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Yep that DJ should stop now the system did need an overhaul for sure.
Being a postal truck I dont think the brakes have been this good since it left the factory
My son worked truck maintence in Raleigh for a bit and the **** he told me was crazy that they could and could not fix.
I have a John Deere 445 Garden Tractor not a dinky Lawn Tractor.
22 HP, water cooled, fuel injected, hydro transmission, power steering, adjustable wheel and seat (spring loaded), cruise control and even have a cup holder.
Hydro up / drown 60 inch deck (takes me over 3 hours to cut my yard), Hydro 3 point hitch out back that will take garden plows I have used and I also have a 4 way hydro plow for the front for snow or ?
I have upgraded the head lights to LED auto ones so I can see to cut grass at night, too hot during the day, and LED bulbs in the taillights.
I bought it used back in 2015 when I moved down here and has done me good up to now.
I guess you have not priced out new tractors with a 60 inch+ mower deck? I see the X730 is the lowest model with a 60 inch deck on a quick look, could not see the spec on the tractor but shows a price of $14,700 and I dont know if that is with or without a deck? Even the dinky ones at Home Depot or Lowes are like 3K and they only have I think a 42 inch deck. So $2500 I dont think is too bad to get my beast of a tractor back working again.
I do need to get the temperature gauge working again, fuel gauge works as does the dash and warning lights.
Always when we think something is done we find something else we overlooked
That bike will be too nice to take out when you are done
Dave ----
I have a 22hp garden tractor as well with shaft drive, pto, and hydro-trans. I can mount a snow blower, tiller, plow or box blade. Its air/oil cooled and carbureted. But it's also darn near 20 years old. Works like a champ though.
I knew the new zero turns like bob cats and hustlers can get up there in the 10k + range. But had no idea just a garden tractor was going for that much. I see regular lawn tractors going as low as 1,500 bucks at the box stores.
John, are all the "new" parts going back in the mustang going to be that blue color? It will look nice.
Yes, all the parts have been powdercoated the same together. So the top end of the motor will all the same color for once. Intake, air cleaner, and valve covers will all match!
I wanted to take some stuff to a swap meet tomorrow, but I went down a rabbit hole and burned up most of the day. I got this big heavy sub box out of my workshop attic, I bet it weighs 100 pounds and is big / awkward to move. I wrestled it all the way down the attic stairs brought it around to the carport to clean up. Only to find that the amp won't power on! This was in my son-in-law's cars when they lived here, probably 12 years ago. I couldn't remember why he removed it from his hatchback but now it makes sense. Instead of cleaning my truck and car and gathering items for the swap meet I burned so many hours on this and my back was killing me by the evening, so I'm just going to play it by ear tomorrow.
Dual 12" JBL's but I think the 1200 watt amp is blown.
What a temperature drop from yesterday
Think it was low 90* yesterday at the cruise and sweating you know what off even under the canopy.
Today went to another cruise with another club member. When I looked at the temperature when I got up it was 68*
As the cruise went on, 8:30 to 11:30, it got down right cold and windy.
The wind kicked up the pollan and we were both feeling it and the temp dropped to 57* when I left.
When I got home I did see the temp go up to 62* a little later but still cold after yesterday.
Being it will be cooler this week I plain to hit the floors in the DJ and would be nice if I can have them done but that would be a long shot.
I need to hit F-V parts store that has POR-15 that I want to use on the floors but john also brought metal so I need to make patters to use to cut it.
Just need to figure if I will try and weld some of the metal were I can or POR-15 first and not weld and use screws?
I also need to come up with the rubber body mounts. Thinking hocky pucks as the cutting boards will not be thick enough but can use them to spread the load better.
Also thinking I can put the front tires back on as they will not be in the way to get to body mounts and the floors.
Dave ----
You got that right, I was burning up in the sun all day Saturday, my face sunburned, sweating on the drive home. Then Sunday the day started off warm and decent but the wind started and got colder and colder all day. Made me wish I had not put shorts on. I did not get any of MY stuff done because I had promised the wife to put together some "comes in a box you have to assemble it" furniture she bought a week ago. Took 2-1/2 hours to put together a cabinet with 2 drawers and 2 glass doors. There's another one that is bigger & taller still in the box, but I was not about to tackle it so soon. I swear I spent the majority of the time on the floor putting little screws and fittings into wood.
Some construction paper from dollar general to mark out & cut out templates and then transfer to the metal. Cutting that metal won't be too easy I know it goes through cutoff wheels you better buy a 5 pack from harbor freight while you're out
I'd say weld where you can, but I know you gotta look at it as a case by case basis. Some spots are just going to need screws instead.
I think hockey pucks would work good for a body mount. And cheap too looking online you get 6 for $20.
Saturday, I put in a half day's work in the office. Went to the dump, hardware store, parts store and filled all the yard cans with gas then treated them all with sta-bil.
Finally got the yamaha all back together. Took it for a test run. Ran great. Came back and it was ticking like crazy. So I'm going to have to remove the valve covers and check the valves. And if I'm going to do that I might as well do the clutch basket, plates, counter shaft seal and put on a new front sprocket. More parts to order and more time pulled back apart.
Also, Saturday, I installed a new exterior outlet on the shop. I was going to daisy chain off an interior outlet. Got it mostly wired up and realized that particular outlet was on a switch circuit and had to pull everything back out and wire to a different, dedicated outlet. And now, I have a new weather resistant exterior outlet.
Sunday, I trimmed, mowed and blowed the yard. Straightened up the shop a little. I also did some cabinet content swapping. I had a few smaller cabinets that were full and a few larger ones that weren't.
The weather, as mentioned was wacky. Sweating, doing yard work in the morning. To having to put on a light jacket to go the to grocery store that evening. I think we got down into the 40's last night.
Last edited by ncheavymetal; Apr 20, 2026 at 06:47 AM.
I got some cardboard I am going to use for patterns but I hope if I make one for the right side I can flip it and use it for the left side.
I also got the patch that was also rotten that fitted pretty good I can use as a pattern I think.
Damn I was at HF to pick up 6 ton jack stands and forgot to get the cut off wheels. I have to check my stock as I should have some.
They are taller than the 3 tons and worked great under the left side door with a 2x4 to support the body off the frame.
The right side I am using a high lift off road jack and 4x4 and it sits right in the door opening making it hard to do any work.
Broke the last 2 body mounts at the rear bumper, I dont know how the factory got to them but I hammered & chiseled them off.
I vacuumed the floors like 4 times so I could see what I was working with as I pounded the floors back down.
Removed the battery tray as there is a good size hole in the firewall that I need to fix and also removed the shifter & Ebrake handle.
The plan as of now is to use fiberglass mat and POR 15 as a rosin and put that down first. It should bite into the old rusty metal and help make it a little more solid.
I can run it up the rear lip where the rear floor comes down to the front floor, it is rotten all the way across, and I can also run it up the toe boards as there are holes there too.
Then I will use the metal over the glass with angle iron across the rear floor to rear wall and at the door openings as that is all rotted away.
I will also use the metal on the toe boards and the firewall hole. I just dont know if I will glass over the metal around the edges to seal it and in place of screws or screw it to the glass under it or maybe both?
Oh I cant weld anything in as there really is not anything to weld to the rust is that bad. Did I tell you the thick patch that was on the right side floor rotted just as bad as the floor!!!!
The floors got pushed up into the cab and bowed the floors and why I had to pound them back down after I lifted the body off the frame.
Being from New England rust does not scare me but figured moving south I would not be seeing a lot of it
I also had shorts on Sunday at the cruise and wished I had long pants and shirt.
James sounds like you had a busy weekend and you need to go back to work to rest
Dont you hate when something like valve adjustment snowballs into something bigger, this Jeep is kind of like that.
If it makes you feel better. When I took my pickup for it's first test run I lost brakes half way and the clutch linkage broke pulling in the drive, good thing I have a large yard to shut it off in gear to get it to stop.
Dave ----
James sounds like a quick easy job that snowballs into a whole weekend wrench-fest!
Weather was nice today so I got out there to see what I could do. Removed the dash pad from the F100 parts truck and removed bolts for the column. But I need to figure out how to remove the headlight & windshield washer ***** first as the dash panel them needs to come off so I can get back in there and undo the wire connectors. But I did not have much time as I needed to load up and make a trip to the landfill, by the time I finished my errands it was close to dinner time and the day was done for me.
Tom is down for the week, I had no idea. I had not talked to him, and he thought his wife had told my wife, but she didn't have any idea either! He brought down 2 or 3 more engines.
You did tell me about how the floor was bucked up from settling on the frame, but I guess I did not realize how bad. I guess you see that we get rust down here too.
On the ***** the head light switch has a button in the middle on the back side. Push the **** in and push this button and then pull the **** out. the shaft will come with it.
Sometimes you really need to work it to get it out. Push the **** in all way and give it a good pull out while pushing in on the little button.
On the wiper it is a little harder. You will need to get a hook and come in along the shaft to push on the metal "lock" to release it the **** only should pull off.
I am sure there are YouTube how to's on both of this as most of the 60's and 70's cars the ***** came off the same way.
Head light **** https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervie...RQkQ&FORM=VIRE
I watched a video where he removed both ***** the same way, leaving the shaft for the light switch in the switch. I pulled both off that way, using a little hook to pull against the metal tab on the back side of the ****. I just left both switches in the dash and wired up, I figured since the harness comes out with the dash that it would be fine to leave them in place. Yesterday I removed the steering column. It's a tilt column, when I first got the truck I remember it didn't want to tilt up & down, then some months later I was sitting in there and the tilt seemed to work fine, and then yesterday when I tried to tilt it, it didn't want to move. So something inside it is messed up. There is also a little spring visible sticking out be the blinker ****, I am guessing that is related. After I clean up the column I'll look online and see if there is something I need to repair or replace.
I haven't done anything with the intake replacement on my Mustang, I got stuff in the carport in the way of getting my car in, namely the big dual subwoofer box. I got it working fine, was just a bad connection on the power side, but I can tell you it thumps now. If only I could find someone wanting to buy it. It's definitely too heavy to keep moving from spot to spot. I listed it on marketplace Monday but so far no bites. Surely there is a twenty-something kid in a squatted truck who wants to annoy his neighbors...
John, How much are you asking for the sub box? I recently gave mine (much smaller) to my neighbors kid who wanted something to bump in his little pick up.
Yesterday after work I pulled the gas tank and checked timing, the cam chain tension and valves. Timing was good. Cam chain was looooose. Exhaust valve was looose. Intake valve only needed a slight adjustment. Cams are getting oil.
Got everything adjusted and put back together. Ticking gone. Yay. Now bike won't idle for more than a minute even with choke adjustments.
Starts fine. Will run fine if I'm on the throttle. Getting a lot of pop and burble on decel. Another weird thing is that the lights only work at idle. As soon as I give it gas they get dim.
I checked the coil and grounds and fuses. I "think" the stator is fine but I haven't pulled it out yet.
I think I have a pilot jet issue with the poor idle condition. I really don't want to pull the carb but looking like that's the next step.
Definitely sounds like you need to replace that timing chain. And where does the electrical system get it's power, an alternator? That is strange that it puts out less voltage at higher revs.
Last edited by Cracker289; Apr 22, 2026 at 11:53 AM.
That snow ball just keeps fighting
You just had the tank off right? if so maybe something broke loose and made it's way to the carb?
Todays fuel kills rubber hose from the inside out.
Hope it is something easy both the idle and lights.
Went out easy this morning and did a little more on the DJ.
I got to thinking I am going to need to move it out so I can get my sons pickup in to rebuild the front end on Friday but the way the body was jacked up & supported it could not move.
If I was to lower it back down it would push the floors back out and I did not want that to happen. Also if supported a different way I could work on the rockers / bottom of the door opening and not have a high lift jack in the way.
There are 2 braces from the firewall to the frame and I was able to stack 2- 2x4's between this brace and the frame and have room between the frame and the floors where the mounts are a win win!
Once I got that done I removed 2 brackets that look like they keep the doors from flopping out at the bottom. This way I can run the fiberglass & metal over that area and then drill out the holes to remount them.
I also found on the left side the rear of the rocker / door opening had come loose from the body. The metal was still in good shape so I ground away the rust drilled a few hole to "spot weld" the rocker to the body and pulled out the welder and went to town. To do this I had to rig up something to push the rocker back up into place. I also found the front side was broken so welded that too.
I will go back out and start to fit the fiberglass mat to the floors on both sides and get them installed so they have time to dry before I lay the metal over the glass.
Dave ----
POR15 and fiberglass mat to seal the rust and cover the holes that were many. I forgot to take before pictures
I will let that set up and cover it with metal that John brought over. I will also have to use angle iron to it to add strength like from the floor to that upright to the rear floor.
There was rot all the way across so the floor was not connected to that rear part.
Also the floor went under that part and there was a body mount there that was not holding anything.
I will have to see if I will use it or not as the floor has 2 on each side and there is one on the rear floor and at rear bumper.
This is where the battery acid did a number on the firewall so I have to deal with this at some point.
Dave ----
Last edited by FuzzFace2; Apr 22, 2026 at 03:27 PM.
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