Blue Mule resto in Malawi

[M5driver]

Eish !! Very sorry to hear Dan !

Hang in there, eventually it will all be worth it

BTW, I have not used any of my RB but I have also decided to shoot my entire tub with it but I don't have enough.There is a guy who found a lead to get some from Ghana.If he comes right I will keep you informed..

Tmarx,

Thanks for the encouragement. We will continue to muddle through. Just hope the RB holds out. Let me know immediately anything you find out about the RB distro in Ghana - I may need your help!

'n'

Dan

 

[tmarx]

Will do

 

[Colorado Boy-74-FJ40]

With the cost of the RB being such a driver in this resto, maybe you should insist that YOU do the mixing and supervise the painting. I don't know if you can take more time off work but if you are out of RB you are dead in the water!

 

[DallasFJ40]

The saying that "Africa isnot for sissies" is definitely true - and sometimes, you just grit your teeth and soldier on.

At least you're not in Zim with 'Big Bob' and the 'Vets' their current version of the madness...

 

[M5driver]

Success?!?!?

With the cost of the RB being such a driver in this resto, maybe you should insist that YOU do the mixing and supervise the painting. I don't know if you can take more time off work but if you are out of RB you are dead in the water!

It looks like we finally got the problem sorted.

The xylene is contaminated. With water. H2O. Kryptonite to Rust Bullet.

It took all day, but we scoured the city and finally came up with a liter of MEK in a sealed container. We tried a test shoot about 30 minutes ago and it it WORKED BEAUTIFULLY.

Maybe we are out of the woods and can finally move on with the project. I just hope the RB left is enough. Pix tonight when I get home.

 

[M5driver]

At least you're not in Zim with 'Big Bob' and the 'Vets' their current version of the madness...

Boy, howdy! It's such a pity - it used to be such a nice place. Zim in the mid-80s and early 90s was great. Now... very sad indeed.

 

[DallasFJ40]

Boy, howdy! It's such a pity - it used to be such a nice place. Zim in the mid-80s and early 90s was great. Now... very sad indeed.

It is very sad. I have a good friend who is from there (when it was named Rhodesia), but flfed to Durban when Mugabe took over. I have never been to Zim, but have seen pictures and heard stories. Maybe I will get to go when things simmer down.

Mods, sorry for the chattiness...maybe Zim will be a place to get good cruisers as the economy is in such a mess (my attempt at relevance).

 

[M5driver]

Pix as promised

Well! Well!!! Ya gotta see this...

 

[amaurer]

man, thats gonna look great with a few trickles of gear oil from the pinion seal!!

 

[M5driver]

This was our test piece this afternoon. It finally looks like I think it should

If you look closely you'll see a couple of small marks on the diff. The RB had been drying for about 2 hours, so the manager tried to scrape some off while I was there. He managed to leave a slight mark, but nothing came off! Just as it should be. The real question now is whether we have enough left to complete the project. Does anyone have a real world figure for coverage? I have 6 pints left.

While we're at it, the rear sill is out for blasting and patching, and we are going to save as much of the rear sill skin as possible.

As with any project of this nature and magnitude, sometimes it's about overcoming obstacles and moving on. This has slowed us down, but hasn't derailed us. It may mean that the body work won't be done before I leave post for my daughter's wedding next month. That will put a 3-week dent in the schedule, but I'll be glad of the break, and the chance to see some family and friends.

 

[M5driver]

BTW 8K for a prop, Kinda high isn't it?

I didn't respond to this earlier. This is a pretty good price. 78" constant speed, includes the necessary Certificate of Airworthiness (since the plane is currently based in UK) and air shipping. A rebuilt or overhauled prop would set me back about $6-6500. Availability will determine whether I go new or zero-timed rebuild.

 

[M5driver]

man, thats gonna look great with a few trickles of gear oil from the pinion seal!!

Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! It's not a 40 if it's not leaking something somewhere!

It will be top coated in chassis black so those leaks won't be so obvious.

Actually, those seals and everything else I could think of or find in the parts catalogs have been replaced. Ditto the Tcase and gear box. I have one gasket sdf gh (sorry - one of my dogs is trying to helpfads me efasd typew this note) and one seal on the engine, plus two plugs at the back of the engine still to replace. So after it's back together, it shouldn't leak for at least a month or 100 miles, which ever comes first

 

[DallasFJ40]

I have one gasket sdf gh (sorry - one of my dogs is trying to helpfads me efasd typew this note) and one seal on the engine, plus two plugs at the back of the engine still to replace.

Sorry for the chat, but did you bring dogs or are they native?

 

[M5driver]

Sorry for the chat, but did you bring dogs or are they native?

Don't be sorry. I enjoy the chat as well as the tech. Our dogs are 'murican. Bud and Travis are father and son runaway Dobermans we rescued. They are great watchdogs and companions. The native dogs here are all small, yappy mongrels, and the ones that run in packs are occasionally shot by police in an attempt to quell the periodic rabies outbreaks. It's not effective.

 

[M5driver]

Only had a little time to check on progress today, but it's actual forward progress!

Since we lost 3 pints of RB to the contaminated solvent, I am having to prioritize what gets the RB first. That would be chassis and anything that gets wet from underneath or traps water. And the bottom of the tub. I've requested quotes to air ship a couple more quarts from US or UK - if the cost isn't horrible, I'll try to replace what we lost, since the original goal was to treat everything possible. Fortunately, I saved for several years for this project, so I have a small reserve. I think I'm on track to exceed the original budget

 

[tmarx]

Glad to hear you are back on track, Dan

 

[M5driver]

Glad to hear you are back on track, Dan

Thanks! Adapt and overcome Frank at Rust Bullet sent me Chaka's contact info in Accra, so I have sent him email asking for a quote to ship what I need to complete the project. I wouldn't expect to save money over what it would cost to ship from the US or UK ($350 to ship $100 of product - HAZ MAT is ex$pensive), but it might get here sooner. Have you had any contact with Chaka? Does he seem like a reliable guy?

Dan

 

[Teebag]

Looking good Dan, glad you are moving forward

 

[tmarx]

Thanks! Adapt and overcome Frank at Rust Bullet sent me Chaka's contact info in Accra, ............ Have you had any contact with Chaka? Does he seem like a reliable guy?

Dan

Not yet Dan. At least we know we are dealing with the same man.This friend of mine did have contact with him but I am awaiting feedback...

 

[M5driver]

Not yet Dan. At least we know we are dealing with the same man.This friend of mine did have contact with him but I am awaiting feedback...

I did hear back from Chaka today. He doesn't want to sell less than 4 gallons to me. He says that is a limitation set by DHL for shipping hazmat. That would be 3 gallons more than I need. He will ship it here, but then I'd have to find someone else who wants what I don't need. He did not quote a price