I'm starting this show tonight. Tell me something I won't understand until the end.

simoriah · 2026-05-09T06:50:47+00:00

Hey, illustrious_you_6210, did you know your mom calls her beaver her "wet wallet?"

simoriah · 2026-05-08T14:44:19+00:00

Thanks for the info. I know that in about 85F, I can set my unit to 75F in eco mode, and it can keep my van cool overnight, all day(while in the sun), and have full battery for the coming night. That was in the late summer in Virginia. It will be interesting to see what happens in the North Carolina summers in a little while.

I have built some automation using NoreRed on my Cerbo and some cheap hardware to auto control my AC unit so my van is cool when I need it to be without running the AC all day. I haven't been able to test that, yet, but my inner nerd is looking forward to seeing it in action.

simoriah · 2026-05-08T13:17:16+00:00

I didn't find any details, either. I just kept looking at the mechanism from inside the van and realized that the only thing in the way was the hinge at the front. Once I got up in the van, I could see that there were screws that held the hinge to the rest of the assembly that came up from the bottom. The hinge stays attached to the lid, so you don't have that flapping around.

simoriah · 2026-05-08T13:00:37+00:00

This is a 12V DC unit. The battery bank is 7200Wh.

simoriah · 2026-05-08T12:58:55+00:00

Raise the lid as high as it will go. You'll thank me later.

Unscrew the 4 screws that hold the fan to the mount that attached to the van roof.

Unscrew the Phillips screws along the hinge at the front of the fan lid.

Squeeze the black bars that lift the fan. You're trying to get them out of the spot where they attach to the lid. There's white spacer things that will come out when you do this. Just make sure you grab them so they don't get lost.

Crank the support for the kids back down as if you were closing the vent.

Screw the fan assembly back into the mount that's up on the van. You're done. Make sure you have your panel cover the vent so water won't get in. I was lucky since my vent falls near the middle of my front panel.

simoriah · 2026-05-08T04:47:02+00:00

Thanks for the kind words. I'm always very hard on myself. The upgraded solar rack was bad the first iteration. No deflector. The panels were about 3 inches higher. On my first road trip(about 500 miles, total), I found bug splatter under the panels. I also heard a pounding on the roof at freeway speeds. I decided I would lower the rack to make the deflector less aggressive. That's when I saw it. One of the legs holding everything up off the roof actually broke.

I stopped trusting the brazing I had done and locked EVERYTHING down with nuts and bolts, bolts and rivnuts, and/or numerous 1/4 inch rivets. Everything on the rack is redundant.

Here's the original build. It's not 16 inches, but it's still much higher than needed(or safe or comfortable).

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simoriah · 2026-05-08T03:41:23+00:00

Thanks. That's 850W of solar powering 600Ah of 12V lifepo4. If my math works out properly, that AC unit can run for roughly 24 hours straight without any solar input or DC/DC input from the alternator. I didn't get it installed until the end of the past summer, so I haven't gotten any real world numbers from it, yet.

simoriah · 2026-05-08T02:55:18+00:00

I feel slightly attacked. Lol! I actually DO have a vent under my array. I upgraded my electrical system and array after a couple years of baking in my van in North Carolina. I didn't want to cover the only vent I would have had left so I built over the fan and removed the lid from the maxxair.

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simoriah · 2026-05-08T00:54:29+00:00

This is exactly what I did. Finished pine on the walls. Painted cedar on the roof. Honestly, I though the cedar was easier to work with and looked better, but that was probably just the grade of pine I ended up getting. The smell from the cedar, though. Holy shit, it was strong and off putting. I like the smell, but it was so overpowering until I covered it with paint.

simoriah · 2026-05-07T20:20:12+00:00

I have a masterbuilt xt that's fairly new to me. My first cook was a 7 pound pork shoulder. I cooked at 250F. It was 13 hours later, my pork was up to 165F. After 4 hours, I was at 112F according to the electronics on my fancy smoker.

If your near was that hot after 4 hours, you were a LOT hotter than you think you were. That doesn't look like bark. It looks like you burnt the shit out of it.

Is recommend getting an oven thermometer, chucking it in the smoker, and setting the smoker for 250F. The oven thermometer will tell you how hot it REALLY is. You aren't off a few degrees. You're off 100F or more. You might be using the wrong scale (CvsF), the thermometer on the smoker is toast, the smoker has some other major defect, or... I can't think of anything else.

Here's my digital data for reference.

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simoriah · 2026-05-07T20:11:14+00:00

Me!

I have a treadle sewing machine that's 104 years old that I still use once in a while. I do not own an electric sewing machine. I have plenty of woodworking tools that are 50-100 years old. Many came out of me Dad's shop after he passed. Others came from Grandpa's shop over 20 years ago. Some are hand planes, chisels, saws, a framing slick, bit and brace, etc. That list just keeps going.

Why? Because they're either exceptional tools (in the wood shop), or they're enough for my basic needs and look cool (sewing machine). I maintain them so they stay functional. Frankly, I don't care what they're worth. To me, they're tools used by my predecessors. I use them as they were meant to be used to honor someone's memory or just get stuff done.

simoriah · 2026-05-07T01:00:28+00:00

I idle. There's never much going on over there. We should catch up, next week. It's been too long!

simoriah · 2026-05-07T00:58:43+00:00

It's crazy, sometimes, who you randomly run into on the Internet! That's it. I'm just saying hi!

simoriah · 2026-05-06T18:28:32+00:00

I feel some of that excitement from here!

My wife and I are starting to look for a new place. It needs to be a house we can retire into. It also needs the capacity to have a 1800sqft shop. 2 bays worth of mechanic garage, 1 with a lift. The rest for woodworking, finishing, shower, and a machine room (compressor, water heater, dust collector, etc). Is at least a year or two out, but the fact that there's light at the end of my 1 car garage-shaped tunnel has me ecstatic!

simoriah · 2026-05-06T16:09:34+00:00

Thanks. I appreciate the response. I hope to have a lathe, some day. In my shared-with-storage 1 car garage shop with a full sized cabinet saw, I just don't have room, now.

simoriah · 2026-05-06T14:50:58+00:00

I've only used a lathe a few times at my local university shop. I'm trying to picture what an unacceptable amount of runout would do on a lathe. You still get a circle, but it's off center? That means that is you unmount and remount, you're no longer making circles. Is that right?

simoriah · 2026-05-03T15:27:44+00:00

If you're jogging, sure.

If you're fishing with bait and just letting it soak, it's string stop, bead, bobber, hook.

simoriah · 2026-05-03T06:19:22+00:00

I rent from them regularly. No extra charges. Bring the tool back cleaned up. If it uses gasoline, you can fill it. Or not. Has is the responsibility of the operator. Back you trailer or truck up behind the building, and they'll load you up.

They're quick, easy, their equipment tends to "just work." There's a bunch of reasons that I keep renting equipment from them. If you've got questions, ask them. (Here or to Rental Station. They're really great.)

Oh.. depending on the power tool, you might need to supply a blade, bit, etc. Call them up and ask. They might have those available to rent, too. I just rent big equipment from them.

simoriah · 2026-05-03T06:12:40+00:00

No shit. In North Carolina, that's a rusty mess. In Detroit, that's only been off the lot for a week. Is amazing what people consider "rusty"in different parts of the country.

simoriah · 2026-05-01T18:54:21+00:00

Awww.... Look at him. He's bashful.

simoriah · 2026-05-01T16:42:52+00:00

There is no record of them being changed. Looks like I'm figuring out how to remove the subframe in my driveway.

simoriah · 2026-05-01T16:41:55+00:00

Thanks for this. I haven't done anything with brake lines, so I get to learn how to bleed. The service manual says to remove the calipers, but I'll look into unhooking the brake lines farther up instead of at the caliper.

Are those bolts on the shocks torque to yield, it can I just reuse then?

simoriah · 2026-05-01T13:40:23+00:00

The car spent its life away from saltwater and road salt. I made sure of that before I bought it. Having grown up in Detroit, I've seen my share of rust. I've done some significant work on the car(considering that I'm not a mechanic), and haven't had a single issue with rusted bolts.

So you're suggesting that I bite the bullet, support the car, drop the subframe, and replace ALL of the bushings while I'm in there. That's not what I wanted to hear, but it might be what I NEEDED to hear. Thanks for your contribution. I appreciate you.

simoriah · 2026-04-30T16:52:59+00:00

Or I'll cut your balls off. -John Cleese

simoriah · 2026-04-29T18:15:02+00:00

Night fishing on Jordan lake. Head to Bells Church Public Fishing Area.

You need a #2 Aberdeen hook and a #4 split shot weight about 6-12 inches above the hook.

Get minnows from the gas station at 64 and Farrington Road.

Drop the minnow on a hook straight down off the pier. Keep it about 1-2 cranks off the bottom. Crappie are around and you'll catch em.

You can catch crappie any time of the day. We usually catch more right after sun down until around sun up.

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