Chores for today 10 May 08

Today I completed the newspaper post extension. I milled two pieces of aluminum to hold the added 4X4 treated lumber to the top of the plastic post which was too short from day one. I started the milling process last night and finished it this morning. Two yellow jackets had taken up residence in the news box. I sprayed one last night and the other this morning as he disputed ownership of the abode. (Pix 15 and 16) The holes in the plastic were off so I had to adjust the holes in the aluminum plates. It is quarter inch thick and I enjoyed cutting it, squaring it, and milling the holes.

Next I mowed half the yard and treated a few fire ant mounds. My Ford 640 tractor covered by a slightly too small tarp is visible to the right. (pic 17)

The two-inch water pump got all the water from the swimming pool that it could. I have a small electrical pump that attaches to a garden hose and will get most of what is left. There are at least four frogs living in the pool. I am sure they wonder what happened to their deep safe haven. The pump is visible to the left. (pix 18 and 19)

Gunner is the dog on the left, and Mocha is the one on the right. Mocha can eat a baseball in minutes. So, no more baseballs for her to play with. The two dogs stay active rough housing with each other. (pic 20)

I almost forgot to mention it was about 92 degrees today and I got sun burned.

Tractor Boy

Farmall Cub Switch Replacement

It was a cold, wet, dreary day in Central Texas. Perfect weather in which to replace the light switch I replaced last week. The first replacement was blowing a 20-amp fuse in less than a second when turned to the farthest right position. Fortunately, I had added a separate fuse holder to the circuitry when the replacement did not have a fuse position. I spoke with the nice folk at Farmall Cub Forever and ordered a three position six-volt switch which arrived a few days ago. This time I took pictures so you can see what I was doing. Again, I replaced one wire at a time. The switch has a protrusion which fits in a notch in the console, and I replaced it so the two were properly aligned. I discovered it was easier to take the console off this time, and I did not need a small monkey to reach in the confined space. I did; however, forget that I placed a piece of board between the hydraulic housing and the hood/fuel tank. So, when I started up the Cub to see how well it would run, there...

Farmall Cub greasing

Replacing gear oil and greasing the ’49 Cub ought to be a straight forward task(s). Well it hasn’t been. The transmission fluid was tan, looking like tan paint. Folks on Yesterday’s Tractor Farmall forum said it meant water had got inside the transmission. I wonder whether this tractor was under water at one time. I bought a Spectricide brand insecticide pump, put kerosene in it, and flushed the transmission, then refilled with 90 weight gear oil. The gear oil looked like and had the consistency of thin honey. Pic 1300 shows the transmission filler plug. A lot easier to reach than the plug for emptying the transmission. Note it has a square head. All of these plugs are square headed. Three and a half pints later, the transmission was back together. After the transmission, I decided to check the steering gear oil. It was not tan. It was black as could be so I flushed the housing with kerosene again and refilled with ¾ pint of 90 weight gear oil and replaced the filler plug. Pic 1301 s...

Yard Work

This afternoon I decided to attack the brush and thorns around the Guard Light pole again. I got an idea that I might be able to use my Kubota and its front-end grapple to dig below ground and pull up brush by its roots. It sorta worked. I did manage to get a few large grape vines and some thorn and tree plants up. I then used my lopping shears and pulled and pulled. I worked for about 2 ½ hours. In the end I had a pile about ¼ the size of the one taken away by the city truck on Monday. The area is looking better and better. Tomorrow I may be able to get a few cedar trees cut down and hauled away. I tried to rent equipment to cut cedar trees. The rental place said he had nothing I could use. He suggested renting a bulldozer to push the trees over. I have eight acres of trees in town and would need to do something fairly quickly with the uprooted trees or I would have a big fire hazard drying out on the ground. I will try a couple other ways to get cedar cut down. Mean time I am going t...

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