Project: Truck

I've started to dig in on the truck. I found my extension bar and deep-well sockets, and got three of the four bolts off the "40" on the 60/40 back seat. The fourth one ... proved a bit reticent. It came part way out, and that was the stopping point.

Solution? Impact gun.

A few moments with the air power, and the last bolt came out. The reason it was so difficult? It goes through the body and is exposed to the elements underneath - and thus thoroughly corroded from six and a half years of New York salt. I sprayed it down with a bit of oil and worked it in and out of the threads a few times, and it's still gritty but moving freely.

Most of the stuff I want in my GHB has arrived and it's starting to come together.

The mobile radio in the truck was tested today, and even with the inexpensive Tram Antenna I'm using I made a contact on the K0GQ repeater (~16 miles straight-line) on 20W output. ("You're pretty snowy, but readable," sayeth the call sign on the other end.)

I'm getting excellent reception with the BaoFeng portable and N9TAX SlimJim, although I haven't made any contacts OUT - the 5W it's pushing just isn't enough to reach the nearby repeaters from inside the house.

Next on the list: mounting the remote head for the mobile in the truck. I've got a few locations in mind; I just need to find a piece of aluminum strap to bend as appropriate.

Also received a Bulldog Vaults BD-1100 ($22 at Buds Gun Shop), which is a VERY nice little vault. It is too small for a full-frame 1911, probably too small for a full-size M&P, but is plenty big enough for a J-frame, PM9, or similar. Only negative is the chintzy felted plastic lining; I'm going to pull that out and get some foam egg crate instead. It's a MUCH sturdier safe than the NanoVault boxes (I also have one of these), and once it's secured in the truck it should be both discreet and nigh-impossible to force open.

Stay tuned for pictures in the coming weeks. :-)