What are you doing today?

[Blckshdw]

For the last day or so, been getting a faint odd whiff of odor in my kitchen, and couldn't track it down. Woke up this morning and could smell it from the bedroom, so I got a little concerned. Back in the kitchen, sniffing around, but couldn't pin point it cuz it wasn't strong/constant. Figured screw it, we're deep cleaning the whole damn kitchen today! It wasn't until I hand washed a container and poured the wash water directly into the drain that I got a stronger whiff. Ran some hot water down the drain for a bit, and problem solved.

Started some laundry, and had an idea for another mini project. In a rush to get the yard mowed ahead of an afternoon storm, I ran my knee into a thick branch, and ripped my pants open. Since I have that handheld sewing machine, why not use that as a nice test run before trying to fix my canopy top. It was really simple to use, but the tricky part was terminating the seam with a knot. Had to re-read the steps in the instructions a few times before it made sense. Here's the before and after, we'll see how long it holds up, and if I need to make 2 passes, if it comes undone after getting stressed somehow.






Been on the couch ever since doing some research and window shopping. Starting to run out of storage space on my media server, so was looking at some NAS setups. But for anything with enough bays, it gets really pricey even before you buy the drives, so got looking at those rack servers again. Might as well upgrade the whole setup, as well as get some RAID redundancy as a bonus. Also looking at TVs. Last night, the picture went out on the 55" in my bedroom. Had to drag out the old 32", and it was pretty annoying since the setup was a good 25 feet away from my bed.



So now the question is, do I get something smaller for the bedroom, or get something larger for the living room, and rotate the living room TV into the bedroom? Decisions, decisions.

 

[mrrsm]

The set of 2X - 2 FREE FLAT Gorilla Trailer Wheels ($104.00 + Free S&H via Amazon) arrived and took all of around (5) Minutes to Install. They can support 300 Lbs per Wheel and so I'm getting another Pair for my Blue HF Hand Truck as well:



I used some 10 Penny Finish Nails and a Stack of the INCLUDED Cadmium Plated Washers (Front and Back) on their Axles to get rid of any Axial Wobble in the Inner Races within the Sealed Ball Bearing Casement vs. their Old & Rusted, Used & Busted Cotter Keys from their OEM Installation.



I'm so sick and tired of having Flat Tires from Buried, Rusty Roofing Nails and Rust around the Rims always breaking ALL of those Air Tight Seals on what should otherwise be Good, Tube Style Tires. I'm also glad that I'll no longer have to add in the thought of "Hey... Do they have any Air left in them...?" when you NEED to use the Damned Rolling Things ...RIGHT NOW:

 

[Eric04]

Just getting back from a trip to the FIL's. My son is staying with him now while he attends a nearby university and it appears to be working out well so far between the generations. I had to track down an exhaust rattle on the kid's new ride(Mitsubishi Outlander[his choice]) so I packed along enough tools to do major surgery only to find a loose heat shield. Easy roadtrip with light traffic for a holiday weekend.

 

[BrianF]

After work the family and went town and looked at a used quadivator. Needs some work but the price was right and everything works.

This upcoming week I will rip into Alberta to look at a used quad and blade. Its an older Polaris 500. 2001. Looks in good shape, higher miles but price is right and we need something to move a bit of snow and drag the arena.

Time to get ready for winter out here. We had some frost already at the end of August and the next couple of days will have some cold nights.

 

[Blckshdw]

The end of a few eras... When the 42" TV on the left started going bad, I replaced it with the 55" on the right. (what a difference having almost no frame around the screen makes huh?) The dual tape deck and VCR go back to my college days, but haven't come out of their boxes in almost 2 decades Now that I'm a homeowner, I can take this stuff to the county collection site a few miles away. I don't think they're open today, although the website doesn't say they're closed, so planning to dump these 1st thing tomorrow morning before work starts, when it's cooler.

 

[Mooseman]

Got a fraud alert on my phone this morning alerting me to a blocked transaction on my debit card in Saudi Arabia. Checked my account and there were no other suspicious transactions. Called the bank and the attempted transaction got immediately flagged and blocked. Card is now shut down and I'll pick up a new one at the bank. No clue how they got my card number and PIN. Probably a machine was compromised somewhere.

Today, I'll try and clean up the garage in preparation of replacing the garage door. It's an old wood door that got damaged. Picked up a brand new one from someone on MarketPlace and saved over $100. A nice steel insulated one that should help retain more heat too.

 

[northcreek]

Got a fraud alert on my phone this morning alerting me to a blocked transaction on my debit card in Saudi Arabia.

For a moment there I thought you had given up on the truck search and where considering a Camel instead...

 

[Blckshdw]

Last night, had the bright idea to review what other stuff was hiding around my house that I forgot about, that could also get tossed out. Had an old microwave, PS3, and racing steering wheel taking up space. So threw those in the back of the EXT and headed to the dump this morning bright and early.

What should have been a 10 minute drive, was a 40 minute one, because a major intersection nearby was closed off due to an accident, so detours were getting redirected down side streets. Being able to back right up to the recessed dumpsters made things super easy. Got everything unloaded in minutes, and surprisingly didn't break a sweat. Took an alternate route home and was able to get online at my normal time.

Planning to hit the grocery store on my lunch break, since I was ultra lazy over the weekend and didn't leave the house. The guys want to come through in a couple of weeks to hang out, so will get a few things I know they'll want. Need to get in the yard as the grass is starting to get tall, and some sections outside of my fence along the sidewalk are out of control since I didn't mow those the last time... But it's supposed to storm (again) this afternoon. Kicking myself a bit, should have done it yesterday morning, but holiday weekends are for relaxing...

 

[northcreek]

Plastic headlights have no place on a tractor IMHO. Mine had gone from condensation to a permanent haze so I thought that I would convert to sealed beam glass units that have no way for moisture to enter. H4666 & H4668 lights are the perfect size and have HI/LO filaments. I chose to fab up a mount with metal pieces that I had lying around but, I'm sure there are many other ways since they can be installed fixed at a slight down angle with no need for adjustment.

 

[TJBaker57]

What am I doing this fine September 8th?? Prepping for up to 13 inches of snowfall. Damn! Not ready for this.

 

[TollKeeper]

13? Only supposed to be 2-6 here in the Denver area. Where are you?

 

[TJBaker57]

13? Only supposed to be 2-6 here in the Denver area. Where are you?

Near South Fork, at 8200 feet just below Wolf Creek Ski area

 

[TJBaker57]

And the power went out with the wet snowfall. I can be resourceful when I need to be....

 

[TJBaker57]

Shoveling. That's what I'll be doing today.....

 

[Blckshdw]

I'm a bit sore today. Managed to get most of the yard work done before the storm hit last night. Didn't get to run the string trimmer in the back yard, but that's OK. Feeling unmotivated with work. People are turning their brains off, and making me have to tell them stuff over and over again. I hate that. Hope they snap out of that soon.

Threw a few lbs of chicken in the slow cooker with some marinade, and the house is starting to smell pretty nice. Also making me hungry. Probably could have timed that a little better so the smell hit around lunch time, and would be done closer to dinner time, but that's OK. Need to figure out what sides I want to go with it though. Decisions decisions.

Shoveling. That's what I'll be doing today.....

I do NOT miss those days, growing up.

 

[Mooseman]

@TJBaker57 , I am envious. I'd be sledding my brains out in that. Send it my way if you want

After looking online for more trucks for sale, went to Costco. Didn't go to the new one in the east end, which is the second largest in Canada, because it's an absolute zoo right now. Went to the one in the west end, much better, not too crowded.

 

[BrianF]

My wife went to watch her horse at the show. The trainer did some good work and got a few first places and a reserve champion. My wife is pretty happy. We know the official photographer, who took our oldest on to help out. So far they are having fun.

If my wife is able to get the online banking app working, she will go look at a use quad with a blade this evening. Its an older, higher mile 2001 magnum 500. Looks to be in really good shape, price is right and we will need one this winter.

I stayed back to hold down the fort. So far I sprayed over 80 litres of curtail through my new backpack sprayer. The south side of our property is not fully fenced and overtaken by weeds. I found some real bad patches of Russian thistle that needed to be done asap.

Tonight I will have some cold beer and get lazy. Well lazier.

 

[Blckshdw]

Got a visit from @jimmyjam on my lunch break. He donated 4 x 4 TB and 3 x 3 TB hard drives that he's no longer using. This is going to make my storage upgrade much easier, as I can copy all of my important data onto some of these, freeing up my current 6 TB drives, assemble the 5 disc RAID with the 3 new ones that should show up tomorrow, and then copy the data into the array.

The previous plan was to build the array with the 3 new drives, copy the data to it, and then let it rebuild after adding the other 2 drives. So this should save a ton of time, and also give me static backup capabilities.

 

[Sparky]

Yesterday worked on security camera install. Criss crossed views so most activity will be caught be two angles and zero blind spots. Not had any issues aside from a random drunk woman knock on our door a few months ago, but just a precaution. I had most of the stuff to do it already anyway, just had not gotten to it until now.

 

[BrianF]

So the family made it home all safe and sound. My wife brought the quad as well.

Its got a few issues to be addressed but to be expected. Needs a carb clean and possibly some new o rings and needle valve. She needs a bit of enricher on to run right and she drips fuel from the overflow. Its just a basic mikuni vm34 slide carb, so parts are cheap and easy to find. I will inspect the belt but am thinking the clutch sheaves need a deglaze as the transmission grinds a touch when shifting stationary, so maybe the belt is grabbing. Then grease it up, swap out all the fluids and put her to work.

 

[Mounce]

Loaded my tools and roll cart back into the Silverado to take back to work at a different location. Hoping my employer acts right this time around. Gonna wait a week or so to drag the big box there.

 

[TollKeeper]

Friday night EXTREMELY late, running into very early Saturday Morning.

By mileage, my Buick Rendezvous needs a tune up. Its just a standard V6 engine, or so I thought, I mean come on, how hard can it be...

So I took out the throttle body and intake tubes and air filter housing. unplugged some of the VVT wires, and other unknown random wires in the intake plenum. Now I just need to remove the intake plenum. Crack off the first bolt, and start spinning it out, Pull up on the bolt head when it reaches the end, only for it to hit the cowel. Well, I can just rock the engine forward after removing the engine struts, so thats not a big deal. But if I cant get the rear 3 intake plenum bolts out, than this is all for not. Break one of those loose, and sping it out, only for it to hit the cowel like the front three. How fricking long are these bolts??? Turns out, they are 9 inchs long! Break out my GM manual for the 3.6 on the Buick Rendezvous, they are talking about removing the steering interlink, and a whole bunch of other crap, as well and dropping the engine out the bottom!!! for a freaking tune up?!?! Put the car back together, and crawled into bed about 2:55 am... Only for my son to wake up from a nightmare at 2:58am. ARGH!

So I have decided its time to sell the Buick, and did some car shopping on Saturday.

 

[m.mcmillen]

Low oil pressure light came on in my Acadia again yesterday. Put a gauge on it, yep, it is indeed very low when warmed up. Not messing with this one anymore. It burns a lot of oil anyway so I ordered a low mileage engine from LKQ and it should be here tomorrow.

 

[northcreek]

@TollKeeper, sounds like you and your son were both having a nightmare......

 

[TollKeeper]

@TollKeeper, sounds like you and your son were both having a nightmare......

I think your right LOL

 

[TJBaker57]

Snows all gone. Splitting wood, got another load being delivered Wednesday, need this all split and stacked out of the way. It's been standing dead for many years thanks to the Spruce Beetles. There's hundreds of thousands of acres of it. Splits fairly easy.

 

[Redbeard]

Friday night EXTREMELY late, running into very early Saturday Morning.

By mileage, my Buick Rendezvous needs a tune up. Its just a standard V6 engine, or so I thought, I mean come on, how hard can it be...

So I took out the throttle body and intake tubes and air filter housing. unplugged some of the VVT wires, and other unknown random wires in the intake plenum. Now I just need to remove the intake plenum. Crack off the first bolt, and start spinning it out, Pull up on the bolt head when it reaches the end, only for it to hit the cowel. Well, I can just rock the engine forward after removing the engine struts, so thats not a big deal. But if I cant get the rear 3 intake plenum bolts out, than this is all for not. Break one of those loose, and sping it out, only for it to hit the cowel like the front three. How fricking long are these bolts??? Turns out, they are 9 inchs long! Break out my GM manual for the 3.6 on the Buick Rendezvous, they are talking about removing the steering interlink, and a whole bunch of other crap, as well and dropping the engine out the bottom!!! for a freaking tune up?!?! Put the car back together, and crawled into bed about 2:55 am... Only for my son to wake up from a nightmare at 2:58am. ARGH!

So I have decided its time to sell the Buick, and did some car shopping on Saturday.

I would have thought the MONZA engineers of the 1970's would have been dead and gone by now. If memory serves correct one had to drop the engine to get to the rearmost spark plug or if you were a crafty mechanic you 1) didn't change it. or 2) cut a hole in the firewall or floorboard in front of the passenger seat to get to the rear plug to change. And way back then plugs didn't last like these iridium plugs do
I sure do wish engineers had to work on some of the crap they design.

 

[BrianF]

Hauled our hay for the year. We are down horses so we do not need as much and we went up to a rich alfalfa mix, so again, do not need as much. 3 loads, totalling a measly 30 bales. These are the baby rounds, scaled at a hair under 1400 pounds.

The total combined weight of the trailer, bales and truck was 28k and change. Big Blue loved it. 70mph on the flats and rolling hills was nothing. Keep her at or above 2000rpm and she had plenty of reserve left.

 

[Matt]

I was meant to be taking my new irons out for a test drive at the range this arvo, but I have to go to a friends house and look at why the disposal side of their sink is backing up...he's absolutely useless.

 

[Mooseman]

Closing the pool today despite the Mrs protests. We had a frost warning last night, it's 7c this morning, no sun and we don't have a heater. Just wasting electricity running the pump at this point. It's the same fight every year

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

Wishing I was headed out golfing, but doing the work thing and some household chores

 

[Mooseman]

Just came back from looking at a garage door someone was giving away free on Kijiji to use for my new garage. Was still there however it was just a cheap tin uninsulated one. Left it for a metal collector to pick up.

 

[Blckshdw]

Been a productive day. Getting my task list knocked out at work, and coworkers aren't bugging me with (too much) nonsense. Got a phone call from the county sheriff's office that I missed while on a video call. I sent the video of those guys dumping couches to the code violation department, and yesterday they sent a guy to check out the stuff. I saw him take measurements, cut the bottoms open to check for any contents, write a few things down and leave.

They then forwarded the video to law enforcement who was able to track the guy down. As I suspected, he lives right around the corner, as most of these do. I just got off the phone with the deputy who thanked me for the video. The company who owned the vehicle had an aging fleet and sold off a bunch of their vehicles so this guy bought it for $800, and just never stripped off the wrap. Anyway, long story short, due to the combined size of the junk, (I thought it was just by weight) this is a felony, and dude is getting charged.

He said they know that corner is a hot spot, as many of my neighbors complain about it too. Too bad my cameras don't have a fast enough frame rate to catch LP#s as they drive by at the angles they're mounted at. Hopefully technology gets better and prices on the good stuff drops down to more affordable prices and I can change that.

 

[northcreek]

Anyway, long story short, due to the combined size of the junk, (I thought it was just by weight) this is a felony, and dude is getting charged.

How would you like to be in the Slammer for couch dumping ? even the worst of the inmates wouldn't respect you....

 

[Matt]

I was meant to be taking my new irons out for a test drive at the range this arvo, but I have to go to a friends house and look at why the disposal side of their sink is backing up...he's absolutely useless.

And it was a 5 minute fix. Used a plunger...

 

[northcreek]

And it was a 5 minute fix. Used a plunger...

NEWS FLASH!
Man bludgeons friend to death with drain plunger, details at 11:00.

 

[Mooseman]

Heading to Princess Auto to pick up some essentials that are on sale . Also need to pick up some plumbing antifreeze to finish off the pool closing and then throw the leaf net on it. Continue cleaning up the garage for the door replacement.

 

[m.mcmillen]

Dropped the engine cradle of the Acadia today.

 

[Redbeard]

m.mcmillen
"Dropped the engine cradle of the Acadia today. "


Was all that to install the part that came in the Rock Auto box on the table?

 

[TollKeeper]

Same engine as my Rendezvous... At least you can work on yours!