Kechi 1949 3100 4.3 4L60e

[joedoh]

thanks for the advice guys, I am trying hard to be the one who can let it go if it happens the way I expect. what goes around comes around, I get verifiable deals from him too so all wouldnt be lost.

tuesday morning is the day, I have a homeowners policy and a check, just need a property! here is a shot from the road, actually looking at it might be from the driveway, we braved a closer look since we were under contract.

I got a lot done on the pickup, all the mounts are welded up, and the frame splice too. I got the oil cooler adapter on the block pulled and in true joedoh fashion the last torx was stuck and needed drilled. I noticed the valve covers were leaking too, so I powerwashed the crud off and put new gaskets on. fuel lines are hooked and a new brake line is run.

need to finish closing up the HVAC cut but the box fits great

picked up some camaro 18s cheap, $150 for the set with good tires. I may order spacers or I might go ahead and cut the welds on the centers and make the backspace a little better.

tomorrow is my last day before closing, so I will try to get the cab welded up and back on.

 

[Torchie]

Nice looking shop.[cl
Sending you "Good closing Vibes."
[P [P [P
Torchie

 

[Burgerman]

More good closing vibes! Shop is awesome Joe. Like'n those bargain 18's. Toss us a photo of the welds on center you may cut. Sounds interesting. [S

 

[joedoh]

thanks for the vibes!

burg they are just steel wheels with pressed and bead welded centers, like the old 15s. so you cut the welds, pound em out, flip em, pound em in, true, weld. bam 18" reverse.

we closed tuesday, we were in the waiting room longer than we were in the closing office! literally 3 pages to sign one was the title insurance, second was the deed and the last was a quitclaim to add my wife to the deed. 4 minutes tops. no keys provided.

drove to the house and there was a brand new hasp and padlock on the front door with a phone number saying "call this number for access to the house". Obviously it was a ploy for money from the maintenance company or maybe from an old owner. the new hasp and padlock were installed while we were at the closing office, I knew right away that it was either a cash grab ($$ for keys), or it could be someone trying to gain access by invitation and start squatting. the padlocked door is the one with the jamb kicked in, so there was enough wiggle room I was able to use a skewdriver (anyone else have one?) and pull all the hasp screws. then I fixed the doorjamb, installed new deadbolts, and changed every lock. all the windows were unlocked too, someone had been there while we were gone for sure. since we had access to the house through the broken jamb, replacing the locks was no big dealio, but the shop was locked tighter than a drum. my wife said "how do we get in?", I pulled out my battery grinder with the slicer wheel and cut the door handle and deadbolt in quarters from the face, right through the key slots, then pounded the middling remainder through with a claw hammer . elapsed time: 45 seconds, damage to door: zilch.

we had electrical inspection for power the next day and the list of problems is long. then he dropped the hammer on me, and told me since it was not my primary residence I was unauthorized to do any of the repair work, and the double whammy is also that the line to the shop was undersized for the 100A breaker (its 2ga aluminum, so just barely undersized) and didnt have a ground run, so it needed replaced entirely. oof. copper 2ga is about $2.60 ft, and I would need 420 feet of it, plus another 140 ft of 4 ga ground. my buddy rescued me though, he gets cost at his work and got the whole setup for $490. I also am hooked up with a good electrician so I will hire him and get the main panel replaced (not on the list of required repairs but its an old FED PAC box so just good conscious work since we have to almost do everything else). I should have that done monday, ready for reinspection.

but what I really needed right away was some storage space for the backyard full of spares, couple cabs, couple beds, couple sets of fenders and hoods, and at least a couple of everythig else. I loaded up all the two by twos like noahs freaking ark and made a couple trips so far. this is the second load, I have the truck backed in completely and you can still see there is 10 feet behind the trailer. should be big enough I guess. no electricity either, that light is just those opaque panels in the roof! should be nice!

any guess on what the yellow thing is? my friend thought railway cart, but not much need of a steering wheel on one, maybe its the brake? another suggested it is a aircraft tug, but it doesnt look to have rear wheels like a tug and the front is a gas tank not a weight.

 

[Torchie]

It looks like scrap to me.[ddd
I thought perhaps a tug as well. But who knows.
Sounds like you have your work cut out for you.
Good fortune to you moving forward.
[P [P [P
Torchie

 

[Bamamav]

What difference does it make if it's not your primary residence? It's going to be, isn't it? I don't see where that would make any difference, the deed is now in your name, unless it's in one on those areas where they only allow licensed contractors to do work I don't see where it's any of their business who does it as long as it's done up to code.

Congrats on the new shop space, I know you needed it![cl[cl[cl

 

[Burgerman]

Congrats on closing! One hurdle overcome. Electrical upgrades are always a solid investment. That yellow beast is interesting. Lumber mill yard dog maybe. [S. Perhaps the underside will provide a clue.

 

[joedoh]

thanks all! I am pulled at every limb these days. but I LOVE pressure. my career has been about pressure. haha.

What difference does it make if it's not your primary residence? It's going to be, isn't it? I don't see where that would make any difference, the deed is now in your name, unless it's in one on those areas where they only allow licensed contractors to do work I don't see where it's any of their business who does it as long as it's done up to code.

its two things. one, when power has been off for a year electrical inspection is mandatory. had I known, I would have done all the work before scheduling it, and then it would have passed. since it was a real inspection it will take a second inspection to confirm the work has been done, and that requires being a licensed electrician or a qualified homeowner (see two). I cant even call for the followup, has to be the contractor who did the work. and two, here in doodah (wichita, et al since my current house is 1 mile north of the city) you can take the test to do your own electrical AS LONG AS you are living there. but a house with no utilities is not habitable, so you have to live somewhere else while the work is being done. he seemed delighted in this fact actually. inspectors: they're not happy till you're not happy.

anywho, its no skin off my nose, the last thing I want is to get afoul of the city early. plenty of time for that.

 

[Burgerman]

Wise to be on the good side of the inspectors. I'm think'n you will have things up and running soon. [cl

 

[DozerII]

Glad to see it's all working out, I hear ya on the inspectors, I work with the gas inspector all the time and he is a great guy to have an an Ally.

 

[Torchie]

Wise to be on the good side of the inspectors. I'm think'n you will have things up and running soon. [cl

Glad to see it's all working out, I hear ya on the inspectors, I work with the gas inspector all the time and he is a great guy to have an an Ally.

In my former business(bakery/restaurant)I dealt with inspectors all the time. I always treated like a welcomed guest.
The building inspectors in my old home town always loved to come and inspect what ever building project was working on at the time as I ALWAYS had fresh doughnuts for them and the crew.
Torchie

 

[Old Iron]

The primary residence deal is the same here too the only difference is that they take into consideration the fact it's gonna be your new residence here.
It'll all work out!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Bamamav]

Makes sense I guess now that you have explained it. I know different areas are different, in my area they don't give a hoot, never have had anything inspected or even called for. In contrast, in the adjoining county you can't build a doghouse in your yard without a building permit and site inspection! And you can only do simple electrical stuff yourself, the rest has to be done by a contractor.

I've done all my electrical and plumbing here for over 40 years without anybody sticking their noses in it. When you've been self reliant as long as I have, sometimes you forget others don't have the ability or aren't allowed to be.

 

[joedoh]

Believe me I do not want to pick a fight. in the long term does it really matter? no, not at all.

Besides, I am used to dealing with the FAA and the CPSC, so I know very well about overzealous interpretations of seemingly simple rules. I dont mind having an electrician do the work, less for me really, and I dont mind the reinspection either. now if he ADDS to the list at the reinspection, well I may object, but not strenuously.

 

[MercuryMac]

The hardest to learn lesson of my life, was 'You can't argue with the man with the gun', no matter how much you want to argue.
You have a good attitude to get by all of this, Joe.

 

[joedoh]

still working on the place, the electrical was a real can o worms. everywhere we looked it was just problem after problem. there were two outlets in the kitchen, TWO, there is a breakfast bar thing on the backside of the sink counter and no outlets on it. the under cabinet microwave power cord was extensions to a power strip from the living room. the dishwasher did not have a dedicated line. the stove was not wired, I found 6 inches of the 10ga (too small) poking through the floor in the basement. the new AC is not wired or charged. *le sigh*

even better, my well meaning wife is trying to offset some of the refurb costs and has been pulling up floors and knocking out damaged walls. it seems like every wall she takes off has non junction boxed connections behind them. I told her to STOP until we are inspected again, we will fix it but later, the bill keeps climbing.

I do get to help with the grunt work, stringing lines in the basement for the required 120v interconnected smoke detectors. the other day I ran the 160 feet of underground 2-2-2-4

the shop wiring is also slowing us down, a lot of cut wiring. but there is light at the end of the tunnel, should have power on monday. which is just in time to turn the water on, turns out we are in city limits but are in rural water district, and waddayaknow they apply the past due amount to the HOUSE and not the bill holder. so with 4 years of late fees its 1178 bucks.

 

[Burgerman]

A "can o worms" indeed. You'll know what ya got after the electrical mess is whipped into shape. Like the 2-2-2-4.
[P

 

[Old Iron]

This is just like a hot rod build. It's gonna take more work and more money than estimated from hidden things.
Keep the spirits up, it'll be worth it
[P[P[P

 

[Torchie]

Stay strong and keep at it.
[P [P [P
Torchie

 

[smallfoot]

Don't get me started on building inspectors....helping my bud build his house. We are in the process of building his house and all the building permits and surveys had the barn we built in situ on every piece of paperwork with the county. We get all the way to getting the temporary permit to camp in a trailer while building before a question comes up about the barn....sheesh. A lady in the building dept. questioned Jr about where this camper was going to be. Under the barn he says.....she says, the barn wasn't there on the last satellite view and somebody is gonna have to pull a permit for this barn....sheesh....been here 2 years and been thru 3 hurricanes already...Well, the building dept. shut him down for that permit...Just another way of screwing with the troops..we got that permit process going...I just can't wait to see what they screw with us on next!!![ddd
We have some rules here about building your own place too. It's allowed on your own residence. We haven't failed a single inspection yet which is more than I can say about other buildings going up around here with sub contractors and real builders. Seems that those involved with the building industry working for the county have found their little small bit of power and they want to exert it over people that really have more important stuff to deal with!