The Resurrection of Vixen

Quote of the Week:
"You're doing that air conditioning thing again? Do you remember what happened last time?
Give me a minute to put my car in the garage..." -Laura, a neighbor

I've been working about 60 hours a week on the car since the beginning of May, when I got laid off for the third time in a year. Most of my time has been consumed working on my "special project", which used over 600 feet of wiring and took about two weeks. I think I can solder connectors in my sleep now, but it's finally all wired up and working. On now to the rest.

I installed new Walt TABs, fixed various leaks, installed a 165 amp alternator, refinished my exhaust tips, installed an Optima battery, mounted the ground effects, and replaced the driver's door. Dan Plakosh came over to help me align the doors and body panels, and he helped greatly in both respects. Both doors now travel up and down rather smoothly, and have good panel alignment as well.

The lower piston pin on that side is bent, though, and the door does not travel fully upwards. Dan is coming to the rescue again, as he has a spare Grady reinforcing bracket which we are going to install tonight. Hopefully that will fix the situation.

In any event, the major projects are almost all done, and my Pennsylvania state inspection is this Friday. Fortunately, I'm exempt from the emissions portion, as the car has only had 65 miles put on it in the last 5 years. Everything else should be fine, since just about every component checked in our suspension is brand new (tires, all parts of the brakes, the entire suspension, the steering, all of the bulbs, the exhaust, etc.) As a bonus, I'm having the inspection done in my own driveway rather than having to bring it down to the station. Not having to take it down there is a big relief.

That brings me to another point. As time goes on and Pigeon Forge gets closer, my emotions are swinging wildly. At times, I'm anxious to get the car out on the road, while at other times I'm afraid to even back the car out of the garage. I'm hoping this will change soon, as we need to start putting some miles on the car this weekend. We can't leave for PF without breaking the car in some.

Projects left to go:

EXTERIOR
Clean engine compartment, glue down louver bump strips, install hood trim, repaint all external black trim, brush out the finish, touch-up engine cover, align trunk lid, and seal access panels in trunk

INTERIOR
Get new keys cut, install decals, install door seals, recover headliners, turbo gauge and vents, and window switches stencil

See you in Pigeon Forge!

Costs for Weeks 238-240:

Date	Purchase	Store	Price

10-May-04	Square Tubing	Home Depot	9.56
10-May-04	Flat Plate	Home Depot	4.37
10-May-04	Misc	Advance Auto Parts	6.96
10-May-04	Switches and Connectors	Radio Shack	11.92
11-May-04	Fasteners	Sears Hardware	5.29
11-May-04	JB Weld and Electrical Tape	Autozone	10.13
12-May-04	Bulbs and Fuses	Pep Boys	20.27
12-May-04	T-Taps and connectors	NAPA	20.06
13-May-04	Grommets, Wire, and Terminals	Advance Auto Parts	37.21
13-May-04	Zip Ties and Fasteners	Busy Beaver	12.19
13-May-04	Switches and Connectors	Radio Shack	6.63
14-May-04	Clear Labels	Staples	10.48
14-May-04	Connectors	Radio Shack	3.38
16-May-04	Insulators and Alternator Bracket	Advance Auto Parts	13.76
18-May-04	Fiberglass resin and screws	K-Mart	12.81
19-May-04	Tape and brushes	Busy Beaver	10.86
19-May-04	Mirror Mount	Advance Auto Parts	3.19
20-May-04	Mirror Mounts	Pep Boys	9.48
23-May-04	21/64 Drill Bit	Home Depot	4.33
23-May-04	Helicoil kit	Advance Auto Parts	29.19
25-May-04	A/C O-Rings, oil, hoses, stop leak and dye	Autozone	81.44
26-May-04	Rivets	Winschel's Hardware	5.77
27-May-04	High-Heat Black Spray Paint	Busy Beaver	5.99
28-May-04	QM Back, Sankyo Compressor	John Hervey	32.85
28-May-04	AC Flush, Orifice Tool	Autozone	40.63
28-May-04	Rivets, fasteners, silicone sealer	Winschel's Hardware	9.90
29-May-04	Windshield washer solvent	Busy Beaver	1.29
29-May-04	Spray Paint, Krylon Semi-flat black	Wal-Mart	14.22
29-May-04	Connectors	Radio Shack	7.47
		Weeks 238-240 Total:	$571.63

		Running Total:	$25,041.51

Year One:
Week 1	Week 8	Week 15	Week 22	Week 29	Week 36	Week 43	Week 50
Week 2	Week 9	Week 16	Week 23	Week 30	Week 37	Week 44	Week 51
Week 3	Week 10	Week 17	Week 24	Week 31	Week 38	Week 45	Week 52
Week 4	Week 11	Week 18	Week 25	Week 32	Week 39	Week 46	-
Week 5	Week 12	Week 19	Week 26	Week 33	Week 40	Week 47	-
Week 6	Week 13	Week 20	Week 27	Week 34	Week 41	Week 48	-
Week 7	Week 14	Week 21	Week 28	Week 35	Week 42	Week 49	-
Year Two:
Week 53	Week 60	Week 67	Week 74	Week 81	Week 88	Week 95	Week 102
Week 54	Week 61	Week 68	Week 75	Week 82	Week 89	Week 96	Week 103
Week 55	Week 62	Week 69	Week 76	Week 83	Week 90	Week 97	Week 104
Week 56	Week 63	Week 70	Week 77	Week 84	Week 91	Week 98	-
Week 57	Week 64	Week 71	Week 78	Week 85	Week 92	Week 99	-
Week 58	Week 65	Week 72	Week 79	Week 86	Week 93	Week 100	-
Week 59	Week 66	Week 73	Week 80	Week 87	Week 94	Week 101	-
Year Three:
Week 105	Week 112	Week 119	Week 126	Week 133	Week 140	Week 147	Week 154
Week 106	Week 113	Week 120	Week 127	Week 134	Week 141	Week 148	Week 155
Week 107	Week 114	Week 121	Week 128	Week 135	Week 142	Week 149	Week 156
Week 108	Week 115	Week 122	Week 129	Week 136	Week 143	Week 150	-
Week 109	Week 116	Week 123	Week 130	Week 137	Week 144	Week 151	-
Week 110	Week 117	Week 124	Week 131	Week 138	Week 145	Week 152	-
Week 111	Week 118	Week 125	Week 132	Week 139	Week 146	Week 153	-
Year Four:
Week 157	Week 164	Week 171	Week 178	Week 185	Week 192	Week 199	Week 206
Week 158	Week 165	Week 172	Week 179	Week 186	Week 193	Week 200	Week 207
Week 159	Week 166	Week 173	Week 180	Week 187	Week 194	Week 201	Week 208
Week 160	Week 167	Week 174	Week 181	Week 188	Week 195	Week 202	-
Week 161	Week 168	Week 175	Week 182	Week 189	Week 196	Week 203	-
Week 162	Week 169	Week 176	Week 183	Week 190	Week 197	Week 204	-
Week 163	Week 170	Week 177	Week 184	Week 191	Week 198	Week 205	-
Year Five:
Week 209	Week 216	Week 223	Week 230	Week 237	Week 244
Week 210	Week 217	Week 224	Week 231	Week 238
Week 211	Week 218	Week 225	Week 232	Week 239
Week 212	Week 219	Week 226	Week 233	Week 240
Week 213	Week 220	Week 227	Week 234	Week 241
Week 214	Week 221	Week 228	Week 235	Week 242
Week 215	Week 222	Week 229	Week 236	Week 243

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