What did you do to (or with) your truck today.

[Grizz1963]

Little jobs

Little jobs

All get done, eventually.

Some sooner than others.

This one is a pain in the butt, because of the amount of dismantling needed to get it done, not quote the same as popping a new toilet roll on, though I believe even that is a struggle for some.

So Rob sent me these bits.



And the battery tray, though a lot better than mine, still needed work.

Rough as a badgers bum.



So I thought about it.

Wire wheel, or blast it, except my blasting cabinet is 80 miles from here with Craig as he is cleaning small bits for his sons Mk1 Golf Rabbit Cabriolet

So plan B ?

Take a chance and run down to the industrial estate to Kerbed Wheels to ask Thomas how much t do it. “Leave it here, come back tomorrow” was his reply.

So yesterday at about 4.30 I ran down there again to find he had blasted it for me, Cost? No charge, because he had done it after they shut down shop on Wednesday evening.

Pleased with that.

Loads of pitting from all the rust, I guess the are cheaply made parts and are also exposed to weather and having a concave shape, water may stay there a bit longer and drive the rusting process. Add to that, cheap mass produced paint, and you certainly have a recipe for disaster in the long term.


Result.



By the time I got home it was 5.30 so I decided to get the etch primer out and my heat gun.

Warmed the piece up, primed it one side, dried it and turned over, repeat.



Then on to three coats of satin black, again lighter than usual, but dried with help inbetween.

First coat down.



And then three coats later, it looks glossy, is actually dry, but it is a high impact wheel paint, so surprised me with the final finish.

The pitting is very obvious now as well, but does not bother me, as it is an improvement, and will be going down under the battery.

As an add in, I will add some strips of rubber (maybe old inner tube material) to absorb some of the movement when the battery is bolted down.



Little jobs indeed.

[Grizz1963]

More haste, less progress.

I wanted to do the side glass windows tint today.

FAIL FAIL FAIL.......

I was not patient enough to wait for Saturday till Sally could help me by holding the films one side.

So I cut a piece to size



Then I laid it out on the film on the outside of the door, remembering to place it so that once cut to shape, it could be stuck to the inside of the glass.



Then proceeded to removing the backing film, and using water (should have been soapy water) to place it, out in the sunshine with a very gentle breeze.......

Guess what.....??

Massive failure here. As the wind twisted it, alongside static pulling it about.

So I removed it.

Laying what was left of it, once removed, on the counter top, in order to copy it.





Thought I could copy a second one, then called over the hedge for Mickey to come hold one side........

And cut a copy of the failed item.

BUGGGERRRRRRRRR !!!


Cut it about 8mm short.


Close up.





So I removed and binned number two


So the outcome of the window tinting was good though, and this is the before ad after pcs.


Soon to be corrected.










Ordered some more film tonight after work, £10.99 wasted on education I guess.


Maybe I can fit the battery tray and radiator cowl over the weekend.


Little jobs we said.

[Grizz1963]

Some days start good.

Today started a lot earlier than I wanted, but hey ho...... sleep when we are dead ehhh.



So had breakfast then drew the truck down to the shop.



Battery out.

Wonder why these trays rust so badly.......?

Water access is easy from the front.

And putting a rubber mat under the battery, not ideal I would think.



Holes and probably more out of sight.



Old n new(er)



Battery back in.

Then removed the radiator cowl.

Old vs Replacement



While in there, I also noticed the new radiator that I had been told by the lady who owned the truck before, had been fitted.



I also dismantled the underside of the dash to look at the fog light switch..... completely broken, possibly kicked at some point.

So I just put it all back together. I will fix it another day.

It was time to head out to the shops for food etc.

Silly grin, and a distinct difference in response since I cleaned up the air filter and breathing system.

Headed home, Sally chuckled and said I looked really happy, which I was.

I have to keep reminding myself not to drive like an idiot, but it feels and sounds so nice.

She somehow sneaked a pic in while I was driving.





It was a good day.

[Grizz1963]

Rubbish, Misty and chilly outside today.

So what can I do to keep busy?

Not a lot as mostly I want to be outside.

So I used a cut off 2 liter milk bottle and some oven degreaser, followed by boiling water, then neat dishwashing soap on a brush and cleaned every wheel nut and cap individually, 20 nuts, 11 caps.

Rinsed them all with more boiling water, followed by a further wash and boiling water rinse for the nuts to ensure they were oil and grease free.

Grubby as can be.



First wash and rinse.



Second wash and boiling water rinse.

Dried.



Then fetched some foam] from the garage, sliced a couple of slots deeply into it and fitted the nuts in order to protect the external threads.



Painted a few light coats of satin black.

Happy with the result.




So I hear a few ask me why ??

Simply put, to fool the eye.

There are only 11 of these wheel nut/centre cap retaining cap screws right now, so visually it should look better if they are all black, than some anodised gold or silvery from damage.

Much effort, but another small visual gain.

PS. Not fitting new wheels till the Poorboys wheel wax from Amazon has been delivered and applied to the wheels while they are off the truck.


Time for another drive now.

[Grizz1963]

My SKY internet and WiFi was down for 24 hrs, and where I live, my mobile signal is 2 bars on 3G and intermittently 1 bar of 4G

So a struggle to work from home.

However, by 08.00 I got onto this.........





Then late afternoon, well, just after 4.00pm I got out the Poorboys wheel wax.

The stuff is sooo frugal.

You hardly use any.

I did both the fronts and rears of the wheels.






Once it dries, after 10 plus minutes, you buff it all off with a micro fibre cloth.





Hard to believe it makes a difference, and I tried to feel if it felt any smoother, no idea.

But happy to believe that it will aid maintenance.



Once I was done, looking at how little of this stuff I had used, and that is on both sides, I was amazed at just how frugal it is.

At £14.00 delivered for the tub, I suspect one could expect to do another 50 wheels or more.



Another step closer to fitting.

[Boog]

Outstanding refurbish work on those wheels. They look better than new. The truck SO deserved them.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Boog

Outstanding refurbish work on those wheels. They look better than new. The truck SO deserved them.

Thank you.

I am really pleased with the wheels and the result.

The pain of the price is less painful than it should be.

But the truck certainly deserves them.

[Grizz1963]

A rare thing happened yesterday.

Sally came over by 08.30 for tea and toast and to spend some time, I rarely go to her place, as there are no toys, and she prefers to come here..

So we had brekkie together, the watched some recorded telly, and by 12.00 she went home to see her grandson and son, also to allow me to get outside as by then I was feeling very guilty.

I was chuffed though, that I had managed to sit and do nothing for a few hours.

She is a sneaky photographer and waited for me to start looking for a hole in the trucks bulkhead.





I had two small jobs to do.

Replace the switch on the rear fog light with a metal item and ensure it still worked.

So out with the very broken old red unit. In with the new.

Happy.



Next job after finding a small man made hole in the bulkhead was to thread a wire through there.

That was a mistake, as I ended up removing it, and enlarging the hole with a step drill, and then running two wires in there, finding them snaking in from under the dash.

I also used some flat 3 core household wire to thread through the face of the dash, so that I could connect it to the two wires and then pull them up through the dash.

These modern cars are so compactly made, and even the threading of wires are a bit more complex as there is so much under the dash, blocking access.

Still, got it through and then got the wires back up out the front.





Next job inside was to drill a hole to take the new metal push button for the Klaxon horn.

I hate damaging the cars plastics, and mad as it may seem, I will keep an eye out for a replacement piece to stash with all the other unused parts.

Mate Kevin who is moving house soon, also popped around for a looksee, couple of mugs of tea and a chat.



Once the internal jobs were done, I needed to find a live to draw current from.

As earning was easy via the mounting bolt, and the pigs tail out the horn.



And once fitted, happy with the tidiness achieved.



I forgot to take pics of the completed switches before dark. So good morning.





.

[Grizz1963]

Drove it around today.....

What a pleasure this little truck is.

Went to get milk and bread in the truck earlier.

Stopped and checked in on friend Kevin,who,is building the Deusenberg replica.

It is now in paint.

Thought a few random pics up at his place were in order.

Thames river and Essex, when’re the truck was from in the background.



Few more pics.

Kevin’s pond.



Daffodil,time,with the end of winter approaching.





Looking toward the sunset.





Pity about the pole, just struggled to compose more 6han that.



Looks like the weekend is over.

.

[Grizz1963]

Amazon delivered today.

Lug nut covers ordered on the 8th, extra postage paid for delivery by 12th so delivery by 10th........ great.

Opened and unpacked after completing some online work.



Can you see anything wrong?

Yup.

Ordered 22mm or 7/8” caps, but delivery was 25mm or 1” items.



Delivered items



Ordered items.



GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

So onto Amazon Helpdesk for 40 minutes, AI vs Man

Eventually get told they will refund my account, collect the items and no, they cannot resend the correct items.

It is an Amazon “Seller” whatever that means when you are passing the buck.

So I have messaged the seller (Chinese like on EBay) and asked if the can supply the correct item.

Fingers crossed.


I actually only needed 9 of these caps.

[Grizz1963]

May have had a little accident today.

Flip Flop slipped.......

Oooops




Practice run for the real thing.

[Grizz1963]

Drove it.


With the list of tasks actually getting shorter and some of the things left to do, only dependant of shipping, couriers and also finding a drone and pilot.....

I took some time to go drive and waste fossil fuels to day, Sally was off to see her eldest son and grandson so I could be ultra random.

Eventually only liked two pics.

More another day.








Tomorrow, who knows, maybe some smoke.

[Grizz1963]

And now I guess a post many, including me have waited for.

It felt really bad being to mechanically unsympathetic.

First time I ever tried this sort of thing.

First two attempts done in a straight first gear, the rest, as per @pauly instructions.... put it into D for Devil and try again.

The concrete of the driveway is incredibly coarse and then of course one is on the lawn in moments.

VIDEO:

https://youtu.be/XKjYFTcGac8


Maybe if I can find a slightly better surface than all these private spaces it could be more impressive.

Or maybe I should stop while I am ahead.

[Just call me Sean]

Truck broke down. The injectors aren't firing at cranking or idle RPMs, but if I pour gas down the throttle body I can get it started and keep it running above idle.

[Just call me Sean]

Fixed it. It was the ICM.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Just call me Sean

Fixed it. It was the ICM.

Not knowing what the ICM is, did you manage to fix it?

[Grizz1963]

So promptly at 10.30ma red van, polished to an inch of its life, stopped on my driveway.



Chat, catch up, coffee, carport inspection etc, and we were off..... well, Dan was off, I just watched and kept him company.

I had washed the truck,yesterday, so he lathered it, and then got going with the clay bar.

Resulting in a load of grime getting removed, despite washing the car.





Also decided to remove the Fleetside badges, which was a bit of a pita.

And grubby as hell underneath



Once washed down, the clay removed the rest of the much.



Another coffee, followed by a hot water and wax shampoo wash.

Then dried off completely.

The next step was hand polishing the paint.



Starting to look real good.

And the smoothness was absolutely palpable.



Dan went around the truck, panel by panel.



And looking over the roof, the gleaming paintwork was obviously an improvement.



In the mean time, I used some Auto Glym, Bumper and Trim gel on the rear vinyl,cover.

By now, the ribs and chicken were all in the oven, with another 30 minutes to go, we went for a quick drive to Allhallows and then to Grain.

Of course Dan got to drive and I got the feeling that he was actually enjoying it.

It was the least I could do after he had spent three hours treating the S10 to nice shiny paint.



Then, Back home and dished up meat, and thick slices of Tiger bread and butter, unless you understand it, you never will.



After lunch, my mate Kevin came over to drop off something and Dan left for home as he actually does have a family as well.

Is ally got in at the same time, so it was cuppa tea, chat etc.

After that I took Kevin’s home to Maidstone, and then typically on the way back took a different route, that was a mistake, as the 4 way traffic light system was so slow I turned the car off altogether, three times while waiting to get to the road works.



Eventually made it home.

And grabbed a couple more pics nearby.



Amazing that despite it being near 5.00pm and overcast, you can still see the paintwork results of Dan’s work.





So I guess the question arises, as to whether I am happy or not.


Absolutely happy.

[Just call me Sean]

Originally Posted by Grizz1963

Not knowing what the ICM is, did you manage to fix it?

Ignition control module, it's in the distributor. I figured it was the problem. I have several laying around.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Just call me Sean

Ignition control module, it's in the distributor. I figured it was the problem. I have several laying around.

Thats a brilliant outcome

Pleased it was an easy fix.

Over here, I would have been screwed.

[Grizz1963]

So after Dan and I had dealt with the truck I still felt the stripes need to be replaced, as the tailgate pieces were damaged, both from age and when they were fitted.

So yesterday I went out and took a wheel to get a better idea on the colour match of the wheels anthracite and the stripes.

I was shocked at how close the match is , and the stripes are metallic as well.





Lodger came home with some clear and hardener as well.

I still don’t want him near the truck, but thought if I just fill the scratch and chip in with clear, it oiled at least halt degeneration somewhat.



However, hearing the feedback (no idea on costs) of chip repairers, I am now intrigued as well.

Need to investigate more.

[Grizz1963]

.

Today my back made me scream like a girl just as I got into the truck, well, I tried to get into it.


No more burnouts I think was the idea.


OK.........


So I lied.


https://youtu.be/1vTUmoU3kCY


So indoors we have a new pile after the final burnout on the Cragars.





Sweet skinny assed Mickey and the luckless lodger changed the wheels for me as I was truly crippled with pain and pinched nerves in my back.

I have called the GP surgery to ask for help, got told to call again at 08.00 to see if I can get an appointment.

Fingers crossed. I am screwed right now.



So bloody skinny, 76 and nothing stops him.





After fitting the wheels, I checked the nuts were tight and added the centre caps and wheel nut caps for a few photos.







And of course lastly.

A very happy guy, this has taken a while to get to, and to be honest, we are not yet home dry, but soon as the caps land from Katy, Texas, we are in business getting the centre caps secured.



Happy Chappy.

[Grizz1963]

.



So, in other news........


Lodger is headed to Exeter, possibly for a new job there, living with his mum.


Busy deep cleaning and disinfecting his room, he was not a fan of soap and water.



My back has completely given up on me, so struggling to do pretty much anything.


Yesterday, Sally and I managed to prep one side window tint sheet before my back called it a day.







Once cut and marked, I -it it away, safely in a cardboard tube.




Nothing else done the weekend.

Except for scouring the personal registration plate sites.

Still not found right and cheap together.

Sooon, I hope.

[Grizz1963]

So. Yesterday’s little trip was in the S10.

I find myself using it whenever I can find an excuse, though it is a bit of a pain with my back right now.

I was really chuffed to have Sally along for the ride as well.

She is a good girl and good company, always putting up with my random flights of fantasy.

Roads were absolutely easy at 10.00am





First time ever........

Red lights.... allowing the escort vehicle to follow through on two mobile homes.




Sally on camera duty of course.

Headed under the Thames River.

https://youtu.be/5oqKdiroTOI


And through the other side.......




Headed for Dagenham, with Waze guiding us through some industrial estates.

Into a residential area

Clearly up and coming.


Question is..........


What did the truck have to collect?

[Grizz1963]

Always something.

Noticed at the weekend that the tailgate retaining cables were not quite as they should be.

The drivers side was held captive by a Nyloc nut, and the passenger side had its original equipment fitted, so could release the slotted cable end.



As fitted.



Whats missing.



Conversely, the drivers side unit had been replaced by this part.

Not ideal.

So with zero chance of finding one here in the UK, I decided that slightly rounding off the corners of the bodged nut would be as good as it gets for now.

Bench grinder to the rescue.

Back on the truck.

Do e.



.

[Grizz1963]

For me, right now, even driving 14 miles to town and back ends up in some serious pain.

Mate Kevin drove over to see me today from Maidstone and picked up some anthracite paint at Halfords.

I had decided after painting the centre caps silver, that it was not the right colour and needed changing, regardless of outcome.

So a reasonable match it seemed.



First of two coats.

Difference apparent



First coat on.

Second to follow.



Then Sally popped in, on her way home and I managed to seduce her.......

Withone of these, before she headed off to do a load of chores

Bacon (loads of it) and egg toasty sandwich.

.

Then she went off and I added coat one of clear to the anthracite, which perfectly made it a touch darker.



And much later, a second coat of clear





Have to say, I am really pleased with the outcome.

Fitting when I get a chance.


.