It’s that time of year again when the roads get a little snowy. What inevitably comes with snow are the plow & sand trucks. Small pebbles of sand and rock are sometimes left on the interstates and highways. Cars and trucks passing by often shoot those pebbles and rock onto windshields causing cracks that could lead to further windshield damage. If this happens the best thing to do is to stop the crack from splintering by either having it repaired or repairing it yourself. Tom had this happen a few weeks ago on his way back from Colorado. Rather than take his Dodge pickup into a repair shop and spend around sixty dollars, Tom thought he would try a windshield repair kit that can be picked up from any local auto parts store for around fifteen dollars. Tom started by isolating the small pit by incorporating a stop drill technique using a dremel tool. Small holes are drilled into the ends of the cracks to limit the spread of the damage. A small LCD light can be placed on the inside dashboard for better viewing. Tom then used a Permatex Windshield Repair Kit to seal up the crack and hopefully prevent continued damage. The kit comes with a small syringe and plunger, a tube of repair compound, an adhesive disk,pedestal, curling strip, push pin, razor blade, an alcohol towelette, and a set of instructions. The entire process takes about an hour. Allow for a little longer curing time if it happens to be a cloudy day. Watch our short video for the simple steps it takes to repair your windshield yourself.

This is the first article in our new section “Tom’s World”. When Tom quit his conventional job at the City of Laramie several years ago, his day changed dramatically. Many times we get the question: “What do you do?”. We will try and do a daily update in this section of our website.

Today Tom and Andrew worked on a project that has been in the shop for a few weeks. Honeywagon Sanitation is the local option for septic tank care and portable toilet rental. With the booming building economy in Laramie, Honeywagon has a serious presence at all of the construction locations.

Honeywagon Sanitation owner, Heber Richardson, asked Tom to design and build a twenty four foot long trailer that will haul 12 portable toilets.

The all steel frame sits on two 3500 pound rubber torsion axles with brakes.  205/75 R14 radial tires are used.   The deck is made of extruded aluminum that happens to be recycled bleacher seats. No maintenance and lightweight is an added bonus.

The front of the new trailer has a Rubbermaid toolbox mounted to hold a trailer breakaway battery and extra tie down rope.  The trailer will be outfitted with LED lights.

Tom’s day began by painting the entire trailer red. Adding the decking and accessories took up the rest of the afternoon. In the next post, we will explain and show how the portable toilets will be placed on and off the trailer and how they will travel.

Ever wonder what the numbers on the side of a pick up truck really mean? Dodge, Ford and Chevrolet all place identification numbers on the side of their trucks. Anyone looking for a truck should be aware of what each number means as they search for a new vehicle.

The formula is easy. Mini trucks are rated for the lightest load. They include vehicles like the Ford Ranger, Toyotas, and Chevy S-10’s.

After that comes the full size trucks. They generally have the same body, but different chassis are available under those bodies. Chassis include items such as frames, suspensions and axles. All of the sheet metal is basically the same on full size trucks.

The first category is a lighter duty full size truck. These would include Ford’s F150, GMC 1500 or a Dodge 1500. These are all half ton models. These trucks have a lighter suspension, transmission and brake system. They don’t carry as much weight or can’t tow as much as the higher numbered models.

The second category would include the Ford F250, GMC 2500 and Dodge 2500 series. The are in the three quarter ton category. The axles, brakes and transmissions are heavier. They would tow and carry more weight.

The last class is the 350 class, or the one ton class. One tons can have a single wheel in the back or a double wheel, sometimes called a “duelly”. One tons generally are the same truck as the 250, but added features include overload springs and a transmission cooler. Some one tons are a actually a different frame from the 250 class though. Once again, the meaning of the numbers translates to a heavier towing capacity and cargo load.

Ford offers the 450 and 550 series. It is a heavier truck than the 350. Interestingly enough the front end on the 450, 550 and 350 series are the same. The difference comes in the back end. There is a heavier frame from the firewall back. This increases the load rating for the 450 and 550 since the load is carried on the back of a truck. The brakes in the back allow for a heavier load as well.

If you are looking at a truck to tow a camper, trailer, or if you want to haul a heavy load you’ll want to look at the maximum towing capacity for the truck. The primary reason for finding a truck that will suit your needs is so that you don’t overload and damage your truck.