Year in review 2008

I began blogging this year about March or so, well intentioned and bursting with enthusiasm to build The Electric Vehicle That Would Revolutionize the World, or something like that. I was very excited to build a workable commuter vehicle that was 100% battery powered around a classic 1955 Ford F100 pickup. I purchased a suitable pickup from Florida, and had already purchased another donor vehicle to use for a full frame and component swap. I lost my job quite unexpectedly in July, and have basically shelved the EV project for now. I sold the F100.

I decided to simplify my life, so I took the money from the F100 sale, and immediately bought a 1958 Chevy Biscayne. See, for a car guy, somehow simplifying your life equates with buying another vehicle. I swear this made sense at the time, although I can’t recall how. The plan for the Biscayne is to eventually turn it into a daily driver. Hopefully it will take the place of whatever I would need to buy when my 2000 Dodge finally bites the dust. This project is stalled due to the job loss also.

I had adamantly planned to sell my Altered Roadster drag race car. I have reversed course on that as well, and decided to keep it for the time being. Since the economy is in the toilet, I doubt I would sell it for anywhere near the amount I’d like to get for it, and there’s no need to take a big financial loss on it right now. I did zero drag racing this year, and I really miss it. That’s not so cool.

I did get to do some work on EV-Steve’s electric vehicle: brake system, new cab mounts, new battery boxes, removal of unneeded 4WD parts, and hydraulic clutch system. This will get him a little closer to getting back on the road.


In the fall, we did the famous plow project. There was 9” of snowfall last week, and let me happily report that the plow “works a treat” as they say in England. It is truly a joy to use, 1000 times better than the snow-blower. Well worth the cost, although you will spend probably $10,000 on a decent truck to attach it to. I already had one. I will reinforce the corners of the plow blade this spring; they got a little benty-bent.


I think my new idea to do my EV as a dune-buggy style vehicle is a good one. The donor S-10 chassis sits abandoned in the far corner of my backyard, cut off from civilization by what is now a vast flood plain. I have not yet been motivated to row out and rescue it, get it inside, and get started on it. I thought I’d let K park her car in the warm garage for this winter instead.




On a personal note, my handyman side business is a complete bust. I did a couple of jobs for what amounted to like $5 per hour, if that. I was hoping Hudson Valley Hot Rods would take off when I introduced my EV project to an appreciative public, but I wussed-out and declined to risk spending the money on completing it once I lost my job. Based on my experience doing vehicle repairs this year, I don’t think I want to do vehicles for a living now anyway. Frankly, it’s tough work, and you can’t really charge for all the problems that arise. I have decided to get a real job, and to continue to do my own vehicle projects as a hobby.

On a more personal note, I have decided to be productive this next year by returning to college yet again, for an accounting degree, and hope to take the CPA exam by this time next year. I figure it’s better than sitting home doing nothing. I enjoy going to college more than I do working anyway; if it paid anything, I’d be a full time student forever. After I graduate, I hope to get some experience in accounting and open my own office within 5 years. Then I’LL be the boss and I’LL get to make the stupid decisions. Gonna have my own office, and commute in my EV, and my ’58, and make a lot of money, and life will be great. And I can never get laid off again since I own the place. That’s the plan anyway.

On a most personal note, K and k and I have had a fun year, and we are thankful for our great friends and families. We have more than we do not have, and for that we are grateful. We miss those whom have passed on this past year, and we pray for those that are struggling, and in a worse situation than ourselves. At a time when the world is in more flux than ever, we optimistically look forward to next year with great hope. I have enjoyed blogging, and I thank everyone that tunes in to read this. I hope I have been at least entertaining, and at best informative. Love to all, and Happy New Year 2009!!!

The End?

"This is the end...my only friend, the end..." I'll spare you Jim Morrison's psychedelic rambling, and get to it: The truck is gone. The F100 is gone. Done. Outta here. I decided it did not fit my plans any longer, so I listed it on ebay. A guy came and looked at it and made me an offer I liked, so I pulled it from auction, and sold it.

Here K & k give it a last look, Mickey stands guard. It was easier for me to just load it up on the trailer and bring it to the guy; so much for one last ride.

Here's me and k. She is so cute, she always used to point at the truck and say: "truck-truck", or lately just: "blue". Hope I'm not scarring her for life.

Here is the proud new owner(s). Cliff, on the right, is the guy that came and made the deal. I was happy to get a big envelope of C-A-S-H and an easy transaction from him. He even gave me a free t-shirt from his business: "Electric Snake", a video plumbing diagnosis service. Bonus.

Here's Cliff again, and Jake, his one grandson. Lucky guy, his 10th birthday present is a classic F100. I hope they have many many hours of fun together enjoying the truck. It was a little easier to leave the truck knowing what it's future would be. Really a nice ending to the story.

-

If I get back to doing an EV, or shall I say: "when", I plan to do an S-10. I still think the F100-EV was a viable project, and would have been extremely cool. Now I feel that I would be satisfied with a moderately cool S-10 EV.

-

I have kind of missed drag racing this year. Probably watching Pinks All Out on the Speed Channel hasn't helped. I was talking about replacing my altered with a simple doorslammer(1) bracket-car(2)with my friend Joe V. Something maximum fun, minimum hassle. Not long after that, we went in on this little beauty:

A 1976 Nova hatchback. Joe V wants the motor and trans, and I bought the rest. Not a particularly cool car, but the price was ridiculously low(3), and the car was in amazingly good shape. I figured I could transplant many of the race parts from my altered into this, and be on the track by next spring. Cheap too. Just what I wanted.

-

1. Doorslammer: A drag race car based on a full car, with operating doors. Not a dragster or altered or roadster, where you climb in.

2. Bracket-car: A drag car specifically designed for handicapped amateur drag racing. Not for all-out unlimited classes.

3. Ridiculously low: $300 for the whole car!Here's Joe V pointing out all the good features.
-

The Nova is an excellent candidate for the purpose. So I have that to consider. But I have been thinking about how much work goes into these cars, and I have surprised myself about how fickle I have become at the same time. If I'm going to put in this much effort, perhaps I should get something I'm more attached to. How about my favorite car of all time:

A '58 Chevy! I'm looking at this little guy right now. What better way to get over the loss of one old car, than with another old car? You know, it's like crashing a motorcycle off the road into a ditch; you have to get right back on that motorcycle, if only to get medical attention (and I would know). Someday I will tell you the story of how I got hooked on '58's. This one is a Biscayne, not the top-of-the-line Impala like I favor, but the Impalas have gotten prohibitively expensive. Like 50-grand expensive; 25 for a piece of junk. I'll go for the lower-line Biscayne, Bel Air, or Del Ray instead. I want what I want, but I'm not dropping that kind of dough on any car, Impala or not. I'm hoping I can snag this and get it here before Joe V finds out; he might be a little miffed that I sold the F100 after he helped me with the sweat-fest of a trans-job we did. How that guy still likes me I will never know.

-

I still have plenty to do on EV-Steve's S-10. For myself, I'll either build the Nova, or hopefully the '58 Biscayne. I plan to expand my show coverage and car features as well. So there's still plenty to tune in for. I apologize to anyone if you got attached to the F100, and for the demise of the original project. Change will occur whether we are ready or not; hopefully things are still headed in a good direction.

The F100 is on the road

I have been driving the F100 around all this week. It's cool. Did a lot of small things to it. Figure I might as well use it for now (more on that farther down). I put a new antenna on it. The radio works. Mostly I drive it around with the radio off though. That cowl vent in front of the windshield throws a lot of air onto your feet when the truck is moving. Very neat.

I was going to check the rear brakes when I discovered that the rear wheels have a locking lug on each. Oh-oh. They're supposed to keep people from stealing the wheels. But the truck did not come with the adapter tool. How am I going to get those off? Look at how they sit in there.
-

I actually drilled them out, starting with a small drill bit, and increasing the size until I was up to 7/16". By then there is so little left they break off. You have to get that first hole centered real well though. It's a lot of drilling. Another way is to weld another nut on top of the lock, then turn on that. No real room to do that here.

The exhaust system was crap; the half that had not fallen off was held on with that thin peforated steel strap that plumbers use. It was just looped over the framerails, and under the pipes. The local muffler shop was out of 2" tubing (likely story) so I went to the house of Tony Stewart and got 10' of 2" rigid conduit. I just love makin' stuff out of welded conduit. I got some real exhaust clamps and hangers, and fabbed up a full set of dual exhaust that goes all the way out the back. Not show quality, admittedly, but good enough for this, for now. And cheap.

I made up a set of sign boards for above the bed sides. I'll letter them up to advertise my businesses. Pretty trick, right?

Avert your eyes now if you get queasy from viewing burned body parts...

...OH, TOO LATE! This is what happens when you roll onto your just-used acetylene torch tip. Only what, about 1000 degrees there? That's a full inch across, and yeah it hurts.
-

The F100 actually passed inspection, so it is legally on the road. I have decided to do some fixing and just keep it around for now. So it has gotten a second chance. Some would call this indecisiveness, in politics it's "flip-flopping". I prefer to think of it as adaptability, or open-mindedness. I am going to keep it around in case the circumstances allow me to go ahead with the EV conversion. In the meantime, it will continue to get closer to being ready, should that time come, while still having utility as a second car, or just a pleasure vehicle. Ok the exhaust will not be needed, but it is needed now.
-

Still to do: I need to put a new input bearing in the transmission. The brakes work, but the truck darts around under braking. The clutch may need replacing. All the wiring works, miraculously, but the electrons are the only thing holding it together; a complete re-wire is in order. I am even thinking of continuing with the frame swap, while keeping the gas motor and trans that are in it now. That would solve a lot of current problems, and still keep to the original project plans.
-

I plan to go to some car "cruises" (they're more like parks) with it, to hopefully get some car work side jobs. Despite driving like a 53 year old truck, it is a lot of fun. I had forgotten how cool it is to tool around in a funky old vehicle. It is, as they say, "my bag". I've done probably 100 miles in it already. It certainly is an attention-getter, too. Might be useful to keep it around.
-

Kieran, '55 or so Ford, and 2 late 40's cars of unknown make.