Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

...ask your questions in the appropriate forums BUT document your build here...preferably in a single thread...dates for updates, are appreciated....

Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Sun Nov 24, 2013 4:47 am

dmdc411 wrote:You have Chevy trucks in the UK?! Pardon my sheltered life, but I love your truck! I had a hard time 25 years ago finding parts for mine! I couldn't imagine looking in a different country for stuff! I suppose E-bay works for that? I did finally give up and sold it to a friend who got it right, but lost it to some thief! Hasn't been seen since!


Hi there

They are both rare and unusual in the UK.

Every one in the UK will have been imported by either business men to sell or enthusiasts.

Ebay is no use at all, except for the very occasional bit that lands on there. Usually quite pricey and postage kills the bargain aspect of it.

Most of the bits I have have been bought, traded, donated from the USA but postage makes it prohibitive to import stuff randomly and then you can add a load of import duty as well if you fall foul of the revenue guys.

I had a used speedo/dash unit donated to my truck as mine has been butchered and along with some bits I had bought from the breaker, just the postage alone was $86.00

I need a full set of chrome trim for my tuck from the USA and due to the length of the longest pieces, freight alone will be near $300.00 on about $400.00's worth of side trim strips.

It is a challenge for sure but I guess its more interesting than owning a ski boat here or collecting stamps.

Here is a build/ownership thread on the truck to date.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/show ... p?t=585901

Looking forward to getting on with it through winter.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


Hoping to get it all done in time.
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Sun Dec 08, 2013 1:44 pm

Bought an older 210 liter compressor from a friend last week, collecting this week. Happy at £100 for it.

Plan is to clean it and service it, then use it to paint the Chevy truck.

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Years ago I restored a 1963 VW Beetle from this.....

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In other news, I went over to help mate Martin to put up a car port frame yesterday, started at 0,5'C at 08.00 and turned into a good day.

We ended up working till about 19.00 which was about 2 plus hours after dark and then I went back today to help him get the roof on as well.

Bunch of pics of the process.

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Front corner post was actually correct.

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After dark we carried on with the neighbours spotlight

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Today we got half the roof on when rain stopped safe play.

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Of course the whole motivation for this roof build is so that Martin can work under some cover over winter prepping his truck.

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And that pretty much brought another weekend to an end.

Fetched the compressor last night in mate Jon's VW T5 van.

What a heavy bit of kit, nearly killed the two of us to get it in the van, so we left it in the van last night and tonight after work Jon and Martin, along with myself got it out using a coupleof sections of pipe and a pait of scaffolding boards.

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Too dark for pics in its temporary resting place.

So I just took a few pics of the plates on its various parts.

Seems it was built on 12 November 1973, so 40 years old.

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1.5 bhp single phase electric motor

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Air filter...... Made in England too.

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Name says a lot.

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Plans include getting some trolley wheels under it, cleanup and repaint, service.

Then use it for painting the truck and other jobs.



Came home from work yesterday and skipped Friday admin, instead choosing to go spend two hours with 6 litres of petrol some brushes and dismantling parts of the compressor.

Started here......

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Finished here......

Next up will be some new paint after the prep.

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I was up early to get over to Martins today with the truck, to get a 4x8 sheet of MDF and my tall ladder to his place so that we could complete the rest of the carport roof for his truck resto.

It was really great to get the truck back on the road again, its been some time.

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Martin's truck earning its keep.

We were done with the roof after dark, and by 5pm I was on the road home again.

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Every time I drive my truk it leaves a HUGE SMILE on my face.

The cost of fueling it up, disappears with the sound of that V8 rolling down the road.

Looking forward to the new year and getting the body and paint sorted.


Well, as my buddy Martin is not as much of a reporter as I am, I think this will fit into my thread as he will ultimately be involved in my trucks bodywork as an advisor and trouble shooter (trouble maker)

He has been looking for a V8 engine to go into his truck for quite some time.

Martin's truck is going to be a lot of show and less go as he does not need a 400BHP monster.

He found a seller on Rods n Sods recently who was selling a 307ci motor with auto box for sensible money and decided to drive the 180 miles there to go look at the motor and see it all in the 57 Chevy truck it is in at the moment. The motor and box were from a Chevy Caprice wagon Roger broke a few years ago.

So on Saturday morning, armed with some wood, hammer, nails, tie down straps, overalls, gloves and a bag full of food and coffee,with my trail bike trailer behind his dog walking Mondeo ST estate we set off at 05.40 to drive up to Derbyshire......Heated seats were a bonus.

Stopped after 2 hrs for the loo....

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We got to the sellers home at exactly 09.00 and found a real petrol head and his wife living there.

Roger has had some Street Machine featured cars, including a mad Orange SAAB years ago, tubbed and madly modded, which lives in Germany now. He still has a bunch of varied Saab's and is a keen old skool Scooterist with a bunch of stunning Lambretta scooters as well as some projects that are in process.

First to meet us was this Saab pickup, made from a Saab 7 seater estate that he saved years ago and uses as a general runnabout.

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Front view.

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Chopper in process.

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Beauty.

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Saab with Ford V4 power. Another one of his winners.

The guy really does love his toys to look good.

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And another Saab in process, that will end up like all his other spotless examples...... Leadsled with 3500cc Rover V8 with a blower on top.

Should make for an interesting car.

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Having seen and heard to motor run and move under its own power, Martin agreed to buy it.

The deal was good for Martin with the engine and gearbox being unbolted from the truck and sold as it was with all ancillaries including power steering pump etc.

Roger also threw in a pair of Kenlowe fans, a massive radiator with integrated oil cooler, a prop shaft and other bits for the build.

One of the biggest scores of the day was a pair of block hugger headers that Roger gave to Martin along with the motor they were fitted to.

Having all the bits n pieces from its original Smog control still on the carburetor etc, Roger had built from heavily layered glassfibre a nice under bonnet scoop to cover all the unsightly bits and pieces.

From the time we landed Martin could not keep his eyes or hands off this piece that bolts down over everything..... in the end he convinced Roger to sell it to him for £75.00 which I thought was a great price as you could not make it for that money.

Rogers truck.

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Clean bay before removing the motor and box, and I have to say, not a mark on any of the paint after all was done and removed.

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Time for a change of Face.....

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Martin trying so hard not to buy the scoop.....

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Ready to rock n roll....

Strapped down, one of the hooks still managed to make a bid for freedom by the time we filled the car a couple of miles later.


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The rest of the road trip was filled with talk, driving and eating all the food we had brought alon.

Got to Martins place, moved the truck out the way, unhooked the trailer and stashed it behind the truck.

The engine will go into the garage once he moves his V-Rod to his mums garage and makes space to store the engine till he is ready to fit it.

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That's all for now.

Hopefully Martin will pull finger and start his own build thread some time.

Had yesterday and today off as annual leave and today moved a lovely leather clad chair and large foot stool over to my stepson, Tom's father's home for him to put in his bedroom.

The truck obviously did not feel the load.

Tom asked to ride in the back on his new chair, but of course in this day and age it could get you locked up for years..... So when we got there he got to test drive the chair in the back of the truck.

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After dropping him and the chair off, Nicola and I went off to Hempstead valley shopping centre for a walk about, and coffee and cake.

She thoroughly enjoys watching people trip over their feet and walk into stuff when the Redneck Express comes by.

Parked to one side of the carpark, as the truck takes up a bit more spae than most modern family cars here.

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As always, the smiles per mile ratio far outweighed the miles per gallon delivery.

This truck really is one of the best Bucket list things I have ever done.

Thanks to my wife




Had Martin over for a few hours today, to bring back my bike trailer after unloading his new motor and gearbox into his garage.

We recently took out the one rear indicator unit as he wants to fit recessed indicators as per originals, which his truck does not have. After taking it out, we could not get the light to work again, so after resoldering the wires etc, it turned out the one wire on the switch was loose.

The next job Martin did for me (I made tea and coffee) was to wire in a Beeper into the indicator circuit.
My truck has no indicator stalk on the steering column, having a three position swith under the dash, I have on occasion driven well beyond a turning with the indicator merrily flashing away.

So now it will drive me nuts when I use it, necessitating the fast switching off of it.

The way its fitted, the beeper is now under the dash and muted to a mildly irritating level.

Here is a demo.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MfunOTf ... vG8KEwT5Kg

One of the other things we figured out was that my truck must have been a Manual truck at some time in its life before the current incarnation.

We also tested the new compressor to see if it had an auto pressure switch.

Goes to 100psi and then stops filling.

I have still not quite figured out where the pressure goes when the pressure switch goes, as the motor does not stop......:mm:
Greetings from England.

Rian.


Hoping to get it all done in time.
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Wed Dec 18, 2013 2:53 pm

This is a bit of a cross over reply.

I bought a 210 liter compressor from a mate for £100.00 a while ago, but the thing is £&%$$%£ Heavy.

So I decided to add some wheels.

Original plan was to buy four with single bolt fixing......

But then I said to Mickey next door that a shopping trolley would work well.

He then got me a broken bakers trolley from a skip at a job he was on.

So the trolley was the Tip Treasure.

[img src="http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm90/niknakpix/Billybob178_zps45c5bf60.jpg" alt=" "]

Said trolley

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Stripped wheels off.

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Had some 10mm steel plate to cut to size for mounting the wheels onto

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Was going to engineer and drill holes, recess the heads etc, to recycle the allen head screws and nuts, but decided it was a PITA not worth pursuing. So welded the holes onto the plates and tacked the corners and edges.

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Went out for the afternoon, getting home around 16.00 and then back to the garage.

It was already getting dark, but then who needs light when you weld??

I used the small jack to lift the tank to the right height and a couple of magnets to hold the wheels in place.

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View from outside.

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JOB DONE......Mobile compressor.


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Close up time for today.

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Tomorrow I need to get under and about the truck to see what bits of patch panels I need to order in from the USA.

Looking forward to getting on with the body work and of course paint in the new year.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


Hoping to get it all done in time.
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Wed Dec 25, 2013 1:27 pm

Merry Christmas everyone.

Nicola got me some plates, which includes a 1950 plate from a Russian tractor.

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I got her a bunch of girly stuff and some pipes, a pipe rack and a decent reference book on smoking pipes for her collection.

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After prezzie opening (the kids were here too) they carried on watching Disney movies, which they do every year.

I went down to the garage to sort out a few bits, refit the signs and plates on the shed that the storms took of the other night.

Then I mounted all the number plates and loads of others I have recently traded and collected etc.

I also checked the trucks oils, tyre pressure and lights, just a general check over as i may be using it tomorrow to go to Farningham to the yearly Boxing Day classic bike get together with some friends, including Woodsie and Martin.

Once that was done I needed to scratch another itch.

Last week a pickup truck lost its canopy spectacularly a couple of miles from here.

It ended up in pieces on the side of the road, and a few days later it was tossed over the Armco barrier into the bushes.

I have wanted to build a removable aluminium canopy for the rear of the truck that can be used for camping if mounted on a set of legs.

The idea is that the canopy has a bit of a curve and a distinct retro look and feel.

The rear sliding glass was the only bit that was not broken up, and I saw it as a perfect addition to the canopy, against the cab rear.

So armed with some leather gloves and a hacksaw and spare blade, I went to see if it was still there, and found it......

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Cut out the glassfibre back frame and removed the glass before the council come to clear it away.

Now sitting in front of a fire, cheese and biscuits and a nice coffee......

Perfect end to a great day.

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Looking forward to finding a cheap or free aluminium caravan to strip the ally sheeting from to cover the canopy in, using a pair of stainless portholes I got from the tip for this job some time ago..... and will still figure out the rear door and latch/catch.

Watch this space too.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


Hoping to get it all done in time.
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Mon Jan 06, 2014 5:17 pm

Well, since buying the truck, I have wanted to replace the wheels on the Teardrop trailer with smoothies.

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Of course this would mean finding just two, getting tyres, then having new adapter plates made up to get the trailer from 4 stud hubs to Chevy bolt pattern.

Yesterday I was at a loose end and getting bored as one does, ended up buying a pair of Wheel Vinteques Chrome Smoothies for reasonable money (that I should not have spent) off a nice member on a forum who drives a rather lush car that did not get on with the smoothies.

No chrome caps unfortunately, but hopefully I will find some somewhere.

Now I need to get my mate Julian to make up a pair of adapters and get two tyres from the existing rims as I cannot justify fitting a pair of thin whitewalls as well.

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Greetings from England.

Rian.


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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Mon Jan 20, 2014 3:37 pm

Well, another forum buddy, Henry "51 Rider" picked up the grilles and then brought them home to his place where I collected them before work today.

The Ebay seller under described the grille he was selling and the free one he threw in.
They were both much better than expected.

Check the pic and let me know what you think.

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This is driving my head mad (well, it was mad before) made by McMurphy up in North Pole Alaska, where they have great creativity held captive......

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The "free" ally grille is in better condition than the one on my truck, and the new steel one is spotless, so I suspect the ally one on the truck may just be headed for modification.

There are a few dents and the major one, not easy to see in this pic, where the "E" may have hit a fence post and then been repaired with a ball pein hammer.

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So there you go...... more thinking to be done.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


Hoping to get it all done in time.
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Sun Mar 02, 2014 3:50 pm

Went to the NSRA Swapmeet in Essex today.

Collected my Wheel Vintiques Chrome smoothies and bought a pair of hubcaps for £20/pair which is less than half price.

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Now need a new pair of wheel adaptors made up, then find white wall tyres and get it behind the Chevy truck.

Very pleased tonight.

Got a call from (Gary) who collects wooden hotel and commercial clothes hangers..... he had me a Liberian plate.

I also managed to buy a Belgian plate and got an old English plate for trading.

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Greetings from England.

Rian.


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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Mon Mar 03, 2014 4:42 pm

Based on a question I was asked on Garagejournal.com


The Chevy already has Smoothies on, these two are for the Teardrop trailer that is still on VW style Radar wheels.

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Need to change these wheels, once I have adapters made to get them onto the caravan hubs.

When I built the trailer, this is what I started with. Original 4 stud steel wheels.

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Had some 4 to 5 stud adapters made up.

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Greetings from England.

Rian.


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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Sun Apr 13, 2014 4:10 pm

Easter weekend we have the truck and teardrop on display at the Chatham Docks at the Steam and Traction show.

So today I cleaned the outside, and Nicola cleaned the inside as well as the galley kitchen.

Every time we do something with this trailer, the madness of the build makes us both grin madly.

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I cleaned the truck, tyres and tonneau cover as well.

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Even the side pipes got a fresh coat of matt black, so now we are ready to Rock n Roll.

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Greetings from England.

Rian.


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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Fri Apr 18, 2014 2:21 pm

Today was Wheels day in England.

Nicola made me buy this Sheriff's badge and wear it all day.

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One of Nicola's finds at Wheels Day today was this retro Thermos flask for £5.00 which she wants in the Teardrop.

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Greetings from England.

Rian.


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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby jackdaw » Fri Apr 18, 2014 6:20 pm

Looking mighty fine Rian :D :D I could be interested in your old wheel adapters if or when they become redundant my good man :D :D I'm thinking of going back to stock wheels on the splity ...and may be matching up the teardrop wheels if they're going to go under the existing mudguards....
We've got a few trailers going to this years Vintage Nostalgia Show at the end of May.... It would be so great if you could make it .....

We're just finishing off number 6 which is my brother-in-laws build ...another one staying in the family :lol: :lol:

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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Mon May 12, 2014 5:23 am

jackdaw wrote:Looking mighty fine Rian :D :D I could be interested in your old wheel adapters if or when they become redundant my good man :D :D I'm thinking of going back to stock wheels on the splity ...and may be matching up the teardrop wheels if they're going to go under the existing mudguards....
We've got a few trailers going to this years Vintage Nostalgia Show at the end of May.... It would be so great if you could make it .....

We're just finishing off number 6 which is my brother-in-laws build ...another one staying in the family :lol: :lol:

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Great chatting earlier Dave.

I will let you know as soon as I get on with having the new adaptors made up.

I actually have a full set of Radars and tyres to sell as well when the new wheels go on.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Sat May 31, 2014 3:24 pm

Started this morning with painting the rear springs a red under coat...... what a carp job to do.

Tomorrow I will go get some red gloss enamel mixed up to paint them with, I only did the rears, as I am going to Hammerite the front ones in Black.


First coat of undercoat on.

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Anyone remember the office remodel Mickey next door was involved in a few months ago, where I rescued some skirting boards that had been glued onto the drywalls with some serious high tech glues ??

[img src="http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm90/niknakpix/Billybob120_zpsab2efcc7.jpg" alt=" "]

[img src="http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm90/niknakpix/Billybob121_zps08a3d866.jpg" alt=" "]

[img src="http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm90/niknakpix/Billybob123_zpsf79f61f5.jpg" alt=" "]

Well, I have been watching Thicknesser/Planers the last couple of weeks, after manually cleaning some of the Oak sections for the resto I did on the cast iron furniture a few weeks ago.

Today I was planning on bidding on one on Ebay, but I contacted the seller to go inspect, and then typically, the day turned nasty, and I could not even get away to go look at it before bidding.

I did however get a call from the seller, Mat, a Police officer to tell me a bit about him. I told him that the machine was going to make a lot more than I would be prepared to pay for it. As I wanted to use it to remove all the glue and get all the boards the same thickness......

People continue to surprise me with their kindness.

During the chat, I had told Mat what I had planned to do with the machine. Next thing he suggested I load up the skirting boards and bring them over to his home about 10 miles/16km from where we live, and give it a go on the machine before it sells.

Where do you still get this sort of kindness and consideration ??

So a fast decision was made, Nicola and I moved cars off the drive, loaded all the planks into the back of the truck and I "raced" over to Rochester to meet Mat, and then we got the first, followed by the other 18 planks, each one got three passes through the thicknesser.



This is the result....

I am a very thankful and pleased man tonight.

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Getting on with it.

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And the result..... Before and after shot.

Now I need about 36 meters of 3mm X 15mm ally strips to fit between the planks and create the sliders.

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This was a good day.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


Hoping to get it all done in time.
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby Sidekick » Sun Jun 01, 2014 5:50 pm

a man after my own heart, finding stuff and making it work. Can't pass by a garage sale or a stash of goods without seeing what I can use.
" Chances are- if you don't know where you are going, you will never get there"
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Re: Grizz-Pod Teardrop Trailer - New tow truck - 66 Chevy

Postby grizz » Tue Jun 03, 2014 7:46 am

Sidekick wrote:a man after my own heart, finding stuff and making it work. Can't pass by a garage sale or a stash of goods without seeing what I can use.


Hey Sidelick !! Thank you.

I just prefer to spend the money saved on something else I need.

Check out this thread for some of the Free stuff I pick up.

http://www.retrorides.proboards.com/thr ... ed-01-2014

I recycle "for my pocket" and my own sanity, not necesarily for the environment.

And creating new uses makes my head feel good too.
Greetings from England.

Rian.


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