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My widowed neighbor brought this sign into my shop about 3 weeks ago. Her special needs son had tried to restore it with a rattle can. She said she had a dream about the sign and my name came up. Would I like to paint it.? No way I can ruin a dream for a wonderful neighbor. So it became a project. I took the sign to a local cabinet / sign maker for advice on paints and clear coatings. In 2 minutes he had it on his screen. He made the sign in 1995. I thought about paying him to make a new one, but I knew my neighbor would prefer the old one. It had taken a 1/2" warp over the 30 years and I decided to not correct it, but added two ribs to keep it together. Used some soldering irons as wood burners to reestablish the outlines. Three coats of brown oil based enamel, three coats of gold water based acrylic, and the fourth and final coat of water based spar poly today.

We miss you @Stormin, today would have been his 78th birthday.

Rolled into crab camp at 3PM and moved in for the week. And the relaxing begins.

Moved the 2” receiver from the Workhorse to the 520-8.

If anyone here has seen the movie "Hacksaw Ridge" knows about the heroics of Desmond T. Doss. There was a TV show, "This is your Life", and one episode, it honored Doss. To make this on topic, the show gave him a brand new Wheel Horse Ride-away. You can see it on the below video at 24:30. Dorothy Doss, his wife, died in a car accident in 1991 and Desmond, himself, died in 2006 at age 87. He was a real life American hero that most don't know about.

I took out some tractors I had stored in my enclosed trailer to put different ones in to go to a show yesterday. When I got home I didn’t feel like reloading them so I just put them in the garage.

A good start for crabby Ed.

Picked up one today. More to come soon

Under hood fuel tanks... I have yet to find one that wasn't really faded and/ or really nasty looking. So I did something silly: I took my little orbital sander and knocked all the grunge off this one, and put a light coat of red paint on it. At least it'll be the same color where it shows on the sides. I really wish I'd taken a before pic. It was multicolored and nasty. Looks much better now.

After many years of camping, from tent to pop-ups to tag-along 24' trailer, Mrs. M and I decided that the money we would spend on a new trailer or motorhome, along with the fuel and repairs, would be better spent staying in luxury hotels. I rest my case....

55 years ago when I was in the Boy Scouts some of us had a chance to spend a long weekend camping with Rangers on Eglin A.F.B. We had to have a signed permission paper from our parents, that should of been an indication of what this 14 year old boy was about to experience. My mom didn't want to sign it for my brother and I but my dad said give me that with a grin on his face and signed it. Part of the deal was we only had what they killed and cooked to eat, it wasn't road kill it was northwest Florida SWAMP KILL. By Saturday afternoon non of it smell that bad and when your fourteen and hungry you do what you got to do. I can tell you most of it does taste like chicken, but the Possum and palm hearts stew was really greasy but when you cold and hungry, well I had a second helping.

Bought my loving wife a new 2025 Explorer. We will also be using it for road trips and since it has a hitch it may do some horse hauling some day. It came with 21" wheels and big brakes so it handles and stops well. Her car has the upgraded interior. Lots of cargo room. Third row seats are up in this pic but will likely spend most of their time folded down flat.

Other side just for giggles...

Still recovering, took a marathon drive to Conway SC yesterday. Met a southern gentleman, Cletis Nester, and picked up my first sickle bar. Cleat was a generous and accommodating host, invited me in to his shop, regailed me with stories. I was so drained from the drive, I didn't have the wherewithal to take pictures. One photo from when I stopped for supper, more to follow.

Today the wife and I took a boat ride over to the North Fork of Long Island to grab some lunch. On the way we passed the ferries that run to Shelter Island. Here’s a few pictures.

I wasn’t happy with the way the paint job on the C-141 came out so I figured I’d fix it. It’s supposed to be nice the next few days so I figured I’d give it another shot before it gets cold. That might be a tomorrow morning or Monday project. It’s a learning curve….right😁

We told our wives we were going after some parts.

National Silent Movie Day takes place on September 29 each year. National Silent Movie Day is a day to celebrate and enjoy silent movies. But, what is a silent movie? A silent movie is a film with no accompanying, synchronized, recorded spoken dialogue. Watching a movie combining motion pictures with recorded sound seems obvious, but movies did not have any sound at first. It was mainly because of the technical challenges involved. Combining motion pictures with recorded sound is nearly as old as the motion picture itself.

National Chewing Gum Day is celebrated on September 30 every year. The gummy texture, the translucent bubble, the satisfying pop! These are just a few of the reasons why people all over the world love chewing gum. Whether you call it bubble gum, chewing gum, or chicle, there’s nothing quite as fun as munching on a piece of gum.

Decided to tackle this non-running C-141A I bought Friday. Looks like the original owner had starting issues and took the wrong turn at every step along the way. They even went so far as to direct wire a push-button start (with 12 gauge wire)! So, I basically cut away a half mile of unnecessary wiring, rerouted the remaining wires where they belonged. Also swapped out an incorrect coil, solenoid, condenser, and fried points. Set the points timing, fuel looked and smelled fresh, so I just replaced with a proper filter. Oil in engine and hydro looked new, Hit key - started! Aired tires, drove tractor, tested hydraulic lift, attached deck, and mowed several strips in the empty park behind our property. Outstanding day 1 results!

856 Test drive after carb rebuild and transaxle flush. Want be long till Halloween 🎃 so thought this would be fitting pic.

Made some footrests. This one is done, done, done! Before and after as well as a close up of the back plate.

Yeah, it was in the right place by the hoist where I wanted to hang the sign. I was real careful not to damage the priceless patina on the hood.

Can say that again ....

Painted the rear body/fender of my GT18 today with three coats of New Holland-approved paint. I used up almost three rattle cans on this body part. In hindsight, I should have just ordered a quart or two of paint and used an HVLP spray gun for this project, but it came out OK...no runs and pretty shiny. What looks like wrinkles in the paint is just the masking tape on the data labels. The GT18 came with rear-facing reflectors, which are essentially taillight lenses with a piece of white (now yellow with age) plastic behind them. Here are the original reflectors (which are still in pretty good shape): I thought I'd upgrade the GT18 by replacing the reflectors with "real" taillights, like those on my 522xi. I did a bit of searching and found a set (see part number in photo): I just ordered a set of lamp sockets for the new taillights, and I plan to add the taillight wiring when I have a moment. The taillights will come on when the headlights are on. The total current for the headlights and taillights together should be less than the original headlights alone, since I've switched to LED bulbs for the headlights.

Mark the shifter where the top edge of the boot normally lives when installed. Then slide the boot up the shifter and lay a bead of grease right on that line. Slide the boot back down and will fill the seal part to the shifter with grease plus leave a bead of grease sealing the underside of the boot. Just kinda throwing this out there in the thread for info purposes

National Raccoon Day takes place on October 1 every year. It is not limited to just raccoons, it extends to all misunderstood animals classified as pests, such as coyotes, spiders, and snakes. This day encourages people to look more closely at raccoons, not as a nuisance but as an important factor in the ecosystem. Many are even kept as pets, however, these are by sanctuaries and rescuers with profound knowledge about the creatures. They’re not to be kept like other domesticated animals. Read on to find out more about these interesting critters and their history.

Piece by piece, I'm gradually getting the paint sorted on my GT18. Here are the steps in fixing up one of the foot rests: A fair amount of rust had developed under the rubber mat: I slathered on a thick coat of CitriStrip, wrapped it in a polyethylene sheet, and let it sit for a few hours. About 98% of the paint came right off without any scrubbing or scraping: Here's how it looked after washing off the CitriStrip and removing a few bits of remaining paint: Next, I let the foot rest sit in a phosphoric acid bath for a while, which took care of most of the rust, and then hit any stubborn remaining pockets with my spot blaster. (Note: I don't use phosphoric acid on high-strength or hardened steel, since I want to avoid hydrogen embrittlement.) I applied the initial coat of self-etching primer, which contains zinc phosphate: Then I filled the pits with 3M High-Bond filler and sanded it flat: Here it is after more primer coats: And after a few coats of paint: Now on to the next one.

First wagon I've seen like this one! I saw it listed on FB Marketplace. They're asking $1,000. South Bend, IN

Picked up a 169 over the weekend. I might have over paid for it, but i know these are pretty uncommon. Has a deck, integral hitch and plow. Has a cracked oil pan from an over tightened drain plug and a brush paint job, but I'll be excited to get this one going again! Also the muffler is in great shape so thats a plus!

The Kohler Breakerless ignition system that you have either works well or not at all. If it is workring it has advantages over the Battery points system. No points to corrode or need adjusting... timing is perfect... I would leave it alone, it may run for years...if it does die then convert.

The 2 closest in the photo are mine and the Charger 10 is my neighbor's.

Fish Tank Floorshow Night is celebrated on September 28. It’s a night dedicated to making the fish species the main attraction. The quiet and beautiful animals in the corner of the room take the stage for the night. Fish have been kept as pets for so many years, and they remain a favorite choice for many amazing reasons. Did you know watching fish is good for your health? It helps you destress and calm down. So join us as we watch some fish in the tank, on TV, or in the aquarium. Toss a pillow on the floor of your living room and get ready to do some fish-watching!

Somebody told me recently that I needed to fill a spot in my 875 dash!

The 42in RD is finished, thanks everybody for your help along the way. I would've preferred the original paint but it was too much already lost to rust. I'm hoping I can cut some grass with it in the next few days

Doing some work yesterday

This is my setup for at home flushing using a spare WH frame and an electric motor...

Did a little clearing work behind the shed. Weeds and debris were taking over. Not sure what the plan is for this spot just yet.

Today I got the group out in the sun for Front End Friday. I worked some on the C-141 rerouting the gas line to make it start easier, which was a success. I also worked more on the C-85 getting it to the point where its easier to move around. I also started a bit of disassembly on the shaker motor mount as I'm going to set it up like the others. I also removed the PO added external idle handle.

I’ve repaired cracks and missing chunks on some of the older wheels. I’ve used JBWeld or PC7 epoxy. The PC7 epoxy is a little thicker and runs less. I spray black spray paint in the epoxy as I mix it. You can use vinyl gloves wetted with water to shape the epoxy. I use a file to shape the epoxy, then finish with sand paper.

World Farm Animals Day, which falls on October 2 every year. This day comes around once a year to remind us just how important animals are to society and why we need to give animals the voice they so desperately need. While you too may be an animal lover, have you ever wondered what fellow animal lovers have done for other creatures? If you read a little about the origin of this event, you may be surprised how far people have come to give your pet their proper rights and what you too can do on this special day. This date was significant for animal protection organizations because it was first known as the day of Francis Assisi, the patron saint of ecology, which includes the study of animals. According to legends, the saint was able to tame animals relatively easily and even talk to them. No matter which way you decide to spend World Animal Day, just keep in mind how much animals give to us in unconditional love and support.

Friday night at the beach down the road from my house

Over Coopersville 5 minutes ago.

All painted……for now. It’s a worker but it seems to be better than the last paint job so far.. And I preliminarily painted the belt cover with a spray can for The C-85 since it was off a Workhorse. Your turn @kpinnc.😁

Now that we have high jacked Eric’s thread, and changed it to conversation on dielectric grease I’d like to add something. First I’d like to thank @wh500special for using words in post 134 like “parsimonious” that I almost had to look up! 😂 Second, I really didn’t even know I was using dielectric grease incorrectly. For years I would clean the contacts in the electrical plugs on my Fisher snowplow with electrical contact cleaner and then apply dielectric grease until it oozed out and then wipe off the excess. I never had a problem with those connections and it kept the water, salt and corrosion away. Third, here we are talking about grease and where is @peter lena?

Yes. Any classic tractor (300/400/500) series will fit.

The only "Road Kill" I have eaten was a gator tail. The road to the power plant in Homestead, FL is a bit desolate and has a swamp to the south. One evening on the way in to work the Midnight Shift one of my coworkers hit an alligator, we were rather early for work so had time to harvest the tail. My coworker took it home, cubed it, marinated it in milk for a couple of days, and breaded it. We fried it off at work and shared it with the whole crew.