Saturday, August 13, 2022

how to shave a couple pounds off




terrific VW van trailer!



great view of Le Monstre



clever and cheap replacement of an electric truck cab, which took it from an all weather C cab to weather proof

https://www.facebook.com/LVA.auto/photos/a.10150907268397627/10162077324852627/

it turns out, the dealership tech that reported that my car engine was no longer burning over a quart of oil per thousand miles, was very mistaken. So I had to fashion a funnel from a discarded Starbucks bottle


it fit snug, with less than 0.10" clearance. Perfect tight, and didn't need a hand to hold it while pouring oil in


it got the job done nice and quick, as I couldn't quick and easy find the funnel I am sure is in the trunk

1904 world's fair, "Automobile Day"

 https://www.facebook.com/VintageStl.66/photos/a.513225795390985/5433997496647099/

a 1946 Chevy pick-up was listed for sale in 1994 on a bulletin board in a Lexington muffler shop. It was once used by James Garner when he was young, working on the family farm, using the truck to feed horses and bring eggs to the market

 Sold by the cousin of James Garner. “The cousin told me that he and James used the truck to haul chickens and eggs from Denver Corner to Norman’s farmers’ market and for sale to passengers at the Santa Fe depot,” Agin said.

 It was a farm truck that was passed around the family, eventually ending up in the cousin’s hands.

the Petty Museum in Randleman NC with stories from his crew chief Dale Inman (thanks Mike!)


I'd never heard of James Garner's documentary Racing Scene, it's got the coolest cars and racing you'll see from the late 60s, and the most celebs and legends



with Parnelli, Leslie, Amon, Andretti, Penske, Smothers, Bondurant, Surtees, Posey, and others

See it on Amazon Prime on your flat screen, or You Tube on a computer

The cars are just FANTASTIC. No matter it it's the Lolas, Porsche 908s, GT40s, Camaros, Corvettes, Broncos, Mustangs, or other cars on the tracks, or the commuter Vette or Camaro that Garner drives. 

Surprising sights are the AIR Econoline van spotted in the pits



and the Condor RV that flat tows a race car across country


The Racing Scene was a collaborative effort between legendary motorsports writer William Edgar and Andy Sidaris – the sports director of ABC’s Wide World of Sports. The film was shot during the 1969 season with scenes on both sides of the Atlantic, much of the film focusses on James Garner’s then-new team American International Racers (AIR).

The Daytona 24 segment of the film was to be an honest look at big time professional sports car racing with his AIR team of cars and drivers as the focal point. Garner’s goal was to make a documentary film that would break the stereotypical mold that had developed in Hollywood concerning racing movies.


News flash, Capt Slow survived a sideswipe crash into a wall at 75 mph. Only broke one rib, and lost some blood.


He was at the wheel of a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 8


to no one's surprise, 59 year old James May was the only casualty of the stupidest, and most predictable idiotic challenge, avoid crashing involving lights that turn on, and avoiding directions that will result in a crash. 

According to reports of the incident, May broke a rib in the crash, because he hit a wall at 75 mph. 

May, Hammond, and Clarkson were filming a stunt in which they drag-raced towards an unlit tunnel, with only milliseconds to spare as the lights turned on and they adapted the course to enter the tunnel and avoid collision. May didn’t brake soon enough, so his car “jackknifed” into the wall.

https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/tv/5988706/grand-tour-james-may-hospitalised-crashing-car/

Filming a Grand Tour special, this was going to happen eventually. 

Crosleys at Bonneville

 

really cool innovative plow and disc set up

 https://ampervadasz.tumblr.com/post/692368711388168192

two months ago a bush hog lawnmower ran over a 72-year-old oil pipeline in Tennessee with, which was pressurized, and spilled more than 180,000 gallons of crude oil. Proof that the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010 did not result in oil company oversight by the govt


The incident – Tennessee’s second-largest crude oil spill to date – impacted local water, soil and wildlife,

The pipeline spill was uncommon, as pipelines are commonly buried several feet underground, but a worker clearing vegetation in the transmission right-of-way for the Mid-Valley Pipeline Company, the name of the 1,000-mile interstate pipeline through Tennesssee on its path from Texas to Michigan, hit the structure with a skid steer with a mower attachment.

The spill happened shortly after noon on June 29. The pipeline operator remotely closed the nearest valve five minutes after the breach, and emergency responders installed a mechanical clamp over the hole about 24 hours later to stop the leak.

Multiple spills have happened on the Mid-Valley Pipeline, including Tennessee’s largest spill in Clarksville in 1988, over the decades. Its owner, Energy Transfer Partners, is better known for the Dakota Access Pipeline, a nearly 1,200-mile line that has been the subject of protests and ongoing lawsuits.

Roughly 138,000 gallons, or 3,300 barrels, reached the nearby Horse Creek, at a low water level due to the severe drought, and fairly stationary – it would have been a different story if a heavy rain fell right after the spill.


THAT is why no one believes that pipelines are safe, or that the govt inspects, oversees, or has any regulatory power over oil companies, AND why no one wanted the Keystone pipeline through tribal lands in Oklahoma


new photos of the Brothers Collection








Friday, August 12, 2022

news flash: A highly volatile chemical leaked from an overheated rail car in Riverside County today, posing an explosion risk and leading to a hazardous spill, and shutdown of the 215 freeway


The Riverside County Fire Department responded to reports of large plumes of smoke coming from a rail car parked on the tracks in Perris around 7:40 p.m. Thursday, Crater said. A hazmat team was sent to the scene.

Oscar Torres, a fire captain working on the incident, said the temperature readings were “trending in a positive direction” but had not dropped enough to allow further action.

On Friday evening, Cal Fire officials said the tanker had been filled 50 days ago in Texas. Battalion Chief Mark Scoville said he was told that it is recommended that the substance be offloaded within 45 days.

The working theory, Scoville said, is that a stabilizing chemical injected to prevent the styrene from heating up failed at some point, resulting in a chemical reaction that caused the styrene to heat up to more than 300 degrees. It usually sits at about 85 degrees.

“The contents are basically boiling in a closed container,” Torres said. Pouring water on the tanker would not cool it down because it is insulated, officials said.

Styrene typically stays at about 85 degrees; the chemical in the rail car had reached at least 323 degrees.

I hadn't heard of the A 12, the precursor to the SR 71. To get these jet aircraft started, a "starter cart" was used... it had a pair of Buick 401s, or 425s (in the 1960s,) and in 1970 were swapped for Chevy 454s - paired up to one output shaft after the transmissions



it did not have any mufflers and was just 16 straight pipes routed out the sides.

side by side 425s, with the inboard exhaust pipes routed under the twin engine, so each side had 8 exhaust pipes. 

the Buicks were using Avgas, as it's easily available on any airfield

Eventually, these carts were phased out when permanent starting systems were installed in the Beale AFB hangars. This system consisted of compressed air tanks of considerable size that were used to rotate an attached unit. 

However, the portable carts were still servicing SR-71s at distant operating locations. Nevertheless, when NASA took over a few SR-71s at Edwards AFB, the starter carts were once again used because the aircraft was started and checked before flight out on the ramp.

 It is not known how many of these carts were built, nor how many exist today.

 Little information is released on this subject simply because it is not a prime area of interest. These carts are on display in various museums around the country. It is also rumored that some are in storage at key facilities like AMARC (Davis Monthan AFB), and Wright Patterson AFB, OH.


this is an audio file, with images. No video of anything moving

Francis Towne, British artist / art teacher, famous for Roman ruins between 1780-1781 in watercolor, trained in London as a coach painter in a 7 year apprenticeship. Miyazaki's Studio Ghibli backgrounds often look like Towne's art

He actually learned to paint flowers because coaches in those days were decorated with floral designs.






Brian Kessinger was commissioned (many artists take on commission work, especially at Comic Con) to celebrate a couple who adopted a daughter


Crosley wagon in a parade? Or a college campus event?

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=10228492009674950&set=gm.2548093778659108

climate change heat wave victim that needs some kindness and focused attention, the New York carriage horse. They're NOT able to work all damn day without BETTER care from assholes making a living off the sweat off their backs

 aka, people suck.

BUT FINALLY I can say thank you to the NYPD for stepping up to help the horses. It was the horse mounted division of NYPD, who jumped in to help the horse with a COOL DOWN shower of water. 

Officers in the Mounted Unit tendede to the horse, shutting down the block and placing a pillow under its head while cooling it down with ice and a hose. 

(People forget that the effing pavement IS HOT and a heat exhaustion victim is now WORSE off when laying on the pavement. 

The horse managed to get back on its feet with the help of the NYPD.

this is the first, and will likely be the only positive thing I ever say about NYPD, but these guys deserve it, and earned it


the facts are unknown about this 440 six pack 'Cuda, but, just put it together and bring it to the show! Events need more cool cars, not trailer queens (event is the 29th Annual Mopar Madness show in Langley, British Columbia, Canada)

 

vintage street vendors, thank you Bruce!



I hope Ford builds trucks better than they keep them from being stolen... The 2023 Ford Raptor R won’t enter production at the Dearborn Truck plant until this fall, but one was stolen from the very same Blue Oval storage lot where a number of other vehicles have been taken in recent months.


https://fordauthority.com/2022/08/2023-ford-raptor-r-also-stolen-from-infamous-dearborn-lot/