Build Thread 1978 Fairmont. I bet somebody back home’s thinkin’…I wonder why he don’t write..?

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Well,….not as bad as that…but when you look at the paint “under” the quarter windows and it looks as good as it does yet I still am touching up a chip there, I have a much bigger problem with things that go wrong when the paint that is visible.
 
Where have you been hiding?
The short version is: Life had/has me by the choke-hold
Divorce
Moved back with my mom and stepdad in 2019 to get back on my feet
COVID
Bought my house this past February
Just got promoted on my job(NOFD)

I just don't have much free time to turn wrenches on the car and not a lot of time to get here much.
 
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The short version is: Life had/has me by the choke-hold
Divorce
Moved back with my mom and stepdad in 2019 to get back on my feet
COVID
Bought my house this past February
Just got promoted on my job(NOFD)

I just don't have much free time to turn wrenches on the car and not a lot of time to get here much.
All I know is that if for whatever reason I decide to street race anybody the next time i’m in Mississippi and I happen to be doing that in front the local PD,…..
Id much rather that you’d be the other guy.

You need to get your sht fixed…So I can beat that ass again.;)
 
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All I know is that if for whatever reason I decide to street race anybody the next time i’m in Mississippi and I happen to be doing that in front the local PD,…..
Id much rather that you’d be the other guy.

You need to get your sht fixed…So I can beat that ass again.;)
:rlaugh:You thought we were racing!!! When I realized you might be racing me I started to reel you in but the d@mn local police disturbed me!:doh:

But you hit me right it heart with that one, Mike. Don't you get all mushy on me, buddy. :D:p:cheers:


As for the car, I have to pull the cam out to take back to Cam Motion so they can check it and hopefully polish out the scarring that the lifter failure did. And when I put it back together I'll finally put my Stinger PiMP ECU in and get to tuning it myself. But I'm actually about to buy another body to switch all my stuff over to. A buddy of mine told me about to 88 4cyl coupe that a young guy inherited from his grandfather and its just been sitting in the yard of the body shop he works at for over a year. Hopefully i'll have it by the end of next week. I'll be getting it ready over the course of time for the swap...ie thru the floor subframe connectors, 10pt rollcage, tubular frontend, minitubs, rear coilovers, new k-member/a-arms/coilovers. I even thought about going with MM torque arm and panhard setup, but I like tailpipes and that would be difficult with the panhard setup. I have time to decide on that part. All this is because when I swap everything over I'll put a turbo on too. :D:cool::burnout:
 
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:rlaugh:You thought we were racing!!! When I realized you might be racing me I started to reel you in but the d@mn local police disturbed me!:doh:

But you hit me right it heart with that one, Mike. Don't you get all mushy on me, buddy. :D:p:cheers:


As for the car, I have to pull the cam out to take back to Cam Motion so they can check it and hopefully polish out the scarring that the lifter failure did. And when I put it back together I'll finally put my Stinger PiMP ECU in and get to tuning it myself. But I'm actually about to buy another body to switch all my stuff over to. A buddy of mine told me about to 88 4cyl coupe that a young guy inherited from his grandfather and its just been sitting in the yard of the body shop he works at for over a year. Hopefully i'll have it by the end of next week. I'll be getting it ready over the course of time for the swap...ie thru the floor subframe connectors, 10pt rollcage, tubular frontend, minitubs, rear coilovers, new k-member/a-arms/coilovers. I even thought about going with MM torque arm and panhard setup, but I like tailpipes and that would be difficult with the panhard setup. I have time to decide on that part. All this is because when I swap everything over I'll put a turbo on too. :D:cool::burnout:
Well….according to one of the ”witnesses”….he said:

“Have a good night, and,….You had him”

Ill have to defer to the guys actually watching the race,…You know, the ones right behind us?….With the blue flashing lights?

I hope you get everything going your way,…Hopefully you’ll be able to source a dart block. I think i’m already at or beyond SBF stock block failure power levels.
 
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Well….according to one of the ”witnesses”….he said:

“Have a good night, and,….You had him”

Ill have to defer to the guys actually watching the race,…You know, the ones right behind us?….With the blue flashing lights?

I hope you get everything going your way,…Hopefully you’ll be able to source a dart block. I think i’m already at or beyond SBF stock block failure power levels.
Perception is everything, I guess. :shrug::rlaugh:

My block is a Dart Sportsman block....it can handle it. :D:cool:

Thanks Mike! Things are definitely going good for me lately.:nice:
 
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For the second time in my life last month, I had a “what if “ moment.

Last month while driving through parts of Mississippi, cell phone coverage goes completely dark. You are 50 miles between bumfck, and nowhere. In a car that has way more than a few non-stock add-ons. None of which can be touted for its individual reliability. You drive thinking, “what happens if“ for the duration of the black out.

You weigh the potential mental options, remembering all the bad drive in movies you watched as a kid…( Macon County Line, Walking Tall, White line fever) thinking “If I break down and I can’t call anybody, do I: A. abandon the car and walk,…or B: do I sit here and wait for cousin buford to come along and ask if I need help.
Since I’m alone with no itinerary, it doubles the anxiety…Nobody knows where I am. And as a side effect, there’s no streaming service either. No music, no radio, Nothing. So you drive,….watching the phone for the signal to return with nothing but engine noise to keep you company.

And for the first time in my life,…I considered the negative effects of not having a something more offensive than a baseball bat with me should things not go the way I’d hope if such a scenario became reality.
For way longer than this last trip, and it’s “what if“ scenarios became a prime motivator to make this decision, Ive wrestled with the thought process that revolves around my possible need/ desire to own a handgun. Today, I caved into the dark side.

I bought a Taurus 6 shot .38 cal revolver. After doing the semi-auto/versus revolver shuffle, and consulting all my gun owner buddies’ opinions, the overwhelming advice I got was to buy a .38 caliper 5/6 shot wheel gun. No safety to worry about, a higher trigger pull weight, to reduce the instance of an accidental misfire, and a much lower cost…
I made my choice.
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The gun is partially composite.( I think) Much lighter than some of the others I handled…
And it tucks nicely into the saddle bag on the driver side of the Monster console..
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You can barely see the tail of the handle….poking out of the bag.
We’ll see how this goes I guess…it may come out of the car, and go into the same drawer that the never used drone, and go-pro cameras are in,…or conversely, it may end up going everywhere with me that I can take it…Time will tell.
 
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Welcome to the dark side. Hopefully, you won't need it on a trip. It always helps to be well protected.
 
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Good on ya Mike for preparing to defend yourself in a worst case scenario. Do yourself a favor and take that thing to a range and get comfortable shooting the rounds you plan to carry in it. I have a Smith 38 feather weight in my truck. It is my least favorite gun to shoot, but the best for the job. It's the lightest, easy to conceal, firearm that I own, but it bucks and bites. I hate shooting it. The weapon you have won't be any better. Take it to the range and get familiar with what to expect if needed. +P+ rounds kick like a mule, but that's what you need.
 
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I hope you are planning to take a defensive handgun course. Not a quickie "minimum necessary to get you CC permit" but an extended class to teach you how to properly defend yourself.

I'm not a fan of car mounts, and certainly not a fan of loose bags like that. I'd recommend a good fitting holster and belt. And training.
 
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I hope you are planning to take a defensive handgun course.
Mike aren’t you former military? I thought I read that somewhere, maybe your previous deleted thread?
I'm not a fan of car mounts, and certainly not a fan of loose bags like that. I'd recommend a good fitting holster and belt. And training.
As a byproduct of my employment since the millennium as well as family indoctrination, firearms are a way of life. Good on you Mike for being prepared. I would second the holster on your body. If there was a serious collision and any type of altercation resulted, you might be digging around the broken glass and broken body panels to find your sidearm while pissed off Joe redneck comes at you with his tire iron. Or unexpected emergency egress, you don’t have to remember (under duress) to grab your sidearm. Just some food for thought. Carry on, sir.
 
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I hope you are planning to take a defensive handgun course. Not a quickie "minimum necessary to get you CC permit" but an extended class to teach you how to properly defend yourself.

I'm not a fan of car mounts, and certainly not a fan of loose bags like that. I'd recommend a good fitting holster and belt. And training.
I do not intend to carry. Neither concealed or open. I only want this thing for the reason I bought it. And if the times were different, maybe I wouldn’t need to even entertain the notion of a “ what happens if” and felt the need to even buy one.
If there is a better way to keep it in the car, talk to me, i’m all eyes.
Obviously, Ive never shot this gun, but I am planning on experiencing how it fires and attempting to control it well enough to have a remote chance of hitting what I’m aiming at. ( which means a range, maybe a class). It’s not the first time I’ve fired a handgun though.
I have shot and qualified with the .45 caliber army issue 1911 while in the Army, but that was a Bagillion years ago.
 
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Mike aren’t you former military? I thought I read that somewhere, maybe your previous deleted thread?

As a byproduct of my employment since the millennium as well as family indoctrination, firearms are a way of life. Good on you Mike for being prepared. I would second the holster on your body. If there was a serious collision and any type of altercation resulted, you might be digging around the broken glass and broken body panels to find your sidearm while pissed off Joe redneck comes at you with his tire iron. Or unexpected emergency egress, you don’t have to remember (under duress) to grab your sidearm. Just some food for thought. Carry on, sir.
is there a clip on style holster that lets me store the gun in its holster, and while driving, snap it onto my belt?
 
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is there a clip on style holster that lets me store the gun in its holster, and while driving, snap it onto my belt?
There are tons of kydex holsters to choose from. Hell if its the same size frame as a S&W like mine i can even make you one. I'll look and see if taurus copied the smith, they likely did.
 

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