, bargain.

My brother-in-law has the Harbor Freight manual tire machine and bubble balancer. Both have paid for themselves many times over the years with mounting and balancing (at least here in Chicago) hitting $50+ per tire.

Hey Danny...mount & balance here is $22/tire which includes lifetime balance and flat repair. 
I'm good with that and dont care to change tires and have to deal with disposing of the old ones.
My buddy is the Manager at Discount Tires, great service and they match pricing....

[BenelliSEI]

Found a local fuel depot that still carries zero ethanol,high test gasoline. Completely filled my 4’ X 8’ utility trailer with race jugs and every 5 gallon can we could find. Cdn.$1489 later we should be good for the next three days at Mosport. Thank goodness we didn’t meet any DOT Roadside Inspectors on the way home. Tires used to be our biggest cost. Not so sure anymore……

All safely tied down in the big (enclosed) race trailer and I’m ready for a nap!

[BenelliSEI]

Friday was open practice all day. Car was quicker than last year, right out of the box and a delight to drive. Scaling and getting the corner weights balanced and tuning tire pressures with a pyrometer made it even better. Fantastic Day. That’s me and my team mates marking my 55th year road racing  at Mosport.

[BenelliSEI]

Saturday was torrential rain all day. Half hour before the end of eight hours, I got tagged in the right rear, coming onto the back straight. 360 spin into the concrete with the LF ended the day. We did enough laps to be scored 6th in class on a horrific day. At least three good race cars got completely written off. We went back to the shop pushed out bodywork, straightened suspension, realigned everything and got it straight….. Dinner was late!

[BenelliSEI]

Sunday started out with sunshine, then by midday the rain was even worse than Saturday! A failed brake light switch (!!!!!!) got us black flagged and it took us 1/2 an hour to “borrow” one from one of the race cars that was destroyed the day before. Next a wiper motor died from over exertion! Fortunately we carry a spare…… despite all this, we actually finished 4th in class! Next race is in five weeks. Better times ahead?

[BenelliSEI]

One of my team mates brought along a new toy (he has way too much money). It got hidden away as soon as the rains came, but on Friday it easily turned the fastest lap of the day and +260 kph up the back straight! Stupid fast, crazy fun.

[BenelliSEI]

The LEXUS “after” 16 hours in the rain….

[BenelliSEI]

The LEXUS today. Peeling a fender and bumper shroud off the (blue) parts car next. Need to straighten and spot weld a few broken inner panels. Thinking of adding a strut brace connecting the two top plates, over the engine.

[Don R]

 I finished putting the bodywork on the Dragster and started prepping the trailer for the weekend. I still need generator and golf cart gas. It hasn't moved under power yet but has been started. I cut the previous season's oil filter, it was pretty clean. The Royal Purple race oil makes it appear dark and dirty even when it's fresh.
 The laptop that runs our weather station took a poo, it runs only while plugged in to 110V. I want to get a new one and move our data over before we lose it. It also refuses to go online even when hard wired so we can't get any software updates.

[Tracksnblades1]

Hope it’s not due to engineered obsolescence…?
We have a 5 year old robo vac that suddenly can’t update or connect to update. Nor can it be manually updated..
But a new one will fix the problem 😏

[Bankerdanny]

Sunday I tried to solve a no-horn problem on my Lincoln MKT, which is stopping me from passing my Uber inspection. I confirmed good ground at the horn, but no power.

The MKT has 2 fuse boxes, one on the driver's side engine bay and another under the dash to the left of the steering wheel. That's the one that has the horn fuse. It took me 20 minutes to find it, including removing both under-dash panels (thankfully easy to do). Even then I had to get on my knees outside the car and stick my head under the dash with a flashlight to find it. I would love to find the engineer who designed this an give them a good slap. Replacing a fuse should not require removal of dash panels.

Unfortunately the fuse was fine. So normally I would check (or just replace) the relay. But guess what, the relay his built in to the engine bay fuse panel board, it is not a replaceable part. Again I have to ask WTF Ford engineers? Fixing this will require me to either wire in my own relay, which will disable the panic /security horn function, or replace the engine bay fuse box.

I have seen some stupid engineering in my day, but this is among the stupidest. Either I spend $100 plus on a used box, which may be bad, or I spend hours tracing wiring and installing my own relay and fused power. Both of which are much more money and work than pulling a bad relay and plugging in a $7 replacement.

[BenelliSEI]

 Got the replacement bodywork fitted today. Still some “adjustments” required. Good thing we bought a cheap “parts car”. Already pealed off a headlight, wiper motor, brake light switch, LF fender and bumper cover! Need to go back and get a top radiator cross brace.

[Stev-o]

Saturday was torrential rain all day. Half hour before the end of eight hours, I got tagged in the right rear, coming onto the back straight.

Hey John...my brother races SCCA [Spec Racer Ford] and has been to Mosport several times, he really liked the track.  And whats with the Bog People?! Although I've  traveled to many race tracks with him, California to Florida, never made it to that one. 

He's had his share of disasters too, he'd always say it was a good day when the car was put back in the trailer at the end of a race weekend!   

Good luck with your season, it's bound to get better!!

[Stev-o]

Been working on the 1946 Ford truck a bit.   

Got all the wiring sorted with the help of a buddy so I have turn signals and brake lights now.  The PO used a marine fuel tank just sitting in the bed, got rid of that and fitted an early Mustang tank down between the frame [a common mod for these old trucks].  Had to reroute the exhaust, a local muffler shop did it for cheap, I kept the old "cherry bombs"!  PO used a piece of plywood for the bed of the truck, trashed that and bought some thick, rough cut walnut boards and am currently fitting those...