Roy's Garage: '90 2.4-4G64 5-spd D-50

[geezer101]

And the step after that is to tell the new owner about MightyRam50

This truck is a part of Roy and his journey. If there is a new owner in it's future, you won't be getting a better maintenance record than an online thread...

[royster]

Thanks for the kindness, all. I have every intention of telling the new owner about "Roy's Garage"...the legacy goes with the truck

And indeed - I'm sure there are few who have an online history of the vehicle they bought. Nice thought, Geezer!

[royster]

I try to run the truck every few days, but this morning I went to start it and the battery was low. I have a battery charger on it now. It's sad not to be able to daily-drive the little guy.

I have an ad in a trade paper, and it's been running for about 4 weeks. No takers. It is possible to put "farm use" tags on it and drive it, but my intention is to let it go: I went the journey, and the journey is over.

My thanks to Claych who asked about my health: I'm doing alright, certainly much better than back in May. With both a weak heart and damage from the stroke, my activities are limited.

[claych]

^^^
Many Thanks royster

[royster]

Today marks 6 years of being on this forum. What a life-transformation it's been!

[Giovanni89]

A great group of people here!

[geezer101]

This is by far the best online community experience I've had the privilege of interacting with. It's not only helped people who had needed answers and advice on their trucks, but I think it has offered encouragement and support in personal circumstances. No toxic comments section here...

[royster]

I agree: no other forum I know of (or have been a member of) has been as kind and caring as this one.

As Fate would have it, my join date happens to be the Winter Solstice...so may your Solstice be blessed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUNUkJ93Qrg

[xboxrox]

royster, that kerosene heater in one of your garage photos reminds me of the one I had in upstate NY... I fiddled with balsa wood R/C airplanes in the basement of our apartment using that heater (15,500 BTUs..?)... My first experience with kerosene heaters was in Japan, I'm pretty sure they still use them... Damn, I can't take the cold, stay warm my friend...

[Giovanni89]

They absolutely do. My trips there always include a few days at our parent company's plant in a rural area. Lots of houses have small (maybe 50-100 gallon) home heating oil tanks outside. Because they are outside, they use kerosene. It's pretty common to have room heaters and only heat the room you are in.
Hope you're doing well Roy.

[royster]

Thanks, guys. I'm doing well. The kerosene heater is still out there, and still works. I have a long history of heating with them, and despite "safety warnings", they reach a perfect cooking temperature.

Today we're getting snow, and my wood stove is just humming along. Three cats and a pot of coffee: what a great life

[xboxrox]

royster, your comments about "a great life" with the wood stove 'n coffee & critters sounds like what my brother Bill would say of his life in Penn Valley, California... I miss that guy, he passed last March at the age of 85... I think 15,500 BTUs was for my old air conditioner and those heaters put out more like 50,000 BTUs... One good thing about a blanket of snow: it usually quiets things down a bit to a peaceful level of noise...

Let's both stay warm
Aloha - George

P.S. I watched the Yule video roy, pretty neat; BTW, my brother Bill's birthday was 25 December 1932

[royster]

End of an era: I sold the truck.

[geezer101]

Glad to hear you got a buyer Roy. Someone will appreciate your endeavors with that truck.

[royster]

Thanks, Geeze. The guy is 80 years old but very agile. He went through my maintenance log and was very impressed with all that I've put into the truck. Unfortunately, he doesn't have internet access, so (alas) he won't be joining MightyRam50, or seeing my thread here.

That little truck was one heck of a journey, and I can't thank all of you enough for help and support. I'll still be around, and you can never tell: another Ram 50 might be in my future. Ya never know!!

The greatest gift you have to give to the world is that of your own self~transformation.

[royster]

UPDATE: I just talked to the old guy I sold the truck to. He had taken it to a mechanic, who deemed it "unrepairable" - the rust was so extensive it just isn't worth repairing. So it was sold to someone as a parts truck.

It's a little bit sad, to me, and yet I'm grateful for the journey the truck took me on. Plus there's a cache of D-50 parts for the area.

Definitely the end of an era.

[geezer101]

Oh damn. The rust was way worse than you thought. Still, it held up for you all those years...

[royster]

RUST NEVER SLEEPS

As requested, a few photos of the rust damage. This may not look too bad to some, but the photos don't show the extent of the rust. Also, I was unable to get shots in front of the leaf springs.

Attachment 23421

The above photo is the passenger side, and the tail pipe can be seen. A piece of framing for my bumper is seen through the rust hole.

Attachment 23422

Above, the load adjuster for the brakes is detached from its frame mount, due to rust. The bed cross member is shot.

Attachment 23423

Above, the rust through the bottom of the frame is in several areas, some at crucial points. One is right next to the gas tank, and both sides in front of the leaf spring mounts are rusted through.

Attachment 23424

Above, the piece of frame you see wedged in there is for my bumper mount. The bungee cord is holding the spare tire chain and mount, to keep it from flopping around.

I went into this with the intention of wire-wheeling things in preparation for welding patches, but in some places, there's nothing to weld TO. The repair would have to necessarily be made with the bed off, and fuel tank removed. In my present condition, this is beyond my doing.

Many areas of the body are rusted, too. though the extra fenders and doors could be used, as they're relatively rust-free.

As regards that bumper I made: I backed into a brick abutment once, so it was well worth the effort to install it - otherwise, the rear end would have suffered some serious damage.

It was very bad, and certainly nothing I could have tackled, even in good health.

And, yes: 6 years of a wonderful journey. Sad to think we lose one of these trucks every week. Definitely a rare breed.

[royster]

Hi, All. I'm bumping this post due to interest regarding the oil pump in a 4g64.

http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin...ll=1#post26527

Robert: here is the cap you need to remove to access the balance shaft bolt -

http://www.mightyram50.net/vbulletin...9&d=1390427774