Car Troubles

Well, sometimes things don't go as expected.  A few weeks ago my family and I were out collecting birch bark and happened upon a large fresh windfall birch tree. The wood was sound and would make a lot of bowls. The tree was too big for the minivan and I didn't have my chainsaw. So the next morning I woke up early and got in my truck, turned the key, turned over the motor...didn't fire. What the( insert your favorite profane word here)? Living where I do it has been a long learning curve to fix what I can on my vehicles. I have 2 other trucks, one runs, the other is for parts, all Ford diesels. I really like the idea of owning my trucks and I always buy used affairs, which I can afford. But the trouble is they need to be fixed from time to time. This is where the parts truck comes in. I love junk yards and the idea of them, but diesels are just too hard to find in the yards. So I have the parts truck... it takes up space in the yard, and looks kinda "dumpy" but the parts truck has saved me lot's of money. Why go and buy new parts? The part I needed to strip this time was the injection pump. This is one of the few main parts of the diesel engine.  All said and done, it took me about 5 hours and was back on the road. I got the wood and even turned a bowl when I got home.  It's a different pace with used old trucks and there are always surprises, but if your willing to learn and get your hands dirty, you save money. I saved about $800 this time. Slow down and take a trip to the junk yard.....

the parts truck

fuel injection pump:the thing with the spidery lines

large birch windfall

lots of bowl wood