I jacked quadzilla up by the frame instead of the axle this time and noticed that sitting on the jack stands is about the height I want it to be. The top of the wheels are the same height as the lower edge of the body. I consider this to be the proper height.
I started the work to remove the rear differential carrier today. I didn’t get too far though, got started too late. I did get the wheels off, the spare tire removed, rear tie rods disconnected, parking brake linkage off. I noticed that one of the exhaust hanger brackets was broke. I re-welded it back together, poorly. I included a picture here to show off how bad I am at welding! The factory exhaust mounts are so much better than the custom ones… The engineers spend time to get things like that right, they have to last for as long as the car, and they usually do. The magnetic drain plug had a bunch of crud attached to it. It might just be posi-traction clutch material, or it might be something worse, still haven’t taken off the differential cover yet.
This is important enough that I’d like everyone I care about to be very familiar with this information. I’m posting it here in hopes of spreading the information. I heard an interview of Chris Martenson today. Something about his analytical/scientific and calm/rational personality really grabbed my respect. The content of his message is of utmost importance, especially for Gen-X-ers like me, who have only known life as it has been for the past 20 years. “The next 20 years are going to be completely unlike the last 20 years” I just watched the condensed 45-minute version of his crash course. If I don’t suffer from a massive heart-attack, I’ll digest the rest of his materials in the next few days/weeks. If you’ve had any conversations with me in the past 2 years, you likely know that I’m a little familiar with these topics already, but having them all explained so clearly and presented in a way that shows some of their inter-relationships is something very valuable. I’d really like to know from my friends if you think any of this information is not true or if you think we should not be concerned. Please let me hear from you!
This is why PETA usually protests women wearing fur rather than bikers wearing leather.
Johnstown, PA (GlossyNews) – Local and state police scoured the hills outside rural Johnstown, Pennsylvania, after reports of three animal rights activists going missing after attempting to protest the wearing of leather at a large motorcycle gang rally this weekend. Two others, previously reported missing, were discovered by fast food workers “duct taped inside fast food restaurant dumpsters,” according to police officials.
“Something just went wrong,”said a still visibly shaken organizer of the protest. “Something just went horribly, horribly, wrong.”The organizer said a group of concerned animal rights activist groups, “growing tired of throwing fake blood and shouting profanities at older women wearing leather or fur coats,” decided to protest the annual motorcycle club event “in a hope to show them our outrage at their wanton use of leather in their clothing and motor bike seats.” “In fact,” said the organizer, “motorcycle gangs are one of the biggest abusers of wearing leather, and we decided it was high time that we let them know that we disagree with them using it. ergo, they should stop.”
According to witnesses, protesters arrived at the event in a vintage 1960’s era Volkswagen van and began to pelt the gang members with balloons filled with red colored water, simulating blood, and shouting “you’re murderers” to passers by. This, evidently, is when the brouhaha began.
“They peed on me!!!” charged one activist. “They grabbed me, said I looked like I was French, started calling me ‘La Trene’ and duct taped me to a tree so they could pee on me all day!”
I made some progress on Betty’s air conditioning system this afternoon. A/C work is a little unfamiliar to me. Everything has to be kept sealed, since air contaminates the components. Getting the compressor bolted in place is a two person job as far as I can tell. I tried until I was tired; I think it is impossible to hold that heavy-ass thing and get the bolts started by yourself. Getting the block plate off the back of the compressor was a bit exciting. As I removed myself from underneath the car to get a pry tool, it busted apart, spraying green oil all over the place. I didn’t realize it would be under that kind of pressure; good thing my head wasn’t under it when that happened. Everything else was pretty uneventful, just time consuming. I replaced the expansion valve, receiver/dryer and pressure switch. I did brake the temperature switch, so that is another $20. I should have already bought a new one anyway. One of the Schrader valves is leaking, so I’m going to replace that before I put a charge on the system.
Amber’s laptop stopped working; I figure it the inverter board is the problem. A very helpful pictorial tutorial showed me where all the screws were located. After searching for a replacement, I wound up buying the part from e-bay, for $1.98 (plus $3.99 shipping). I really don’t understand how people make money selling parts like this so cheap, but I’m glad they are there. Other retailer are selling the part for $60, just for comparison. I continue to be amazed and impressed with the useful information and resources made available by the Internet.
