I dropped the axle from my '86 GMC pickup off at the shop yesterday .
It's going in for "major surgery" ... The stock 2.73:1/standard
differential gear set is being replaced with a set of 3.42's and a posi
locker . I have apparently ventured a bit farther into the "high
performance" realm than I meant to . Since I've got it tuned a bit
better I've been having problems starting from a dead stop without the
truck making screeching noises . I'm hoping the new stuff will improve
that situation ...
I'm also hoping the gas mileage improves . The motor build was
optimized for 3.42 gears , I should be in a more efficient RPM band with
the new gears . Which is also in the torque band , so my trans should
have to shift gears less often .
And as my neighbor told his wife when she asked what all this was for
"better burnouts!" .
How do you find "other people" you trust to do work for you. I've had
absolute shit luck with that. It's the main reason I do so many
different things myself.
A plumber who leaves a shower dripping and says he'll come back the next
day with the right stuff to fix the valve, and never comes back. A
mechanic you ask specifically to do specific preventative repairs or do
specific tests and those are the primary reason you brought work to
them, and they just do a routine service and ignore what you brought it
in for. A shop that says they'll check their schedule and call you back
the next day to let you know when they can do some work, who then tries
to gas light you and claim it was the other way around. Another shop
that says you have to lift the bed of a truck to do a job (some jobs you
do or its the easier way), and you have already researched and know they
are just trying to juice the price. Another shop that takes your money
and even after they have your money you have to ask them when it will be
ready TWICE before they say it will be four months before they can get
the item you ordered... you ask for your money back, order it yourself
FROM THE MANUFACTURER, and have it delivered in less than two week from
the opposite side of the country by truck... for less. A refrigeration
tech who straight up lies and says that a refrigerant is no longer
available, so you will need a whole new system, and then you have it
delivered the next day ordered off eBay... When you call the reseller
they let you know they can't make it anymore, but it will be decades
before they run out.
When I was a kid I lived 60 miles from town. We had a country store
(and later split it into two stores) with just about everything.
Groceries, fresh meat and produce, hardware, dry goods, guns, auto
parts, tools, etc etc. We didn't learn to fix everything ourselves
because we had a choice. We learned to fix everything ourselves because
we couldn't even get somebody to come out. I learned basic electrical,
construction, refrigeration, plumbing, and wrenching because if we
didn't do it ourselves we wouldn't have light, shelter, cold food, a
shower, and we would have to walk.
Well I don't live 60 miles from town anymore, and there are multiple
businesses "available." Generally I don't even dicker over price. I
ask them how much and decide either I have that much or I don't. Last
week I walked out of three shops just trying to get a gooseneck under
bed turnover ball hitch installed in my new truck. Not one was because
of price. One gas lit me claiming they didn't say what they said.
Another straight up lied to me. The third said it was a piece of cake
and then made it clear they had never installed a hitch on anything
before and didn't have a clue how to do it. Yeah, I guess they lied to
me too. In none of those cases do I trust them to do a good job. Its
not that I can't do it. Its that I just don't want to. I've installed
in bed hitch systems before. Its a bit of a pain (although this one
"should" be easier) and I just don't want to.
I had similar issues last year when trying to get a hitch installed on
my wife's car for an electric scooter carrier. Its a lease so I really
wanted to have a "professional" install it. Yeah, nope.
I am so fucking tired. I have cash money. I just want to hire somebody
to do a job right the first time. Whatever the job. I've spent my
whole life doing things myself. When I was growing up because their was
no who would do it and I had no choice, later because I didn't have the
money to pay somebody, and now well because I don't have any choice
again. One day I'm not going to be physically able to do it myself, and
then I'll just be fucked.
Now don't get me wrong. I've had a few businesses give me great
service. Unfortunately with a large portion of them the instant I sing
their praises they do something shitty. I like to reward good behavior
and not reward bad behavior, but I'm afraid to post a positive review or
make a recommendation anymore.
Lots of people I guess are more tolerant. They seem to get by in this
screw and lie business climate. I was raised in business and I would
have gone to school the next day with purple welts on my ass if I
treated a customer like I feel I am treated in many businesses around
here.
To be fair there is another issue. We do have a large part time
blizzard chicken population and there is a distinct prejudice against
snowbirds by many locals including local businesses who do not directly
profit from the "tourist" trade. I have a grey beard and greying hair.
I guess I may look like an annoying blizzard chicken to them. I'm not
particularly vane about my looks, but I am tempted to die my hair and my
beard to see if it makes a difference with some of them.
Listen to me bitch and whine. Its just something to procrastinate for a
couple minutes before I walk outside and drill a giant hole in the bed
of my new truck. Actually I am getting prepped, but I have shop work
for customers I have to do first. I'll probably install the hitch
tomorrow. I hope.
Oh, yeah. I sold my Jeep and my Silverado 2500 AFTER buying a new
truck. Dealerships just suck. Took me 3 months to find the truck I
wanted from a dealer that didn't just BALD FACED LIE about their
advertised price, bait and switch on me, grossly undervalue trades,
and/or grossly over value what they had. One dealer did all four of
those. Several did more than one. One sent me a quote where the base
price before extras was higher than the advertised price and the final
price was nearly $10K more than that. They also advertised if I found a
cheaper truck anywhere they would pay $1000. I'm not going to fight
with them, but I bought a higher spec truck for less elsewhere. A lot
less.
Oh, yeah. I did have one really positive experience with a business
this week. I need to replace the seals on two hydraulic cylinders on my
front loader. I've done it myself before and they only lasted a year.
I don't know if I did a crap job or if I got bad seals, but I did use
OEM John Deere seals. None of the rods are nicked, scored , or pitted.
I can't feel anything but slick oil. Its not cutting seals. I went
into a local hydraulic shop and they listened, didn't put me down for
doing it myself the first time said they would get on it in a couple
days (open them up same day and order parts) and explained they don't
keep a lot of seals in stock because they have a shelf life, and said
that could be why my "new" seals failed. They could be old stock that
have set on the shelf somewhere for years. I felt like I was someplace
else. No bullshit, helpful, friendly, no judgement. I need to move a
few things, and then this coming week I'll pull those cylinders and let
them fix them
--
Bob La Londe
CNC Molds N Stuff
--
This email has been checked for viruses by AVG antivirus software.
www.avg.com