Intrepidation

I've been itching to get a hold of an older Simplicity snowblower for a year+ now, as I think they look really neat and really sturdily made. Well one finally popped up close to home for $50 so I had to get it. It's not the two stage paddle style snowblower I also want, but the single stage S4. This is easily the beefiest single stage snowblower I've ever come across. It weighs probably double what the Craftsman we have weighs and for good reason: its built to last. Thick steel, metal guards for everything, chains, greaseable parts, gear drive transmission. What's not to love? Well old gas that rusted out the fuel tank and gummed up the carburetor. I was a afraid the tank would be a total write off, but as I have no spare parts for it, I wanted to try and save it. I came learned of the magic of Muriatic Acid and decided to try that. I ended up using a substitute called Acid Magic which won't harm unopened skin (though I still wore safety gear). After about an hour it had removed nearly all the rust down to bare metal. I ended up soaking the tank upside down overnight in WD-40 Rust Remover (similar product to Evopo-Rust) to get the top of the inside of the tank cleaned up. If you look closely you can see by the reflections of light on the wet rusty surface just how bad it was. However after I was done with it... I didn't get any photos of the carburetor while it was off, but while it was in good shape overall besides varnish and needing a new gasket and diaphragm, the brass pickup tube was pretty corroded from sitting in the tank. I gave it a quick 30 second dip in the used acid and it the corrosion wiped right off. Just don't use that acid on aluminum pieces! I had trouble getting it to run, so I ended up taking the carburetor off again and cleaning it some more, found some passages I missed the first time (as well as the jet which I forgot to clean). I also rinsed the tank out one more time, then painted everything with engine enamel. Surprisingly, the air filter was dirty but otherwise in good shape, so I cleaned and oiled it, while also painting the upper half of the housing. It took a bit longer than I was wanting, but today it finally started up and ran. With a little tuning, it now seems to run very well and everything works! With the exception of the fuel being left in the tank, it seems like the snowblower was decently cared for. The body is in good shape with no serious rust, the worst being surface rust in front of the chute which I will touch up. All of the grease fittings I found had grease around them so that tells me its been lubricated too, and the oil didn't even look bad. Here she is running. I need to clean the covers up and I'll repaint the starter housing before putting it back together.

Not Constantinople.

Muriatic Acid is pretty neato stuff.

Saying no one wants to follow Tesla is like saying no one wants to follow Apple. Why do you hate American companies?

The mats you have now, are the rubber or carpet? If they are carpet, is the material itself ok and they are faded or is it damaged?

I have been debating for a while now which phone to replace my LG Optimus V with. I really like the way the S6 looks, especially the S6 Edge, although the Edge is a bit awkward to hold. It's camera is arguably the best on the market right now. However, while its hardware suggests it should utterly destroy the competition in performance tests, Samsung's ungainly TouchWiz overlay keeps it from really living up to its potential. There's also the LG G4 which has an impressive camera, especially for people who know how to use cameras. However, it too its bogged down by LG's UI skin. I've seen plenty of instances where both the LG and Samsung phones' performances degrades substantially after a few months, and updates for either are slow. Both phones are filled with tons of bloatware as well. There's the current Nexus 6 which is stock Android and a screaming deal at $349.99, but its massive and the camera is lackluster. There's the new Nexus 5x and 6p, but besides the dumb names I'm not impressed with the 5x besides its size and the 6p will be starting at $700 I believe. The iPhone 6 is still quite pricey and the 6S even more so. What's really interesting is that for the first time Apple's new phone doesn't have the best camera. In fact many head to heads comparisons show its barely better than the iPhone 6. There's the HTC One M9, but who are we kidding? No one buys those with their terrible cameras. That leaves us with the Moto X Pure Edition. It runs stock "pure" Android 5.1.1 with a few genuinely useful Moto apps that, from what I've read, if anything improve the user experience. The camera is much better than the previous Moto X's and while it still seems to have trouble in low light, is hardly bad. Fap's photos are proof enough, and with a 3rd party app allowing more control over the camera, some impressive things could be done with it. I like that it bucks the trend and offers expandable memory up to 128 GB and it can be used on all major carriers. If you sign up with AT&T and realize they're $h!, you're free to go to T-Mobile or someone else and bring your phone with you. Unlike the Samsung or LG it comes factory unlocked (with warranty). Since it won't be sold through any carriers updates should be timely too. It's already slated to get Android 6. We have a Nexus 7 and almost two years later Android 5.1.1 runs as smooth as it did when it was new. Stock Android is a revelation coming from OEMs with their own clunky overlays. I wish more manufactures would just let Android do its thing. Its spec'd pretty well too. Combine that with good hardware in the form of Snapdragon 808 Hexacore processor, Adreno 418 GPU, 3GB RAM, 5.7 inch 1440 x 2560 IPS LCD (interestingly not AMOLED like previous Moto X's), dual front speakers, the aforementioned 21 Megapixel rear camera and 5 Megapixel front camera, and you get a lot for a starting price of $400. The other neat thing about it is the customization options via Moto Maker. I think I've decided on a silver trimmed, bamboo backed 32 GB model for $475. I've ordered a case for it and should be ordering the phone by the end of next week. With all that said, a new challenger appears http://www.computerworld.com/article/2988505/smartphones/the-lg-v10-a-photographers-dream-or-too-much-of-a-good-thing.html

"Arguing on the internet is competing in the Special Olympics. Even if you win you're still retarded."

To have Lord Tourettes laugh at us!!! Arent you ashamed? That publicly...people are actually laughing at us???!!! Lord Tourettes......that is pretty freaking hilarious.

So who got a chance to see the lunar eclipse? I really need a better camera, but nevertheless is was quite something. Once the eclipse was mostly past the moon was so bright I was able to increase the shutter speed and got a couple clear shots of the moon. My favorite of the eclipse photos, even if the quality isn't as good as I would have liked...I've certainly seen worse making rounds on the internet. My friend who has a Canon 5D got some pretty incredible photos.

Me neither....it must be an internet thing. More of a parts store thing.

They sell all kinds of cheap crap. I would not recommend well, anything, but especially not the chargers. They get really warm.

TIL everything from Motor Trend is garbage. http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/motor-trend-accessories-dual-usb-car-charger-mt-dusbcc/10231772-P?searchTerm=motor+trend+car+charger#fragment-3

I didn't realize Netscape Navigator lasted all the way until 2007.

Oh yes...

Taupe is such a hard interior color to find.

Supposedly its non issue, I've talked to a couple inspection stations already. I'll know for sure come the end of the month.

Finished the carpet swap, washed both cars.

Welcome to C&G!

I've been wanting to do this for nine years now, ever since I got the car: replace the carpet. The hole by the dead pedal has always been a thorn in my side. I came close to getting a carpet some time ago, but after stripping most of the interior out I found it to be sopping wet and gave up. While in the yard getting parts for the `01, I came across a 300M with several interior pieces already removed. That and the fact the its been dry lately and the doors were closed led me to take the plunge and finally get myself a carpet. Took about 2 hours to move in 95 degree weather but I got it. Luckily I brought my jump pack with me and the car still has its engine and harness intact so I could move the seat forward to access the bolts! It was a bit wet but didn't smell despite being quite dirty and it wasn't moldy or anything. I gave it a good cleaning and let it dry in the sun for a couple days until it was totally dry. Upon arrival. After vacuuming: After cleaning: The last photo of the interior with its original carpet...notice the hole. Carpet removed: "New" carpet in and most of the trim pieces put back in: Took some time to repaint the seat mounting brackets as well as the bolts. All back together! I have the `01 my new, generic front floor mats for its OEM ones. I pressure washed and dried them. They are solid but kind of faded, I'm going to dry VHT vinyl/carpet dye on them soon.

That's f@#king hilarious

Should probably not being working on projects while still kinda sick, but oh well.

Its so adorable how you guys put so much stock in how many likes or dislikes you have.

Up front it reminds me of the 2010 Fusion The rear, its weakest point, reminds me of the Crosstour. The profile reminds me of the Azera. It looks massive, like Accord size. Still a big step up from the current car. At least they made an effort unlike the last "redesign" which looked like a refresh of the 2011 model. 20" factory wheels on a Honda? Interior is nice, restrained and contemporary, the polar opposite of the last couple generations.

Well, it will see winter duty but it won't be a beater. We'll get it undercoated before winter. It's going to get some serious detailing later this week.

I love these cars, they ride well and unlike most large cars, are fun to drive. The interiors are also much nicer than anything Ford or GM were putting out in their big cars at the time. Finally had time to wet sand and buff the driver's side headlight.