Have you realized… ?

[Kern Dog]

For celebrating what we are? Men?

[Kern Dog]

Slow site traffic could be for other reasons....like validating insanity or pacifying weirdos.
Moparts used to be a great site but their draconian Moderators ruined the place. Some sites are owned by people that don't care whether the forum lives or dies. Others have reasonable management and decent moderators that are car guys first and moderators second.
The latter are the best, in my opinion. They understand that we as fellow enthusiasts are traditionally male, blue collar and "hands on" types of men. We don't look to others to do everything on our cars, we fix stuff ourselves, sometimes with help from others.
If a guy puts a Pentastar on a Pinto, the car is still a Ford. I will not go along with some person's insanity. One fool is enough.
Regarding classics....I feel that a hard line is carburetion versus EFI. Analog versus Computers.
It is hard to believe sometimes that computers have been standard issue for over 40 years now!

[LaOtto70Charger]

I personally like driving my pos 91 Honda Prelude 4WS. The younger kids really like it and it's way more fun to drive than the charger or challenger ever were. Plus it pretty much infinitely repairable unlike my wife's 18 challenger T/A which will be obsolete in short order especially if the electronics start to go. On the plus side a 440 and 833 could be bashed in the challenger so there's that

Hi Frank,            19 May 2024
Forgot to mention the dealer took our Interceptor to the Smog shop for testing; she passed with flying colors. She now has an AZ title and an Arizona Navy Vet plate with the Hull number of the ship I spent the most time on. The new plate reads:  TAGS23

Miss the old gal, spent 5.5 years aboard her. She was declared "Unfit For Sea Duty" in 1975, three years after I left and then disposed of (meaning Scrapped) in 1977. Lots of fond memories.

Best Always
426 HC's

What kind of ship was it?

[426HemiChick]

I personally like driving my pos 91 Honda Prelude 4WS. The younger kids really like it and it's way more fun to drive than the charger or challenger ever were. Plus it pretty much infinitely repairable unlike my wife's 18 challenger T/A which will be obsolete in short order especially if the electronics start to go. On the plus side a 440 and 833 could be bashed in the challenger so there's that

Hi Frank,            19 May 2024
Forgot to mention the dealer took our Interceptor to the Smog shop for testing; she passed with flying colors. She now has an AZ title and an Arizona Navy Vet plate with the Hull number of the ship I spent the most time on. The new plate reads:  TAGS23

Miss the old gal, spent 5.5 years aboard her. She was declared "Unfit For Sea Duty" in 1975, three years after I left and then disposed of (meaning Scrapped) in 1977. Lots of fond memories.

Best Always
426 HC's

What kind of ship was it?

Hi LaOtto70Charger,          21 May 2024

Thanks for asking; she was a converted V2 cargo ship from WW II. In 1954 she was taken over by MSTS (Military Sea Transport Service), Later MSC (Military Sealift Command). At the time the project was so secret she was barely acknowledged publicly. When I received orders to her, no one at my current base had a clue as to what she was or did. Those orders sent me to an Army Base (Std procedure). When I walked into the post HQ the person I handed my orders to looked at them and said: "Your Navy, this is an Army post." A guy sitting way in the back of the office told him to send me back to him. He was the only one there that knew about our project.

He arranged a room for me and transportation to my ship when she came into port. We wore civilian attire and were expected to remain silent about our assignment.

Long story short, the project is no longer classified. It was a Black government project for the FBM Submarine program. We used a Multi-Beam Phased Array Sonar system to map the ocean bottom so the FBM Subs could safely navigate the seas without having to surface.

Most of the maps we created are still classified Top Secret and are still the best and most accurate maps ever produced of the oceans floor. I also have the distinction, shared by shipmates, of having swan directly over "Challenger Deep" located in the Marianas Trench; it's the deepest spot in the Pacific Ocean and the oceans of the world.

Dr. Robert Ballard convinced the Navy to loan him some of our maps so he could try to locate the Titanic. He found her right where our maps indicated she was lying on the ocean floor.

It was an honor and privilege to have served in this project. The folks selected for it were highly skilled Engineers and Technicians. Unlike most Navy ships, we wore civilian clothes, had staterooms, ate in a dining room, sat at tables, picked up a menu and ordered our meals from a waiter. Our food was served on dishes not trays. It was an Elite assignment and I am proud to have served in the program.

After my enlistment ended in December 1966 I received calls from General Instrument Corp offering me a job as an Engineer for assignment aboard one of the three ships in the program. As fate would have it, I was sent to my first ship USNS Michelson T-AGS 23. I spent four more years aboard her as a civilian DOD contract engineer.

I gave 8 years of my life to the NAVY; in return the NAVY gave me a Lifetime. I am thankful for the honor and trust they bestowed upon me; my selecting TAGS23 for my license plate is my small way of honoring the ships and crews that served in the program.

Hope this post doesn't offend this sites self assigned elite guardian: kern dog.

Thanks again for asking.

Best Always
Chris for the 426 HC's

[John_Kunkel]

Slow site traffic could be for other reasons....like validating insanity or pacifying weirdos.
Moparts used to be a great site but their draconian Moderators ruined the place.

IOW, they gave you numerous "time out's" and finally kicked you out for repeated violations of clearly stated rules. Want some cheese with your whine?

[Kern Dog]

Oh, you misunderstood.
That isn't whining. That was stating opinion which could be interpreted as fact.
The Moparts site is failing and has been for awhile. Only a scant few sites have thrived and Moparts isn't one of them. Just like government, when the overlords push the people too far, they will respond and it won't bode well for management. You can enforce rules without being assholes about it. Police don't arrest people for driving 10 mph over the limit but there are moderators that choose to use a hammer when a simple email or private message would work instead.
Sponsors will see a drop off in site traffic when decent members quit logging on, then the ad revenue drops off.

[b5blue]

Oh that's why your here so much....dog. 

[Kern Dog]

I am not sure that I mentioned this before but it is just an observation that I made recently.
We all know that the demographic of classic car ownership is primarily Men over 40, mostly white.
Nothing racist about that, it is just what I have noticed from car clubs, shows and events, forums and friends.
Lately when I've been out in the classics, I've gotten smiles, waves and thumbs UP from all kinds of people, even some younger black men and women.
I was happy to see that. They didn't see me as some rich and stuffy white guy, they saw me as a car guy. I saw them in as people that appreciated a shiny classic car. The younger set didn't see these cars on the road much in their lifetimes, they saw them on TV and maybe at a car show. For them to see a real one on the road, it must be really cool. I'm glad to do it. If stuff like this can let us interact as just people, I think that is great.
I like letting kids sit in the car at shows. They like to grab the pistol grip shifter and make engine noises.
Nobody sits on the hood though!

[LaOtto70Charger]

That is a great story, Chris! Very special service, especially considering the time period. 

Reminds me of some great stories a coworker used to have about his time in Germany when he was drafted into the Army.  One day, after reminiscing about one, he sits back and chuckles too bad he was so disgruntled about the draft. He actually had a pretty good time.

Regards,
Steve

[426HemiChick]

That is a great story, Chris! Very special service, especially considering the time period. 

Reminds me of some great stories a coworker used to have about his time in Germany when he was drafted into the Army.  One day, after reminiscing about one, he sits back and chuckles too bad he was so disgruntled about the draft. He actually had a pretty good time.

Regards,
Steve

Hi LaOtto70Charger,        21 May 2024

What I failed to mention is that I was originally drafted into the Army. During a lunch break while at the induction center, I asked someone where the Navy recruiting office was, They pointed to a door and said: "Out the door, turn right and go down about three doors. You'll find the Navy there." Went there and the rest is history. One of the best decisions I ever made. Still have friends from back then which was 61 years ago. How time flies.

Yes, I am grateful for having been selected for the project. It made my life after the service better than it would have been without it.

I love this country and hope she survives the beating she is taking. I believe she will because most US Citizens love her and will do right by her.

God Bless the USA and all Her Citizens.

Best Always
Chris for the 426 HC's

[Kern Dog]

Oh that's why your here so much....dog. 

I see that you edited your post. Good move.
I am here because I own a couple of Chargers. I work on them, take trips and take them to shows.
Few people are skilled enough to do everything on their cars but I do try. I'm not the type to let a shop change a distributor or swap from a 727 to a Tremec 5 speed. I love working on these cars and learning better ways to fix them.
What have you done to your car lately? Anything at all? I see your posts on the forum but don't recall seeing anything about your car.