Good morning!!!!

   / Good morning!!!! #167,761  
Good morning all TBN brothers and sisters. Central Texas 50's lows and 70's-low 80's daytime. Most everything is growing well but the low temps are slowing the range grasses after last week's 6+ inches of rainfall.
Headed to the Legion meeting this morning to check on "the boys".

The USAF seems all in on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning-II. The stealth (VLO, very low observable) multi-role F-35A for the USAF, F-35B (short take-off, land vertically) for the Marines and the F-35C Navy / Marine versions.
Claimed speed of Mach 1.6, range 1,350 miles internal fuel (unlimited air refueling).

Hope all have a great day.

1681295606013.png
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,762  
Good morning all TBN brothers and sisters. Central Texas 50's lows and 70's-low 80's daytime. Most everything is growing well but the low temps are slowing the range grasses after last week's 6+ inches of rainfall.
Headed to the Legion meeting this morning to check on "the boys".

The USAF seems all in on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning-II. The stealth (VLO, very low observable) multi-role F-35A for the USAF, F-35B (short take-off, land vertically) for the Marines and the F-35C Navy / Marine versions.
Claimed speed of Mach 1.6, range 1,350 miles internal fuel (unlimited air refueling).

Hope all have a great day.

View attachment 794885
Have you seen this Taiwan Air Force patch? I don’t quite get exactly what it is trying to convey… (/s)

74F91D7A-7E74-4020-8C92-DE4DDA7AD6A8.jpeg
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,763  
Warmer at 54 going to 80 today

Need to get going for lab to get blood work

Hope all will have a good day
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,764  
Have you seen this Taiwan Air Force patch? I don’t quite get exactly what it is trying to convey… (/s)

View attachment 794886
LOL, Well I had to look it up. I get the "we are open 24/7" and the "scramble", but the picture I was not sure. According to a web article:
Taiwanese are rushing to buy patches, popularized by air force pilots, that depict a Formosan black bear punching Winnie-the-Pooh – representing China’s president Xi Jinping – as a defiant symbol of the island’s resistance to Chinese war games.

Of course, if China does attack Taiwan, the country would be in a world of hurt, but admirable they would fight I suppose.
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,765  
Like that fence stretcher, Paul
Years ago I took 2 2x4s length about equal to fence height, thru bolts to hold, a couple of eyes for the come along.

That is the tool that I made for threading the Lag style hinge pins into the post. It’s a steel bar with a piece of square tube welded to it with a hole for the hinge pin. I do have the “official” clamp bar to grab the full 5 feet of wire, but rarely use it unless it’s a long run that I have to pull.
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,766  
Good Morning
It’s 60 and going to the middle 70’s today under clear skies. No rain forecast until the weekend.

Yesterday’s trip took up the whole day, most of the east coast was enjoying beautiful weather, except for southern FL where it was blowing over 30kts and bands of rain passing through. It was raining when we landed, but was in between showers when we left. Here’s the picture that I tried to post in response to Frits’ pictures from the airport.

IMG_1480.jpg


We taxi past it on our way out, it’s pretty much always there.

I didn’t get much done yesterday but play with Zoe, I was going to mount the tire, but figured Zoe would be more fun. (And she was).

I’ll start today with the tire, maybe do some mowing. We have points at the grocery store to be used by the 15th that will save a dollar a gallon at their gas station, there is a 20 gallon limit, an one transaction, so I think I will take the KubVan and some cans to get diesel fuel. Airport authority meeting tonight.
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,767  
Morning, 50 going up to 81!, cloudy , ground is dry and cracking did we miss spring too?
Spent a few more hours with the brushcutter. That area is getting ready for the tractor to start picking out the tree parts and stumps, at least away from the ash trees.

Thanks everyone for the help on driveway quote, this site and all of you are a great resource. I hope I can pay it back/forward over time.

Be well,

Blood wort in the forest
20230411_114357.jpg

Can still smell this, stinky :)
20230412_064734.jpg
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,768  
"I told the 'administrator' lady that I value my home/holiday time at $100.oo/hour and so far they owe me $350.oo."

I never liked the union when I was in one but that is one time where they protect you. It is in the contract.

Chris
No union.

I have made it a habit NOT to open any links on the company phone. I only know 3 people in the company that I trust. I don't even trust el presidente and I have known of him for 20 years.

Drew, for your small critters and the electric fence, chicken wire. Wire tie it to the 'hot' wires. Until your garden gets established good put chicken wire across the top, too. Make sure it is hot as well.

20 years ago I was going to chip seal (surface treat) this place with polymer tar, then decided against it until I pick the right 6 numbers. Gravel is way cheaper.

It is toasty in my man cave (76°F.). Only 40 outside but going to a high of 59°F. Wind ESE 6 mph. Sunny.

HHO ordered, I wonder how much $$ they are going to rape me for this time.

Yesterdays trip was uneventful for me, but I saw the cops were out hot and heavy on Hwy 17. One poor sap got caught at the west end of North Bay, that'll cost him plenty. I do 15 km/h over most of the time and they don't even blink at me. 15 over is only money but 16 over is 3 points (you loose them off your license that only has 15 points to start with). You win an interview with the MTO guy at 9 and wave goodby to your license for 30 days at 15. I keep my speed legal in town, plus 1 or 2.

The only thing I am up to today is wait for the maple syrup guy to deliver. Price went up, but that is to be expected. $100.oo/gallon.
Might take the battery out of the Z-turn and charge it up. We will see.
Time to get some clothes on and get on with my day.

Have a safe day all
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,770  
Good Morning!!!! 48F @ 5:00AM. Lots of sunshine. High 66F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph.

Any particular reason for the boomerang rows in the flower field, Don?
RNG - You need to move to NC..We could use you here and the weather is pretty nice..
I have friends that moved to NC from CA and they love it there. I've been to NC and it was nice. But I like the low humidity and relatively pollen free weather here quite a bit more...

Doesn't take much to dull a chainsaw chain, Check. Surprisingly little, like running though some mud on the bark, or very briefly touching the ground when you break through the bottom of the cut. The chain will still cut, but it'll take a LOT longer, and as you found, may even cut in an arc.

Contractors showed up promptly at 7AM yesterday, and quickly got to sawing concrete with a gas powered cutter. As expected, a pair of them spent quite a bit of quality time with a jackhammer and shovels digging the pits for the porch cover foundations. They finished drilling the slab for rebar, and got the rebar installed, too. That part of the job looks ready for inspection. The got a look at the roof opening where the chimney chase will go, and have a plan for building the new one. The also had a fascia board to remove, that shook that end of the house for a while. They had a problem getting through the gate, but once I told them to enter the combo slowly, and not to forget the "enter" key, there was no problem. The guy delivering the portasan got right in, so they must have passed the code on to him as well. Without my permission. Grrr.

Meanwhile I had another go at the side-by-side fuel filter. Took the new one out along with the water separator, cleaned 'em both, and verified that both passed air. The filter wasn't totally clogged, but it wasn't exactly free flowing, either. Took a long look down inside the tank with a strong light and spotted the pickup tube, a rather small thing with maybe a 3/16" hole in it. Looked like it could be easily clogged. And it was under the fuel level, but no fuel was coming out of the line after I removed the filters. I also saw what looked like a piece of ground cover bark laying on the bottom of the tank. Got a two foot grabber, which broke it into many small pieces on the way out, making a bigger mess. Siphoned the rest of the fuel out, learning that the primer bulb on the siphon was badly cracked and leaking. And that the company that made it had been sold and the new owners don't sell spares. By some miracle I found one on Amazon for only seven bux. Tried to run a piece of trimmer string up the clogged line, but it only went in a few inches before it stopped. So I wrapped a rag around a duster, stuck it in the filler neck, and gave it a good blast. That got the fuel flowing out of the low spot the siphon wouldn't reach, and it kept flowing on its own. Called a neighbor to ask if he had an easy way to get the rest of the junk out of the tank. He said to come get his Bucket Buddy, a small vacuum head that fits on a 5 gallon bucket. Said it wouldn't blow up sucking #2 Diesel. I'm still here, so it didn't. And seemed to get all the junk out, too. Put everything back together, added more fuel, engine started up, but only ran for a few seconds. 🤬 And that's where I left it.

I told the contractor I'd take care of the mounds of dirt his guys created, so swapped out the grapple for the 4in1 bucket. That went surprisingly smooth this time. Usually I end up breaking at least one hydraulic line open to relieve pressure. Grabbed the first pile and headed down to a little ravine I've been trying to fill and promptly got the tractor stuck in the mud. Tried to row it out with the bucket, but it was too muddy and the bucket just dug instead of pushed. And that was it for the day.

tractorStuck.jpg


Today I'll drag a winch down to the tractor and see if I can get it out with that without pulling down any trees or braining myself with the hook. And the Makita air pump; the absolute last thing I need is to roll that leaking front tire off the rim down in that mud hole. Ah, the joys of rural life...

Happy Hump Day, folks!
 
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   / Good morning!!!! #167,771  
The only thing I am up to today is wait for the maple syrup guy to deliver. Price went up, but that is to be expected. $100.oo/gallon.
Just checked Costco's price, a gallon is $60. What is the difference?

Good morning! 47˚, clear skies heading to the mid 70's - perfect spring day. E-mail is getting active with request for brush removal.
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,773  
Sunny and 60F already @ 08:30, heading to around 80F for the day's high.

Coffee tasting mighty good, ready for 2nd cup.

Woman over at neighbor/friend's letting the little monsters out of their crates while friend is at hospital.

Her son's surgery is today. They will remove his femur and replace it with a titanium rod. Tough stuff.

Yesterday didn't go quite as well as I hoped, but it was nothing compared to the above.

Did resolve printer issue: just needed a new ink cartridge.

Got manual for saw printed out, along with the manual for the Kohler engine on the Cub.

After attempting to start Cub and being unsuccessful, I made the run down to the mower shop where we bought the Cub and picked up air, oil, and fuel filters.

Stopped on way back at the local auto repair place and made an appointment to get Woman's car in on Thursday. Was surprised they could get it in that quick.

Replaced fuel filter, still no starting joy.

Grabbed 5 gallon gas can from over in the garage and the transfer pump and drained one tank, thinking it might be bad fuel. Couldn't see how, but what the heck it was worth a shot.

Ran down to the corner and got some hi-test and refueled. Nope.

Took a break from that and worked with The Woman gathering up sticks and downed branches off the lawn. Two bucket loads of those hauled up to the brush pile.

Re-installed chickenwire cage that Woman found around the peach tree on the east side.

Took another stab at starting the Cub. It was around that time that I realized that I wasn't hearing the whine of the fuel pump pressurizing the system when I turned the key on. It isn't real loud ... so easy to miss if you are not paying close attention.

After that I called the dealer and made arrangements for them to come pick it up. They should be out in the next few days. Very disappointing to be sure.

At that point I needed a little "therapy" so I headed on up to the shop for the rest of the day.

Got all the fittings, bushing/grommets, and filters installed back on metal enclosure after painting.

Started on the saw itself: trunnion brackets, trunnions, yoke, and motor mount reinstalled:

IMG_2441 copy.jpg

Trunnions/tilt mechanism and motor mount rotate smooth ... like buttah ! (y)

Not sure what all will be on agenda for today.

Feeders still need refilled.

And wheel bearings on dump cart still need replaced.

So those are both likely candidates.

Beyond that possibly more stick/branch picking up and more saw work.

Hope everyone has a great Hump Day ... (y)
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,774  
Drilled a a bunch of fence post holes yesterday to block off the neighbor. Wish I had invested in a hydraulic auger for the excavator.
But since I have the 3 point auger I guess I am too cheap and not doing much fencing any more.
In a couple of spots the auger had to chew its way through roots but after a few minutes broke through.

RNG never fun to be stuck. Hopefully there will be a tree near enough to winch from.
Wonder if you could connect a small can with fuel to bypass your tank etc just to make sure it runs.
I have a vacuum system driven by compressed air that I used for flushing brake lines. Could be useful for sucking up the tank

IMG_1880.jpeg
IMG_1878.jpeg
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,775  
'morning all. Hobbled around yesterday, but leg is feeling better today. Spray foam (closed cell) guy didn't get here until about 3. He finished up a little after 6. He had all the PPE stuff and a pretty impressive trailer unit (built in MN), with a JD diesel powering everything (A/B fluids, fresh air, compressed air). Interesting work. He did a thorough job, and got into all the little spots I was concerned with. $$, but should be worth it. Only got one pic of install.
DeFord Spray Foam 4-11-23.jpg
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,777  
Nice sunny day.
Mailbox alert guy called right on time. He emailed me a script to reflash the hub. We used the chips from the new alert. It works, worked on my old mailbox alert. Then I flashed the old hub chip as a mailbox alert, and it worked. Got them both installed and working, one on mailbox, the other on the barn door.
IMG_8733.JPG

This is inside of the new unit, that chip is now the hub in a different box.
Notice my helper.
This is the hub that sits in the house and is connected to my network.
IMG_8734.JPG
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,778  
'morning all. Hobbled around yesterday, but leg is feeling better today. Spray foam (closed cell) guy didn't get here until about 3. He finished up a little after 6. He had all the PPE stuff and a pretty impressive trailer unit (built in MN), with a JD diesel powering everything (A/B fluids, fresh air, compressed air). Interesting work. He did a thorough job, and got into all the little spots I was concerned with. $$, but should be worth it. Only got one pic of install.View attachment 794926
Finished spray job pic. Now, I can continue on the build-out...
Spray foam done.jpg
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,779  
very good experience with tirerack.com warehouse in DE, in and out in less than ten minutes, and they wrapped the tires for me.
Now to make an appt to get the work done.
really nice outside, need to go find something to do. Might be time to clean up garage a bit.
 
   / Good morning!!!! #167,780  
66°F and 1.47 inches rain.

Forecast is more passing showers so same as yesterday apparently. Game plan the same as well.

Prayers for all
Be safe
Have a great day
 

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