Yep, this group ain't what it used to be.

[Budd Cochran]

So, Brad, Pat, and anyone else really seeking info with problems with
any Dodge pickup truck from 72 on go to:

http://dodgeforum.com

They actually talk Dodges there and don't ignore folks needing help.

Budd

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[FMB]

It does appear most everyone moved on, Budd. The other group I follow,
on RVs, has turned 99% political with ~100 posts a day. It gets tiresome
weeding through all that crap but their excuse is they are just
'chatting around the campfire, and if anyone has an RV related question,
we all jump in and help'. And they do, but it is tiresome.

I hope you and yours are all doing well.

FMB

[Ken Olson]

I actually like this format a lot. Fast, simple, basic communication.
Too bad there are so few of us.

Ken

[Budd Cochran]

I'm doing well other than heart attack number 9 back in Feb. that
resulted in two stents (probably brought on by an 89 Jeep Cherokee that
began cutting out and stalling in Nov. of '14, but recently was replaced
with an '85 D250 (318, NP435, 3.54 Sure-Grip Spicer 60, Stahl utility bed).

The better half is on C-Pap at night and O2 24/7/365.

I have two grankids (one of each sub-species) by my eldest son in IN
that I ain't got to spoil and hand back to Mom and Dad yet.

The central CO Rockies are the greenest in years and I've lost 92 pounds
since my T-2 diabetes diagnosis in '05.

As for the "moving on", I don't blame them for leaving because of the
infighting going on with no one getting help for truck probs.

Heard anything from Denny?

Budd

[Budd Cochran]

This group at one time was the best source for info on Dodge trucks,
Spammers and trolls didn't stand a chance (even got one Ford guy, F350,
to mind his manners!) then intolerance / infighting / etc. got in the way.

I agree it was fast ... back when there were more than just a few in the
group, but I'm afraid those days are gone ... long gone.

[Ken Olson]

I spend time in rec.sport.football.college. It's pretty active. CFB,
politics, etc.

[FMB]

Hey Budd, you got to knock that MI stuff out before it kills ya.

We are doing well here, I've been on a CPAP for 10 years or so. I sleep
great now. My wife, not so much. I keep telling her it is 'white
noise' and helps her sleep.

I retired a couple years back, put our house on the rental market and
took the '03 2500 CTD for a ride across the country a couple times
hauling our 5th. Had a good time, saw a lot, but she wanted her house
back. Fortunate for us, the renter got orders for transfer about the
same time. It worked out.

The PS pump got tired on the '03 after 295,000 on the original PS oil
(ok, for that I was lazy). I bought the new pump, got under the truck
and stared at it for a long time. In fact, several times over the
course of a month or so. Decided to fly up to Dave Smith and picked up
a '15 3500 Limited with a Companion (hidden) hitch. I'm happy, but now
I have to get rid of the '03.

I haven't heard from Denny. Traded email with Mac back in November. He
is still in Mexico.

I still monitor this group in the rare chance of helping someone. I like
the forum over at Dieseltruckresource dot com, but that was sold a
couple years ago and it has lost a lot of members. It is still a great
site for Dodge/Ram/Cummins info though.

Anyway, great hearing from you, take it easy.

[Mac Davis]

On Wed, 19 Aug 2015 23:34:59 -0700, FMB <F...@SBCGlobal.net> wrote:

Glad to see that you ol' farts are still kickin'...
I get a joke from Denny once in a while, but he doesn't respond to
questions when I reply...

I'm in several newsgroups and most are becoming deserted except for
the spammers... I think facebook has replaced a lot of what we used
them for...

We're still lovin' our 2001 Dakota... Just had the engine rebuilt for
$800... One of the perks of living in Baja...
It was the victim of the dreaded oil pump failure that the 4.7l seems
prone to...

[Budd Cochran]

When it came to football in high school I played end, guard and tackle
... I sat on the end of the bench, guarded the water bucket and tackled
anyone that came near it.

[Budd Cochran]

I didn't plan on the last one which came nearly 20 years after the first
eight (three cardiologists said I couldn't have gone that long ...
impossible. I told them I was glad I hadn't talked to them back in '96).

I had an 89 Jeep Cherokee (Renix 4.0, 4X4, auto.) with the bastardized
F.I. from a "collaboration" between Bendix and Renault (which also
ruined a great off-road torque engine, the 258, and made it into a
"sporty" engine (peak torque at 2400 rpm instead of the 258's 1600) and
it began cutting out while driving and/or just stalling.

The stress of dumping $1500 into it while following every tip,
suggestion, and W.A.G. I could find in repair manuals and on the 'net
caused my B.P. to hit low earth orbit and then the old ticker objected.

Two stents, sold the Cherokee and got an 85 D-250 and I'm doing better
and B.P.'s are normal.

Budd

On 8/20/2015 12:34 AM, FMB wrote:
> Hey Budd, you got to knock that MI stuff out before it kills ya.
>
> We are doing well here, I've been on a CPAP for 10 years or so. I sleep
> great now. My wife, not so much. I keep telling her it is 'white
> noise' and helps her sleep.
>
> I retired a couple years back, put our house on the rental market and
> took the '03 2500 CTD for a ride across the country a couple times
> hauling our 5th. Had a good time, saw a lot, but she wanted her house
> back. Fortunate for us, the renter got orders for transfer about the
> same time. It worked out.
>
> The PS pump got tired on the '03 after 295,000 on the original PS oil
> (ok, for that I was lazy). I bought the new pump, got under the truck
> and stared at it for a long time. In fact, several times over the
> course of a month or so. Decided to fly up to Dave Smith and picked up
> a '15 3500 Limited with a Companion (hidden) hitch. I'm happy, but now
> I have to get rid of the '03.
>
> I haven't heard from Denny. Traded email with Mac back in November. He
> is still in Mexico.
>
> I still monitor this group in the rare chance of helping someone. I like
> the forum over at Dieseltruckresource dot com, but that was sold a
> couple years ago and it has lost a lot of members. It is still a great
> site for Dodge/Ram/Cummins info though.
>
> Anyway, great hearing from you, take it easy.
>
>

[Budd Cochran]

On 8/20/2015 7:52 AM, Mac Davis wrote:
> On Wed, 19 Aug 2015 23:34:59 -0700, FMB <F...@SBCGlobal.net> wrote:
>
> Glad to see that you ol' farts are still kickin'...
> I get a joke from Denny once in a while, but he doesn't respond to
> questions when I reply...
>
> I'm in several newsgroups and most are becoming deserted except for
> the spammers... I think facebook has replaced a lot of what we used
> them for...
>
> We're still lovin' our 2001 Dakota... Just had the engine rebuilt for
> $800... One of the perks of living in Baja...
> It was the victim of the dreaded oil pump failure that the 4.7l seems
> prone to...
>
>

That's Mr. Aulde Phartte, sir!!!!

I'm in this one occasionally, I check
rec.autos.manufacturers.jeep+willys about as much since it was the best
Usenet group for Renix Cherokee sufferers and I'm somewhat active in
alt.support.diabetes for my diabetes control.

I don't do social media ... it's just too stupid with the friending and
all and I'm old fashioned enough to still prefer face-to-face.

$800?? I did the '79 D-150's 318 for $675 in 1998 ... o'course it ain't
got your bells and whistles and I did my own work.

When I bought the '85 D250, the previous owner complained of: hard
starting, cold natured, lousy fuel economy.

So I adjusted the choke thermostat so the link didn't drag on the side
of the slot, tightened the carb down (Holley 2-bbl) to the manifold,
lubed the throttle cable and replaced the Autolite plugs with the
correct Champions: RNY12C gapped to 0.035 and not 0.045.

Now I'm trying to beak the upper balljoints loose from the control arms
the old Mopar threaded joints) because they have nearly 3/8" of slack in
them but PB Blaster, the correct Mopar socket, 1/2" breaker bar and a 6'
pipe ain't "got 'er done" yet.

[Mac Davis]

On Thu, 20 Aug 2015 22:43:28 -0600, Budd Cochran <mr_...@yahoo.com>
wrote:

I priced used and/or rebuilt engines in the US and the best I could
find was a rebuilt for $1,500 plus shipping...

This guy came to our house and towed it to his shop, did a great
rebuild with factory parts and delivered it back to us...
We actually spent $900 because he recommended changing the timing
chain while it wwas apart, so we did that... the $100 was all parts,
no added labor...
It's been running like a champ for 5 months now...

[Ken Olson]

Thanks for mentioning alt.support.diabetes. I have this too and have
subscribed to the NG.

Ken

[Budd Cochran]

Replacing the timing chain while down for rebuilkd, to me, is part of
the rebuild.

$1500 isn't bad for such a late model engine but was the shipping from
US to Mexico??? That would bite!

[Budd Cochran]

On 8/21/2015 11:12 AM, Ken Olson wrote:

>
> Thanks for mentioning alt.support.diabetes. I have this too and have
> subscribed to the NG.
>
> Ken

No problem!

I was diagnosed as T-2 in '05 and weighed a couple Big Macs short of
300#, I'm now bouncing between 205 and 220 with BG's in the low 6's.

A warning about the diabetes group: I'm persona non-Grata to many there
because I am an active fundamental Christian and if you're the same or
support true religious freedom for all faiths you may find yourself in
the same kill files.

Also: there are some there that think their word is written in stone as
to how to handle YOUR diabetes, but YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary) applies
to all and what works best for you may not be their idea of what to do
(I eat normal meals but of reduced size and I don't go to the gym three
times a week ... I'm too busy working on my stuff, house, and family
vehicles and stuff), so I don't post often there either.

And watch out for the "reports, studies, and latest findings" posts.
Most are based on tests done on 1000 or fewer people (insignificant
percentage of the Human genome pool), not necessarily done accurately
with a control group, and will be replaced with totally contradictory
results next week by the same poster(s) who don't realize they are being
hypocritical of their own claims of what you must do.

So take the postings there with a 50 pound bag of salt and listen mostly
to your medical providers.

[Mac Davis]

On Fri, 21 Aug 2015 21:14:15 -0600, Budd Cochran <mr_...@yahoo.com>
wrote:


>>

>Replacing the timing chain while down for rebuilkd, to me, is part of
>the rebuild.
>
>$1500 isn't bad for such a late model engine but was the shipping from
>US to Mexico??? That would bite!
>
>Budd
>

For sure... probably hundreds of dollars...
I prefer getting my own rebuilt, so I know what I've got...

[Budd Cochran]

"Mac Davis" <m...@SPLINTERSbajawoodcraft.com> wrote in message
news:qg3htadg2tq97hc0o...@4ax.com...

Yep, I know what you mean as that's why I try to still do all my own work.

I know the mechanic ain't worth a plug nickle but he works cheap.


--
Budd

Tolerance cannot be legislated, demanded
or coerced.

It must be given freely and unconditionally.



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[Fastcar]

Denny and Red are both doing well. Busting my chops on a regular basis.

[Budd Cochran]

Yep ... I hear that.

Now that I'm "retired" everybody seems to think I have more time to do
things for them for free (of course!!!) insead of drowning worms and
losing fishing lures.