Between 705 & 1200 SQ/FT My Mini Garagemahal

[fouckhest]

. Last time I went up to Fontana Dam I found a bear cub on the side of the road without momma bear around. Stopped and snagged a couple quick pics and was worried she was gonna pop up out of thin air and yank me out of my Miata.

Its been a few years ago when I was up there for this same trip, turned around at the overlook, heading back toward the gas station/killboy store, looked up and there was a baby bear on the left side of the road, I think I tried to get a photo, but cant find it now....but same thing, I didnt stick around to see if mama was going to come looking for baby

You guys are really making me yearn for retirement to get out there. Unfortunately, I'm still a few years away. Now all I can do is daydream about it.

Nothing wrong with a well thought out plan!

 

[fouckhest]

Had a productive multitasking weekend, got the cart finished up and bender installed on said cart. Unfortunately I didnt get to test out my new tool, it seems I am missing a bracket needed to mount the hydraulic pump/motor to the cart, so I will be giving them a call as soon as they open this morning and hopefully get that recitfied, then might call the local metal supply place and order some tubing so I can start working next week when I get back from ToD.

I like the finish of my saw stand using the rustoleum bedliner spray, that was the plan for this cart also. However, I wanted to make sure the undersides were protected, so I opted for roll bar and chassis paint for that. Ended up giving the whole cart a light coat with that paint before the bedliner.

Light coat (undersides of the shelves got a solid coating)
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Bedliner coating
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Bender all assembled with roller dies on the side, I will need to make a stand for the main dies that are now sitting on the bottom
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Coincidentally the rack for the dies and clamp blocks is a close'ish finish to what I used for the cart
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr



While the cart was drying I worked on Cayman maintenance. Brake upgrade and caliper refresh were on the list this year, along with its annual oil change. Which I have to say is one of the more frustrating things on this/these cars....there is no dipstick, you have to check it via the computer....an oil change is "supposed" to take 7.75qts, so I put in 7qts, checked it, said it was not even reading, so added 1qt and now is say it is FULL FULL, which then means, when parked off camber, it will likely smoke on start up...not a huge deal, just annoying...anyway, I digress

Frozen Rotors, slotted, paired with Hawk HP+ pads, then refreshed the calipers with a coat of G2 caliper paint and new stickers
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Back on the ground, ready for a drive to bed the pads
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

 

[zmotorsports]

Both the bender cart AND the car look fantastic.

 

[fouckhest]

Both the bender cart AND the car look fantastic.

Thank you sir!

 

[MrPink]

nice work sir,

I need to re-coat my calipers too, i am debating on Yellow though which should look good against the green.

 

[Xti04]

Looks great. Now I need to come and borrow that bender

 

[fouckhest]

Looks great. Now I need to come and borrow that bender

You aren't too far away!

 

[cccoltsicehockey]

The Bender cart came out great. That is one nice piece of machinery.

I am sure the Cayman with be great fun up at the dragon with the upgraded brakes to help out. Just finished booking our trip to head up there in September.

 

[Swanny1953]

You guys are really making me yearn for retirement to get out there. Unfortunately, I'm still a few years away. Now all I can do is daydream about it.

We're doing a National Corvette Museum "MIM" (Museum in Motion) tour to the Biltmore and Tail of the Dragon at the end of the month. Taking the '19 ZR1. Have never been there, and really looking forward to it. Thanks for the other suggestions - I'll try to "loop" them in as we're headed to Atlanta once the tour is officially over.

 

[zmotorsports]

We're doing a National Corvette Museum "MIM" (Museum in Motion) tour to the Biltmore and Tail of the Dragon at the end of the month. Taking the '19 ZR1. Have never been there, and really looking forward to it. Thanks for the other suggestions - I'll try to "loop" them in as we're headed to Atlanta once the tour is officially over.

Would love to see some pictures of that Gary. If you can let go of the wheel and refrain from grinning for the few minutes to snap some that is.

 

[Xti04]

Dragon report?

 

[fouckhest]

Dragon report?

All in All, a great trip....Thursday was a washout, but oh well....

I have a group of friends from MN that have now started making this an annual trip for them, one guy has come down for years, so now it has turned into a vacation for them to escape the cold and kick off spring.

The day started Wednesday with them leaving up around the dragon and taking US276 most of the way down to meet me, to then take US178/NC215 up to the Blueridge Parkway, always a great route, then stopped up at Devils Courthouse for a bio-break and leg stretch....to say the fog was thick was an understatement, and unfortunately, only a precursor to what was to come...

The crew
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

This is overlooking a valley that you can normally see for MILES
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Leaving there, the fog only got worse until we got close to Asheville, honestly borderline scary at times knowing that there isnt guard rail on a lot of the BRP, so definitely had to keep my eye on the double yellow and follow that closely....

BUT, had lunch at my favorite brewery in Ashville (Burial Beer), then the boring drive out to Fontana, but arrived around 630p, unloaded, headed straight out, ran Hell Bender, then couple times out/back on the Dragon, then back to the cabin to settle in and relax for the evening to dream of the next day...which was a washout....womp womp

First stop at the overlook at the far end of ToD with the MN crew
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Thursday consisted of lunch, grocery shopping and a lot of hanging out on the porch hoping the rain would stop....

Friday morning, early runs, then back to meet and go run the Cherohala Skyway....had no more than got on the skyway, got bright lighted by an on-coming car, came around a corner to see a trike off the side of the road, then one more turn later, we see this....

Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

All we gathered from the person riding with the trike was that he must have gone wide, hit the guard rail and messed up his arm pretty bad, had to be life flighted off the mountain...super scary, actually makes you wonder how/why trikes are still legal when the outlawed "three wheelers" so many years ago....

The rest of Friday was making our way back to Fontana, the group had a little event going on, so we checked that out, then some early runs Saturday morning before I packed up and headed home to gather brownie points with the wife as she left Monday for a work trip that will keep her away from home for 2wks.

As always, to support the local economy, purchased this photo from Killboy.com, was actually kinda bummed, we were out earlier and later than they were most days....but thought this one was cool

4415038 by fouckhest, on Flickr

 

[fouckhest]

In other updates, relaxed Saturday afternoon....Sunday, got up, did some chores, pulled the cayman back out of the garage for some cleanup, then decided to put the engine back in the project car

I am relatively impressed, just over an hour to get it installed, headers stayed on....this is promising!
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

I have to admit, I like how they came out....now I need to find/make the time to get them welded out

Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

 

[zmotorsports]

Thanks for the pictures of your trip. Sorry to hear the weather didn't cooperate.

 

[fouckhest]

Thanks for the pictures of your trip. Sorry to hear the weather didn't cooperate.

Wish I was better about taking more, but its usually only photos of cars parked lol.

Can't hate the weather too much when you are in the smokey mtns, things roll in/out, its part of early season weather patterns up there, things to consider for your trip

 

[Trapps]

Perfect car for ToD! Great Killboy pic (most are); love capturing the suspension compression.

 

[zmotorsports]

Wish I was better about taking more, but its usually only photos of cars parked lol.

My wife and I had this EXACT conversation last night. My wife's uncle passed away last week and as we were digging through pictures over the past week or so for the tribute video I realized that we have very, very, very few pictures of us, such as in none. We have a lot of pictures of our son, DIL and grandson, but only one here and there of the two of us and NOTHING from before about the past several years. And those are staged pictures such as on a trip.

I told the wife we need to take more "real" pictures of us doing normal things that are actual real-life stories of who we are because when we are gone, I'm afraid there will be nothing left to even tell our story that we were ever here on earth.

I'm reading a book right now about Warren Johnson, who was my all-time favorite drag racer. I loved the Pro Stock class and for some reason I was drawn to him back in the 80's and 90's for his dedication and tenacity to the sport. His nickname "The Professor" was well earned and as I have been reading his book, I feel there were some parallels to my early beginnings being raised on a farm and learning to work on things out of necessity and using that knowledge to apply to other things such as cars.

What I found interesting and shared with my wife last night at dinner were all of the "action" photos of he and his wife's life, as well as Kurt working alongside his dad. I guess my point is, I have none of that. Only pictures of vehicles I've built parked somewhere. Nothing of me or my son working on them and definitely none of me and my wife enjoying life. All of the pictures we have of snowmobiling, racing, duning, car shows are all the toys sitting there posed to get the best light and photo, but none of us actually enjoying them or even in the pictures.

Sorry for the derailment, that just got me thinking is all.

 

[cccoltsicehockey]

Always a bummer when you get a day or two washed out while up there. Have made some runs in the rain in the past and it's always a bit touch and go.

The shot from Killboy looks great. Anymore photos of the Boxter with the hardtop? Are those LMs it is on?

 

[MrPink]

looks like a fun trip, ***** that the fog was so bad the 1st day. Hope the driver of the trike makes a speedy recovery. I am a staunch believer that i will never plop my **** onto a bike of any sort, i will stick to a "Cage".

 

[Xti04]

Weather kinda sucked this past week. Was amazing on Saturday and Sunday though! Nice shot of the 145 on the skyway. Theres a lot more room to land up there if something happens. Had a buddy who went up with a group from 129 hub and went ahead of them all day stopping to do corner photos for them. Said he was worn out from chasing them all over the dragon and skyway all day.

 

[Geoff289]

My wife and I had this EXACT conversation last night. My wife's uncle passed away last week and as we were digging through pictures over the past week or so for the tribute video I realized that we have very, very, very few pictures of us, such as in none. We have a lot of pictures of our son, DIL and grandson, but only one here and there of the two of us and NOTHING from before about the past several years. And those are staged pictures such as on a trip.

I told the wife we need to take more "real" pictures of us doing normal things that are actual real-life stories of who we are because when we are gone, I'm afraid there will be nothing left to even tell our story that we were ever here on earth.

I'm reading a book right now about Warren Johnson, who was my all-time favorite drag racer. I loved the Pro Stock class and for some reason I was drawn to him back in the 80's and 90's for his dedication and tenacity to the sport. His nickname "The Professor" was well earned and as I have been reading his book, I feel there were some parallels to my early beginnings being raised on a farm and learning to work on things out of necessity and using that knowledge to apply to other things such as cars.

What I found interesting and shared with my wife last night at dinner were all of the "action" photos of he and his wife's life, as well as Kurt working alongside his dad. I guess my point is, I have none of that. Only pictures of vehicles I've built parked somewhere. Nothing of me or my son working on them and definitely none of me and my wife enjoying life. All of the pictures we have of snowmobiling, racing, duning, car shows are all the toys sitting there posed to get the best light and photo, but none of us actually enjoying them or even in the pictures.

Sorry for the derailment, that just got me thinking is all.

Hi Mike, don't think I've ever posted on your own thread but I'm a regular reader. This post attracted me because I'm a drag racing tragic and Pro Stock is (was, on its knees these days) also my favourite class. Being a Ford guy I consider Bob Glidden not just the greatest PS racer ever but the greatest drag racer ever. He and Johnson had some epic battles and both brought the same tenacious work ethic and family involvement culture to their craft.

Pro Stock down here is different running 400 cube small blocks that run 6.80's at just over 200.

Sorry for hijacking this thread which I also enjoy.

 

[fouckhest]

Sorry for the derailment, that just got me thinking is all.

Never a derailment, honestly, for years (college and beyond) I always avoided photos with the simple phrase, "this might ruin future political aspirations" lol....however, now my wife is good at getting us to take photos when adventuring....just has to be an "effort thing"

Always a bummer when you get a day or two washed out while up there. Have made some runs in the rain in the past and it's always a bit touch and go.

The shot from Killboy looks great. Anymore photos of the Boxter with the hardtop? Are those LMs it is on?

It is a bummer, but I (you too) are close enough, that I don't hate it like the guys that drive 8-10hrs for that one week/weekend. I think driving in the rain/wet is a good thing from time to time, it can teach you a lot about your car.

Good eye on the boxter, that is a super cool car, .1 car, definitely on LMs, sounds great!

Here is the link from Friday morning, we were out early and most photos are the guys I was with: https://killboy.photoreflect.com/store/Photos.aspx?e=13057287&g=04RK04JF0E&gf=false&page=0

looks like a fun trip, ***** that the fog was so bad the 1st day. Hope the driver of the trike makes a speedy recovery. I am a staunch believer that i will never plop my **** onto a bike of any sort, i will stick to a "Cage".

Fog was only back up on the BRP, so not much was lost, that is a boring drive once you've been up there a few times.....TOTALLY agree on being in a "cage," although we did talk about taking bikes up there at some point, it would have to be mid-week when no one was around

Weather kinda sucked this past week. Was amazing on Saturday and Sunday though! Nice shot of the 145 on the skyway. Theres a lot more room to land up there if something happens. Had a buddy who went up with a group from 129 hub and went ahead of them all day stopping to do corner photos for them. Said he was worn out from chasing them all over the dragon and skyway all day.

Yeah, Friday was awesome, Saturday looked like it was going to be a great afternoon, but as you know, its a parade everywhere up there on a Saturday afternoon. I was happy to spend both days in the back yard relaxing honestly!

One of the long time R32 guys does that with groups, will leave lunch 15mins early, go post up on a hill and get good photos, super cool!

Once back in a fun car we will have to link up and invite @cccoltsicehockey for some GJ dragon runs!

 

[fouckhest]

Hi Mike, don't think I've ever posted on your own thread but I'm a regular reader. This post attracted me because I'm a drag racing tragic and Pro Stock is (was, on its knees these days) also my favourite class. Being a Ford guy I consider Bob Glidden not just the greatest PS racer ever but the greatest drag racer ever. He and Johnson had some epic battles and both brought the same tenacious work ethic and family involvement culture to their craft.

Pro Stock down here is different running 400 cube small blocks that run 6.80's at just over 200.

Sorry for hijacking this thread which I also enjoy.

All good, no worries at all, and now I feel back because I forgot to comment to @zmotorsports about the Warren Johnson reference, I havent heard that name in years. As a kid i pined over the times to sit and watch drag racing. I'd put WJ up there with legends like Kenny Bernstein, he was always my fav!

 

[Metallitubby]

Excellent photos and updates as always. I need to bring the Element out to a Deal's Gap run since it's only 2.0 hrs north of me.

 

[fouckhest]

Excellent photos and updates as always. I need to bring the Element out to a Deal's Gap run since it's only 2.0 hrs north of me.

sounds like GJ dragon GTG is in order!

OR....for those that are not ToD locals, this is the meeting point for my normal weekend mtn runs, and it has yet to disappoint a newcomer...

6491 SC-11, Pickens, SC 29671

 

[Xti04]

I was tellin my buddy at church Sunday after his dragon discussion that I want another fun car. I have wanted a 930 or 964 for years but they have gotten stupid expensive. I am looking at possibly importing a Honda beat or an Autozam since I have fallen in love with the kei car platform. Another Mini Cooper especially if I could find one needing a chain or something would be fine with me.I love having a car I never have to let off the gas pedal. If I could get away with it I would sneak an S660 over here but there no way to register or insure it.

 

[Metallitubby]

I love having a car I never have to let off the gas pedal.

That's how my motorcycle is.

 

[zmotorsports]

Hi Mike, don't think I've ever posted on your own thread but I'm a regular reader. This post attracted me because I'm a drag racing tragic and Pro Stock is (was, on its knees these days) also my favourite class. Being a Ford guy I consider Bob Glidden not just the greatest PS racer ever but the greatest drag racer ever. He and Johnson had some epic battles and both brought the same tenacious work ethic and family involvement culture to their craft.

Pro Stock down here is different running 400 cube small blocks that run 6.80's at just over 200.

Sorry for hijacking this thread which I also enjoy.

Yeah, I liked Bob Glidden as well, but ya know he drove that "other brand". I remember intensely watching them line up and having their staging duals at times. I know it was all for show to get the crowd riled up around the Pro Stock class but it was still fun to watch as a young man drooling over the class.

My wife enjoyed the fuel cars, and yes, they were/are impressive with the numbers they post, but Pro Stock was always my favorite class. Something about NA cars and banging through the gears that really drove home the sport compared to using forced induction to cram air into an engine and then throw as much fuel as you can without locking the engine. Pro Stock always seemed like more of a "working man's" class if you will. Just a step above the Sportsman class these days, but still, nowhere near the same as it was back then. Even once WJ started his winning seasons, he was the one tuning the car as well as driving whereas many others were merely driving by that time. Even now, the drag racing sport is so much a rich man's sport to where it isn't even as fun to watch as it was back then.

Now I'm sounding old.

 

[Trapps]

sounds like GJ dragon GTG is in order!


Re: Never letting off the gas...

I was in Scotland in 1996 and was following a local. He had an experienced, read old, Ford ******. On narrow backroads (really narrow, not just a standard 'B') he would drive 60. Through the woods and single lane stuff with blind corners. When we got to the motorway, he still drove 60. At our destination I asked what gives? Slow as a slug on the highway, possessed crazy demon on back roads. His reply: the car will go 60 mph, so that's how fast I drive it.

Reminds me of the sentiment that it is more fun to drive a slow car fast than it is to drive a fast car slow.

 

[fouckhest]

sounds like GJ dragon GTG is in order!


Reminds me of the sentiment that it is more fun to drive a slow car fast than it is to drive a fast car slow.

Don't Threaten me with a good time!

I bought my cayman for that exact reason....340bhp, way faster than my 500awhp VW

 

[Sifan]

And from Ziegler, Illinois population 1400
Buddy Ingersol and his V6 Buick

 

[fouckhest]

I've had a project planned for a while to try and mitigate the water issue in my basement....plan was to redo the driveway to give uphill water a place to go that wasnt towards the front of the house....so last week had my builder come by with his skid steer and we got to work....

First step was taking the fence down, then scraping the driveway
Driveway mods by fouckhest, on Flickr

Pulled ~6" of material out, then started shaping a valley in the center of the driveway
Driveway mods by fouckhest, on Flickr

Cut a ditch to lay some pipe to keep gutter water away from the house
Driveway mods by fouckhest, on Flickr

Cut a second ditch so I can add a drain at the bottom of the driveway to hopefully keep from having another setiment pile at the bottom
Driveway mods by fouckhest, on Flickr


This is where the back ended up, I've spend a little time trying to finish grade....was supposed to have asphalt millings being delivered tomorrow, but it seems that isn't going to happen as they've run out....so now I am impatiently waiting to hear when I can get this mess cleaned up
Driveway mods by fouckhest, on Flickr

 

[fouckhest]

In other news, I was able to get some tubing to begin practicing with the new bender....first successful bends!

Excited to get back out to the shop and play some more

Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

 

[MrPink]

looks good. what are you running as EMS on the blue car with the 4.2?

 

[fouckhest]

looks good. what are you running as EMS on the blue car with the 4.2?

It will be an OEM ECU to start, trying to focus on fab work for now. Down the road if I want to go crazy, might do a stand alone, but this car will never be an all out track car, that is likely the direction I will take the mk1

 

[MrPink]

Makes perfect sense. I know that the ME7.5 has great tuning capabilities for a OEM ecm. It only starts reaching its limits when you want to go absolutely bonkers.

 

[fouckhest]

Found a little time in the shop last night....did a little staring at the car, little bit of clean up here/there, trying to think about what my next steps look like, which i think will be to pull the engine, remake that one runner, then some more firewall trimming/cleanup, then start to make the firewall and tunnel structure(s)


In between thinking, I completed a couple bends....the 180° is a pretty cool bend
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

 

[fouckhest]

Not sure were another week went....but it went!

Friday the driveway got finished, had 40t of asphalt millings delivered, spread and compacted. We had a nice weekend, so left it alone as much as possible, spent some time with my hand compactor Saturday "tamping" around the edges and any places that I knew they didn't get with the roller. Also, finalized my drain in the corner of the main garage pad/apron, then today at lunch I sprayed the entire driveway down with diesel fuel....seems like there are mixed opinions on this, but went for it based on local folks that have done the same.

Snapped this half way up the back driveway, the material "grays" out after they put it down and it starts to recure, then the diesel really "blackens" it back up
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Drain
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr


Looking down the driveway from the road....you can see where I ran out of diesel right at the end
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr

Looking down in the back yard from the fence/gate
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr


Next project is new deck planning, YaY

 

[MrPink]

looks good, i really want to do something like this with the area next to my driveway, to give us another parking spot that isnt the yard lol.

 

[fouckhest]

looks good, i really want to do something like this with the area next to my driveway, to give us another parking spot that isnt the yard lol.

Thanks, it seemed like a good solution, mainly from a cost standpoint....concrete is still so expensive!