resistance is futile

Mark this day on your calendar,
as after over 3 years,
my battle,
my resistance to change,
has finally come to an end.

awesome LG ally

We've had some good times together,
but this past year there's been some unexpected shut downs,
some keyboard glitches - llllllllliiiiiiiikkkkkkkkeeeee thhhhhhhiiiiisss,
the memory is so full I delete pics and messages to keep it working,
and the battery barely lasts the day.
Not to mention I can't do this blog thing on the old phone.

cracked iphone 4

With the price of a new smart phone in the $300 range,
I was going to follow my typical ways.
We had the wife's old cracked iphone 4 lying around.
The glass could be fixed for $55,
and activated online - cheap and easy.

The wife had been threatening to surprise me with a phone,
as she had been offering one as father's day/birthday(x2) gift
since the upgrade notice in April of 2012.
Hey I told you there was a resistance to change!

green iphone 5s

In a rare moment of weakness,

I fell for the barrage of ads about a $50 Iphone 5c,

a special at the local Radio Shack.

Of course this is a trick,

as they tax you on the full original $600 value,

we got talked into an applecare insurance program,

(supposed to be better and cheaper than the Verizon insurance)

and of course she wouldn't let me not have a fat case.

Probably a good thing as I've already dropped it 2 times.
How'd she know?

messed up otter box iphone 5c

First off here's my complaints.
The cases for the Iphone 5 don't fit well on a 5c.
The plastic housing is round and smooth,
and the buttons aren't flush like the 5 and the 5s.
If you look at the picture the rubber flares out by the volume.
Really it's not a big deal but for the price I'll bitch a little.
It has survived a couple drops out of my shirt pocket...

picture transfer using droid/bluetooth/mac mini

The second complaint concerns my loyal readers.
You guys are thinking "finally he'll take some clear crisp HD pictures!"
The old droid has a very primitive camera and flash,
but it has a Bluetooth capability to send a batch of pictures directly to our computer.
Why doesn't apple have this feature?
The phone is twice as fast as our 2007 mac mini.
I've gotten used to taking a dozen pictures and sending them while typing.
Now there is either an icloud thing I need to figure out,
or send pictures to my email and do a double download.

So guess what?
The old LG Ally may still serve a purpose.
It can still take lackluster pictures and send them through the air,
at least for dirty progress shots.

iphone 5c

Enough of the whining.
The new phone works so smoothly.
After 2 days I'm happy with the 5c.
The 5s is faster but has features I don't need,
and the Samsung S4 was way too big,
although the camera seemed really cool.
Not worth spending another $200+ on either.

anyone need a charger?

And lastly,
the wife has dialed in the iphone to all kinds of fun and games.
Now I need to keep myself from becoming addicted to INSTAGRAM.
If you're bored or addicted too,
search      or "perichbrothers"

TP

a slice of ventura nationals 2013

Okay where were we.

ventura nationals - 2013

Oh yeah...
Chief and I had wrapped up the 200 mile drive up to ventura from san diego.
A little bumpy and slow at times,
and a little too fast at others.

sloppy and his chopper

In a stroke of great planning,
Sloppy (sophorn) had scrounged up a hotel room.
No hunting around for a bedroll spot tonight.
Waking up in a comfortable bed made for a late start.

chief

By the time we rallied to the store for our meal and drink ticket,
it was already past the 9AM entry cutoff.
Yeah that's how we roll...

ventura nationals - power parking

A good friend Monty was manning the gates,
and let us slide in around the short line.
I really didn't know what to expect as the show had been on a decline,
and our friend Holly had taken the reigns.
The place was packed!
We got lucky and eeked past the security gates,
and power parked right up front.
Did the steaming radiator help?

I've got to say that there's a phenomenon about a car show,
that is almost as important as the actual cars themselves.
It's being able to see friends and gearhead people you can relate too,
and a good show like this brings a bunch of us together.
Many I hadn't seen in years.
Writing this I'm kinda bummed to not take people pictures,
it's kinda awkward to do but next time I'm gonna try.

I am okay at taking the 3/4 view at non-moving objects,
so here's a little slice of what was out there.

1955 slammed chevy truck

This one's for you Ken!
Spending so much time on the hurtlocker truck,
I can appreciate a slammed 50's GM pickup.
We noticed that this one had some trick wheel covers,
toning down some way past trendy donk rims.
Should have taken a better look at the suspension setup.

1940 ford deluxe coupe

Out of all the cars in the lot,
I'll gravitate to the ones I can relate too.
This 1940 deluxe reminded me of our coupe,
the radials didn't even bother me.
There was the perfect blend of driver and shine.
I'll do a separate post on this later on when ideas dry up.

1940 ford deluxe coupe

This hot rod caught my eye.
A simple clean model A roadster.

1929 model a roadster with 32 frame

I've never had a hot rod without a flathead engine.
Some day...
This guy wedged in an early cadillac.
I'm surprised how some can keep their cars so clean.

model A roadster

Talk about clean.
This coupe had the shiniest black paint,
and the chromiest nailhead.

chris casny's model a coupe

On the other side of the show was this smoky coupe.
This had a quickchange and a flathead.
Reminded me of one of our earlier hot rods.

1930 model A coupe

Here's a non-ford roadster that caught my eye.
I still don't know exactly what it was,
it looked like an extra large 33 ford.
There was a bunch of metalwork done to make it look like this.
I bet it flies down the freeway.

non-ford roadster

Years ago I watched this sedan delivery progress.
The owner's uncle created the Hilborn Injectors.
Mike's had this thing since the 60's,
and it ran one of the first modified B&M hydramatic transmissions.

Mike Hilborn's 1930 ford sedan delivery

Ojai Rick brought down his swap meet special ford f600.
I remember when he got this it was all stock.
He's upgraded it with newer 4x4 axles and running gear.
Way better than having a new truck!

1953 ford f600

This power wagon was bitchin.
Someone had wedged in a little turbo diesel engine.
Another truck I'll post more pictures later.

dodge dual axle power wagon

I've always like the roundness of thes 50's studebaker trucks.
This guy really slammed his.

1953 studebaker truck

Can't not take a picture of the world's most photogaphed 60's econoline.
I saw this at the GNRS a couple years ago,
and somehow he's kept it as perfect as it was back then.

church's econoline

While standing in line for an overpriced burrito,
this gold 40 pickup was screaming for a picture.
I wonder if this was the same truck featured in the Rodder's Journal.
Super clean and straight.
Thanks Greg for the comida!

gold 1940 ford pickup

There were so many customs with crazy lowrider style paint,
and I only took a picture of this truck.
One of the problems was there were so many people walking around,
my patience for waiting for a clear shot wore out.

beatniks truck

Earlier this summer was Born Free,
and they had a raffle featuring dozens of custom motorcycles.
There were tons of choppers and bobbers,
but this one I am glad to have seen in person.

kiyo's radical cb750 motorcycle

This was built by Kiyo out of a honda cb750.
A work of art disguised as a race/show bike.

Jawa Speedway motorcycle

You'd think I'd take a picture of some more motorcycles,
but there were too many people around.
I escaped over to the Funky Junk Farms trailer area,
and found this early Jawa Speedway motorcycle.
What was I thinking when I gave up my Weslake/Godden.

shankers - chief & chopper

The show was great and bordered on overwhelming,
not in a Goodguys street rod way,
but in a traditional rod and custom way that brought everyone out of there cages,
including me.
It was great to meet up with old friends and acquaintances.
Way to go Holly!
Little did I know this was just the start of the epic Sloppy Sunday...

TP

copy cat

Here's a throwback "Liar's Club" post.
Let's see how many pictures it takes to figure it out.

PERICH copycat ENGINEERING

First off what was needed was a template.
Man I've gotten a ton of use out of that little bandsaw!

aluminum

Well this should give it away by now.
I needed this as the owner wouldn't give up the real thing!

template

This design is basically a ripoff of an existing style.
They never made one to fit this model.

double template

Armed with a series of templates,
the design was layed out on aluminum plates.

red

Here's the ugly stage.
This was considered the prototype,
so the design was more of a copy of the little original.

hack

Aluminum is really easy to file,
and in no time the pieces were cleaned up.
Who needs a stinkin mill!?

framed

Holes were mapped out,
and the hardware from the original was recycled.

drillium

Can't forget the PERICH stamping.
Now it was time to wait to see if this would fit the real thing.

custom aluminum guard

If you haven't figured it out yet,
here's the finished product.

razr maxx aluminum guard

ching...ching...ching...
A simple aluminum guard or bumper for a droid type phone.

Razr Maxx aluminum bumper

A friend Aaron loves this phone,
and his wife had the aluminum guard for her Iphone.

Motorola Razr Maxx aluminum bumper

We were lucky that the phone fit almost perfectly.
The sides of the phone are wedged,
not squared like the iphone,
so there was a bit of concern that it would hold without slipping.

RIP - Richard Vandemark - AZ

Aaron liked the design,

and didn't mind the beater finish,

so looks like this is going into full-time duty.

Fun to do little project like this!

TP

latch key apple tree

What is it they say about the apple not far from the tree?
It looks like Jaxon's got my knack for picture taking.

jaxon's bike - san diego river

It all started with a really tough parental decision.
He wanted to go for a bike ride up to Pacific Beach,
about 7 miles away.
Dang it.
At his age I was all over the place on my bike.
Sure we were latch key kids,
but it was a different time.
It's one thing if the parents know and another if they don't!

jaxon's bike - san diego river

Reluctantly I let him go,
with the promise if anything happened to him,
he'd be in some huge trouble.
Big time.
Just so you know,
we both got into huge trouble when the wife came home!

Unlike most kids his age,

he still doesn't have a cellphone.

Yeah we're ruthless although it's more me than my wife.

I let him take mine for this trip,

and told him to make sure to take some pictures to document his new freedom.

**How long has it been since you were away from your cell phone for 3 hours?**

jaxon's bike - mission beach boardwalk

After a successful and life changing ride,
what do we get?
A bunch of pictures of his bike,
along with different patches of sidewalk.
Wow.
Thanks alot Jaxon!
Great shots.
Yeah...
So you know these are the best 3 out of 6.

What can I say.
90% of my pictures are the same way.

TP

how to rebuild a ford starter in a week

It's been two weeks now since my proposed wrenching thrash,
which lasted less than two days after a few severe road blocks.

perich brothers (and sister): wrenching - day 1

A brief recap...
a couple batteries seemed to all of a sudden fail,
right at the most exciting moment of testing the new/old fuel regulator.

old trusty #3

Instead of rushing into it,
I charged the trusty 3rd battery,
and rewired it as close as possible to the starter solenoid.
This had got to work.
Nah.
Barely turn and click...click...
Dang it what are the chances of 3 once reliable batteries taking a chit?
Time to do some troubleshooting.

1990 lincoln ford starter

One thing that was strange,
was the lights wouldn't dim when the starter was activated,
and the batteries all read a strong 12+ volts.
Hmmm.
Let's see what's behind door #2.

uh oh

Time to check out the starter.
The outside was nice and clean as I had wiped it down long ago.
Bad sign when the long bolt was covered with grease.

holey chit

A quick back story on this starter.
Do you remember the engine came out of our beater 1990 lincoln town car?
Well we got the car for a steal,
as every rubber gasket had disintegrated,
and oil could not be contained in the pan.
After a couple months of driving,
and becoming environmental catastrophe #1 with all the oil spots,
the engine was removed, cleaned, torn apart,
and put back together.
4 years and barely 10,000 miles later,
the car self-destructed around the purring engine.

brushes? we don't need no stinking brushes

The starter had never skipped a beat,
until last week when it started wheezing a bit.
Even a clueless friend could hear it,
but I had thought it was just a strained battery.
Little did I realize the guts were contaminated with oil and grease,
along with some seriously worn out brushes.

we can rebuild it

At the time dollar signs were chachinging in my head.
A new starter is an easy $150,
and junkyard starters are usually the first things scrapped.
Fortunately the commutator looked smooth enough for a spray can rebuild.

clean

A quick search online uncovered a local brush kit for $35-50,
or I could wait and get one shipped for $17.
You may have gathered it's been over a week since updating this,
so obviously my cheap a$$ went with the slow boat from china.
Hey don't snicker like that!
That extra $20 is enough to buy all the rear brake lines!

that's it?

Less than a week later the box finally arrived.
One of the more interesting packaging jobs here.
You'd figure they would put the part in the middle of the bubble wrap.

new vs old ford starter brush set

Whatever the part was fine and that's all that mattered.
Oh yeah.
Did I say that in the wait time
I had reassembled the starter after only cleaning the parts up?
Well I did,
and man it fired right up.
Once.
Then wheeze...click...click...

burnt commutator

Super lucky that I didn't burn out the commutator.
Even a couple starts really charred the copper.

shiny commutator

A couple passes with some fine 600 sand paper,
and this was as good as a 23 year old starter could get.

sneaky

Now for the easy part,
putting it all back together.
This is not my first starter (or alternator) rodeo,
and this new brush housing design seemed idiot proof.
If anyone has done this it is tough to spread the brushes around the spinner.
Joke was definitely on me.

something wrong

And here is the whole point of this EPICally long post.
I thought this would be a simple slam dunk rebuild.
If anyone can learn from my trial and error,
all this jibber jabber is worth it.
Especially if you are reading this at night,
stuck on the side of the road working to a cell phone light.
I feel for ya bro...

whoops

My first try was to remove two of the brush springs
This made it easy and quick to slide the housing down,
then reinstall the compressed springs.
The only catch was this dang fiberglass cover plate.
There was no way to slide it over the end and through the clamps.
Holey Chit!
To make it worse,
I slowly slid the housing back off,
and all the springs shot in the air.
Super high like a friggin' jack in the box.
Double Holey Chit...
Ok where's the candid camera.
Very lucky to have the dead brush housing,
as it donated the missing spring!

correct way step #1

That old saying about necessity and invention fits here.
At this point I should have sat down.
Got out the little droid phone,
and searched online for the proper technique.
Nah.
I could beat this.
It's only a chinese puzzle level 45 right?
Let's finish this.

how to replace brushes on ford lincoln SBF starter - step #2

Here it goes, really easy.
- Remove TWO of the brush springs as in the previous mishap.
- Place the FG cover plate into the clamps as far to one side as possible.
- Spread the brushes over the commutator
- replace the 2 compressed brush springs
- slide the FG cover plate and snap in place.

step #3

And that was it!
I'm really lucky to have had the spare springs.
(I did put some grease into the bushings and gears as well)

ford lincoln starter

Time to test it out.
Perfect.
Engine started right up.

batry

Wouldn't you know it that all the batteries were good!

And here I thought 8 year old batteries were toast.

Ciao!

TP