Godspeed, John Glenn

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It is with a heavy heart I write today’s post.  Today we lost a true hero – the last of the Mercury Seven – John Glenn.

I suppose I am just “old” but the Mercury Seven represent for me a time when we as a nation and society traveled through time’s finest hour.

Godspeed John Glenn…  May you travel well…  Godspeed…

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Just imagine the stories these glorious seven are sharing now…

Astronaut John Glenn photographed in space by an automatic sequence motion picture camera during his flight on “Friendship 7.” Glenn was in a state of weightlessness traveling at 17,500 mph as this picture was taken.

 

Hitachi RB 24EAP Leaf Blower

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6 month old Hitachi Leaf Blower

I’ve had enough of the 90th Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade.  Anticipating company that will soon be arriving I decided to fire up my 6 month old Hitachi leaf blower and clear out the driveway, front walk and back patio – after all, Thanksgiving weather is in low 70’s today, here in the Upstate of South Carolina.

And sure enough the damn thing refused to start.  On close inspection, the reason for the failure appears to be the carburetor is not priming.  Press the rubber bulb, right?  Well sure.  But the grommet leaks and fuel spills out instead of getting pumped into the carburetor.

img_4133And here is that grommet I speak of.  It has two rubber lines coming out of it, and they are just press-fit in the two holes on the grommet.  Of course, when one pumps the bulb, fuel spills out through the little lines.

And yes, I have followed the recommended fuel requirements:  this blower is using 100% straight fuel (or at least that is what the pump said) instead of that ethanol laced crap sold today.

Of course we all know the reason for this:  today’s fuel is just not what it used to be.  All these rubber parts are made of the cheapest materials.  The grommet pictured above should be made of Viton so it would be impervious to today’s fuels.  But no.  This stuff is mass-produced and this part would eat at the bottom line.  That CEO at Hitachi would fail to get his bonus.  Instead us consumers get the shaft.  Again, this blower is only 6 months old.

Fortunately, these parts are available online.  I just placed an order for a new grommet and fuel lines because you know the minute I go replace this those lines will be brittle and start leaking themselves.  Oh but here is the kicker…  These parts totaled about $8 bucks with a $7.95 shipping & handling charge.  Go figure…

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Mopeds, Trucks and Mustangs

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img_4128My friend Jeff sent me this photo just a few minutes after leaving work yesterday, November 22nd.  I suppose this is as good an example of “necessity being the mother of invention” as any…

Interesting how mopeds are becoming more and more prevalent in our busy streets.  The sad part about this is that these transportation conveyances are so non-regulated.  Then again, this is why they are so easy to acquire and to ride.  Catch 22 for sure.

Don’t take me wrong, I am not scorning folks driving these machines on city streets and highways but some of these folks certainly go to extremes at the expense of their own (and others) safety.  And adding insult to injury with no regard to basic laws and driving conduct; ie., driving in the left lane, hogging the road or hauling a keg of beer, etc.

img_3947While on the subject of mopeds…  I took this photo several weeks ago.  It shows two extremes in transportation – a sign of our times.  On the left a fully loaded $60k Ford pickup and on the right another moped.  Two chariots providing the same basic concept – moving from point “A” to point “B” – but with different levels of safety, comfort, status, and the list goes on.

Finally, a short story on the silver high-dollar truck shown in the picture:  The truck was a “loaner” given to a co-worker by a local Ford dealership  Turns out several months ago my friend had bought one of the new Mustangs with the V6 engine.  Said Mustang developed a voracious “appetite” for engine oil and eventually started making strange noises.  The dealer took the engine apart, put it back together and that yielded more strange noises.  After weeks that turned into months the good folks at FOMOCO did like Tammy Wynette standing by her man and in this case, stood by their steed:  they sent a brand new crate engine replacement.

All is well now after the engine transplant and my friend is back on the road enjoying his Mustang.  I guess this must have been a bad omen though…  FOMOCO has ceased production of the V6 engine Mustang…

So happy Thanksgiving 2016 to you all.  I for one have much to be thankful for and with much optimism that America will be made Great Again.

 

Triumph Bonneville T120 Black

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img_4085Since the weather was just perfect last Friday, I walked over with a couple of my co-workers to the small barbecue restaurant down the street from my place of employment.  They have a Friday “special” on the menu for a BBQ sandwich, slaw and beans for five bucks.  Not bad and it was just “enough” for a quick lunch.

Well, on the way there in the parking lot I saw this awesome, modern Triumph Bonneville T120 Black.  I am not a big motorcycle enthusiast, I have always considered them as the next best thing to what Tony Montana labeled as a “first class ticket to the Resurrection”.  But, that does not mean I don’t appreciate a gorgeous machine when I see one.  This is one of those cases…

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Across from this Triumph’s  parking spot, is a meat-and-three restaurant and sure enough, the motorcycle’s owner was seated next to the window.  I noticed him smiling as I took pictures and I gave him the thumb’s up.  I think he was pretty tickled!

Pretty awesome motorcycle, huh?

Honda S2000 Organizer

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img_4100Every time I drive my 2003 Honda S2000 it puts a huge smile on my face.  This car is just awesome.  If I have a bad day, all it takes is to drive a few miles and just marvel at the F20C engine as it revs its way up.  Once 6,000 RPM’s hit, its VTEC time, yo!  And the F20C still has 3,000 RPM’s left to go.

Impressive!  After all, this is F1 DNA shit; this technology hails from the glory days of McLaren/Honda and Ayrton Senna.  It took none other than the boys from Maranello to build an engine that would produce more horsepower per liter than the F20C.

But I digress “big league” as a certain trained monkey would say (and for the record, the other trained monkey isn’t worth a crap either).  What I really wanted to share today is a nifty trick I found.  The one thing I don’t like to do in my S2000 is drive with the top down and have my wallet and iPhone in plain view on the passenger seat.  What to do?

One answer is use the storage compartment between the seats.  Fair enough, the lid has a lock and key but it is awkward to use.  I want something more convenient.  After some research on eBay, my gamble paid off:  as shown in today’s featured image I bought a center console storage tray for a 2010-2014 Mazda 3 or 6.

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Part number for a Mazda 3 or Mazda 6 center console storage tray

Soon after I acquired my S2000, I bought a pair of extended length floor mats.  These mats are longer and cover the reinforcement beam in the floor of the S2000 protecting the factory carpet.  One drawback is the colour is a little off, but who cares?  I rather protect the carpet from wear and tear.

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Extended length S2000 carpet mat

As you can see, the little tray fits perfectly…

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Reinforcement beam and the Mazda tray

As you can see in this picture, the tray fits just perfectly between the reinforcement beam and the seat frame pad.  This little tray will now prevent my wallet and iPhone from sliding under the seat.  Added benefit is this all fits under the carpet mat and is within easy reach.

img_4096I need to get some stick-on Velcro on the back of the tray and that will lock it down for good to the factory carpet.  But overall I think it is going to work just fine.  Oh and the part was about $14 on eBay.  I think this is a keeper!