Donstar

Many homeowners are facing a similar dilemma. It is a great time to sell but no advantage if you need a house or truck. Sell your truck if you don't need/want it but you won't make any bonus money if you're going to upgrade.

I am in the process of installing a fold away, wheeled tongue jack for my 4' X 6' utility trailer. It is overkill for such a small trailer but lifting a loaded trailer off the hitch is no longer a solo exercise. My issue is all of the universal auto store jacks are designed for rectangular framed trailers. My trailer's exposed tongue bars are pipe. This wouldn't normally be an issue but a consequence of Covid is the local welding shops are booked over a month in advance. My solution is to bolt a piece of 2" angle iron to a 2" round pipe. (The pipe is non-structural and was added after the trailer was built.) This task sounds simple but it's not. You need copious hours of free time and an abundance of patience to attempt such a feat! As my wife says you're "trying to fit s square peg into a round hole". I think this is harder!

Sometimes projects appear magically! Yesterday I dropped an open container of coffee color stain on my garage floor which splattered widely. My motorcycle was in the direct path of the wave. My plans for a five minute touch up chore evolved into my wife and I planning for a complete garage repaint and adding protective flooring. She wants the black and white checkered flooring and I want a neutral grey floor paint. We finally decided on keeping the garage looking like a garage and embrace the newly acquired brown splotches on a bare cement floor. (It actually cleaned up fairly well but was a long and miserable chore) The good news is my HD will get the long overdue detailing it needs and my wife gets to shop for new towels...

It's encouraging to see areas with high percentages of fully vaccinated residents return to full operation. Where I live, we still have some time before the threat is minimized and some countries have a lot of time to wait! I have a family that is spread out globally. I have a daughter in one country who has not heard when she will be receiving her first vaccine and grandchildren in another who have received both. My wife and I have received one dose and are weeks away from our second! In the meantime, I'll adapt to the ongoing changes and make the best out of each day. I had a double punch this past week of friends becoming critically/terminally ill (not covid) which further prompts me to make the most out of my precious time. My trailer refresh project has revealed some very OCD type behaviors and consequently taking longer (and more money) than expected! Unfortunately, it has lost its function as a garbage and dirt hauler and will be promoted to light, clean duty!

Since Covid began I have held monthly Zoom meetings with my 4 grandchildren as a group. These are separate from the usual family connections. It is a carryover "bond" from when they would visit Nana & Papa and were allowed to sneak out of their rooms early in the morning for breakfast and TV with Papa. (I'm always up early and their parents love the sleep-in!) Our meetings are changing rapidly and over the past year have evolved from a screen shot of 4 children with their grandpa to 4 teens with a senior facilitator. I have to rely much more on a personal than positional leadership style. Some jobs are conducive to working online from home and grandparenting isn't one of them!

My Dad confused retirement with stopping work. He tried his understanding of retirement for a year and then went back to "work". My earlier mention of looking at job ads was solely as a way to purchase unneeded toys. Unlike my Dad, I am working too much to find the time to work! If retirement for you is too distant to be of concern, then you need to rethink because it comes up fast and it is real. Like most things, preparation is key. Just to give you some "time" context, yesterday my wife and I found ourselves looking for candles for a virtual birthday cake to honour my youngest child's 40th Birthday. The candles we have for this occasion said "40" and were "recently" on my cake! Unfortunately, this involved a trip to the depths of our crawl space which required more effort than needed. Just like I had to go to Home Depot to buy two 1/4' x 1/2" bolts, when I know I have a bunch somewhere, I stopped in at the Dollar store to buy a "40" candle! Which reminds me of one other pre retirement tip: Be very discriminating when saving treasures that you may need someday!

Excellent identification of symptom! I've also consumed considerable time lately studying job opportunities for the purpose of working for toys! Then I get real and realize I'll be selling my retirement time that I worked so hard to fund. If I could find a well paying job that gives me totally flexible hours, requires minimal physical effort, no stress and is fun to do then I may be willing. Just like the beginning of the pandemic, there is a wide range of "restrictions" depending on where you live. I do not want to tie myself down with self imposed commitments that would prevent me from visiting, or being visited, as the world opens up.

The pandemic has resulted in many profound experiences. Lately, I've encountered many inconveniences attributed to a lack of staff. I've retired in an area that took me 20 years to get the job I wanted. If the same scenario happened today, I'd likely get the job upon applying. I recently spoke to an auto service and repair shop owner, who claims he can't even get people to apply! He'd hire and train anybody willing to learn. I know this is temporary but there are some interesting opportunities available! Sometimes life experiences happen in the wrong order!

I share your vision! I've considered plank flooring and looked at marine grade plywood. I even considered decorative cedar sides. The reality is, this trailer's existence relies on its ability to haul dirt/rocks and not look ugly in the front yard. I need to minimize the ammunition that renting a trailer when needed would be far cheaper!

Yes, this would be my preferred option and minimizing direct contact between dissimilar metals would alleviate my concerns. I phoned for estimates and it puts the cost at a point that is too hard to justify. I ended up buying good quality 5/8" sanded, exterior plywood for the sides and 3/4" pressure treated plywood for the floor. I also purchased thick aluminum angle to cover all exposed top edges. When I explained my finishing needs to the man at the Home Depot paint counter, he said my project will outlive me or him. I don't know if he was just trying to cheer me up, but if he was, it didn't!!

^^^ Working as a helper in my Dad's Heating and Gas Fitting business I came across an existing install where a hidden joint with poor threads was wrapped in a roll of electrical tape. I was actually impressed with how effective and important an air test is in detecting leaks. My trailer refresh project is biding my time. The most time consuming part is me going from vertical to horizontal and back again. I plan each ground trip with care! My dilemma is whether to use pressure treated plywood or exterior grade ply with a solid stain. With the price of plywood I could consider aluminum. My concern would be the reaction of the aluminum with the steel frame. Opinions?

I put myself through school helping in the trades and have done many home renovations. I pride myself in doing my best work even if it is out of sight. Many years ago I bought a three level townhouse with a beautifully finished basement. I decided to add a bathroom to the basement which required some wall removal. I was horrified to find that the entire "finished basement" was wired by indoor, two prong extension cords strung from outlet to outlet and light to light. The entire basement was subsequently gutted and finished properly. I lived in this fire-trap for a year before discovering this wiring. Ironically, the complex burned to the ground years after I had moved. The fire started in another unit and spread quickly. Perhaps the previous owner of my unit had helped a neighbour with their electrical needs!

I was watching him a couple of nights ago and he was showing a very old electric car powered by an on board gas powered generator. His script could be copied and used to describe some current hybrids. For example, there is a thread on this forum about a Vtrux. It uses the our 4.3 to generate power to feed the batteries for the electric drivetrain of a Silverado. The purpose of the gas engine in both of these examples is to compensate for range restrictions from batteries. Demand has fueled exponential growth in battery storage and the need for gas backup is rapidly dwindling. If I was in an earlier season in life, I would be seriously considering a business plan for gas to electric vehicle conversions. I know that there are established conversion companies but I'm talking about the kind that becomes the Kleenex of facial tissues or the Band-Aid of adhesive bandages!

I am stuck on living vicariously through a few nomadic YouTubers during my late evening TV time. Fulltime RV'ers and long distance trucking fill my recommended viewing list. There is so much to see throughout US and Canada which is missed when flying between destinations! When borders open, I plan to drive from Vancouver Island to Houston, Texas to get a fresh taste of road travel. We did a lot of long distance road trips in the 80's and I only remember the good stuff. My wife thinks my memory is off and that a post pandemic drive to Texas will forever get the bug out of my system. No matter who is right, I'm looking forward to an adventure. This extra time at home has afforded me the opportunity to get rid of the "when I have the time" excuse for outstanding projects. If a two week road trip makes me excited about getting back to my home and routines, then it's a win. If the two week road trip makes us want to continue on travelling for a year or two, then it is also a win!

Welcome to the forum! You ill find a lot of good information on this site! I believe Chad's answer is correct and that the 3.42 is part of a package and not specific to a size of wheel. You will find any of GM's engine/transmission/differential combinations will confidently handle the payloads and towing power specific to the truck. For example, If you need a truck to tow an 8k lb. trailer, then look for the ratings of the one you have in mind.

I've been slowly picking away at the rust on my old utility trailer in preparation for painting It is a task I don't enjoy as I have to do it in front of my house on a relatively short driveway. It is a bit of an eyesore for our pristine cul-de-sac and I'm testing the patience of the only other opinion that matters. She now thinks getting it done quickly is worth spending some money. So, on Wednesday I phoned the local business that gave me a price in April on blasting and painting. It turns out they are booked until late July! (They are unable to find staff to keep up with demand like so many other businesses around here.) I guess it's time to give the old trailer a bath in Tremclad and make it look pretty!

Why wasn't your first response to take it back to the shop?

I see my old '00 Silverado extended cab still driving around town. I sold it to a young family in '09 and they had two car seats. They still own the truck and have recently told me the truck runs great and has had no major problems. I tell you this story because these people looked long and hard for a full sized pickup before they found me. I sold them a low-mileage, well maintained truck for a great price. There are deals like this out there but require a lot of looking! Tip: Place an add in your local "Buy/Sell website" for a young family looking for a clean truck. You might find someone who likes to know they are helping a family starting out while avoiding the hassle of looking for a buyer.... Be patient

Welcome to this forum! The 2014 -18 GM's are nice trucks and so are GM's previous generations. Other truck brands are also an option. 4X4 Crews have been popular for decades and there are a lot to choose from. Don't sacrifice condition for looks.

True, but I believe I was making the job more physical than needed. I can work smarter with the right equipment. I have become a little too fussy with all of the yard stuff that goes with cutting the grass. I may compromise and hire one of the neighbor's teens to help and a new mower to take for a walk!

Hence the reason I couldn't find any decent plywood yesterday....

I continue to be a huge fan of the 4.3. I only have 82K kms and they are all trouble free.

I concur with your Dad and I plan to achieve his gold standard! My wife says we can get a lot of professional lawn cuts for the price of a new lawn mower. I said maybe it would be cost effective over one or two seasons, but I could be doing this another 20+ years! Our local news acknowledges birthdays over 90 and anniversaries over 60, every night, 7 days a week, There are always several of both to announce. I plan to be one of them someday and know you've got to keep moving to get there! Budgeting to live to 100 involves more than money!

Beautiful work on the clock and the box! The press is one of those things that are invaluable when the need arises. It could also earn you a few bucks as a side hustle or help out some friends! Nicely done!

Interesting, as this just came up for sale on our local used items for sale website! Thanks for the recommendation.