I unloaded a load of pipe right on top of a mountain ( well actually on the side of a mountain-everything in Cumberland,Md. is either on top of,the side of,or at the bottom of a mountain ) Monday morning,then went to Boardman,Oh. and picked up a magnet,then went to Macedonia and got a load of coils going to Roanoke.After I got the coils off I went to Petersburg and delivered the magnet and picked up another one going back to Boardman to be refurbished-they make new electro magnets there and also
I just got back from the Appomattox Railroad Festival parade and it was a good time.Looked like a really big turnout this year,and lots of parade entries.Only bad part is when you're in it you don't get to see it. They threw me out this year,so I had to make an early exit-they said not to throw candy,but they didn't say not to throw cans of beer and cigarettes to the kids,and I wanted to give them SOMETHING you know...(I am kidding of course,let me make that perfectly clear-I didn't throw anythi
I went to Raleigh with a load of steel on a side kit trailer this morning,got lost, ( kind of par for the course for me ) then came back to the shop and tied down a load of pipe going to Cumberland,Md. for Monday delivery. The guys in the shop had discovered that an empty Pepsi bottle explodes much louder than the windshield washer jugs.I guess they just ran out of the jugs and had to find something else.The Pepsi bottles take much more pressure to explode-then they'll blow off of the fitting an
The Appomattox Railroad Festival and Parade is this weekend.Last year Tom at the shop put the big "Mack" sign on the water tank on the mixer the morning of the parade. I had to burn the frost off of it with a hair dryer first,and we tilted a space heater up inside the shop to try to warm it up so the decal would stick. When I stopped by the shop to get fuel before I went to Seneca Tuesday it was 94 degrees. Still no rain ....speaking of Tom at the shop ( I'm Tom too ),he's discovered a new form
I left Sunday and went to Cleveland,brought coils back to Roanoke,then loaded treated lumber at Moneta and went to Seneca,Pa. and finally went to Kent,Oh. and picked up 2 new 48' aluminum Fontaine trailers. They bought Ravens trailers,so you can't get a Ravens anymore,but I suppose these are the same trailer,just different name.They came from the old Ravens factory.Just got in with them a little while ago,so i'm too tired to write anything tonight. Maybe later...zzzzzz
Spent today on a new John Deere 650 bulldozer.
Anybody who knows me also knows that I am not allowed near equipment or sharp tools.
So it was the first time in over 30 years that I have been on a bulldozer.
Evolution is a great thing.
Just two little hand controls. Amazing!
The last machine I spent time on you steered with two big levers and used your third and fourth hands to
change direction and run the blade. Then you had the foot controls to keep your feet busy. And after about an hou
well sh...oot! sometimes it doesn't pay to try to save a couple of bucks. I got my power steering hose made,$34.00 and went to put it on. First thing I did though was to take the air line off that I put on yesterday and put some thread tape on the fittings. It only took a few minutes,it was easy to get to. The power steering hose was much more difficult ,but I got that on and started the truck and turned the wheel back and forth then refilled the reservoir and was good to go,until I pushed the b
I'm off to Car Quest to see about getting a new line made.Just wrote a check to pay my real estate taxes- $239.00. I sold my house in Appomattox on 1 and 1/4 acres and bought this place,a single wide on .73 acres for $28,500 and now they've asessed it at $59,000 at tax time.I don't know whether to feel like I got a heckuva deal or if I got screwed big time. Gotta wait 'til later to pay the vehicle taxes-about $270.00.They asessed the mixer at less than half what I paid for it. I would take off
What did I do this week ,if anything?...oh, I remember- I went to Negley, Oh. with a van load because my return load from Follansbee,WV to Richmond had to be in a van. Didn't have any 48 footers at the yard so I had to pull a 53. Tight spot at N.B.Handy in Richmond,got to blind side back to the dock,and it's much easier with a 48' trailer because it's so cramped in there. The windows in the sleeper and motorized mirrors really come in handy there. Then I went to Seneca,Pa. with a load of treated
I've been pretty bust for the last few days and for at least the next week! The last couple days, I have been upgrading more stuff within the BMT Forum software and making sure everything is secure. I also added a new simple skin. The only major project I want to do is get the Garage working again. That might be a few months yet.
This week, we are packing for Mack Days at Lititz, PA. Not one of the biggest shows around, but definitely one of the nicest! I hope to see everyone there!
I
Just got home from a week of work in Wayne County, Pa. (Northeast Pa.along the Delaware River)
It's a pretty rural area, and still enjoys a lot of small logging companies, excavating contractors
and dump truck operators.
Guess what they use?
I saw more active older B & R model Macks being used every day than I have seen in years.
There was a beauty of a single axle R600 going by our jobsite several times each day loaded right to the boards with
topsoil. You couild hear it coming from m
Well,I've got one load "in the hole" since I deadheaded home.My week wasn't near as good as I expected-should have left that load in Plymouth,it really wasn't worth fooling with,and I invested those two 3 liter Mountain Dews in it. As slow as it's been anything's better than nothing I guess,but it's a tremendous letdown to run as hard as I did and not even bring home $500....geez! About the only thing that would cheer me up is if Jim MacMahon showed up here with a big ol' check in his hand.
After I unloaded the second load of lumber I went to Orlando.Wasn't real happy with going that far on Thursday,and sure enough I deadheaded all the way back.Left there about 10 this morning and got back at 9 tonight. Didn't see any alligators,no bikinis,and only 1 armadillo. Looked like he was mashed about a week ago.
Since I was here last i've unloaded the lumber in Moneta,been to Petersburg and got a load of beams and delivered them in Garden City,Ga, and picked up another load of lumber in Estill,S.C. Got 8' 6x6s this time,but I didn't have any trouble with it sliding. This and the pipe to Weaverville from last week should give me a pretty good week for the first time in a long time. And if I go out tomorrow I should have 2 loads on next week's check. It's about time to make a pickup payment,the electric b
Unloaded that steel in Wilmington this morning and went up to Plymouth,N.C. to load a load of lumber,16' 2x10s.Had to weigh in and out,and where I loaded was a good ways from the scales,so I threw 2 straps across each stack of lumber to go weigh out.The weight was OK, so I just eased on out to the truckstop across the road to finish strapping down.It was about a half mile away,and there's a stop light at the end of the road,truckstop's straight across.When I got parked I saw that the inside boa
I talked to Old Bill,the Diesel Gypsy, this morning on Skype so I feel a little better about not being in Winchester. The case of beer I bought didn't hurt either. Then I went over to Altavista to mail him the last "Ice Road Truckers" tape-I put the " Trick My Truck" B-model episode on it too. Also had a few extra copies of "Wheels of Time" and ''Old Time Trucks" to send,and it cost $14 and some change to mail it. And that was the cheapest way to mail it. The faster 'express mail' was 40-some do
My load to Richmond was a Bobcat and attachments-a set of forks,an auger and trencher,like on a ditch witch-some straw,a machine that looked like an overgrown tiller,and 6 big holly trees.Yeah,it was a landscaping job.Right in a residential area with narrow streets,and a tri-axle lowboy.Had to detatch and unload everything right in the street.Fortunately there wasn't a lot of traffic moving in the area-got there about 10am.Caught hell getting turned around and out of there though.But it was a go
Nothing today ... gotta be at the shop in the morning to take some kind of machine to Richmond on the lowboy. Don't know what it is.Then maybe i'll get a good load going out somewhere else.Not that this is not a good load,but I need another load to make a good week. Might end up putting my good camera in the truck and try to get back through Winchester on the way in,or I might not be able make the trip. I'll figure out something,i'd hate to let my truck show picture fans down-both of them would
Went down to Webb,AL. Sunday.Pretty good ways,over 600 miles,but at least it's cooled off a little around here. Got unloaded Monday morning and went over to Tifton,Ga. to get another load of steel going to Knoxville. Unloaded there yesterday morning then went to Roanoke to pick up some truck ( or in this case school bus ) frame rails at the place I usually deliver coils to,and delivered them in Rustburg,Va. yesterday evening. Left the truck at Glenn Trent's truck stop-the old south Lynchburg tru
It appears that my old Willys pickup sold on E-Bay today.
And I think it brought fair money.
After a couple of weeks of people coming to look and drive, and people calling and e-mailing
for information, I think the truck sold for what it is worth.
Nice process and nice experience so far.
Well it's another very nice day here in Upstate New York. This is a great time of year for us, as I have said before.
My experience with E-Bay so far has been excellent. Several people from further away than I would have imagined
have been here to see and drive the old Willys. And a lot of people have asked good questions on E-Bay about the truck.
The auction ends tomorrow about noon EST, and I am getting anxious. This money will fund the completion of my B67 and the
lowboy trailer I intend
It's raining,it's raining! You might not be as excited as I am,but it's the first rain we've had around here in months! I haven't cut the grass since June,and none of the turnips I sowed came up because it's been so dry.It's just a light rain,but it has been coming down over an hour now. Every little bit helps I guess!
