Macho, Macho Man!

Not many things make you feel more manly than working on your truck. I'm sure it's a throwback to primitive man somehow, a la Tim Taylor. I just like getting my fingers dirty and knowing exactly what the condition of my vehicle is.

I thought I heard a slight grinding of my brakes the other day and bought a new set of front brake pads. You may have noticed the mud covered old goat last week. That's when I originally planned to do this. After moving the sheet metal I bought to fix the house from one side of the shop to the other, I could drive inside and do the job on a nice clean slab and use air tools.

This is known as "shittin' in tall cotton" for a poor white boy.

I grew up working in the dirt, crawling under cars in the driveway or out in the pasture. I twisted wrenches by hand, busting knuckles the old fashioned way getting dirt, rocks and ants ground into me. I never had the luxury of air tools, floor jacks, creepers and a nice clean concrete slab. Over the last few years I have done a few things to change all that. Altho it's unfinished, I now have a shop and a minimal amount of the proper tools it takes to get the jobs done professionally.

But I digress...

I've never changed brakes on a Dodge, but after a few minutes of reverse engineering I managed to figure out how to remove the pads from the caliper and install the new ones. Overall, it was easiest design I've worked on. Chevy, Ford, ect... You don't even need a C-clamp to compress the calipers. The air tools made tedious, long threaded bolts in tight spaces no problem at all.

After finishing the brakes I did a quick PM and changed the oil. I decided to upgrade to Valvoline MaxLife 5W30 synthetic blend. I also installed a Fram High Milage filter with a time release additive. I can see the ladies eyes glazing over, but the guys understand me... Anyway, The Old Goat has almost 150,000 and it was about time to start taking some proactive measures to get another 150,000 out of her. I've never run synthetic oil before but I've heard it will leak like a seive on older engines. I guess we'll see.

OK, now something for the ladies. Girls, can we talk? Are you tired of sweeping up all that dirt, leaves, twigs, branches, toys, pets, small children, ect, day after day after day? Introducing... The Air Gun! With a powerful 120 psi it will huff and puff and blow your house clean. No muss, no fuss! Clean a 60 x 30 area in under 30 seconds! Get yours now!(Optional air compressor sold seperately) Seriously, if you have a garage, patio, sidewalk or anything else you sweep regularly, a small air compressor and an air gun will do magic. Maybe I should send this to Heloise.

So here I sit, feet proped up, cold beer in hand looking at a job well done.

It don't get much better than this.