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Some final thoughts on the floor jack. I bled the air out of the jack per instructions and of course some oil got sprayed on my T-shirt in the process. The good news is the jack is light enough that I could lift it up to my work bench to bleed the air out without overexerting myself. I wouldn't even try that with my old Sears (Walker) jack for fear of hurting my bad back. It just seems a lot more awkward to manhandle than the new jack. I guess it being 31 pounds heavier is the reason because both jacks are about the same dimensions. After bleeding out the air the jack worked as described... but it wasn't exactly what I expected. It will pump all the way up with 6-7 pumps as described in the advertisement without a load on it. As soon as it starts raising the vehicle under load it goes into a different mode and jacks the vehicle up at about the same speed as my old jack. I'm guessing it uses the 2 pistons to raise it quickly and then shifts to one piston under load to lift the load easier. That is fine and not too unexpected. With my old jack it takes forever to get it raised up to where it contacts the bottom of the vehicle. This new jack solves that problem by going that distance quickly. I really like that. The biggest complaint I had with the new jack right out of the box was the handle. It is 9" longer than the old jack's handle. That makes it awkward to use in tight spaces. I kept banging the handle into my toolbox when trying to jack up the front of my truck. That extra length isn't needed for leverage so I don't know why it's there. The handle comes in two short sections that snap together. Even with the top section removed I can jack up the front of my GMC pickup with only the bottom section. It just takes more effort pushing down on the handle. After drilling one hole and about 5 minutes with a hacksaw the new jack handle is now the same length as the old jack's handle. I sawed off the bottom section of the handle to avoid removing the knurled portion on the top section. When the two pieces of the handle are snapped together you would never know the bottom section of the jack handle had been shortened. I may have killed any chance of getting it repaired under warranty if needed by shortening the handle but since it is made in China I think the chance of getting a warranty repair done is almost nonexistent anyway. All in all it seems like a good jack that suits my needs if it will just last a few years. When I can catch some aluminum jack stands on sale I'm going to buy some of those to. As I get older I'm starting to like the light weight stuff that saves wear and tear on my body. 🙂

A Memorial to 9/11 in Kingston, TN where I live,,, and the rest of the story. You all may already be tired of being bombarded with all the stories on TV today about 9/11 but I'm going to tell you about a memorial made of a 9900 pound steel I-beam that came from the World Trade Center and how it came to be in our small town of 5000 people. The memorial is in a small park across the lake from my house on TVA property. I can see it when I sit on my front porch. Every year on 9/11 a lot of people go to that park to look at the memorial and reflect on what happened on September 11, 2001. Today when I went there I was lucky enough to be there at the same time as a gentleman who helped erect that memorial. He told me the story of how Kingston was able to get a piece of the World Trade Center steel shipped all the way here from New York and turned into a 9/11 memorial. He told me Andrew Benson, the man who's picture is on the bronze plaque at the top of the memorial, worked at TVA's Kingston Power plant. Mr. Benson's father was a fireman in New York and had died as a result of the 9/11 attack so Mr. Benson started talking with TVA and other government officials about establishing a 9/11 memorial at the park for our area. Once TVA agreed to allow the memorial to be erected at the park on their property the ball started rolling to get the I-beam shipped here. Shipping costs were covered by TVA employee donations. He said our state representatives got on board with the project and made arrangements to obtain the I-beam from the World Trade Center. East Tennessee had already donated a brand new fire truck to the city of New York so our officials already had contacts there. He said the day the I-beam arrived on the flat bed truck, it and another I-beam just like it destined for another town in TN had been draped with huge American flags. The truck was escorted through TN by about fifty members of a Veterans Motorcycle club. All with American flags attached to their bikes. He said it brought tears to his eyes to see so many people there to honor a symbol of the tragedy our country had been through back on 9/11/2001. TVA employees supplied the labor and materials to build a base the 9900 pound I-beam sits on and to pour the concrete in the shape of a star around it. One man from each union craft took part in building the memorial. TVA supplied the machinery to build it and set it in place. Originally Mr. Benson's photo wasn't on the memorial. Only the plaque in the center of the I-beam was intended to be there. Sadly three weeks after this memorial was dedicated in a huge ceremony attended by fire departments from all over East TN, Mr. Benson was killed when he was working under his car. The jack slipped and he was crushed. The employees at TVA thought it was fitting to add a plaque with Mr. Benson's photo to honor him for all the hard work he had done to get the memorial erected. I will think of this story every time I look across the lake at this memorial. The I-beam and memorial look small in my photos but it is huge. The words on the bottom of the plaque says it all. "NEVER FORGET"

Checked the majors (Napa, Auto Zone, Advance Auto), they all spec the wrong ones online. Putting the wife to work on this one, doing it the old fashioned way for the fronts and using the ABS pump for the rears.

Has anyone ever checked out Reatta Stuff on Etsy. There is some fun stuff on there actually. Check out this parking sign: https://www.etsy.com/listing/631171271/reatta-parking-sign-reatta-signs-buick?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=buick+reatta&ref=sr_gallery-1-12 I think that's pretty funny and might have to get one. There's some other key chains, T shirts, etc. on there too. I wonder if any of the people that sell that stuff are members here.

Well mine is from the last century so do not know either.

I made mine from a junkyard cap. I just drilled and tapped to 1/4" npt and attached a fitting. The cap has to be modified somewhat by increasing the gasket thickness to seal tightly to the reservoir, as well as a hole in the middle of course. The design of the standard cap breathes so it must be sealed or it will leak. There probably is a Dorman replacement cap available at a FLAPS also, it is where I bought mine for my Subaru for the same purpose.

All, I copied the following from a post made by someone in the SSR Forum I follow. I've copied and pasted below. Ron Walker Have you seen the transcript of the call Todd Beamer made from Flight 93? It contains information about the turn over Cleveland. It's a very important read. This copied from FaceBook post: Todd: Hello… Operator…listen to me…I can’t speak very loud. – This is an emergency. I’m a passenger on a United flight to San Francisco.. We have a situation here….Our plane has been hijacked…..can you understand me? Lisa: (exhaling a deep breath to herself) I understand… Can the hijackers see you talking on the phone? Todd: No Lisa: Can you tell me how many hijackers are on the plane? Todd: There are three that we know of. Lisa: Can you see any weapons? What kind of weapons do they have? Todd: Yes…. they don’t have guns….they have knives – they took over the plane with knives. Lisa: Do you mean…like steak knives? Todd: No, these are razor knives…like box cutters. Lisa: Can you tell what country these people are from? Todd: No…..I don’t know. They sound like they’re from the mid-east. Lisa: Have they said what they want? Todd: Someone announced from the cockpit that there was a bomb on board. He said he was the captain and to stay in our seats and stay quiet. He said that they were meeting these men’s demands and returning to the airport… It was very broken English, and… I’m telling you…it sounded fake! Lisa: Ok sir, please give me your name. Todd: My name is Todd Beamer. Lisa: Ok Todd….my name is Lisa…Do you know your flight number? If you can’t remember, it’s on your ticket. Todd: It’s United Flight 93. Lisa: Now Todd, can you try to tell me exactly what happened? Todd: Two of the hijackers were sitting in first class near the cockpit. A third one was sitting near the back of the coach section. The two up. front got into the cockpit somehow; there was shouting. The third hijacker said he had a bomb. It looks like a bomb. He’s got it tied to his waist with a red belt of some kind. Lisa: So is the door to the cockpit open? Todd: No, the hijackers shut it behind them. Lisa: Has anyone been injured? Todd: Yes, ..they…they killed one passenger sitting in first class. There’s been lots of shouting. We don’t know if the pilots are dead or alive. A flight attendant told me that the pilot and copilot had been forced from the cockpit and may have been wounded. Lisa: Where is the 3rd hijacker now Todd? Todd: He’s near the back of the plane. They forced most of the passengers into first class. There are fourteen of us here in the back. Five are flight attendants. He hasn’t noticed that I slipped into this pantry to get the phone. The guy with the bomb ordered us to sit on the floor in the rear of the plane……….oh Jesus.. Help! Lisa: Todd….are you ok? Tell me what’s happening! Todd: Hello…..We’re going down….I think we’re going to crash……Wait – wait a minute. No, we’re leveling off….we’re ok. I think we may be turning around…..That’s it – we changed directions. Do you hear me….we’re flying east again. Lisa: Ok Todd…. What’s going on with the other passengers? Todd: Everyone is… really scared. A few passengers with cell phones have made calls to relatives. A guy, Jeremy, was talking to his wife just before the hijacking started. She told him that hijackers had crashed two planes into the World Trade Center……Lisa is that true?? Lisa: Todd…..I have to tell you the truth…..it’s very bad. The World Trade Center is gone. Both of the towers have been destroyed. Todd: Oh God —help us! Lisa: A third plane was taken over by terrorists. It crashed into the Pentagon in Washington DC. Our country is under attack….and I’m afraid that your plane may be part of their plan. Todd: Oh dear God. Dear God…….Lisa, will you do something for me? Lisa: I’ll try….if I can….Yes. Todd: I want you to call my wife and my kids for me and tell them what’s happened. Promise me you’ll call.. Lisa: I promise – I’ll call. Todd: Our home number is 201 353-1073…….You have the same name as my wife…Lisa….We’ve been married for 10 years. She’s pregnant with our 3rd child. Tell her that I love her…….(choking up)..I’ll always love her..(clearing throat) We have two boys.. David, he’s 3 and Andrew, he’s 1…..Tell them……(choking) tell them that their daddy loves them and that he is so proud of them. (clearing throat again) Our baby is due January 12th…..I saw an ultra sound…..it was great….we still don’t know if it’s a girl or a boy………Lisa? Lisa: (barely able to speak) I’ll tell them, I promise Todd. Todd: I’m going back to the group—if I can get back I will… Lisa: Todd, leave this line open…are you still there?…… Lisa: (dials the phone..) Hello, FBI, my name is Lisa Jefferson, I’m a telephone supervisor for GTE. I need to report a terrorist hijacking of a United Airlines Flight 93….Yes I’ll hold. Goodwin: Hello, this is Agent Goodwin.. I understand you have a hijacking situation? Lisa: Yes sir, I’ve been talking with a passenger, a Todd Beamer, on Flight 93 who managed to get to an air phone unnoticed. Goodwin: Where did this flight originate, and what was its destination? Lisa: The flight left Newark New Jersey at 8 A.M. departing for San Francisco. The hijackers took over the plane shortly after takeoff, and several minutes later the plane changed course – it is now flying east. Goodwin: Ms. Jefferson…I need to talk to someone aboard that plane. Can you get me thru to the planes phone? Lisa: I still have that line open sir, I can patch you through on a conference call…hold a mo….. Todd: Hello Lisa, Lisa are you there? Lisa: Yes, I’m here. Todd, I made a call to the FBI, Agent Goodwin is on the line and will be talking to you as well. Todd: The others all know that this isn’t your normal hijacking. Jeremy called his wife again on his cell phone. She told him more about the World Trade Center and all. Goodwin: Hello Todd. This is Agent Goodwin with the FBI. We have been monitoring your flight. Your plane is on a course for Washington, DC. These terrorists sent two planes into the World Trade Center and one plane into the Pentagon. Our best guess is that they plan to fly your plane into either the White House or the United States Capital Building. Todd: I understand…hold on……I’ll…….I’ll be back.. Lisa: Mr. Goodwin, how much time do they have before they get to Washington? Goodwin: Not long ma’am. They changed course over Cleveland; they’re approaching Pittsburgh now. Washington may be twenty minutes away. Todd: (breathing a little heavier) The plane seems to be changing directions just a little. It’s getting pretty rough up here. The plane is flying real erratic….We’re not going to make it out of here. Listen to me….I want you to hear this….I have talked with the others….we have decided we would not be pawns in these hijackers suicidal plot. Lisa: Todd, what are you going to do? Todd: We’ve hatched a plan. Four of us are going to rush the hijacker with the bomb. After we take him out, we’ll break into the cockpit. A stewardess is getting some boiling water to throw on the hijackers at the controls. We’ll get them….and we’ll take them out. Lisa, …..will you do one last thing for me? Lisa: Yes…What is it? Todd: Would you pray with me? They pray: Our father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, And forgive us our trespasses As we forgive our trespassers, And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory Forever…..Amen The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want… He makes me to lie down in green pastures He leads me beside the still waters He restores my soul He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for thou art with me….. Todd: (softer) God help me…Jesus help me….(clears throat and louder) Are you guys ready?…….. Let’s Roll…………………… /cdn-cgi/image/format=auto,onerror=redirect,width=1920,height=1920,fit=scale-down/https://www.ssrfanatic.com/attachments/1631386538018-png.600220/

Yeah, that's me holding a camera. I tried get a shot without me showing up and get still get the writing so you might be able to read it but I couldn't. Those people who gave their lives on flight 93 may have saved our Whitehouse or Capital building through their bravery and courage. They truly were heros that stepped up to the plate when it counted.

Zero Population Growth.

Glad it suits you.

The jack arrived this morning. The box was a little roughed up but acceptable. I was able to carry the box into the garage with one arm by grabbing the plastic banding on the box. Not bad as far as weight goes. It would have required both arms and walking in a strain with my old jack. When you do a comparison of the new jack and my old Sears jack it is easy to see the old jack is much beefier (and much heavier). Everything from the wheels and casters to the frame is much more heavy duty on the Sears jack. To the credit of the new jack it is much easier to move around and I really like how fast it goes up without a load. It goes sown about 1/2" lower and raises about 3/4" higher than my old jack. The new jack handle is about 9 inches longer than the old jack. I'm not sure I'm going to like that but I do like the padding around the bottom of the handle. The new jack has a large handle on each side to help with positioning the jack under the car. I like that and it would have really been handy on the old Sears jack. I was always worried about having to grab the frame of the old jack to move it and taking a chance of pinching a finger.. To get the old Sears jack all the way up took 16 full pumps of the handle. To get the new jack all the way up took 6 full pumps. I really like that. That is one of the reasons I bought it. I have not tried to lift a vehicle yet. I'm going to let the new jack sit overnight before bleeding the air out of it tomorrow. Bleeding out any air is recommended before using the jack.

Excellent write up. I will add it to the how-To guides here on ROJ when I get time. With your permission of course...

Ok so a little update on this issue. So while that terminal was bad, it was not the root cause. The root cause ended up being a short in the turn signal switch inside the steering column, which in turn caused that lead in connector C202 that I showed above to get hot and melt the insulation. I did a little digging and apparently it is not an uncommon issue for GM cars from that era (which in typical GM fashion all pretty much used the same turn signal switch.) Attached is a quick and dirty write up of the procedure. Maybe it will help someone else out some day: Reatta Turn Signal Switch Replacement.pdf

@Bertimus, nice pics. I almost bought a black one but someone scooped it up out from under me. That said, I am glad I got my red one :) I just submitted these photos of mine for a RockAuto magnet :) I will let you folks know if they pick it.

Well, I went ahead and did it. Always wanted a Reatta convertible. Though, it had to be white with gray interior. Finally found one with low miles and after having the mechanic look it over I bought it. He told me that He didn't know about the availability of the 'special' Master-brake set up. Guess that's what this forum is for.

The search for a floor jack is over. I decided to add the Torin 2.5 ton jack to my Amazon cart but didn't intend to buy it tonight. When I added it to my cart a message popped up saying I had a $25 dollar promotional credit for being a long time customer. I thought with that discount it was a good price and decided to take a chance on it being a good jack. If it will last half as long as my old Sears jack I will be happy. It should be here Saturday.