Saving The Old Rustbucket--My 1982 FJ40 Tale (2 Viewers)

[davegonz]

Yes, I know him, or knew him at the time of the sale in 2005. He had to sell The Turtle because he and his wife had another bun in the oven and they needed a comfortable family vehicle. IIRC he bought a Scion. He told me that he'd probably never buy another Land Cruiser because it had been so painful parting with his beloved 40. That's a story I didn't even put into this thread, picking up The Turtle and driving away with he and his wife and 5 year old son standing in front of their house looking like a family member had just died. I know he isn't on MUD, hasn't been since the sale.

Ah, I'll put a place holder in the book for that

 

[Cruisin'Carolina]

And I was just going to suggest a pic of the Turtle....

Good work, sir!

 

[yooper]

... A year or so later I drove to San Antonio to meet Yooper

I was attending an ophthalmology board review course. Sea Knight drove from Austin in Homer, his sweet FJ62, just to meet me and take me to lunch in the hill country at a brewpub in the middle of nowhere.

Tech content: The FJ62 has an automatic transmission of course, but you can shift through some of the gears semi-manually; there are positiions on the gear shift for 2nd and 3rd. In 2nd it is truly manual, it will stay in second. In 3rd it just won't go past 3rd. Sea Knight let me drive for a while, as I also had an FJ62 then and we were comparing notes. I was using the manual shifting feature to evaluate the smoothness of shifting, as a clunk on shifting can denote a worn transmission output shaft, a common problem with high mileage FJ62s. Driving along at about 60mph I remarked that the engine seemed kind of loud. I looked down and realized that I was driving in 3rd gear and had been for 30 miles or so.

He had a small cooler with cold beers on board of course. March 2003. Digital camera technology wasn't so great back then.

 

[Sea Knight]

Dodging Duck Brewhaus

I was attending an ophthalmology board review course. Sea Knight drove from Austin in Homer, his sweet FJ62, just to meet me and take me to lunch in the hill country at a brewpub in the middle of nowhere.

Whoa, talk about a nostalgia trip. We look so, uhhh, young.

That little brewpub was the Dodging Duck. It's still there and they still brew great beer, the old fashioned way.

Linky---> The Dodging Duck Brewhaus, Boerne, Texas

"We brew our beer in a 10 barrel (320 gallon) Bohemian Brewery system, located in a separate building near the rear entrance. We've won three gold and three silver medals (so far!) for our beer in international competitions. Our beer is fresh, unfiltered and unpasteurized, stored at 34°F (1.1°C), and poured directly from four stainless steel serving tanks through chilled lines. It has virtually no contact with light or air until it hits your glass, for the best tasting beer you'll ever experience!"


BTW, thanks for posting those old pics. They make me want to go home and wash Homer.

 

[surfpig]

My father took a few shots with freelance journalism/photography, stories of some of the journeys we took, he knew more than almost anyone about southern Utah, he grew up there...

But his stories somehow lacked the imagery that suck you in.

 

[Sea Knight]

...And my extremely rusty 1981 FJ40 is now prepped for paint and panels on Monday. Unless you'd like to drive it to Hawaii. Or off a cliff.

TJK

Sure Todd, I'll drive that beauty to Hawaii for you. Say the word.

Off a cliff, I don't think so. I still have a few things left on the old bucket list.

 

[surfpig]

My father took a few shots with freelance journalism/photography, stories of some of the journeys we took, he knew more than almost anyone about southern Utah, he grew up there...

But his stories somehow lacked the imagery that suck you in.

And here I am, deciding to sell my piggie...

 

[Sea Knight]

And here I am, deciding to sell my piggie...

Nooooo, don't do it. You'll be plagued by sellers remorse for the rest of your days.

Unless you're swapping it out for a sweet 40.

 

[kling-on]

I wonder what turtle looks like now and if it's changed owners

 

[Sea Knight]

I wonder what turtle looks like now and if it's changed owners

The Turtle looks exactly the same now as the day I picked her up almost 7 years ago, except for a new Toyota steering column and steering wheel. She has a new name which I won't reveal yet, but she's still owned by Uncle Meldon and he says he'll never sell her.

He's reading this thread and I've been in contact with him this week. In about 4 more chapters, after we get to Hawaii, I have recent photos to post and an update from Uncle Meldon.

But you'll have to wait to see them.

 

[kling-on]

Cool to hear

Sent from outer space via my mind

 

[msr203]

I'm ready for the next chapter

Sent from my iPhone using IH8MUD

 

[rrdogma]

Whoa, talk about a nostalgia trip. We look so, uhhh, young.

That little brewpub was the Dodging Duck. It's still there and they still brew great beer, the old fashioned way.

Linky---> The Dodging Duck Brewhaus, Boerne, Texas

"We brew our beer in a 10 barrel (320 gallon) Bohemian Brewery system, located in a separate building near the rear entrance. We've won three gold and three silver medals (so far!) for our beer in international competitions. Our beer is fresh, unfiltered and unpasteurized, stored at 34°F (1.1°C), and poured directly from four stainless steel serving tanks through chilled lines. It has virtually no contact with light or air until it hits your glass, for the best tasting beer you'll ever experience!"


BTW, thanks for posting those old pics. They make me want to go home and wash Homer.

We stopped in at the Dodging Duck this weekend, unfortunately Baby was not with us.

 

[DSRTRDR]

And here I am, deciding to sell my piggie...

 

[patride71]

Whoa, talk about a nostalgia trip. We look so, uhhh, young.

BTW, thanks for posting those old pics. They make me want to go home and wash Homer. [/COLOR]

Wash Homer eh? Get it driving first!!!



Sorry if I didn't say it, then you know Tucker would!

 

[davegonz]

Wash Homer eh? Get it driving first!!!



Sorry if I didn't say it, then you know Tucker would!

I know, right?

 

[yooper]

Homer is broken?

 

[Sea Knight]

Homer is broken?

Yeah, but please don't get Tucker started. Thinking about Homer's condition spikes his blood pressure and I'm concerned that he'll blow an aneurysm. I'll deal with it when I'm able to be home for more than 72 hours. I can only fix one Cruiser at a time.

 

[Copenhagen1]

I guess Homer is the Silver on Gray 62 in the pictures? I saw a 62 in Kilgore Texas 3-5 years ago that looked just as clean and was the same color scheme. Could that have been a Homer sighting?

 

[Sea Knight]

We stopped in at the Dodging Duck this weekend, unfortunately Baby was not with us.

Wouldn't that be an excellent spot for a joint Alamo City Cruisers--WALCS meeting later this Spring? Naturally you'd have to drive baby.

I guess Homer is the Silver on Gray 62 in the pictures? I saw a 62 in Kilgore Texas 3-5 years ago that looked just as clean and was the same color scheme. Could that have been a Homer sighting?

I often cut through Kilgore on the way to IH-20. Haven't traveled that route for a couple of years but if it wasn't a recent sighting, good chance that was me and Homer.

I'm ready for the next chapter

So am I. Presently snowbound in Oklahoma City. Hope to get around to finishing the next chapter later tonight. Stand by.