Wheels for the truck

Didn't seem like much was going to get done this weekend.

I spent the majority of Saturday fixing the gas control valve on my house water heater.

Normally I am just medium-intimidated to do my own plumbing. I am usually afraid that I will cause a huge leak and flood the entire house. Plus the water won't work.

THIS time I had to fool (notice the choice of words) with the GAS LINE as well. So not only could I flood the house, I could blow it up while it's flooding. And the water still won't work.

My plumber friend was kind enough to tell me the steps to do to get it ready for him. By the time I had it apart (literally a 5 minute job), I decided to just put the new valve in, and put it back together. It was easy, probably 15 minutes, back together, no gas leaks, and hot water by the next hour. I mean perfect. But it took almost all day getting parts and information.

Sunday, a friend convinced me to go to the RAINbeck swap meet and show. The weather was cold and damp. No sun. I hate that weather. Looks like it's nice enough to be outside, but you never stay warm, and always feel sort of wet.

I didn't want to go. I was tired from Saturday. And I could hear it pouring rain overnight, so I knew it would be soaked up there. But I had forgotten that this friend and I had talked about it last week as a possibility. Since I had not called to specifically cancel, I could not fault him when he showed up. So we went.

It was, to use an old term; beat. Not only was I not enjoying the crappy weather, there was little to see, and I knew I had a huge list of other things I should be doing at home.

The day improved when I bought a set of 4 dingy but sound rims. They are the American Racing 200-S style, or "daisy" mags as they were called back in the day. I never appreciated them then. In fact, I really despised them. Just never liked the look. But now, looking back with a nostalgic whimsy, I find them kind of fascinating. They are real period-pieces, and they are rarely seen today. They are what I had wanted to get for the truck from the beginning, but they are pretty expensive new.

So I got these (one is pictured above), they are 14 x 7's, with a 4-3/4" bolt circle. They were reasonable, at $100 for the four, and I think I can clean them up and make them look cool. Perhaps I will do a tech article on that. Incidentally they are available new (again) at about $220 EACH! This is a huge potential savings. I guess I shouldn't complain next time.