zeitgeist57

Tim...that's ridiculous how well those turned out. Amazing results, man.

Did not google hard enough to find a wiring diagram. I hate diagnosing electrical gremlins.

Another problem with my RV...came back from FL on Thursday and noticed backing into my driveway at night that the running lights - from the front/side indicators all the way through clearance lights to the taillights - weren't working. Headlights, brights, indicators, brakelights and back-ups all worked fine. Even instrument cluster lit up. Fuse block is very simple: one 20A fuse for "exterior lights", which was not blown. Pulled it out and replaced it, still no change. The lights all worked on Wednesday. We did drive through a ton of rain through TN and KY on Thursday, and there is a small leak on the roof that needs patched but it's nowhere near any of the roof clearance lights. Not sure when the running lights stopped working. I ordered a new headlight switch on Amazon, because $11 and it's super simple to swap out. Just got it this afternoon, threw it in, and same lighting issues. I can't imagine that even one little blown bulb, or a bad ground would make all the running lights perfectly not work (instead of just one light or even a set of lights, like the tails for example). Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, Shaun! I'll hit up Hoblick and see if he can get a close-to-chrome powdercoat finish. Good idea. Yeah, I couldn't readily find new bumpers for the Lincoln. They are straight enough that I think they'd be great candidates for refinishing.

Going over my older cars, and looking at longer term projects, I’d like to re-chrome the front bumper of my 1975 Dodge RV, and the front/rear bumpers on my 1979 Lincoln. Both sets are pitted and starting to rust. Are there any local shops still chroming? If not, who should I contact? I know the old-school process involves some pretty nasty chemicals so it’s not a common process anymore. Any alternatives I should consider for refinishing?

Just got back from vacation and saw latest issue of HOT ROD. In the back, David Freiburger lists his Top 10 list of ridiculously overvalued old vehicles. He cites auctions and general demand for older muscle cars have inflated the value of anything American-made, RWD, and 40+ years old. 10) Datsun 510s 9) Fox Mustangs 8) '68-'72 Novas 7) '77-'81 Trans-Ams 6) '69-'70 Mach 1s 5) Vans 4) '67-'72 Chevy Trucks 3) Squarebodies 2) '68-'70 Dodge Chargers 1) '66-'77 Ford Broncos From my consumption of YT car programming, especially things tied to Hoonigan and Motor Trend app-shows (which I've really grown to love paying for that app, I must say) this is the MOST Southern California list ever. Most of those are so rusted you never find any of value here in the Midwest. Any nominations for the most overpriced used cars in Ohio?

How heavy will it be? Would my V6 ‘01 Silverado longbed be too weak to tow? 4L60, 4-wheel disc brakes, A/C fully charged with Freon but still doesn’t work, doe...

Completing the drive definitely made me reflect on how our parents and grandparents dealt with long trips. We truly take for granted that cars easily drive well over 100k miles in any weather with comfort, speed, safety, and reliability these days. I remember as a child, i would ride in the backwards facing seat of our family’s Caprice Classic Estate wagon from OH to Long Island, NY many summers in the 1980s to visit extended family. On more than one occasion, it would stall and we’d be stuck at some repair shop in the middle of PA. I also remember the air so hot you could cut it with a knife, and my sweat sticking to the tan vinyl interior. Now, I realize the A/C didn’t work...but that was just what I was used to. I still chew the ice from a fast-food fountain soda, as it was a survival instinct to keep cool from when I was a child. I didn’t know any better! Yes, the RV is old, but making the trip WITHOUT A/C??? That would’ve been an absolute dealbreaker.

Thanks, everyone! I should also mention that the 3” header collectors - which leaked before but I replaced with new gaskets and Ultra Copper RTV sealant - failed within a few hours. In addition to the noise, the radiant heat coming from the floor was pretty intense. I had to pay an old-school muffler shop $150 here in Naples to simply cut the collectors and just weld 2.5” pipes to the exhaust. This is a job I could’ve done myself back in C’Bus, but a SMALL PRICE TO PAY TO GET MY HEARING BACK AND NOT SWEAT THROUGH MY OUTERWEAR WHAT I STILL CANT HEAR MY WIFE AND KIDS IN THE BACK

Summer 2020 Update: Our plan was to use the RV to move our family/pets all the way to Naples, FL to sit out COVID for the month of July in our condo. For my wife and I it was a sort of hybrid vacation/WFH arrangement. After getting the RV as mechanically sound as I could, we strapped a 3500W Predator generator to the back (to power the main A/C, engine-driven R12 A/C doesn't work) and took off on Thursday, July 2nd for an RV park in Chattanooga, TN. Friday would be a couple-hour stretch to see family in ATL, stay overnight in their driveway, and finish the 600+ mile leg from ATL to Naples on Saturday, July 4th. We departed on Thursday morning. RV was cruising around 65MPH like a champ. I'm quickly getting comfortable with the big guy - affectionately named "Sam" by my kids for the old Good Sam campground sticker on the cabin body, and "Jim" by my wife and I after the P.O...we called him "Samuel James" to keep everyone happy - and as we pass Kings Island my wife tells me "A/C stopped working!". I immediately pull off at Fields Ertel Road, and stop at Home Depot. Mind you, it's 90+ degrees and we have a 7mo-old baby, with a cabin full of people. It's getting hot in hurr... Go out back and check the generator. Digital display shows "Overload". I shut it off, fire it back up and try to get the A/C going. Every time the A/C tries to start the compressor the generator loads up heavily (nearly dies) and the A/C shuts off for a few seconds. My wife starts calling RV dealers and repair shops around Cincy. It's Thursday before 4th of July...we're politely told by 6 shops that they are booked solid. Sitting in a hot RV in Home Depot parking lot idling, the RV stalls. I fire it up and give it gas, but it won't idle. I start driving around a service road, but come to a stop sign and it dies. My wife and kids are being troopers, but stressed out, I call it and we drive back north towards C'Bus - still hot - to figure out the A/C and stalling. God bless CR. Once we get home around 5:30p on Thursday, I post up on CR FB about start/run capacitors and immediately get suggestions. Meanwhile, I stop up at NAPA on 161...they have one carb rebuild kit in stock for the 1975 2bbl Holley. I get a couple of CR bros over to my house to drink White Claws and rebuild the carb late into Thursday night. Wife is happy, but unless I can fix the A/C with parts on Friday, we're going to have to wait until after the 4th for Grainger/Carr Supply to open up for parts. Friday morning, I drive downtown to Carr Supply and realize most shops will be closed today in observance of 4th of July. FB Messenger out to some dudes, and CR bros Duff and a new guy get me all the capacitors the old RV A/C unit has - if I'm on the roof, f**k diagnosing which capacitor is bad, they're ALL getting replaced - I run up to Duff's shop and they are out in a box waiting for me. I get home, jump on the roof to install new capacitors, plug the RV into my house and the A/C unit works perfectly. Fire up the Chrysler 360 with the rebuilt carb and we're back in business! We pass Kings Island - where we stalled the day before - and the RV's running great, A/C and all. There was a LOT of construction/4th of July traffic around Cincy going south where 71 and 75 merge, but the rebuilt carb idles great, no stalling. I recognize the blessing we had that the A/C and stalling happened on Thursday when it did: close enough to get home and fix it, not leaving us stranded somewhere at the mercy of some repair shop$$$ or worse, without the ability to go anywhere. Friday night, make it to ATL and stay overnight with family. Rested (admittedly I was mentally exhausted from an eventful 24hours Thurs-Fri), we leave Saturday morning for FL. The RV drives through GA and FL on 4th of July like a champ. A/C overloads the generator a couple of times in south GA, but it's 93+ degrees and 100% humidity: having ANY A/C from a 1975 unit is a miracle. I average 65MPH and 9.6MPG Quick pull-off and restarting the generator got things going again. We pull into Naples late on Saturday, and catch countless backyard fireworks along the way. It was a heck of a 1200-mile adventure, and we're looking forward to making it back to Ohio tomorrow. LESSONS LEARNED: - It's way cheaper to replace preventative maintenance yourself with tools at home, rather than risk getting stranded on the road. I could only imagine what I would've had to pay some shop to repair a rooftop A/C unit on a 1975 RV. - CR remains a priceless resource in my life. - When you get an old RV, you're gonna have to fix stuff. but.... if it's older, the tech is simpler and easier to fix. - When you get an old RV, your spouse/significant other better be 100% on board with the plan. My wife was bottom-drawer; I couldn't ask for a more understanding and supportive partner after we were stranded for hours with hot-sweaty kids and a baby figuring out what to do. - I'm a cheap but easygoing guy. However, as a father I was emotionally wiped out after putting my wife/kids through Thursday. The 1.5hour drive back to Columbus had me feeling the most defeated I've experienced in a long time. I've got a wife-approved list of repairs/upgrades to make to the RV to get it running even better and more comfortable. - RV/Campers, even Airstream 5th-wheels towed by dually diesel trucks, just don't go above 70mph. The 360 in my RV, with the GearVendors OD and long-tube headers, is beefy...but at 3100RPMs+ to go over 70 it just doesn't make sense to spend the gas pushing that brick through the air for 1200 miles. 65MPH is a happy place. - If you've got a family, the kids will remember RV trips. There's just something unique about rolling down the road together in a living room that bonds people on a long trip. - Having a working fridge/freezer when it's 90+ degrees on a road trip is amazing. Getting a cold soda and a fresh turkey sandwich while you're driving is a surprising luxury.

There are a few dead blow’s left but I couldn’t get the deal to work. Thanks anyway.

Grinding down a weld/metal is as much by feel as a visual task. A grinding stone will quickly remove too much material - and possibly gouge the metal - if left in one place. Flap discs will “give” if you apply pressure and are much easier to work around an uneven surface. REALLY good flapper wheels will grind almost as good as a stone grinding wheel. Think of a rotary buffer, how it allows you to polish around a corner, bend or edge.

Ordered...have you SEEN my welds?!? Thank you for a great deal on consumables. Keep’em coming, CR!

Oooooor....you may have been mis-diagnosed? *shrug*

Rick, you and I go way back. You know how I operate. . . . . . . Unless it’s $2k or less, do NOT get a 4-cyl Wrangler. All the common YJ issues (keep in mind they are now 30+ years old!!!) plus they are utterly hazardous to drive on the highway. And I just drove a 1975 Dodge RV 1,200 miles with my family in back. I almost bought one a few years back but knowing it would hardly ever see a highway. 4-cyl Jeeps should be classified as low-speed neighborhood vehicles.

First off, I’m sensitive to CR Bros That are personally affected by COVID. Secondly, I’m a GOP’er but still wear a mask in public, avoid going out if I don’t need to, and I go along with our Local leaders. BUT... Scioto County has had 13 cases since March, and 0 deaths....yet, they are classified as RED. Under UA Schools, their kids would be essentially study-from-home. It’s a really tough decision that school administration has to review: K through 2nd graders are going to be masked all day long??? Kids playing outside have to maintain social distancing...what are they going to do, run around in tiny circles more than 6 feet apart? It’s going to look like a terrible OK Go music video.

...which based on current guidance, UA is starting out hybrid. My kiddos will be home Mon-Tues. Crazy how much they will be home, based on next year’s schedule. They’ll be in school Dec 18th, and then not again until Jan 7th. Hope we can get past COVID for everyone’s health...but the data isn’t looking good.

Those auto-play videos are very cool. Let alone GREAT STORY and love the pics!

https://jalopnik.com/it-didnt-have-to-be-this-way-1844395924

Yikes!

Just got an email that Power Tour and DragWeek are cancelled. RIP 2020

Ford and FCA are smart: make an off-roader be part of the product mix to fund and develop a very modular mid-size truck chassis. Ford was also smart to brand a CUV at the same time with Bronco Sport. No one is talking about that little guy right now over the noise with the Bronco rollout, but the pics show a ton of character from the smaller CUV in a crowded but immensely profitable space. Again, disappointed in GM for lagging. They’ll still make money off of big trucks and re-hashed CUV versions of the Blazer, Trax, etc...but Ford is going to sell as many Bronco’s as they can build for years to come (again, as long as there aren’t any glaring product issues).

I’m on vacation now, but please get some pics/vids so I can single out the gross offenders.

All the best, Shaun!!

I’ve been digesting some of the data and pictures....so much to unwrap with the Bronco and Bronco Sport but I think they absolutely hit the ball out of the park with this. The ONLY thing that concerns me is some of Ford’s recent quality issues, especially around the manual transmissions. I really do love the styling and packages.