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

[Terry in Australia]

Yeah Dave, Rex Wolfendon’s (Australia’s premier CB750 racer/builder) brother Clyde (ex-HRC WSB Team Manager) used to drive his old Dodge 5 ton truck into the service station where I worked part time when I was in the Regular Army.

He’d converted it to gas himself and used to fill it up at the gas pump. He always took a long time so one day when I was bored I authorised the pump then wandered out for a chat. What I didn’t realise was that he’d built a rack under his truck and had 5 x 45 Kg gas bottles underneath that he used for powering his heating and hot water, oven etc in his home.

Car gas was around 40 cents per litre back then whereas it was then $17 to fill a 9KG BBQ bottle (we didn’t fill anything larger) so Clyde was getting the same gas from the car pump for pennies. Cheeky bugger…

[Stev-o]

Replaced my valve cover gaskets on my 70 SS396 today.

Love that car, Johnie!   Does it have steel or alum valve covers? Did you use the rubber type of gaskets?

My buddy has an issue with his '71 Blazer - valve covers leaking and dripping oil on the headers. We may change to alum valve covers with better gaskets.

[Johnie]

Hey Stev-o...I have the chrome steel valve covers and needed to change the driver side. Went with the Fel-Pro 1630 which is the double layer of cork with metal in the middle. I have that on the passenger side and never a leak. I saw the blue silicone gaskets Fel-Pro has out, but like the cork. Once I got it off I noted the PO put a bunch of RTV on the hold down threads which ended up at the bottom of the hold down bolts which made it difficult to get torque on it. Even snug I could move those hold down washers back and forth so it felt tight, but was actually lose. Ended up using a tap to loosen the RTV and then a long tweezer to get to the bottom of the hole and remove the rest.   

[Stev-o]

Hey Stev-o...I have the chrome steel valve covers and needed to change the driver side. Went with the Fel-Pro 1630 which is the double layer of cork with metal in the middle. I have that on the passenger side and never a leak. I saw the blue silicone gaskets Fel-Pro has out, but like the cork. Once I got it off I noted the PO put a bunch of RTV on the hold down threads which ended up at the bottom of the hold down bolts which made it difficult to get torque on it. Even snug I could move those hold down washers back and forth so it felt tight, but was actually lose. Ended up using a tap to loosen the RTV and then a long tweezer to get to the bottom of the hole and remove the rest.   

Good info, thanks.  Those chrome valve covers look good on that motor!  I noticed that you have an aftermarket air filter, guessing the PO changed out the OEM carb at some point?

We went through that with my buddies '63 Corvette, sourced an OEM "dual snorkel" air cleaned but wouldnt fit on the new Holley.  A Rochester carb would have been stock, had to use an aftermarket air cleaner

[Bankerdanny]

Nice, my Ford has a 4 litre (250 CI) 6 in it, but there was a 5 litre Windsor V8 option too. Mine was the last of that model, the next one had the “Barra” 6, and the all aluminium 5.4 litre V8. If I decide to keep this one for the rest of my life I might install the 5.4, or the turbo version of the Barra 6, they can make incredible BHP with only minor engine/ECU mods.

No need of course, the stock propane powered engines last forever as they run much cleaner than petrol powered engines, with hardly any carbon deposits. Mine is 22 years old, so in 2027 I can put it on a “Classic” club plate, like I do with my older bikes.

The cam in block 5.4 or the OHC 5.4? I know in the states the early 3 valve 5.4's had a rep for blowing out spark plugs because Ford thought 4 threads was enough to hold them in.

[Terry in Australia]

Nice, my Ford has a 4 litre (250 CI) 6 in it, but there was a 5 litre Windsor V8 option too. Mine was the last of that model, the next one had the “Barra” 6, and the all aluminium 5.4 litre V8. If I decide to keep this one for the rest of my life I might install the 5.4, or the turbo version of the Barra 6, they can make incredible BHP with only minor engine/ECU mods.

No need of course, the stock propane powered engines last forever as they run much cleaner than petrol powered engines, with hardly any carbon deposits. Mine is 22 years old, so in 2027 I can put it on a “Classic” club plate, like I do with my older bikes.

The cam in block 5.4 or the OHC 5.4? I know in the states the early 3 valve 5.4's had a rep for blowing out spark plugs because Ford thought 4 threads was enough to hold them in.

I don’t know Danny, I’m presuming it’s the later version as I’ve never heard of one here blowing out sparkplugs.

[70CB750]

On the backhoe, the stud on number 10 broke off.  I drilled it out and made a new stud, just a cylinder with M8 thread in it.

Messick has it but deliver is like three weeks.

[Stev-o]

On the backhoe, the stud on number 10 broke off. 

Is that for the transfer case?

[70CB750]

On the backhoe, the stud on number 10 broke off. 

Is that for the transfer case?

Those are levers to manipulate the backhoe.  They open and close hydraulic valves on the unit on the right and send hydraulic oil to different hydraulic cylinders to lower/lift the boom, move the scoop etc.

[Stev-o]

On the backhoe, the stud on number 10 broke off. 

Is that for the transfer case?

Those are levers to manipulate the backhoe.  They open and close hydraulic valves on the unit on the right and send hydraulic oil to different hydraulic cylinders to lower/lift the boom, move the scoop etc.

Got it, thx.  Have never driven a backhoe, only a bulldozer. Was fun taking out that cedar tree!

[RAFster122s]

I’m in love with my truck. On the way home I noticed that after 316 miles since I filled up on Saturday in my home town, my fuel gauge was down to 1/4 of a tank, so stopped at the 7/11 near my place. LPG was 87.9 cents per litre and petrol (gasoline) was $2.19 per litre.

The old Ford took 65 litres to fill, which cost $57.13. Gasoline was $2.19 per litre, so had I filled it up with gasoline it would have cost $142.93, so I saved $85.80, which just happens to be just $2 shy of 12 bottles of Ginger Joe, my favourite other addiction, including delivery to my place. Wow, now I can afford to drink twice as much as before! Woohoo!

How much is a 12 pack of Ginger Joe's? You should fire up your brew rig and start making your own Ginger Joe's again...free up more cash... If you can brew your own and it is an acceptable substitute, then all the more reason...

[BenelliSEI]

Not exactly a vehicle, but it does have wheels? Completely rebuilt my 5 year old BBQ. The shell looked great but inside was completely done. Burners, bars, drip tray and grates (and added a rear strut to support the burners as  the “tabs” were gone). +$100 on Amazon sure beats another $500 rust trap……

[grcamna2]

Not exactly a vehicle, but it does have wheels? Coompletely rebuilt my 5 year old BBQ. The shell looked great but inside was completely done. Burners, bars, drip tray and grates (and added a rear strut to support the burners as  the “tabs” were gone). +$100 on Amazon sure beats another $500 rust trap……

John,all OEM replacement parts ?

[BenelliSEI]

Not exactly a vehicle, but it does have wheels? Coompletely rebuilt my 5 year old BBQ. The shell looked great but inside was completely done. Burners, bars, drip tray and grates (and added a rear strut to support the burners as  the “tabs” were gone). +$100 on Amazon sure beats another $500 rust trap……

John,all OEM replacement parts ?

Good question! The Amazon ads suggested these parts fit many Models, including my Nexgrill. They did fit perfectly and were delivered in LESS than 24hrs. The screws that were suppose to be included (that attach the sparker to the gas tubes) were NOT. Otherwise, all OK.

[Kelly E]

5 or 6 years ago I switched to an Oklahoma Joe's pellet grill. It's made from heavier gauge metal and does both sear and smoke. Comes with 2 other racks with several height settings. It will smoke at 175°F, sear at 500° or cook anywhere in between. It's still working great, just always remember to burn the pellets out of the auger tube before you put it away.

My last propane grill did the same thing as yours and I replaced the burner tubes and plates. I eventually got rid of it because I didn't want to make a new bottom tray after it rusted out.

[BenelliSEI]

Kelly…. The way they are folded and punched is part of the “instant rot” design. Anywhere critical is so thin it can’t possibly last….. Interestingly, the controls and top parts of the box are in excellent shape. I’m seriously considering fabricating a new “tub” that would accept those parts. I bet I could build one that would last forever. Seriously tempted.

[Stev-o]

Coompletely rebuilt my 5 year old BBQ.

My BBQ "rust bucket" gave out during usage two months ago, cant count how many times I rebuilt it!!
This pic was taken during disassembly to remove it from our veranda...



Wife said buy a new one! I really like an old seasoned BBQ that you know exactly how it cooks, so was reluctant to replace it in the past. This one had to be 10 yrs old but was way past it's prime.   She did some research as I didnt want to buy the cheap Home Depot model and she came up with Monument Grills.  Never heard of it but Consumer Reports gave it great reviews. Retailed at $499 but was on sale, used my pro acct discount and with free shipping was only $344.  Took an hour to assemble it and was by far the best directions and smoothest assembly of any product I have dealt with.





And BTW - I sometimes grill past dark [at least in Springtime] and bought these great lights, you get 2 for $11 bucks...

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07PHQWR3V/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1

[BenelliSEI]

Steve……I’ll check those out. I’ll be lucky to get two more years out of this one (7 total).

[Stev-o]

Steve……I’ll check those out. I’ll be lucky to get two more years out of this one (7 total).

It's been two months and I'm very pleased with it.  The grilled Italian sausage we had last night was delicious!

And mine came with a rotisserie kit, which is now a $59 option.  I've only used it once but we like to buy and cook $8 raw whole chickens, they provide a nice healthy dinner and lunch leftover for days!

 https://monumentgrills.com/collections/4-burner-gas-grill/products/24367-4-burner-gas-grill

PS. I still have my smoker but propane is so easy and quick, I dont use it all that much...

[Kelly E]

Here's some pics of my Oklahoma Joe's pellet grill. It's so heavy that we had to use the tractor to put it on the deck. 

[grcamna2]

I heard a guy tell me he made a home-made outdoor grill out of a half a 55gallon drum 
Plenty thick steel. 

[Stev-o]

Here's some pics of my Oklahoma Joe's pellet grill.

Looks good, lotta guys are going to pellets.   I still like the idea of using "real wood", I get small pieces of oak and mesquite for real cheap at a place I buy firewood.

[Bailgang]

A couple weekend ago I put new rotors and pads on my 2010 F150 and all is well there now. Today I decided to change the spark plugs and it's something I haven't been looking forward to because of the bad rep the overhead cam Fords have in regards to breaking spark plugs when removing. For mine the process was uneventful and was actually one of the easier spark plug changes I've done, the dreaded spark plug issues have more to do with the 3 valve engines while mine is a 2 valve. The spark plugs for a 3 valve engine have an extension (best way I can describe it) and carbon buildup on that extension is what causes all the grief when removing those plugs. The 2 valve spark plug doesn't have that extension so it's not an issue. Tomorrow I'll be changing the trans fluid and filter.

[Terry in Australia]

I needed to do a few things to my "new" (22 years old) truck today before I put it in for a Roadworthy Certificate. It's in really good condition overall, but had a few obvious fails. First one was the headlights were looking a bit old and faded (like their owner)

Falcon and K1 26 May 2024 2 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

I'd thought about trying to polish them, but Spotty convinced me to buy some new ones, so I did, and I must say, they look pretty good.

Falcon and K1 26 May 2024 3 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

I also removed each wheel and checked the discs and pads, all looked great, so I replaced the brake pedal rubber and windscreen wipers, and called it good. I had a good look underneath, and everything looked great, no oil or coolant leaks, it looked remarkably clean. Hopefully the tester will be kind to me.

Falcon and K1 26 May 2024 4 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr 

[RAFster122s]

Terry, et. al., when you polish out headlamp plastic if you shoot it with a UV stable urethane like SprayMax 2k afterwards it will be a really really long time before you are having to mess with the lamp again because of oxidation of the plastic.
So, of you are spraying some other stuff with Spray Max 2K giving the headlamps a couple light wet coats to finish off the can is a good way to use up the rest of the product.

It's looks very nice Terry!