r e . a l i t y

August 2, 2009
by Ray
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My Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb. Extra lean ground beef, browned
1 med. yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 green pepper, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
10 large white mushrooms, halved & sliced thick
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1 12oz can tomato sauce
1 small can tomato paste
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp basil
1/4 cup cilantro (or 2 tbsp dried cilantro)
2 bay leaves
1/2 tbsp red pepper paste
2 tbsp olive oil

Sauté onions and celery, until onions are just starting to brown.

Add salt, green pepper, black pepper, and mushrooms.

Cook for a few minutes, then add the rest of the ingredients.

Stir occasionally and let simmer (covered, 30 minutes or so).

Pull out the bay leaves when serving.

Popularity: 1% [?]

August 1, 2009
by Ray
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iPhone and the Jeep

Belkin Micro Auto charger

Well, the new iPhones (the 3G and the 3GS) don’t use the same power as the earlier, and follow the USB standards for power. So, the USB cable with the phone can be used with a cigarette light usb device. I picked up the Belkin Micro Auto charger – so now I can keep the phone charged up on those longer trips.

To hold the iPhone, I picked up a Scoche vent mount holder. The jury is still out on how well this is going to work, but for now, its doing the trick. The Jeep vent blades seem too wide for the clips that the mount uses – I might just mod one of the vent blades so that it sits better and more securely.

As far as the phone itself is concerned, I downloaded an app called TiltMeter Pro, to see how it works as an inclinometer – I think that it will be pretty slick. Should definitely get a workout next week in Grande Cache!

As far as functionality with the factory head unit (I have the REQ deck – with 6 DVD changer, AM/FM, and front mounted Aux input), I’m just using the Aux input. Seems that there are a couple modules required from Chrysler, and then some starscan programming thing to the head unit in order to get control of the iPhone. Talking with people at the dealership, I’m not confident of how well it would all work in the end. I think that if I really want all the functionality, I would just replace the factory head unit with an aftermarket deck. I don’t use the phone in the Jeep while I’m driving, aside from music.

Popularity: 3% [?]

August 1, 2009
by Ray
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C.B Radio Install

Well, the handheld Cobra c.b. was behaving irratically, and the antenna mount loose – after only 3 or 4 uses. So, I decided to pull the trigger and pick up a compact unit and installed it today into the Jeep.

Uniden 520XL C.B. Radio

I picked up a Uniden 520XL – nice features – except it doesn’t have the weather bands. Oh well – the cobra handheld is still picking those up fine ;^)

I also bought a 4′ Wilson flex antenna – which I’ve temporarily mounted using some garage door opener hanger straps – cut to size, and mounted behind the spare tire. I did order a Teraflex C.B. Antenna mount, but I’m not certain when that will arrive exactly, and I wanted to get all of this installed and ready for the ACE2009 run happening next week.

The installation was pretty smooth – and I was able to test it out with my sons help using the Cobra handheld… seems to be working pretty good. It’s difficult to gauge the sound quality at this point, since I can’t hear anything in one ear – and the other ear is hearing about half… hopefully they both clear up soon! It’s the last symptom of the flu bug I had a couple weeks back.

Popularity: 4% [?]

July 29, 2009
by Ray
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Parts and Dealerships

Well, stupid me misplaces one bolt for the bumper… The dealership price is $10

Pop over to Edmonton Nut & Bolt on Argyll, and it’s gratis.

Additionally, the dealership didn’t even have the part in stock!

Popularity: 1% [?]

July 15, 2009
by ray
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I’m letting this domain name go (coffee-vibe.com) – lack of time and inspiration to keep it running are my primary motivations.

I’ve moved the content over to another domain that I have – coffeevibe.com, which I’ll likely let go too. Eventually I think that I’ll have the content on a sub-domain – coffee.ality.org

Popularity: 1% [?]

July 13, 2009
by Ray
2 Comments

Winch installation & Bumper mod

This weekend I got the new winch installed. Was a fair bit of work – involved removing the bumper, drilling and modding the frame ends to get the winch plate mounted, modding my grill insert, modding the stock bumper to accomodate the winch plate and fairlead.

: This is the winch plate, out of the box, and with the mounting bolts that I purchased seperately from the Nut & Bolt Shop

: Trim the back lip of the Kodiak winch plate

: There’s a bumper removal how-to on the JK-Forum – see my previous post for a link.

: Had to drill 2 holes, and modifiy the end of the frame to allow for a wrench inside the frame rail, and to get the winch plate mount flat to the frame.

: Now a wrench can fit inside the rail

: A little trimming with the grind, and some door edge guard for a nice finished look

: Had to remove the back edge – couldn’t mount the plate with the grill on because of it.

: I used a jig saw and utility knife, and pulled the bumper on and off a couple times as I made more cuts.

: Not perfect – but not too bad I think!

Popularity: 12% [?]

July 9, 2009
by Ray
3 Comments

Kodiak Bruin 9500 Winch

Well, I pulled the trigger and bought a new winch today – a Kodiak Bruin winch from The Gear Center on the south side. This is the middle weight of their line, and looks to be a very suitable match for my Rubicon.

Kodiak Bruin 9500

It came bundled with a universal mounting plate, and a recovery kit that consists of a tree saver, snatch block, a couple shackles, work gloves, and a bag to carry the stuff in.

I’ve found a couple write-ups on the JK-Forums about installing a winch with the stock bumper – so hopefully it all goes okay! I’ll try and take some pictures as I go. One thing I noticed is that this will be a good opportunity to get more of the mud out of the underside from last weekend! :^)

For reference, these threads from the JK-Forum include some write-ups and photos of other folks putting winches onto stock bumpers:

Some folks over at the jk-forum have simply removed the plastic bumper cover, and taken off the crash cans, and one guy then replaced the factory tow hools with shackle mounts from PureJeep. They look pretty good! Only issue is that the factory fogs don’t mount – so another modification is necessary to resolve that.

Popularity: 3% [?]

July 5, 2009
by Ray
2 Comments

S.O.S. Mud Crawl

This weekend was out at the Alberta Safari Park with the Edmonton Jeep Community – last time I was here was my first time taking the Jeep off-road, back in January.

The place sure looks different without all the white stuff ;^)

It was pretty dry out there Saturday morning – and the runs that I did were pretty sparse when it came to mud. In the afternoon things changed a lot – after a 3 hour downpour! The rain completely changed the runs – and some of the ones that were pretty easy earlier, were much more challenging. Was nerve-wracking at times when it was impossible to go in the direction that you wanted. Saturday night we were treated to a fun light show, and a few of us stayed up yacking well into the wee morning hours.

Sunday was very nice out – and the greasiness of the trails after the previous day’s rainfall was all but gone. While not bone dry, the runs that I did were different yet again, as the trails were wet, but the mud was not so greasy that you couldn’t go where you wanted. Today was a Challenge Run, and challenging it was! I still get nervous when I get the Jeep into some wierd angles – and the nervousness causes me to hold back on the gas. Still, with the guidance of the more experienced club members, I still made my way through some of the more challenging runs.

Unfortunately I didn’t get too many pictures – but I got a couple nice shots of one of the runs we did Sunday (Rocky Canyon), as well as a couple members making their way up the run. There were a number of other folks getting pictures, and as they become available, I’ll link to them.

Kyle has a some very nice shots on his gallery, and Tim got a pile of shots from Sunday over at the EJC Gallery. Great job guys!