Yesterday Was a Beautiful Day (NOT!)

[RandyA]

Yesterday was such a BEAUTIFUL day (not).

 

We are getting ready to head up to Northern Indiana Monday.

Doing my pre-trip inspection, I poked my head under the front of the Volvo to check the brake adjustment and noticed what appeared to be a brake shoe that had popped lose from a rivet - there was an obvious space between the metal part of the shoe and the lining. Now, I did not consider this to be a good thing.......

Remember I am pretty much a leftie right now and can't do any heavy lifting, pulling, pushing or tugging with my right arm (broke June 13)..... so that immediately ruled out my taking off a 200# wheel, tire and brake drum to take a closer look. Sooooo.... it was off to the Volvo shop to see what they could do.

Rewind a moment. Before I crawled under the truck to take my first look I laid my iPhone on the front fender so it wouldn't get damaged as I scooted in on the blacktop driveway.

Nancy had gone out shopping earlier and as she was pulling in the driveway I hollered to her that I was off to the Volvo shop to check on the brakes. The iPhone (I forgot) was still sitting on the front fender.

Once I got to the Volvo shop I was told yes they had the parts, but no, they were backed up in the shop and it would be Monday before they could get to me. That's when I reached for my iPhone and realized it was on the front fender of the truck. Immediate visions of a squashed phone ran through my mind. Worse yet, I had no way to call Nancy to see if maybe it had safely fallen off in the driveway (where the heck are payphones these days?).

I bought the brake parts (drums & shoes) and decided to head over to the T/A just up the road hoping they could put them on - if not, I would have to solicit help from my son or grandson at home. They had no one in the service bays and could change of the brakes like right now. One hour labor - bringing parts was OK. Sounds like a deal to me! The drums were $179 each and the brake kits $43 each with a $39 core charge at Volvo. Yes, I returned the cores. I possibly could have gotten Mack parts to fit my Meritor front end for less money - but I didn't have time to go shopping.

After the truck was jacked up and the front tires were off the mechanic comes over to me and asks me to come back into the shop to look at "something". He shows me the right front tire.... there is a big fist size chunk of rubber missing from the tread. I vaguely remember running over an unidentifiable hunk of metal in the road coming back from Florida in April. Why I did not notice or feel the damage to the tire is a mystery to me (guess it was at the bottom of the tire when parked).

 

As everyone knows, you don't replace just one front steer tire, if one gets damaged you replace both of them. So, a new set of rubber goes on the front of the Volvo. The had a "tire sale" but add in the Federal Excise Tax, sales tax, mounting, balancing and valve stems and it doesn't seem like much of a sale. At least they bought back my one still good used front tire for almost enough to pay for the add-on charges.

 

I'm still thinking about my iPhone. All the pictures, apps, phone contacts, etc. Why didn't I recently back it up to the cloud? What's a new one going to cost me? Can't call Nancy to tell her what is going on!

A few hours later with a new set of front steer tires and brakes I head home - all the time scanning the highway for a crushed piece of plastic. I finally pull in the driveway and look around - Nada, nothing, no iPhone to be found.

As I walk into the house I comment to Nancy that I need to go to Verizon and get a new phone. She replies, "Oh, I found it in the driveway but couldn't call you because you didn't have your phone."

At least one thing turned out OK...... well, maybe all three - the damaged tire may have been OK but I wasn't going to chance it - they were 5 years old and about due for replacement anyway. The brakes also might have worked just fine for many thousands of more miles. But, for piece of mind I know a potential set of problems has been avoided.

It's always something, isn't it . Now, I think I better take the time to back up the iPhone to the Cloud - if I can remember the password!

 

[Jim Gell]

It's really nice to know I am not the only one who has days like that. Thanks for posting! Glad you didn't need to buy a new phone and lose your pics.

 

Jim

[rdickinson]

Did U type the long post with the left hand only?

 

Did you get elastic shoelaces or Velcro??

 

Type out all your passwords, and e-mail them to someone you trust. If not your wife, you can send them to me. I'm trustworthy and have 2 useful hands ....for the moment.

 

So you did no pretrips between April and now??

 

R

[dblr]

Glad all turned out ok, have a safe trip to the FROG Rally and I have your parking spot waiting for you,spoke to Ray and early for you is ok. See you soon.

[alan0043]

Hey Randy,

 

I think someone was watching out over you. At times it doesn't seem like it. I always think things happen for a reason.

 

Best of luck on the road, stay safe,

Al

[JPL]

Randy Your day could have been worse. I think. Glad it did work out. We were up at McGeorge Fri looking at a Mesa Ridge. Didn't really like it. Hope to know something this week. It still at the shop but think it will be back on wheels by Wen. You have a safe trip. God Bless Pat

 

 

The Old Sailor

[Dennis M]

Hey Randy,

 

I think someone was watching out over you. At times it doesn't seem like it. I always think things happen for a reason.

 

Best of luck on the road, stay safe,

Al

 

X2

 

Sometimes bad things turn out to be good. A number of years ago a flat drive tire delayed us by about two hours. Two hours up the road we came upon the remains of a massive wreck under an underpass involving 3 or 4 semis!

 

I always figure anything that can be fixed with money is not a disaster.

[lappir]

All good stories have happy endings. I think I will consider your post a good story. Hope the trip goes well.

 

Rod

[RandyA]

Did U type the long post with the left hand only?

 

Did you get elastic shoelaces or Velcro??

 

Type out all your passwords, and e-mail them to someone you trust. If not your wife, you can send them to me. I'm trustworthy and have 2 useful hands ....for the moment.

 

So you did no pretrips between April and now??

 

R

Yes, left hand only. Right wrist still hurts when I use it on the keyboard. No, didn't do any pre-trips between April and now. Too busy falling off the bed on the truck and breaking bones I guess - healing too. No shoe laces at all, wearing loafers and use a long shoe horn.

 

Now, here is another story for all of you..... I bought a new dash cam. It is one of those that will stop recording and shut down if g-forces are enough, like in a wreck, to keep from recording over the event. Bunch of other useless features that don't work right like alarms for leaving your lane or getting too close to another vehicle. Great video though! Anyway, we hit the PA Turnpike toll road just south of Pittsburg and the road is so bad that the camera thinks I have been a wreck and shuts down. Now, that is BAD - especially for a road you have to pay to be on. I did not have any more g-forces that turned the camera off but both 76 in PA and 80 in Ohio were horrible roads with constant construction slow downs and lane closures but no one working. I was glad I had good brakes on the front of the Volvo and trailer on several occasions. Those triple trailers they are pulling up here now are like giant wiggle worms - scare the hell out of you passing in a narrow lane with those concrete barriers on both sides running 70 when the signs tell us to slow down to 50. I was absolutely whipped when we pulled into the fair grounds in Goshen (mostly stress). Anyway, gotta start picking at the surplus places tomorrow to see what kind of great goodie finds I can come up with this year!

[Exile]

I would agree that was a good day.

 

Brake didnt come off while driving, bouncing under truck, holing fuel tank, banging up fiver before wiping out fiver tires or taking out brake wire before long mountain grade.

 

Tire didnt blow out on the road, causing you to run off into the ditch or off overpass.

 

And the phone wasnt a mangled electronic pancake. Well, maybe that wouldnt be so bad in some cases.

 

 

 

Ive gotten so i even consider a water pump going out on the interstate good, so long as it doesnt happen in the middle of a construction zone with barriers on both sides.

 

I dont dnow if im a pessimist because i expect worse things to happen, or an optimist, because i count myself lucky, even when i have to pay the stupid tax. Again.