gregjsmith

July 20, 2003

El Paso, Texas & Carlsbad Caverns, New Mexico

I wanted to take my Girlfriend and her boys to Carlsbad Caverns since none of them had been. I had been there once before. Since her sister lived in El Paso we decided to visit here for a day and go to Carlsbad the next day. I had never been to El Paso before and was expecting a dirty run down city. Being so close to the Mexico border and Juarez, Mexico. What I found there was a city bigger than Albuquerque and very historic.

The trip down Interstate 25 from Albuquerque to El Paso has nothing interesting to see. But it only takes about 4 hours. In El Paso you can see Mexico from the freeway. The Rio Grand is the border between Mexico and the US, and the river isn’t that wide at the border. Looking at the Mexican side of the border you see a lot of brightly painted houses and small streets. I can imagine what the US side looks like to the Mexicans with our tall buildings for shopping and industry. As if were mocking them with our prosperity.

We did not go into Juarez and the people we met there hadn’t been either/ They mostly told me that there wasn’t much there unless you want to go and party. On the next visit I don’t plan to go either. However on the next trip I hope to stay longer and check out the more historic parts of down town El Paso. On our way out of town there was a border patrol stop. It was interesting that it was there as it was. I wonder if they have one on every exit out of town. They just asked us if we were all Americans and then sent us on our way. It was a mostly boring ride down highway 62/180. But there was some interesting parts like Salt Flat, TX the Guadalupe Mountains National Park. El Captain is visible along the drive. Along the drive I saw quite a few abandoned gas stations and hotels. I often see them along I-40 when I drive to Arizona. I suppose there was a time in the early 1900’s that cars were less capable and it took longer to get from place to place so people needed to stay at hotels along the way.

The Caverns are just south of Carlsbad New Mexico. Prices are reasonable at the cave and they don’t charge for parking. It’s a long into the main part of the cave, half of which is just walking down. But don’t worry there’s is a elevator to take you back up. Bats live in the cave. At night there is a sitting area where people can watch the mass exodus. We did not stay to see that.

The drive back was the most horrible. I figure it takes 6 hours to get to Carlsbad going south of it via El Paso. There are no major high ways into Carlsbad and going north you have to take smaller state roads where the speed limit is 55-65 MPH. This makes a big difference on how long it takes and it must have taken us 9 hours to get back. Our route was north to Roswell the west to I-25. Since you pass through many towns along the way that slows you down even more, and just before we reached I-25 it seems like we had been driving for ever. Which we had. These sort of trips remind me that there was a time when people rode horse through this country with no road or stops along the way. There was some stuff to look at along the way and they were thinking I was lost. I kept assuring them I wasn’t lost, it just was taking a long time.

Lincoln New Mexico was in between Roswell and i-25. I had no idea this place even existed. There is a It is certainly a historic town, nestled in the middle of Lincoln Nation Forest. This National Forest is the birthplace of Smokey the Bear. If we ever go to Carlsbad again, for my Family’s sake I will drive south through El Paso

June 17, 2003

2003 Disneyland Vacation Trip Report

The people who work at and run Disneyland are certainly the most courteous, friendly and attentive people I have met. I have been to other theme parks where the employees couldn’t care to give you the time of day. That alone sets Disneyland apart from the rest.

They have an area called Downtown Disney. Its full of shops and restaurants and does not require admission to the park to enter. It’s in between the Disneyland Hotel, The Grand California and the entrances to the parks. I sure they created this area to get people to enter the part by giving people at Conventions something to do if they stay at their hotels. It has a Rainforest Cafe, a ESPN Zone restaurant (Don’t forget ESPN is owned by ABC which is owned by Disney), a House of Blues. Plus a ton of shops including a Lego Store that I really liked. Like all food at the park its expensive. A meal at the Wetzels Pretzels in Downtown Disney for the 4 of us including 1 pretzel and 1 pretzel hot dog would have cost at least $40,00! Thats without a drink.

I always remember getting on the Monorail right from the Hotel. To get on it you have to walk some distance into Downtown Disney. According to an employee there they knocked down a bunch of buildings between the hotel and the monorail so maybe at some point you could. Speaking of the Monorail, I have to say I was pretty disappointed with it. Sure in 1955 it was high tech but even today it could be. I feel though that its underutilized. It does go through the front of the California Adventure (cross the Golden Gate Bridge) and goes right through the Grand California Hotel, but doesn’t stop anywhere. It only go through Tomrrowloand. THey should make the Monorail the transportation system of Disneyland.

Speaking of Tomorrowland, it was apparently renovated in 1998 but wasn’t that impressive. I would say they still have some work to do. Space Mountain was closed until 2005 (for Disneyland’s 50th anniversary). I’ll be interested to see what they do to it. There is a weird little ride that use to run through TomorrowLand (replacing the Wedway people movers) called the Rocket Rods which opened in 1998 only to be closed in 2000 for “electrical problems” or so I was told by one of the employees. The Submarine Voyage was removed, so there is just a big pool of water there. There is a large attraction called “Innoventions”, but to me just seemed like advertisments for the companies that had attractions there. Star Tours and Honey I Shrunk The Audience was cool. Overall I was pretty disapointed in Tomorrowland. It didnt seem to offer much.

We did ride the classics, including the Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean. Both good rides that are as good as the day the were put in. New rides for me was the Indiana Jones ride. Very good and was like being in a movie. Big Thunder Railroad was a good roller-coaster. The Jungle Cruise was good. We couldn’t figure out where the line was for the Matterhorn.

We didn’t do A Small World. Seems good for the kiddies and was looking a bit dated. Mickey’s Toon Town was actually pretty interesting even though it seemed for the kiddies too.

Finally onto the California Adventure. This park looked brand new and everything was working unlike Disneyland. Yet for some reason there weren’t as many people there as were at Disneyland. The California Adventure looks more like a theme park somewhere other than Disney, which might explain it. Not a lot of Disney stuff around.

The Hollywood Studios Back-lot was cool. Looked like a “movie town set”. They had a Muppets show there that looked just like theater that was on the TV show with the hecklers in the balcony and the penguin orchestra. If you liked the Muppets then this is a must see. There is also a place called Disney Animation. That was pretty interesting also as it had a nice show on how they choose characters for their movies and other interactive exhibits.

There was a flight themed area with a IMAX like theater that took you flying over California. THere were moving seats and air and smells that made you feel like you were flying.

The most noticeable was the California Screamin’ roller-coaster. A very smooth ride that pulled a lot of G’s. I was dizzy every-time I came off this ride.

You can view all the pictures on Flickr.

June 5, 2003

Apartment Remodeled To Look Like A Star Trek Set

This guy remodeled his apartment to look like it came from the Enterprise. It is up for sale on ebay for $2,000,000! But probably worth it.

June 25, 1997

Ford Maverick Front Disk Brake Conversion

This article orginally appeared on fordmaverick.com.

The following info is partially from a email sent to me from a fellow Maverick Owner. I followed this same procedure and had no problems.

(This shows the difference between a non booster pedal/steering column mount on the left and one designed for a booster on the right.) The power booster setup from a 1975 or later Maverick has the proper angle to clear the shock tower. Granada also have the similar parts as the Maverick. They are almost the same car and is a good place to find these same parts. Except for stuff like brake lines. The easiest way that I have found to do the whole swap is to get the following parts from the donor car:

The power booster/master cylinder assy
The shock tower to firewall support
The proportioning valve with brake lines

This is the “power” aspect of the whole job. The manual brake pedal mount will not work.

I have found that the spindles from a 1974 manual disc brake Maverick are a direct bolt-in. Simply undo the old ball joints, tie rod ends and rubber brake hoses, and bolt them right in place of the drum spindles.

(This is the mount that is installed on the inside of the firewall. Non booster Mavericks do not have this. You may also notice that the “plunger” comes out in a different place that the booster less Maverick. The original hole sits under the middle of this plate. )Installation of the booster and pedal: (This is for a Maverick/Comet with manual drum on all four corners.)

Unbolt the stock 2 bolt master cylinder, prop. valve, and any attached lines that will be in the way.
Undo the under dash tray or glove box panel from inside the car.
Remove the two 9/16″ nuts that hold the plastic cover on the bottom of the column at the dashboard.
There will be two more exposed 9/16″ bolts that will need to be removed. The column should be hanging free. The purpose of all of this is to get to the bolts that hold the pedal and the inner brace up under the dash.
Get all of the bolts out of the brace and remove it with the pedal.

Modification to recipient car:

You will need to make a paper or cardboard template from the back of the booster. There should be four mounting holes for the booster and one egg-shaped hole for the rod that actuates the brakes. (An easy way is to study the firewall on the donor car to get an idea of the holes that will need to be drilled).
To mount the prop. Valve, the two mounting holes may have to be enlarged, depending on the car.
Now figure what brake lines will have to be bent, shortened, etc..
I used a tubing cutter and a double flaring tool that I borrowed from a friend. PAY ATTENTION TO WHERE THE LINES CAME OFF OF THE DONOR CAR. You will need to know which lines off the master cyl. Go to which holes in the prop. Valve, and to which wheel they go from there.

(my Maverick with the booster installed is really a tight fit.) All in all, it is a relatively easy swap that is well worth the time involved, especially if you plan to hotrod the engine in your car.

June 19, 1997

Ford Maverick Aftermark Air Conditioning

This article orginally appeared on fordmaverick.com.

In the early 70’s air conditioning systems were not as popular as they are today. In my experince I have found that most Mavericks from the early 70’s had only a heater. This was the case on my Maverick. Driving my Maverick around in the 100 + degree Arizona heat for a few years it became a priority to install a A/C system.

Below you can see the Vintage Air Mini system that I have first installed. It’s basically a box with a heater core and condenser with a fan stuck on the side. The problem with this is there is no way to control whether you have inside or outside intake air. There were also no provision on these for floor heat. Connecting the defrosting ducts also was not that easy. The Air-tique system does not work with the stock controls. You will have to use the control systems that they have available. They range anywhere from state-of-the-art electronic controls to simple nobs. None of the control systems they provided fit well in the stock location. They work better in a center console or hanging off the bottom of the dash. I elected to go with the billet aluminum slider controls. This worked out well for me since I not only didn’t like the location of the stock heater controls, but wanted to mound some gauges there.

Clearly the Air-Tique Mini system is not designed as a direct replacement for the Maverick. They do not offer one that is. The next option is to add a stock system. Below the Air Tique system is a drawing from a Chiltons manual showing stock system and how it fits under the dash. You can clearly see the differences between the two systems. Installing the stock system would only require drilling two holes for the heater hoses since the are in a different place than the non-A/C cars. Plus you could get a stock A/C control panel that would fit right in where the stock heater controls are. I also suspect it would be possible to use the electronic control systems offered by Air-Tique or Vintage Air. The stock system also requires a hole in the dash for the louvers. It might be possible to relocate the center louvers to under the dash with some ducting if you didn’t want to cut a hole in your dash. More than likely the only place you are going to find a stock A/C system is at a salvage yard. I would suggest finding a Maverick with the same color dash and the hole already cut. I also suspect that there may need to be some other minor modifications, possibly some brackets or such that will need to be made. But for the most part I think It would be a direct bolt-in.

The third choice is from Vintage Air. They make a lot of different sized boxes similar to the one from Air-Tique. They also make “Sure-Fit” systems which fit and use stock mounting locations and bolt in to various models. Of course they do not make one for the Maverick. But they do make one for the ’64 – 65 Falcon/Ranchero and 64 1/2 – 68 Mustangs. My experience has shown that these vehicles have similar dashes and underdashes. If you look at the picture below, you can see how the unit would mount up with the blower motor fitting under the stock fresh air intake. The only thing I can’t tell is if you can switch from recirculating or fresh air. The price for the complete set is about $1000 or $500 for just the box that fits under the dash. Considerably more expensive than a stock unit from a salvage yard. The box portion form Air-Tique or Vintage Air pictured above cost about $200 – $300 depending on the size.

I’m really looking for someone who has had some more experience with this stuff.

April 23, 1997

Ford Maverick Rack & Pinion Conversion

This article orginally appeared on fordmaverick.com.

To the left is the diagram sent to me by Joe Roberts(Your browser may not view the graphic correctly. I suggest that you save it to disk then you can print it out). He has done a Rack & Pinion conversion. The following information is from excerpts sent via e-mail from him.

“I drew plans for a cross member to mount the Rack where the stock linkages are. It is basically a U shaped thing with ussets. Very nice and sturdy, it slid perfectly between the frame rails where it bolted on. Cost me about $100 plus the rack and pinion unit and the die for shortening the tie rod ends took me for another hundred. Also made a neat little universal joint bearing to connect the column to the R&P. It worked great, except for one problem……”

He goes on to tell me how you need to get the correct R&P unit that steers in the correct direction. This bracket is designed for a rear mounting R&P unit. It mounts where the existing steering system is. This would be the easiest. Be sure that you get a R&P unit that is designed for the back or front. If you put a front mounting unit in the back the wheels will steer in the wrong direction. I believe this will work with a Mustang II R&P unit. These are the most common.

I also know of a person that used a lo-ratio unit out of a GM Celebrity Euro sport on a ’70 Ranchero. Adapted instructions follow:

“It’s the same set up. Belt sizes are very much universal. Pressure is important. Use a GM pump as close to OEM pressure as possible. R&P and pump from same car. Make or adapt bracket as needed. Mount pump as FORD OEM would . Hot rod companies also make pressure relief valves, to raise or lower pressure as needed. SAGINAW pumps work the best. just change the relief valve to match the R&P. SAGINAW is not just GM.

The Celebrity is a rear steer car. The Ranchero has a cross member that the lower control arms are mounted to. I adapted off of that. The cross member does not have to be very heavy, as long as there is NO side to side movement. Centerline of R&P must be the same as centerline of original drag/center link. Use OEM R&P mounting holes. This R&P does not have to be sandwiched between separate mounting ears, like OEM. bolted up against one side is ok.

Obviously you must remove all steering linkage, including OEM steering box. Inner tie rods on new R&P must be machined and rethreaded to use OEM adjusting sleeves and outer tie rods. Hot rod companies make hundreds of U-joints and shaft adapters. find the right ones for the OEM steering column, and the R&P. Join them with a length of steel rod. Hoses are easily custom made. Car can be aligned to OEM specs.

Test movement of everything in the driveway before driving it on the road. Remember keep it simple, do not over engineer, use as many OEM type parts as possible. If it ever fails or breaks, it will not be in the driveway.

I am working on a Ford Taurus unit. I haven’t actually gotten the unit, but I did get the Steering column and was able to wire it up to the existing wiring with little problem. See ’86 Ford Taurus steering column upgrade for more info on this end. When i get the unit and figure out how I’m going to do this I’ll be sure to post it here.

June 6, 1995

1984 Mustang Seats Retrofitted Into A 1972 Ford Maverick

This article orginally appeared on fordmaverick.com.

This is one of the first modifications that I have made to my 1972 Maverick. The original bench seats were a pain the the back, literally, so they had to go. I am not sure how universal this mod is to all Maverick/Comets.

I picked up the seats in a junkyard, they have only one adjustment on them, that is the usual forward and backwards. These seats did not bolt right in, in fact I had to drill four holes, two for each seat (Fig #1).