Tales Of A Mercenary Mechanic

[Rajobigguy]

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Well, this has been a fun filled and exciting day My friend past away two weeks ago today. His now widow asked if I could take a look in his storage unit, and send her some pics.

4ish years ago, I helped him put some of this stuff in there. My God, there is a lot. Today I did some mapping, like found where some of the motors were, and some other parts. Only one tool box is accessible, 3 others are not. She would like me to put together a decent set for her, but I believe the rest I will be selling at a later time. Majority of the boxes are not labled...and there are a lot of boxes. Holy crap...

So, I've been laughing at another thread. There are TDS people losing their minds about the stock market and tariffs. Troubles I assume are a well off person's issue. Over the past week I've been helping my friend's wife with stuff. He passed away in Maryland, his personal truck is in Maine. His home and wife are in Missouri, and the storage is by me. After some info hunting and phone calls, my friend's body should be in Missouri on Monday, and Death certificates as well. The VA was finally able to help.

People are crying about tariffs. I wonder what it's like for your life to be so perfect, that this is the only thing you have to worry about? I don't get it.

 

[4Waters]

View attachment 1491004 View attachment 1491005
Well, this has been a fun filled and exciting day My friend past away two weeks ago today. His now widow asked if I could take a look in his storage unit, and send her some pics.

4ish years ago, I helped him put some of this stuff in there. My God, there is a lot. Today I did some mapping, like found where some of the motors were, and some other parts. Only one tool box is accessible, 3 others are not. She would like me to put together a decent set for her, but I believe the rest I will be selling at a later time. Majority of the boxes are not labled...and there are a lot of boxes. Holy crap...

So, I've been laughing at another thread. There are TDS people losing their minds about the stock market and tariffs. Troubles I assume are a well off person's issue. Over the past week I've been helping my friend's wife with stuff. He passed away in Maryland, his personal truck is in Maine. His home and wife are in Missouri, and the storage is by me. After some info hunting and phone calls, my friend's body should be in Missouri on Monday, and Death certificates as well. The VA was finally able to help.

People are crying about tariffs. I wonder what it's like for your life to be so perfect, that this is the only thing you have to worry about? I don't get it.

Got some little converters there

 

[monkeyswrench]

Got some little converters there

There's 1 or 2 BTE power glides in there as well...we had some fun throwing together some stupid stuff.

 

[4Waters]

There's 1 or 2 BTE power glides in there as well...we had some fun throwing together some stupid stuff.

Few grand a piece, just don't let her sell them for what he told her he paid for them

 

[monkeyswrench]

Been here and there and everywhere it seems. Yesterday, went and worked on a whole slew of yard equipment. A riding mower that wouldn't start this year, one that hasn't started in quite a few, a towable mower, and a pressure washer that looked brand new...but wouldn't start.

The guy does yard and maintenance work for a rancher, and the stuff was at the ranch. I went down the road that had the name on the arch, and kept going. I passed a whole bunch of hogs in a massive pen...like a half mile long! After a bit, figured I was at the wrong part of the ranch, and headed back to the gate. On my way, saw something I wish I could have got a pic of. A small mountain lion bolted across the road and up a field...from the hog pen area.

I get back to the main road, and text the guy...oddly, I had service. He tells me that I was at the old ranch area, and to head up 3 miles the other way past the airstrip This here is a lot of land to keep track of...

I get where I'm going, and it's beautiful. Cows, pigs, turkeys and some loud guinea hen things. I spent a few hours getting the newer mower back up and running, as well as the pressure washer. Made a small parts list for the other two. Sometime during this, I tell the ranch hand about my sighting. He tells me the boss had took a couple of guys to get the cat, because it's been getting pigs. He gets the boss on speaker, to give him a location...they were getting dogs that could track it. The boss asks ranch hand if I was sure it wasn't a bobcat. "Smaller ears, long tail"
Don't know if they got it, but that cat was headed for a world of hurt...them boys take it serious!

After the yard equipment, was on to @The Chicken 's homestead. He'd turned out some new rollers for his tractor door. Previously, I had reattached the glass to the frame. Unfortunately, there was a first time. I'd used some 3M tape, and I got it all cattywompous. I should have made a centering jig or something. Once it was down, that was it. F'k!

So, removed door again, and stripped the glass off. Reattached with some snot that allowed a little leeway, but had to setup. Yesterday I went to reinstall the door. This door is a geometric puzzle from hell. The upper rollers are non-adjustable, so you have to angle the door just right to get it back on the tracks. The other fuckery, the top of the door seals inside the cab to the frame, and the lower to the exterior. Really cool how it works, total shitshow to install.
Oh, and the glass is something like 500$
And it doesn't really fit through the door...and you're kneeling on some medieval torture device as you fight it

Here's a pic of one of the rollers. This is a lower, much easier to install. They run on a threaded spindle, so you just have to line it up and extend it into the track.

It got some new seals too. It shuts tight, no rattles, but made me real nervous latching it the first time. The bottom 4" or so of glass is unsupported...500$!

One of the locals was hanging out by my car...highly energetic

This pic was from a week or so ago, when I was headed home. Some days are long, some aren't. Some require driving to some fairly remote locations. The days are never boring, and desk jobs wouldn't see stuff like this. Also, it helps you understand why people live out there...

 

[The Chicken]

I've had to chance that Takeuchi door before.
It sucks.
I'm glad I'm not the one who had to do it this time!

 

[monkeyswrench]

Got the other front done! 2 down, 4 to go...and only 2 more Alcoas to polish. This one had never been polished. I didn't realize that until I was pulling it off. It still had lathe grooves on it, and the Alcoa sticker. Over the course of the past couple nights, I sanded it a little, and polished it up. Not a show shine, but good for a work pig. I have to fix a fuel leak on the injector pump/lift pump pickup line, and she should run again. Bits and pieces, slow going, but a truck like this is still fetching more than I'd spend, and more than I have.