Messages

"George's truck does have Corvair front suspension and brakes."

Well, there you go.  I didn't know that.

Thanks for all the well wishes.  Got a call from the doctors office yesterday giving me an appointment on the 22nd for an xray and possible removal of the chest tube.  Breathing well, minor pains and chest tube isn't draining much fluid, so doing pretty well.

Kitchen cabinet refacing will be done NEXT Thursday and Friday.  Decided stove and fridge will also be replaced as fridge is 24 years old and stove is a POS. Going with a professional stove this time, hoping for one that will work as intended; this will be our fourth stove since moving here in 2008.  Not a good track record for appliances.

I'm still amazed at the odds of seeing George's truck at a car show on a Corvair site.

Thanks, WZ.  The Corvair owner didn't say where he is from, but he posted this:

BTB Conway AR Expo Center Car Show.

So, I'm guessing Conway AR?  The truck looks just like it did when George had it. I've seen where people buy a vehicle, then change it.  When I sold my 58 Yeoman, the buyer said he was taking off the chrome wheels and T/A radials and going back to dog dish caps and wide whites.  Someone contacted me and said it was for sale with mag wheels, black wall tires and finned valve covers.

Got home from the hospital yesterday after spending almost two weeks in there.  Went to the ER on 4/23 for what I thought was bronchitis.  Turned out to be a collapsed lung.  Fun times. The worst of it was when they poked that tube between my ribs. Spent most of the rest of the time having a flexible tube running to a 'collection box' collecting fluid from around my lungs and a water seal to keep air from going the wrong way back into my body.  My lung is almost fully re-inflated, but they cut the flex tube a bit and installed a one way air valve that allows air from around my lung to escape as it fully expands.  I'll have that on me for at least two weeks when they will evaluate it to see if they can remove the tube from my chest at that time.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed.  No firm reason why it collapsed.

Anyway, I'm on FB today, and someone from Arkansas posted a pic of his Corvair at a car show yesterday.  That purple pickup behind the Corvair looks awfully familiar.  Looks like George's PU.  Can it be?

Hey Frank, my wife has put us on a Mayo Clinic diet since January this year.  More fruits and veggies, and sometimes the portions are way too much for me to eat.  We've both lost 25 pounds; this morning I weighed exactly 200.0, a weight I can't even remember being it's been so long.

A friend of mine has his grandson paint his '68 GTO yesterday, so I took the blue Corvair for a ride to see how it came out (good), and to also get the engine warmed up to change the oil and filter.  Less than a mile from home, I heard 'something' and when I pulled into the shop, I saw that it had thrown the fan belt.  It threw the belt because the harmonic balancer came apart, luckily not hitting anything like the oil filter right next to it.

I ordered a new USA made one from Clark's Corvair Parts for...wait for it...$320 plus more for the seal. Geez.  I checked the other vair with same engine, and I can see that balancer is getting bad also.  I'll order one for that later on.  Then a member of a Corvair group  says he knows a company that rebuilds them for less than $150.  Wondering if rebuilts are as good as new?

I'm still having breathing problems, tomorrow is two weeks.  We thought it was allergies/pollen, but if I'm not feeling better tomorrow, we get to spend the day in the ER.  Next month is surgery on my nose for skin cancer.  Getting old is getting old.

Tony, this is the 'bicycle' you should buy.  Saw it at an estate sale yesterday for only $2500, marked down from $3500.

I've been working in the yard this past week, as the weather finally warmed up.  Planted a 6' tree, plus clearing a lot of small trees from the sloped hill behind my house.  I've been breathing hard since Tuesday, the 10th.  Thought I was getting a case of bronchitis.  Turns out, it may be allergies, though I've never had it this bad.

An online 'friend' on another site posted this picture of his truck, after washing it two hours before.  That's pollen.  No wonder I'm having trouble breathing.  He's about 20 miles from me.

It pays to keep receipts. About four years ago, I bought some security lights for the house, one on each side of the garage doors.  Bought them at Costco for about $40 each.  One quit working, and being LED, you can't do anything with them.  OOPS, Costco doesn't sell that brand any longer.  Anyway, took the light and receipt to Costco and said it quit working.  She was surprised I still had the tag. You bet.  She looked it up on the puter, and said that Costco had reduced them to $10 each on clearance. Glad I had the receipt.  She called a mgr. over and he overrode the puter and I got all my money back.  I had already ordered the exact same light on Amazon for the same price.

Stop, children, what's that sound?  Sounds like my Pelonis dehumidifier has a rod knocking on the fan. Hah! Still under warranty three years later (bought a one year extended).  Contact the company, and they say to return it to Menard's for a refund or replacement.  Throw it in the truck, and the girl behind the counter says they still have that exact same make/model.  It's in the basement now running to its' hearts content.  Mine too.  Some days you're the dog, other days you're the hydrant.

Sorry to hear you're having problems, Matt.  I know what you mean about finding the older size tires.  I had to pay $550 for four 13" whitewall tires for one of the Vairs. Good grief.  All the pick-a-part yards are all gone around here, so you have to buy new stuff.  If you can find it.

I haven't been working in the shop lately, with all the cold and rain.  Just can't get into the mood.  Plus, the thought of upcoming surgery on the bridge of my nose near my eye, in May.  Went to the dermatologist office today, and they removed the nine stitches from my right shoulder.  Still waiting on results to see if both my lower eyelids have cancer.

If all you guys weren't so old already, I'd tell you to take good care of your bodies and use sunscreen, etc.

Did you get change back?

* skunk came around last night while we were watching tv in the basement family room.  Worst smell for quite sometime.  I looked out the front door with a flashlight, and it went running down toward the creek.  When that happens, we run the furnace blower and spray some Ozium around the rooms (sparingly), and the smell usually goes away.  Today, I set some live traps outside with tuna, three traps by the creek and one right in front of the house.  I looked outside at 10pm and saw the little polecat eating birdseed on the ground.  Trap untouched.

I grabbed the 22 with scope and light and snuck out the back door of the garage. Went around to the front, and it looked at me once when I turned on the light, but didn't move far.  That was his second mistake.  One hollow point and it's down for the count, and no spray.  Took it out in the country and dumped it off a bridge to a dry creek.

That will save the paint from fingernail scratches. Cool.

Called Costco the other day to see if I could get both vehicles in at the same time for tire rotation/balance.  Today was the day, 1pm.  We dropped both in the lot, then did our shopping.  Thirty five minutes and we were done shopping, but it usually takes an hour or so for the tires.  Looked at new fridges to waste time. Good grief, I hope ours last another 20 years.  Yep, took an hour and eight minutes for both vehicles to be done.

I'll probably be changing oil in the dailies this June.  The Tacoma and Forester both have the oil filter on top of the engine with a built in drain 'cup' to catch that last little bit of oil.  I installed Fumoto drain valves on both vehicles and they make the oil changes so much easier/cleaner.  I added a short hose to each one.

https://www.fumotousa.com/

The 4WD Taco is high enough to get under it unless I have to lube it and turn the driveshafts.  The Subie gets driven up on heavy plastic ramps. The Taco has 110,000 miles and the Subie 90,000 miles.  Still both like new.

I seldom buy new cans, as I find many at estate/garage sales almost full for a couple bucks each.  They'll catch on one of these days as to what these actually sell for new.