Right Now!

[TEWKS]

“I'm imagining your sidestand sinking into soft dirt, followed by your GS falling downslope and sliding in the water, ending up in a position from which it's really difficult to upright..”

 

Now that wouldn’t have made my day!   It was pretty solid ground but ya, she’s a leaner! 
 

 

Edited July 25, 2022 by TEWKS
Added context.

[wbw6cos]

....and to hoping that area was not peed on.

[TEWKS]

So, I asked them to look at the suspension because the truck appeared to have a “squat” in the rear (I know there’s a joke there). This is what they found.  

[wbw6cos]

Gee, I wonder if that could have been found on a pre-trip inspection.   

[TEWKS]

On a tractor, no doubt. I actually looked last night while preparing it for the service (I stuck my head in the wheel well) and didn’t see it.  You’d need a creeper to actually get a good look. It’s not required for the daily inspections. Now, I’ve found broken springs in the past, I wish I looked a little harder last night.

[Rougarou]

3 hours ago, TEWKS said:

So, I asked them to look at the suspension because the truck appeared to have a “squat” in the rear (I know there’s a joke there). This is what they found.  

 

Hit a u-pull-it, yank a couple of matching springs, put them on yours, done.  Easy as pie.

 

3 hours ago, wbw6cos said:

Gee, I wonder if that could have been found on a pre-trip inspection.   

 

You inspect a vehicle before a long trip  I've done many round trips from NC to SW La and have yet to do any type of vehicle inspection.  I top off the fuel, load up what needs to be loaded and head out.  Done a few cross country trips and many, many 500-1k trips.  Even in my Jeepin' days, I never inspected the tow rig for pulling 1k miles in a shot.  Heck, my wife's first time towing (F250 loaded down and her pulling a trailer with daughters car on it), all I did was make sure she had a full tank before she left, that was a 1k trip.  Maybe it's a bad habit, but I've yet to be stranded anywhere.......and if you've read any of my maintenance habits, they're kinda minimal

[TEWKS]

I think they’re going to replace both springs, left and right. Doesn’t happen in the trucking industry (AFAIRemember) unless it’s a clapped-out 400 thousand mile beast. 34,000 miles is basically new but it being a town owned emergency vehicle, nobody is going to put their name on it as good enough. Side note, I know this from my gravel hauling days, you need to re-torque the U bolts after a thousand miles or so or you’ll break the springs again. I’ll pass that along if the shop doesn’t. 

[TEWKS]

Starting to sound like a broken record with this fire stuff.  My Kid had his first structure fire last night. He was on the ladder so they got there a little bit after the initial fire attack. But, still some good work and he gained valuable experience.

 

This building is a hundred feet away from the south station. I’ll tell ya, that sucks when you get those “close” calls, the scramble to get your gear on is intense.  

 

 

[MikeB60]

Never noticed this. DyAnne must have bought the performance edition!  200 MPH really....

 

[Rougarou]

Gave power red blood this morning, then tore the vinyl and cedar off, just finished wrapping. Hardi planks go on tomorrow 

 

one section at a time

 

 

[Rougarou]

Lunch break

[TEWKS]

My late lunch. @BobW03 is probably the only guy that might know this place.

Baked stuffed Scrod. 

 

[Rougarou]

Next week,…..painting

 

added a better shot

 

 

[TEWKS]

What does these two objects in the picture have in common? Mike knows.  Ok, it’s actually just a number and I probably just gave it away. 

[TEWKS]

King Rootin Tootin Rex thinks he’s got it made. Little does he know there’s a little bitch (female puppy)  coming on Thursday to straighten his arse out. Say it with me…puppy pee, puppy poop, puppy pee, puppy poop, puppy pee, puppy poop. 

 

[BamaJohn]

1 hour ago, TEWKS said:

What does these two objects in the picture have in common? Mike knows.  Ok, it’s actually just a number and I probably just gave it away. 

3

[LBump]

1 hour ago, TEWKS said:

What does these two objects in the picture have in common? Mike knows.  Ok, it’s actually just a number and I probably just gave it away. 

 

Lots of threes Pat... 

Lets see, three wheels, three arches, three courses of bricks on those three arches, three panes of windows in each of the three windows, three steps of flashing on the chimney ands it looks like three shoots of ivy growing up the brick.  What did I miss? 

[TEWKS]

Wow, that’s awesome Larry!  I didn’t even think about the three wheels,   I was looking at the 3 doors and was thinking the 3 cylinder engine. Great perception! 

[MikeB60]

Well I always say I was born blonde and it tends to show at times.  Cuz I'd didn't have nothing...

[ESokoloff]

11 hours ago, Rougarou said:

Lunch break

Looks like your getting good with this stuff
I still cringe when I see that nailer.......

[Rougarou]

7 hours ago, ESokoloff said:

Looks like your getting good with this stuff
I still cringe when I see that nailer.......

 

Thanks much

 

Wife and I are rolling along.  That siding nailer is awesome.  rather than adjusting the pressure on the compressor (as with the standard nail guns she has), there's a nifty dial to get the correct depth.  I have it set a little light then either the wife or I will love tap the nail the rest of the way.  

 

We do have a portin on the back side of the house that we will likely hire out simply due to the height.  While I do have scaffolding, I don't have enough to reach for the full length.  It's only a small portion, about 25-30ft in length.   I don't really want to rent the additional scaffolding either since work is only done on the weekends and I'd be paying the rent for the week/s I'd have the stuff.

 

 

 

 

[TEWKS]

Field trip to Wilmington. Mutual aid, more specifically. 

 

[ESokoloff]

8 hours ago, Rougarou said:

We do have a portin on the back side of the house that we will likely hire out simply due to the height.

Good for you for knowing when to hold ‘em & when to fold 'em

[TEWKS]

Almost just had a barn burner. 

 

[LBump]

1 hour ago, TEWKS said:

Almost just had a barn burner. 

 

 

I've never seen singles melt like that...??  What kind of wood melts under excessive heat?

[Rougarou]

2 hours ago, LBump said:

 

I've never seen singles melt like that...??  What kind of wood melts under excessive heat?

 

Vinyl wood

[TEWKS]

2 hours ago, Rougarou said:

 

Vinyl wood

Yeah, it was actually a pretty realistic looking imitation vinyl wood. 
 

edit…

After Larry @LBump pegged all the threes in my last picture post, he knew.   

[ESokoloff]

2 hours ago, TEWKS said:

Yeah, it was actually a pretty realistic looking imitation vinyl wood. 

Wouldn’t have happened with Hardie.

[Ron-M]

17 hours ago, TEWKS said:

Field trip to Wilmington. Mutual aid, more specifically. 

 

Two comments about this photo Pat.  My Uncle retired from the North Reading Police Department back in  1992.  https://localheadlinenews.com/retired-police-sgt-frederick-dd-oconnor-83/.  The second comment relates to the design of Tewksbury Engine 4-specifically the rear view mirrors.  Kind of ant like , don't ya think. Can't just reach out and adjust those mirrors.  But I am sure they serve their purpose nicely.  

[TEWKS]

 

1 hour ago, ESokoloff said:

Wouldn’t have happened with Hardie.

Probably wouldn’t have happened if he didn’t set his battery charger on “hold” and then forget about it.  That seems to have been the likely source. 

[TEWKS]

4 minutes ago, Ron-M said:

Two comments about this photo Pat.  My Uncle retired from the North Reading Police Department back in  1992.  https://localheadlinenews.com/retired-police-sgt-frederick-dd-oconnor-83/.  The second comment relates to the design of Tewksbury Engine 4-specifically the rear view mirrors.  Kind of ant like , don't ya think. Can't just reach out and adjust those mirrors.  But I am sure they serve their purpose nicely.  

Nice picture, I can see some resemblance! Did you grow up in this area? I forget if that ever came up in conversation.

 

About those mirrors, they suck!  They are power but their placement leaves a blind spot on slight left hand turns in the road. You have to tilt your head to look around them in that situation. 
 

I’m on the truck committee for the next one we have coming and that was one of my biggest suggestions was to get regular door mounted mirrors. 
 

[Ron-M]

Hey Pat,

 

Yep grew up in the area.  Great Grandparents emigrated from the "old country," and my mother and father, including my Uncle, lived in Cambridge for many, many years.  I grew up in Cambridge and Maynard, Ma., until I moved to Florida in 1978.  I still have a lot of relatives in the area including a brother who just recently moved to Danville, NH, from Lowell.  

[TEWKS]

That’s not a dog, it’s an 🦦 

  

[wbw6cos]

You put the Red Bull in the photo for size reference, right?

 

Just askin'

[TEWKS]

Yeah, it was kinda a throwback thing. Our last Yorkshire I did the same thing with a coke can but, I didn’t have one. 

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Right now?  Debugging an exhaust emissions analyzer bench:

 

 

[TEWKS]

14 hours ago, Joe Frickin' Friday said:

Right now?  Debugging an exhaust emissions analyzer bench:

 

 

Hey, do you need me to talk you through this?  

[TEWKS]

A little more effort.  

[wbw6cos]

Now, you need to get Zoe to perk her ears up and you're done!

 

Nice pics!

[MikeB60]

Hell yes!

 

[TEWKS]

The old timers had a front row seat, last week. 

[TEWKS]

About 4:00 AM this morning. I’m going to call this a practice rescue situation.
 

Structure was a wood / cabinet shop. Arrived on scene as second engine, just as it was reported heavy smoke in the building. We were sent in to find the seat of the fire and check on the first crew that went in. Big building, lots of objects to navigate around. We found them and the material that was still burning which was mostly extinguished by the building’s sprinkler system. The smoke situation was the issue at hand, really.

 

Anyway, after finishing off the remnants of the fire, one of the guys in the first crew ran low on air, so, we started searching for a back way out of the building. One locked overhead door was it. So the choice was to navigate back through the clutter and smoke or wait till the outside crew opened the door. We waited. Richard, might like this part, a former Marine cut open the door for us!  Anyway, it really wasn’t a life threat but (could of been) (the situation) most firefighters fear. (getting lost and low on air)

Hope I’m not jumping the shark with these stories, it’s all I’ve got at the moment.  
 

 

PS…this was after the smoke was cleared.

[TEWKS]

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

On 8/8/2022 at 11:08 AM, TEWKS said:

Richard, might like this part, a former Marine cut open the door for us! 

 

Not sure what he used to cut the door open, but it looked like it worked pretty damn good.  

 

Right now?  designing safety shielding for a new engine testing driveline configuration:

 

 

 

We don't generally paint things in such gaudy colors - I just do that for myself within SolidWorks to make it easier to see which part is which on screen.

[TEWKS]

 

Hey, bet you probably know the answer, the blade on the saw he used completely disappeared as he was making the last cut. It was gone, couldn’t use it again if needed. I think it was a “carbide blade” but we need something better. Research is being done but figure it wouldn’t hurt to ask. 
 

 

BTW, it was an arson fire.

 

[TEWKS]

14 minutes ago, Joe Frickin' Friday said:

 

Not sure what he used to cut the door open, but it looked like it worked pretty damn good.  

Tried to edit that quote in to the above. I failed. 

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

2 minutes ago, TEWKS said:

Hey, bet you probably know the answer, the blade on the saw he used completely disappeared as he was making the last cut. It was gone, couldn’t use it again if needed. I think it was a “carbide blade” but we need something better. Research is being done but figure it wouldn’t hurt to ask. 

 

Diamond blades are supposed to be pretty good, at least for concrete.   For metal, either carbide or aluminum oxide seem to be the go-to choices.  I'm guessing you guys don't cut much concrete during rescue work, so maybe stick with carbide, or try alox and see how it does.

[Rougarou]

27 minutes ago, Joe Frickin' Friday said:

 

Not sure what he used to cut the door open, but it looked like it worked pretty damn good.  

 

Right now?  designing safety shielding for a new engine testing driveline configuration:

 

 

 

We don't generally paint things in such gaudy colors - I just do that for myself within SolidWorks to make it easier to see which part is which on screen.

 

All of our powerpoint commando's color their solidworks stuff in gaudy colors,.....must be taught at the engineering skools

 

 

18 minutes ago, TEWKS said:

 

Hey, bet you probably know the answer, the blade on the saw he used completely disappeared as he was making the last cut. It was gone, couldn’t use it again if needed. I think it was a “carbide blade” but we need something better. Research is being done but figure it wouldn’t hurt to ask. 
 

 

BTW, it was an arson fire.

 

 

I bought a few of those blades for my standard circular saw to cut some expansion joints in freshly laid concrete.  Took several as you could watch the blade dwindle down

 

 

12 minutes ago, Joe Frickin' Friday said:

 

Diamond blades are supposed to be pretty good, at least for concrete.   For metal, either carbide or aluminum oxide seem to be the go-to choices.  I'm guessing you guys don't cut much concrete during rescue work, so maybe stick with carbide, or try alox and see how it does.

 

 

Ugh, ugh, diamond blades are my go to for  tile work, hardie board, brick work, landscape blocks.  Awesome stuff.  you can also run water on the cuts while cutting to lessen the dust,......thus making your standard grinder/circular saw into a wet saw.

 

Depending on the thickness, take an old standard circular saw blade, flip it backwards and cut metal.  OSHA might get mad atcha, but OSHA doesn't play at my house.  Also, if the circular saw blade is carbide tipped, wear some beer goggles upon first cut,......after that, goggles not required (per me).

 

I also have several metal cutting discs for my grinder for the thicker stuff.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

5 minutes ago, Rougarou said:

All of our powerpoint commando's color their solidworks stuff in gaudy colors,.....must be taught at the engineering skools

 

 

Actually, I took the last pencil-and-straightedge drafting class from my alma mater before they switched over to teaching CAD.  I didn't get SolidWorks training until I'd been on the job for ten years.  The SW instructor may have mentioned how to recolor parts, but there wasn't any sort of guidance on best practices.  

 

At least I didn't make it out of wood.

 

[Rougarou]

Every drawing that I have to review, is multi-colored.  Makes looking at that stuff not real fun.