Better Beaters - Building Cars and Daily Drivers

 Now it's time for my truck to get a little love. 

Well as soon as I can get it back from my Son and his girl.  They just bought their first house and it there's one thing a new home owner needs, it's a truck. 

One of my Uncles used to say that he didn't need a truck, since his neighbor had one! I wouldn't depend on that, but my kid's can depend on mine. Trucks are often best when they are available, but not yours. 

I just started looking up the hoses and parts that I'll need on Rock Auto.

I'm going to repeat the process that I did with the '07 Mustang on the truck. Hoses and belts. 

Transmission fluid and filter. I replaced the plugs some years ago when I put some old gas into it. 

I just replaced the battery a few months back. 

I bought one of those cheapie roll on steering wheel covers, I'm curious to see how that will turn out.

I found this vinyl transfer to put into the Ford oval badges in the grille and on the tailgate. 

The truck needs the ends of the cowl vent cover, which surprisingly crumbled to dust a few years ago. 

There are a few dents notably on the left rear of the bed and to the top of the tailgate. I backed into a pole which bent the tailgate and broke the plastic trim piece. 

I plan to fix a few of these things, but it's my work truck. I wouldn't consider putting a set of fancy wheels on it. I like the silver painted steelies. 

I just cleaned out the cab and took the porr thing to the car wash after my dump run. I had washed the tires and wheels off first. I also polished the oxidized portion of the head lights. 

I still really like the truck, it's comfortable, handsome and ever so useful. When I'm driving it I never find myself envious of all those super fancy pick ups around me. I just finished the final big dump load of the last three weeks. I don't think that I'd want to take my King Ranch to the dump.

The first was of general trash I've been waiting to dump. The second and third were of an old patio structure that has been falling down for the last twenty years. I'd applied some inelegant support structures that have prevented it from falling over even after several earthquakes. It was comprised of four 10'' X 10'' ten foot columns, stretched out over 25 ft. with top rails and slats that supported  wisteria which later became over grown by ivy. It was all constructed of fine pure heart redwood when the house was built and used as a model, almost fifty years ago! The cost to build it as it as was just too high. As I cut into the wood with my reciprocating saw to demolish it, I could see areas where the redwood was undamaged and it released a pure smell of good wood as it was sliced apart. Unfortunately the wood couldn't be salvaged. Even those ten inch columns were rotten and pulpy all through the centers.