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BadDriver4x4

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Everything posted by BadDriver4x4

  1. I wish there was a good Scout up here. Unfortunately, they have all fallen prey to rust or people with no imagination. I think you have already posted your vehicles for sale in your original post, but if you'd like to give more information I don't think Moses would mind too much. I'll let him answer for himself though. I am looking for a nice Willys pickup. Probably late 50s vintage for a restoration project. Have you seen many of those in your area? All you need to do is give me the contact info. that way I can figure out how much it would cost me to get the car to my home in Vermont. Thanks for the offer on the Scouts though, I wish you luck in getting the one you want.
  2. So, where is this Scout that's for sale? If it's in Victoria I'll get down there as fast as I can and snatch it up. I'd suggest you get that deal done as fast as you can. I'd snatch it up if I was in the area.
  3. OK, so I've been out looking at Willys frames. Well one is most of a frame, and the other is much more frame with drivetrain, incorrect motor a decent front clip and missing the rest of the body. Well I say missing because it is a Willys Station Wagon and the roof was cut off. The sides have started to drop off. One has dropped off and the other is hanging on by what patches and metal are left. So, knowing that and that the vehicle is located in the North lands, in the rust capitol of the U.S., what would you think when the frame is whole. The mounts are all there. The only thing wrong is the surface rust, that can be handled. Otherwise there are no holes in the frame. The rest of the vehicle is a question mark. I don't know the year and the information plate was taken off, probably stolen by some picker. I'll post one picture to give you an idea of the overall vehicle, but remember the frame is very good. Now, I did check it over very closely. It has a Chrysler engine of some unknown year, with a matching radiator, but otherwise it has been thrown together and I don't know how well they matched up the transmission to the engine. I also noticed today on a more thorough exam that someone has messed with the front locking hubs. They may have made the front axle useless. I'm only really interested in the frame and the suspension if the running gear is a mess. so what's it worth?
  4. OK, so what have you been doing this winter that wasn't related to vehicles? I am a recycler of the old kind. I find things that I can use in other ways and I make what I can with them. This winter I have been collecting wooden pallets from a local manufacturer. I got permission and they explained what I could and couldn't take and I leave what I can't use for others to burn or turn into kindling to sell. You might be asking, what can you do with pallets except make pallets? Well, have you ever seen a chicken coop, or a bee hive? Maybe a play house? Yes, some people even use them as they are just to make fences for goats, sheep, and other small animals. Well this is what they look like when you take them apart. I'm not sure how many linear feet of 2 x 4 I have saved from the dump. I'm not even sure what they do with these pallets, but one of the places I get them from used to just burn them in their yard. I have turned some pallets into chicken coops and sold them. They are pretty easy to sell for $20.00 and up when some of the "Pros" are selling them for $500.00 plus and they are doing the same thing I am. The only expense is in any new parts you need. mostly screws or nails and hinges. I also save as much plywood as I can from the dumpsters and that helps with walls when the pallets don't come with sides. This winter I have been concentrating on 2 x 4s exclusively. But as you can see there is a little plywood that can be salvaged as well. This wood is pretty much all new, so why leave it to chippers, or burn pile? Yeah I went Off Topic. I thought that's what this area was for. What's your non-4x4 winter hobby or pastime? Does anyone here fish? Getting ready for Spring yet? Anyone work on your own guns? One of my projects for this wood is to make a heat box to get oils and crud out of stocks. Can you think of a better way to save money on a bench or a small make do shed for your lawn mower? Sound off! what do you do when you're not working on your vehicle(s)?
  5. Moses, I checked out the plasma cutter, and if I had my shop ready to go I would snap it up. Right now I am thinking about an Air Compressor to run my air tools, a media blaster, and for that future plasma cutter. I am seriously considering a project right now besides the Cherokee, and good air will be essential. Here is the label for my Craftsman Professional MIG welder. It is a 105 ADC welder that was made by Century for Craftsman. I've found a couple of compressors on Craig's List, but one is an unconfirmed Champion 60 gallon vertical tank with a two cylinder head in a V configuration ($750.00) that I haven't been able to find online. The other looks like a single stage Campbell Hausfeld home compressor that has a second tank included for the price. ($600.00) I re-read your article about buying a compressor last night and it has me thinking about my needs. I don't think I can go "cheap" and get the performance that I need for everything. I need to do air tools, media blasting, and painting. Even on a small scale I think I need a hefty output. Then there's the plasma cutter, the media blaster box, and a scissor lift? I can go on and on. Once I get a garage \ shop of some kind the sky's the limit. My money will run out long before my imagination, but if I can make some money with this stuff, then it will pay for itself. Did I mention that I have a load of tools in storage and a mini-lathe and mini-mill here at home? Hold on....... OK, I added one thing in this montage that has to do with welding to keep it on track. From Top to Bottom, Left to Right. A Craftsman 109.20630 Lathe (1943 +\-). Cummins 7" x 12" Mini-lathe. Cummins Mini-Mill. Mini Mill Stand, (Found it on Craig's List for a song.) Tool Box that is full of tooling for Mini-lathe and Mini-mill. My Harbor Freight portable welding table. This is all in my basement at the moment. Plus a lot of other tools for various uses. So, if I could get the proper space I would have to have a 72 hour day just to use it all. I wouldn't mind using a few of those days every week just to do welding. Yes, I am a super recycler in the real sense of the word. I have a metal pile to prove it.
  6. For everyone, the montage is finished. These are in order of purchase Left to Right and Top to Bottom over 20 plus years. My first welder, stored in a storage unit at the current time, a Schumacher 80 Amp Arc welder. Second, A light duty Oxy Acetylene set by Merriam Graves with a small cart. Third, a Craftsman MIG wire feed welder. Not on a proper cart. I just got one that I will set it up on with it's proper shielding gas tank. (Had to sneak that one past the wife with the purchase of a set of electric sheet metal shears.) Forth, the above Lincoln Electric Hobby Weld AC Arc welder. Fifth, the Lincoln Electric Porta Tote Oxy Acetylene set. Sixth, the Harbor Freight - Chicago Electric 90 Amp Wire Feed flux core welder, (On cart with some tools and expendables.) Seventh, and last but not least, My Lincoln Electric AC / DC 225 / 125 Arc Welder (Stick welder (SMAW)) still in the box. Not shown is my portable welding bench, and a set of full size Oxy Acetylene torches with gauges and hose. Maybe I'll get the large tanks when I have the shop space I desperately need. Also many Vise Grips and fun stuff. Next I will try to find a good Plasma Cutter, but I'm not sure if I should go with a self contained unit, or get that big compressor I need and really cut steel. To be determined at a later date.
  7. I'm glad you weren't offended by my joke. It was the only other Lincoln Electric welder I had. I started my welding experience on the same Lincoln AC /DC machine when I was 14 in Ag class, that was 37 years ago and I have been welding on and off ever since, not really having a fully equipt shop of my own. My first personally owned welder will be in the montage when I get it together. It is an 80 AMP Schumacher SMAW. Since everything is all over the place right now I figure posting them one at a time is kinda worthless, so the montage will be more useful as a peek into my welding capabilities. Now I just have to set up a work space and practice my skills.
  8. I'm just pulling your leg Moses. I got the AC / DC 225 / 125 as I said, and I have pictures to prove it. I picked up that Hobby welder at a yard sale a couple of years ago for $15.00 I think. I just couldn't resist it. Now to spill the beans. I bought the AC / DC 225 / 125 for $500.00 TOTAL. I got it on Sale for $499.00 with $1.00 shipping. I wonder if they thought they would have someone ordering something like this, but hey, they made up the Sale so they had to be thinking ahead. I got it from Blain's Farm and Fleet. http://www.farmandfleet.com/ I didn't take it out of the box because I don't have a shop or a dedicated outlet for it yet. I'm planning something for this summer, but we'll see how far I can get with that project as I have plenty to do otherwise. This is going to come in handy when I get some of my other goodies out of storage. Oh, I'll have a little montage of all my other welding equipment when I can get it all together.
  9. Wow!! I got my welder today and I had to show it off! I'm a little concerned though that it seems a little used. I will send an email to the company and ask if the low price was due to the machine being reconditioned. Here are some so-so pictures I took when it arrived. I'm amazed it was so small it looked so much bigger in the pictures. Sorry this second picture is so blurry I was just so excited!! Can anyone tell me where you switch it to DC? The manual is missing. I guess I will have to get it from online.
  10. So, I was looking at the Lincoln Electric AC 225 welders at Lowe's and Home Depot and I ask the people at Lowe's if they price match with Home Depot, which in Littleton, New Hampshire, is right next door. There was a $10.00 difference, but it's the art of the deal that's involved. Well the people at Lowe's said as long as the item was in stock at Home Depot they could price match. Well, as with so many things, when you get a rather disappointing answer you look in a different direction. I hit the Internet looking for the current lowest price for the Lincoln Electric AC 225. The first page showed little real savings and I could just imagine shipping charges for the "tombstone" as it made it's way to me from whichever dealer anywhere in the U.S. had a good price, and then I saw it. The second search page showed up with the Lincoln Electric AC / DC 225 / 125 welder in the search list and I just had to find out what crazy prices they were going for these days. Wow, almost double the price of the AC 225. So, I searched for just the AC / DC welder. A list of prices showed up on the right side of the search results and one stood out. It was really the lowest by far, and then I went to check on shipping. $1.00. You read that right. 1 little greenback for a very limited time. I went to another website because my brilliant son said the shipping was covered in the price of the welder. WRONG! $180.00 plus for shipping on the next closest priced unit. I don't know that I will share the price until I can take a picture of the Lincoln AC / DC 225 / 125 welder as it sits in my possession. That way we'll both know if we need to pinch ourselves. Now, I don't mind hearing your opinion on this welder, I don't mind you saying how Hobart or Miller make such a great modern alternative, but I learned how to weld on one of these beautiful little Arc-welders. It gave me confidence to use my hands working with metal. So instead of tearing me down, why don't you talk up the welder you think is the greatest in your "shop" and tell us all why. The only hesitation I had in buying this unit was to keep peace in the family, and you will respect that when you find out what it cost. (I also just made a pricey buy of my own for my wife's St. Valentine's Day present.) Pictures to follow.
  11. Moses, I was thinking of the flux-core only. The wire is more expensive, but fooling with the MIG gas bottle and the extra settings will not be as easy as just fooling around with spool speeds and power levels (2) and trying to copy a good weld on some scrap you got at the dump, or a junk yard. (Or out of a dumpster) What people new to welding should know is that flux-core is more useful in windy situations because the shielding gas is part of the welding wire and isn't blown away from the project as easily as the gases coming from the MIG feed handle. For those who don't have have shops and have to improvise a work area outdoors on nice days I think the inexpensive HF welder will be a real asset. Check the welding forum for great ideas as well.
  12. There's always the new automotive adhesives. 3M makes a panel bonding adhesive, and I have seen a technician using it. He says the surrounding metal will tear before the bond will. It could be an option for you, but I would suggest you buy a Harbor Freight 90 Amp wire feed welder and learn how to weld. It's a "cheap" way to learn and there has to be a good video on Youtube to show you some decent technique. Your grand total will probably come to no more than $200.00 to $300.00 and that's less than you can buy the welder alone from most other sources. I suggest you get a decent auto-darkening welding helmet from Harbor Freight as well.
  13. Hi All, I just got the Kevin Tetz' PAINTucation video, "Body Shop Basics". I wanted to supplement my personal experience and the books I recently bought to see how far from my previous experience things had evolved. I was expecting a short course in what you need to do body work, The tools, the proper use and tips to do the job right. Well, I guess you could say I got what I wanted, if I was looking to repair a small dent and repaint the repair. I was disappointed with the minimal exposure to the tools and techniques of actual body work. This is not what I expected from a video about the Basic Body Shop. I was expecting at least some talk about hand tools, air tools, power tools and their place in a body shop. A good review of your compressor and the needs that any size shop could expect to need, or a comparison of inexpensive equipment versus top of the line tools. There was some talk of equipment, but the quick examination of air compressor needs and the quick visual of a frame straightening platform kinda give you an idea of the broad brush with which this video was made. It was informative if you only experience the need to use a stud welder, sanders, and paint sprayers. Yes, there are some skills presented, but since I have almost the complete series of Bug Me videos to compare this video to, I find them more informational about the topic of the video in the series as described, and you get closer to step by step procedures. "Body Shop Basics" should give you an idea of what you need, and how to plan out your shop, be it big or small, but it fails to really impress upon the viewer what can be done with simple methods and as few tools as needed. My personal opinion of Kevin Tetz is that he is skilled but somewhat of a show-off. I hope he will have learned more humility in some of the other videos. I don't remember who it was, but there was a master body worker that has clips on Youtube that used to produce his own videos. It seems as though he went out of business as his website is gone. That's too bad, I learned more in 15 min. of his videos than I did in the 1 1/2 hours in "Body Shop Basics" I give "Body Shop Basics" 3 Stars out of 5. Mostly for the production value and the knowledgeability of the host. There are also some funny outtakes at the end of the video. If you are looking to learn how to set up a shop and use your tools wisely look somewhere else, but if you need to repair a dent or two and make your car look like they were never there then check out this video, you will learn something.
  14. Moses, In another thread you recommended the Hickok (WAE7652WA) Coil on Plug Quick Probe II. When I went to amazon I found the Waekon 76562 Coil Over Plug Quick Probe with Variable Sensitivity http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0021UPE58/ref=s9_simh_gw_g263_i2_r?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=19GMKDP3NT5P1FBKQHYB&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=2079475242&pf_rd_i=desktop . Is there any difference except the $15.00 or so savings on the Waekon? I would also like to know if either come with instructions and if the Hickok needs to be hit before it will operate? This seems like a strange tool, but so does the Lisle 20700. I have no idea how that might work. If anyone else has a comment I would accept your comments as well. Just because I address something to Moses doesn't mean I will dismiss your experience. Thanks.
  15. Moses, A little off topic. I think I have a bad case of Cherokee fever. I have been looking around Craig's List for a nice OLD CJ-5 or CJ-7 without much luck within a 200 mile radius. I wish I had gotten the one in New York. So, I have also looked at all of the Cherokee Sports listed that would be a good candidate for a project on the cheap. Then I see this. http://burlington.craigslist.org/cto/5408677554.html I did something I rarely do. I called the owner to get more information, and with only 96,000 miles I figured the L4 would still be a decent engine to play with now that there are so many accessories for the Cherokee. I found out that he has replaced the rockers, put a lot of money into rust issues, and has been trying to get the motor worked out. As you can see in the listing there is a fuel issue. This was before the inspection. He just sent me an email saying he checked the frame and there is a hole in it that can be fixed. At the $800.00 price is it worth fooling around with, or should I make my wife happy and stay away from it? (I kinda like the color) So I need an emergency intervention and a good source for a EFI(?) Fuel Pressure testing unit. Thanks for the help.
  16. Moses, Back with some news. Holidays were OK, but no Jeep related goodies. I tested the battery with my old load tester and then took it to Bond Auto to have them check it with their nice new digital unit.Battery test good either way. I was thinking that maybe the fact that I took the hose off of the intake might have made a difference, but today I tried the same thing and no go. Still seems as though there is no spark, I cleaned the firewall end of the ground and still no go. The last time I tried to start the Cherokee before I took the battery out to test and charge it, the engine would not even try to start in neutral. I'll be cleaning the other end of the ground the next nice day we have that I have time and I'll be buying a coil spark tester. I've been looking at other (older) Cherokees with 4.0L engines to possibly buy cheap as my own build. Is there any way to reinforce the subframe, and is there a book,yours or someone else's, that has good suggestions on building good safe monsters from the Cherokee on the cheap. I want to do it with any metal I can find for free and any some decent parts that don't cost thousands of dollars. It will be a project to do it cheap, but do it well. Take into account that I will probably buy only one more piece of equipment which will be a Lincoln AC\DC 240 stick welder (Probably used) and let's not forget that Air Compressor. I found an old one (1948) a distance way that is an 80 gallon 2 Cylinder with a bad motor for $100.00, but there is a good motor\generator guy here in town who also happens to be a Mennonite who is pretty decent on prices. Parts are available for the model. OK, I'll be waiting for your next ideas on getting this thing running again. I really don't understand the intermittency of the problem.
  17. I hear you about compressors. I still have a hard time making up my mind whether I can compromise or if I should go whole hog and get the best I can find at an auction or estate sale. Craig's List can be a real headache with some things. Just missed a large "kitchen" exhaust hood and fan that would have been great over my welding table as a way of keeping fumes down in the basement. (Free too) What do you think of soda blasting, and what compressor would be best to do the job of outdoor paint and rust stripping from sheet metal? A small blasting cabinet as well? What I have now will power a bicycle tire fill and a small gauge brad nailer. I've done my homework over the years, but all of the CFMs and PSIs and Stages are blurred together at this point. I now have an electric air wrench that I bought at Sears with 350 ft lbs torque, electric 1 - 4 " and 3 - 4 1/2" grinders, and a never used Dewalt 7 1//2" dual action sander/buffer and I'm soon to have electric sheet metal shears. While my air grinder, wrench, cut off tool and other goodies gather dust waiting for a good compressor to bring them to life. By the way the name's Allen (Haven't used it yet. Don't know why.)
  18. Good News and Bad News. I got the motor running and the Cherokee drives pretty well, but the brakes are soft and, in all the rain and dark I wasn't able to see all of the rust, so there is a bit more work to be put into the rear end than I had originally thought. I still don't see any cracks in the frame and I think it will be worth the body work and reinforcement. OK, so how did I get the Cherokee running? We had to charge up the battery, so it sat all day Thursday and yesterday on the charger, and when we put it in I decided to take the hose off of the intake to see if that made any difference. I'm not sure that it did, but the engine started after the third turn and ran great. That is except for the couple of times it just shut off on me, while sitting, without any reason. It started right back up, but I'd like to know why it would just die out without any notice. There was also a sound of fluid running in the motor compartment, somewhere near the heater core I think, but the heater was working well, and so was the air conditioner. As a last thought, I think the battery is a little too small for the Jeep. Literally the wrong size. So, work needed, but overall I think it will be worth it in the end. It was last inspected just over a year or so ago. We also got the title and found out that the last owner must have only driven it on visits to Vermont. He bought it used with a little over 14,400 miles on it. He is not a full time resident of Vermont. Now to get to work.
  19. Moses, I'm not sure fuel is the problem as I had the distinct smell of gas after trying to start it for a while without success. I agree that it sat for a while as the information I have seems to indicate its last registration ran out in 2007. So, I will not rule out bad gas. To me it seems very much like there is no spark.I'll start with those two areas and I would certainly appreciate the information on the inexpensive induction tool. I've pretty much got a half stocked auto repair shop, if only most of it wasn't in storage. Some better pictures from today. If you want to see the rust, I have pictures of that too, and the places without rust where it could have been. I'll have to have a nice day to get pictures of the sub-frame and floors from underneath.
  20. I don't know if you agree, but there is a little wiggle room with the MIG welders I've used. Even if you use the chart it takes the right speed of movement to get the best weld, and I guess that's more of my problem. It just seems as though the weld never comes out the way I think it should. I've been doing stick welding much longer as I started using it in High School. A note about the HF 90 AMP Flux Core welder. The top has a very strong spring steel button to open the top and I have to use a pair of pliers to open the top. I would also throw out the welding shield that comes with it. It's hard to put the handle on, and there's no protective front plastic to shield the colored glass from welding spray. That said, I never throw anything away if someone can use it to watch a few feet away. With all the good deals I also picked up a welding cart, and a welding table. I have already received the cart, and it went together fine although I varied the routing of the bolts where they wouldn't interfere with snagging anything on the front uprights and give more room on the tables. I guess they dropped the inside washers from the rear wheels and the axle covers, but I wish they had included plastic spacers for those wheels. I can see wear problems if you push the cart around very much with the loose wheels and unpinned axles. We'll see how the table works when that arrives. Hopefully it will work as advertised and fold up when not in use. Now that I have the Cherokee to work on I'll need the welding experience from practice projects I can do on the table. Merry Christmas all.
  21. Well Moses I took your advice. I found a Cherokee Sport. It's a 2001 with little rust and 39,168 original miles on it. The information I have basically points to it last being registered in Vermont in 2007. Of course with every good thing comes a problem. I find a "barn find" in a manner of speaking, but I have yet to get it to start and run. I will post the pictures I took this evening after it got into my driveway. Yes, it was raining here this evening. To tell you what I'm thinking, I think it is a problem with ignition or the NPS. It turns over just fine, but there is no hint of firing. I've tried to start it in Park and Neutral without success. What do you think? $1500.00 was what I paid for it. The rust is at the very rear of the quarter panels and the drivers side rear wheel well, but I don't know just how extensive it is.
  22. Moses, I fully appreciate the idea of a live demonstration, but I'm usually the one who misses part of the explanation or gets stuck in the back where I can't see anything. I do SMAW reasonably well, but I didn't have any idea of the numbers on the Welding rods until I took the advanced course at the local Tech Center. The instructor was a highly rated welder, having done every welding job there is. He currently builds wood splitters as his retirement income, besides teaching. The DVD course I mentioned shows you the technique better than I have ever seen it in real life. It shows you how to create the puddle and fill it with filler material. I'm not too bad at MIG either, but I have a hard time getting the settings just right between speed and power settings. I think that's why the HF Flux Core Welder is a great idea because you have two power settings and an increasing speed dial, so you have to learn which speed does the best job in the low power or high power settings. It's not as complicated as two multi-position dials where a small increase makes a large difference. Here's a sample of my stick welds. That's 1/4" plate.
  23. Could it be?? Warning: look for a future update. Tomorrow?? 12/18/2015 Pictures will be included.
  24. No Problem. Seatbelts are not required in New Hampshire, and we go there quite often. Just hoping I didn't need to sit on the seat belt while there.
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