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Friday, January 5, 2024

New Year...Same old S***!

 


Wish I had some progress to brag about, but not much is happening. I’ve tried to get a few problems resolved, but the arrival of winter has just slowed me down even more. Too many household jobs for me to dedicate much time to car hobbies, and I don’t have enough strength to do everything.

I did identify a wiring problem that was created by too many functions routed through the ignition switch, but I’m going to wait until it’s time to fire the engine before I do any rewiring. The ignition circuit looks right, so the car should run the way it is wired. It appears that only the accessory switch position has a problem. If I had a diagram of the internal workings of the switch, it would be a lot easier to verify.

Installing the side trim is also problematical. as I need a certain type of 3M tape to attach the stainless. It is a standard product listed in their catalog, but I can’t find it available anywhere on the Internet. The 3M customer support will not talk to me because I’m not a business and they won’t deal with individual customers. Now that the holidays are over, a body shop friend of my son says he will try to contact them, but promises are cheap and easily forgotten.

Speaking of the side trim, I’m having second thoughts about using the embossed Mylar fabric. It just doesn’t look right enough, so I’m back to looking for a better material. At least that problem is not stopping me from finishing the mechanical tasks. First problem is filling and bleeding the brakes without a partner. No helpers around when they are really needed. The remaining mechanical work depends on the  weather and my health, neither of which is predictable.

Only major car news for me is that I traded my ten-year-old Chrysler van for a new one. It’s a leftover ’23 that was discounted so much that I couldn’t pass it up. After all these years, I realize that I just bought my last car...one unloved Chevy and fifty-some Mopars!.

4 comments:

  1. Good to hear from you. In regards to the accessory switch position problem a Bosch style relay would be a solution so that the switch is only handling the current required to trip the relay and the relay is handling the rest. Would also make for a neat and tidy bus bar? (I still hate bodywork)

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    1. Never thought of that, even after wiring my headlights with a relay! I'll keep that in mind when I get around to reassigning circuits and rewiring. I can probably eliminate quite a few feet of excess wire by doing that.

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    2. Gary, get your long john underwear out, it is minus 28 Celsius now plus the wind chill and we are sending it to Texas. NO bodywork here this week ... YAHOO !

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    3. Dang it, Ray, I thought you were in Lower B.C., not Dawson Creek! I was born and raised where the state record is -63F and I recall going hunting at -52. That's one reason I'm in Texas now. Were supposed to get down to 8F on Sunday, but I can't even stand it that cold anymore.

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