F60L reg.no. 51555

[Rod Salter]

I managed to get another day or three on the ford chassis

I have removed the remaining welds of the attachments

The welds were high strength, therefore hard and time consuming to grind, with barely any sparks coming from the disc

I have straightened any bends in the top and bottom of rail sides

I have fill welded all the extra cut holes in the rails, and filled the bigger ones in this cross member

ch1.jpg

The welds have all been ground back flush, and then disc sanded

I found a swelled section between the outer and inner chassis rails, behind where I had removed the cross member, so I cut a piece out of both inside rails, finding plenty of rust from the inside of the inner thin rails, and will replace these pieces after the sandblasting

ch2.jpg

I have done the 'total bolt removal' and now a 'partial rivet removal' with the damaged front engine mount crossmember, and the radiator mounts removed
I have also removed these parts out of the 'crane' chassis ready to go in

ch3.jpg

All these pieces and the chassis are scraped and wire wheel brushed clean, along with the mudguards, ready to sand blast

I hope I am at the bottom of the deconstruction, because this dismantling does not feel like progress, and the outside workshop looks like a Blitz grave yard

time for

[Ken Smith]

Good day Rod,
A lot of hard work there. Well done on your efforts.
I know how hard it is, good to see that you are so focused.
That is a real bonus with the two ARNs being sequential.
Cheers Ken

[Rod Salter]

I had a phone call late yesterday about a gap in a production line
so loaded the trailer with some ford parts, arriving there after dark
and tonight, a long way after dark these pieces of "mining equipment"
were delivered back to me, sandblasted and etchprimed!

sb1.jpg

includes 2 guards, both crossmembers with brackets, both radiator mounts, half the floor and a jerry can

I was told there is another gap in a couple of weeks, "we'll let you know" they said

sometimes it just all comes together

[Rod Salter]

park.jpg

Final inspection done this morning by the council. "The Park" is clear of all my “Illegality dumped Materials”

A few days short of ONE year since they came and restarted my 'Panic attacks' that had previously gone away.

That department is happy, their part is done, they will pass "The Park" onto the next relevant department.

I now wait to learn what little surprises they will bring

Got to love councils

[Ken Smith]

The next thing will be hordes of small children wanting to play on your "old army trucks", which will give you the opportunity to give them a good history lesson.
You have done a good job on the next door park block.

Cheers Ken

[Rod Salter]

I'm still here
After the council went away (they never been back, So what was all the panic?)

I started clearing up, dare I say it? Taking stuff to scrap
I did alright for a while then I disturbed that 'Old Black Dog' and I couldn't face the job anymore
I got through without meds by joining another group of people who like to dress in costumes, like gun powder, pieces of 158 grain lead and short shotguns
Being in a group once a month beats being on your own, talking to yourself
I've not fully lost the dog, but he's a fair way back following me now

I also picked up some part time work to supplement my radio collecting
Some of you may have seen some posts on other sites
I've re-organised my radio room, shelving, sorting
Attempting to get some of them going
Bought a couple of rare radios
I tell myself the radio collecting is complete, only bits and kit to gather

Covid put a halt to doing displays, and that in turn leads to thinking
“What have I got all this for?”

I've obtained some parts for the blitzes
And some military engines, generators and the like

The drought stopped and the grass grew fast to make up for all it hadn't
I've nearly got some of it back under control by spraying
The job was too big for any mower people

Some of you may know my old Hi-lux (ran on cooking oil) had a cab fire from an oil leak onto the exhaust
I started fitting a Lite Stout cab

Then big Nissan started random boiling, a new head only made it worse.
I parked it up, when a 2000 GU Patrol with a new reconditioned engine became available in a deceased estate, through the tax department who had seized his possessions
Attempts had been made to steal it, it cost a bundle for Nissan to reprogram the computer to recognise the Key
Only then did I learn what bad engines these ZD30 are
I fitted all the modifications
The engine took me 1700 Ks before it seized a piston in a cylinder
They had put a10 thou oversized piston down a bore that had only been bored 6 thou
Phunny they are out of business

The dog came closer again

I couldn't afford a shop rebuild, spent ages waiting for the right bits at a price I could afford to become available
I've put it together and have almost reached 10,000 ks touch wood

I've done a little towards finishing the house

I've got a load of batteries and another stripped out car shell, ready to go
Then there is a pile of white goods to get the motors out before they go, but I can't seem to find the 'oomph' to do them

The little chev truck has the chassis sandblasted and primed. The cab is in the shed with some of the rust cut out and repaired

I'm turning 70 this year
Other medical issues have slowed me too
Possibly a gluten intolerance, investigations continue, endoscopy next month
and maybe a flashing camera capsule, right through

Dentist for an abscess next week, extraction of a big one

When will I get back to the trucks?
It is hot here one day, windy the next and scattered showers about
I started setting up a place to put up a roof of sorts
every day I look at that project is seems to get more difficult
So maybe this autumn, who knows

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Sorry to hear you have hit a rough patch, Rod. Life can be a bitch, but there’s always hope for things to get better. I hope your hobby is what keeps you going, if not then get rid of it. I know a couple of people who were fed up with it one day and got rid of everything. It was a big relief for them. Others find joy and new energy playing or tinkering with their collection.
Hang in there!