Recent content by smhardesty

Yep. That's a shame. Not only will guys like you lose your personal harvest, all the different orchards will as well so there will be serious shortages and prices will be really high.

85? Dang. Where are you located? I'm in southeastern Illinois. We have had several days of 60 to 70 degree temps. Some trees are budding out, people have reported flowers or other plants sprouting, and a LOT of people are seeing different kinds of insects. A few days ago I was in the garage...

I managed to get my own rig ready to mow today. I started late yesterday afternoon on it and finished up today. Fully serviced, washed and waxed, and sitting with a battery tender on it. I didn't bother to pull the deck this winter since I did that in the middle of last season. I looked at it...

LOL! Yeah, that method might be the best yet. The cost of doing ANYTHING is just out of control. When I bought my 14' trailer several years ago, I got a heck of a deal on it. It had been purchased by a farmer that wanted to put two 450 gallon tanks on it to haul water and chemicals for his spray...

I don't believe I'll run onto any of the problems you brought up. I can find nothing online to indicate that type of situation. I had mentioned to my mechanic a while back that I might want to have a hitch and light kit installed on the car. He didn't mention any major problem in doing that...

Thanks to everyone for all the input. It is obvious that my modified lawn tractor/trailer idea is dead in the water. You guys made too many valid points about problems with that sort of thing. It was just an idea, but logically you all are right. It's a bad idea, LOL!

You're right about that. I have backed all sorts of trailers around in my lifetime. I was born and raised on a farm, then spent a lot of time working for other farmers until I left for the Army. I also got into a situation with one of my computer customers where I ended up both driving tractors...

That's what my umbrella policy is for. I always carried one when I was working in the computer field. I hadn't decided if I thought I would need one for my little biz, but finally decided to go ahead and get one again. Unfortunately, we live in a society that is "sue your ass" crazy. Just...

OK. Now, that stopping thing was something that I actually thought of. At normal, factory ground speeds on a lawn tractor that wouldn't be a big issue, but if I was to get too much speed, I was also worried about stopping, especially in an emergency type situation. The 5' x 8' trailer is what I...

That's still a possibility. I'm hesitant to jump and do that before I really know just how much work I'll be getting. If I build a decent customer base I can justify the purchase. If I end up with just a few service jobs and the few mowers I'll refurbish and sell, then I can't justify that...

I think what you are saying is what I am running into with websites or YouTube videos about increasing ground speed on a cheap lawn tractor. Unless I find something or someone tells me differently, I'm afraid I'm going to be looking at putting a hitch on the car. That is NOT what I would...

I looked into golf carts. Those things are like gold! I was kind of shocked when I started looking for a decent used one. Not my cup of tea. If I was going to spend that kind of money, I'd go ahead and look for a cheap pickup. I'm just trying to see if there is a simple and inexpensive way to...

Things are a whole lot different here where I live. This city has approved quads, side by sides, golf carts, Mopeds, scooters, and gas powered bicycles for use on city streets. There is no existing state statue or city ordinance prohibiting the use of a lawn mower as public transportation. To...

First, this is just a thought that I have. No need for anybody to do any serious researching or elaborate explaining of how to do what I'm thinking. This is nothing more than an idea that MIGHT work for me. I screwed up a couple of years ago. We had two cars, a truck, and a 14", 3500 pound...

Yep. I agree 100%. And you can bet I'm going to charge him something. Even though I'm not trying to make a living doing this, my time is worth a little something. I work pretty slowly compared to a lot of you guys doing this full time, but I have to believe even you guys would have burned up an...

Yeah, I do understand the whole nostalgia thing. I guess I'm just one of those guys that doesn't have those types of feelings, especially for something like a lawn mower. As you'll see below, the whole problem has been resolved. Not exactly as I expected. As I was thinking about this last...

That was what I first thought, but it's not from the brake. The brake is frozen wide open, as far away from the flywheel as possible. While I didn't dive into what the problem is, I did notice that the brake has not been working for a LONG time. I haven't even tried loosening the screws on the...

OK. That's kind of where I am with him. I have never met this man before in my life. I have no real reason to treat him any differently than anyone else at this point. He might very well BECOME a repeat customer, but at this point, this is the first I have seen of him or his mower. I called and...

I had a customer bring me a Yardman push mower early this morning. It's kind of a strange deal. The guy is 85 years old. He is in the process of moving into his dad's house here in town. He said his dad mowed the yard until 6 years ago. Apparently the dad has just passed on recently which is why...

We have heard some really twisted tales of people in the general area that have setup one of those Go Fund Me accounts, or pages, or whatever they are for nothing more than a means of stealing from friends, family, and then all the dingbats on Facebook. The most recent bogus Go Fund Me ripoffs...

Well said. Absolutely true, on both accounts. My wife and I decided a LOT of years ago to stop buying flowers and candy for Valentine's, our anniversary, her birthday, etc, etc. I'd hate to think how long it has been since I bought a lottery ticket of any kind. It's been a LONG time. I'd say it...

I didn't watch it either, Bert. My wife and I have made an annual event out of the Super Bowl for 39 years. We used to have a whole day of fun for the game. Not this year. I refused to view the game OR the halftime show and my wife said she had ZERO interest in the halftime show, which she...

Bert, I thought these might make you smile for the day. I saw the first one and was really rattled. Note that it specifically states that the casinos won more than $60 billion. It doesn't say they took that much in. They PROFITED that much after payouts. Sad. The second image just tickled me. I...

You know, Bert. It doesn't sound like things are that terribly different between here and there. We're fed a study diet of the same type things you mentioned. The true, fact filled account of what happened is pretty much either suppressed, or exaggerated so that we never really know the whole...

I keep hearing about this privileged white male stuff and I'm wondering just where these guys are. I sure don't seem to be enjoying any special privileges. LOL! But I do get your meaning. I believe I see you saying that no matter where you are, and no matter what you watch or read, you will no...

Yep, I have seen three different Purge movies. Crap. Now I'm trying to decide of I've seen three, or two, or four, or,,,,, I love not having a mind anymore. LOL! And you're right. There are way too many people that are just looking for a reason to act that way. I guess I'm just different, or...

That's something that doesn't exist here in the States. There hasn't been an unbiased news report in over 25 years, and probably more than that. Now days, they don't even attempt to hide or disguise it. 80% to 90% of TV news, Internet news, and the few remaining printed newspapers are terribly...

HAH! My wife just now told me that there was some minor rioting in Philly after the loss in the Super Bowl. It's just another thing wrong with sports in this country. Although not a lot, there were reports of damage to city signs and other property and a small amount of looting to a few stores...

Bert, I wish I could get some TV channel, station, or whatever that aired Australian rugby. I think I could really enjoy watching that. As for the player from Australia being on one of the teams. That tidbit was apparently not a very big deal here. I don't recall seeing or hearing anything...

A lot of people hated Madden. I thought he added a bit of reality to the game. He wasn't a smooth talking type of guy. He REALLY got into his announcing with all of his, "This guy goes here, and these other guys go there, and then,,,BLAM, he gets tackled for a loss". It was real, from a guy who...

Oh, boy. Ain't that the truth? I think Scully is one of the absolute best baseball announcers in the history of the game, at least in my lifetime. LOL! I thoroughly enjoyed listening to him. I also listened to a lot of the Cubs games when Harry was announcing. The longer the game went, the...

We are located in an area that has two different independent league baseball teams, located about equal distances form our home. The two teams are in different leagues, so they don't face one another or any of the same opponents. Quite few years ago we attended our first independent league game...

I have a Facebook page ONLY to promote my little repair biz and to give me a place to list the equipment I have refurbished for resell. I hate ALL social disease websites. I try like hell to avoid reading ANY posts on Facebook since it's nothing more than an argument waiting to happen. One of...

I have no idea what happened in the game. Are you being facetious or was it really a good game? Not that I'd have watched or will ever again watch. The only thing I know is that apparently they were kneeling during the National Anthem, or at the halftime show, or both, or something. I had an...

WaaHaaaHaaaa!!! Ain't that the truth?

The pain management specialist I see has just started talking about my diet. I can't taste a lot of foods after the radiation I got, so it's really hard for me to try and eat healthy. She prescribed Ensure+ for me. Yes, prescribed. If a prescription for Ensure is written and submitted to the VA...

Well, it won't get any better with time. LOL!

Maybe I'm the young guy here. I just turned 65 Friday.

That's funny. I had a couple of similar incidents when I was doing repair before. Nothing quite as bad as that, but still kind of funny. One guy had me come to his house to look at his mower. I had the trailer with me, anticipating having to haul it home for repairs. When I got there, the first...

My wife and I used to really look forward to the commercials. That was before all the advertisers decide to air nothing but politically charged ads. Once upon a time, a few days before the Super Bowl aired, there was a show on the tube called something like, "The Best Super Bowl Commercials...

I decided I need a good refresher course. I'm not sure if it's because it has been a while since I did this type of work, or if it's just old age, but I just feel like I need a decent course to refresh the old bean. I'd appreciate any input about this course, or any different courses out there...

I had to chuckle at that one. I know there are a slew of people out there like that. One of my wife's nieces needed a dress for a wedding we all were going to attend. I happened to be sitting nearby at the reception when she was telling her friends that she ordered the dress from some online...

Well, if the market continues to be flooded with all the cheap, throw away Chinese mowers, there won't be a need for mechanics anyway. Mower won't start? Throw it a way and buy another one just like it. The big box stores are happy to oblige. .

Yep. You guys have it just the way I do. I wouldn't pay $320 for a ticket to ANY pro sporting event. My living room is always at my preferred temperature and I can hit pause, rewind, and fast forward to suit myself.

Salt and pepper both cause me problems. My taste buds were burned while getting the radiation treatments for my cancer. I never got all my taste back and certain foods now burn the inside of my mouth just like having Ghost Peppers in it. Ketchup, mustard, Miracle Whip, and salt & pepper are...

I haven't heard anybody refer to CB radios as 11 meter in a while. LOL! I remember those good old days too. Names like Teaberry, Moonraker and more come to mind. I had a set of beams that I would swing over the trailer park I lived in and turn the 1000 watt cooker on with the D104 mike. Tore the...

Yeah, I'm trying to behave. I was all set to go to the garage today, but two, actually three, things prevented it. First, it still hurts like hell. Second, it's my birthday and my wife is insisting we go out to eat to celebrate, so I would have to quit early anyway. Third, my wife. LOL! She has...

You mentioned that place had fiber to the door in 1975. Most people don't realize that fiber optic technology has been around for a LONG time. I don't recall the exact date, but some inventor or scientist back in the late 1800s actually experimented with what would eventually become fiber optic...

I hated that data cap stuff myself. Since I use Linux, I am constantly downloading different distros to try out. I don't do it now as much as I once did, but I still try a couple new flavors each month. When we bought his house 6 1/2 years ago, I was able to get 300 Mbps service, but it had a...

I feel your pain with the government intervention. Back in the dial-up days I convinced an ISP from out of our area to offer service in our area. What we all had at the time was complete and total garbage. I knew a fellow that lived quite a ways south of me who had service with the outfit I...

HAH! I laugh about that myself. I have 600 Mbps service now. They keep sending me emails, trying to get me to up my service to their 1Gbps service for only $15 a month more. There are exactly two people in this house and my wife doesn't get in the 'Net very much. I see no need for increasing the...

I gave up on T'bird and all the other email clients long ago. I used to do the same thing you mentioned. I just got tired of screwing with all the intricacies of the clients and having to save all the emails, logins, password, etc, etc, etc, every time I wanted to do a fresh install of whatever...

Yep, you got it. Many years ago a man much older and wiser than I told me the same thing you are talking about. He told me to just look at the casinos, the various acts that are free, the free meals and free drinks, and what the owners and managers of such places drove and what they wore. Then...

It appears it's going to be a few days before I can get back to working on anything. On the 19th of January, I did something to my left knee. It too the VA until a couple of days ago to get me into an orthopedist to see what the problem is. I was afraid it was finally time for a total knee...

Hey, I wasn't trying to convince or persuade anybody to try Waterfox. I just know that Firefox is painfully slow at certain things and uses a huge chunk of system resources. I just offered the info about Waterfox in case anybody is having issues with Firefox. I started out long before there...

. Bert, I never realized gambling was such a big issue down under. It looks like you guys actually have a bigger problem than here. It's a shame that gambling has become such an issue anywhere. One of the things that really sets me off is that elected officials in damned near every state in the...

. I know a lot of guys are now using their phones to do all their digital tasks, but there are still a bunch that prefer using a laptop or desktop computer. I use a laptop almost exclusively and one of the things I am always after is a web browser that is quick and secure. I've tried a bunch of...

Boy, you sure hit that nail on the head. It's not just television and sports, either. My wife and I have recently been making comments about just how many places in our little town that now offer video gaming and slot machines. We're a little burg of only 9,000 people and there are at least 15...

Yep, I agree with both of you guys. It's truly sad that no one is allowed to just enjoy a sporting event anymore. It's far too important to promote some cause or to relay a political agenda to unsuspecting people. Years ago, before they started all this crap, I would sit down and watch baseball...

Yeah, I know, but it's not just there. The reason I was put off was because it seems to be THE NEWS on most sporting websites and most news websites. It's not just Bloomberg. Like these: https://www.nfl.com/news/patrick-mahomes-jalen-hurts-recognize-significance-of-first-super-bowl-meeting-b...

I have pretty much stopped watching any and all college and pro sports. One of the few things I WAS going to watch was the Super Bowl. After seeing what the headlines are, I guess I'll not bother to watch it. The link below is just one of several I ran into while trying to get the latest on what...

Yep. That looks like a few carbs I've had myself. The one I pulled off the tiller that was my dad's looked even worse. .

Never heard that one before. Do you have any idea how well that would work on a small engine that has had water in it? I usually pull the tank, fuel lines, and carburetor to remove excess water. If the engine is still running, even poorly, I wonder how well that trick would work to remove what...

OK. I see what you were saying now. I also have no idea about the mechanics and chemistry of fuel. I'd have no way to test such things either. I wonder how much difference it is going to make with pure unleaded being in all my OPE this winter. For that matter, any and all of the equipment I am...

Yep! The carb off the tiller I let sit for over 6 years looked like that, only a little worse. I know there are guys that will argue with me, but I'm 100% convinced that carb ended up that way because Dad used E15 gas with no fuel additives at all. I then let it sit for all those years with that...

You got that exactly right. Knowing where you are located tells me you are aware of the ethanol plant in Palestine. I was privy to a lot of conversations between farmers about how much they were going to invest in the plant to be sure it was built locally. Those farmers aren't stupid. They...

I'm right there with you. I have made three rather lengthy trips with the car since switching to ethanol free gas. I'm pretty sure I can feel a difference when I step down to pass somebody, or step down just for the hell of it. It's minimal, but I still think I notice an increase in power. I'll...

Man, that is just nuts! $25/gallon for ethanol free gas is more than highway robbery. And here I complain about it costing me 50 cents more a gallon compared to E10 or E15 gas. .

I'm wondering why you say not to use 87 octane. Are you referring to ethanol blended gas, or are you saying only to use higher octane fuel. High octane fuel is used in ICEs that have high compression ratios. Running 91 or higher octane gasoline in a regular car, truck, or piece of OPE doesn't do...

I agree 100%. That's why I'm not making any claims about power or mileage at this point. I'm only on the second tank of pure gas and that is nowhere near enough to make a real claim. I won't be sure of anything until I have used pure unleaded for several tankfuls and for different kinds of...

Interesting to see that you get better fuel economy. In my Internet research, I have found websites that state that you will always get better mileage with non-ethanol gas and then there are websites that swear you'll get better mileage with an ethanol blend. That's one reason I keep good...

Hmmm. I had no idea it would do that. Guess I should just stick with using ethanol free gas and my old faithful Seafoam. Thanks for that tidbit. .

And I have seen MUCH worse in the carbs off engines that have sat for long periods. My own tiller was one of them. I have no one to blame for what I found but myself. I left it with a half full tank of gas, no fuel shutoff, and the fuel was E15. What I found was a rusted mess. Yep, I did it and...

I realize your comment was aimed at hollydolly, but I'll reply anyway. I am now running only ethanol free in my car. I'm not sure what your question meant. Are you saying that you can't pump it onto a car for some reason? Could would clarify that question for me? I'm trying to understand what...

I agree that both fuel types will leave gum/varnish type deposits if the equipment is left sitting for long periods without running. The big difference I see is that on top of the gum/varnish, ethanol fuels will also cause rust to form on metal surfaces, especially any steel/iron type pieces...