The Bogan

Got keys and did a walk around the yard planning the landscaping works with the family that I will be doing Main effort: remove all the woodchip in the gardens that are around (attached) to the outside of the house and replace with 10mm blue metal, having woodchip close to the house is a recipe for inviting white ants, currently there are no white ants within the block and I would like to keep it that way I'll be buying some large raised garden beds to grow veggies and stuff, and the woodchip will be mulched with everything else that gets dug up, pulled out, or cut down during works Next will some minor drainage and landscaping maintenance up one side of the house, where the fuse box, AC, and solar stuff will go, about 12 mtrs long by 2 meters wide, I'll break up the soil, add gypsum and then I'll dig in a French drains about 300mm deep x 300mm wide and fill it with agg pipe and blue metal, then level out the whole area with a 50mm layer of blue metal, the soil, whilst currently pretty compacted, will break up well with the gypsum to aid in drainage, I'll then cover the area with a 50mm layer of more blue metal In saying this, the drainage issue is minor, but that little hidden away area down the side is untidy and weedy, and as all of the main elec stuff is there I want it neat and tidy to appease my OCD Again, the material excavated from the French drains with be added to the garden bed mulch, as will some rose bushes and some other crap looking garden plants, and a old apricot tree that is looking worse for wear The apricot tree is currently in a little roundish garden bed that is in the middle of the back yard with few other crappy looking plants around it, that will all be removed, levelled, re-turfed, and is a perfect spot for a hills hoist There is also a area about 3m x 2m between the rear fence and shed that will get some attention, it looks like some stuff was stored there and the grass is dead, that will also get broken up and mulched, and is a prime spot for a pumpkin patch I've guestimated that I'll need: 3 tonnes of blue metal, 12 meters of agg pipe, 5kg of Gypsum, and a hills hoist, so a few bags of concrete as well to set it in place (the house currently has one of those pull out 4 line jobs, whilst it works, I want a retro old school hills hoist), I am also going to run some chickens, there's a great spot for a coop, so a chicken coop to suit 4 of those lovely egg laying bitches will also be on the job card That should keep me busy for a while, and will finish off the back yard ready for a early spring planting of some veggies and berries Once the main effort is done I'll start out the front, there's a large rock garden that could use some TLC, but that is only minor works Should be fully moved in within 2 weeks, the landscaping works will start then Fun times, retirement is good

When the power is on and the AC heat is warming the house...LOL Jackie keeps me updated with the Goulburn temps, I think she is scared she will freeze, me, I'm fine with the cold, I'm use to acclimatising Jackie is the main reason for getting solar, as she "requires" the AC to keep things civil year round, night and day, and me telling her to wrap up and layer in the cold falls on deaf ears, with an evil glance thrown in for good measure to ensure I "understand"...LOL

Settlement on the new joint just hit, heading into sunny Goulburn tomorrow to pick up keys Happy days

Give it time mate, you will eventually sort out the bugs, and then... you too can hunt around in the hills looking for coffee, pies and treats

Yeap, was me and the daughter getting coffee before heading to the new joint to measure up the fridge space and taking some pics that the solar installer wanted of the switch board

Tried some stainless allen head bolts I had laying around, they stuck out like dog balls, so I went to Bunnings and got some black coated jobbies, which I like alot more.....basically OEM....LOL I'll RTV it up this week sometime ready for MX5 Mania to do their thing

Bit wet, but YUMMY

The spray cans were in the "Kiln" room whilst I was preping the parts, so probably around 2 hours to get them warmed up, the kiln room has 3 small ovens running at 100°c, 3 medium sized ovens running 100°c, and the large one I used running at 80°c, the room itself was about 28°c, I also spent a bit of time taping up the parts in the room as well, and by the time I was done I would assume that the parts were around that 28°c As for power, I expect a couple of Killerwasps up high would be achievable with the current mods, I'm still running the MZR 2.0 intake and throttle body, and there is a slight mismatch with the 2.0 intake (smaller) and 2.5 intake ports (larger) on the head, this intake is matched and specifically designed to fix this issue with the ports mismatch, the throttle body is also a couple of mm larger, OEM is 65mm, the Bosch is 68mm In the end it will look "prettier" than the molded plastic thing that is the OEM MZR 2.0 intake As for the LSD, it's the OEM Torsen which works fine for what I use the car for, plus, basically no maintenance apart from the occasional oil change

I transferred from full time service to Army Reserve, so I still have access, work has been super keen to get me in to work in the OPS realm, so just turning up to use the gym......and ovens, isn't causing any issues, apart from me needing to keep on telling them that I won't be doing any reserve days until I get my joint in Goulburn sorted Basically I can now work whenever I want, for how long I want now, and it's all tax free Next time we have some fires or floods you might see me covered in mud, or cutting sick in some plant equipment cleaning up, the Reserves love getting in the news, LOL

Final finish outcome of 80°c was typical to the pics, I've turned the oven down to 50°c and will pick them up after the gym tomorrow The before and after difference was amazing, the wrinkle paint has covered all of the casting marks completely It did take a couple of hours to key it all and get in all of the crevices, but, for me it was time well spent for the final outcome, but I have all the time in the world to do it at the moment Ended up with 4 coats, each sprayed at different angles to get optimal coverage and thickness As for the fixtures and intake box thingo that hasn't made it, the supplier is apparently posting the fixtures, and, are now sending a different CAI that is in stock The replacement CAI is actually better than what I originally ordered, but will require a pod filter that locates under the front bar, still serviceable, but it basically removes the whole OEM filter box and ducts into the front bar, so filter cleaning will require ramps and the removal of some front bar undertray, not a war stopper, just some ramps and an additional 10 minutes work every few months From looking at it it is made from alloy pipe from the throttle body, through the CAI hole in the rad support, then right turning under the bar, luckily the wrinkle paint was on special and I got 2 cans for $30ish, so the alloy will get the same wrinkle treatment as the intake manifold, hopefully it turns up soon, either way, the car will be getting booked in soon, if the parts aren't here, I'll just get MX5 Mania to " make it work"

So far so good, another hour and their done

From my memory, which isn't that great, we did have issues getting the large throttle body on my old LS1 to play nicely at idle, first it would stall, then it would only idle at 2k rpm, then it would hang at 2k rpm for a few seconds and then drop and stall, then, finally, the best we got was it would hang at 1.5k rpm for a few seconds then drop to around 800 rpm The tuner stated that large cable throttle bodies are a PITA, and if I wanted anything better than what we ended up with I would need a electronic throttle body and all of the aftermarket ECU stuff to run it

So, my intake arrived I'm not happy with the coating finish so I went to Supercheap and got some black wrinkle paint and some prep stuff I was initially thinking about using grey wrinkle paint, but finding a quality product that gives the texture I want was "unfindable...", so the tried and tested black wrinkle paint is again finding its way into the engine bay for the OEM look I'll sneakily head into work and get the big ovens cranking to cure the paint over the next week or so I've also contacted MX5 Mania today to talk about the install and tune, so painting it is my "main effort" prior to sending the car off In other news, the correspondence from the US supplier is fair to midling to say the least, I'm still trying to track down the intake box thingie with the larger intake pipe to suit the throttle body, it still is "awaiting fulfilment" (no stock currently available), if it isn't here soon I'll just get MX5 Mania to fabricate up a CAI that is easy to service the air filter

I much prefer colder weather to hot weather, and especially prefer cold to hot and humid, Goulburn does gets pretty warm in the hotter months, but, I've found the humidity there is not as painful as even Sydney, the humidity up north is to oppressing for this old rooster In saying this, it does get rather "nippy" in Goulburn for early morning, late in the evening walks, but nothing that a layer or two, some thermal gloves, and a beanie doesn't fix to make it an enjoyable experience, which is much more bearable to me than the oppression of heat and humidity, especially at night when your trying to sleep If I recall correctly, a "wise man" once said that the "Southern Tablelands" was gods country, and I will not argue that point with him for the fear of a "permaban" LOL In car part related news: My intake is currently in Botany getting processed for the last leg of its shipping journey to my door

Whomever is stalking me will need to deal with a few of these, so my safety is "assured"

I just looked at my camera phone settings, apparently I have "not allowed" for location Will that stop that app?

Can you not just turn it off on your phone if required? I remember a brief on this, well, I remember the brief, not what to actually do. LOL

Only a little block, around 530 or 550? Big enough for what I need, but small enough to be fairly low maintenance As for dogs, I want some Chihuahuas, strange, but true

Yeah, didn't think of that, can you remove it please Cheers

Well, fun day was had, I finally found a house that will do me just fine, 1980's brick build, but with full fresh renovations, plus new colour bond fencing all round so puppies are incoming 🐕, and water tanks for the garden, and it's located in West Goulburn..... @Duncan 🫡, so day trips to Wakie to watch cars going Zoom will be on the cards In the end it cost well under my budget and was actually better than alot of the more expensive joints I was looking at, it is in a good area, close enough to the shops, public transport, and the Wollondilly River Weir, and the great walking paths along the river, but far enough away from town to see minimal traffic The deposit is dropped, the conveyancer is conveyancing and I should get the keys in a week or 2 as the property is currently unoccupied As with everything I own, I'm doing up a modifications list, as it doesn't have solar, that is first up on the big list, all of the panels and enough batteries to keep the joint warm, or cool, followed by a largish carport out the front, the small list, which will start as soon as I have keys, is some security stuff, like cameras, screens, and the usual "crazy prepper" additions that weird old people like (mouse holes to stick shot guns out of, and the usual man traps that the average person installs for the unsuspecting and unwanted guests 🤣) The gardens front and back are OK, but, not to my standards or liking, so landscaping will be a fun job to start getting into, so when spring is sprung I'll do a heap of planting, lots of natives and vegetables is the plan, the old owners were more "Old English Garden" type, so basically Roses and other weird looking things that are destined for the green waste bin One thing that is staying garden wise is a nice established hedge out the front, it is about 5 foot tall and covers the whole front of the property from prying eyes As for the car hoist, the roof in the garage has some height to it, but, I'll need to get an installer out to see what can be done, width wise may be a issue, but my building inspector will be getting back to me over the next week with his recommendations Small, but cosy

Finally got shipping number for the intake and throttle body, shipped by UPS, so "should" be in my hands sometime next week, fingers fracking crossed

Each to their own I guess Me, I put just as much time into cleaning inside of the cars as I do on the outside As for getting wet, it is really no different than steam cleaning the carpets at home, apart from the cars carpet dries alot faster than the house, again, I only do it in the hotter months and leave the car opened up for a few hours As I only do it yearly, it is just before I do the diff and gearbox service, so I clean the carpets, then it's up on stands, wheels off, service, clean the undercarriage, grease the bushings and do a nut and bolt check on everything Disclaimer: I typically had all the time in the world to kill when I was working 🤣, so spending a full day or 2 cleaning, serving and "looking at stuff" was, easily achievable, and a fun mental therapy day As for time to kill, I retired last Wednesday, so apart from my physical training, my days are filled with lots of random jobs around the house and garden...."Idle hands are the Devils something something" I am also buying a new house sooner rather than later, I'm actually looking at a potential property tomorrow, I'm looking forward to getting a car hoist as I'm starting to get to old to crawl around under a car, I can only imagine all the undercarriage cleaning and looking at stuff when that gets set up

This is mine, works a treat for the cars, suction is good, I use the Bissell clean and protect stuff I have found giving it a good spray and light scrub with the soft brush on the head of the nossle for carpet, and a rub with a microfibre for cloth seats and cloth door trims, prior to another quick spray before vacuuming it up works the best @GTSBoy You would surprised on what it gets out of carpet and seats that actually "look" clean, I recommend that you test drive yours when you have a little time to kill, then post pics of the muddy looking water that I believe you will find

@MBS206 My little Bissell is awesome, I do all of our cars yearly I do it in the warmer months though so I can leave them open to fully dry out When I'm not using a car for an extended period I throw a big moisture absorber in it, boxes of 8 are cheap at Costco, I just sit it on the seat

I haven't owned a Skyline for probably 10 years, but I still frequent here to babble about wasting money on other cars....and stuff Good times