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Some days yer the windshield...

DIYDAVE

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Messages
2,416
Location
MD

Was finishin up the weeks grass cuttin, on Thursday, noticed an abundance of depth, on the brake pedal, on the work truck. Drove it over to my mechanic's, fer a quick looksee. We came to the conclusion, that the MC is bad. A $200 or less part, with a half a day or so, labor. (its a 1999 isuzu NPR cabover), so the steering column, and the dash gotta come out. Might as well say there's another grand gone...

Well, gotta go to plan B, as I gots lawns to mow, on Monday! So, rather than doing my usual Saturday recreation, of pissing off auctioneers and bidders, I gotsa work on plan B, today...

So today I started assembling the plan B truck and trailer. Put a reese hitch, offa the old 94 mazda B2300 pickemup, onto the 06 ranger, not quite an exact fit, but with the $2/3 gallon bucket(auction find) of 1/2" flat washers, and the hand held battery powered grinder, and 2 hours of labor, that is accomplished!

Grass was dry, by then, so mowed fer 3-1/2 hrs, here...

Now alls I gots to do is to drill out a new hole in a reese hitch end, that I already have, figger out which ball the plan B trailer takes, cut off a couple fender supports, that are in the way, to let the 5' mower clear the fenders, Oh and change out a flat tire, and see if I can find a spare fer it, I might have plan B accomplished by Monday. If all goes well I won't need to use plan B, cause if I get it ready, then maybe the other truck'll be fixed afore I need to use this one.

Its just that you have to go through this dance, yo make sure plan A will work!;):mad:
 

td25c

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 14, 2009
Messages
5,250
Location
indiana
Sure understand that Dave this time of year with all the rain .

Grass is growing like crazy now . Have to mow the yard twice a week to keep up with it .

Welcome to the Jungle . :D

 

Old Doug

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2013
Messages
4,533
Location
Mo
I have several mowers so i dont have to haul one around but i have to make sure i have gas. My dad has always had troble sticking with any think to get it done and he is 85 and not geting any better at mowing the hole yard. I havent had time to mow were he lives i thought i would work on it late today but both his mowers didnt have much gas so there seting in the yard out of gas.
 

John Shipp

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2015
Messages
643
Location
England
Occupation
forestry contracting
I remember several times making a small platform in the door of vehicle same height as cab floor, so you can lay in their at a better angle to wriggle hands and wrists and wrenches up behind dash and pedals...
 

DIYDAVE

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Messages
2,416
Location
MD
That's a useful video. (apart from the pliers bit?!)

Yeah them youtube "exspurts" always seem to have a pair of the sloppiest lookin chinese pliers close at hand. I'm sure my mechanic uses snap on pliers!

Anyway, I made some good progress, on the plan B truck and trailer, changed the tire, drug it outta the bushes, chopped off the fender braces that were in da way, got the tilt bed oiled, found a pin to use as a latch, to keep it from tilting during transit, dug the home-made trailer tag, outta a pile of stuff, where I put it 6 years ago. All that remains to be done is to get a spare from the local pakkie used tire joint, load up and tie down the 17K mower, on the hunnert buck trailer!;)
 

DIYDAVE

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Messages
2,416
Location
MD
I remember several times making a small platform in the door of vehicle same height as cab floor, so you can lay in their at a better angle to wriggle hands and wrists and wrenches up behind dash and pedals...

Got one of them under dash creepers, from Snap on, years ago, handy as a shirt pocket!;)
 

DIYDAVE

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Messages
2,416
Location
MD
Took the Plan B trailer out today, after wranglin a spare fer it, and fixin the remaining small problems. I need to weld or bolt some strap attachment points on it, the bumpy roads round here sure take a toll on that aspect. Got my 2 lawns mowed, and called up my mechanic, about 4P. He said he had the MC on, but he's gonna have toorder another one, the one he got was factory bad! Sure makes me feel good, not to be the parts supplier! Only gots blades to change tomorry, and some minor mechanicing, so Hopefully will be back to plan A stuff, by Thursday!:D
 

DIYDAVE

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2007
Messages
2,416
Location
MD
Well I guess I reached the end cap to this lil adventure. I definitely like the plan B set-up I made, real slick set up, thinkin about gettin one of these, fer it, to make securing mowers faster:


Like everything about it, cept the price, LOL!;)

Picked up the NPR, this morning, got it home, and found out that the trailer had drifted offa the blocks, under the jack, hadda get the loader and lift it back up, so's I could hook up. Bill was about $630, to put in the MC, so a little less than I thought it would be. Nows I just gotta get used to drivin something with brakes!:D
 
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