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Okay, open Forum, off-topic, or whatever (grab a cup and sit)

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Posted by ttrigg on Monday, December 5, 2005 5:32 PM
San Diego 5 day forecast:

42 degrees at night warming to a cool 72 during the midday.

And that is why I left Kansas. Got tired of the cold!

Tom Trigg

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Posted by vsmith on Monday, December 5, 2005 10:23 AM
Just so the rest of you dont think were baking in the sun out here in So Cal, it was 32 outside when I feed the dog this morning. Not as bad as others have it, but we feel your pain, sort of......

   Have fun with your trains

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Posted by RhB_HJ on Monday, December 5, 2005 10:07 AM
Hi all,

Update on the weather, snow and my achin' back.[;)][;)]

Last first: Saturday Morning was agony! Sunday was better; I had promised to do ski hosting for the club open house and we had one more meeting regarding the WorldCup races.
Welllll, ladies and gentlemen, HJ's recipe for limbering up a fairly seized lower back: 10km of cross country skiing in classic style ( I wouldn't want to try that with skating technique!).
There is a bit more snow coming, the weather is crummy in the valley and it's snowing on the mountain.

As Brian says ......later, eh!
Cheers HJ http://www.rhb-grischun.ca/ http://www.easternmountainmodels.com
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Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, December 3, 2005 6:25 PM
QUOTE: Originally posted by Curmudgeon

1957 XK-140MC, drophead or roadster....


Hey Dave,
You mean this one?
Joe
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Posted by toenailridgesl on Saturday, December 3, 2005 6:23 PM
JAGUAR.....Just About Guaranteed Unroadworthy And Rusted
Phil Creer, The Toenail Ridge Shortline,  Adelaide Sth Oz http://www.trainweb.org/toenailridge toparo ergo sum
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Posted by Curmudgeon on Saturday, December 3, 2005 5:20 PM
1957 XK-140MC, drophead or roadster....
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Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, December 3, 2005 5:01 PM
QUOTE: Originally posted by TurboOne

Evening all you car lovers. Lets throw in our favorite cars.

Old or Classic version - - - - - - 69 Mach One....................ahhhhhhhhhhhh

New Car - - - - - - -Jaguar XkR convertable....................a very sweet ride at 130mph

But like vic if I hit the lottery (that I don't play) Fords GT40...true AMERICAN power....with the big rumble to go with the car...rode in one with the brother in law, he is a Ford Sales Manager, had one for two days............wish I got to drive it but riding was ok...

Getting ready to drizzle here, glad I don't have the snow you nor' easterners and canadians are getting. brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Take care all,

Tim (land of sunshine and honey)


Old or classic version (there are several); 1965 Shelby GT 350, 1965 Shelby SC Cobra with the 427 side-oiler and webber induction, 1969 Plymouth Super Bird with the 440 Max Wedge, 1969 Yenko Chevelle 454SS, 1969 Boss 302, 1969 Talledega Torino with a 428 SCJ, 1970 442 Oldsmobile with a 455 and last but certainly least, 1969 Boss 429.[:p][:D][:p]

New car; 2005 Honda Odyssey. Best dogone thing I have ever owned for comfort and practicality. (25 years ago those words were not even in my vocabulary.) 24 mpg combined mileage and 270hp to boot. But if I bought a truck again it would be a toss-up between the Ranger 4.0 5spd, the Sport-Trac and the Ridgeline.
Later,
Joe
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Posted by ttrigg on Saturday, December 3, 2005 3:50 PM
Vic;

I know I'm old, but not quite that old. Sorry about my misstatement. I was ruminating about the passing of the old Red PE Cars, as at one time Los Angles had one of the best public transit systems around. The Mt. Lowe Line passed on (via flooding) about four years before I became a seedling. Pasadena never did much about preserving the old line, until hiking/biking trails became popular and by then it was way too late to save anything except the old right of way.

About the picture, you have a copy of a scan of the old colorized post card, my wife has a photograph copy of the original black and white photo. Unfortunately as the old photo has aged it has darkened some. But it is an easy task to identify the two as variants of the same picture. I'll try to scan some of the old photos when I get the scanner working again if you want copies.

Tom Trigg

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Posted by TurboOne on Saturday, December 3, 2005 1:02 AM
Evening all you car lovers. Lets throw in our favorite cars.

Old or Classic version - - - - - - 69 Mach One....................ahhhhhhhhhhhh

New Car - - - - - - -Jaguar XkR convertable....................a very sweet ride at 130mph

But like vic if I hit the lottery (that I don't play) Fords GT40...true AMERICAN power....with the big rumble to go with the car...rode in one with the brother in law, he is a Ford Sales Manager, had one for two days............wish I got to drive it but riding was ok...

Getting ready to drizzle here, glad I don't have the snow you nor' easterners and canadians are getting. brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Take care all,

Tim (land of sunshine and honey)
WWJD
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Posted by vsmith on Wednesday, November 30, 2005 11:21 AM
QUOTE: Originally posted by ttrigg

Vic

My wife went off the deep end when she saw your sig. pic. She brought out her copy of the Mt. Lowe Trolley. She was very disappointed to see that her copy was B&W where yours is "colorized". I can remember one time as a kid, we took the red P.E. Cars from where we lived in south central LA to the mountains and the observatory. Too bad it is only a memory and no longer there to be enjoyed again.


Tom

You should be able to right click the image and "save as" to your desktop. I found it while searching online for info on the route. Its scanned from a postcard from the period, still looking for the real card, got one of the circular bridge and the incline, when I get a few more I'm going to do a photobox dispay of them all.

Amazing to hear from someone who actually rode it! I'd like to hear more, I've only biked to old ROW, not much left I'm sad to say.

   Have fun with your trains

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Posted by Gary Crawley on Wednesday, November 30, 2005 12:44 AM
What you good people in the Northern part of the world need is a good Aussie made Ford.
I own a Falcon Turbo and goes like s**t of a shovel.

GM (Holden) also make very good cars (did I say that) and most Aussie made vehicles are well made and reliable.

Toyota also produce right hand drive vehicles here.

Go the blue oval.
Gary
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Posted by Anonymous on Monday, November 28, 2005 5:58 PM
Hey gang.
Most of you already know me as cmjdisanto. This is my first shot over here. Even though that is the case no sense in beating around the bush. I am just gonna dive right in. I will say the morphesis of this post has been spectacular. Thanks TOC.
Well after having run the gammut with Ford to Toyota [:-^]to Mercury back to Ford to Oldsmobile back to Ford again to Honda to Mazda back to Honda [:-^]again back to Ford again to Jeep back to Ford yet again, to Dodge[zzz] back to Ford again, to Chevy (twice never again[banghead]) and now Honda(twice in a week we traded both Chevy's[tup]) again, it will probably be Honda from here on out until Detroit reaches around and grabs a handful of hair and pulls. I always liked my Fords but they were trucks and I wasn't kind to them. They never let me down. I always said I wished Honda made a truck, and right after we bought the Odyssey and the Accord guess what made it's debut. I hate to say it but Honda has them all beat right now. Even Toyota in overall quality.
I have had these new onec since April and we have yet to have them in for service other than routine. The 2004 Trailsmolder I had saw the shop 28 times in the first 3 months.[:0][B)][:0][8][:0][:(!]No kiding and I had the lemon lawsuit to prove it.[:(!][soapbox]

After all that
QUOTE: Originally posted by tangerine-jack
...............................................

In the end, however, they are all junk.
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Posted by vsmith on Monday, November 28, 2005 12:51 PM
I have to admit I've hated almost ALL Big 3 products built after 1970 since before I could drive. Always liked the modified Vdub's and Porsche's for performance and the Japanese cars for reliability. Never thought any American car maker would ever make another car to tempt me as they were always sooooo fugly ! [V]

But I have to admit Diamler-Chrysler now has 4 cars I really like, the Chrylser 300, Dodge Magnum, Dodge Charger, and the Chrysler Crossfire and Ford has sorely tempted me with thier finally great looking again Mustang. Of course if I hit the lotto forget all of those, I'm getting a Ford GT40![:p]

   Have fun with your trains

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Posted by Capt Bob Johnson on Monday, November 28, 2005 11:43 AM
I seem to recall an advertising campaign from the 1950's "When better cars are built, Buick will build them!"
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Posted by RhB_HJ on Monday, November 28, 2005 9:48 AM
QUOTE: Originally posted by tangerine-jack
...............................................

In the end, however, they are all junk.[xx(]


That's right, sooner or later they are all junk!.

BTW except for 3 years of owning a Rabbit in the 70s, it has been GM products for me since I arrived in NA early part of '69.
They all had what it takes to get me from A to B, including the present Chevy Venture mini van. [;)][:)][:D][:D]
Cheers HJ http://www.rhb-grischun.ca/ http://www.easternmountainmodels.com
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Posted by Tom The Brat on Monday, November 28, 2005 7:08 AM
On the subject of Fords...

A good friend was an adamant Ford guy. It's a good thing these guys like to fix cars. Anyhow, we were helping a friend move, and of course, he was teasing us about our "Chivvys." We had just filled up the "Dodge Chivvy," and he was going to get his pickup. Susan and I were carrying something past him to our "Izuzu Chivvy," as he was starting his truck and it didn't crank.

So I called out, "Somebody get a Chivvy! We need to jump start this Ford!"[:-,]
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Posted by John Busby on Monday, November 28, 2005 12:10 AM
QUOTE: Originally posted by Torby

Or that Hitler wasn't such a bad fellow, once you got to know him?

Hi Torby
That was probably true before the election that voted him into power
his gripes against the victors of WWI had some just cause for discontent.
It went down hill real fast after that election a classic case of power
corrupting because there was nothing to balance it.
The doctrine he started preaching absolutely stinks and we can
thank the WWI allies for people taking notice of him.
A classic example of the North & South argument like TJ mentioned.
Wonder why man kind never learns from history just learns history
regards John
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Posted by tangerine-jack on Sunday, November 27, 2005 9:14 PM
68's are a great year. Mostly it's the '73 and up, particularly any Crapero from the '80's.

In the end, however, they are all junk.[xx(]

The Dixie D Short Line "Lux Lucet In Tenebris Nihil Igitur Mors Est Ad Nos 2001"

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Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, November 27, 2005 3:44 PM
TJ, clarify on the year or years on the camaro, mines a 68, first car I ever bought big block stick car. Just need to finish welding that last quarter panel and rocker.
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Posted by tangerine-jack on Sunday, November 27, 2005 7:25 AM
Yes, Matt, thank you for bringing into sharp focus the Ford tranny and ball joint failures. I also worked as a mechanic for long enough to learn that Ford keeps repair shops in buisiness, Japs don't.

I think the most involved job I ever saw on a Toyota was the day a guy came in complaining about a rough idle. I test drove the car, ran just fine, but did in fact have a rough idle. When I opened the hood, the oil filter was missing along with a baseball sized chunk of engine block and the piston that was under it all. The guy drove away. Facinating.

Ford on the other hand, I could set my watch by the mileage failures of certain components, ball joints, alternators, transmissions, fuel pumps, spark plug wires, just to name a few. They kept me working and put food on the table, but I saw enough of them to not want to own one.

GM has it's share of dogs too, make no mistake. Camaro's are the worst piece of junk ever infilcted upon the motoring public. Every single part of that beast has a problem of some kind. Fieros? Well, we don't have to go there now do we?

That is why I like MOPAR, fewest problems overall of a domestic vehicle. Currently I have an '84 Maxda B200 pu holding up the import side of the house, can't kill the thing. Finaly after 21 years the carb crapped out and I found one on ebay, brand new in a box for $20.

BTW, welcome back Tim!!![8D][:D][:D][:D]

The Dixie D Short Line "Lux Lucet In Tenebris Nihil Igitur Mors Est Ad Nos 2001"

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Posted by TurboOne on Sunday, November 27, 2005 1:03 AM
Hello again one and all, whew has the talk changed.

I agree with Vic. You all got North South wrong. It is the Chargers and the Raiders, baby.

Only for the last two years the boys in blue, rule.

I would add Padres vs. Dodgers, but the Big blue is the only club I know that can ruin a farm system second to none. They should be bigger, badder, better, yet my little icky Pads creeped into the western title. Don't matter how bad, they made it....

So while I didn't get to see how beautiful the day was here in town, it was in the 70s today and will be all week. Very, very, very dry. Reminds me of the big fires, and the useless sentence they gave the guy who set the Cedar fire. Still wish we could burn him.

As for all you history buffs, as the old Mr. M says those who do not learn from history, will repeat it....


I think trains a lot. I am hoping to set up one at the store this next week, we will see if it works out.

Tim

P.S. Good to see the old crew still here....

WWJD
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Posted by ttrigg on Saturday, November 26, 2005 10:49 PM
Vic

My wife went off the deep end when she saw your sig. pic. She brought out her copy of the Mt. Lowe Trolley. She was very disappointed to see that her copy was B&W where yours is "colorized". I can remember one time as a kid, we took the red P.E. Cars from where we lived in south central LA to the mountains and the observatory. Too bad it is only a memory and no longer there to be enjoyed again.

Tom Trigg

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Posted by RhB_HJ on Saturday, November 26, 2005 9:32 PM
Matt,

Good thing we're back to a safe topic like what's with ............. vehicle. [;)][:)][:D]
Cheers HJ http://www.rhb-grischun.ca/ http://www.easternmountainmodels.com
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Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, November 26, 2005 9:25 PM
Welcome back Tim! I'm still just working a bazillion hours per norm.

On the car truck issue, I just wish I could afford a new one, every since it became the "thing" for everyone to own a pickup truck they are WHEEEEYYYY over priced for this carpenter's budget. I'm still driving my 1991 Chevy V6(wish it was an V8) with a 163,000 miles on it. I bought it new for $12,000.00 now I couldn't touch one for almost double that.[:(!] I'm going to brave it and probably and drive it to the ECLSTS this year.

Oh and my work van is a Ford on it's second transmission, apparently they are only good for 30,000 miles(and no I don't tow with it). The ball joints are also shot and it has only 80,000 on it. Only 10,000 more miles till my next transmission. Ford customer service BLOWWWWWS!

My 1991 truck has cost less in all it's miles than this 2000 ford E250 van.
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Posted by tangerine-jack on Saturday, November 26, 2005 1:14 PM
So what's wrong with Dukes of Hazzard?? I know people like that for real. A true and accurate documentary as ever filmed. Brings tears to the eyes.

Anyway, I wouldn't have thought anybody would be so nieve to think that a ruthlessly bloody civil war started because a few shots were fired at a fort? No, the powderkeg was stoked and smouldering in the political halls of New York, DC and Pennsylvania for many years prior. All that naval commander did was declare to the world that enough was enough. Had the South been liberated, he would have been declared a hero.

The Dixie D Short Line "Lux Lucet In Tenebris Nihil Igitur Mors Est Ad Nos 2001"

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Posted by vsmith on Saturday, November 26, 2005 12:04 PM
PS North South has a different meaning here

SoCal vs NoCal

Los Angeles vs San Francisco

Dodgers vs Giants

Chargers vs Raiders

Ducks vs Sharks

LA Lakers vs Sacremento Kings

Smog vs Fog

[:D]

   Have fun with your trains

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Posted by tangerine-jack on Saturday, November 26, 2005 11:54 AM
I repent. Truly. Just don't rob me of my heritage in the name of political corectness.


Ok, on another note, I just got back from seeing "Polar Express" (finaly). Cool movie! I saw it at the IMAX, 40ft screen, 12,000 watt surround sound, digital compensated picture and in 3-D. I liked that fine bit of train driving skill over the frozen lake, power sliding a steam loco- now that's my style! Not bad from a couple of goober engineers.

The Dixie D Short Line "Lux Lucet In Tenebris Nihil Igitur Mors Est Ad Nos 2001"

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Posted by vsmith on Saturday, November 26, 2005 11:53 AM
QUOTE: Originally posted by tangerine-jack

QUOTE: Originally posted by vsmith

Hi Jack

DDSL sounds good, if your going to use the Confederate flag that one is better than the stars and bars, can have alot of negative baggage with that one if ya know what I mean.



Only negative to those who insist upon speaking out of ignorance and distorted history. The "war of Northern agression" was fought because of the crushing economic and political terrorism of the North 9(see "Atlanta, Sherman's march to the sea" for a clear example of who the aggressor was). Southern States, by constitutional right, could at any time leave the Union, and felt that the time had come to do so. As thier grandfathers threw off the British, they would throw off the North. Slavery was issue number 472,604, the war was the second American Revolution, nothing less. Virginia in fact seceded from the Union, but didn't join the Confederacy until some months later. It's all water under the bridge now and we have a solid sense of what the United in USA means (after a few hundred thousand dead)

As far as the "stars and bars" being used by intentionaly stupid people to propigate lies and hatred, isn't the Christian cross and the US national flag also used by these groups? Yet these symbols aren't associated with misguided history or hatred. I'll never understand why the ignorant wi***o single out just one battle flag when there were literaly hundreds in use.

The "stars and bars" was the battle flag of Robert E. Lee, the only officer ever to have graduated from West Point with NO demerits. He believed in the Union, and turned down command of a Union Army as he felt it wasn't right to be fighting against his homeland. Lee was clearly the best general to have fought in the war, but his cause was doomed from the start due to manufacturing and supply problems from the economic opression of the South for 80 years by the North.

Next thing you know, we'll be hearing that Cleopatra was black, and we were wrong to fight the Japanese in WWII. I wonder how the people of Nanking feel about that?

Ok, I'm not getting political, just relaying factual history. Do with it what you want.


Whoa there Jack

I think your reading too much into my statement...for all you know my "negative baggage" could have been referring to the flag being used in that train-wreck of a film "Dukes of Hazzard"[;)][:D]

Yes any symbol can be perverted. The Swastiga was an ancient and powerfull symbol from Buddistism, perverted forever by those idiots in Germany.

We'll have to have a conversation sometime as to who fired first at Ft Sumpter, as it wasn't supposed to happen, but the Confederate commander who was a raging warhawk, took it upon himself to instigate something he was sure could not be undone, which turned out to be the case. Dont have my Civil War books handy so I cant remember his name except that I remember he commited suicide at the end of the war rather than live under the "yankees". [8)]

Clark Gable as Rhett Butler in "Gone With The Wind" at the Ball the night Ft Sumpter was fired upon describes perfectly the conditions of industry that would doom the South.

Anyway, like I said, dont read too much into my first post. and no matter what you do DO NOT see that "Dorks of Hazzard" train wreck of a film . Woof![:D]

   Have fun with your trains

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Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, November 26, 2005 8:36 AM
Black's not allowed.
You have to say 'ethnic'
Or 'minority'
The fact that I live in a Christian country and my Queen is the defender of the faith,we cannot celebrate Christmas in case it upsets the 'ethnic minority'
If that does not breed racism ,nothing will.
No wonder the 'far right' is associated with the Union flag (not Union Jack.That only applies to boats)
They are the only ones with the guts to fly it any more.

OK.
Rant over.
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Posted by tangerine-jack on Saturday, November 26, 2005 8:04 AM
QUOTE: Originally posted by Torby

Or that Hitler wasn't such a bad fellow, once you got to know him?


EXACTLY!!! That's the sort of alteration of the historical facts that I can't stand. History IS, it cannot offend, demean, criticise or lie. It is a collection of documented, supportable FACT, not FEELING.

It's like the black Cleopatra thing. Where on Earth did anybody get that nonsense? Does it feel good to believe a lie? All contemporary paintings and statues of Cleo's era clearly show a Caucasian queen. Why? Well, my friends, DOCUMENTED history (ie. the writings, songs and artwork of that time) clearly and irrefutably establi***hat Cleo was a Ptolomeic queen, that is to say, she was the direct blood lineage of the Macedonian general, Ptolomy, who was left in charge of Egypt after Alexander died. Sorry, not a black queen. You must be thinking of the Jugurthas of Numidia, now they were black Africans as well as great kings and rulers of a vast empire, with alliance with the Roman world.

My point is, don't forge off into "history" without doing factual reasearch. You might be pleasantly surprized by the truth.

The Dixie D Short Line "Lux Lucet In Tenebris Nihil Igitur Mors Est Ad Nos 2001"

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