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Above 1200 Sq/FT Out on Quaker Road

Wokspaces above 1200 squarefeet.

Revelations

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I've enjoyed reading this thread. Hard working man and family. I've got a small 20 ac dream in Independence Valley Nv, near the Utah border.

Totally of grid with no water and power 2 miles away.

I drive for a milk hauling company in Idaho, so the boss will rent me one of his 8 axle 9000 gallon tanker/trks to haul water to the property 90 miles away.

I have this dream to have my own small oasis in the middle of nowhere.

Reading your posts motivates me towards a seamingly impossible task. Being single, I will be doing most of this work myself.

So, from someone who's livelihood is dependent on dairies and farmers, keep up the hard work sir.

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jblnut

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Looks like the downspout tile is a success.
2016-05-24%2017.48.29_zpsfprlxmy4.jpg


I think I may have to put some fabric or straw down to hold the dirt in place long enough to get something to grow in this little river bottom ....
2016-05-24%2017.48.54_zpsiisv7ety.jpg


No big deal, just out for an evening dig in the driveway.
2016-05-24%2020.07.35_zps6si13dca.jpg


Well look at that, a sewer pipe.
2016-05-24%2020.00.01_zpsymounps8.jpg


This pole is going to be removed and the electrician wanted me to find the pipe so they didn't trench through it. I figured it was going to be faster to dig it up and fix it than dig through my driveway by hand with a shovel.
2016-05-24%2020.09.45_zpsftzmcgvu.jpg


Of course midway through the project we got an inch of rain and now everything is a soup hole ....
2016-05-25%2019.43.10_zpsnzxoawy7.jpg


New 100a panel on the shop to replace the one on the pole. This is fed from the new service so we will be able to remove the old service finally.
2016-05-25%2019.43.21_zpsiqych6hm.jpg
 
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jblnut

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No real shed update but I did get the barn cleaned out today.
2016-05-28%2010.28.32_zpszal8mjjm.jpg

2016-05-28%2008.52.11_zpswmr3opex.jpg


I stockpile the manure until I can haul it spring and fall.
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They all have to crowd the gates to see what's going on. Very nosy critters.
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This is the holding area where they go whilst I'm cleaning out their pens.
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The tractors were thirsty after a good days work.
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Mixing feed again. Every Saturday for a few hours I get to play with either the Big M or my H. Love it. If you look at the clouds you can see I was racing the clock. It rained not 5 minutes after I got the loaded wagons in the barn.
2016-05-28%2019.22.55_zpskblbnfkh.jpg


I should easily be able to stack 6 bales high. Sweet.
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Kind of hard to see but the wheat and one of the grasses have sprouted.
2016-05-28%2020.34.15_zpsa8zcj6xj.jpg
 

2CRUZ

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Jul 25, 2011
Messages
526
Location
Southern Illinois
Thats a lot of work. I've done it. I don't know where you have the time to post on the internet. Can you make any money feeding holstein steers? If your going to feed that many why not feed a little breed of cattle? Look's like a nice set up. It looks like you have worked hard for it. Good luck.
 
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jblnut

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Thats a lot of work. I've done it. I don't know where you have the time to post on the internet. Can you make any money feeding holstein steers? If your going to feed that many why not feed a little breed of cattle? Look's like a nice set up. It looks like you have worked hard for it. Good luck.

I can always make time for The Garage Journal ;+)

114 in the barn is just a start, I want to be up to 600 head on farm sooner than later. Grand plan is to buy 40ish baby calves a month and sell half when they hit 400-550lbs and feed the rest out.

It will take time but that's ok.

As far as making money on them, not this year. I made very good money on the 140ish I sold last year and this year is looking bleak. Farming is like that though, hopefully the peaks are high enough to carry you through the dips in the market.

It would help if you would all BUY MORE BEEF ! ! !
 
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jblnut

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Mama Bear has been bugging me for a fire pit and this stupid little plop of **** has been bugging me since we moved out here 2 years ago so it's time to kill two birds with one stone.
2016-05-30%2013.05.58_zps3cxziw1x.jpg


It's hot outside and it's harder to drink beer and work a shovel than it is to drink beer and run the excavator my 3 year old named Doug. Haha, it digs so it's Doug.
2016-05-30%2013.06.08_zpsegikdn4i.jpg


Got the rocks cleaned off and the plastic out.
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One of the better ideas I've had in awhile ....
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Three scoops and done.
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We used "Doug" to set the rim in the hole and backfilled around it.
2016-05-30%2013.49.14_zpst4jyna9c.jpg


A little off center but whatever. Not everything can be perfect .....
2016-05-30%2013.55.37_zpsadvt99qd.jpg
 

Revelations

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Jul 8, 2015
Messages
274
Mama Bear has been bugging me for a fire pit and this stupid little plop of **** has been bugging me since we moved out here 2 years ago so it's time to kill two birds with one stone.
2016-05-30%2013.05.58_zps3cxziw1x.jpg


It's hot outside and it's harder to drink beer and work a shovel than it is to drink beer and run the excavator my 3 year old named Doug. Haha, it digs so it's Doug.
2016-05-30%2013.06.08_zpsegikdn4i.jpg


Got the rocks cleaned off and the plastic out.
2016-05-30%2013.24.54_zpstja5qea2.jpg


One of the better ideas I've had in awhile ....
2016-05-30%2013.35.03_zpsptzllw6e.jpg


Three scoops and done.
2016-05-30%2013.35.10_zpsb4n2pb77.jpg


We used "Doug" to set the rim in the hole and backfilled around it.
2016-05-30%2013.49.14_zpst4jyna9c.jpg


A little off center but whatever. Not everything can be perfect .....
2016-05-30%2013.55.37_zpsadvt99qd.jpg
Very cleaver use of that epuipment, and the old wheel. I can only dream to have that equipment one day. Even then, they would only be toys. Very good work sir.[emoji41]

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jblnut

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Well it works. We got a roaring fire gong to burn the paint off and enjoyed the sunset in the background. T'was a decent evening for sure.
2016-05-30%2020.51.38_zpslcjoz8en.jpg
 

Beenman

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Oct 20, 2013
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486
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Pretoria, South Africa
Great thread jblnut. I really enjoy your pictures. :thumbup:

Having grown up on a farm but now living in the city I sure miss the smell of diesel on a fresh morning before the tractors start up.
 

ff4500

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Joined
Sep 28, 2011
Messages
84
Location
NW Indiana
Hah. I did the same thing with an old tractor wheel for our fire pit. It works, so there's that.
 

mikes02ls1

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Joined
Sep 26, 2015
Messages
427
Location
Casa Grande, AZ
Nice farm, You should see the dairy farms down here in Arizona. Friends of ours have 7 dairy farms, with 15k holstein cows on just one farm.
 
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jblnut

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Nice farm, You should see the dairy farms down here in Arizona. Friends of ours have 7 dairy farms, with 15k holstein cows on just one farm.

Thank you and holy cow, no pun intended. That's a few more than I figure to have around ....


Last night we got ambitious and decided to move some hay around. This new shed is going to be REALLY nice to have around. We fit the entire old 24x40 hay shed into two and a half bays in the new shed. Crazy.
2016-06-01%2018.33.14_zpsa77j80mz.jpg



That is a 6' 6" person in the middle .... either that or my 3yr old daughter.
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I'm not sure what's going on here but it must be comfortable I guess ....
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Miss Lily is feeding the steers. She's very "helpful".
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I've been looking for a decent set of pallet forks for my Bobcat 763 for a few months now and finally found some. Jenkins Iron and Steel built these for me. They're suppose to be rated 5500lbs, I shouldn't destroy them. Most forks have the backplate fairly vertical and there is very little roll-back action on my 763 so I had them kick the bottom out 2". Works great ! !
2016-06-01%2017.15.34_zps54knz2xc.jpg
 

mikes02ls1

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Joined
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Messages
427
Location
Casa Grande, AZ
Thank you and holy cow, no pun intended. That's a few more than I figure to have around ....


Last night we got ambitious and decided to move some hay around. This new shed is going to be REALLY nice to have around. We fit the entire old 24x40 hay shed into two and a half bays in the new shed. Crazy.
2016-06-01%2018.33.14_zpsa77j80mz.jpg



That is a 6' 6" person in the middle .... either that or my 3yr old daughter.
2016-06-01%2018.35.56_zps9ulcszlz.jpg



I'm not sure what's going on here but it must be comfortable I guess ....
2016-06-01%2018.41.44_zpsitgqxbfe.jpg



Miss Lily is feeding the steers. She's very "helpful".
2016-06-01%2018.51.06_zps7deag24q.jpg



I've been looking for a decent set of pallet forks for my Bobcat 763 for a few months now and finally found some. Jenkins Iron and Steel built these for me. They're suppose to be rated 5500lbs, I shouldn't destroy them. Most forks have the backplate fairly vertical and there is very little roll-back action on my 763 so I had them kick the bottom out 2". Works great ! !
2016-06-01%2017.15.34_zps54knz2xc.jpg
Nice barn for the hay. They have the hay out in the open. Few times had some nice fires from the heat.

Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk
 
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jblnut

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Nice barn for the hay. They have the hay out in the open. Few times had some nice fires from the heat.


I would imagine down in Arizona that leaving feedstuffs outside wouldn't be as big of a deal. No real worries about it getting snowed on and probably not as much rain as up here. Plus the shed space it would take to house that much hay and straw for 15k animals would be insane ! !
 
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jblnut

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Well I sold my 110 today. Not much else happened. I was partway through a "restoration" and it became my main mower again for a while so it got used and dirty again after the deck got all painted up nice but oh well. It sat for a few years and things got dirty and I couldn't sell it as a running machine but the guy that purchased it should be able to clean it up. He's good at stuff.
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jblnut

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Got some plumbing done I've been putting off for a while. I **** at plumbing work. I have made more damn sprinklers over the years and dread doing it but I need this by mid next week so it happened today.

Water lines from left to right. Future new house, future shop, current hydrant, current cattle waterers. I added a line to the far left for a connection outside the pump house.
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Rigid pipe cutter that has been on the farm as long as my dad has.
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Same with the thread cutting tools.
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Perfect threads. Love it.
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Completed inside.
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95% done outside. I will fill the sprayer here so it made sense to put a 2" banjo coupler here. I also wanted a faucet out here so I made something to work and it turned out okay I think. The pipe is sloped down so it will run dry in the winter and I'll stuff some insulation in the pipe when it gets cold.
35682490555_6bbb0db50d_b.jpg
 
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drivesitfar

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Oct 23, 2013
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Location
Pacific Northwest
JB: we only use black pipe for gas around here. looks like your did a great job with the plumbing. I don't do plumbing often, but I like to do it myself if possible so really like that you take on the challenge too.

one thing I might have added would have been a little drain valve for the pipe going outside just behind the valve so you can drain the pipe and you wouldn't have to worry about freezing pipe and stuffing with rags during the winter. other than that everything looks great and makes me want to pick up a pipe threader and some black pipe and put on a few extensions to my copper piping.

looks like the storage is working great and the helper seems to find his way into the pictures so maybe that one is going to be the movie star in the family.

as with all things there is always somebody with more and better STUFF and i'm still drooling as you fill up your 40 x 112 or whatever huge size your barn is. my garage is 10 x 15.

cheers
 
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jblnut

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Oh my Betsy, I love me some grilled chicken. PS: A Lodge Cast Iron Griddle. If you don't have one, GET ONE. It sure makes it hard to screw something up on the grill and if you don't wash it for 5+ years, like mine, the flavors come alive ! !
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One thing I might have added would have been a little drain valve for the pipe going outside just behind the valve so you can drain the pipe and you wouldn't have to worry about freezing pipe and stuffing with rags during the winter.

The purpose of the Banjo couplers on it is so it comes apart and can drain ... I'll let it drain, blow it out and put a plug in it for winter. Should work. The valve is a foot and a half inside the heated building ....
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I also got all the buckets in the same place for the first time in 2 years. All except the post hole digger, snow blade and the skeleton rock bucket. Well I guess almost all of them ....
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ABSTIFFGS

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Twin Cities, MN
Well I sold my 110 today. Not much else happened. I was partway through a "restoration" and it became my main mower again for a while so it got used and dirty again after the deck got all painted up nice but oh well. It sat for a few years and things got dirty and I couldn't sell it as a running machine but the guy that purchased it should be able to clean it up. He's good at stuff.
2016-06-04%2019.40.54_zpsexiqvx6u.jpg
Man that 110 sure looks nice behind that fancy city truck.
 
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jblnut

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Man that 110 sure looks nice behind that fancy city truck.

Well I guess it could be mistaken for a "truck" ....

Dictionary.com
[suh-bur-buh n]
adjective
1. pertaining to, inhabiting, or being in a suburb or the suburbs of a city or town.
2. characteristic of a suburb or suburbs.

noun
3. a suburbanite.
4. a short overcoat for casual wear.
5. station wagon.

Stay tuned, I'll show you a picture of a truck tomorrow .....
 
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jblnut

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Stay tuned, I'll show you a picture of a truck tomorrow .....

And here it is. Everyone knows trucks have beds ...
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And more of the same in case you didn't figure it out yet ....
34873554283_88bd2ddee5_b.jpg

Well as the trucks and cattle trailers are hinting at I made my way to the sales barn today and low and behold I came home with some fresh meat. Nine 398lb steers and I've got to say, they look pretty sharp. I keep the newest purchased animals in this pen away from the others for a few weeks to avoid potentially getting the whole barn sick. I usually don't know where the animals came from so it avoids a lot of nasty problems.
34873554393_576e749110_b.jpg
34873554503_10ff6e6f0c_b.jpg
 
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jblnut

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Well, well, well. What do we have here ??
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Now that's interesting ....
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Looks to be the big bad M on the mixer again.
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New starter, new axle seals, trans input and belly pump output seals, PTO seal, brake seals and main seals have been installed and she's been totally rewired. Rebuilt the entire ignition system, new distributor, plugs, wires, condenser, the whole works is new again. New battery, used 2-way valve, and a narrow front. It had a busy winter and the only thing I didn't do it seems is wash it ....
35682747175_b9465c6732_b.jpg


It ran great and never missed a beat. I parked it back in the shed next to my newest purchase. Deere 835 MoCo. OMG this thing is awesome.
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jblnut

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Checking air in the tires on the wagons because we have some hay to bale today.
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Off I go !!
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Warm outside. 98F good grief. Good thing the A/C works ....
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The first of four trips. 44 bales per trip. 36 on the wagons and 8 on the skid loader trailer behind the pickup.
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Home with the third load.
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Pops in the baler doing what he does.
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The ground is a bit moist but the baler carries very well with the duals.
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Since they're band duals we made them to follow in the same tracks as the tractor so they don't get too stressed and break something ....
34873674663_bbf938a1bb_b.jpg
 
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jblnut

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Well this is turning from a garage/shed update every once in a while to whatever the hell I feel like taking pictures of and posting on GJ I guess but that's okay. It'll come around again sometime and I'm having fun.

The 95' F250 had a fun looking odometer this morning when I fired it up.
35643540636_bfcc845119_b.jpg


I started hanging more Ubiquiti stuff today. NanoBeam 1 of 5 hung today.
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This makes me sick looking at it but it's on the other side of the wife's car and I can't see it unless I'm over there. Whatever, I just pretend like it's not there ....
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We just had almost an inch of rain in about a half hour and this is the sky afterwords. Beautiful.
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Strouty

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Southern Maine
Well I guess it could be mistaken for a "truck" ....

Dictionary.com
[suh-bur-buh n]
adjective
1. pertaining to, inhabiting, or being in a suburb or the suburbs of a city or town.
2. characteristic of a suburb or suburbs.

noun
3. a suburbanite.
4. a short overcoat for casual wear.
5. station wagon.

Stay tuned, I'll show you a picture of a truck tomorrow .....

I was enjoying this thread so much, then you had to insult my truck...... :evil:

The "shed" looks great, sounds like you are continually making progress. Hopefully you have a good year and maybe some concrete will be in your future. :thumbup:
 

Firebrand

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Feb 23, 2010
Messages
294
Location
New Hampshire
Looks great! Any chance you need a new home for a silo dome cover soon? I've got an old wooden one that's a ten foot diameter that needs a dome. In fact, it's needed one for over twenty years! Any leads?

Also, great machinery collection!
 
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jblnut

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Keep posting, I really enjoy all the farm pics.
I will, no worries.


I was enjoying this thread so much, then you had to insult my truck...... :evil:

The "shed" looks great, sounds like you are continually making progress. Hopefully you have a good year and maybe some concrete will be in your future. :thumbup:
Truth be told I was poking fun at that specific Surburban :) Eventually the entire shed will be concreted out. I just don't know yet if I'm going to prep it with insulation and heat pipes in all of it or half of it yet so nothing will get done for a while ....


Looks great! Any chance you need a new home for a silo dome cover soon? I've got an old wooden one that's a ten foot diameter that needs a dome. In fact, it's needed one for over twenty years! Any leads?

Also, great machinery collection!
The one I have that will be taken down this summer is a 14' concrete stave silo. You can have it but how in the world would you get it to the East Coast ??

And thanks on the machinery collection comment, it's my retirement plan. I don't squirrel a lot of cash away but I am gathering for an auction one day ;)

Not much in the way of anything major but I think I'm cursed with front left tires lately. One blew on Saturday hauling hay home and tonight I went to do chores and saw this on one of the gravity boxes. It made me sad.
35295738100_107f0a2f01_b.jpg
 
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Strouty

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Southern Maine
I tell my GF the same thing about my shop and tools. It is like a savings account and an suction is the way I can cash out.

As for the suburban, I have three and they are all diesels. Two are projects at this point but I have driven them all.

Hopefully the tire curse will be over soon!
 
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