So what did you do with your truck today?

[IDIBRONCO]

I had no idea. Apparently my exploration of the country wasn't as involved as it should have been. How beautiful.

Not that I'm saying to drive here from Florida, but there's quite a bit of nice scenery once you get off of the interstates. Ever since I was old enough to come up with it, I've always thought of far southeastern Kansas as the foot hills of the Ozarks.

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Here's a few more from that ride. Until that day, I'd never seen any stone arches in Kansas. All three were only about 15"-18" tall, but they were still arches. I still get surprised at what I find while out exploring.

 

[nelstomlinson]

Today I drove two hours to pick up a bricknose F350 for parts , and came home with an empty trailer.

We went down 15 miles of potholes and washboard - that was an hour of driving right there, the road is BAD - spent an hour cutting brush away from the old rig, took two hi-lift jacks and jacked it up enough to get the axles out of the mud and get some wheels on it. I didn't get many pictures, but I did get a pic of one of the jacks under the rear bumper.

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It was sketchier than it looks: I was braced against the side of the truck keeping the rear end from swinging over off the jacks while my son got a tire on the other side.

Then we hooked up to it, put the '89 brown crewcab in 4lo first gear, and dragged it out of the brush and into the woman's driveway. Then we looked at the deep ruts we'd made in the gravel, and realized the rear wheels weren't turning. We backed the trailer up to it, and started trying to pull it on with the comealong. Fortunately, we decided to stop before we had it half on the trailer and stuck there with a broken comealong.

So there it sits for a while. I'll try to make arrangements with a friend who lives on the next farm over to bring his loader over and load it onto the trailer next week. Or, maybe we'll be able to pull the rear axles and get the wheels to turn.

It has a decent front clip with no rust or significant dents, the cab is sound, and a kingpin Dana 60.

 

[Rdnck84_03]

Or, maybe we'll be able to pull the rear axles and get the wheels to turn.

I hope that works, but I highly doubt it. It is most likely the brakes that are stuck. Will probably require a 4lb sledge to the drums, if they are stuck really bad you may have to break the drums off to get it released.

James

 

[XOLATEM]

New shifter boots

Cupholders, too...we are hitting on all eight cylinders...

and...I love to see a real shifter for the transfer case...when it is only a switch to shift into 4X4... I feel a collossal letdown...like I am somehow being cheated or worse yet...cheating...

It's a primal thing...city folks just don't 'get' it....

 

[tbowker]

there's quite a bit of nice scenery once you get off of the interstates.

You have a valid point there. I've found that to be true more often than not. And stone arches too, who knew? I always figured that to be a Utah kind of thing. Hmm, if it weren't for the snow I might possibly be tempted to move there. I'm certain J.F. would be thrilled to have my carpetbagging, Yankee self out of Florida.
Okay, just kidding. The wife will never leave the grandkids, but the scenery really is inspiring.

 

[KansasIDI]

You have a valid point there. I've found that to be true more often than not. And stone arches too, who knew? I always figured that to be a Utah kind of thing. Hmm, if it weren't for the snow I might possibly be tempted to move there. I'm certain J.F. would be thrilled to have my carpetbagging, Yankee self out of Florida.
Okay, just kidding. The wife will never leave the grandkids, but the scenery really is inspiring.

It’s at least an interesting vacation idea. Jerusalem Badlands, Carhenge, plenty of museums, some weird things like a huge ball of twine, and a thousand concrete gargoyles (Eden), Kansas definitely isn’t boring. The internet has lots of POIs listed, and driving around the backroads of the Flint Hills is always a good time.

Biggest problem is the weather. 100 degrees in the summer is normal, pretty humid here in the eastern half of the state, and 20 is normal in the winter. Have had 120 and -40 plenty of times as well, seems like we get a week or so around each of those temperatures. Probably have 10 nice days a year here…

Cost of living is low, which is nice

 

[Old Goat]

I had an Aunt and Uncle that lived in Natoma years ago, stopped there
in 1985 for a few days. Melvin ran cattle and had some Oil Well`s.
His Garage was leaning a little, and out on the Corral the big metal Cattle
Feeders were tossed around on their sides. Asked what happened?
"OH got a little windy one day" as he was chewing on is Cigar,.

My Aunt and I got in their big 4 door Mercury to head to town. Noticed the
Dash was all brown, and the knobs and Push Button`s for the Radio were burnt
and melted....what happened? "OH Mel had his Cigar in the ash tray and
caught things on fire". "We will get it fixed one day".

Some Rustlers back a trailer in one of the fields and loaded up some Cattle.
Called the Sheriff etc... few days later they called and said to come down to
Wichita to testify. Got a call later on "Slim ya don`t need to come down,
them boys had an accident". Things were different back then.

I sure do miss them.

I just remember a lot of open flat land in Kansas.


Goat

 

[tbowker]

It’s at least an interesting vacation idea.

I may have to take a page out of my in- laws book and bounce around the country for a month or two each year and sightsee once I'm retired.

Biggest problem is the weather. 100 degrees in the summer is normal, pretty humid here in the eastern half of the state, and 20 is normal in the winter. Have had 120 and -40 plenty of times as well, seems like we get a week or so around each of those temperatures. Probably have 10 nice days a year here…

Yikes!!! With the exception of the below zero, that's comparable or worse than Florida's heat and humidity. I grew up around snow but my parents moved south before I ever had to drive in it... it was still fun for me at that point. Having lived in Arizona, I learned that the heat isn't so bad as long as you're not in direct sunlight and there's a bit of a breeze; it's the humidity that makes things unbearable.

 

[DaveBen]

Arizona "But it is DRY heat!" It is still HOT. I went to the UofA in Tucson back in the late 1960s and 70s. I went to Houston, TX around the same time and I felt the difference between DRY heat and Texan heat. Like getting out of a hot ****** shower.

 

[tbowker]

But it is DRY heat!" It is still HOT.

True! You most definitely don't want to place your hand on any metal surface exposed to the sun.

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Carhenge

I didn't think that's in Kansas.

a huge ball of twine,

I've seen that. Never stopped, but I've driven by it quite a few times.

driving around the backroads of the Flint Hills is always a good time.

I'll agree.

Cost of living is low, which is nice

Definitely. I don't know about Wilsey in particular, but it's lower here than it is around you.

lived in Natoma

That's not too far away from me. Maybe about 80-90 miles.

"OH got a little windy one day"

That's nothing. In Dec. 2021, there was 90+MPH straight line winds. Those started what's known as "the four county fire". It went though four counties that day. It went pretty close to Natoma when it passed. There was a lot of dead cows that day.

I just remember a lot of open flat land in Kansas.

There is, in certain parts. Around Natoma, it's pretty hilly though.

it's the humidity that makes things unbearable.

It certainly is. I have a hard time breathing when it's really humid, for the area. It's been a very humid summer and not good for me.

 

[tbowker]

KansasIDI said:
Carhenge
I didn't think that's in Kansas.

I wasn't sure what this was until @IDIBRONCO replied. We had one of those about an hour west of me but it was made from old airstream trailers. The old guy who owned the business fought the county for years because they wanted it torn down and he always won. When he finally died there was no one left to carry on the fight and it's now gone. Environmentalists doing their "good deed".

I have a hard time breathing when it's really
humid, for the area. It's been a very humid summer and not good for me.

Same here. Throw allergies into the mix and summers are just brutal. Seems worse the older I get.

 

[ISPKI]

Been doing this to my truck alot lately. Lotta storms up here in July. Micro bursts and small tornadoes knocking over a ton of trees. Makes for alot of free firewood and some where I actually get paid to haul it away!

IDI in it's natural habitat - good ole rusty but trusty with 220k on it still working like it just drove off the lot.

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[XOLATEM]

Until that day, I'd never seen any stone arches in Kansas. All three were only about 15"-18" tall, but they were still arches.

Hmm....I got an idea...(sometimes that is not good...dangerous, even...)

Lets pitch the idea of using that spot to film a movie...a sort of dystopian...post-apocayptic ...with midget mutant humans and apes battling each other....( I can see it now...'Planet of the Vertically-Challenged Apes'...)
to some indie film outfit...

Everybody here can contribute some of the plot and storylines and if we have any artists, they can draw up the story boards...

The Hero can run around on a honda three-wheeler and try to outpace a dozen midget gorillas on miniature horses....https://www.elegiusminiequinesanctuary.org/

The mutant humans that originally were the aggressors need help because the only domesticated animal that they can ride happens to be myotonic goats...and the apes discovered their secret through subterfuge that all they have to do is scream and the humans get pitched when the goats fall over....

fainting goats at DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

duckduckgo.com

I told My Girl about this idea and she reminded me that I must be suffering some after-effects of us running some PVC pipe and I have accidentally sniffed too much glue from the activity...

Sorry, Guys...