or How much horse bedding does it take to soak up 1 gallon of Castrol 10w-30?
Ugh… One of those days. I spent most of my day interviewing and eliminating candidates from a job we’re looking to fill. The nerve of some folks, man… It just goes to show that a good resume will get you in the door, and that you can’t judge a book (or person) by their resume alone. Felt like my whole day was a waste.
On the way home I decided I’d do something productive. The cage was a little overdue for an oil change and for the first time in a long time I had an evening free.
So I pull in the driveway, jump out, put the car up on ramps. It looks like it might rain soon. I run in the house, change clothes and get busy. Like any shade tree mechanic in 85 degree weather with 90% humidity I opt for my wife beater, shorts and flip flops.
This isn’t rocket science and I’ve changed the oil on this car ~20 plus times if not more. Should take 5-10 minutes tops.
I get the oil pail, of course it’s full, from the last time so I dump that into a 5gal pail. Crawl under and remove the drain plug. Simple as that.
Then we get to the oil filter. This particular car, a 1999 Chrysler Cirrus, has the oil filter right there where you can see it and reach it. It’s right there where you can’t really get a decent oil wrench on it. No sweat, been down this road before and I can usually muscle it off, but not this time. I really try not to over tighten them but with this car it always seems to bake them on or something. After busting knuckles trying all 3 of my wrenches and being unable to come up with the combination I’ve used in the past, I start the hunt for the big-ass channel locks that I have, but they are missing.
I finally give in and go with the ‘drive a screw driver through the filter’ plan. That rarely works unless you get it clean through the center, even then it’s a iffy situation. As in this case it only tore the filter open. But open enough to allow me to grab the damn thing with the smaller pair of channel locks that I could find and get it off.
Easy peasy…
I locate my spare filter, lube it up and install it. Just about then it starts to sprinkle, and thunder quite a bit. #@!$!, so I hop up, grab the gallon jug of 10w 30 and start pouring it in. Of course you can’t pour it in with the funnel I have so you dribble it in.
I’m about 3/4 way through the gallon, just about ready to stop and check the level and my right foot feels funny. Uhm, it’s wet and slimy feeling. I look down and realize that I never put the drain plug back in.
$#@%@$% The cardboard I was laying on is totally soaked and a river is forming that is running into my barn. @@#$#@! I don’t have any oil dry so I throw my rag down in the path hoping to slow it down. I hoof it back to the other barn hoping, no, praying, that we still have some shavings left. I grab the package and run back to the car. About a 1/2 a package of shavings and think I’ve got it covered. But I’m also covered in oil/shavings…
What a waste and mess!
Luckilly I had another gallon so I could at least finish the job.
Sorry no pictures, didn’t want to get the camera in the messy state I was in.
:/
Hope your day was better than mine.
_self
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Saying goodbye to an old friend.
September 7, 2008 in Commentary, Homestead, Miscellaneous, Vehicles by MAD | No comments
In the ongoing effort to clean out the barn and all the old crap we’ve accumulated over the years, it was time. Time for Jr. the 1948 Farmall Cub that came with the property when purchased it, to go.
In it’s day it was the ‘stuff’. Was designed to help a man farm up-to 10 acres. It was the pinnacle of small tractor utility. Generating a whopping 9 horse power, one man could do it all with this.
When we purchased the property and had to mow 3 acres every week, sometimes twice a week I wasn’t sure how we’d get that done. After some thought we required that this tractor with 48” belly mower had to come with said property. Needless to say the former owners weren’t to keen on that idea but in the interest of selling their property they acquiesced.
Still it didn’t take long for me to figure out that even using this was taking way too long. This baby, who was the best of breed in technology back in the 40’s and 50’s just wasn’t made for mowing a lawn.
She was scary dangerous, heavy, almost under powered given the size of the single blade mower it was turning, had next to NO brakes but it was just plain fun.
It came with all of the implements:
the belly mower, a single plow, a set of discs, cultivators, a grader blade, and even a front end loader that hadn’t been mounted on it in 40 years.
Of those implements I had used the mower, though it was more of a bush-hog, to keep the motorcycle trails cleared. I had broken ground in our garden with the plow and got it ready for planting with the discs. I had attempted to plow the snow with the grader blade, but getting this old goat started in the dead of winter was a real treat and often not very easy.
In 2005 when I got my first street bike, I found that I’d rather be riding it than messing with the old tractor. So it was parked and hasn’t been started since… Well, I think I did start it once about 2 years ago just to see if I could. As time had passed it became clear that I’d never take the time (or spend the money) to restore it, and while cleaning out the barn I had decided it was time for it to have a new home. Hopefully with someone that would use it as it was intended.
I took some photos of everything and posted an add on www.farmallcub.com
In less than an hour I had people lining up to come and get it. At which point I remembered that the former owners son had expressed an interest and I had promised him (and the former owner of the property) that they had the first rights to it if I ever sold it. So, I needed to call them and check. They were ecstatic and couldn’t wait to come and get it. At the same time Bill from Harrison also wanted it, or what ever implements the former owners didn’t take.
Needless to say, it was a happy ending for all. Tractor has been reunited with it’s previous owner of 30+ years and Bill now has a loader and a set of cultivators. I probably sold it all too cheaply, but I’m thoroughly happy with the transaction(s) and were everything ended up.
There’s just something cool about old tractors, and as much as I would have loved to keep this and play with it, I needed the room in my barn, and we need a tractor that’s more up-to-date.
I look forward to seeing it in the parades in a few years when it’s running again and has a fresh coat of paint.