RowdyRebel

Bluegrass would be my #1...followed by the rest of country music. When I'm out working in the garage, I'll usually listen to the older stuff...and when I'm out driving, I usually have the radio tuned in to the newer stuff. No matter where I'm at, though, if I can find a station playing bluegrass, that's where it stays.

it isn't the Texas flag on my garage. Stars 'N Bars on the one side, Battle Flag on the other

Texas

...and only ignorant people would think that. Throughout history, the winners got to write their version of events to make themselves look righteous in their actions, so what you learned in government schools isn't even a fraction of the whole story...and most of the time it's less than accurate. What is really scary, is when you look at what is going on today you can see much of the same missteps by the federal government...overstepping their Constitutional powers...and the same outraged citizens who decided to draw a line in the sand and say "NO MORE!". The only real difference between then and now is that back then, it was a North v. South regional thing. This next time around, it'll likely be the middle of the country v. the coasts.

That ain't no American flag I really need ta git 'em finished...ain't got the stars painted on 'em yet

The 8n is...on 1 corner, anyways...

Tell me about it....

Got it balanced just right today and let me just say WOW!!!! Sounds real good

That almost looks as bad as my old '92 Ranger beater truck looked when I bought it: after I got done workin' on it a bit: and got some replacement lights from the scrap yard: and then again after I got the draw bar and tow lights hooked up and wired in:

I wrapped it up pretty good. Got me loaded and up to Mack to get the new hose....probably would have lasted all day, but changed it out there anyway. I also get the good stuff....industrial strength Duck brand duct tape...stuff sticks to dang near anything. I've heard that gorilla tape is pretty good, too...but that stuff is almost twice as much as the stuff that I've found to work plenty good for me.

turbo hoses: air lines: is there anything this stuff CAN'T fix?

aight...just got 'em uploaded (with some others, too...)

Pulled that POS stock radio out of the truck and wired in a 50W x 4 Sony that I've had in the garage for a few years (had it in a tank bag so I'd have tunes on my motorcycle...but haven't used it in a while). Replaced the 2 6x9 speakers behind the seat w/ 3-way Sony's that have been pulling garage stereo duty for a couple years now & wired 'em in to the proper outputs on the radio (they had been wired to the "front" speaker outputs...now they are the "rear". Then I cut an oval shaped hole on both sides of the cubby hole in the headliner and mounted up a pair of 4-way 4x6 Sony speakers that were on sale...wired 'em into the "front" speaker outputs. They didn't come with a grille, so I had to make one out of some separated steel. Looks rough, but it'll do the job. It's a work truck...not too concerned with looks as long as it works. Total out-of-pocket cost? About $40 for the 4x6 speakers and a roll of speaker wire. Everything else I've had laying around cluttering up the garage. Anyway, sounds real good sitting in the driveway...hopefully now I'll be able to hear what I'm trying to listen to while going down the road.

FWIW, that's a bean field behind Dozer this year...fixin' ta be harvested soon, too. Last year it was corn...prolly will be corn again next year too....butcha can't tell from the picture 'cuz it's winter time and there's snow on the ground.

That's taken next to my driveway...the view to the back of the house. You can see the edge of the wildflower patch next to Dozer....the truck parks between that and the house. The white spec you see on the hill top in the background just right of center is the Bald Knob Cross in Alto Pass.

Actually, that's the Bill Emerson bridge down here by Cape Girardeau...IL 146...been crossing it 26 times a day the past couple days hauling rock.

I'm the other way...I can deal with heat in the summer, but don't care much for the cold weather in the winter (unless it's snowing...then the cold is OK). I don't turn on the AC in the house until I'm sitting on the couch under the ceiling fan trying to watch the evening news and still sweating. Then I walk over to the thermostat on the wall, see where the temp is, and set the AC for 5 degrees below the inside temp of the house. That lets the AC run enough to pull the humidity out of the air without making the house considerably colder than the outside temps. I HATE the feeling of stepping into a walk-in freezer when I get home...and once you are used to the inside temps, I hate that "just opened the oven door" feeling when you step back outside. I'd rather keep the two temps fairly close. I don't mind working up a sweat if I'm out working...I just don't like sweating if I'm sitting around trying to relax. I could understand a person's "need" for AC in a Southern state....where the temps (& humidity levels) can and do get up into the "uncomfortable" range and stay there for long periods of time (June through September). In any state bordering Canada, I find it hard to believe AC would be that necessary. I mean heck...you might see a truly HOT day once or twice a year...then it dips back down to comfortable temps. What temp do you set your AC at when the outside temps rarely get above the mid 70's?

There's more to Illinois than cornfields

There isn't a whole heck of a lot of work out there for these trucks to be doing right now...and what work there is, really isn't paying like it ought to. A lot of people who have notes on their trucks are letting 'em go for what they owe on 'em...sometimes even at a loss...just to keep from getting 'em repo'd or losing everything they have trying to stay in the game. If my payment was any higher, there's been a couple months where I wouldn't have made it...had less than $1000 to my name after I paid the bills at the end of the month...which kept the truck, me, and the dog fed until I got paid again. If I had a family to support, (and as much as it would have hurt to have to do it) I probably would have sold the truck in favor of a steady paycheck long time ago, too.

My CH has a forward axle. The Granite is also offered with a forward axle. If that's what you need, you have options in the Mack lineup. Wheel bases ought to be spec'd by the truck buyer, though, not the manufacturer...there's no such thing as a one-size-fits-all truck.

NEED AC? In MN? <img src="http://zrxoa.org/forums/images/smilies/loco.gif"> It gets up to what...65 or 70 degrees in the summer? 'Round here, we usually see 90+ for much of the summer...with a handful or two of days over 100. Keep in mind that's all at +90% humidity, too. This summer wasn't too bad...didn't even turn the AC on in the house. Only ran it 1 day last year...and even then, I think I had it set at around 95 degrees....just enough to pull a bit of the humidity out of the air in the house.

The AC in my '01 CH hasn't worked since I bought it...I just roll with the windows down. I have no plans to "fix" it, though, because I can't see spending money to fix something that I never even used when I was a company driver and had AC that worked. I DO wish I had an older door with the vent, though...drove one like that a few years ago and it was nice. I'd imagine I could replace the drivers side door with one off an older CH that had the vent....one of those "upgrades" I have planned for when I have money laying around that I don't need for anything else. I had inquired about the sliding rear window that is optional (but almost NEVER seen)...but for the $800 they want for it, I'll just keep the window I've got for now. Drove for 2 days with no air ride cab last week...dang plastic valve broke. I got the old one still, so I'm gonna try to rig something that'll work for when the new one I just put on there breaks. There's an awful lot of force being placed on that piece of plastic in order to work the valve...doesn't make much sense to me to make it out of plastic like that. I find myself wishing I had camelbacks much of the time...just about any time I turn off the paved road....but, air ride has it's use too...got a gauge in the dash w/ 2 needles...one shows the psi in the tractor air bags, the other the trailer air bags (got an air line running to a quick connect on the front of the trailer which is connected to the suspension). Comes in handy while loading...judging the weight you have on the drives & trailer when loading. I don't mind (I actually PREFER) trucks that ride like trucks. Heck, my '86 Ranger had 4000# of spring on the rear...load my 600# motorcycle plus tools and everything else I wanted to haul and the suspension would sag MAYBE an inch before the tires would start to show the weight. If I wanted it to ride like a car, I'd have bought a car. ...never driven a truck with 2 sticks ('cept my F250...but one is for the transfer case...but that don't really count), and I've never owned ANY vehicle with an automatic (although a company I worked for several years ago tried sticking me in an autoshift truck...that lasted only a couple months before I just couldn't take it anymore). I usually try to avoid the interstates...seen one mile of 'em and you've seen 'em all. I prefer the 2-lane roads (although sometimes 4-lanes are nice...can get around that 40 mph sunday driver on a friday afternoon). Maybe I was born 50 years later than I should have been...would have loved to have lived back when trucks were trucks (and affordable to the people who needed 'em). Now, they build trucks that ride like Cadillacs...with prices to match. A guy who NEEDS a truck now can't afford one, and even if he COULD, he'd have to look long and hard to find one actually built like a truck that could do the job he needs it to do. Semi's ain't much better, although it is amusing whenever I see a highway truck trying to make it in a work environment....as long as they ain't holding me up any. If they're in my way, it's no longer amusing.

He's a mutt...not sure, exactly. Got kicked out of a moving car in a box with about a half-dozen others when he was about 3 months old in front of the g/f's friend's house. She picked him for me and brought him up here when she came for a visit last October....been my navigator ever since back then: getting bigger: I like this one:

My dog was pretty gassy as a pup...stank pretty bad...to the point I wanted to name him Stinky. Fiance vetoed that idea, though... Settled on Dozer....for obvious reasons