Day 3721

 I woke up at 7, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  Then I went out to the garage to work on the trailer.

I only worked on the trailer for about 45 minutes until Abby could run after breakfast.  I got some progress made on attaching latches to the side panels.  Then it was time to walk around the property while Abby ran.  She had a great time and I enjoyed the walk in the morning before it got hot.

When we were done it was time to get drugs for the cats in Dripping Spring.  We were going there yesterday when the car developed a check engine light.  When we got to 290 there was a long traffic jam because the two lights at Belterra were broken.  We had to get the drugs though, so we just waited and made our way through the 4-way stops.  Besides, I had a Amazon return for the UPS store next door.

The UPS store had some sort of weird code reader for the return authorization on the phone.  It didn't want to read the phone.  Then the package return label printer ran out of paper.  I'm going to Whole Paycheck from now on .

From there we went to Tractor Supply to get dog food and bird seed.  They had a 15% off sale on the dog food, so we bought two bags.  On the way back we stopped at the donut store.  It was OK.  Of course we went back on 150.  We stopped at Salt Lick for lunch.  It didn't seem too crowded, but they said we'd have to wait.  We ordered takeout instead and ate it at a table in the waiting area.  It was actually more pleasant than eating inside.  Of course Abby got some brisket, too.

 I went back to the garage when we got home.  I would have made great progress if I hadn't had to redo a bunch of stuff.  It wasn't anything serious, just a comedy of errors.  I got all of the side plate latches done and the side plates installed.  Then I quit because I was tired of working on it.  It's looking pretty good.

I went back inside and ordered some more M2 screws.  The ones supplied with the latches are too short and I've really depleted my supply.  I also spent a lot of time trying to find the right materials for the jack that won't cost too much.  I was unsuccessful.

That was it for work today.  I spent the rest of the day on videos and surfing. 

Day 3720

 I woke up at 6:30 and got up immediately to put the cats in separate rooms.  We needed to collect their urine for the vet.  Cooper went in the other bathroom and Devon went in the cat room.  Then I fixed their food.  After that I went back to bed and played games for a while.  There was no chance of going back to sleep.

When I got up I had breakfast, took out the garbage, and did 2 miles on the property.  It was going to be way too hot to walk later.  Abby had a great time going all over the property.  When the walk was done I went to the garage to work n the trailer.

I now had everything that I needed to make serious progress.  I marked out the hole positions for the ramp and side wall hinges.  Then I installed the front two latches.  By then it was time for lunch.  The cats had pissed, so after lunch we started out to the vet. 

The goddamn car's check engine light was on.  I decided to use it anyway.  Maybe it will blow up.  I told Ellen to call Audi.  She got a hold of them just as we got to 290 and Nutty Brown road.  They said they had an appointment available at 1:30 (35 minutes).  I said we'll take it, but might be 15 minutes late.  We drove to the vet and immediately went back home to get the truck.

I dropped Ellen off at home and kept on to Audi.  I got there at exactly 1:45.  Of course there was a little bit of speeding involved, but I wasn't going any faster than everyone else.  We dropped off the car and they said they'd give us an update on Monday.  Then we went home.

When we got home I went back out to the garage.  I installed the back latches and pop riveted the whole back end together.  It's beginning to look good now.  I finished about the time to feed the pets.

After pet feeding I looked on Amazon for parts for the trailer stand.  I didn't find what I wanted.  I ran out of enthusiasm and will take it up again tomorrow. 

Dinner was leftovers followed by videos for the rest of the night. 

 

Day 3719

 I woke up at 7, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went outside to finish spreading gravel.

The first step was to look for the remaining bare spots.  It turns out that I got most of them yesterday.  Plus, there were only a couple of big ones.  I loaded up the cart and covered most of them.  A half filled cart covered the rest.  If I'd known that yesterday I might have finished up then.

After putting everything away I went to the garage to work on the trailer.  I cut the ends of the four axles.  The trailer looks pretty good now.  I don't want to start the latches until I have the chain tomorrow.  Instead I tried to find stuff that I could use to make a front jack.  I couldn't find anything that I could use.  After sitting and pondering things for a while I went back to the house.

 While surfing I had an idea.  I could probably find cheap jump rings to connect the latches to the chains.  That would save me the $15 for tomorrow's chain.  I found some for under $5.  They are coming tonight along with a bunch of food I ordered.

It was lunch time and I didn't feel like leftovers.  Also, there was an email saying there was a package at the post office.  We decided to go to Doc's.  There were stops at HEB (for bananas, Amazon's are lousy) and the post office.  Doc's was really nice.  There were only 6 or 8 people there and it was happy hour.  I had an alcoholic root beer slushy, too.

When we got home i got on Amazon and Aliexpress looking for things to use as a trailer jack.  I was unsuccessful.  Eventually I gave up and watched videos.  That lasted through dinner (leftovers).  Then I went back to surfing.

The groceries and the jump rings came.  The jump rings are going to be perfect.  The package contained Ellen's mini-Audi.  It's being charged.  We ended up with three bags of groceries and 8 bottles of water.  At this rate we won't need to buy water at Costco any more.  

Day 3718

 I woke up at 6:30 and didn't even try to go back to sleep.  I knew that I wouldn't.  I played games and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After eating it was surfing.

I really wanted to get something accomplished, so I decided that today was the day I'd start working on the gravel.  There's a lot of thin/bare spots that need to be filled in.  I started by filling the cart tires with air.  Then I started moving gravel and filling the spots starting where we park the car.  I did 7, maybe 8, carts before I got too tired to continue.  It was beginning to get warm also. 

I'm getting old.  I used to do between 10 and 20 carts before I quit.  Of course that was 10 years ago.  I did manage to fill in all the holes to up above the yard art.  I plan on finishing the rest tomorrow.  I may actually have a little gravel left over.

 It was a little before lunch when I went back inside.  I still felt like doing something so I finished up the work on the TRX4.  All I had to do was set the steering limits and the trim.  It didn't take very long at all.  The TRX4 is really easy to work on. 

 I had lunch.  There was a package at the post office.   Abby had been bugging me continually about a run and we needed some salt for the softener.  We put her in the car and went to Lowe's.  It was a short stop.  There was a cart by the door.  We went inside and the salt was just there.  We loaded the cart and went 20 feet to an open cash register, paid, and left.

The next stop was the post office.  There were two packages instead of one.  Yeah.  Then it was off to Circle C.  It was 83 degrees.  I was still tired so we just walked around the various squirrel towns.  Abby still managed to get in a good run.

When we got home I felt like shopping.  I ordered some more protein drinks and Ellen's pants from Amazon.  I also looked for things to dress up the TRX4.  Aliexpress has ruined me for buying that stuff on Amazon.  It's just so much cheaper at Aliexpress.  I had to log on there anyway to mark all the things in the packages as received.

That got me looking at stuff at Aliexpress.  I ended up making a small order.

The Chinese stuff included the bearing hexes I'd been waiting for.  I went out to the garage and installed the second set of tires on the trailer.  The tires work fine.  I also put the Kraton on the trailer.  It barely compresses the springs.  I'll decide if I'll flip the axles later.

By then it was dinner time.  I went back inside and surfed while Ellen fixed fish for dinner.  She baked it and it was good. 

After dinner I surfed and then tried to watch a movie.  I only made it about 1/3 through before I went back to surfing for the rest of the evening. 

Day 3717

 I woke up a little before 7, played games for a little while, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  then we loaded up the dog and went to Costco.

We needed water and I wanted to get there in the hour before they let everyone in.  We got there just after they opened the doors.  There were very few people in the store, so it was easy to look at stuff.  We bought the water, some fish, and a "healthy" cereal.

On the way out of the parking lot we stopped at the pet store to buy more cat food.  The sale on it ends int 4 days.  We stopped at the gas station on the way to the post office.  We driven all of 2500 miles in the car in 3 months.  There was a recall notice for the Audi at the post office, but no package.  I asked about it at the desk and got embarrassed when I realized it was in the mailbox (I hope).

We stopped at HEB next for some much needed groceries.  Amazon can't supply everything.  The last stop was Circle C to make Abby a very happy dog.  She even got to play chase with another dog for a little while.  The new dog water bottle is nice, but the strap is lousy.  I'll have to do something about it.  I was really happy to find the Amain package in the mailbox when we stopped.

It was lunch time when we got home.  After lunch I opened the Amain package.  I had things to modify the Typhoon Grom and the TRX4.  I decided on the TRX 4.

I removed all of the electronics from the TRX4.  I replaced the motor and ESC with a Hobbywing Fusion and put a Flysky receiver in it.  Everything went smoothly.  The TRX is easy to work on.  It did take a lot of time though.  I set it up using the 12T pinion already in it and then decided to redo everything by putting a 11T in.  Switching receivers took some time, too.  All six channels are used.

I programmed up the ESC.  The rig runs well, but it's noisy.  Abby doesn't like it at all.  I didn't set the steering limits because I ran out of ambition.  Besides it was time to clean up and feed the animals.  

I watched videos until dinner time.  We had this shrimp and noodles thing that we got at HEB.  After dinner we gave Abby a bath.  She'd rolled in something at the park today.

The rest of the evening was videos and surfing.  The computer is still acting up.  It looks like a video or power supply problem.  I'm really confused.  I'm letting it run a virus scan tonight. 

Day 3716

 I woke up a little after 7, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  It was cold outside, so I decided to work on car bodies and magnets.

The Opel magnets came out so well that I wanted to upgrade some of the other cars.  I ended up doing the Jeep, STX, BRZ, and TRX4.  None of it was hard, but it took until lunch time to finish.  It was nice to have something going as I expected it would. 

After lunch it had warmed up enough to take a walk on the property.  I did 2 miles while Abby did a lot more.  She was ready to go inside when I was done.  I went to the garage first to see if there was anything I could do to the trailer.  There really isn't until I get the chain next week.  I could install the hooks, but I rally want to have the chain before I do.

When I got back to the house I did some surfing and watched some videos.  I felt I'd accomplished enough today.  I found a guy making really interesting RC videos.  I watched them for hours.

Ellen fixed eggs and sausage for dinner.

After dinner was more videos and surfing. 

Day 3715

 I woke up at 7:30, played games, and got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  It was too cold to work in the garage so I decided to mount the body to the Opel.

This was supposed to e a short simple task, but in true Opel fashion it turned int a 3 hour marathon.  First I had to replace the lower magnets.  Then I had to attach the battery holders to the body posts.  This required reducing the posts a little with the Dremel.  I got out the soldering iron and wired the magnets on the body posts ( should have done this earlier).

There was more soldering when I moved on to the body magnets.  I'd planned on having a connection at each end of the body.  They chassis design wouldn't let me wire the front posts, so I had to change the body wiring.  Two problems showed up when I put the body on the chassis.  All of the mounts were now too high.  Also, the back mounts (where the wiring is) had to be changed to the tilting mounts.  The back mount change involved rewiring the body magnets and of course lowering all four posts was more Dremel work.

One good thing.  The stronger magnets and super strong double sided tape I bought work really well.  I can pick up the car with a battery in it by grasping the body and the body won't come off.

After that it was time for lunch.  After lunch it was time to run the dog (and walk me) on the property.  I took a pruner with me while I walked and trimmed branches along the path to make it easier to walk.  The final result is pretty good.  

When I had my two+ miles in I went to the garage to work on the trailer.  I decided to wait on mounting the tie downs until the chain came (due today).  Instead I cut out the expanded metal from the desk tray I'd bought yesterday at a neighborhood garage sale (50 cents).  It worked great.  The front of the trailer is now done except for mounting the tool box.  I'll wait until most of the work is done before doing that because its plastic.

It was dinner time when I finished.  I went inside and fed the animals.  Then I got sidetracked playing with the 1/64 car and surfing.  Eventually I had a frozen thing.  The Opel is still on the kitchen table.  It really is a cool looking car. 

After dinner I watched videos.  The chain for the trailer came.  It didn't fit.  That's my fault, I measured it wrong.  I got on Amazon and ordered more.  By then it was time to finish the day with surfing and videos. 

Day 3714

 I woke up at 6:30 and didn't even try to go back to sleep.  It was clear that I wouldn't be successful.  I played games for a while and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  The computer is still working - at least until is starts flaking out.

When breakfast was done I did a little online shopping at Hobby Town.  I had a $20 off $100 coupon and we needed some paint for the Corvair.  I figured I could find something to make up the difference.  We loaded up the dog and left.

Our first stop was the Japanese store on the other side of tow.  Unfortunately it didn't carry the BBQ  was looking for.  I did get some great Mango drink.  Then it was one to Hobby Town.

I've always been there during the week.  It's VERY busy on Saturday.  They set up a course in the parking lot.  People run their cars, break them, and bring them in for parts/repair.  They even have a crawler course outside that they put up.  We got the paint and I bought a 1/64 (Hot Wheels) sized car. 

We went to the fish place across the parking lot.  They let the dog on the patio.  It was a little cold and windy, but comfortable in the sheltered part of the patio.  Abby was a great dog.  There were several other dogs including two a couple of tables away.  They were the untrained yappy type that kept barking at her.  She ignored them when I told her to.  After lunch she got some extra treats.

We stopped at the post office on the way home.  USPS said that a package had made it there.  Maybe it had, but it wasn't in the box. 

The last stop was Circle C.  Abby deserved a good run and she got it.  When we got home I put the car (a Mustang) on the charger and went out to the garage.  I spent over an hour putting hinges on the sides.  Most of the time was making sure that the way I was installing them would work.  Once again I was having a lot of trouble until I figured out a way to camp them before I marked the holes.

When I went back inside the computer was acting up.  I closed it and used the Surface to surf whie Ellen watched a chick flick.  

Dinner was leftover chicken.  After dinner I watched videos.  I gave the ustang a little run.  It's a kick.  The animals want to chase it around because it's so small.  It's tires are really hard though, so it has a lot of power but is hard to control.

Tomorrow I'm hoping to get the tie downs mounted and the front of the frame done.  Who knows? 

Day 3713

 I woke up a little before 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  The first thing I did was try to put the computer.  IT WORKED.

Not only did the computer work, but I was able to completely back up all of my files from it.  That took over an hour.  Transfers to the USB drives were slow.  I spent the time working with Ellen to identify a possible replacement.  It's not possible to get one immediately.  Depending on model and vendor it could take 1 day to a week.

The computer worked flawlessly for quite a while.  I was thinking that it was OK.  Then it started to exhibit some flakiness.  I messed around looking for possible issues, but couldn't identify any.  I fired up the Surface as a backup and started getting it up to date.

I'd been texting with Lee and about 11:30 he said come over.  I stopped working on the computer and went over there with bourbon and Abby.  We talked for quite a while.  Abby and Kai had a great time.  Lee's cat got a little involved also.

When I got home it was time for lunch.  When I tried to use the computer it was locked up.  I managed to use the power button to get it turned off.  This is the only pattern I've discovered.  If it's put to sleep by closing the display it seems to wake up.  If it goes to sleep because of a timeout it won't wake up.

With one computer dead and the other updating I went out to the garage to work on the trailer.  That's when I remembered that I needed to order chain for the trailer and buy C clips for the pop rivet gun.  It was back to the house to use the tablet to order the chain.  Then we took Abby to ACE.  After Ace we stopped at Dutch Bros.  I wanted to get Abby a pup cup and I wanted coffee.  I haven't been thinking well all day and I thought that might help.

When we got home I left the computer alone.  I went out to the garage to try to make some sort of progress.  I ended up figuring out how to do the sides.  I cut them and also notched one end of each so it would fit the front.  the good news is that I don't think getting the sides supported in the up and 90 degree positions will be hard.  I'm still not sure about the down position though.  I have an idea though and will work on it tomorrow.

I got the bearings for the Arktos today, but I won't spend any time on it until I'm finished with the trailer.

After dinner and surfing I turned the computer back on.  It took a little manipulation but I got it to boot.  I'm using it right now to write this.  It's working fine.  I'm truly confused about what is causing the issues. 

Day 3712

 I woke up about 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that it was time to go to the vet.  We got there just in time.

The vet looked at the cats and came to two conclusions.  First, they are getting older and some possible metabolic issues are showing up.  They want to do more tests.  Second, Devon needs his teeth cleaned.  The bottom line is that they are going to cost some money.  Oh well. 

After that we went to vote.  It was 11 and there was a short line.  I think that the reason for the line was that the ballot had 49 pages.  Some of the ballot measures were stupid, like abolishing property taxes.  With the voting done we went home and had lunch.  During lunch my computer started acting a little strange - more on that later.

After lunch we took Abby to Circle C.  It was sunny and warm, so she didn't run as hard as usual.  She did put in a good effort though.  On the way home we stopped at the post office to pick up a Chinese package.  It had some stuff I'd been waiting for including some of the hexes with bearings.

When we got home I went put away the Chinese stuff and then went out to the garage to work on the trailer.  Things didn't go well.  The pop rivet gun jammed up.  I trying to fix it I lost a C clip and another piece.  I went inside to order another and the computer was almost unusable.  The display kept flashing and going dark.  With Ellen's help we identified some software updates.  I finally got them updated and they seemed to help. 

I went back outside and did a little more trailer work.  I found out that I'll need to order some small chain as well as fixing the pop rivet gun.  I did get to test the hexes.   They work well.

I worked until after 7 and then went inside to eat a late dinner.  After dinner I worked on the computer for a while and it seemed normal.  I quit and watched videos instead.

Later when I went to write this up the problems are back.  The screen has colored streaks flashing across it and it's missing keystrokes.  I'll get a new one tomorrow. 

Day 3711

 I woke up a little before 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After eating I went outside to work on the trailer.

Today's goal was to attach the axles.  It went just as I planned it.  there were a couple of things that made it a little time consuming, but the result is just what I wanted.  I still need to cut them off, but I can't do that until I have the hexes.  They are somewhere between here and China.

 It was lunch time when I got finished.  I'd intended to go inside, eat lunch, and then do a little more work before walking the dog.  That got derailed when I logged on to Amazon.  I intended to order one thing and ended up ordering several.  Of course ordering anything is time consuming for me because I always search for the best deal.  Ellen joined in.  We ended up ordering a bunch of stuff including some food.  It's all supposed to be here this evening.

With that done I took the dog out for a run around the property.  It's my  first time using the new path.  I identified some improvements that I wanted to make, so after I was finished I got out the loppers and saw and went to work.  I tried to just cut dead stuff, but I did have to cut a few live branches.  I'll have to see how I like the change when I walk it.

It was after 4:30 when I was done, so no more work on the trailer.  I went back inside and surfed.  I also got back on Aliexpress to order a couple of small items.  That kind of replaced surfing after dinner.

Ellen fixed chicken for dinner.  That will give me a lot to eat the next few days.

The first Amazon delivery came at 9.  When I picked it up Lee drove up on a motorcycle.  We talked for a short time.  I said that I'd vote for his candidate for governor.  I'll wait for the other two Amazon deliveries and then go to bed. 

Day 3710

 I woke up at 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  Then I went to work on the trailer hitch.

The first task was to put the ball hitch together.  That involve a chain and several small parts.  I couldn't figure out everything until I got on the web and found a picture.  It took a while to put it together.  Having two thumbs would have helped a lot.  The hitch is really clever.  It looks good and I think it will work well also.

With that done I went to the garage to install it.  I fabricated a front mount and pop-riveted it to the front of the trailer.  Then I screwed the hitch on.  The end result looks really good.   The hitch is now complete so I went on to laying out the parts I'll need to attach the axles.  I got part of that done before I ran out of desire to work on it.  Also it was time to take Abby on a run before it got too hot.

I went back to the house and collected Abby and Ellen.  Abby had her usual great time.  We went to the post office afterwards.  There were a couple of packages from China there.  After that it was back home for lunch.

After lunch I put away the stuff from China.  Then it was a little more investigation before placing my Amain order.  I saved over $28.  Next up was watching videos for a while.  I didn't feel like watching very much, so I went back to searching for RC parts.  This time it was brass for the TRX4.  I figure as long as I'm updating the electronics I should improve the performance too.  I won't spend any money on it right now.  I'd rather spend the money on the Arktos.

I now have the magnets that I need to upgrade the cars that use magnets.  I kind of want to work on the trailer, but if that gets boring I'll use that to fill in.

Dinner was leftovers.  After that was more internet.  I had such a problem with the ball hitch assembly that I got out the latches for the trailer.  They were difficult, too.  The big problem was that soe of the pieces are not the right size.  I did get them to go together though.

I finished the day with a little more video watching. 

Day 3709

 I woke up a little after 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  When I finished eating I went out to pick up the Amazon stuff.  It was my protein drinks.  They'd trashed the box and destroyed all 24 cans.  Ellen set up a return at Whole Paycheck.

I went out to the garage.  I really wanted to make progress on the trailer.

I should mention that I was super careful with all the steps today.  I didn't want to screw something up and need to buy more material.  I started by using my new improved method of marking the cuts in the L channels.  It worked perfectly.  Then I cut them.  That worked perfectly also.

By then it was 11.  I wanted to run Abby before it got hot, so we loaded up the dog and the drinks and left.  Abby had a good time at the park.  It was a good choice to go early.  It really warmed up while we were there.  After that we stopped at Whole Paycheck.  We turned in the drinks and bought some fish for dinner.  The next stop was the post office.  Unfortunately they were closed for President's Day.  The last  stop was HEB for bird seed and ass wipe. 

When we got home I had lunch and went back out to the garage.  I cut the four supports I needed for the L channel, drilled the mounting holes in them and the frame, and attached them to the frame with pop rivets.  The attachment went slow because I had to wrestle with the tool to remove the pop rivet stems from it.  The last step was drilling more holes and attaching the L channel to the supports.  I used screws as a temporary for that.  The result looks good.

By then it was almost 5.  I went back inside and fed the animals.  Then I sat down to construct the Amain Hobbywing order.  It took hours to determine what I wanted and what would fit each vehicle.  I ended up with an ESC for the Typhon, an ESC/motor combo for the Arktos, and a Fusion for the TRX4.  The TRX4 has a really shitty brushed system.  I've been meaning to replace it for years.

At first I wasn't going to do anything to the ArkTos because it's transmission gears are really weak.  However, the manufacturer makes an upgraded set.  It's $50, but I'll probably get it when it's available.  Until then I'll just turn down the power in the ESC.

By the time I was finished it was bedtime. 

Day 3708

 I woke up at 7:30, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  I replaced the batteries for the weather station.  that took a while because the battery box is inside a waterproof box.  That meant dealing with small screws and putting the seal back in place once the box was opened.

It was windy and a little cold so I did a little surfing while I was waiting for it to warm up a little.  I went out to the garage when it did.  I took out the car and put everything back in place.  Then I got started on the trailer.

The project for the day was the hitch.  I spent hours trying to figure out how to cut a notch in the L channels so I could bend them into the correct line.  I wish I could remember all that geometry I learned 55 years ago.  I ended up cutting out some paper templates.  I used them to figure it out and cut a piece of scrap to the correct angle.

By then it was time for lunch.  I was going to take the dog to Circle C afterwards, but Ellen's asshole was giving her problems.  I surfed until she was better and then we left.  It was a cool day and Abby ran a lot.  An ice cream van showed up and we bought ice cream.  We sat at the kid's place to eat it.  When we were done we went home.

I went back to the garage.  I made a prototype using two pieces of scrap to make sure that I didn't waste the good material.  I don't have enough to make any mistakes.  I also worked out how to connect the trailer ball to the front of the hitch.  Then I added it to my prototype to make sure it would work. 

I was finally ready to cut the real material.  I cut it to length and made the ball hitch mods.  The result looks really good.  By then it was 5:30 and time to quit.  Just as I was leaving I realized that there was an easy way to figure the cuts for the channel bends.  I could have made the measurements in a couple of minutes.

I went back inside and had leftovers for dinner.  The Arktos came.  I opened the box and looked at it, but didn't play with it. Instead I tried to figure out what to do about the motor swap.  I looked on Amain, Amazon, and Aliexpress but couldn't find the right sized pinion gear.  That might be lucky since apparently the gearbox is really weak.  I spent the whole evening on the effort.

Right now I'll probably get a non-Hobbywing motor for the Arktos, or maybe just a stronger brushed one.  I haven't decided if I'll get an ESC for the Typhon to go along with the motor I already have.  Maybe I'll bag the whole idea.

Day 3707

 I woke up at 7 and dozed for a while.  Then I played some games before getting up for pet stuff and breakfast.  When that was done I spent a little more time on Amain planning the motor swap.  I still have to do more.  There's a lot of variables concerning motor size, pinions, ESC type, etc.  I'm going to wait until tomorrow when the Arktos gets here to make decisions.

I switched to doing more design work on the trailer.  Yesterday's work in the garage gave me ideas on how to do finish up the ramps.  I also realized that my design for the side plates needed some work.  I logged onto Aliexpress to search for options.  Eventually I worked out what I think I need.  Then it was a lot of time finding the cheapest prices.  Finally I ordered everything. 

With that finished I went out to the garaged, pushed everything around, and put the car inside.  The storm was fast approaching and there was a possibility of hail. 

I had to go to CVS for drugs.  By then it was raining heavily.  It rained from mid-morning to early evening.  I stopped at HEB and got Ellen some chocolate covered strawberries for Valentine's day.

Abby had a bad day.  She couldn't go out and the squirrels were having a field day.  There were three of them.

After lunch I went back to planning a motor swap.  I interspersed that with videos and a little surfing.  Another Chinese package arrived at the airport.  I took the truck to go get it.  I took Abby with me so that she at least got a chance to leave the house.

When I got back I put the Chinese stuff away.  As I was reviewing the Aliexpress orders I realized that I'd gotten screwed by a vendor on the hex bearings order. The ad shows nothing but pictures of groups of 2 and 4 bearings.  However, in one hidden area it says that you're only getting one.  Fuck.  That led to another long search for the cheapest hex bearings.  The screwing cost me about $4.  Assholes.

Dinner was leftovers.  After dinner.  I went back to trying to answer some of the questions concerning the motor swap.  I was partially successful, but there's more to do. 

Day 3706

 I woke up at 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After a little surfing I did some design work on the hitch part of the trailer.  I didn't make a lot of progress.  I'm just not sure how to connect the braces to the bed.

I decided to go out to the garage to work on the trailer.  I wanted to pick something simple so I worked on the ramps.  The concept was simple, but forming the ramps out of the scrap metal I had wasn't.  I started modifying it with the Dremel with little success.  Then I decided to use the metal shears.  That worked a lot better.

I quit for lunch and then we took Abby to Circle C.  We wanted to make sure she got to run.  Tomorrow will be rainy.  She had a good run.  We put the collar on her even though we didn't have a controller.  We didn't miss it.  We stopped at the post office on the way home.

When we got home I opened the bag from China and put it away.  Then I went back to the garage.  I put anti-skid on the ramps.  I won't attach them until later.  Than I sat and tried to figure out how to attach the axles to the springs.  I tried a couple of things that didn't work.  Then I hit on one that did.  It involves sandwiching the axle between two pieces of sheet metal and then screwing them together.  It will take some work to fabricate, but I think it will work well.

I went back to the house for dinner.  After dinner was videos for a while.  That got boring.  Amain sent me a 15% off coupon for Hobbywing.  The Arktos 6x6 is sold out at Amain and a lot of other places including the manufacturer.  I took time to order one and a lot of food from Amazon.  Then I went back to Amain.  The coupon got me planning to swap the cheapo motor in the Typhon into the Arktos.  I did that until bedtime.  I also continued looking at Amain instead of playing games in bed.

Day 3705

 I woke up a little before 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  I need to do some more planning before any more work on the trailer, so I started to work out how the hitch should be constructed.

I got sidetracked by some little things including putting the rubber mat under our "Christmas tree".  It turns out that the cabinet top was OK.  Ellen had placed a plastic sack under part of it.  I replaced it all with the mat.

After that I worked on plans for several things.  I figured out the length of the ramps and how to store them.  I still need to figure out how to mount them when loading a rig.  I also figured out how to do the drop side rails.  Finally I came up with several ideas for the corners of the frame.

I realized that I needed to go to Lowe's to get some materials.  I did a little pricing at both Lowe's and Home Depot.  Then we took Abby to Circle C.

It was nice to go to the park.  I was getting a little bored staying at home.  Then we stopped at Lowe's.  I got material for the side rails.  I also got some thing aluminum that I think I can use for the corners and the ramp carrier.  One crappy thing happened.  I left the Dogtra on top of the car.

We stopped at Doc's for lunch.  I brought half of it home.  Then we went home after a stop at the post office.  We searched for the Dogtra, but didn't find it.  I ordered another from Amazon - $280.  Crap. 

I got thinking and reworked how I was going to hold the side rails.  That led to an Aliexpress session looking for parts.  I think I have something really neat planned using hitch latches and chain.  I should be able to secure them pointing down, pointing out, and pointing up. 

About that tie Ellen turned on videos.  I sat down to watch.  I watched until dinner time - a salad.  After dinner it was a little more videos and then a movie.  It was a long one, 2.5 hours, but interesting.  It was bedtime by the time it ended.  

Day 3704

 I woke up at 7:30, played games, and then gt up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I was anxious to do some more RC work, so I started on the SCX-30.

I had two brass weights to put on the front axle.  Of course there were no instructions, just two weights and two screws.  It took me quite a while to figure out how to put them on.  There's only one way that they fit, but they are different for each side.  Of course I had to try a couple or wrong ways before I found the right one.  When they were attached I tried them out.  They do make an improvement.  I'm going to have to use some restraint to not spend any more money into it.

After that I took a look at installing brush cables on the SCX 10 Jeep.  It turns out that they would make it look stupid.  There isn't a good place to attach them in the front.  Also the passenger side one would interfere with the air scoop.  I decided to leave them off.

I had lunch and then took the Jeep out to the garage to install the antenna.  I needed to drill a hole in the bumper to do it.  That was a quick and easy install.  Then I decided to work on the trailer. 

I carefully measured and cut the L channel.  Then I just as carefully marked where the spring mounting holes needed to be.  Lastly I used the drill press and a brand new bit to drill the holes.  After that it was just a lot of assembly.  When I was finished I put away all of the tools and cleaned up both the bench and the work table.  They were both really dirty.

I continued the cleanup by sweeping the entire garage floor.  Between the dirt, dust, and metal shavings it really needed it.  The last thing was putting transmitter labels on three cars that I hadn't done earlier.  the place is ready now for whatever part of the trailer that I build next. 

I went back to the house to do some surfing and watch some videos.  Eventually I did a little design work on the trailer hitch, but my heart wasn't in it.  I went back to videos, which turned into a nap.

Ellen fixed meat loaf and potatoes for dinner.  After dinner I watched an old James Bond movie.  

 

Day 3703

 I woke up at 8:15.  That's the latest that I've slept in a long tine.  It was nice.  I played games for a short while and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went to work on the Opel.

I installed the sway bar sing the parts that I'd received from China.  They fit without me having to do any modification.  The whole process went smoothly.  That was a first for working on the Opel.  I expected some problems determining where the magnets went on the body.  It turned out that there were markers molded into the body, so there wasn't anything to do.  The last thing to do is attach the magnets to the body.  I'll do that as soon as I receive the magnets.

I put the Opel away and got out the 1/10 scale Jeep.  I removed the interior from the body and glued some of the ducks from Aliexpress to the dash.  Ducks on the dash is a tradition that Jeeps owners have adopted.  I also replaced the magnets on the body with larger ones.

I had to wait for the glue to dry so I had lunch.  Abby was going crazy wanting to run, so I decided to go for a walk around the property instead of driving anywhere.  Abby had a great time.  I spent the walk trying to figure out how to mount the axle and tires to the trailer.  I came up with a couple of ways, but they were clunky and didn't involve bearings.

Walking the same old course in the property was getting old so after I finished the walk I got the pruners out and made a new path to walk.  I mainly had to cut dead branches and move fallen debris.  There was a lot of it though.  There's now a new way to walk.  It can be a course by itself or use part of the old course.  When I was done I had several bleeding scrapes on my arms.  I hate my thin skin 

When I got back to the house I looked on Aliexpress for a solution to my trailer axle problem.  I found some cool tire hexes with bearings inside.  Then I looked on Amazon for a metric axle and some nuts.  To my surprise I could get everything I needed for less than $10.  That's cheaper than Aliexpress.

My search of the tire hexes turned into another hours long Aliexpress search for low priced stuff to order with the hexes.  I needed to find $7 worth of stuff to get free shipping.  I had to be stuff I really needed.  I ended up with a storage box for the trailer and some wheels that I can use for a set of tires that I already have.

Dinner was leftovers.  After dinner I watched videos.  Just before I went to bed I put the Jeep body back together.  Tomorrow I'll add the tree branch wires and the long antenna.  Taking a day off the trailer was a good idea.  I actually think I'll go back to it tomorrow. 

Day 3702

 I woke p at 7:30, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  Then I sat down to design how I was going to mount the springs on the trailer.

I worked for quite a while making sure my design matched the springs.  This was something that I couldn't do until I had them.  When I was done I went out to the garage to start installing them.  I mad good progress at first.  However once I had the first set installed I discovered that I'd need shims.  That wasn't something I was able to see until it was assembled.

It was lunch time so I went back inside for something frozen.  I did a little surfing and then went back to the garage.  I had to take apart  part of what I'd assembled, and putting in the shims wasn't easy, but eventually I got the first  set installed on the trailer.

That's when things went to shit.  I got the second spring set partially assembled and then started measuring and drilling the holes.  I though I'd done a fine job until I tried to put the springs on.  That's when I discovered that I'd measured the positions of the holes wrong.  I'd ruined the rail.  I got my last piece of rail material and cut it to size.  After measuring twice I cut lit half an inch too short.  I have no idea how that happened.

I cut a patch for the rail and installed it.  Then I measured and starting drilling the holes.  The first two holes were fine.  The drill walked on the next two and ruined the rail.  I didn't have enough material to patch together another.  I quite in disgust.

When I got back to the house an Aliexpress email said a package had been delivered.  Yeah.  I surfed until dinner.  Ellen fixed mac and cheese with sausage.  I waited until traffic died down and then we went to do errands.

We stopped at Lowe's and got more rail material.  Then we stopped at a pet store to get something rubber to put under the "Christmas tree".  I'm pretty sure the top of the cabinet is ruined, but there's no reason to make it worse.  The last stops were the post office and HEB for milk and bananas.

When I got home I opened the Aliexpress package.  It has the parts I need to install the Opel sway bar.  I plan on doing that tomorrow.  I make just ignore work on the trailer tomorrow. 

Day 3701

 I woke up at 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  I'd planned ongoing to the Domain today.

Two things stopped me.  One it was cloudy and cool, not the warm day it was supposed to be.  Second I went to the website and looked at the stores.  They were clothing, jewelry, and expensive watches.  Nothing that I wanted to go to. 

Ellen got involved and we switched to "were can we got for brunch".  We looked at several places but none of the excited us.  We decided to stay home. 

I spent some time reworking my design for the trailer spring mounting.  I'd made some really bad assumptions.  I thought I'd worked them out so I went out to the garage.  It didn't take long for me to realize that I needed to do some more design work.  I went back to do it, but got captured by a surfing and Aliexpress squirrel.  Then it was lunch time.

After lunch I went back to the squirrel.  Eventually I ran it down and went back to the garage.  I still hadn't worked out the design issues, but I wanted to get some more progress done.  I ended up working on the bracing for the deck.  It will also be where the springs mount.  I had to join small pieces to both braces because I didn't have any leftover L shaped pieces that were long enough.  I worked until I had all of the bracing and the rest of the deck border done. 

By then it was tie to feed the animals and watch the super bowl.  It wasn't a very exciting game.  The Seahawk defense dominated and their offense didn't do much.  They won though.   After that I did a little surfing and went to bed.

Day 3700

 I woke up at 7:30, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  It was going to be hot today, so after waiting and hour after Abby ate we took her to Circle C.

There was a lot of people at the park (it's Sat.).  They all seemed to be dong things at the kiddie area or on the disc golf.  The rest of the park didn't have very many people at all.  Abby exhibited her normal level of activity.  It probably would have been a lot less if we'd waited longer. 

With the park done we went on some errands.  We stopped at the post office to pick up the package from China.  Then we fueled up the car.  The final stop was the pet store for cat food.  We really didn't need any, but they had it in stock and on sale. 

When we got home I had lunch, opened the China package, and put all of it away.  One of the items was the springs for the trailer.  Now I can really get on it.

The first thing  learned was that the website's measurements on the springs was wrong.  I had to redo the drawing that I'd made of the spring mounting.  I ended up doing it twice.  I finished it once and then decided to change it.

With the drawing done I went to the garage to start work.  The pop rivets from Amazon had showed up.  I turned out I didn't need them.  I changed the way I was going to attach the L channels to the sides of the deck.  That meant that I needed to use the rivets I already had.  They worked well though and I got three sides of the deck done.  I won't do the last one until I've figured out how I want to do the hitch mount.

By then it was almost 6.  I cut the bases for the spring mounts and called it a day.

It was leftovers for dinner.  After dinner I spent some time on Aliexpress because they sent me a coupon.  I found some great deals on parts for the trailer and ordered $12 worth.

After that it was videos for the rest of the evening. 

Day 3699

 I woke up a little before 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I decided to do some design work on the flatbed trailer.  I've been wanting to do that for a long time.

Before working on the design I installed the outdoor camera on the corner of the house.  I've had the box on the kitchen table since I bought it to make me feel guilty.  It was a nice morning so I decided to get it done.  Then install wasn't hard and there were no real problems.  It still took awhile with several trips to the garage.  The result works well, but the UI on the phone app is a little hard to use.

 I began the trailer design by figuring out the tire spacing.  That was pretty easy.  Then I worked out the spacing that will be needed to mount the springs.  That took a little calculation and drafting skills.  I made two drawings of the result so that I could place them on my trailer template.  Finally I figured out the placement for the axles.  I actually went out to the real flatbed and measured its axle placement.  Then I duplicated it on my drawing.  I almost wore out the calculator. converting from the trailer measurements to the drawing measurements.  I'm really happy with the result.

After that I had lunch.  I got emails saying that a package from Amain was coming along with one saying that there was a Chinese package at the post office.  I decided not to go to the post office.  Insteat I went to the garage to do a pop rivet test.

It was 80 degrees in the garage.  I had some problems.  The first was the need to sandwich the floor board between two pieces of metal.  After a failure taught me that I learned that the rivet I'd bought at Lowe's were mis-labelled and way too long.  I did get a proof of concept to work though.  then it was back to the house to order the right size rivets from Amazon.  I learned two things.  Pop rivets aren't cheap and You have to look carefully at the size measurements.  There is no standardization.

About then the Amain package came.  The email said it would be the 10 cent junk part.  Instead it was the K10.  I put the battery on the charger and went to Aliexpress to look for weights.  The prices were still much higher than the one I'd tried to buy yesterday.  I ended up buying one from Amazon for less than it was on Amazon.  In general Amazon prices for SCX30 parts are comparable or cheaper than Aliexpress.

When the battery was charged I had fun playing with the K10.  I got out some of the SCX24 obstacles.  It did well on them.  After that I sat down for videos.

Ellen fixed sausage and eggs with toast for dinner.  After that I spent the rest of the night looking at videos and playing with the K10. 

 

Day 3698

 I woke up at 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  My goal for today was to finish up the Opel, so after breakfast I started in on it.

I'd glued the chassis cover while I was having breakfast.  The tire glue worked well and really fast.   Then I attached the Velcro to it and fitted it onto the chassis.  The result fits and looks good (except for the patch). 

I got a call from the drug people.  They wanted to know how I liked Mounjaro.  The lady who called transferred me to customer service when the survey was done.  I asked about the eye drops.  They confirmed that it would cost $500 for the first month and $150 for the second.  I have no idea why that is true when the Mounjaro I just got was $11.  

Then came the scary part with the Opel.  I measured how high I thought the body posts needed to be and started cutting.  To be safe I cut them a little long.  That took longer, but I did mange to get them the right length.  The back ones are a little high, but if I lower them the rear will be higher than the front.  I tried bending the rear fender liners up, but that didn't help much.

That ended the work on the Opel.  The final two things to do are attach the front sway bar and attach magnets to the body.  I'm waiting on parts before I can do those.  By then it was time to take the dog to Circle C.

It was 64 degrees, the same as yesterday.  However it was sunny.  That slowed Abby down some, but she still got a good ride in.  We stopped at HEB on the way home for some items to use in the next few meals.

When we got back I had lunch.  Then it was cleanup time.  I packed the car in it's box, put away some parts, took some tools to the garage, and cleaned the whole area up.  I've been wanting to get the car and the box off the kitchen table for quite a while.  I was feeling like getting stuff done so I bagged some of the stuff that had been lying on the bed, labelled it, and took it to the garage also.  I'm starting to use the parts chest I bought months ago.  It's going to be great. 

All of that took longer than completing the Opel this morning.  By then it was almost time to feed the animals.  I surfed while Ellen watched chick flicks.  Aliexpress was involved.  I was going to by a SCX30 part, but while it was sitting in the cart they raised the price.  I deleted it.

Ellen fixed steak and baked potatoes for dinner.  After dinner I surfed and watched videos on the computer while Ellen continued with chick flicks. 

Day 3697

 I woke up a little after 8, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I started working on the Opel.  It's actually what I wanted to do.

I started by swapping out two of the body mounts from the BRZ.  I needed them on the Opel because they were shorter than the ones I was using.  The swap involved grinding down the BRZ mounts.  Of course that meant the Dremel. 

I also had to modify the magnets that were on the mounts I got from the BRZ.  They had the wrong size screws for mounting on the Opel.  When I got that done I decided to mount the front fenders on the chassis cover.  That involved putting a total of 8 holes in the fenders and cover.  Just like yesterday it would have been easier to do before they were cut out.  By the tie I got the fenders mounted it was time to take Abby to Circle C.  She was very antsy today.

It was 63 when we got to the park.  Abby went at it with enthusiasm.  She ran hard almost all of the time we were walking.  When we were finished we went back home.

I went to the garage to look at the materials I have for the trailer.  I think that I have everything I need.  I even have some stuff that I think I can use for the fenders.  Then I went back to the house and the Opel.

I had to cut away part of the chassis cover to make room for the ESC.  Unfortunately I cut too much.  I ended gluing part of it back on.  That stopped progress on that until the glue dries.

I spent a frustrating time online trying to find out why the eye drops cost so much.  I had to sign up for an account and then wade through a crappy website.  The most the website would tell me was that the drug was covered.  Ellen tried later and didn't get any farther.  I ended sending them a question.  They replied with a page of instructions, including another sign up, that might lead to me getting an answer.  I wasn't up to following it today.

I switched to videos and a nap.  Dinner was leftovers.  After dinner I surfed.  That turned into another Aliexpress session that cost me $12.  Then it was bed. 

I think that I'm beginning to develop a tolerance to Mounjaro.  I'm experiencing mild hunger pains around lunch and dinner time.  I hope it doesn't get any worse.  It's two months before I see the doctor again.

Day 3696

 I woke up about 8.  It was nice to get a full night's sleep.  I played games and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went to work on the Opel body wiring.

For once a portion of the work on the Opel went right.  All of the wires were long enough.  They all stripped and connected easily.  Best of all it all worked when I was done.  I was feeling good whenn it was done.

We ate lunch and then took Abby to Circle C.  It was in the mid-60's, but she still ran really hard.  She got an extra run in at the end of the walk when Ellen went to the can.  I let Abby chase tweety birds all over squirrel town. 

We stopped at CVS on the way home to pick up my Mounjaro.  The cost was $11.  Huh?  I asked and the Xidra was still $500.  I've got no clue how the pricing works.

When I got home I didn't feel like working on the Opel any more, so I started the cleanup operation instead.  I got all of the leftover parts cataloged and put away.  The new labeler came in handy.  When that was done I surfed while Ellen watched a chick flick.  Of coourse Aliexpress sucked me in for a while, but I didn't buy anything.

When Ellen's movie was over I started watching videos.  That lasted through dinner (Ellen fixed chicken and rice).  Eventually I got bored and decided to finish up the Opel. 

That was a mistake.  The old "everything goes wrong" was back in full force.  I misread the instructions, undid something I'd done before, and then had to redo it.  One of the parts I needed to install needed extensive modification as part of installing it.  Punching mounting holes in the rear fenders was a pain because they were so flimsy.  I did get it done though.  The final step is installing the front sway bars.  I have to wait for parts to do that.

I did discover that I could switch the body mounts on the Subaru with the ones on the Opel.  If I do I'll be able to finish mounting the body.  Given what happened this evening I'm not sure I want to. 

Day 3695

 I woke up at 5:30 and couldn't get back to sleep.  I hate it when that happens.  I played games and finally got up for pet stuff and breakfast.

After a little surfing I went back to RC's.  The first task was programming the Opel's electronics.  True to form I had problems.  I messed up the throttle programming.  I couldn't seem to get it to reprogram.  The instructions were very unclear.  I think they were written for another model.  Eventually I got it programmed.  

When I tried to set the trim I discovered that both the throttle and steering worked backward.  Reversing them in the transmitter was easy, but it meant that I had to reprogram the throttle in the ESC again.  The process showed that the car is really overpowered.  I had to replace the higher geared pinion with the original one.

Finally I got out the Slash and set the steering limits.  I'd forgotten to do that earlier.  At least that went quickly.  To wrap it up I did a couple of small final assembly items on the Opel. 

It was much wrmer today, low 60's.  I went out to the garage and painted the Opel fenders.  Then I took the do to Circle C alone.  Ellen's asshole was giving her problems.  The bright spot of the day was picking up a Chinese package at the post office. 

When I got home I had lunch and opened the Chinese package.  That's when I realized that I'd ordered $8 of the wrong size magnets.  My mistake.  I decided to try the on the Opel anyway.  Of course there was an immediate problem.  The magnet mounts wouldn't fit on the body posts.  I needed screws I didn't have and I wanted larger magnets.  I gave up on the Opel and hit Aliexpress.

Even Aliexpress was a pain in the ass.  It took a long time to find what I wanted.  I couldn't find the solid magnets I wanted at all.  I don't think that they make them.  Finally I was supposed to get a $2 coupon, but the checkout wouldn't recognize the code.

By then it was dinner time.  Ellen fixed hot turkey sandwiches.  They used Traegerized turkey from Thanksgiving and were really good. 

After dinner I sat down to watch videos.  I didn't want anything to do with the Opel.  Tomorrow I'll put the inner fenders on it and put it away.  I cant' do anything else until I get the screws and magnets except possibly making a little progress on the body lights.  I bet if I do it'll turn out to be a pain in the ass. 

Day 3694

 

 I woke up at 7:30, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  It was 40 outside so I decided to continue work on the Opel.

Because I'm a glutton for punishment I started with sway bars.  I realized that the front of the chassis has a provision for a sway bar mount.  I looked in the "extra parts" bag and found the two parts I needed.  Of course the kit didn't have the hardware.  I had the screws in my stash, but I had to use small grub screws.  It seemed to work.

From there things went further down hill.  The collars I bought wouldn't go on the bars.  I had to go to the garage to drill them out.  It was 44 degrees and I couldn't find the right collet to use a small bit to drill the holes.  After a bunch of time freezing I just used a bit that was a little large for the application.  Then I went back inside and thawed out.

I don't have the right ball attachments for the front bar.  I did manage to get the rear installed, but it took some effort because the car is assembled and it was hard to get the sway bar arms connected.  I worked for three hours and only managed to attach the rear sway bar.  I quit in disgust.

I surfed for a little while and had lunch.  By then it was 51 degrees, so we took Abby to Circle C.  She had another wonderful day due to the cold weather.  We dressed for it, so it wasn't bad.  At least the ground has dried up.  Afterwards we stopped at HEB for milk and bananas.  Ellen bought some fish for dinner.

When we got home I went outside to look for things that I could use to build the trailer.  I thought I had a set of tires, but I didn't.  I did find a couple of things that will help in the build.  At least it was 62 degrees in the garage.

I went back inside and got on Aliexpress to look for tires.  I found a set that will do nicely for $4.75.  Yeah.  I also got parts for the sway bar and some cables for the trailer.  Somehow I got looking at parts for a scx30.  They are plentiful and relatively cheap.  That led to some scx30 videos, which led to me buying one from Amain.  I got 10% off with a coupon.

Somewhere in the middle of that process Ellen fixed the fish with some potatoes for dinner.  It was really good.  I was a little hungry because the Mounjaro is wearing off (I shoot up tonight). 

After placing the Aliexpress and Amain orders I surfed for a little while and then went to bed. 

Day 3693

 I woke up at 7:30, played games, and then got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  It was in the 30's outside so I decided to work on the Opel.

I started with something simple - putting on the shocks.  They went on easily.  Then I put in the electronics.  The servo went in without drama.  There was even a good way to route the cable.  I hooked up the ESC and receiver to a battery so I could bind the receiver to a transmitter.  Then I installed the receiver.  The ESC goes on a platform above the receiver.  I had to use some scrap parts to raise the platform.  I even had longer screws in my stash to do it.  

By the it was up to the balmy middle 40's.  I had lunch (leftovers) and then we took Abby to Circle C.  Because of the cool temperature she had another long running day.  We stopped at Walgreens for Ellen's drugs and then went to the post office to pick up the Chinese package that should have been there yesterday.

 When we got home I went back to the Opel.  I put on the wheels.  That;s when I discovered a large Tamiya fuck up.  They had supplied me with tie rod ends that were too long.  To fix the problem I had to remove two tie rods.  Then it was out to the garage to cut them down.  As long as I was there I also cut down the ends from the sway bar kit.  It really pissed me off.  Tamiya should at least get the parts right.  Putting the rods back on was a pain in the ass.  When I got them back on I installed the body mounts and called it a day.

I rewarded myself for the hassle by going through the Chinese package.  It had all of the rest of the accessories I want for the Corvair.  I fed the animals, surfed a little, and then had dinner.

After dinner I tried to look on Aliexpress for lights for the Corvair.  My heart wasn't in it so I gave up and watched RC videos while Ellen watched chick flicks.