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Comments
There was an article in the local newpaper a week or two back about the NJ state police's attitude regarding careless driving. That article didn't mention anything about changing radio stations or HVAC controls, but if you're seen dialing a cellular phone or drinking coffee, coke or whatever while operating a vehicle, you're going to get pulled over and ticketed for careless driving. I don't know what that means for out-of-state drivers, but if the driver is licensed in NJ, it means the driver is going to have to pay a fine and get some points (maybe three but I'm not sure). It will take 3 years to clear the points; meanwhile, there will be a surcharge on the car insurance which, I think, might add up to about $2000 for those 3 years. I believe the limit on points is 12, and when that is reached, the driver loses his license for a couple of years.
I realize you think your little trick is cute. I'm just suggesting it might backfire on someone else when he/she tries it. One may want to find out a little about the attitude of the local gendarme regarding careless driving before waving road maps around the car trying to impress everyone who can see you that you are paying more attention to the map than you are to the road.
As the topic here is "Truck Accessories" I would like to know where I can find Rams head tail-light lenses or black-outs for my 1998 Dodge Dakota? Please e-mail me at thegoinker@webtv.net and just for the record I never, ever drive without my AAA Atlas and always pull to the curb to utilize it! Safety first!
thegoinker,
I spent four years in Orlando when I was in college in the 80s (I graduated from UCF). In addition to tourist, there are a lot of older retirees. The majority of them were fine drivers, but there were always a few really scary ones on the road. I tend to cut the legit tourist a break. They're pumping money into our local economies, so we might as well make them feel at home. Now if they're talking on a cell phone, all bets are off.....
A simple hit from behind accident can send you spinning off the road and you could get killed or paralyzed for life. If you're being tailgated, get out of the idiots way. Let him take someone else out. You will never see me in the left lane if somebody is riding my bumper if there is anyway I can change lanes and let the guy pass. Like I said, I'm not a law enforcement agent. When I'm driving, I believe that I am either going as fast as is safe or as fast I think I can without getting a ticket. If somebody thinks differently, I'm moving over and letting them by. Remember, road courtesy rule #1, the left lane always yields to faster traffic. Once again, just my opinion....
Pete,
I read maps in my truck all the time. My only point was that if we're reading maps, we need to make sure that it's not at the expense of interfering with the traffic around us. As far as doing it as a ruse to encourage other drivers to give you a break because they think you don't know where you going or what you're doing, that's just dangerous.
Brutus: I agree with you totally on getting out of the way. A popular thing here is for people to flash the brights in the left lane if they want to go faster. Usually I see them coming and have already moved over but I have seen other people actually slow down more in an attempt I guess to play police or something. I can't figure that one out....iratate a driver who may be speeding 20 mph over the speed limit. I guess this may be judgemental but speeding that much over the limit seems truely reckless to me but like you say it's not my job to slow them down and get shot in the process. It is nice feeling when you get out of there way and furthur down the road you see them on the side "chatting" to a police officer. As far as me holding a map to "scare" other drivers if you look in the past posts I never said anything about scaring anyone. I said "to embellish my tourist status" as I had said, I am even more corteuous to out of state drivers in unfamiliar territory. Embellish as far as I know means to show, adorn, accessorize a look or meaning. It was someones response who decided it was to scare someone. I took the "advice" someone posted to me via this group as a joke (which I think it was intended) and the next thing I know someone has posted that anyone with a map or drinking a soda should be DAMN well pulled over and ticketed for careless driving. Sorry this seems just a little to trivial to me to be classified as careless driving which I think there is a lot of true careless driving out there that is not being ticketed. As far as drinking a soda this seems almost unenforceable. Do they have an "open soda container law" in these states? :-) As far as reading maps I must admit I never "read" one as I am lucky when traveling to have my wife (copilot) along who does the reading. I have on occasion looked at the map when she had a question when the map was confusing to her. I get a little bent out of shape when this is compared to careless driving.
Anyone have any comments towards hard/semi-hard tonneu (spelling?) covers? Lift-up or Roll-up?
Strongly considering a roll-up type that is supposedly somewhat secure when locked.
I have been considering a tonneau cover for my new F250 when it comes in. I have only seen the roll-up type in advertisements. A friend of mine has a snap down tonneau cover with shocks on it and a hinge next to the cab so that the whole cover can be raised like a fiberglass cap as well as unsnapped. I would also like to see some opinions from people who have tonneau covers.
This is the statement that motivated my protest. If you don't consider this careless or maybe even reckless driving, I'd suggest you're ready for a refresher course in driver's ed.
And as for the beverage-drinking story, the people in the newspaper report who were stopped and fined were seen by the police with the beverage container to their lips and in a position which blocked their vision. I got the impression they now think the ruling against doing this is enforceable. I guess the narrow-minded police and judge believe if one can't see the road when one is driving, one is not really in control of one's vehicle. Dialing a celluar phone was a similar situation, because from the cop's point of view, you're not watching the road if you're looking at the numbers on a keypad. I saw an analogy between these and reading a map while driving, because in all cases the driver's eyes are not on the road where they should be. Obviously, there's a lot you out there who think otherwise.
But I agree, this has nothing to do with "Truck Accessories"; however, I didn't start this discussion. I just had a problem accepting the advice offered by the one who did. I think it was a bad recommendation.
I just received a square inch sample of Rhino Liner in the mail. It sort of looks a lot like Line-X. EXCEPT that the Line-X is more granular on the top while the Rhino is more globules on the top.
Does anybody know which is the better product?
Also has anybody ever seen a spray in liner in WHITE? (I would prefer to have the liner match the truck.)
What is a typical price for Rhino, under the lip and a full size bed? (I've been quoted $385 for a Line-X.)
Rich
lwf, your right you didn't start the discussion, you interpeted something to mean what "YOU" wanted and blasted me, who didn't even say it. "The trick is to hold the map where other drivers can see it, use your turn signals and go where you want." Was not my statement and if you look at the whole discussion it was about how out of state or tourists are sometimes treated differently by the local drivers. Now if you look at the statement above and decide that by what the author meant to say by "and go were you want" that he was saying just cut people off and drive recklessly I guess you are just different from me. The author also said "use turn signals" so I interpeted this to mean he was being responsible and hoping the map would let other drivers know he was a tourist so other drivers would let him make a lane change. I guess I try to see the good in something, sorry I'm optimistic. I don't know why you have to include nasty things like they should "damn well" should get a ticket and if someone doesn't agree with your interpetation they need to go back to Drivers Ed. School. From the stories on 60 minutes and other news programs there are much more pressing issues in driving than the ones you seem so concerned about. Peace to you and may your driving be trouble free.
And for those of you who are keeping track of Rhino-Liner prices, it's $385 for a 6-foot bed on a full-size pickup here in NJ.
http://www.calconcepts.com/SolidBedCovers/Retractable/rollnlock.htm
The interesting conversation was that Rhino can do a White WHITE liner. The price was $500 plus. Unfortunately I stopped listening after he said the five hundred part. I think it was $589. The really interesting thing was that the cost increase was justified by having to clean out the sprayer and configure it for the color application AND the fact that a UV blocker needed to be applied to prevent yellowing. It appears that Rhino has acknowledged the yellowing problem and found a solution(?).
H O W E V E R
For $200 I can be VERY happy with black.
Rich
Mroffshore
Does anyone have the approved solution to covering
cargo when it starts to rain, keep it dry, not scratch the truck up, and be able to remove it for easy access when the rain stops?
The intent is to not have to have a camper top or
one of the flat bed covers(Tonnoeu sp.?) that limit loads to bed hieght. The ideal thing would seem to be a tarp but how to secure it for long trips without flapping or tie down vibration that will wear the paint on the side of the truck.
This delima is almost enough to make me buy an SUV
instead of the truck I have been looking at. Just
can't fit enough in the size SUV I would buy.
It seems that a camper shell would be a less expensive option than a SUV if all else fails. It only takes 5-10 minutes to take the shell off when you don't need it. A truck bed with a camper shell will limit your load height, but you would still have a lot more load room than with a SUV. I only mention this as an alternative to a SUV, not a solution to your problem.
It looks GREAT! Even the salesmen at the dealerships next door to the Ford store coame over to look at it. Everyone could not believe how good it looked.
I've already had cargo in the back and it slid about MUCH less than my drop in liner on the previous truck.
I'm both happy and impressed!
Often, the long-term satisfaction is a better test of a product in terms of durability. But it sure sounds like you're off to a great start!
Thanks again, for sharing that with us.
Motormouth
I'll try to remember about Thanksgiving to give a report on the Line-X liner. I don't know if my environment will be any worse than yours. (LA is mostly sun, smog with little temperature variations.
Rich
Mroffshore
Ron
You must be in possession of the one and only! I've been looking at tool boxes, off and on over the last 12 years. I've never seen one that you describe. I've had two that rusted badly. It seems that today's newer "Power Coatings" are My final resort was the diamond plate aluminum. good enough to ship but NOT good enough to keep! Didn't rust, didn't sag, did leak after about 3 years. (The leak could be fixed by installing new weather stripping from Home Depot.)
It's going to be another aluminum box for me.
pworange,
You must be in possession of the one and only!
I've been looking at tool boxes, off and on over
the last 12 years. I've never seen the one that you describe. I've had two that rusted badly. It seems that today's newer "Power Coatings" are good enough to ship from the factory but NOT good enough to keep nor warantee! My final resort was a diamond plate aluminum box. Didn't rust, didn't sag, did leak after about 3 years. (The leak could be fixed by installing new weather stripping from Home Depot.)
It's going to be another aluminum box for me.
I'm wondering if someone has any experiences with 'Creative Industries', Kenmare, ND. They have a product called a Truck Trunk. It's not quite the typical cross bed tool box. This one hangs on the bed sides just like so many others except that the lid is only an inch or so over the top of the sides of the bed. The other unique thing is that the lid doesn't lift but SLIDES to open. It looks like the lid slides and hangs over the side of the bed by about 18 inches, giving an opening of about 24".
Has anybody ever had one of these leak? How about when at the gas station. Has any body walked or driven into the lid? Any opinions? Anybody?
Thanks,
Rich
Thanks,
Pat
But I ended up getting just a plain Pendaliner. I think it looks better than a spray-in, and I'm confident it will last as long as I have this truck. But if it doesn't, I can replace up to two times before I spend as much as the cost of one spray-in.
pttaylor:
did you ever find yours? If so, where?
I am presently driving a Suburban 2500 6.5 diesel with auto and 4X4 and will soon be ordering a f250 crew 4X4 diesel w/ auto Both of these rigs are designed to tow and carry heavy loads and on occasion I do need this ability but much of my time I am on freeways where legal speeds aproach 80mph with only moderate loads. It would be nice to have a extra overdrive for fuel economy and wear. Is there such a thing for the new ford, how much are they? and what effect would I expect if I used a larger diameter tire.
Thanks
98 F-150, 99 F-250, 98 Dodge 1500/2500, or 98/99 Durango?
Thanks I really appreciate it. It'll determine which truck/suv I get. I'll need both for my truck.
Ryan
On two previous F-250s ('86 and '92) I've installed C/B radios.
On the '86 I got some mason's string. (Nylon stuff for strength.) Then disconnected the FM radio antenna and tied the string to the antenna lead in wire. Then I disconnected the factory antenna and pulled the lead in wire out through the hole in the fender. (The string was attached.) I then replaced the factory antenna with a tri-band antenna for AM/FM/CB. The string was used to pull the new lead in wire back through and into the cab of the truck. This method also would work on the '92 as well as the '99. You may have to tape the string to the new lead in wire so that you can pull it through the grommet in the fire wall.
On the '92 I installed twin truckers. I purchased the mirror mount parts and cut them up to fit flat on the top of the bed rail. A couple of stainless 1/4"x20 bolts and a lot of silicone rubber to prevent rust. The lead in wire was sort of held up under the lip of the front bed rail using self stick wiring devices. Each stick on device had openings for cable ties. I ran the lead in wires between the cab and bed. On the bottom of the truck there was a rubber knock out. I put a hole and grommet through this rubber knock out. Again A LOT OF SILICONE rubber. (It never leaked in 6 years.) From there under the carpet to the C/B radio. This method could be used for the '99 also.
The '99 is even simpler. I've seen how easy it is to access the space under the head liner. There are a few plastic push in fasteners and a rubber moulding around the sides. The headliner in the '99 is about a 1/4" (maybe 5/16") thick foam rubber pad material. Almost like a fabric covered mouse pad. For your higher frequency fire radio I would get a roof mount unit and go that way. Just use silicone rubber in the groves of the mount so that it doesn't leak.
Good luck,
Rich
Cheers,
Ryan
To follow up (and forgive if it's stupid) on the roof mount for the high.freq radio. I've always thought that if I mounted a roof mounted radio, I'd have to drill through the roof. Yet I see custom Vans, trucks, etc. that have CBs, and most trucks nowadays have an overhead console - none are drilled through. Are you suggesting that I hook my CB under the dash and the high freq. on the header, drilling through the roof for the header? If so, how? If not, how do I mount it to the roof without drilling?
Ryan
redhead1
One other thing - I had a pallet of sod loaded in the bed. It weighed about 1000 pounds and had to be "pushed" by the forklift to position the load toward the front of the bed. A little chunk was taken out of the liner in the process, but the bed was not touched. I'd hate to think what the damage would have looked like if I had a spray-in. Also, I got the under-the-rail model, which has some slots for boards so you can partition the load.