These Summer Evenings

We try to slow down a little and enjoy the time we have between working at the office(s) and working on the Bonneville projects each evening.  Oftentimes, we take dinner out to the back deck to watch all the little things going on in our part of the world.  Dinner and a show!

Andy's been smoking chicken and cheese in our hand-me-down Little Chief, and boy is it good!

 The clematis that climbs the shop has been in full bloom - the deep purple is stunning.

Actually having flowers in the flower pots makes me happy - it brings much more life to the deck.

The animals in the pasture bordering our backyard parade by every evening:

Quite possibly our favorite actors are the hummingbirds.  We have a great view of their feeder while we eat our own dinner.

 They are so fascinating to watch!  Four of these energetic little birds dance around our feeder and backyard all day.  We've figured out which one is the bully and which ones have learned to share...

 

 And, our favorite is this little one with the shiny teal color on its back.

Weekend evenings tend to be a little more relaxed.  Don and Faith often stop by for dinner and games.  Here, Andy is concentrating on skunking Don in cribbage.

Oh, the little things.

Crossing Off That List

Nope, this isn't the same post again.  Notice this truck looks a little more complete up front!

Andy's been going full speed ahead on the GMC.  We didn't get it on the road last weekend, but we're not giving up yet.  We did take one night off to watch The World's Fastest Indian.  Amazing story, and very motivational to our cause :)

Andy got the truck running a few nights ago, and he adjusted the timing yesterday so it runs like a champ.

Also yesterday, we made an attempt to bleed the brakes (let me tell you, pumping brakes while perched on uneven 4x4s is a tad tricky), and something just wasn't right.  Forrest came over and helped troubleshoot, and they determined that the master cylinder was bad.  So...off Andy went to the parts store right before closing to see if he could find a replacement.

Find one he did, and we successfully got all of the air out of the brake lines!

It was about 9:30pm by this time, but bedtime was not just around the corner.  The thought of only 2.5 weeks to get this thing road-ready and tested before Bonneville kept us going.

Andy worked on wiring.  He'd been working a little every day on everything under the dash, and the electric fan was done earlier in the day.

Next in line was wiring everything behind the cab.

He got the taillights done, and is out there working on the headlights right now.

While Andy was wiring the night away, I was working to clean up the cab interior and prep it for finish work.

Endless piles of rotten rubber and rusty dust, two disturbing discoveries of mice nests, and one horse-grooming brush later and this thing is clear of signs of its past as a farm truck and is ready for a makeover!

When we looked up from our work, it was nearly 2am!  Now that's a good shop night!

The trailer didn't get quite as much attention, but it's progressing as well.  Plus, I thought I'd share a few more Before pictures so I don't jump right to After pictures!  So, come on in...

 This will soon be the dining area:

The kitchenette (a.k.a. the workbench):

Sleeping corner (yes, we'll be adding a mattress to those wood slats):

And, look! curtains!

Faith did a fabulous job with these for the "bedroom".  I can't wait to see the rest!

Thanks for checking in.  I better get back out there!

At Long Last...A Projects Post!

To all who have been waiting to see...our summer builds are coming right along.

The '49 GMC has been up on jack stands for months on end.  Andy's tired of looking at it, and is trying his hardest to get it rolling and running by the end of today!

The motor's been cleaned up and has new belts and hoses to make sure it runs smoothly when he fires it up.

 

Ready for fuel with a gas tank in a slightly safer location than the original, which was right behind the seat in the cab!

Steering and brakes are ready - just have to bleed the brakes here soon.  Accelerator is hooked up as of yesterday.  Wiring is in progress, as you can see.  New window glass is here waiting to be installed (whoohoo for side windows in this truck!); all the old crispy door rubber is gone and the new stuff waiting to replace it; seat brackets are built, and this cab is about ready to insulate and finish up!

Speaking of brakes, here are snapshots of the front and rear set-ups:

 And suspension!  A must for a long roadtrip, pulling a load.  Andy's hooked up leaf springs, shocks, and air bags.  This should be a pretty nice ride.

 

 The leaf springs had to be mounted upside-down from the original Nova suspension, so Andy fabricated a bracket to let the ends pivot as needed.

Although shop nights with Forrest weren't as frequest with this build as with the Dodge, they still managed to get together occasionally and help with each others' projects.

Now that Andy's almost got the vehicle ready to go down the road, it's time to fix up our lodging for the trip.

Our lovely '53 trailer is finally getting some attention!  It's been airing out since the rain let up, and we replaced the broken glass and gave it new tires.  Neither Andy or I are qualified for the next part of the project...

 Finishing the inside of the trailer requires a lot of sewing! 

  As short as it is, the trailer has nine windows that all need curtains.  The curtains that came with it are a very faded red gingham.  We're transforming the interior into a 50s island getaway.  Faith came to the rescue and is sewing the new curtains as I type.

There is currently no place to sit or sleep in the trailer.  It was gutted, in the process of remodel, when I bought it, so we're working to create new furniture for it.  The foam is cut for the benches and odd-size bed (some variation of a 3/4 mattress), and we're hoping the upholstery part goes smoothly.

 There will be more to see before long!

I better get back to helping...

Independence Day @ Sun Up Bay

Although the weekend of the 4th was much more chilly than we're accustomed to, it didn't stop us from having a fabulous time at the lake.  And, our guests from Arizona enjoyed the break from 100+ degrees!

It was a weekend of simple pleasures.

 

 

 

 The little community at Sun Up Bay has a parade every year on July 3rd (also the night they do their fireworks show).  Faith, Charity, and the little guys even walked one loop around in it!

 

 If you missed the mini race cars in the parade, you better bet somebody didn't! (didya notice his sidewalk art above?)  As soon as they were parked after the parade, Andy was drawn to 'em like a magnet, and Jason, Josiah, and Tobias were right behind him!  These neat little cars are true race cars, built to precisely 5/8 the scale the original car it is modeled after.

Other weekend highlights that need a little explanation:

Andy's friend Ryan rode his new jet ski into the bay so Andy could show off his paint job.  

Looks pretty sharp!

 Charity and I got away on a little hike up to the Girls' Scout Camp.

We discovered an incredible sand sculpture on the beach.  They have a contest every year (we competed 2 years ago), and although we missed the award ceremony, we're guessing this was the winner! 

We temporarily got rained out while trying to set off our own kiddy-pack of fireworks.

 But, the big fireworks show was rain-free and spectacular!