The self-flagellation of the frugal and mechanically minded(a rant)

My moto is if it was made by humans it can be fixed, doing so cost effectively might be a different matter.
 
Mt pool is a salt pool. I've had the AquaRite cell power supply for ages. One day, the display is goofy, and it won't come on. I sighed, 'oh well I got 12 good years out of it'. But - just before ordering a $1500 replacement, I went a did a quick search online. There were a couple of links showing the de-coupling smoothing capacitor on the power intake leg get fried after a while. So, I popped the cover off, and sure enough that planar cap was toasted and crusty. Ordered it from Amazon(I had to get 10 count), and 20 min later with a soldering gun I was back in business.

I have one of those DiBlasi scooters that fold up and toss in the plane. I'd been running it hard, in summer at a high elevation airport for a while, and it seized up from too much use and not enough oil getting into the cyl. I let it cool, took the head and cyl off, I had to pry on it some. I took the scored piston off, and lightly sanded the bottom score of the piston, and gently sanded the lower part of the cyl, then cut a gasket out of material and stuffed it all back together. It's still running great! Field expedience. All I needed was a 10mm, screwdriver, and some 400 grit.
 
I know we love to repair but this one is kinda embarrassing, I have the same oven as Darren and Samantha in "Bewitched"
 
MackMooney said:
I know we love to repair but this one is kinda embarrassing, I have the same oven as Darren and Samantha in "Bewitched"
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does it work?

if yes, why would you be embarrassed?
 
MackMooney said:
I know we love to repair but this one is kinda embarrassing, I have the same oven as Darren and Samantha in "Bewitched"
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The kind that magically bakes a 5-tier wedding cake when you twitch your nose?
 
Jim K said:
Believe me...he has regretted it for 55 years.

About 30 years ago he tried to track it down, but the trail went cold after an engine fire and subsequent sale to a junkyard about 15 years after he sold it :frown3:
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Sorry about his loss.
Daleandee said:
Trading a GM product for a Ford product? Yes ... everyday and twice on the weekend! ;)
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I'm curious. How many cars did Ford sell because of Smoky and the Bandit (1 and 2)? vs. Pontiac Firebirds, especially Trans Ams? The first movie made Firebirds iconic.

I have a 1981 Special Edition Trans Am, very similar to what Burt Reynolds drove in the 1981 Smoky and the Bandit movie, and no way would I trade it for a Ford, not even a Thunderbird!

I had a 1977 Formula for a long time. It had a 6.6L Pontiac engine, a 4bbl carb, 4 speed manual, and Posi-Trac rear end. It beat the heck out of the 1968 Custom 500 Ford I commuted 80 miles round trip to college in for four years. I sold it to a guy who planned to ship it to the Netherlands. I would have kept it, but my wife wanted the garage for her car, and I wasn't ready to put the money into it to get it back in shape.
 
Crashnburn said:
Sorry about his loss.

I'm curious. How many cars did Ford sell because of Smoky and the Bandit (1 and 2)? vs. Pontiac Firebirds, especially Trans Ams? The first movie made Firebirds iconic.

I have a 1981 Special Edition Trans Am, very similar to what Burt Reynolds drove in the 1981 Smoky and the Bandit movie, and no way would I trade it for a Ford, not even a Thunderbird!

I had a 1977 Formula for a long time. It had a 6.6L Pontiac engine, a 4bbl carb, 4 speed manual, and Posi-Trac rear end. It beat the heck out of the 1968 Custom 500 Ford I commuted 80 miles round trip to college in for four years. I sold it to a guy who planned to ship it to the Netherlands. I would have kept it, but my wife wanted the garage for her car, and I wasn't ready to put the money into it to get it back in shape.
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I don't buy vehicles just because they make movies about them. If you like GM products I have no qualms with that. I've had quite enough time in my teenage years with valve cover & rear main seal leaks on GM products to last a lifetime. If it counts I do have a GM engine (Corvair) in my experimental aircraft ... ;)

BTW .. I'm not a Ford fanatic either but I've had better service from Ford than GM (although the GM vehicles seem to ride better). Most of my stuff now is made in America but designed in Japan and tends to last forever!
 
My 08 Ford Focus has "Push Button Start"...

After 200K+ the ignition switch wore out enough that the "crank" position didn't work anymore and I used a push-button switch to bypass it.
 
MauleSkinner said:
How many Firebirds did Pontiac sell because of Bullitt?
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For the sarcastically impaired....or people too young to be able to tell the difference, someone is pointing out the sadness/humor of conflating a Steve McQueen movie with a Burt Reynolds movie. And the answer is... I think only James Garner and Steve McQueen could actually drive their cars in a race type manner. But maybe Reynolds raced, too.
 
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Albany Tom said:
I think only James Garner and Steve McQueen could actually drive their cars is a race type manner.
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I remember reading a story about McQueen filming “LeMans” where they found that they could actually get a podium finish with the film car if they stopped making extra pit stops to re-load the cameras. McQueen had to decide whether he was more interested in making a movie or running the race.
 
Albany Tom said:
For the sarcastically impaired....or people too young to be able to tell the difference, someone is pointing out the sadness/humor of conflating a Steve McQueen movie with a Burt Reynolds movie. And the answer is... I think only James Garner and Steve McQueen could actually drive their cars in a race type manner. But maybe Reynolds raced, too.
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Garner could probably sell me on a Firebird.
 
MauleSkinner said:
How many Firebirds did Pontiac sell because of Bullitt?
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Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?! :D

As I recall, in that movie was a plush 1962 or 63 Lincoln Conti with suicide doors that was cut up and turned into the parade 'float'.
 
MackMooney said:
LG here, 15 years 1 replacement pump motor dishes still come out spotless. darn thing is super quiet, can only tell it's running if there's no other sound in the house
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Putting a mancave above my detached garage. Bathroom and full kitchen. Found someone remodeling their kitchen and the slab of granite was the perfect fit for what I had in mind. 600 bucks. They threw in the almost brand new stainless LG dishwasher for free. Here's to hoping it's as good as you say.
 
Good catch on finding the granite. I find it tough to understand putting in a countertop that would last for a thousand years in a kitchen that will be remodeled in 10.
 
Albany Tom said:
Good catch on finding the granite. I find it tough to understand putting in a countertop that would last for a thousand years in a kitchen that will be remodeled in 10.
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We're fighting this now. My parents put beautiful granite countertops in this house 7? years ago. Problem is the kitchen layout sucks, but we can't move anything because we'd never match the granite and it's too nice to trash.
 
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Jim K said:
We're fighting this now. My parents put beautiful granite countertops in this house 7? years ago. Problem is the kitchen layout sucks, but we can't move anything because we'd never match the granite and it's too nice to trash.
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Repurpose the granite in a wet bar?

Maybe a local countertop company will work a trade?
 
We had a refrigerator made by LG, but sold by Sears. Replaced it under service contract when it failed in a part made of unobtainium. The replacement failed a few years later. Sears offered us another unit or cash. We took the cash and bought a different refrigerator that has been flawless.

Our washer has been in service for over 30 years. Top loader and it has been flawless. The matching dryer had to be replaced about 28 years ago and the replacement unit has been working just fine. I hope they run forever because I had heard that they "don't make them like that anymore." Same with our dishwasher. It's 28 years old and continues to wash dishes just fine.
 
I have a refrigerator that my parents bought in early 1958 (still going strong - knock on wood).
 
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