Well, after doing up a field stone patio from scratch for my grandmother, i managed $90 from that,
so i got a new derailleur (Shimano Deore Mega 9, bottom swing, dual-pull. it was what they had for
bottom pull), and the rest i divvied up between my two cash funds.$35 in the bike parts fund, and
$30 in the general/gas fund (at least i got my priorities straight there ;-) spokes are still on
back order (so they say), so i didn't get them.
So, after getting the derailleur installed, i re-installed the loaner spokes (took 'em out on the
off chance the LBS had some). at this time, i realized the axle would barely turn in the hub. not a
good thing (for how long i wonder...) so i decide i might as well re-pack the hub. this time i make
sure to get the jam nuts locked good and tight. after reinstalling the wheel, i managed to get it
nice and true (not perfect without a stand of course), and did the same to the front wheel (just a
small tweak).
After this was all said and done, i still had a pan with a good sized dab of grease laying around.
what to do, what to do. so i pulled off the wheels and hubs on my car and re-packed them. there,
that used up the dab of grease. then i couldn't stop there, i was on a roll. so i lubed all the
ball-ends. then i bought some power steering fluid (as the pump seemed to be, like, empty), and at
this time, i notice one of the strut caps looks a little off compared to the other. i jacked the
front end back up, and sure enough, the strut bushing is dead (to the point the strut has 1.25" side
to side, up and down play). no wonder it seems to steer itself. figuring this was going to be fairly
expensive, i left it alone (seems tight when the car sits on it).
So anyway, just goes to show, despite the heat (therm said 95 F in shade), i was able to get quite a
bit done. and when i was done, i came in, poured a nice tall glass of ice water, turned on the AC,
sat down on the computer and turned it on.... damn, blew a circuit breaker (it is an old AC, draws a
bit above normal). so after turning off everything not needed, i tried again, and managed to get it
to stay on.
But i do feel like a good day of things accomplished, and tomorrow, i hope to test out this new
strange looking contraption Shimano calls a dual-pull derailleur (everything works in the shop, but
a ride will disclose the truth).
--
~Travis