Yesterday Tom came by and took me to my favorite junkyard where I removed a pair of re booted W123 drive axles for the whopping sum of $42.34, including the core charge .

This is less than the price of a new Chinese drive axle and I get to keep my old German original axles that are still quiet, I need to find out where to get them re booted or something .

I had to dismount the final drive to get them out, there's a 1/8" or so gap that doesn't always give sufficient clearance .

It took me about two hours working with hand tools and no jack for support to get them out along with a few other bit and bobs including a cover for my first aid kit .

We then proceeded to an outlying yard where I discovered a filthy (! no rat poop !) driver's seat with _no_broken_springs_ ~ a hard thing to come b y these days, it has the original covers on it, slight cracks but has cleaned up well, see the attached pictures .


By the time I finished up at home the sun had set and the last thing to be put away was the filthy seat, I set it up where my dogs couldn't reach it as they like to chew up dirty things, sadly I set it on top of the first aid kit cover, breaking it ~ back to the search.....

This morning I got up early and in the 43* air set to cleaning the chair, it came out pretty good I think, for $45 I'm satisfied .


I'm sore as all get out, being old and still working is fun but often very painful .

I need to get the drive axles installed soon as I'm driving the Coupe to Death Valley in two weeks .


-Nate
LIVE in the world as it is, WORK to make the world as it should be

__________________
-Nate
1982 240D 408,XXX miles
Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father

I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better

Nice finds. That seat looks good!

It really cleaned up better than I expected and it sits wonderfully ~ nice and firm, no broken springs and the lumbar support is as new....

I see lots and lots of W123 seats, 99 + 44/100's of them are trash, this car looked awful was full of trash and desert sand from being parked out side with the windows open since 2000, I had the devil of a time getting one of the 6MM bolts out and of course, both sliding adjusters were locked up solidly, I had no help, blah blah blah...

I took SWMBO 'round in it to - day running errands, she says it looks nice and is well pleased .

This is the very first Mercedes I/we bought close to twenty years ago, for her to drive, she now has the graymarket Diesel wagon but I couldn't sell this old thing on after all the years and (s)miles I/she/we've put on it including a cross America jaunt on three and 1/3rd cylinders one time.... .

__________________
-Nate
1982 240D 408,XXX miles
Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father

I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better

Good work Nate! I sat round most of the day.

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Yeah well ;

You know I'm old & crippled, I did lots of work Wed. & Thu., ached all night and got up late (about 7AM) to - day and goofed off, took SWMBO to run a bunch of errands, I can't work like I saw still 40 ya know .

She keeps telling me I'll die if I don't quit working, I see it the other way 'round : work keeps me flexible and my heart exercised.....

All the walking, bending and stooping I do helps my legs push the blood back up against gravity, right ? .

I have a strong work ethic although I also like to goof off with a book in my recliner or ride my Moto some times....

All work and no play make life boring .

I'm seriously pleased with the driver's chair .

__________________
-Nate
1982 240D 408,XXX miles
Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father

I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better

If possible remember to install the new to you axles on the opposite sides from how they were removed. I would also add an ounce or two of heavy oil to each outer boot. I just thought you might forget this being sore etc.

It has been on my mind that all too soon I will start suffering from doing physical things. Has not seriously started yet but that has to be close. All my joints are still OEM. One knee does acts up if I carry too much . So I just try not to do it.

What does cause some issue personally is I have lost muscle mass. What was easy weight wise is now marginal. For example erecting steel staging is about my current limit. Last fall I found myself splitting bundles of shingles before going up a ladder to protect the knee. I also seem to always take my 3/4 power bar along to where I am working with a half inch adapter for the last two years or so. It just makes things easier at times. On mechanical stuff.

I get tired easier as well but not sore. If it is something outside I now wait for warmer temperatures to do it. Last summer I found it brutal working under the sun day after day. So I took breaks every two to three hours. Only about one in ten days was overcast. You could see the higher level of productivity on those days by a factor of three. The wife wants me to farm out some construction type work.

The guys and companies that do decent work are pre booked for more than a year now. We have a lot of old mansions that are being restored in town. With outside investors. Many had been converted to multi apartments over the years. So restoring them is even more expensive. The original builds where all done by one famous local company. So the basic structures are still in really good condition for their age. The term master builders would not be lost on that old company.

Nice to hear you're able to do roofing and carpentry ! .

Skills I never learned sad to say .

Thanx for the reminder about the oil ~ these don't look very old so I think I'll just slap 'em on the car for now .

I did another marathon day to - day, whew, I'm beat .

Apart from the backup light switch the old Dodge truck is ready to git the road o Death Valley now .

Glad I don't have to climb ladders as I shattered both my knees in 2017 and the broken wrist, back and neck make climbing things not fun .

I had to go up the ladder last week to fix the photo eye on my rear security light, I managed but didn't have any fun .

The old houses being restored sounds *very* nice ~ when I grew up all those Victorian houses Down East were just cheap housing, most were in VGC with original wallpaper, doors, fittings and so on still intact .

I miss them but houses here in the West Coast are mostly post WWII, my little 1923 "Craftsman Bungalow" is in reality, a clapped out termite farm that should be torn down .

C'est La Vie, non ? .

__________________
-Nate
1982 240D 408,XXX miles
Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father

I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better

What is SWMBO?

:

She

Who

Must

Be

OBEYED ! .

__________________
-Nate
1982 240D 408,XXX miles
Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father

I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better