Old Ironmaker

Aluminum wheels, I've been battling them for many years, actually 44 years. As Irishfeild mentioned they expand and contract. They need to be cleaned well at the seats when changing tires or when they will leak. I've had rims leak in the middle of summer because of the heat. The crap I've seen on the seats is amazing. A good whack in a pothole or curb can make a rim so out of round it may never seat well again no matter how clean or sealed they are. The absolute solution to the alloy rim problem is to get steel rims. I will no longer buy a ride with alloy wheels.

Welcome to OFC Nikki, you will be unhooking your own fish in no time. I have to give Kudos to Jeremy here. I have a few credos in life. 1, Never date my ex wife. 2. Never fish with my future ex wife. Actually I have broken my second rule many times. My wife and I spent our first overnight trip away on the Ottawa for a week at a camp without running water and an outdoor shower. We have been together for 24 years. Good luck.

I always enjoy reading your stuff Nick. The Papa pride just oozes out of the page. Before you know it he will be helping you get in and out of the boat you have yet to buy.

Isn't it great BrianB to come across old pics you haven't seen in years and thought to be lost? The memories come rushing back. That is one fat Smallie the Mrs. is holding, a Rugby Ball imitating a smallmouth.

Well there you go what do I know saying it's a bit early, the proof is in the puddin'. Good day had by all there Spin.

Commerce before health Commerce before the environment Commerce before recreation Commerce before the community This is a song that has been sung many times before and will continue to be sung until there is nothing left. Will that be the Baby Boomers generations legacy to our country. Unfortunately I believe it may be. How can we change our tune? edit: that CBC report is from 2008, I wonder what the lakes and rivers effected look like today?

I think it's still a tad early for big cats on the Grand. That's not to say they aren't there but the big female felines aren't on the feedbag yet. Once the evenings are warm enough for a light jacket, the Sandflies are in the air and the first buds are on the Ash trees whoe Nelly, hang on to that rod slick.

I'm not shy. We were toured around the city by a few youngsters that insisted they let them show us their hospitality. They had a brand new 500 series Benz and a cooler full of beer in it. I've been around and was suspicious that we were about to get scammed which the seedier side of any international city has. One of our stops was a gorgeous 500 year old mansion with a bar/club that doubled as a brothel. $100.00 USD cover charge which was no big deal. That $100.00 including any top shelf libation they had, no Louis XIII but Courvoisier and Armagnac they did have, now with us that is a deal and a half. This is how it works, if a young lady sat with you for an hour and you bought her drinks during that time she would escort you to her room for a half hour. Of course she was drinking Dom at $500.00 a bottle which was in reality ginger ale, but they charged you for the Champagne. As well she or he, whatever was your preference as I saw a few rich ladies in the joint, could prove she was born a she with a piece of paper. Now that has to prove she is a she, hell she had a piece of paper to prove it. I kept my 500 bucks and something else in my Levi's. It works that way in most international cities around the world. The hospitable drivers get a cut from the establishment for bringing you there. No pressure to buy in that club in Amsterdam, none whatsoever. Some places like in Rome play the heavy hand with civilians. They were very polite at this place and we sat there chatting for a few hours. When we left the young guys in the Mercedes drove us back to our hotel and bought a round of Heinekens and Vodka shots. You can't go to Amsterdam and not visit a brothel, a classy one only.

Very nice. Is there a fish that a Mepps won't catch?

You have done a wonderful job Mike, a very professional finish. It looks like you can have a dance in the boat and still have plenty of room to fish. Someone mentioned removing the factory foam and leaving it out. I am a firm believer that the foam not only provides floatation it acts as a stiffener for the hull as well as a shock absorber for a stable quieter ride and lessens vibrations that may loosen rivets over time. It can take in many hundreds of pounds of water even with closed cell isostyrene, granted, but given enough time and ample ventilation it will dry out. If time is an issue the foam can be removed and the foam replaced. I would not remove it without replacing it. Removing wet foam is no easy task though.

Wow, I actually posted a photo!!!!

This isn't the original 83 560SEC, but it's very close.

Dan you gotta love the window visor on that Chevy. You don't see those everyday, even back in the 50's they were not a common thing.

Hey that's an idea Rick. Now I have to scan them first after I find them, sounds like a plan thanks Rick.

The only thing I can suggest is to stay at the Hotel Krasnipolski in Amsterdam. Also wear a Canadian flag pin. The Dutch love Canucks, it was overwhelming to me. The last thing I would be doing in The Netherlands is waste time fishing unless you are there for weeks. I know I just said fishing was a waste of time but it sounds worse than it is meant to be. You are in Holland man, see the country it is gorgeous this time of year. If you insist hire a guide like Bill suggests.

The gas plant fiasco was on everyone's mind, right off the heels of the Ornge debacle Ontario voted. I woke the next day to discover not only did Ms. Wynne and her friends were re-elected they were given a majority. Just like out here in Haldimand county whomever Caledonia votes for mayor is the mayor we all get. It's just about numbers, they have more citizens than the rest of the county put together. So how Toronto votes is which party is elected. Less ridings in big cities is the answer to our parliamentary systems flaws here in Ontario. I'm sure it's the same in other provinces. I was reading a while back an article from a political pundit in the US. He was basically saying who says it is bad business to run a deficit in politics. Bill Clinton balanced the budget for the first time in a century, so what, the next POTUS put them right back into debt. Everyone wants services increased without tax increases and user fee increases, how would that work exactly? Marvin Ryder from Macs business school says selling off provincially owned businesses isn't really a bad thing. Why should a government be in private sector businesses in the first place? Their mandate is to run the business of government, enacting laws, providing infrastructure and basic social services in order to enhance the quality of life of the citizens that they govern for. Not selling liquor and wine. I did not vote Liberal because I knew Torontonians would and the Liberal candidate here was not the person I wanted in TO.

When I say economical I take in all factors from initial cost, maintenance, depreciation, everything. If anyone believes that generating electricity leaves a smaller carbon foot print they are fooling themselves. Burning coal sure isn't green. We must look beyond our borders and you will see a coal burning world. We may be getting out of the generation of coal burners to make our electricity but all one needs to do is look south. I don't think places like China haven't much of an environmentally friendly industrial complex. Heck they still run Blast Furnaces in Brazil on charcoal made from millions of tons of hardwood from virgin rainforests annually rather than metallurgical coke derived from coal like we do in North America.

They were transferring big Walleye from below the dam to the upper section last spring. So I know there are Walleye up there. We have caught big cats in May when spring was late, like this year but above he dam the sizes were not like the monsters below the dam. You will catch fish, what who knows? That is one of the fun things on the \grand, you never know what you will catch. You may even get into the Mooneye run, they are a blast to get into. They are a type of large shad that hit every and any thing when they are running. If the cats aren't along the bank undercuts look for deep holes and you will find cats. We use shrimp not rotting chicken livers and pickled rotting shad. If you want some of the stinky stuff go across the bridge to Fishmasters Marina, they sell Steves catfish concoction as well as minnows and worms. I they are one of maybe 2 baitshops in the area now, The other is Flats bait and Ice Cream shop right across from the Maitland pier parking lot. Are you bringing or renting a boat? If you aren't you are hamstrung as far as what you will catch from shore. If you don't have a boat PM me and I will tell you of a few spots along the river where you will need permission from the owner to fish.

A great NF thread, keep them coming folks. If only I could post pics easily I have a few to show. I can't even cut and paste on OFC any longer. Same goes for quote feature. Same thing on 2 different PC's. My previous everyday driver was an 89' GMC Sierra, step side short box before I bought my 2011 Silverado which was my first ever brand new vehicle. The Hyundai Excel we got for my ex doesn't count. $7200,00 out of the showroom, all in. Someone spent a lot of money on the engine before rust got to her, the GMC not the ex. Someone made up a dual exhaust for it and she had that old V8 growl you can't get anymore. I never washed it once in the 4 years I had it. I was going to give it a makeover. The 10K I was quoted wasn't in the budget.

Good question Dave. How do they heat the interior of a electric vehicle now? Electricity is the most efficient heating method we have. It is 100% efficient, cost is another thing however.

John Bacon, I'm not very familiar with automobile Hybrids. Either they are actually more economical or the marketing of the things is driving the Hybrid sales. They sure do sell a boat load of them, that I do know.

As Lew said those were the days you knew exactly what year and model a car was going down the road. We lived at a stop and would play a game sitting on the front stoop. The first kid to call "it" won. Today my wife will ask me what type of car is this or that, until I can see the badge on the trunk I have no clue. Trucks are more recognizable but cars, who knows? A mass of plastic is just that. In the 60's an uncle had a Studebaker Avanti, now there was a car. They say they don't make things the way they used to, in most cases that's definitely true. Cars today are light years ahead of those classics. My 63 Parisienne didn't have power steering or power brakes. Turning the wheel was a workout and if you wanted to stop fast you better start a block ahead of where you want to stop. I have used the emergency brakes many times back in the day.. Most people today don't even know where the emergency break is. I was told by someone they didn't have an emergency brake but they have a parking brake, that would be my beautiful wife. I don't want to hijack this thread so I will ask Dan, what was your favorite car over the years?

She's a beauty too Blaque. I won't look at old pics of the cars I no longer have, it's too painful.

What a beauty of an everyday driver Dan. What was the original power plant Dan? Dad had a 51 Chev when I was born, your's is very similar to the one I have seen pictures of. I remember chewing on the leather seats of his 55 Chev 2 door hard top, hey I was 4, Hunters green and white, what a beauty that was. He doesn't remember what exactly powered it but it was an 8, probably small block. I called him inside and the identical 55 was being sold on Barrett Jacksons auction many years ago while we were watching TV. It went for over 100K. He couldn't believe it I've sold them all and am kicking my butt for it now. But that was at a time when I needed to buy a roof for over my head. I was well on my way to putting together a cool collection as I never sold a vehicle I ever had until I was 24 and got married. I had parked in my uncles barn, 63 Pontiac Parisian 2 door hard top, 65 Chev Impala 2 door SS, 65 Ford Galaxy 500, 67 MGB, 70 Ford T-Bird, 2 door hard top, 69 Mercedes Benz 280S, 70 Ford Econoline Van (shaggin waggin), 72 Triumph TR-6, 76 Chev Monte Carlo, 76 L-88 Corvette. Plus I had a 73 Harley Sportster and a Hard Tail that was 5 different bikes of different years. I sold them all in the summer of 79 to put the down stroke on my first matrimonial home. Then I bought a 79' Audi 5000s and drove it for 9 years as the family car. Then after I got divorced I started another collection and sold all of them in 1996 when I took my early pension and took that money to buy a cottage. The 2 cars I wish I still had was the 72 Triumph TR6 and 83 Benz 560 SEC 2 door 5.6 litre rocket (from my second collection), both were beauties, I was more into the European stuff for some crazy reason. If I had a few of those first cars now I think 500K wouldn't be an exaggeration for what they are going for at auction. An identical 69 Benz went for over 100K USD last week on Barrett Jacksons, maybe more because that when I shut off the TV in disgust! My 3rd vehicle is a 19 foot StarCraft now. If I was smart enough to post pics I would. I am as far as getting a few on Photobucket, so I'm trying.

That system appears to be in the early design phase only. I don't know why they wouldn't develop an electric trolling motor that's battery free first with traditional propeller system. I would love to have a high horse power hybrid I\O or outboard. It's not too far fetched as they are selling thousands of hybrids and all electric in cars today at horsepower ratings that are sufficient for our boats.