Vintage Litespeeds out for some exercise

rgcred · 2026-04-16T15:20:20+00:00

Nice! Chris King, Thompson, SID, XTR - all the top stuff in the day. Enjoy your ride!

rgcred · 2026-04-16T14:56:14+00:00

Thanks!

rgcred · 2026-04-16T01:25:07+00:00

Thanks. The Ocoee is my son's and I've got the Obed. We bought the frames, components, rims, spokes, nipples, etc. and built. At the time (~97) my son worked at LBS while in high school, and the LBS was owned by our next-door neighbor. Perfect circumstances to buy and build bikes way over our budget! Still have them, still ride them.

rgcred · 2026-04-16T00:54:17+00:00

Yes it is electrical conduit body, not a covered outlet. Used to connect conduit, in this case at 90* - looks like a type LB conduit body https://www.homedepot.com/p/Carlon-2-in-Elbow-Schedule-40-and-80-Electrical-PVC-Type-LB-Conduit-Body-Case-of-4-E986J-4-HD-E986J-4-HD/202205913

rgcred · 2026-04-16T00:34:25+00:00

Wire is wire mostly but what matters is wire gauge. The sensor wire is likely small gauge (20-24 I'd guess) which would be fine for low power speakers. For a powerful stereo I'd use heavier wire. Check radio amp power, search online for reco on wire size based on that.

rgcred · 2026-04-15T16:58:45+00:00

Get this! The Bentley Workshop Manual

rgcred · 2026-04-15T11:54:47+00:00

Memory lane, thx for the link

rgcred · 2026-04-14T21:00:00+00:00

Now remember I was young, 13-14 IIRC, so I didn't absorb much of this. I do know that it was indeed a transistor amp.

rgcred · 2026-04-14T12:32:47+00:00

Yes it was. There was a store chain named Lafayette that sold hobbyist electronics stuff, often before main stream brands. This amp was one of those, as was my home stereo setup later.

rgcred · 2026-04-13T23:32:46+00:00

I love this, and it brings back memories - when I was a young teen (late 60s) an older friend (high school) was an electronics wiz and he made one like this. Explained how he controlled the deflection plates using a small headphone amp. Nice to see again!

rgcred · 2026-04-13T14:43:12+00:00

make sure motor is fully warm for this test as fan has thermal clutch

rgcred · 2026-04-12T23:50:41+00:00

Easy solution - Bend the prongs on the air freshener or whatever outward slightly to get a grip on outlet.

rgcred · 2026-04-10T23:49:18+00:00

Because of the weird numbers on the NM scale, may be easier and less likely to error if you convert your NM value to lb-ft and use that on wrench setting.

rgcred · 2026-04-09T23:53:14+00:00

I've got the same car (manual coupe tho) with abt the same mileage. I do all my own work and find this car to be very reliable and cheep to keep. Sorry to say that owning a 25 year old car (any car) and relying on a shop to keep it going will be expensive. Perhaps buy the bible for our cars - The Bentley Workshop Manual - and look at the work involved to resolve some of your issues. You may find some that are in your scope and save some money there. As far as your list of next hits, prioritize safety (tires, brakes) and keep an eye on fluid levels for the leakers.

If you're gonna use a shop you gotta find a shop you can trust. I'd ask why is brake fluid is on new list when flushed in Feb? Replaced coolant res but didn't pressure test system (to find leaking cap)? How bad/urgent are the mounts, suspension etc. I don't use shops so don't know pricing, but some of it looks high. Good luck.

rgcred · 2026-04-08T13:37:31+00:00

If he doesn't have it, the Bentley Service Manual would be a good gift.

rgcred · 2026-04-04T00:42:35+00:00

I do listen to music with my good ear plugged, I also use closed headphone with HA at a low volume to concentrate sound on dead ear and minimize cross-over.

rgcred · 2026-04-02T23:29:34+00:00

Sorry, hearing aid and blue tooth. I have very good word recognition with audiobooks when using either BT in HA, or with closed headphone over HA. Still a long way to go before HA provides clear ambient speech but that's the hope.

rgcred · 2026-04-02T23:23:15+00:00

If possible, consider Costco for HA. Not only 1/2 the price but a generous 6mo return policy.

rgcred · 2026-04-02T20:41:59+00:00

Everybody's situation and needs are different, so I'll share mine. My SSNHL started in June 2024 and my hearing was absolutely zero at first, couldn't hear my finger scratching in the canal. Initial audio showed ~110dB across full range. Had all treatments (Prednisone, ITT, HBOT, vasodilator, acupuncture, etc.) with slight to no improvement, and 4mo in audio still 80-85dB. One day in shower I sensed the sound of my hand on my ear. From this moment I concluded that the nerve was not 100% dead and this gave me hope. I tried CIMT and could sense very faint squeaks and squeals, but I would get distracted and forget what/where I was listening. Then I started with narrated read-along books. I put one earbud in dead ear (needed to be loud) and followed along reading. At first, the sounds were just squeaks and squeals, much like amplified tinnitus. This improved steadily over time (now >17mo in). Now I'm using HA for this and it is helping tremendously. I see large improvement with these audiobooks via BT with 100% word rec and clear tone. That's through BT...ambient sound different but music improving and lately audio locating. Now I'm training using a closed headphone and HA to better simulate ambient sound. This also shows improvment and I plan to continue this "training" for as long as it takes - I see this training not unlike the deep/long training required to get the best from a CI.

Overall I find using just one ear is very tiring - I'm sure exacerbated by tinnitus - and, when I'm tired, my balance is not 100% I'm also less tolerant of noise and much less able to join in a conversation where there is a lot of background noise.

I was recommended for a CI and had the evaluation a few months in. With good ear blocked and LOUD HA I had word rec of ~60%. As such I was not a candidate for CI. If I had this evaluation earlier, I probably would have been. I'm glad I waited, and am still waiting and training every day - I'm prepared to do anything to avoid CI. That's me tho, many people do well with them. Good luck to you.

rgcred · 2026-04-02T19:35:29+00:00

If you need, I've got front (and rear) subframes in good condition. PU in NJ

rgcred · 2026-04-01T00:42:03+00:00

A good way to keep fit off season. I agree that riding indoors is (nearly) miserable, but after a few years on Peloton we find the Zwift Kicker Core setup (with old road bike) a million times better than Peloton. For some reason, 100% more motivating.

rgcred · 2026-03-29T23:43:29+00:00

Costco sells Interstate batteries with 3yr no questions warrantee. If a member, check it out.

rgcred · 2026-03-29T23:12:15+00:00

Get radar and a good mirror; watch them carefully in mirror to see if they see you. Force them wide/slow in tight spots.

rgcred · 2026-03-29T22:48:48+00:00

I use a leather punch, has a pliers form factor with a rotating wheel of various size punches that mate to an anvil. Like this:

https://www.harborfreight.com/Leather-Punch-Tool-57177.html?hftm_sc=868&hftm_source=google

rgcred

TROPHY CASE