Happy Fathers Day

To all the Dads out there, new Dads, old dads, Dads who are no longer with us, happy fathers day. My fathers day started off with a beauty of a breakfast date with my daughter Anna. After some coffee and eggs we ventured out for pedicures. Yes you heard me, and if you saw my feet you'd know its not only a good thing but a service to the general public that this gets done.

After we got home, my attention turned to fixing the problem I had created the previous day. The issue with jobs that are "easy" is that when you talk to a professional, they say OMG it's stupid easy, even persons who have tackled the task say "Oh ya, quick and easy...no problem...it'll take you a half hour tops!"

The task is so simple, they assume you know all the little dos and don'ts....and if you don't then your in big do-do.

Ever since my summer diesel in the winter episode earlier this year I wanted to change fuel filters when the time presented itself. So the day before fathers day was cloudy and cool and raining , what better time to get under the bus and change out filters. 

This here is the fuel filter right by the gas tank. It goes tank, filter, lift pump, engine primer, engine filter, fuel pump. Its a super easy swap, just loosen with filter pliers/strap, take off the bowl, clean things up, oil the gaskets and spin it back on. Which is what I did.

Now here is where the little things can come back to haunt you. Some sources say put the filters on dry, others say presoak the filters with fresh diesel. But all sources say......if you change one filter change them both. Well this is where I screwed up on both fronts. I chose to put the filter on dry. My second mistake was after I replaced this one I decided to start the bus. All was well, until it wasn't anymore and after a minute or two of idling  Fillmore sputtered and coughed a slow death and would not start again. I ran him dry.  As the lift pump pulled fuel from the tank, I created an air embolus that seemed to work its way down into the engine room. So I started from scratch again. Pulled BOTH filters this time! 

This bad boy is the one in front of the fuel pump by the engine, a little more of a challenge to get to but do able. I made a bit of a mess but nothing I cant clean up. Preloaded both with fuel, cycled the lift pump a few times and hand primed it to beat the band. Sure enough he came back to life and I may be wrong but seems to be running smoother than before.

After that I treated myself to a quick bike trip up the mountain. I packed a cold fathers day beer so once I was far enough and sweating hard enough the justify the beverage I picked a good view and sat in the silence!

For Robert

I have spoken about Robert before, he is the gentleman who was the caretaker of the bus for many years. Robert had a vision for the bus which was beautiful and dignified. Unfortunately life got in the way and the bus moved to another person who preached the same vision but in the end did not follow through. This is where I showed up on the scene and took guardianship of the bus we now know as Fillmore. Sometime into my journey, after I had started a blog to keep friends and family from a far up to date on my shenanigans, I was contacted by Robert. A conversation turned to mutual admiration and respect, which now if I dare say has solidified into a friendship. His support and encouragement for this journey has always been strong, supportive and unwavering despite the fact that my vision is a far cry from his original vision. But I know that it brings him joy knowing that Fillmore is not only being refurbished, but used and loved with loved ones.

Last weekend found Michelle and I packing up to go explore some of Alberta's lakes north of where we live. Thanks to the ingenious design of a combo bike/kayak rack from Niceraq we packed up the dogs and the toys and hit the road. Funny, the 18 year old had a twinkle in his eye when he realized we were leaving him in charge of nothing much more than the fridge for the weekend.....odd he didn't seem disappointed he wasn't invited along.

The weather was a little poor when we left, but over time and geography......

Things got a little more bearable.

In a recent email with Robert, he said " I know I have original front turn signals somewhere!" And it made me think....I am pretty sure he already got tired of seeing my crappy plastic temporary lenses and mailed me originals years ago. I was simply waiting for the right time.....

Well the time is right, Robert this is for you.

The Good and the Bad

“You have to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad. love what you got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget, learn from your mistakes but never regret. People change, things go wrong, but just remember life goes on.”

― chime

I'm really not sure who Chime is or if they really did come up with the saying. I got more than I bargained for when I looked up the quote. When I was putting together this blog entry, I thought of the opening statement "You have to take the good with the bad" but I didn't know there was more. It really rings true to life!

So we'll start with the bad. After finishing fabrication of the rear ladder mounts, as I torqued down the second one I heard a "pop". It was my weld on the lower bolt hole. Easy fix but it means stripping the paint, re welding and trimming and then re painting!

While I waited for paint to dry I decided to take a moment to tackle something that I have been thinking of for years. In the engine room, as a part of the compressed air system the air dryer is mounted so as the canister comes up through the floor. As diligent as I was putting the floor in, there was a gap in the floor around the air dryer. This of course would allow dirt, dust and debris to get into the engine room. The solution so far was....shall we say a simple fix.

Low tech and low cost and relatively effective really...but the time was now to geta more effective and prettier solution.

Some creative aluminum work along with a split gasket...

And....you may breathe a sigh of relief!
 

A step up

I know that this will drive some purists through the roof, but I have finished (are you ever really finished?) the rear ladder install. Lots of finicky fine tuning but in the end the ladder performs well and no deflection of the bus skin under load.

And believe me I'm some good load!

All the while Jeff continues on with the bumper fab on the truck. Some intricate bends and challenging welds, but things are looking great.

Anna, who now lives in the area of my office, came by for a lunch time visit. I am graetful for such wonderful women in my life!
 

Michelle, not to be left out of the fun in the sun, convinced her boy to teach her to drive a skid steer while he was working at our place. He ws both thrilled and terrified