Build A pig out of hand is worth 2...

[Ferntucky]

Well......since you brought it up....
I feel you man!
One kid and wife, full time job, five acres with constant house/farm projects and 15 sheep (lambing, literally right now) plus the obligatory chickens , ducks, dogs and cat, '06 klr650 and 1973 Honda scrambler 350, along with these two red and white pigs that wandered into my yard. And with all that, I love it and fully know I bring it on myself!

My biggest issue with @jmack 's and @scrapdaddy's builds are not the countless hours and effort put into those beasts, but the that fact that everyone is spread across the country, and I can't go sit in their shops, gain some knowledge, and drink their!

I figure the piggies will come along as they come along, and yours seems to be doing quite well! Keep up that multi-faceted life you got going!

 

[scrapdaddy]

Ferntucky,

Sounds similar, I just got back from the barn and we have 23 kids ( goats ), so far. Two just this morning. You're welcome in my shop anytime, but hope you like Bud, no fancy beer for me.

 

[Ferntucky]

Hey @scrapdaddy, you raise for meat or dairy? Just performed my first successful breech delivery about 45 min ago. Yeah, I should be somewhere around 25-28 lambs (sheep) all said and done.

Oops, sorry about the "farm-jacking".

Beer? Well my Czech grandfather was a Coors man, so I have a predilection for that. But.....the history of Budweiser, as far as I can tell, is that it came from a Czech beer call "Budvar", so I can happily drink that too! (Let's not worry about the Anheiser-Busch vs. Czech brewers naming fiasco).

 

[Napster]

Thanks you all. I feel much better now and I just learned a bunch about your other lives which is amazing! This is what I'm talking about! I feel like sometimes the build threads are so focused it gives the reader a false sense of time.

I totally agree with wanting to get to know these guys better, seeing their work first hand and sharing a beer. Once my pig is rolling that will make a great excuse to hit the road with the family!

 

[71greenpig]

I can only dream to have the skills of some of these builds I see on here. But make no mistake time is something we always need more of. Have to find a balance and family is always number one. Even more beautiful when the family time can be spent in the pig. I think we all do what we can when we have time but make no mistake all builds take time. If you ever think yours is not progressing just let me know I can show how slow mine is coming along. Lol
But I am like a high school kid every day I check the forum just to see updates, so even if I can work on mine I can live through someone else build.

By far the BEST forum I have been on a great bunch of folks on here..

 

[PabloCruise]

Was just over on the Target Carrier thread and it occurred to me that the reason that I feel like I am constantly slacking is because of every one else's threads. I mean there are a bunch of guys that have bought a pig, converted it to diesel or efi, panted, lifted, added air conditioning etc. reading through their threads makes it seem like that's all they work on and it makes me feel like I need to do more.

So I have decided to post some pics from the rest of my life to remind myself that all I can get done are baby steps when time allows. And to make sure everyone realizes these pigs take time, even if you are throwing money at it (which I am not... Well not too much!)

My DD is a 1983 volvo 242 which I bought 6 months ago and it has been stealing some attention. Rebuild the suspension, timing belt and water pump, heater blower motor and upgraded to vented rotors. Could not afford powder coating so I hand sanded and rattle canned the wheels. Here it is today:
View attachment 1048826
View attachment 1048827

I have a 1968 Honda cb350 that I got running again:
View attachment 1048828

I am remodeling a summer cabin on the river:
View attachment 1048829

Landscaping my yard (hand mixed all that concrete in a wheelbarrow...)View attachment 1048830

And the biggest time suck of them all are my ridiculously great kids...
View attachment 1048831
View attachment 1048833

Make sure you go back to my thread and read the parts where I say I started on my Piggy adventure in 2006... NOTHING in my project has gone quickly. And I am not finished either!

I love that 242!!! I had a '79 w/ the GT gauge package. It had 4.11 gears and a 4 spd. I revved that B21 pretty hard going down the road. That thing took a beating for sure.

Awesome kids! Not sure if their Mom is still in your life, but if she is, make sure you invest some time in her. I keep hearing successfully married people say that you have to do those date nights. Away from the kids. I will say I need more creativity to think of cool date nights. But there were times in the heavy phase of the Pig project where my wife was like "WTF are you doing man?". Make sure to invest time with her so your kids see that. Sorry - getting off topic.

 

[PabloCruise]

Your life should be as true and straight as the spokes on your motorcycle wheels, if one spoke gets too long, the whole wheel will wobble. You want your life spokes to be the same!

I like that! Thanks Ron!

 

[71greenpig]

Awesome kids! Not sure if their Mom is still in your life, but if she is, make sure you invest some time in her. I keep hearing successfully married people say that you have to do those date nights. Away from the kids. I will say I need more creativity to think of cool date nights. But there were times in the heavy phase of the Pig project where my wife was like "WTF are you doing man?". Make sure to invest time with her so your kids see that. Sorry - getting off topic.

I need more of this also....

 

[Napster]

This does not help with ideas but is just confirmation that date nights are amazing. My personal favorite is date night with my daughter. It was my wife's idea but is one of my favorite days of the month. She is seven and she walks on clouds the entire night.
Going to have to start getting creative as we have eaten at all the local places... I'll keep you updated.

 

[Ferntucky]

This does not help with ideas but is just confirmation that date nights are amazing. My personal favorite is date night with my daughter. It was my wife's idea but is one of my favorite days of the month. She is seven and she walks on clouds the entire night.
Going to have to start getting creative as we have eaten at all the local places... I'll keep you updated.

Have you tried a make-your-own sushi night? My 7 yr old really digs it! He's not into raw fish (yet), but he devours the cream cheese avo ones, especially when he makes them.

My gawd......we're gonna have to start a "date night build" thread

 

[PabloCruise]

My gawd......we're gonna have to start a "date night build" thread

Well don't ask the to help you work on the for Date Night.

That will not score you any cookie points.

Unless she suggests working on the Pig...

In which case you have chosen wisely!

 

[PabloCruise]

My last project was a 1955 Chevy big back window pickup full custom frame, chop top, big block, big tire hot rod that I was about 70% finished and when my daughter wanted to race bicycles I put my project on hold. I spent the next eight years with her traveling around the country chasing championships and sold the Chevy for parts, I would scrap the pig in a second to do it again. My daughter is grown and has a family of her own now and I hope she gets to spend the time with her daughters that I got to spend with her because these are some of my best life memories.

I have lots of free time now and get to spend more time in the shop working on my projects but like parents tell their young children “don’t wish to be an adult so fast and enjoy your childhood” I’m saying don’t wish to be my age spending long days by yourself in the shop and enjoy your young family, you’ll have plenty of time to work on your stuff but you only get this time for a very short while.

That is awesome! When you posted that pic of the little girl helping you early in your build thread, that is your grand-daughter?
A) that was such a cool picture,
B) I thought you were around my age and had some mad skills.
Thanks for the words of wisdom!

 

[J Mack]

That is awesome! When you posted that pic of the little girl helping you early in your build thread, that is your grand-daughter?
A) that was such a cool picture,
B) I thought you were around my age and had some mad skills.
Thanks for the words of wisdom!

Yes I have two grand babies that help me with all the technical pig stuff!

 

[Napster]

Have you tried a make-your-own sushi night? My 7 yr old really digs it! He's not into raw fish (yet), but he devours the cream cheese avo ones, especially when he makes them.

My gawd......we're gonna have to start a "date night build" thread

Good idea! Both sushi and date night thread! Happy wives equals less monetary iron fist and more progress on the pig. With a dedicated thread we could all put our heads together. Although if the wives ever talked and realized all mud members were doing the same date nights things may get sticky...

 

[Napster]

Got some work done on my front shackle hangers. Ran the welder out of gas.

 

[J Mack]

Looks clean, I like it!

 

[Napster]

Just got my new shirt! Not sure if a mud member is involved or not but I found it on eBay.

Also met up with a mudder while I was in south Lake Tahoe with the fam and got a great deal on 5 riveted steel wheels. I'm going to play with one and see if I can get them to work with disc brakes. Seems a shame to let all the inexpensive riveted wheels go to waste!

 

[npulver]

Sadly I have a custom shirt I had made (like my stickers) but haven't picked it up yet still. Pretty cool shirt though!

 

[Ferntucky]

Just got my new shirt! Not sure if a mud member is involved or not but I found it on eBay.

View attachment 1055749

Also met up with a mudder while I was in south Lake Tahoe with the fam and got a great deal on 5 riveted steel wheels. I'm going to play with one and see if I can get them to work with disc brakes. Seems a shame to let all the inexpensive riveted wheels go to waste!

Ha! That's awesome! Mine came about a week ago (in navy ). Was wearing it today.

 

[Napster]

Sadly I have a custom shirt I had made (like my stickers) but haven't picked it up yet still. Pretty cool shirt though!

Bummer! I would much rather support a mud member so let me know when you have the shirts!