ZMotorsports Shop Projects 2.0

[OutlawDrifter]

Mike, some people don't want the kind of help that teaches them, they want an immediate result. A couple of pieces of unsolicited advice I'd like to offer.

- Turn your comments off on your YouTube videos.

- Once you've said "no" through text/IM/over the phone/etc...that's the end of the conversation. If they don't like it or think you're an *******...who cares? No need to keep responding, and you damn sure don't have to explain why you said no.

Once you stop worrying about what some stranger thinks when you tell them no, the world gets a lot easier.

I wouldn't worry about all the noise, focus on the things that make you happy and let everyone else deal with their own BS

 

[ntsqd]

^^^^
So much wisdom packed into one post there!

I don't do all of the work on my vehicles or property, I hire out some of the specialized work or the shear grunt labor. Those projects will cost me more in time than the money paid out. My time is limited, it has value, and I don't want to spend it doing projects that I'm barely qualified for or extremely over-qualified for. I used to think that I needed to do it all, but that was when I had lots of time to do those things. Now I find people who can do the job to my expectations and turn them loose on it.

 

[zmotorsports]

I am curious how you made the under load starter circuit tests. Did you disable the fuel cut solenoid so that the engine wouldn't start, and then crank it over?

I'm sorry Thom, I completely overlooked this part of your post.

I kept it simple, just used the Min/Max setting on my meter, cranked the engine normally and then recalled the reading.

 

[zmotorsports]

I get a lot of people that will call and say they took their vehicle to parts store to have it scanned and they say they need this or that part and ask if I can replace it. I always tell them that the parts store is in business to sell parts, not diagnose the actual problem. Tell them it may be the part or it may not and if they just want to change the part I will but can't promise it will be fixed.

I will admit when I was young and didn't know a lot I have thrown a part at my car trying to fix it if I thought it may be the cause. But back then parts were usually pretty cheap and my diagnostic skills weren't very good. If the part didn't work then it was time to dig in and learn something to figure it out. As I learned more and got more tools I enjoyed the diagnostics and testing everything I could before replacing a part.

I was very fortunate Scott, in that my first boss and mentor really went the extra mile to teach me to make proper diagnosis and NOT to be a parts changer. I took his teachings to heart to learn everything I can about a system as I'm diagnosing it to find out where in the process the sequence is breaking down and to fully understand what is supposed to be happening and when.

This fact alone is the one that drives me to want to help others. I was taught the proper way to diagnose and to not just throw parts (or money) at a problem. For that reason alone I want to give back to the industry that has blessed my life so much. But it is getting harder and harder to want to help.

Mike, some people don't want the kind of help that teaches them, they want an immediate result. A couple of pieces of unsolicited advice I'd like to offer.

- Turn your comments off on your YouTube videos.

- Once you've said "no" through text/IM/over the phone/etc...that's the end of the conversation. If they don't like it or think you're an *******...who cares? No need to keep responding, and you damn sure don't have to explain why you said no.

Once you stop worrying about what some stranger thinks when you tell them no, the world gets a lot easier.

I wouldn't worry about all the noise, focus on the things that make you happy and let everyone else deal with their own BS

I thought about turning off the comments Marc, but not all are bad or someone wanting something. Most are actually good comments and most of the questions are good and well thought out questions, which by answering those I also learn from. I learned a few years ago to not respond to the negative comments at all, which I don't.

I also don't necessarily want to come across as an *******. RV'ing is a big part of our life and we have met a lot of very nice people in campgrounds as we travel and I don't want to look like an ******* online even before meeting someone. I enjoy those campground conversations and meeting people, just don't want to solve all of their problems.

It's actually quite funny as my wife and I have completely swapped roles. In High School she was the popular one with the large group of friends and was so outgoing. I was the shy introvert who was mostly alone in the auto shop or working on the farm with not much time for playing and although I "wanted" to be with the "in crowd", I simply didn't fit in and didn't like the drama that went along with many of those groups.

Now the wife doesn't want to do anything with people when we meet them in campgrounds, and I can talk to someone for an hour easy. I don't get it.

^^^^
So much wisdom packed into one post there!

I don't do all of the work on my vehicles or property, I hire out some of the specialized work or the shear grunt labor. Those projects will cost me more in time than the money paid out. My time is limited, it has value, and I don't want to spend it doing projects that I'm barely qualified for or extremely over-qualified for. I used to think that I needed to do it all, but that was when I had lots of time to do those things. Now I find people who can do the job to my expectations and turn them loose on it.

I completely understand hiring some work out Thom. I "could" probably hire more out, but opt not to, maybe it's a control thing, I don't know.

I have had a lot of people over the years tell me to hire out my lawn mowing and snow removal and focus on making that hourly rate back in my shop. While that makes perfect sense on paper, I just cannot bring myself to do it. I actually enjoy mowing my lawn and seeing the end result as it is very satisfying and rewarding. Snow removal not so much....

The wife insisted I hired out the alterations to the backyard earlier this spring and although I conceded, I wasn't as pleased with the end result on a couple of things and wished I would have just done it myself, even though it would have taken me a week rather than someone else doing it in a day. I look at that each day when I get home and it is just barely filling in properly now, where I should have just gone ahead and did it myself.

I also think there comes a point in time when some of us reach a point where we are not necessarily trying to accumulate more "stuff" and just want to maintain and enjoy what we have, not acquire more. I think we reached that point a while ago and my mindset is now focusing more on just enjoying my time day to day rather than stacking the shop full of side work chasing that carrot.

I see people at work who are running full steam ahead on that treadmill and I'm about ready to step off altogether. I am so blessed that the wife and I have been able to help our son get his education so he was able to avoid any debt when starting his life. I know what it's like to have to work two jobs to get ahead in life and I really didn't want that for my son. I watch him being able to have a good paying job that he enjoys which also allows his wife to stay home with our grandchildren. That was something that wasn't an option for his mother and I. He is able to get off work, go home and be present with his family each evening. THAT is huge and I am so happy for him. I feel like I was a good father, and even though I was home each afternoon and evening when he came home from school, I had the shop stacked full of work earning money. I never missed a parent teacher conference or a baseball or soccer game, but there were times I maybe wasn't as present as I should have been because I was focused on the boatload of work in the shop when I returned home.

I am finally getting to that point where side work is becoming less important to me and I am being very picky and particular about what I am accepting to do as I am discovering my time is more valuable than the money.

 

[OutlawDrifter]

I also don't necessarily want to come across as an *******. RV'ing is a big part of our life and we have met a lot of very nice people in campgrounds as we travel and I don't want to look like an ******* online even before meeting someone. I enjoy those campground conversations and meeting people, just don't want to solve all of their problems.

Mike, I don't think you saying no makes you an *******...haha, let me be very clear about that. My point is, why trouble yourself with some random internet person being upset about being told no, or whatever the situation.

Hell, I chewed a 20-something year old kid's *** the other day for throwing trash out of his window at the car wash, and not picking it up after I asked him cordially. He probably thinks I'm an *******...I don't care. Saw him 15min later at Walmart and he averted his gaze towards me and blushed, so I must have made an impression hopefully he'll never forget.

 

[SilverJimmy]

Mike, on my 1998 International 4700 with the DT466 engine it didn’t have a genset for power during the day, just a large Delco-Remy 31SI 200 amp alternator. Had to leave the truck running all day but I did idle up at every stop. With that daily use I had a tough time keeping alternators alive, seems I would lose one about every 10-12 months.
I had a customer that was great at rebuilding them and I even carried a spare on my truck. I got the swap down to less than 10 minutes, never had to get a tow home. I asked my rebuild guy why the alternator wasn’t living very long and his theory was that there wasn’t enough grounds and that I needed to add more because of all the lights and computer inverter and other stuff loading and using power.
I’m not the sharpest on electrical stuff so I finally did what he suggested. I put grounds everywhere, from the chassis frame up to the aluminum framing of the body/box, from the frame to the alternator bracket on the engine, anywhere that looked like it needed it! And like that, my burning up alternators was over. I can’t remember if I had another one go bad on that truck again.
Now I always check for ground issues and then go from there when I have an electrical problem. And like others have said on here, I too have learned many things, tricks, procedures, and slick ways of doing things from your posts, please continue to share your journey with us!

 

[zmotorsports]

Mike, on my 1998 International 4700 with the DT466 engine it didn’t have a genset for power during the day, just a large Delco-Remy 31SI 200 amp alternator. Had to leave the truck running all day but I did idle up at every stop. With that daily use I had a tough time keeping alternators alive, seems I would lose one about every 10-12 months.
I had a customer that was great at rebuilding them and I even carried a spare on my truck. I got the swap down to less than 10 minutes, never had to get a tow home. I asked my rebuild guy why the alternator wasn’t living very long and his theory was that there wasn’t enough grounds and that I needed to add more because of all the lights and computer inverter and other stuff loading and using power.
I’m not the sharpest on electrical stuff so I finally did what he suggested. I put grounds everywhere, from the chassis frame up to the aluminum framing of the body/box, from the frame to the alternator bracket on the engine, anywhere that looked like it needed it! And like that, my burning up alternators was over. I can’t remember if I had another one go bad on that truck again.
Now I always check for ground issues and then go from there when I have an electrical problem. And like others have said on here, I too have learned many things, tricks, procedures, and slick ways of doing things from your posts, please continue to share your journey with us!

Thanks Sterling.

I remember back around 2006-2008~ish, I was seeing a lot of GM vehicles coming into my shop with charging and/or starting issues. Upon some research I discovered that GM actually had released a TSB pertaining to grounds on their LS engine family. They only had one ground and like you, I added a couple more and problems went away. I also learned that some were running AGM batteries and that not all AGM's were created equal. Some had so little internal resistance that they could actually trigger some nuisance codes specifically when dealing with ECM's and BCM's.

I explained both the ground issue and the AGM concerns on one of my LS swap videos when I was putting the LS engine into my Jeep. I went over where GM added extra grounds and how I ran them during the swap and I couldn't believe all of the people who commented about how much that information helped them as they were experiencing similar issues with only having one ground on their GM Yukon, Tahoe, Suburban of pickup around those earlier years.

 

[SilverJimmy]

I was amazed how something as simple as grounds could cause so much trouble. But once I actually got under my truck and looked at the construction and how the box was held onto the frame I could see the issue clearly. When the box manufacturer attached the box to the base chassis they used large u-bolts thru the aluminum body framing and then clamped those to the truck frame, similar to a leaf spring/axle interface. Except, they used hardwood shims to cushion and level the body and then after a couple years of road grime and salt the grounds that came from that method of assembly went away. In the body manufacturers defense, 99% of their bodies never even get a dome light let alone all the stuff that is stuffed into a tool truck interior! How many grounds are installed on your motorhome? I’m sure more than one from the battery to the frame!

 

[Jgaz]

I’m going to date myself here, but on the subject of grounds, lack of them can cause some strange issues.
Does anyone remember Chevrolet Camaros and even Vegas where it would be hard to move the floor shift lever?

If the ground wire from the cylinder head was either missing or broken, the engine and transmission would attempt to ground themselves thru the wire inside the shifter cable.
The cable got warm and would stick to the plastic casing and cause a real increase in friction.

As a Chevrolet dealer mechanic the missing factory ground was the first thing you looked for if there was a shifter effort complaint or a flickering alternator idiot light.

 

[zmotorsports]

I was amazed how something as simple as grounds could cause so much trouble. But once I actually got under my truck and looked at the construction and how the box was held onto the frame I could see the issue clearly. When the box manufacturer attached the box to the base chassis they used large u-bolts thru the aluminum body framing and then clamped those to the truck frame, similar to a leaf spring/axle interface. Except, they used hardwood shims to cushion and level the body and then after a couple years of road grime and salt the grounds that came from that method of assembly went away. In the body manufacturers defense, 99% of their bodies never even get a dome light let alone all the stuff that is stuffed into a tool truck interior! How many grounds are installed on your motorhome? I’m sure more than one from the battery to the frame!

You're right Sterling, most of those boxes attached to chassis cab trucks won't be decked out to the degree you Snap-on truck was so grounds are not really a consideration. As soon as you mentioned the box to the chassis my mind immediately went to what I have seen and that is some form of rubber or barrier between the two, then you mentioned the wood. I've worked on a couple that had a material that reminded me of conveyor belting sandwiched between the box and the frame rails. Even our mobile fuel truck at work has something very similar so we had to provide a couple of grounds upon adding the tank to the truck so the electric pump, lights, etc. would all function properly.

As for my coach, it has several grounds, but it is built as a semi-monocoque chassis design so the main framework of the chassis is actually welded to the frame rails, unlike an RV built using the hung wall design where the walls are added to the coach by bolting or securing to the chassis. Think of it similar to an airplane fuselage design, only it still has two main frame rails running the length of the coach, but everything else is welded and built on to that. Several coach manufacturers used a similar design such as Newell and Country Coach, but a Prevost is a monocoque, much like an airframe as it lacks the two main frame rails. Most manufactures use a Spartan or Freightliner chassis that arrives at the factory as a rolling chassis, then the builder builds on top of that from the floor up, including bolting the walls to the assembly.

All that said, the battery has a main lug welded to the chassis which I showed above where the battery main cable terminates as well as a couple others. Then the generator has one similar up front where the ground attaches to the chassis via a similar stud.

 

[zmotorsports]

I’m going to date myself here, but on the subject of grounds, lack of them can cause some strange issues.
Does anyone remember Chevrolet Camaros and even Vegas where it would be hard to move the floor shift lever?

If the ground wire from the cylinder head was either missing or broken, the engine and transmission would attempt to ground themselves thru the wire inside the shifter cable.
The cable got warm and would stick to the plastic casing and cause a real increase in friction.

As a Chevrolet dealer mechanic the missing factory ground was the first thing you looked for if there was a shifter effort complaint or a flickering alternator idiot light.

That's interesting Jim, but makes complete sense. The circuit is just searching for a ground and will use whatever has the path of least resistance. The shift cable must have been that path.

 

[Dh3256]

That is exactly what I'm doing. I fold the backing 1/2 way back and that is the part that goes down behind the table so it won't stick, allowing me to align the abrasive disc's top with the aluminum disc. I then rotate the disc 180 degrees. The part that was on the top is now on the bottom stuck to the aluminum disc. Then lean what is now the top of the disc back and peel the remainder of the backing material off and press the adhesive disc to the aluminum disc.

OK, thanks for explaining, I misunderstood your post and thought you were sticking the bottom down first.

 

[ntsqd]

When I worked for APT we had a massive noise problem in the data stream off the dyno. They called in an EMI/RFI specialist consulting Engineer who taught us that grounds need to look like a tree. Can have many branches, but there should be no point in the whole system where there could be two different paths back to the ground post on the battery or the grounding spike in the earth. He called that a "Ground Loop" and it was the source of almost all of our electronic noise. The rest of it was the Taylor & MSD spark plug wires. Got rid of the redundant grounds and switched to Magnecor ignition cables and the noise went away.

I've run into others with a slightly different definition of exactly what entails being a ground loop (one of whom would/will argue to death that his definition is not a ground loop), but by sticking to that guy's definition I've never had a problem with noisy circuits.

 

[M.Brane]

Anybody who has worked with complex audio systems knows exactly what ground loops are. They can be quite challenging if you don't understand the "star" grounding concept. One ground to rule them all. it's the differential currents traveling through the different paths that cause the problems. Kinda like when your 5R110 welds it's pump together because it's ground failed, and the pump became the path for the current.

 

[CGarage]

Mike:

I hope you keep sharing with all of us.

I think there is a happy solution to the problem of your challenging customers.

You approach the situation from the point of view of someone with a big heart who wants to spread the knowledge and return the favor for all of what you were taught. This is extremely admirable.

However, few are as technically capable or as competent as you.

Filter them out from the start. Those who have the right tools and right knowledge and WANT to learn, teach them.

Those who are barely competent technically, who will waste your time and NOT get it, turn them into customers.

I have a friend of mine who works in private aviation. He is the “go to” technical contact for a particular aircraft and has a 7 figure business as a 3 man show. Most of the money is made off of his black book of phone numbers and contacts, and his office phone. He solves technical, service, and parts related problems for his clients all across the country and they love him for his technical mastery and the support he provides. You will be retirement age soon. With your vast experience industrially, as a mechanic, and as someone who has built cars, the mental insight + broad knowledge base you offer is invaluable as far as being able to help folks with their projects. Monetize this opportunity. Have a phone consultation fee. It’s reasonable and you will meet fun clients this way, especially with the RV community and hot rod community, most of whom have discretionary income.

 

[zmotorsports]

Last night while I was already dirty from working under the coach I opted to disassemble, clean and reassemble the other couple of grounds. I've kept an eye on them over the years, but figured while I was already a filthy mess and was crawling around under the coach I may as well tackle the last couple of ground just to ensure these don't become a problem in the future.

This one is the ground for the generator and was making a good connection, but upon disassembly I did see a little corrosion on the backside. Nothing a wire wheel wouldn't take care of with a few passes, as well as cleaning up the lug.


Reassembled and a splash of paint.


I then did the same to the main ground on the engine block. I could almost reach this one from the rear engine bay when I was testing and cleaning over the weekend, but it was much easier to access from underneath.



Now just to wait for my new rotary switch and I can install that and she's ready for the next trip.

 

[Xti04]

I was very fortunate Scott, in that my first boss and mentor really went the extra mile to teach me to make proper diagnosis and NOT to be a parts changer. I took his teachings to heart to learn everything I can about a system as I'm diagnosing it to find out where in the process the sequence is breaking down and to fully understand what is supposed to be happening and when.

This fact alone is the one that drives me to want to help others. I was taught the proper way to diagnose and to not just throw parts (or money) at a problem. For that reason alone I want to give back to the industry that has blessed my life so much. But it is getting harder and harder to want to help.






I thought about turning off the comments Marc, but not all are bad or someone wanting something. Most are actually good comments and most of the questions are good and well thought out questions, which by answering those I also learn from. I learned a few years ago to not respond to the negative comments at all, which I don't.

I also don't necessarily want to come across as an *******. RV'ing is a big part of our life and we have met a lot of very nice people in campgrounds as we travel and I don't want to look like an ******* online even before meeting someone. I enjoy those campground conversations and meeting people, just don't want to solve all of their problems.

It's actually quite funny as my wife and I have completely swapped roles. In High School she was the popular one with the large group of friends and was so outgoing. I was the shy introvert who was mostly alone in the auto shop or working on the farm with not much time for playing and although I "wanted" to be with the "in crowd", I simply didn't fit in and didn't like the drama that went along with many of those groups.

Now the wife doesn't want to do anything with people when we meet them in campgrounds, and I can talk to someone for an hour easy. I don't get it.



I completely understand hiring some work out Thom. I "could" probably hire more out, but opt not to, maybe it's a control thing, I don't know.

I have had a lot of people over the years tell me to hire out my lawn mowing and snow removal and focus on making that hourly rate back in my shop. While that makes perfect sense on paper, I just cannot bring myself to do it. I actually enjoy mowing my lawn and seeing the end result as it is very satisfying and rewarding. Snow removal not so much....

The wife insisted I hired out the alterations to the backyard earlier this spring and although I conceded, I wasn't as pleased with the end result on a couple of things and wished I would have just done it myself, even though it would have taken me a week rather than someone else doing it in a day. I look at that each day when I get home and it is just barely filling in properly now, where I should have just gone ahead and did it myself.

I also think there comes a point in time when some of us reach a point where we are not necessarily trying to accumulate more "stuff" and just want to maintain and enjoy what we have, not acquire more. I think we reached that point a while ago and my mindset is now focusing more on just enjoying my time day to day rather than stacking the shop full of side work chasing that carrot.

I see people at work who are running full steam ahead on that treadmill and I'm about ready to step off altogether. I am so blessed that the wife and I have been able to help our son get his education so he was able to avoid any debt when starting his life. I know what it's like to have to work two jobs to get ahead in life and I really didn't want that for my son. I watch him being able to have a good paying job that he enjoys which also allows his wife to stay home with our grandchildren. That was something that wasn't an option for his mother and I. He is able to get off work, go home and be present with his family each evening. THAT is huge and I am so happy for him. I feel like I was a good father, and even though I was home each afternoon and evening when he came home from school, I had the shop stacked full of work earning money. I never missed a parent teacher conference or a baseball or soccer game, but there were times I maybe wasn't as present as I should have been because I was focused on the boatload of work in the shop when I returned home.

I am finally getting to that point where side work is becoming less important to me and I am being very picky and particular about what I am accepting to do as I am discovering my time is more valuable than the money.

Mike that part about beimg present is where I am at in life right now. My wife wants me around more, but she also understands that debt from house and shop ratchet my anxiety up to 11 and that I am working hard to allow us to have a better life than we had as kids. I try be present for my kids and take time to spend with each of them, while also balancing working in shop and home duties. Toss in a full time job and you have a crazy mix of people who all want your time, and all want it right now, and some of them actually appreciate it. The dollar and getting out of debt are what I chase, but I am pushing and being harder on myself to make sure I am with my boys and wife as much as I can be.

 

[zmotorsports]

Mike that part about beimg present is where I am at in life right now. My wife wants me around more, but she also understands that debt from house and shop ratchet my anxiety up to 11 and that I am working hard to allow us to have a better life than we had as kids. I try be present for my kids and take time to spend with each of them, while also balancing working in shop and home duties. Toss in a full time job and you have a crazy mix of people who all want your time, and all want it right now, and some of them actually appreciate it. The dollar and getting out of debt are what I chase, but I am pushing and being harder on myself to make sure I am with my boys and wife as much as I can be.

It is very much a balancing act, and one I have fought throughout my entire adult life. At times I think I have it figured out and felt good about work/life balance and then all it would take is an inrush of side work or a couple late nights at my full-time job and it would throw everything out of kilter and I would struggle for weeks to reel it back in.

I chased that dollar for so long it became a part of me and I looked at nearly every side job as not only a learning experience, but also $$$. Probably not the best way to go through life, but to me it was better than being broke all of the time, and the only way I knew to offset our life was to use the skills the Lord blessed me with to better our situation. Sometimes that came at a cost of time, other times it was rewarded when an unexpected issue in life was thrown at us and we had the money to navigate through it.

What I can definitely say with a high level of confidence as I am now closer to 60 than 50, is that I am glad I did the majority of those late nights and burning the candle at both ends when I was younger, because it is much harder now. I can also say that if you play your cards right and remain debt adverse, that as time goes on chasing that carrot becomes less of a reflex and more of a choice. I actually like this point in my life where I can take on work if and when I want to vs. when I was younger and took on nearly everything that was presented to me.

I feel that choice came through many years of sacrifice and is now starting to pay dividends in quality of life. It's just some of the people I deal with that are disrupting that quality and I need to work on ways to preserve my mental peace yet still provide the help that I very much want to.

 

[CGarage]

It's just some of the people I deal with that are disrupting that quality and I need to work on ways to preserve my mental peace yet still provide the help that I very much want to.

They have services now where individuals can “FaceTime” with all sorts of people- professionals and otherwise. Charge for FaceTime sessions while you diagnose problems over the phone for your remote clients.

I believe the billing standard in the U.S. in the legal profession is every 6 minutes, you are permitted to charge.

You can offer a half hour or 1 hour minimum.

When you are older, it is advisable to stay mentally active. I can understand you won’t want to be on your back and under a vehicle. Imagine how useful beginning your “phone practice” now will become!

It truly is a win-win.

 

[545_days]

Mike,
A simple response of "I do not do RV work for 3rd parties." is not being an ***, it is a simple statement describing where you are in life.

Once you have made that statement, any response beyond "OK, If you ever change your mind, please let me know." Means the person hounding you is the ***.

Personally I learn from reading your posts here despite the fact that I don't own an RV, or a Jeep, and I don't care about my lawn.

 

[M.Brane]

Absolutely no shame in refusing work you don't want to do if you don't need the money. I am always suspicious of people who try to guilt/shame me into doing something. I had a friend who was a drywall guy, and had problems with customers who wanted a "deal" then would ***** about every little detail. I told him he knew how to spot those people up front so bid the job high or simply refuse the work. No good can come of it.

 

[ntsqd]

Is he local? We've been needing a good dry wall guy and our usual contact for such things had the gall to retire.

 

[M.Brane]

Is he local? We've been needing a good dry wall guy and our usual contact for such things had the gall to retire.

He's moved to MO, and is retired now. His arm is worn out.

 

[PugetDude]

Personally I learn from reading your posts here despite the fact that I don't own an RV, or a Jeep, and I don't care about my lawn.

+1

 

[ntsqd]

He's moved to MO, and is retired now. His arm is worn out.

Seems to be a small epidemic of that around here.....

 

[stockerwithalocker]

Mike, I usually PM you but reading through the last few pages I figured this post is relevant.

I wanted to say thank you again for your advice and help on my duramax turbo R&R. I drove it for a few weeks then put it to the test driving solo from so cal to nor cal to run the rubicon while my wife and daughter were out of town. I thought “what would mike do” and given all your posts of you and your wife’s solo trips in the back country i couldn’t find a good reason not to say no.

Ran the trail with two co-workers and had a blast. The trail has gotten harder since i last did it, but was able to run the whole thing un-assisted on 33s.

Thanks again!

 

[zmotorsports]

Mike, I usually PM you but reading through the last few pages I figured this post is relevant.

I wanted to say thank you again for your advice and help on my duramax turbo R&R. I drove it for a few weeks then put it to the test driving solo from so cal to nor cal to run the rubicon while my wife and daughter were out of town. I thought “what would mike do” and given all your posts of you and your wife’s solo trips in the back country i couldn’t find a good reason not to say no.

Ran the trail with two co-workers and had a blast. The trail has gotten harder since i last did it, but was able to run the whole thing un-assisted on 33s.

Thanks again!

Parker, happy to help and glad to hear the turbo job went well.

Looks like a fun trip to the Rubicon. That is actually on my list of trails that I want to do, but just can't seem to convince the wife we need to stay in a tent for a couple of nights. I keep hearing it is getting more difficult each year and if I wait much longer I may have trouble, even on 37's. Afterall, 37's are now the new 35's and 40's are the new 37's. I will never go up to anything over 37's so I may be screwed if I wait much longer.

I appreciate your continued support and for following along. Thank you.

 

[aka Larry]

Personally I learn from reading your posts here despite the fact that I don't own an RV, or a Jeep, and I don't care about my lawn.

LOL....This is probably the norm for many of us here...we wanna be like Mike!

However I do now own a Jeep and a camper (is that considered an RV?), but I loathe yard work, so I couldn't care less about my lawn. I have PM'd Mike a few Jeep questions, and he's always been very helpful in his repsonses.

 

[zmotorsports]

LOL....This is probably the norm for many of us here...we wanna be like Mike!

However I do now own a Jeep and a camper (is that considered an RV?), but I loathe yard work, so I couldn't care less about my lawn. I have PM'd Mike a few Jeep questions, and he's always been very helpful in his repsonses.

Vincent, that is what is nice about so much of this forum, similar practices can span multiple various fields of interest.

I learned quite a bit early in my career from a coworker who quoted a lot of information from his aviation background. I will never own an aircraft, but much of those same basic mechanics I have incorporated into my everyday practices.

 

[ntsqd]

Some light reading on the topic of aircraft maintenance & repair fabrication, all 646 pages of it......

https://www.faa.gov/documentlibrary/media/advisory_circular/ac_43.13-1b_w-chg1.pdf

My friend in the Vans RV world knows it backwards and forwards.

Mostly been Toyota and Ford 4x4's, but I do own a Jeep now too. See the "Wagon" link in my sig.

My wife did our landscape design and likes doing the heavy lifting in the yard, I leave it to her. Mostly edible plants and fruit (who ever heard of Apples, Aloe Vera, and Avocados growing within 50' of each other?), and as much native to our area as possible. We have a spring in our front yard that is dead-nuts reliable now that we've got a good timer on it. The only grass is volunteer left over from the previous owners. The apple tree is currently sagging badly under the weight of all of it's fruit. Nothing like apple pie made with fruit from your own yard!

 

[CGarage]

I learned quite a bit early in my career from a coworker who quoted a lot of information from his aviation background. I will never own an aircraft, but much of those same basic mechanics I have incorporated into my everyday practices.

The best mechanic I have had began life in aviation, then started working for a German car company, and later, an Italian car company. He went back to aviation because it pays much better and less headache. The M&A activity surrounding automotive dealerships in the U.S. is really destroying the bespoke levels of individual service that small, independent dealers were able to provide their customers. Big auto groups come in as the new owner of the smaller dealerships, they look at P&L, and start getting rid of employees and bring in those whom they owe favors to, or those willing to work for less.

 

[OldCarGuy]

It is very much a balancing act, and one I have fought throughout my entire adult life. At times I think I have it figured out and felt good about work/life balance and then all it would take is an inrush of side work or a couple late nights at my full-time job and it would throw everything out of kilter and I would struggle for weeks to reel it back in.

I chased that dollar for so long it became a part of me and I looked at nearly every side job as not only a learning experience, but also $$$. Probably not the best way to go through life, but to me it was better than being broke all of the time, and the only way I knew to offset our life was to use the skills the Lord blessed me with to better our situation. Sometimes that came at a cost of time, other times it was rewarded when an unexpected issue in life was thrown at us and we had the money to navigate through it.

What I can definitely say with a high level of confidence as I am now closer to 60 than 50, is that I am glad I did the majority of those late nights and burning the candle at both ends when I was younger, because it is much harder now. I can also say that if you play your cards right and remain debt adverse, that as time goes on chasing that carrot becomes less of a reflex and more of a choice. I actually like this point in my life where I can take on work if and when I want to vs. when I was younger and took on nearly everything that was presented to me.

I feel that choice came through many years of sacrifice and is now starting to pay dividends in quality of life. It's just some of the people I deal with that are disrupting that quality and I need to work on ways to preserve my mental peace yet still provide the help that I very much want to.

We both grew up understanding that diligence and effort are essential in life. We're not afraid of hard work nor getting dirty. And with 25 years on you, I can tell you're just getting started.

 

[bugnut]

I have PM'd Mike a few Jeep questions, and he's always been very helpful in his repsonses.

Guilty also, and Mike generously answered and helped. GJ, peeps have always been a helpful friendly lot, when asked or help is needed. Again big shout-out and Thank you, Mike

 

[zmotorsports]

We both grew up understanding that diligence and effort are essential in life. We're not afraid of hard work nor getting dirty. And with 25 years on you, I can tell you're just getting started.

Thank you. I don't know about the just getting started part, but I appreciate you thinking I'm young.

I do get frustrated when young people who work at our company go on and on about how I don't know what it's like. People forget that we were all young once and the behaviors that got us to where we are can still be duplicated, albeit modified some. However, progress is still possible but it takes hard work and perseverance to do so, which many lack. Many want the quick and easy way to success but I will still repeat that "success doesn't come from what you do occasionally, it comes from what you do consistently."

Guilty also, and Mike generously answered and helped. GJ, peeps have always been a helpful friendly lot, when asked or help is needed. Again big shout-out and Thank you, Mike

Thanks Joel.

 

[zmotorsports]

Pulled the Jeep into the shop last night and racked it to perform some routine maintenance before the next few trips.

Raised slightly to check ball joints and wheel bearings before tires/wheels are removed.


I am glad Dave, aka @bigdave_185 talked me into another round of treatment of the fenders with the Solutions Finish within a few weeks of the initial application. They haven't looked this good since we bought the Jeep 15 years ago. I guess I have to eat my words about the 303 Aerospace, because this stuff kicks its ****. They have a nice semi-gloss finish and absolutely no oily residue or feeling left behind. The last trip I noticed that the fenders didn't attract any more dirt or dust than the rest of the Jeep and it easily washed off. All positives.




Fluids at the ready. Jeep will get standard LOF service as well as a transfer case drain and fill as well as a brake fluid flush this service. The transmission only has a little over 14k as well as the diffs so they are only getting inspected and fluid levels checked, not a fluid replacement this time.


I was able to get the engine oil drained and filter replaced, driveshafts greased, transfer case fluid replaced, emergency brake shoes adjusted out just a little and a thorough chassis inspection before lowering the Jeep and closing up the shop. All that is remaining is brake fluid flush, a few more suspension components need greasing, install tires/wheels and add engine oil and she's ready for a test drive.



Thanks for looking.

 

[madison069]

I am glad Dave, aka @bigdave_185 talked me into another round of treatment of the fenders with the Solutions Finish within a few weeks of the initial application.

Just ordered the Solution Finish for the fleet. I know the truck and forester have some serious fading black vinyl trims.

 

[zanyad]

before lowering the Jeep and closing up the shop. All that is remaining is ... install tires/wheels ...

Is that a safety thing, lowering whatever's on the lift overnight?

 

[zmotorsports]

Is that a safety thing, lowering whatever's on the lift overnight?

I like to when I can. I didn't use to, however, in 2020 we had a pretty good little earthquake here along the Wasatch Front and my son's WJ was on the lift as we were fabricating the suspension. I was anxious all day worrying if I would find the Jeep on the floor of the shop when I arrived home, so now I lower vehicles down to the lowest lock whenever possible, which is most of the time. Just for my own peace of mind mostly.

 

[ntsqd]

I thought that was SOP to lower a vehicle on a hoist when left overnight or unattended for any long period. Every local shop that I've worked in or been around does/did that.

 

[aka Larry]

I lower vehicles down to the lowest lock whenever possible

I do the same with mine. In my mind if something fails, however unlikely, I'd rather it fall one foot instead of six.