Pictures of the Week

[other dog]

I got Raleigh Signs to make some decals for the doors on the CH. Not only does it look much better with something on the doors- in my opinion anyway- they cover up the old "Grand Home Furnishings" that you could still read. There's so many scratches under those signs that you'd think somebody took the old lettering off with an axe.

I'm making some beef jerky today. Got the idea and recipe from Hippy, 70mackMB.

Looking pretty good. It's done, as far as being cooked, I eat a piece of it every time I add wood to the fire, but I want it completely dried- I guess, I've never made jerky before. It's been smoking since 10am, at about 150 degrees.

I've got black pepper strips on top, teriyaki on the bottom. Looks like that top rack was cooking much fast than the bottom, so I moved some around. When I tasted the pepper jerky that's all I could taste- black pepper. But the teriyaki was really good.

[mowerman]

You’re a barbecue area is very cool. Nice looking yard.

[other dog]

48 minutes ago, mowerman said:

You’re a barbecue area is very cool. Nice looking yard.

I'm about to go out there now and make some more skewers on the other grill. 

[other dog]

GMC update- everybody has been asking, getting tons of calls and letters, what's up with that Brigadier you had?..not really, that's a total lie, nobody has asked about it at all 🤣 

But we finally got it back from Powell's Truck and Equipment in Lynchburg after 3 months, they put a pump on it, and replaced the air bags and leveling valve.

Then I took it up to Truck Body Co. so they could replace the sleeper boot that had several holes in it and was obviously leaking. The bad news is that at the minimum the whole front wall of the sleeper has to be replaced. And possibly the walls on the sides, depending on the amount of water damage and possibly mold that might be in there. To replace the entire front I'm looking at about $6,000. If the damage goes a lot further I'll put a sheet metal "patch" over the big hole in the back of the cab and sell it for what I can get for it, taking a substantial loss on it I'm sure. It's a good truck, somebody could put a flat bed body on it and haul hay with it, or pull a camper, livestock trailer, etc. with it.

If I get just that front wall replaced I'll already have spent as much on it as I paid for it to start with. Live and learn I guess.

[Brocky]

Tom

That improved to CH immensely.. Have you advertised the GMC anywhere much??? Possibly now that it is running OK you can sell it before you spend any money on the sleeper???

[Freightrain]

CH looking good.  The Windfall Wimmen model really add to the class!!!  😉

 

Bummer about the GMC bunk.  I've been fighting leakage on my trailer for years.  Had to replace the ceiling in the front(bed area)along with the three walls and part of the plywood flooring.  Went from "eh" to rotted and mold in short order.  I have the leak fixed so it should be good for awhile.

I forget what the bunk looks like?  Alum ext. with luan panel inside?

[other dog]

12 hours ago, Freightrain said:

CH looking good.  The Windfall Wimmen model really add to the class!!!  😉

 

Bummer about the GMC bunk.  I've been fighting leakage on my trailer for years.  Had to replace the ceiling in the front(bed area)along with the three walls and part of the plywood flooring.  Went from "eh" to rotted and mold in short order.  I have the leak fixed so it should be good for awhile.

I forget what the bunk looks like?  Alum ext. with luan panel inside?

One issue with the new boot is that the sheet metal on the truck cab is pretty thin, but the sleeper hole has a strip of wood all the way around that's a lot thicker, so it never really fit right to start with. 

And I'm really glad the guy at Truck Body called me to come look at it, he could have just installed the new one like the old one and took my money.  And it would have lasted a little while probably then started leaking again.

But he's going to get the front off and let me know how everything looks before we go any further.

[other dog]

13 hours ago, Brocky said:

Tom

That improved to CH immensely.. Have you advertised the GMC anywhere much??? Possibly now that it is running OK you can sell it before you spend any money on the sleeper???

Raleigh was supposed to make 2 "NOT FOR HIRE" signs, and a "Zina" sign, but he forgot. I'm going to put her name on the door, she didn't really like my stick-on letters, and the not for hire on the side box door. That will hide some old lettering and numbers too. The ATCA decal on the hood is covering a hole where the fender mirror bracket was bolted on. Might get a smaller ATHS decal to cover the scratches where the IFTA sticker used to be. Or I could slap a "Bear Swamp Beverage" decal on it.

[Freightrain]

I welded a 1/16" thick lip on my cab and bolted boot to it with thin aluminum backer on the rubber side.  The new opening for the bunk I made a similar lip to bolt boot to.  Sounds like the up fitter just kinda cobbled it and hoped it would last past any warranty.  🙄

My trailer has similar luan(thin 1/8" plywood)with vinyl covering.  You could replace that yourself.  I just painted mine white to match.

[other dog]

97% humidity this morning. We had a thunderstorm and torrential downpours around midnight last night, and there's a chance of rain for the next 10 days, that's as far ahead as the weather app. goes. Lots of flooding in the area.

Don't know when the grass might get cut, all the rain is killing the garden, the tomatoes are big but some of them have the dreaded tomato blight from too much water, but you know it could always be worse. I have nothing to complain about when I think of the flooding in Texas.

I have to cut all this grass with the push mower because the riding mower won't fit through the gate. I could put a wider gate in easily but I need the exercise anyway. 🤣 

I can cut that part on the other side of the fence with the riding mower. I was in the garden picking tomatoes this morning when I saw a fox trotting across the field with something in it's mouth. I threw a tomato at it and it dropped whatever it had and took off towards the woods. I went out to see what it was and it was a ground hog. It was already dead, no idea if the fox had killed it or it had been struck down in the road by an automobile. I'm thinking it probably had a litter of fox pups somewhere and it was taking it to them for breakfast. Now I wish I hadn't thrown the tomato, but I wanted to see what it had.

[other dog]

...or maybe it was a coyote. There's plenty of them around here, probably a lot more than foxes. My first thought was fox, but now I'm not sure.

[mowerman]

its flooding in numerous places right now,,,we just have dry and heat here,,,its about normal,,,,we dont see any rain here for weeks,,in the summer

[Geoff Weeks]

I saw a red fox in my yard a week ago, I left it be, as it was hunting rodents. I hear Coyotes often but rarely see them. Very afraid of humans and domesticated dog (which often bring a human with a gun). No mistaking a fox for a coyote, size and shape of the head are give-a-ways.

[other dog]

Yeah, I've seen both before but neither is something you see on a regular basis, at least not around here. I was startled to say the least, and it was a good ways away out in the tall grass in the field. When I saw it had something in it's mouth the first thing I did was call for my dog, because they had been out in the yard just a few minutes before. They don't go outside the fence though. Sometimes I'll have Roman out with me but Mack doesn't go outside the fence unless he escapes, because he'll take off exploring. Then I have to rattle a potato chip bag to lure him back. 🤣 

[mowerman]

lol i just yell out snacks,,,if i dont see mine,,,,we have coyotes,,,but they usually dont come around where theirs too many houses,,,unless they cant find enough prey,,,,in the rural areas ,,,they will hunt in neighborhoods,,,i alway keep my gates closed,,,but mrs mower tells me if they want your pets,they will leap a 6 ft fence

[other dog]

I went out and cut the back yard, even though it was still wet. It had to be done. 🤣 That's a big glob of grass behind that bush that I cleaned out from under the mower. I turned it off first.

And now it's pouring rain!

And the guy from Truck Body Co. called me again, wanted me to come look at the Brigadier. This is what he showed me-

So we "pulled the plug" on the GMC. I'm just not going to keep spending money on it. Went through that with a Dodge pickup I used to have. You spend so much on something, and you reach the point where you say "well, I've already got a million dollars tied up in this thing. I can spend 2 more million on it and hope it's fixed", or you can say "I've had enough, I'm going to cut my losses now" and not take it any further. So that's the course of action I decided on. They're going to take the sleeper compartment off and make me a sheet metal "patch" to go over the big giant hole in the back of the cab. Then I'll either keep it, or sell it.

[Mark T]

8 hours ago, other dog said:

...or maybe it was a coyote. There's plenty of them around here, probably a lot more than foxes. My first thought was fox, but now I'm not sure.

I can relate. I'm trying to decide if the weather chick is a fox or not.

[mowerman]

she looks mighty fine to me

[mechohaulic]

with out a doubt a fox. 

[other dog]

The best looking weather girl around here was on channel 7 in Roanoke, but she relocated to Portland, Oregon. 

[70mackMB]

We had coyotes here down back in the woods. Have not heard them yet this year. We do have a doe with twins that come thru often. They spend 5-10 mins eating weeds or something along the edge of the lawn then disappear into the woods.    .....Hippy