Elliot's Diner, Mark XVI

[JPowell]

Cederstrand

Large coffee in a UNION PACIFIC mug, please & thanks.

Anyone know who makes a SWAT truck in HO scale, (other than the small van by TRIDENT)?

Have a good day all.

Rob

I can't remember where I saw it, but in either the Sept issue of MR or the current Walther's sale catalog was a vehicle... kinda like a box van but lower to the ground. It was black in color and had red and blue lights on it. I don't even think there were any markings on it so that could be used as one. The cab of it reminded me of a GMC Topkick - type cab.... Hope this helps ya Rob!

[Robby P.]

 Good morning.  I believe we might get some storms today.

 Well not much planned.  I will try to finish up the "Rock" hopper  and get some pictures up.  Its mostly going to be a lazy day.

 Hope everybody has a good morning.  

[JPowell]

JimRCGMO

JP, better go stake out that section of the basement now, before 'other things' fill it up when the ladies move in... You might want to take a look when you get a chance at Iain Rice's new book (just out this year) about Shelf Layouts, and get some ideas there.

The book is on my list!

[JPowell]

grayfox1119

J.P.: I hope you have a full compliment of tools in your tool box, you will need them, and make a wish list for Christmas too ( tools ).

Don't worry Dick... the list of tools and train items is getting longer by the day. Julie will have no problem trying to figure out what I want!

[blownout cylinder]

Good Morning

We are currently at 20C with a 93% humidity. Got dribbled on overnight so we are sorta kinda muggy out--going to a high of 26C with clearing skies and a low at 12C tonight. Tomorrow, for our semi pseudo holiday Monday we'll be getting some more cloud and some more 50% chance of rain and those t'underin'boomers---

'Spring' now claims the keyboard shelf as his cuddling spot---of course, right in front of me so I get to type either the single finger hunt and peck, or the wrap arms around the little one and type anyways methods. Sometimes I'll just pick him up and get a "NEOOOOOOWW!!" whine from him---then he'll just look at me and jump right back up on the shelf--and headbutt. Of course, he now has this idea that since there is a noisy thing on the layout that squawks at him everytime he gets up on the layout he figures the keyboard shelf is just as good---

I'm going to attempt to get some more weathering done so that maybe I'll be able to show something by next weekend---heeheehee

Flo, I'll have a coffee and a breakfast platter please--I'll sit at the corner booth and see who else shows up

 

[jeffrey-wimberly]

 Good morning.

It's 78 and cloudy. The high will be around 93 and there's a chance of rain.

Well yesterday was dominated by changing the starter out on the car but I did at least get a chance to look at the layout as I came in to get cleaned up afterwards. The wolf spider that resides in the Sundown car barn was on the prowl and was checking out one of the new police cars. That would have made for a great photo but no way was I going to pick up my camera with all that dirt and grease on my hands. Maybe someday a better opportunity will present itself. Let's just say the local cops had a 20 foot spider on their hands and were going to let it do anything it wanted. I also paid up my MagicJack phone service last night ($19.95) so I can enjoy another year of free local and long distance calls in the US and Canada. Sure beats paying out scads of money I don't have to have a line put in then pay service fees every month. If the weather cooperates and the rain holds off I'll probably be mowing my sisters yard today.

Today's Weather for:
Sundown, LA  71446-6114      8/2/2009

Heat Index:  84°F
Humidity:  88%
Dew Point:  74°F

So Far Today
High:  80°F
Low:  78°F
Rain:  0.00"
Rain Rate:  0.00"/h
Gust:  5mph NNE

Today  High: 92    Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the lower 90s. West winds 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight  Low: 75    Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 70s. Southwest winds around 5 mph.

[LSWrr]

Today: A slight chance of showers before 9am, then scattered showers and thunderstorms between 9am and noon. Cloudy through mid morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 77. Calm wind becoming west between 7 and 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 62. Southwest wind between 7 and 9 mph.

[howmus]

Evenin'....... Or should I say a very early Good Morning!

Yep, another day that isn't going to end 'til after midnight. I have spent the day doing laundry (a good excuse to spend a bit of time on the layout), playing and cuddling the cats who evidently missed me very much..., putting away equipment from camp, playing with the cats, working on about 500 photos taken on Friday, playing with the cats, putting about 70 of the photos on line, playing with the cats, etc.  No matter where I was upstairs in the house, Manét was at my side.  He even knocked my 500 Gig LaCie hard drive on the floor so he could sleep next to me while I was doing the photos on the laptop.  Little monster!  I yelled at him and got the, "what's wrong with you?" look.

Tomorrow I get to go to an Eagle Ceremony and reception.  It is for one of the Scouts who was at SciTek Camp.  Oh BTW we had several Eagles there including this one:

And a Golden Eagle as well:

They were part of a program on wildlife photography put on by a licensed rehabilitator. 

The Engineering Track made rockets and fired them:

And then caught them on the way back down......

If any of you should want to view the entire album from the camp it can be found here. 

My prayers for all in need (and there seems to be quite a few...).  Hope you all have a good night!

73 

[TMarsh]

twhite

I'll stick with my 12V and be happy. 

Probably the safest. At least until you can have someone actually look at the motors or who has actual experience with higher voltage on those particular motors. No probably's, probably ccan turn out to be an expense for Tom, not the guy who says probably.

Time for bed.   

 

[twhite]

Evening all from Sunny/ThunderstormCal.  Yup, can't make up its mind.  We've got a low pressure system off the coast that's pumping up tropical air from ARIZONA of all places and whacking the poop out of the east side of the Sierra.   Don't ask.    Let's just say that late summer gets BIZARRE around here, sometimes. 

Anyway, high '80's today, with lower than normal expected temperatures around here next week.  Which means I can open the garage.  Which means I can run trains.  Which means I can maybe start working on that scenery I've been putting off since last September. 

The "Rat-hole" (that's what I've decided to call it) is all put back together, with a lift-off scenery flap, and test-runs today have been just fine.  Little interesting thing about my Wheel-cleaning, though.  Had to play Vesper Mass this evening, and accidentally left two cleaned Yellowstones on the kitchen table.  Got home--"Uff-Dah" is on the kitchen table perching OVER them.  Like a hen with chicks, right?  Locos are undisturbed (thank God!) but lifting 20+ pounds of upset Norwegian Forest Cat off of two brass Akanes is NOT for the Faint Of Heart!    Spooky, of course, thought it was hilarious.  Of course, she's jealous that I didn't have to clean any caboose wheels.   Ah, traincats! 

Garry:  Missed the Super-Articulated, I'll have to go back into the old Diner and find it.  How nice of you to think of me, LOL!    Funny story--I'm working on selling some of my BLI dual-modes, and the person who's interested said he was amazed that I didn't have a Big Boy since I am known on the Forum as the "King of Articulateds".   Had to tell him that Big Boy's (and UP steam in general) are BORING, since they have no 'guts' hanging out, like interesting feed-water heaters or front-hung pumps.  Just those terribly clean, 'Ho-Hum' lines, LOL!  I like my articulateds looking like a T-Rex with two sets of driving wheels.

Todd/Inch:  Thanks for the info on the motors.  You'd think that after all the years I've been running trains that I'd KNOW about these little details, but it's gotten so confusing lately with 12/16/24 volt differences in the newer locos available that I don't know WHAT'S safe, anymore.  I'll stick with my 12V and be happy.  Thanks again. 

Inch:  Prayers for you and yours.  I had never known about 'farmer's lung'.  I do know that my grandfather suffered from 'miner's lung' from working as a hard-rock miner for years in the gold mines of my home town here in California. 

Jerry:  Love that 1-ring circus of yours.  Nice work.

Well, "Uff-Dah" is again perched on the kitchen table, glaring at me.  Good God, he's eyeing some 2-8-0's.  This cat doesn't care at all what the wheel arrangement is, just as long as it's BRASS! 

We've got to have a MAJOR conversation, the Viking and me. 

Best to all, prayers to those in need. 

Tom  

[GMTRacing]

Good Evening All,

    Nice dry day today, July was the wettest on record so good ridance to that. After putting a few hours in at the shop it was off to the house to clean the basement and disassemble and remove the old boiler. My oldest and youngest sons came over to help. Over the course of the rebuild on the house the basement became the repository for whatever couldn't be fit in the storage container or shed plus all the debris from the electrician, plumber and heating contractors, plus with all the rain the basement became damp from some leks between the joint between the walls and floor. 1929 stone foundation with a smattering of concrete on the floor and over the stones plus years of movement coupled with lots of rain and you get the picture. After sweeping shoveling and dragging stuff out to the dumpster we got to the boiler (remember the boiler?) On any side the boiler was much wider than the apeture to the landing so some disassembly was in order. We'd wrestled the folding engine hoist from the shop into the basement hoping to rig some slings and lift and roll onto the landing - no dice. Time for the sawsall and some judicious trimming. An hour and a half later the large lump of cast iron saw the light of day for the first time in years. Not much left to reuse (single pipe steam) and I can't figure out why I'm so tired tonight. Think I'll just sit over here and hace a nice RBF and a slice of blueberry pie. Thanks Todd.

Jerry - you have a genuine dog and pony show - congrats!

Jeff- sounds like your day was somewhat like mine - way to hang in there. As you can see Ford not GM invented the interchangable part bent crossmembers not withstanding (actually it was Eli Whitney).

J.R.

 

 

[nik .n]

 RBF, Chloe.

 

I manned a benefit for my second cousin who has cancer. I ran the Duck Pond that I built and painted with a swamp scene. They had a BBQ (which 600 halves went in 20 minutes) bingo, raffle, food, bands, games, and the all-time faverate: The "Big Six." I'll have how much we raised in a few days.

See yall!

Night

[TMarsh]

Good evening. RBF please. I'll start with the good news, I got into Toddland (of which I'm king) and got to do some work on the ole water tower. I did a quick test fit fo my supply house (soon to be some small foodstuff making place. Maybe salsa. I like salsa) and after moving the entire side of the town of Gold Creek, it fits where I originally wanted it to so again . Started to assemble the overhead (Walthers Surge bin). And am contemplating begining the construction of the Whataburger in the town with no name. Went to the 25th anniversary get together for our friends. I was me and 2 others that were in the wedding there from the original wedding party. Glad I went.

Inch - Sounds like you're going through some rough times out your way. I'm praying for the best and also for the other "bad news" you skipped over.

Jeff- I'm sure glad old man Murphy doesn't just visit me. That sure sounds like some of the "simple jobs" I get into!!

Dick- I put two ME brdges together. I was also pleased with the models. and very reasonably priced for the quality too.

What ho! I do believe I will return to the little world in the basement.

Edit- I see Jeff slid in and bumped me to TOP, sooo, order up!!!  (muttering as I exit) 20 dollars a year, haruumph!

[jeffrey-wimberly]

 I just paid my entire phone bill for the coming year. A whole $19.95.

[grayfox1119]

 Good evening, hot today under clear skies, but the ground is still soggy from 11.5" of rain in July, so I was not able to till the garden to get the darn weeds under control, I will attemp this tomorrow afternoon.

MRR work: Got to work on the truss bridge, Sprue #12 parts are all installed and all 5 spans are glued together. Several more steps involved for tomorrows activities. My LHS called to inform me that my 4-4-0 arrived  , he tested it and said it ran beautifully and is ready for pick-up, so it looks like Wednesday is LHS day.

TODD: Yes, I am well pleased with Micro Engineering people, they actually sent the part via UPS, it arrived 3 days after my call. I like their track and their products also, well made, and in the U.S.A.!!

JIM: Getting photos will be a little slow coming. I will certainly take the shots, but I don't get much time to download to the PC and then to WebShots lately, far too much outside work to do this time of the year. Northerners have to "make hay" in the Summer and part of Spring and Fall due to shorter seasons weather-wise. You guys have a longer season to get things done.

JEFF: Glad to see the starter install was successful. As for small wire, might that be the solenoid wire? That is typically an 18 gauge wire that supplies 12V ( low current) to the solenoid to make it pull in. All you get is click, click, click when the the solenoid will not hold contact as the key is in start position.

MIKE: Sorry to hear about Deb's dad, but hopefully he will be back on his feet shortly. It is hard for some people to retire even after age 65 or 70, because they either fear the loss of income, or, they do not have enough reason or desire to retire, i.e.no  hobbies.  Glad to see you have found some time to get back to MRR'g.

ED: NEED MORE OJ!!!!! Please send another 18,000 gallon tanker via CSX please !!!!! AND, the Yankees got their A**** haned to them by the White Sox ONCE AGAIN today 14-4 !!! Love it!!!!!

Later guys,

[blownout cylinder]

Jeff: That sounds like one pile of work!! EEEK!!

-----------------------------------------------------

It tried to rain twice on us---and we had a micro-t'underin'boomlet this evening---just two big CRACKS of thunder and that was it----oh---and a bit of rain.

I've got some more washes done on the 3 victims--I mean, hoppers---I'll get there yet---'Spring' makes it interesting around here---he sees the hoppers and he's got to play with them---

Flo, I'll have a coffee and a strawberry pie please---I'll be at the RC----

[Packers#1]

 Jeff, sounds like one heck of a day working on the car man!

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Well, I spent all day working on the car. As I had said it would be, getting the skid plate off was a bear. Getting the front bolt out of the starter was easy, as was disconnecting the wires. However, and here's where it got really fun, getting the back bolt (6 inches long) out was a bunch of work! Ordinarily this would be drop dead easy on a Century. However, mine has a slightly bent cross member under the front that can't be replaced without replacing the entire front clip and it goes right under the starter. All things being equal, the bolt would drop down and just clear the cross member. Old man Murphy was truly in fine form. I needed a long extension and a 15mm deep well socket. Guess what 2 items WERE NOT in my tool box! So I look in my father's shop and find 2 extensions, 1 medium and 1 short. These will work. I could not find the socket, so I had to go to town to get one. $10 later I have the socket and head back to continue work on the car. I get the bolt loose and it falls just as it should, until it hits the cross member. I have to get the bolt to move half an inch toward the front of the car so I can pull it out. This requires pulling the starter straight down (against the cross member of course) and twist it a 1/4 turn so the bolt can fall free. This being accomplished I'm now feeling pretty good with myself. However, old man Murphy wasn't finished tormenting me, not by a long shot. I now had to get the old starter clear of the cars frame. This required turning it so the rear of it pointed upward so it could slide out through a small gap in all the wiring, tubing and hoses that go to make up the maze under the hood of a 15 year old car. I eventually got it out. This meant however that the real battle was about to begin. Getting the new (good used) starter in. After a 20 minute battle I got it up through the aforementioned obstacle course so I can slide it into place. Slight problem! This starter is just a LITTLE longer, like an inch, than the old one and the oil filter has now become a problem and must be removed. Naturally I can't find my filter wrench so I do my best impersonation of Hercules and grab the filter with both hands and try to twist it free. Nothing doing. My greasy hands just slide on it's smooth surface. Now I'm getting irked! The car is now conspiring against me! My happened to all the on time oil changes, all the preventive maintenance, all the TLC I treated it with over the years? I rubbed my hands in the dirt and grabbed the filter again and this time imagined it was the cocky captain of the football team back when I was in high school. The filter lost the battle and came free. Now I slid the starter into place and carefully positioned the long bolt that had given me so much grief earlier. It slid right into place and I think "YES" "It's gonna be nice". I should have known better! When I went to tighten it it wouldn't line up with the hole in the block. So I started the front bolt in. It went in OK so I try the rear one again. Still no dice. No I grab the starter and yank it first forward then back and I hear something click. Now I try the rear bolt again and it goes in just as it should. I make sure both bolts are  tight the connect the wires to the starter. Looked like all of them, there are a lot of them. I put the oil filter back on then connect the battery cables. Now I turn the key and all I hear is a loud CLICK! I try it again and again. CLICK, CLICK! I'm thinking "Oh no! I got a bad starter!" "AND AFTER ALL THAT WORK!!!". I decide to check all the wires again and found one I missed. It's so small and frail looking it can't possibly be important but I connect it anyway. I turn the key again and the car starts right up! I count my blessings and put the dust guards and the skid plate back in place. Mission accomplished and after only 6 hours of work. Next time I'm getting up off the $90 and have a repair shop do the work.

[Cederstrand]

Large coffee in a UNION PACIFIC mug, please & thanks.

Anyone know who makes a SWAT truck in HO scale, (other than the small van by TRIDENT)?

Have a good day all.

Rob

[Packers#1]

 Hey Chloe, there any Mtn Dew Game fuel. I love that stuff now, lol.

Had a great time hanging out with my family yesterday, and held my own agaisnt my cousin in wrestling, hey usually wips my butt, lol.

[inch53]

 

Mornin,, an irish coffee if'en ya woulds Janie.

Sunny this morning with a chance of rain later, high low 80's. Well July's temperature averaged bout 9 degrees below normal, but we were bout average on rain, first time in months. 30 day forecast, below avg temps, near normal precip.

GARRY,,,,,, tell your son n DIL we're thinking of them. It's a rough row ta hoe I know, we've been there. Good to hear Shelly's doing better also.

ROBBY,,,,,, congratulations on the upcoming birth. Hopin the best on the Fedex job.

JP,,,,, good luck with the future HD list's and keeping a corner for MRR'ing.

TODD,,,, I feel bout the same way on cards, but they've become a way of life anymore. I hate going card shopping with Mother; I can fund a card in a minute or two. She stands there for 20 minutes and ends up with one I pick right off. 

Bridge Tom,,,,,, you can run a 12V motor on 16 for a short time  without damage like Todd said. I don't know how long that time is though.

And the economy isn't any better here, unemployment's over 10% in the state over 15% in this county the last I heard. Illinois getting ready to layoff alot of state workers, cut social services and grants and closing some state parks and historical sites.

We spent last evening over to the hospital visiting Deb's dad [Dale]. He got a lung infection from handling grain [called farmers lung] and his kidneys started to shut down He seems to be doing better now after all the IV's they've been pumping in him. We wish he'd go ahead and retire, but he won't, even at 73.

Mother had to take Clyde to the doc's this morning [Heather had to work]. He stepped off a car trailer Mon and hurt his ankle. They still don't know if it broke or not, because of all the swelling.

We may go up to Indy tomorrow, our 6-year-old nephew in is Riley, with a merca infection in his hip and no-one knows how he got it. Docs have done 3 surgeries and installed drain tubes and is on IV's too. He was suppose to come home yesterday, but know has pneumonia, so he's stuck there for a few more days.

Every body else seems to be ok so far, so I'll skip the rest the bad news we got this week.

On the good side, no kids this week other than Beth n Yazee, so I was able to get several things done round here, including some MRR'ing., Put some ground cover down where I won't be able reach once I start back in on the village. The windmill work ended till I get some different glue. Mother super glue gel instead of regular. Oh well I've got plenty to do other wise.

 I've been done this post off n on since 7 this morning. I keep getting interrupted for this, that and chores. Me n Mother are completely kid free this evening, for the ham n bean boil this evening down to campground A, which reminds me, I need to get back there n help with the cooking. Sure hope it don't till late.

Thoughts for those in need n hope ya'll has a gooden

[TMarsh]

Good, um...morning. yup it's still morning.

Not much planned for today, our weather is just about like Jerry's. We have a 25th wedding anniversary to attend at 4:30 pm cst we'll see haow that turns out. I was in the wedding and I don't remember much of it at all. I'm sure with my superior intellect I've gained over the years I will remember this event. 

In the meantime, I see no reason I can't go to Toddland (where I'm king).

Tom- That's an iffy question. Some DC motors (and a DC motor being a DC motor just size and purpose being different) are built to handle the extra voltage as a bonus for the reliability of heavier windings and a few volts over the rated won't hurt. They are the more expensive that cover the possibilites of an over voltage situation and of course the better the windings the longer the motor will last before it "burns up" so to speak from the load. Some however will behave as you have mentioned, but the constant over voltage will send them up in smoke after a while. Hopefully after a familiar smell happens a few times before any real damage is done. Others well, the smell and the smoke happen PDQ, followed by a sentence consisting mainly of four letter words and a decision about the type of motor to replace it with. 

Now, all that being said.Keep in mind a car system is 12V also, or at least most, but.... it actually runs at almost 15V.  

Sorry I can't be more positive, but I'd sure hate to say "oh yeah, a couple of volts won't hurt" and find out in your case it does.

Have a Great Day!!

[Cox 47]

Good Morning All..Its partly cloudy and 76..Weather guesser an TV says rain this afternoon...I'll have a sasage sandwitch with cheese,American fries,sweet roll and coffee please...Thank You..I am hoping my power chair will hold out thru the week-end..Service guy is suposed to be here Monday I'm looking forward I havn't been out side for over a week..Getting cabin fever!!..

Two big Shows!!

2 and 7 PM at the cumberland County Fairgrounds in Greenup Illinois..

Cox Brother's 1 ring Circus!! featuring 1 elephant,2 ponys,6 dogs and the one and only Waldo the human cannonball!!...

 

You all have a good week-end..See you at the Circus!...Jerry

[pcarrell]

Mornin' all!

Sorry I wasn't around much last evening.  I was kinda busy.  Ya see, the old clutch was starting to slip on my 2001 Drifter 1500.  Mileage was dropping and when I'd gun it, it'd slip.  I got the Meanstreak clutch spring (the Meanstreak is the high performance version of my engine, so it's basically a factory hop-up), the two part holders for it (vs. the single part it came with from the factory), and all the gaskets ( http://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/clutchparts.html ).  I lined up my tools, and dug in.  I followed Gadgets instructions (Thanks Gadget! http://www.gadgetjq.com/clutch_spring_replacement.htm ) and in fairily short order I was looking at a pile of parts on the floor.  Now, it is said that this job is much easier if you have an air wrench to remove "the nut" with.  Fortunately, I do!  Unfortunately, it chose that exact moment to break!  Now I had 27mm of royal pain in the posterior to deal with!  Thanks to the link on Gadgets page, I was able to muscle it off the old fashioned way.........and no, I didn't even use my "pursuader" (hammer).  Once that was done, it all went back together pretty well, and in a few hours I was riding again.  I took my time and used pretty much all of last evening to do it.  It makes quite a difference in the positive engagement of the clutch.  Think I'll go ride today!

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

Good morning......

Robby......... I hope the numbers look good this time for Mrs. Robby's blood work. Keep your faith about Fed Ex. It will go just fine.

Barry....... What a great find at the garage sale!

I was operating the steel mill Baldwin switchers this morning and posted some photos in WPF.

 

[Robby P.]

 Good morning.   Its going to be a pretty day!!  Sun, no rain, and the high will be about 83.

 Thanks everybody for the prayers, good lucks, etc.   The wife had to go this morning for more blood work.  Her numbers were kinda low.  They just wanna make sure the numbers are going up.  We won't get the results till Monday.  As far as FedEx, well I hope I'm not looking into it "to deep".  I'm thinking what about this, what about that, he didn't get my name for the interview, etc.....  My wife is telling me to relax. 

 I guess the plan for today is....change some oil,  clean up the baby/junk room, get stuff to the attic, mainly house stuff.  I did buy a new "The Rock" 2-bay hopper to weather, but probably won't touch it till Sunday.

 Jim....Yeah .5 isn't much of a lead.  Since the Steelers camp has opened up, its time to change the flag out front.  Cubs down, and the Steelers flag goes up.

 Barry...Thats a good find.  I went to a flea market a few weeks ago, and someone had a old trainset "El Cheapo".  One you would buy at a store for maybe $50.00.  They wanted $100.  I was thinking "They are crazy".  

 Well have a good morning, and I will pop back in later.  

 

[blownout cylinder]

Heartland Division CB&Q

Barry ... If you give your cat a bath, do you call it "Spring cleaning"?

We do our 'Spring cleaning' in the fall-------

Heartland Division CB&Q

Bridge Tom... Good to see you. Did you see the 2-10-10-10-10-10-2 I posted a few weeks ago? It may be a challenge for your yellowstones. Also, I hope your leg problem is better now.

I saw that posting too. A very interesting Quintuplex that----I'm just wondering what the weight of that would have been----

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Good Morning

We got us another sunny day with the high at 26C and a low of 16C with a 40% chance of rain--tomorrow will be a showery day again---and a high of 23C expected...

I went by a yard sale earlier on a walk and saw that someone was selling two 4X8 'HO' layouts--trains and all. Phoned up a friend of mine who is looking to get into MR'ing and told him to go there---He got 'em both and the boxes all for $30----

Flo, I'll have a coffee and a toaste bagel please---and I'll be at the RC seeing who else shows up

 

[LSWrr]

Good morning all, after 13 innings Cleveland won over the Tigers.  We actually got good seats, right behind home plate on the lower level and yes yours truly was on the evening news.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

JimRCGMO

Jeff - I was wondering... how're the lakes doing down your way after all that rain (and if I recall correctly, it looked like more of the same for you today...

The rain makes no difference really. As long as repairs are being carried out on the dam and the archeological teams are exploring the exposed areas the gates are being left open to keep the lake down at it's present level of 12 feet below normal.

 

Good morning.

It's 76 and cloudy. The high should be around 90 and there's a chance of rain.

Got a little more work done on the Schultz's garage kit last night. I painted the trim white and the window frames green. The doors received a second coat of buff white. I got time yesterday to go to the local scrap yard to get a starter for my car. The overrun clutch on the old starter is bad. This causes the starter to disengage after only a second or two. Sometimes it's enough time for the engine to start and sometimes not. Either way it's mostly irritating. Now I just need the time to change the starter out. I know that sounds simple but there's a skid plate that needs to come off first. I also found out yesterday that my floor jack has a bad seal so using it is out of the question. I do however have a solution. There's a terrace wall at the bottom of one of my parent's two driveways that has a 6 inch drop on the far side. I can park the car so the front wheels are on the wall (ground level on one side). The car is front wheel drive with the engine set forward of the axle center line and the starter is on the front side of the engine, so I should be able to get to it easily. The hard part will be removing the aforementioned skid plate not to mention putting it back on. The starter itself is a snap to replace. There are only 2 bolts that hold it in place and they both go in vertically. Can you tell I've done this before?

Today's Weather for:
Sundown, LA  71446-6114      8/1/2009

Heat Index:  82°F
Humidity:  99%
Dew Point:  76°F

So Far Today
High:  77°F
Low:  76°F
Rain:  0.00"
Rain Rate:  0.00"/h
Gust:  3mph NNE

Today  High: 92    Mostly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning...then a 50 percent chance in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 90s. South winds 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight  Low: 75    Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 70s. South winds 5 to 10 mph.

[pcarrell]

Robby, I hope the Fedex thing goes real well for you!

JimRCGMO

PC, I bet that wasn't your first cup of the morning coffee, either. Did you get some of that downpour that the others east of us got?

Yeah, we got it, but it wasn't too bad.