It seems whenever I start a project it snowballs out of control. See my trailer brakes thread for a perfect example of a snowballed project...
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/trailers-transportation/177216-what-axle-do-i-have.html
My recent snowballed project is patching a tire on my 4-wheeler. I'm thinking toward snow, and I use my 4-wheeler to plow sidewalks. I've had slow leaks in two of the tires on this 4-wheeler, and I figured on Saturday that I'd take a few minutes and have the service station in town patch the tires for me.
Problem #1: No Brakes. When I went to take the rear tire off, the brakes weren't working. (It's easy to set the brake to aid in loosening the lugs.) I had to steady the wheel by bracing the tire against my knees to get the lugs loose.
Problem #2: When I got to the service station they were backed up on work. "No problem," says I. "I'll come back just before closing time."
Problem #3: Blown Fuse. When I came back before closing time they had blown a fuse and didn't have a fuse to replace it. I asked what fuse it was, and I had a few back at home. I ran home to get the fuses to get them back running and get my tires fixed.
Problem #4: It wasn't the fuse. I came back with the right fuses, but when we tested the old fuses all of them were fine. (We had to test the fuses with a 12 volt test light and a car battery they had on the shelf.) By the time we figured out the fuse problem it was closing time, and I told them I'd just come back and get the tires on Monday.
Problem #5: In the process of troubleshooting the brake it seized up. I decided that since my wheel was off for a while anyway I'd see about fixing the rear brake. I was able to rotate the cam just enough that it completely siezed up the brake (without my knowing). In an effort to get the drum off I managed to crack the backing plate, and press the axle out the other side. I finally figured out that the brake was seized, and then the drum came of quite nicely.
Problem #6: I broke one of the brake pads. Once I finally got the drum off I discovered that the problem was the cam. The shaft for the cam was so galded that it took a large wrench on the lever to get it to move. I took off the brake pads so that I could "press" the cam shaft out with a hammer. In the process of taking the brake pads off, I dropped one of them and it broke. I now have a set of brake pads coming from e-bay.
Problem #7: The service station ruined my wheel. I went back today to pick up the fixed tires. They told me I had a nail in my front tire, but that the back tire wasn't fixable due to the wheel being all bent. They took me back to the wheel, and sure enough. There was a dent in the wheel so big that it looked like PacMan. I know it wasn't like that when I brought it in. The manager was good to me. He said they'd make it right. I have to wait for my brake pads to come anyway; so now I'll wait for a wheel, too.
That's where I sit for now. In a few days I'll have my wheel and my brake pads, and we'll see what else can go wrong.
I only ever did that on my own machines. I suppose if a new crankshaft was available you could then sell it as a refurbished unit and cut your losses. Otherwise, as you said, a nice SNSM!
