Friday, Mar. 27, 2020 – The Best Laid Plans…

Hey Babe,
Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans! I got up and finished packing, had some breakfast, hooked up the trailer, and moved it onto the driveway so I would have a straight shot out before loading the horses. Jeff was standing nearby, and he thought he heard a bad noise coming off my trailer brakes, so he felt it necessary to inspect it. So I got out the Jiffy Jack and ramped it up, and when I hit the brake pedal, the wheel didn’t stop turning. Bad sign. We checked two tires and they were both the same, no or very little brake. You know that one of my few fears with the rig is that the brakes don’t work, so we decided to take a closer look, darn it. Somehow that worked it’s way around to the truck, and we discovered there was a leak of brake fluid by the master cylinder, so now we’re worried about the TRUCK brakes going as well! We decided to take the truck over to the new mechanic Jeff found and let him diagnose it before changing any parts, and sure enough, the consensus was the master cylinder. The mechanic ordered one from Pep Boys (though I didn’t know that at the time, you know how I feel about Pep Boys!), and when he got it a few hours later, guess what? It was a remanufactured one instead of a new one that had been ordered. Figures. Anyway, I found a new one at AutoZone and went to pick it up, along with brake fluid and brake cleaner, the last of which was for the trailer, as the mechanic thought maybe too much grease had been put in and it might affect the magnet. When I got back from the parts store, Jeff went to work changing out the master cylinder while I took off a tire and brake drum to clean it, only to discover it wasn’t really that bad. Of course, I went to the internet immediately (something I should have done first anyway) and found that the symptoms actually indicated a probable electrical problem, a loose ground maybe. So from there I got out the contact cleaner and started to clean all the connections, checked for any fraying and the like. Meanwhile, Jeff finished installing the master cylinder in the truck and I went to help him bleed the brakes. I didn’t really feel that much difference, but at least now I know it’s new and it won’t go bad at an inopportune moment, like when I’m headlong in traffic! Then the mechanic called to tell us Jeff’s van was ready, so we finished bleeding the brakes and headed over there to pick it up, and this time the problem (which was evidently a combination of vacuum and timing) appeared to be fixed. Got back to the house and finished cleaning and putting on the one wheel on the trailer that I had taken off, but I’m not doing the rest because I agree the problem is likely to be electrical. When I plugged in the trailer the first time, the lights didn’t come on, so I had to push it a bit more to make them work, so I’m thinking electrical. I hope so, anyway, something simple would be nice! By now it was feeding time, and dusk soon followed, and though I got the tire back on and the brakes adjusted, it was too late to start the next (and hopefully final) problem, so I hooked up to electricity and called it a night. Glad I put some extra water in the tank yesterday so I had enough to shower without dragging the hose out. Then, the silver lining is that I received an email from someone who’s interested in the trailer, they’re coming to see it tomorrow morning. They want to move it to Loxahatchee to live at their mother’s, which would be a perfect application for them. That would be such a load off my mind if I could sell it, so I’m thinking maybe the universe kept me here an extra day (possibly two) to see that it happens. Fingers crossed! Anyway, had my dinner (I’m down to mostly two meals a day these days, and am losing a little weight with all the work/exercise I’m getting), had my shower, had my two episodes of SHIELD, so I’m off to bed. Love you, babe! Good night! Help me out tomorrow with the sale of this RV if you can! Thanks!

Speak Your Mind

*