We can now go, whoa and make noise!

I spent the workday at my design desk dreaming up new projects. Those drawings are still tightly under wraps for now. But I can say it is looking to be a very busy fall and winter in the shop with some very fun projects. 

After supper I went back out to the shop for some fun. I love making fresh parts with the MultiCam plasma cutter and then welding them in place. Tonight I found enough time to fabricate the disc brake bracket and then hook it all up and adjust it to work perfectly. I still had just enough time to design, cut, fabricate and install the throttle control assembly. In the picture below the lever nearest the pickup box controls the throttle. The long Johnson bar on the running board controls the direction and speed of the variable speed hydrostatic transmission. The top, front, ratcheted lever is the brake and handbrake. That means the controls for the truck are complete. On the other side of the cab are the noise controls. We can now go, whoa and make lots of noise along the way.

With the controls all finished it's time to do some necessary plumbing. In the next few days I'll be designing the brackets for the instrument cluster and the whistle... then hooking them up to the shiny new air tank that is to be mounted under the seat. 

The goal is to have all of the fabricating and grinding done buy this weekend so the truck can leave the shop to make more room for all those new projects due to start very soon. Phoebe, Juniper and Mason (and I) are all anxious to go for another test drive too!

A perfect evening

I was up at Cultus Lake Adventure Park this evening on their last operating day of the 2017 season. As I walked around the park, enjoying the sites, I was reminded of when we built the first phase of that project more than seventeen years ago. It was just an adventure golf back then but one of the best in the world. When I returned home I went through some old pictures and came across this one, taken at the end of our first season. I snapped the picture on a quiet evening, just after the sun went down. The course lights had come on and it was a magic moment. I can still hear the period banjo music playing and the sound of the waterfall just beside me. The park was a realization of a dream we held for more than a dozen years. Although a very different place now with all of the rides and excitement I still enjoy it to this day.

Imagine if...

When we were kids we played a game of make believe called 'imagine if.'...  Now we play it every day at work. Then we get to build our fanciful imaginary creations. And get paid for it too. It doesn't get better than that!

We are in the blue sky phase of a new project. At this stage no idea is too wild nor strange. Anything is possible. And once again we are playing that silly game. Becke was busy in the shop painting our little study model for the trade show booth and it got me to thinking...  Imagine if we were to combine a ejection seat with a robotic machine with a giant jet engine.  Hmmm...   Then I began drawing it out on my iPad. The idea looks feasible and FAST! What could possibly go wrong?  :) I suspect the test pilot might be glad he has an ejection seat - just in case!

As I drew the concept I was thinking hard about how we would build such a creation. It wouldn't be that hard and it would be fun. Anything is indeed possible if you use your imagination!