The site/internet was really slow last night, so I only have a handful of updates for today.

It’s been a few days since I’ve been in the shop working on the FC. Things first came to a stand still when Ann’s cousin and his family to drop by for a visit. We all had a good time. The kids wanted a ride in the race jeep, so I zipped around the property with them, which, by the large smiles on their faces, they seemed to enjoy.

On Wed night we discovered one of our calves (spending the summer at a neighbor’s pasture) had gotten pink eye in the same eye that had it last year. So, we spent Thursday morning prepping our chute and corral, then cowboy’d over all three calves to our pasture. The hurt one got an antiobiotic shot in the chute. We ran the other two through the chute for practice (to their credit, they went through pretty easily).

Ann’s cousins left Thursday following our cattle rustling. After a shower (it’s still hot here, so I’ve been sweating tonsl) and a nap, I spent some more time looking through toy haulers, class A and class C motorhomes. We still haven’t decided how much of a rig we want to get (how much will we really use it, how much do we want to spend on upkeep, what’s the most practical, etc). I also wasn’t quite sure how much our tilt trailer and race jeep weigh together. So, yesterday I decided to get them weighed.

It turns out the race jeep weighs 3140lbs
The tilt trailer weighs 3180lbs (10k GVWR)
The truck weighs 7760lbs

We originally bought the dual axle, heavy duty tilt trailer for the tractor and the zero turn mower. That it could tow the race jeep (or be winched onto the trailer) was a bonus. However, if we had the race jeep on an aluminum dual axle trailer (it looks like they run about 1500lbs or less), our total weight would be 4600lbs, allowing most motorhomes to be able to tow the jeep and trailer without modifications (5000lbs max towing capacity seems fairly common).

Ann’s mother’s 27′ class C Forest River motorhome (Ford 4350 chassis) worked fine for our travels, though it was uncomfortable for me to drive at times due to the short seats. We also never towed anything with it. And, the low quality build elments were beginning to show some wear by the time we sold it. So, I’m not in a rush to get a cheap Class C.

Here’s what we do know … We know that when we go east with the FC Tour Jeep, it will be pulled by our truck, either on the tilt or on the three wheeled trailer that came with it. My guess is that the Tour jeep will prob come in around 4500lbs, so with either trailer, I’d plan on the pair weighing 8000lbs.

Beyond that, we can either get a used Class A (preferably with new tires and upgraded suspension parts at the very least). With it, we’d probably return to making some longer spring and fall trips (we plan to sell the breeding cows and switch to just raising a few summer cows … this will give us more freedom);

OR a Class C (if we can’t find the right Class A), which would likely be a cheaper option and likely having us use it locally for a race event;

OR a Toy Hauler, but one that has a 3500 ramp and cargo capacity, which we could tow with the truck.

We hope to make a decision soon, as I’d like to take the race jeep to summer convention this year.

Decisions, decisions.

UPDATE: Thanks to Mark for sharing images of his yellow Approved Willys Service sign. That makes three known yellow signs.

As Barney notes in the comments, “Mark said he believed the signs were made using old, solid patio table tops, thus explaining the center hole filled with a bolt. Now we know of 3 and also a more plausible explanation than mine above. It is a cool sign for the price and well built.

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UPDATE: Originally published May 20, 2024:  Barney Goodwin from Barney’s Jeep Parts just purchased this yellow Approved Willys Service sign, which is similar in colors, content and styling to a sign posted on eWillys back in 2020 (see bottom of post). Does anyone have any history behind these unusual service signs. Barney noted that on the back of his it references Chicago if that’s any help.

Barney added, “This sign is made of heavy gauge steel . It is not flimsy like an import. The edges are rolled and there is a weathered support plank on the back as shown. The rolled edge is painted black. There is stenciling on the back with perhaps a product number For Willys Overland by a Chicago contractor.”

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UPDATE **SOLD** Was originally posted August 26, 2020.

Roger Martin spotted this unusual Willys Service Sign at a Portland, Indiana, Tractor show today. If you are interested in the sign, we can get you the seller’s p#.

I spent the last two days rewiring the switch and control boxes. That turned out fine, but the well pump is still only responding in bits. I believe it to be the well pump itself. So, on Monday I’ll be getting the pump folks out here.

Meanwhile, we initiated operation pasture-water-to-garden-system. Well, that might not have the best mission title, we did successfully tap into an irrigation line we weren’t using anymore and use it to push water to our garden watering systems. This will make our watering tasks much simplified again (and by “our” I mean Ann’s).

Here’s the manifold I built today. This irrigation junction used to water a portion of the pasture with unground sprinklers, but we removed that line of sprinklers in favor of a pod watering system, which we like.

Here is where the hoses are going:

And, as you can see, all that work is worth while, because Ann gets to use her Country Jacuzzi (aka a cattle trough). Losing the water hasn’t all bad 🙂

Oh joy of joys! Yesterday our well pump stopped working. I called the pump service folks to diagnose the issue, but they couldn’t get me on the schedule until Tuesday. Ugh.

So, instead of working the FC, or anything else, I have been taking crash courses in learning how the our well pump system works (thank YouTube) at the wiring/capacitor/relay/switch level. After exploring the box with my voltmeter, in the pump control box I diagnosed a bad capacitor, so that was progress, but couldn’t readily locate one near me for sale, so I ended up buying a new pump control box and rewiring it in place. That went well (unintended pun). The pump started, but doesn’t continue running (starting the pump differs from running the pump amperage wise).

My next idea was to check out the box below the pump. It contained two switches, controlled by different mechanisms, that turns on and off the electricity to the pump control box. It’s a box I’ve never opened (never needed to open). I was pretty shocked at the condition of the connectors; the leads are corroded and/or bad (see closeup). It may be the case that the corrosion is effecting the ability to feed the pump with enough amperage. So, Friday morning’s task is to locate new switches, then redo the wiring in the box. Fingers crossed this works!

Thankfully, we have access to the neighbor’s well, via multiple hoses, so we can fill pots with water, keep our cows watered, and water the garden.

Upper right box is the new one (cover off). Lower left box is the next project.

Yikes!