What did you do to your non-G body project today? [2022]

[ck80]

don't complain, the second owner of the house put carpet EVERYWHERE. yes, even in the toilet space where it covered up the cheap vinyl.

Hmm... do tell us they covered the ceilings in 3 inch shag carpet and put mirrored tiles on a wall... at least in the bedrooms if nowhere else

 

[ck80]

COOL. Glad to be of service.

Yeah, you could tow it the way you've suggested. Only thing I would be doing to the drive shaft as well is to run a couple of turns of tape around the rear U-joint to keep the cups from escaping and, either stash the bolts and retaining plates for the rear joint to yoke connection somewhere safe where you will inevitably forget where they are 😀, or just re-install them on the yoke and make the bolts are tight. For strapping the shaft up, load rated bungie cords, the blue rubber ones, would work but I would back them up with some heavy gauge mechanics wire or some of that perforated plumbing strapping just to be safe.

The other thing would be to score a set of those magnetic-mount stop/turn signals and hang them on the back of the van so the moron who will inevitably be tailgating you will have a secon or two to regret his/her life before customizing the body metal on the back of your van. If it happens to have a receiver hitch mounted, you could arrange to plug a 2 inch tow ball into place just as a surprise. The lights are the same as what is on a normal trailer and use the same plug style connection. It beats having the four ways on in the van as it doesn't drain the battery or cause eplipsy or road rage for the mook who is behind you.

As for the fender. there is some kind of van forum out on the west coast that might be able to put you in touch with a source for them. The spare I scored came from a paint supply shop. They had bought and used it as s demonstration panel and were just going to get rid of it as they were moving; so I made them an offer they didn't refuse.

While rare as you say, I have seen them built that way a time or two. As you suggest, as a service or parts van, or even as a salesman's moble display unit. Being as long as it is, it would make a good camper/bar/micro-shop for attending events like week end swap meets or doing some out of state parts hunting.

I threw an air mattress into mine and slept like a baby. Had the tool chest and ice chest back behind rear doors along with a baby BBQ and good to go. Even set it up with a third chair mount that I could swap out for a removable barrier that I could butt the front wheel of a bike up against when setting the ratchet straps. Piece of 2x4x10 played the role of loading ramp.

You got kids or grandkids, the whole soccer or baseball team would fit right in and still have room for treats for them and wobbly pops for the adults. Take 'em camping and you have a refuge if it rains.




Nick

For what it's worth, these are the current specs on the uhaul website

My reading implies that there is width between fenders, and, worst case scenario it might overhang the vehicle platform by 3/4" on each side. It's just on poverty cap 16" x 6.5" wide painted factory rims, not the rallys.. so I figure if you're at a generous 79" with the 7" wide rims, maybe I'm even closer than that 3/4" overhand per side.

But. I don't think the track width on a g30 vs g10 was any different if they have the same rim/tire pkg, and, neither has the rare 4wd.

So the fact you got yours on a dolly when the ujoint misadventure happened inspires confidence as well.

 

[CopperNick]

Sounds like the promo and precautions were written by a lawyer for the education of the cerebrally challenged.

As for the locations of the carpet and mirrors, thought the mirrors were supposed to go on the ceiling and the shag on everything else!! That way she can be looking up when the ceiling comes down because the adhesive failed due to being improperly installed and have a birds eye view of a wall of glass coming at her. (isn't that one of the ways a character dies in some B-rated horror flic???)

 

[86LK]

Hmm... do tell us they covered the ceilings in 3 inch shag carpet and put mirrored tiles on a wall... at least in the bedrooms if nowhere else

not quite. 2nd owner bought the house about ~1990, couple years after a housing crash. the FIRST owner apparently gutted the house and took everything. and I do mean EVERYTHING, the neighbor across the street told me about it. saw the First owner moving out about 1988, loading up moving trucks for a couple days then left the front door wide open. walked in and everything was gone. "whadda you mean gone?" "GONE!" carpets cut out around the walls, light fixtures and ceiling fans all gone. sink fixtures, gone. appliances, gone. blinds, curtains, GONE.
and then the house empty for two years.

 

[CopperNick]

Sounds like one of two possibilities; either the bank or mortgage company handed him an invitation to move or be moved so he moved himself and took everything in the place that could be unfastened or dismounted or disassembled as a last gesture of defiance, or there was a bitter divorce that cost him the house so when he left, he took as much of the place with him as he could harvest. Surprised the walls were left intact. Someone with a truly vindictive mindset or bent would have ripped the wallboard off the walls and taken the copper and pvc as well as throwing away the insulation.

That the house stayed open and empty for two years is surprising as that left open door would have been an open invitation for squatters to invade the place except that without any sanitary fixtures they'd have a hard time taking a dump, It sounds like the neighbours are a close knit lot who keep an eye out for each other and alert for unrecognized strangers. That can be useful in an era where folks tend to keep to themselves and stay disengaged from problems.



Nick

 

[86LK]

Sounds like one of two possibilities; either the bank or mortgage company handed him an invitation to move or be moved so he moved himself and took everything in the place that could be unfastened or dismounted or disassembled as a last gesture of defiance, or there was a bitter divorce that cost him the house so when he left, he took as much of the place with him as he could harvest. Surprised the walls were left intact. Someone with a truly vindictive mindset or bent would have ripped the wallboard off the walls and taken the copper and pvc as well as throwing away the insulation.

That the house stayed open and empty for two years is surprising as that left open door would have been an open invitation for squatters to invade the place except that without any sanitary fixtures they'd have a hard time taking a dump, It sounds like the neighbours are a close knit lot who keep an eye out for each other and alert for unrecognized strangers. That can be useful in an era where folks tend to keep to themselves and stay disengaged from problems.



Nick

this was back in the late 80s when they had a mortgage/economy meltdown. and I know he was single (more neighbor stories). at the time this was out in the county. not really remote but just outside the city limits in one of those subdivisions. so squatters in our neighborhood was not something that had to be worried about.
we like the area and we'd be staying here for a few more years except for a few things like high property taxes and a 2-story house.

more former neighbor stories:
-hey Manny, do you know why there are marks on the side of the house in the brick like at an angle? "huh?....oohhhhhhh, I bet it was the wooden stairway!" stairway? "oh yeah, he had this stairway built outside from the master bedroom to the rear deck. he'd go skinny-dipping at night in his hot tub with his girlfriends" ok, but where's the stairway? "oh, we made him take it down. you could see it swaying in the wind since he didn't attach it to the house" 😳

-(move in, goto the local pool supply store at the corner) "yes sir, how can we help?" yes, just moved in, gotta get supplies for the pool. "ok, what's your address for the account?" (tell him) "<repeats address a couple times> why does that sound familiar? hey Frank (the owner), why does <address> sound familiar?" "that was Lanny's" "oh, LANNY!" (me listening to all this thinking ...WTF?) turns out they knew the former owner, QUITE WELL. he built the swimming pool HIMSELF. (more comes out) "oh yeah, after Lanny moved out, he moved up the road to another house, built himself another pool, this time with a disappearing edge. he fcked that one up too!" (too?)

-about a year ago I was selling an Edelbrock carb on Craigslist, some guy from further out (50-60 miles) wants it. he drives in with his wife, walking up the driveway telling his wife "I knew this address sounded familiar, this was Lanny's house!"

you cannot make this sh*t up....

 

[ck80]

this was back in the late 80s when they had a mortgage/economy meltdown. and I know he was single (more neighbor stories). at the time this was out in the county. not really remote but just outside the city limits in one of those subdivisions. so squatters in our neighborhood was not something that had to be worried about.
we like the area and we'd be staying here for a few more years except for a few things like high property taxes and a 2-story house.

more former neighbor stories:
-hey Manny, do you know why there are marks on the side of the house in the brick like at an angle? "huh?....oohhhhhhh, I bet it was the wooden stairway!" stairway? "oh yeah, he had this stairway built outside from the master bedroom to the rear deck. he'd go skinny-dipping at night in his hot tub with his girlfriends" ok, but where's the stairway? "oh, we made him take it down. you could see it swaying in the wind since he didn't attach it to the hosue" 😳

-(move in, goto the local pool supply store at the corner) "yes sir, how can we help?" yes, just moved in, gotta get supplies for the pool. "ok, what's your address for the account?" (tell him) "<repeats address a couple times> why does that sound familiar? hey Frank (the owner), why does <address> sound familiar?" "that was Lanny's" "oh, LANNY!" (me listening to all this thinking ...WTF?) turns out they knew the former owner, QUITE WELL. he built the swimming pool HIMSELF. (more comes out) "oh yeah, after Lanny moved out, he moved up the road to another house, built himself another pool, this time with a disappearing edge. he fcked that one up too!" (too?)

-about a year ago I was selling an Edelbrock carb on Craigslist, some guy from further out (50-60 miles) wants it. he drives in with his wife, walking up the driveway telling his wife "I knew this address sounded familiar, this was Lanny's house!"

you cannot make this sh*t up....

I'm disappointed. A guy named Lanny who build a freestanding staircase as a shortcut to skinnydip with random ladies DEFINITELY should've had at least mirrors on the wall if not the ceiling of the bedroom

 

[ck80]

Meanwhile, another of the S550s is headed to the body shop.

Back at the end of 2016, so, nearly 6 years ago, this car was repaired at Five Star Ford in Stone Mountain GA. We figured a) it was a manufacturer backed dealer shop; b) it was manufacturer certified; c) it was in the USAA 'Stars' network, where irrespective of the shop warranties, the insurance guaranteed a lifetime repair.

Whelp....

Trunklid clearcoat shot.

Paint peeling out of rear window channels with rust starting in some areas;

RH quarter window deformed;

LH quarter window deformed.

So. That'll be a tidy repair process that's going to be handled by a different entity down on the coast.

Lesson here is, insurance repair networks CAN suck, but, if they actually back up their guarantee, depending how long you plan to keep the car it's worth thinking about it. If you move, or the indy shop gets bought out/merges their lifetime warranty doesn't do so much

 

[86LK]

I'm disappointed. A guy named Lanny who build a freestanding staircase as a shortcut to skinnydip with random ladies DEFINITELY should've had at least mirrors on the wall if not the ceiling of the bedroom

especially since be was a beancounter at IBM here in Austin. for all we know he took the mirrors with him too since he cut the carpet out.

another anecdote was apparently he did throw parties, and one morning a neighbor walked out to find a car had rolled out of Lanny's driveway (steep driveway with brick sidewalls), across the street, and into the empty lot (at the time) across the street from my house

 

[CopperNick]

Any bodies sleeping it off in the back seat or stashed in the trunk for disposal?



Put my parts yard on my list of places to visit and went over there to pay off my account for month end. Y'all south of the Mason-Dixon probably do not deal with snow but up here, as pictures just posted elsewhere on the forum can testify, we can and do get the sh*tty white crap in copious amounts. Only benefit is that you can throw your beer outside and reduce your energy bill for the frig.

Anyway, with snow comes salt brine and that has an appetite for destruction, in my case one of the rims for my snow tires on the S-10. Turns out that the diaper buggy currently sitting in the yard has a set of rims on that match what I am using so off came two and in the truck box they went, complete with the caps, nuts, and their cute little plastic covers. Hee-hee-hee. No plans to do the rim swap until spring. The better of the two now resident will remain in stock as a jic and the two newer ones will get shod and racked until the returning of the season. Bleah.



Oh, yeah, right, total non sequitur here.....looking for a laptop to use for downloading the maps for the computer guidance system in my S-10. Anyone already involved in this map reading business got a recommendation for a make of L-T or amount of memory that it ought to have on the motherboard or anything else that might make this a trifle more palatable? Plan right now is a refurb from a local supplier.





Nick