superhawk996

I soaked a valve cover/PCV grommet from the Jeep, 1998 and probably original. It was super hard, now seems about the right softness, but it swelled up quite a bit. It seems to have happened in the last few days, it's been soaking for over a week. It had softened without obvious swelling a few days ago, then today I noticed it was enlarged. It doesn't seem obviously softer than it was several days ago and it doesn't look obviously distorted, just bigger.

No batteries needed and it's the right color. https://www.amazon.com/Hopopro-Portable-Activated-Schrader-Mountain/dp/B07W5CDMQS/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8&th=1

I never even washed the fucking thing. I got it running, gave it a short rip, and that was the end of my fucks. Carlos went way into farkling before putting a leg over it, and had finished farkling before starting it. He must have been adopted.

Castor oil is one of the natural oils being talked about for manufacturing, should be perfect for the old two smoker's rubber parts.

I started reading about plasticizers. I don't know if the plasticizers used in manufacturing can be put back into the rubber, but it would seem ideal since we know they last a long time. I may reach out to some suppliers to see if they can/will answer that. Several different plant based oils are apparently being used, or at least being studied, to replace petroleum and mineral based plasticizers. I don't know if any of those can be effectively absorbed, but if they can it opens options. Nowhere did I see wintergreen oil being used or studied, maybe because of the volatility. What makes it great for putting into old rubber probably makes it bad for manufacturing/longevity.

That makes sense, thanks. Everyone dilutes the oil with alcohol, or other stuff, I assumed it was because of the high cost of the oil and needing enough to submerge the parts. One person said that the alcohol carries the oil into the rubber, then it evaporates, implying that the alcohol is needed. Do you think the alcohol is needed, helping, or hindering the process? I couldn't smell any alcohol on the parts, but the strong wintergreen smell might have been masking it. I wonder what other oils could be used, especially if there's something cheaper. Bonus if it doesn't smell so strong.

It is broken or just ugly?

Oh, and don't mount it where the old one is unless you don't care to see it while sitting at the helm. Looking through the windshield it was nearly impossible to see through sun glare. Tho the new one is probably a shitload more visible than the old LCD screen so it might be ok.

I don't see a dick, but that's not what I'm looking for. Jeff might need an intervention. The Wide Eye was fitting to the vintage of the boat, but that new one looks like a hell of a tool.

Early on I was shocked at how fast it seemed to evaporate for an oil. I later discovered that it wasn't evaporating, it was soaking into the rubber. It also soaks into nitrile gloves without any apparent change to them other than being infused with the smell. I used long nose pliers to pull a soaking part then wiped the pliers with the gloves and the oil vanishes. After pulling another part I left the pliers sitting and they were still oily about a half hour later. I left them for a few hours and they appeared to be dry, but thy still had the smell so there was some left. This tells me that it's being absorbed by the rubber parts I've put it on and not just evaporating. I have another part in a Zip lock sandwich bag. I was afraid that it would 'melt' the bag so I hung it over the garage sink, but several days later the bag looks fine. It's permeating, I can smell it from far away and the fluid level has dropped. On day one I spilled a bit on a 'grippy mat', one of those soft rubber mats that looks like little balls linked together forming somewhat of a screen looking thing. It appears to have done nothing to it. Somehow the stuff seems to restore rubber without going too far. Like it's programmed to only alter stuff to it's correct state and stop, so strange. The tires on the R5 are ancient, gonna need more wintergreen oil.

The vacuum diaphragms that lift the slides. It's possible that one could condition them before they crack to add longevity, and it's something I gave thought to. I have some junk carbs I could use for testing, I'll try to remember to do that soon.

I had a reasonable amount of faith based on what I'd seen/read, but I was shocked that it worked so well. It's about 34 degrees out and it's still soft and pliable. And it still smells strongly, but at least it's a pleasant stink...if you like wintergreen. Maybe I should pour some into the gas tank for those behind it to enjoy. Shit, maybe it'll condition the crank seals 😁

When I first started handling it I thought it had swollen...well, it did I guess. It appears to have swollen back to about its original size as both ends fit as I would expect them to.

And it bounces right back, it's crazy. It's not mushy or gummy, just looks and acts like fairly new rubber.

I'm curious too and it should be around longer than most vehicles I get. As many as we see come and go, there are some that don't get posted about. For once, I didn't go into it with the idea of flipping it, and I just realized that it's the first vehicle in forever that I've put no thought into the cost/resale value of. It was an emotional acquirement, I just plain wanted to experience it. When it became a trade with Carlos for something he wanted to experience that just made it that much sweeter. The wintergreen smell is quite strong, in my mind that means that it's evaporating and leaving fast meaning that it would go right back to hard, but dunno. Hopefully it's just coming off the surface. People say that "it's a long term treatment", but with no stated timeframe. The only comparison I've heard is that it lasts longer than softening with a heat gun which is seconds.

This slips into place easily now. Amazing that it went from hard plastic back to squishy rubber. The other boot was half off and one side was compressed between the airbox and carb for god knows how long, that one's still a little tough in that area. Since the ends were being pressed toward each other that area probably got thicker. I could probably force it on, but I'll leave it in for another day to see what it does.

Depends on the type of valve. One of mine could leak between the hot and cold, they're separated by o-rings, but I don't think it would be enough to be problematic. The one I had to modify to work with the restriction of the tankless heater can't degrade in that way, but the output temperature varies by flow rate whether the flow is changed before, in, or after the valve. If you know which valve it takes, a photo of it might help know if it could be the cause.

And since you're playing plumber, might be a good time to flush the water heater if you haven't in a while. I feel like I was hearing it make pop-crackle noises which I think indicates sediment, but the thought didn't cross over to my conscious brain 'till now so I'm not sure.

Take the shower head off so it can flow a lot of water and open the hot, that might be enough to clear out obstructions. While it's possible that the valve has an issue, any obstructions before and after it can make the water less hot. I've only dissected one to see how it worked and was somewhat surprised to see that it doesn't close/open the hot or cold side, it just shifts either side's restriction a bit. If yours is like that and there's another restriction, the shifting becomes much less effective. For the handle, try tapping inward and around it with a small hammer, maybe that'll break it loose. The set screw hole should give a place to introduce penetrating oil. Option 2, crank up the water heater.

I coated some cracked ones with silicone way back. If I had to do it today I'd probably use Right Stuff, maybe liquid tape. I watched a video where a guy used heat shrink tubing, it looked pretty good.

It's been discussed here, but I don't think anyone has done it. The magic ingredient is Methyl Salicylate, AKA wintergreen oil. The common recipe I found is one part wintergreen to 3 parts 99% rubbing alcohol. Some dilute it down to 5:1 and it seems to work as well, but maybe slower. One guy mixed the oil with Xylene and it also worked, but the rubber swelled up a lot. He said that it goes back to normal after the solvent dries out. Most say that 3-5 days soaking will do the trick, some have tested leaving them longer and apparently it doesn't damage or over-soften stuff. The carb to airbox boots on the R5 were super hard, the only slightly flexible part was the very end where it fits onto the airbox and it was nowhere near soft enough to put on. I mixed it stronger than most do, about 2:1, maybe 2.5:1. After about 12 hours soaking the less hardened area had some noticeable flex in it. They've now been in about 2.5 days and they seem soft enough to install, but maybe still a little stiffer than perfect. I'll probably pull them this evening, maybe tomorrow. This was the 12 hour check. Hard to tell in the photo, but the lip I'm holding is flexed and it would barely bend with pretty strong pressure before. New aftermarket boots are about $60, the ingredients were almost $50. It made me consider new boots, but I've been wanting to perform the experiment. Plus, all the rubber parts on the bike need love and I should have enough magic potion to do them all.

Reading sale adds it appears that there's a bunch of optional stuff with the 7, or maybe just things that people don't advertise(?). GPS, WiFi, Cellular (locked vs. unlocked) blood O2 sensor, heart monitor.... If there are different trim levels/options; what does yours have/not have?

My understanding is that it'll take a machine to pull that. If you have someone to push it could make a huge difference in the pull.

I just did a quick googling and the "pros" say that 1 1/4" would be an easy pull on your short run as long as there aren't many bends. One talked about pulling that wire 150' with two or three 90s using 1 1/4". The consensus seemed to be that 1 1/2" is the most they'd bother using and 2" is way overkill, and they were talking about much longer runs than you have, none were less than 50' with two or more 90s.

Is it feasible to 'preload' the cable in 1" conduit before burial so you don't have to use 2" for easier pulling?