Continuing the theme of everything breaking, here's this week's foolishness.
Monday:
Sure looks like we got our money's worth from those brake pads, huh? This is our 2018 RAM 1500. Unfortunately, it started making noise while we were away in Maine.
Anyway, brakes, especially front disc brakes, are pretty easy. Well, until...
Those of you who have been here before will recognize the effort here. In short, the rotor was stuck to the hub. If you look at the braking surface, you'll see a bunch of dents. That's where I hit it with a hammer. You can't see that I'd already heated it with the torch. Yes, the hub got a little scarred up. No, I'm not going to do anything about it. The other side was pretty much exactly the same, although it shed a lot less rust while I beat on it.
A real bastard of a job, but not really that hard. My local Federated Auto Parts supplier, shout-out to Fisher Auto Parts, had the pads and rotors on hand for only $25 more than Rock Auto. Rock needed 3 days to get them here, and I feel better about buying local anyway.
In other news, Tuesday:
This is the pipe from the intercooler to the EGR on our 2005 VW Golf TDI. Just above the VW symbol, you can see a little bent metal clip. That's what holds the pipe to the intercooler. After 20+ years of restraining 13+ psi, something has worn down, and it'll no longer hold the pressure. Its real exciting when the pipe pops off. There's a big pop accompanied by a smoke screen from the tailpipe. Meanwhile, the engine sounds like it's on the verge of explosion.
Fortunately, the aftermarket has addressed the issue. A simple metal bracket with 2 bolts, 2 spacers, and a new O-ring. It's not really an O-ring since it's not circular in cross-section, but they call it an O-ring, so whatever.
The holes for the bolts already exist in the EGR, so this is a pretty quick fix, made only a little longer by forgetting to put in the O-ring. I did put a little blue Loctite on the bolts. I'll check them when I change the oil, but I don't think they're going to back out.
Okay, last one- well, two, I hope... Wednesday:
This is the output pipe from the kitchen sink. The side that doesn't have the garbage disposal. The circle on the right used to be the nut that held it in place. It tore apart as I tried to tighten it.
The circle right under the pipe is the "Tailpiece washer" which was somehow messed up. I don't know what happened to it, but it wouldn't seal anymore.
I'm sorry I wasn't good about taking pictures. As you might guess, I'm a little salty about this...
Anyway, the tailpiece is the bit that attaches to the strainer what drains the sink. I damaged the old one getting it apart, and the instructions for the new one specifically mention the tailpiece washer but, annoyingly, the replacement tailpiece doesn't include one. Fortunately, on my second trip to the hardware store, I mentioned it to the clerk, who knew what I was talking about and where to find it. I was going to bodge it back together with a bunch of sealant. I still used a bunch of sealant. There was a zero percent chance this was going to leak again.
Okay, I wasn't going to take a picture of this one, but I figured we ought to be complete...
Looking down into the toilet tank...
The hose is the filler for the tank. It jets down into a tube. I don't know why. When I was a kid, the riser pipe had holes in it. Now they all seem to have a hose. A couple of days ago, there was a little pop, and the toilet got louder while it was filling. This exact thing happened at Cushman house back in May, but that hose just has a little clip. This thing is way over-engineered. Apparently there was some kind of tab inside the cap that held it to the tube under it. The tab broke, and now nothing holds the hose to the tube. I haven't even tried to buy a replacement. I suspect it only comes as an assembly. Two quick holes drilled, two zip ties installed, and we're done. I probably didn't even need to drill the holes, but the zip ties I had in my hand were too short, and I didn't want to go back to the garage for longer ones. I'm not even going to cut them off.
*Sigh*
On a positive note, after Wednesday's repairs, we went for Chinese food. Winchendon finally has a decent Chinese restaurant. If you're ever passing through Koi is worth the stop.
