On Saturday, Aug. 7, Barry let me bring the truck over to his place for more work. The rad was boiling over if it was driven too long, and there were other small mechanical issues to deal with. Also, the brakes were still a bit unresponsive... not a good thing if the truck's going to be hauling a ton of load and a car behind on a tow-dolly.
I started working on some of the interior stuff while Barry worked on the engine. I began by ripping out the heavy plywood sheeting on the walls of the cargo area; half-inch-thick sheets that were partially coated in a kitchen-y style of wallpaper. All this wood was adding at least a couple hundred extra pounds to the overall weight of the vehicle... weight capacity that would be better served in hauling my stuff back to Ontario. The cargo area already had interior metal walls; I guess the previous owner just wanted to add a little more hominess, or insulation. I also noticed that the ceiling was about three inches lower than it had to be. Again, the previous owner must've thought a plywood ceiling would serve better. It was stuffed with fiberglass insulation. I just left it as it was for the moment. There's even a square hole in the ceiling that must've once opened up to the sky. However, a sheet of wood, screwed in from outside, blocked what would make a nice 14" x 14" skylight. I'll have to work on that later.
Finally, I got all the wall-wood removed. Barry continued working on the brakes. At one point, he needed a part for one brake set, a clip used to keep the pads in place. He let me use his car to run out to the local Canadian Tire. He finished the mechanical fixes, and we bled the lines to make sure there was no air or contamination in them. I kept working on the back and some of the exterior of the truck to get it looking better. My long term goal is to sand and smooth out as much of the truck's body as possible and then paint the entire thing, just to get rid of the rust, the scrapes, the dents and general patchy look of it.
Later, about 6:50 PM, we needed one little bolt to finish some engine work he'd done. Again, he let me use his car, and I offered to buy A&W for dinner for us. His daughter Jennifer wanted to come along, so she and I arrived at Canadian Tire just as they were closing. My watch (which keeps CBC time to the second) read 19:58 (7:58 PM), and the manager of the store, a woman standing guard at the door, had already locked the doors for an 8 PM closing. (I later learned they used to close at 9 PM, but just started this Saturday closing one hour earlier.)
I went up to the glass doors, looked through, straight into her eyes, put on my biggest Puss-In-Boots wide-eyed helpless look, and held up the bolt I needed a copy of, indicating I just needed this "one tiny thing". She let us in, and gave directions to the hardware section where they would be, urging us to hurry.
It took a few minutes to locate the right size, but we eventually got a small package of bolts and headed for the checkout.
Later, on the drive back, we stopped at the A&W and got three meals to bring back.
Once back, Jennifer and I finished our meals off on the front porch, with her calling to her dad every five minutes or so to come eat. He kept replying "just one more thing to finish!" Eventually, he did come around, but long after we had finished our meals, and his was cold. To each their own...
But he did finish replacing the thermostat on the engine, and when we tested it, it did kick in at the right temperature and keep the temperature gauge from redlining.
Finally, that day's work was done, and I drove the truck home.
As I parked in front of my place, on the street, I noticed I could hear water hissing out of the engine. I walked around to the front of the vehicle, and yup, coolant leaking out of the engine all over the road.
Now what?
Next morning, Sunday Aug. 8, Barry came over to my place mid-day, and looked at the engine. He discovered that the main rad hose had developed a crack next to the clamp, and that was where the coolant was leaking from. So, we hopped into my car and started a prolonged search around town for a new hose, and some other parts and things needed.
Our travels took us to the Sherwood Park CTC (Canadian Tire Corp.), Part Source on Fort Rd., another CTC on Fort Rd., and finally the NAPA shop on 75 St. at 118 Ave. The CTCs had a rad hose that was very close to, but not exactly the same as, mine. Also, it looked a bit thin. NAPA had the exact part.
Finally, about 4 PM, we got back to my place, got the hose exchanged and other minor work done, and tested the engine. It ran beautifully, with no immediate leaking visible from the short test run we gave it.
Today was the day my In-Transit Permit expired, so the truck was not going to get any more driving for the next few days. Any further work would be done in the parking lot.
And, oh yeah, still got a ton of PACKING to do...
Monday, Aug. 9, I drove my car to Barry's; he'd offered to try and find the source of a rattle that was coming from under the right side, mid-way somewhere in the vehicle. Got there about 10 AM. He looked awhile, we checked out everything visible, and couldn't find a thing.
He did give me another transportation idea to check up on, though... he noted that over by the railroad yards, there was a SEARAIL office that you could book train passage for, for your vehicle.
...
Drove down to the SEARAIL yard about 11:40 AM. Learned that if your vehicle is over seven feet high, they can't help you... only smaller, regular cars can go this way. My truck is about eight feet...
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday August 10-13, went by in a hazy blaze of packing, getting more boxes at the local KFC box-bin, packing, quick trips to Dollar stores for more packing supplies, one quick trip to the local laundromat, packing, etc. All of this accompanied by the deep-acid burning anxiety welling up about the upcoming deadline for moving-day, currently scheduled for Monday August 23.
Worst case of long-term nerves & tension I've had in my life, I think.... probably because it's all gotta get done by me. No one to help, no one to assist, no one's shoulder to cry on in exhaustion, blah, blah, blah...
Oh well... that which does not kill me......
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