A Blog About Land Rovers in Oklahoma
May 12, 2003
Cupholder Goodness Project
I have turned some wood and have the first working wooden cup holder. I turned it out of Red Cedar, which is very common to Oklahoma. The wood was soft and difficult to turn due to my lack of knowledge in such areas. But it is done. I am investigating many other woods including, burled walnut, mediteranean poplar which is the wood in my Rover and of course more cedar. Something about the cedar appeals to me but it may not work out in the long run.
April 8, 2003
Under Hood Light Project
I have completed the under the hood light project. I told you about this in a previous post. To refresh your memory I purchased a light that is normal equipment on a 1995 Chevy 2500 pickup truck. This is a handy lamp that has a long extension cord that you can take as far away as the rear tires. After you are finished with the illumination you simply reel it back in. I thought this was spiffy so I bought one for about $10 from a local pickup grave yard.
April 17, 2003
Need a Lift?
“Your gonna need a lift.” Kurt said, when I picked up my new exhaust at Rover Cannibal. As you probably remember my current exhaust has a bad case of rust and corrosion. Maybe just rust as there is not enough of it left to notice any corrosion. I was inspired by Mr. Fat Jack in the 1984 movie Splash in which he states to Tom Hanks while waving a hammer, “I can fix it, I’m mechanical.”
Well I got it home and after a thorough investigation at a minimum I am going to have to jack up the body a bit. Maybe more like lift the body up. Okay so I call my buddy JagGuy and he says why don’t you take it over to Roger’s. I’m thinking great, I can litter Roger’s driveway with my burden and maybe if I buy enough beer he’ll do the work too.
So I say, “Why should I take it to Roger’s?”
“He has a lift.”
“Really, you don’t say?”
He is my hero truly. He doesn’t know it yet, but he is. I haven’t asked him yet but I am assured by JagGuy he will say no problem.
Head gasket update
I still haven’t acquired the funds to purchase the gasket kit and the price of having my heads at the shop yet. JagGuy assures me that I can get another 100,000 out of the motor if I do the heads when I get them off truck. I’m all about maximizing my vehicle value so I will have the
heads re-done when they are off the truck. It makes a weekend project into a multi-weekend project.
But what am I if I am not made out of money? I have time, for I am young. Now what am I gonna drive that week? Maybe JagGuy has a spare Jaguar for me, or maybe even his Rover. Yet another thing to ask of him while he is assisting me with my heads. I have already determined this job will be a 4.5 difficulty on the Difficulty Scale.
Cupholder Goodness Update
I have unboxed my new wood lathe. I have gotten out all the tools and actually turned a piece of wood. It is harder than it looks. I have gotten some tips from Ford Stepsides and the next attempt will be better. I have a friend that felled some red cedars at his ranch and I can have as much of it as I want. I think I will try turning some bowls with that this weekend maybe.
April 8, 2003
Under Hood Light Project
I have completed the under the hood light project. I told you about this in a previous post. To refresh your memory I purchased a light that is normal equipment on a 1995 Chevy 2500 pickup truck. This is a handy lamp that has a long extension cord that you can take as far away as the rear tires. After you are finished with the illumination you simply reel it back in. I thought this was spiffy so I bought one for about $10 from a local pickup grave yard.
Read about the install here . The one where I add the light under the hood.
April 2, 2003
Head Gasket
Well my worst fears were confirmed at Rover Cannibal today. The head gasket is leaking. This leak is charging my cooling system causing the coolant to leak out of the expansion bottle. Not a lot of fluid but enough to cause a tri-weekly annoyance. My options:
What are some of the hidden problems?
The head could be cracked. This is not so bad as the worst problems, I could get a replacement
and use the replacement. The worst thing that could happen is the block is cracked. I know a
replacement engine will be about $1800 plus all the labor to put it in. That would be horrible.
I will keep you apprise you of my decision soon.
Exhaust update. I bought a replacement exhaust today. I will pick it up tomorrow.
March 20, 2003
Rust and Rovers
Rust. What else can you say? Everyone knows about rust and Rovers. When we lived on Guam there was this stuff they called “creeping crud”. It was basically rust on your car. A small rust spot would start and it would creep up your car. Rust was due to the salt air and all the tropical conditions that foster rust.
But today I wonder about rust. Why so much of it on Rovers? What make them so special? I have owned many cars not one of them had any rust. Not one of them has had the exhaust rust out.
My last vehicle was a 1993 Ford Ranger pickup truck. I drove it 189,000 miles in 7 years. Not one bit of rust. Exhaust was pristine. But in the 10 years my Rover has been in existance it has developed several rust issues. They are too numerous to mention but every time I climb under it I see more rust.
Well this week while crossing a busy intersection in town in five o’clock traffic my silencer falls
off my truck. My carpool buddy said, “Did that just fall off your truck?” I replied I don’t think so
as it was only 2 years ago that I had replaced it and there is no way it could have rusted out by now. I was wrong, it was mine. And trashed it was, by the time I got back to pick it up.
I reported a month ago that the exhaust would need to be replaced. I thought I would be able to
replace it at my leisure. I guess I was wrong again.
With the need to replace it looming I have several questions that I will have to research or ask
the good people of several Rover Message Boards for explanations.
The obvious, “Hey he’s in a Land Rover, he must be rich.” look on mechanics and others faces is
almost a bad cliche in Oklahoma. I can’t tell you the number of times I walked out of a shop or store when I was about to be fleeced. So I hope to have my homework done first and not be taken advantage of when getting my exhaust replaced.