Moar!
Moar!
We pulled into Brawley, and it was starting to feel like breakfast was needed. The map was taken out and found a McDonalds up the way to stop in at. Derek was driving still and pulled into the back of the store and we went in.
Apparently, McDonalds in Brawley, CA is the happening spot. Also, most EVERYONE uses the drive through. So, when we got back, we were blocked from pulling out at the exit in front of us. I drew the straw to drive again and ended up doing a 3, or maybe 5 point turn in the lot. Luckily, no one was parked there really, so that was possible. Otherwise, it would have been a fun exercise of "Hold my bee.....Coffee".
We pulled onto the highway again to keep rolling. I made another decision to start driving up to see the area off little backroads. The map looked like you could make it almost to the sea. Finally, I found the Sonny Bono Wildlife Area.
They had a nice little outlook and a trail that went out. Could get a great view of the sea and area. 
I didn't get a pic to show the majesty to everyone. Just take my word for it....So, we got back on the road.
As we went through the backroads to this little stop, I asked about what we wanted to do for lunch. I then threw out idea for Neptune's Net. If no one knows what this place is, for those Car people and Movie buffs alike, it is the eatery that Brian and Dom hit up after they street race the Ferrari in the Supra in the first Fast and Furious. I had eaten there on a previous trip as its a nice drive and could con the wife to go out somewhere and I can get seafood. She doesn't do that. After explaining what it was, there was a resounding "YES" as to eating there.
Somehow, not that I REALLY planned it, the arrival time to Neptune's was 12:15. Right on time in my mind.
We kept rolling up the West Coast of the Sea. For it being a ghost town, there looked to be quite a few homes that were inhabited. One thing to note, several *which is 7* signs were up along the highway listing up lots for sale. The lowest ones were for $2950 a lot. We debated on the merrits of purchasing one or more, but when you realize there is NOTHING there, we decided not too. Plus, the commute would be horrendous.
We were sitting on half a tank, but saw an Indian Casino, Restaraunt, and Gas Station. Pricing was under $4/gallon and knowing we would next really hit LA, we filled the ole girl up. $3.99 a gallon was the price and the cheapest we would see in California anywhere we traveled through.
We left the Castaration *I like that name, I just made it up...* and headed north again. Found Coachella, which is....well, there is nothing there. Seems perfect for some concert venue. Finally coming back onto I-10 after the little diversion.
Palm Springs flew by, and we discussed the differing sizes of wind generators. Also, the fact that 85% of those had oil leaks which had stained all the way down the main supports. Having worked near these for years in TX, I had seen this before, but the units were fixed and the oil was cleaned and not left on the units. Kinda strange with hearing that California wants to be green and concous of polution and all that. Just an observation from an out of stater looking in.
After this we hit LA. I-10 to the 210 around Ontario and all the way through Burbank. We were routed up, a road. I dont remember the name now, but decided to avoid it since a sign stated 2 axles max and no trailers. Low and behold we have a trailer. A quick map update and look, I cut over 2 lanes in 1/8 mile and ditch off for the closest other option. This went straight through Malibu Canyon. I can understand the draw of driving them. The threat of iminent death as you hurtle yourself down the road is what I need on a day to day basis. Luckily, I live in Houston and get that from the other drivers around me. As we exited the canyon, we can out of road.
Sooooooo,
Turn Right and head up the coast. Derek had come out and driven around the area before. He mentioned he got crab cakes when he last came out. As we were about 4.5 miles away from lunch, he points out a small strip center and said that was where he ate. I pointed out the map that he had missed his chance last visit to eat here by less than 5 miles.
After a near Cannonball style run, we sat and ordered a beer. Here is Derek trying to look cool with his Corona....
Even though its the wrong coast, their New England Clam Chowder will be gotten again if I return....Just saying.
Also, to note, there is no cell service here. Zip, Zero, Nada, Nothing! They do have wifi though, so thats nice. Being what it was, I couldnt update Mike *who was meeting at the house and Bill's brother* as to our status. Their was the easy answer of, screw it, we drive till we get signal. Sometimes life is easy.
When I called, Mike was skydiving or something and couldn't hear. We had learned this was a hobby. Really though, he was just driving. He called back and we agreed to meetup at the house at 3pm. So, a nice drive up the coast, into the mountains, and through.
Now, I am not sure you have heard, but some people say, "You can't believe everything on the internet." I find this wholeheartedly false, as if its found here, its completely true. Still, it made me wonder, is this mill real? But, since I saw it on the internet, it had to be true. So, we are at this point of the story......
Mother of.....! It's real, and thus continues the truth that all on the internet is real. Some other aspects of truisms on the net can be found here.
https://www.appalachianghostwalks.com/USUFOCenter/ufologist/mcclelland/atlas.html
Funny enough, this is both about the area we were in. Though to foreshadow, we weren't abducted.....
This is long enough again, next up, Loading, a long drive *again*, and unloading. Stay tuned!
Nice piece of hardware there! Waiting for the good part, loading and unloading!
At this point, we have driven halfway across the country on not much sleep, ate at a Movie location, drank a shedload of energy drinks, and finally, proven the internet is always right.
When we arrived, we first turned the machine on and went to move the head down. Fairly straight forward affair, hit the axis button you want to move and push it to either + or -. Some fault codes invariably pop up. Which the 1st page of the owners manual had a page written up with how to move stuff. This page notated to just clear the faults right away. GREAT!
As the machine was dropping the head, I tripped a fault on it. It popped an internal breaker it acted like, so I reset that, but then couldn't figure out how to clear the code. Not very optimal to say the least. BUT! I am handy and can figure things out. Also, that big box of tools, remember? I had sockets, and a ratchet. So I stared at the head for awhile and had my mind break it down. There are 4 bolts in the front, which looked important. So I just loosened them and then started cranking on the "rotate head" pin. TADA! Thats when I took this pic.
At this point, I had to pull the Z-axis motor off since it was too tall to clear the door. Then the machine was set to move. This is over 12 hours prior to needing to move it! Simply AMAZING!
It did have power still though. So, unplug the machine. Then take some pics of the wiring and how it was setup. One of the super cool perks of this, it came with the rotary converter. It uses 3 phases on the machine. I am pretty sure that means it needs Fire, Water, and Wind to run. Not just Fire, or something like that.
Those things at the top, those are capacitors. Don't grab em, just saying.
We pulled the electric boxes down, and stacked them up. All was done then for getting them removed.
I asked Mike about parking the trailer in the driveway. It was setting at a high angle. I mentioned that it would drag ALL THE WAY UP! He wasn't concerned, so I grabbed the truck and went to back it in. I let it drag for about a foot. Stopped, got out, asked, confirmed, and them climbed back in. I had no problem pushing it up, just left a couple solid marks about 4 foot long on the drive. No biggie. I then hopped out to get the trailer dehooked. Mike asked about what would stop it from rolling. "Well, Nothing." Im used to dropping in my garage and nearly forgot that. I slapped a couple of 4x4 under the trailer tires and THEN lifted the trailer to unhook. Disaster averted.
Then we all hugged and decided to be there in the morning at 9. I knew I needed to grab another couple of big straps since the ones I had were, used.... I had setup a hotel room and decided we would go to the Home Depot in the morning.
If you are in the area, O'Cairn's Inn and Suite is pretty great. It hit a few boxes which is why I chose it. First, it was the closest hotel. Second, it had a room with 2 beds. I mean, I like Derek, but I don't know that I like like him. Ya know? Third, It had the highest ratings in the area. Lastly, it had a restaurant and bar in the hotel. DONE! That last one may have been the main thing. I didnt want to drive anywhere that eve. I can't quite put my finger onto why.
I never really thought about where I was going. Sure, California. Sure, we were west of LA. Sure, it was near an Air Force Base. It hit me at checkin though. They had many mission patches, pictures of launches, and to the side, model rockets. I stood there going, OOOHHHHHhhhhhh......Then, I was given drink tickets for free! THIS PLACE IS AMAZING!
We went up to the room and dropped bags. It was 4:45. So, we met, setup the machine for moving, pulled out the rotary converter, dropped the trailer, and checked into the hotel. We are just that darn good. Then, we go direct to the bar.
They had even more mission patches. 
We had some cheese sticks and a flatbread pizza. Wonderful. Also, we may have had a couple drinks. I mean free drink coupons! We went to the room, showered and in bed. I think it was about 8:30. We had Family Guy on the TV and pretty sure neither of us finished the episode that was on.
I woke up at 6:00. Thats the start of the normal workday back home with the 2 hour time difference, so I did some things I had not done yet. I was busy! Had 2 different conference calls, and then slapped Derek to get up. We rolled out of the room at 8:15, went back to the restaurant/bar. Got some breakfast, which we both enjoyed. Then went to Home Depot.
I left my mask in the truck, and being lazy did not want to walk back out. Being that we are Texan, and we dont have mask mandates as we have come to terms that nothing will stop the Corona, I didnt think about it. Being the nice guy I was, I grabbed a provided one from the front. I think these were sized to fit my children though. So, I just crimped the nose on and left it half floating in the breeze on me. Got our stuff and got out to the house. *just a note, I've been vaxed, had it in Dec. and was tested again before we left as the wife had it the other week. I should be good and try to stay out of others space. Mainly cause I dont like people, but thats another story*
Derek the whole morning had been antsy. He is pretty ADHD anyways, but it was more than usual. We got to the house at 8:57. Early... Then he finally makes the comment that he thought we would be late. Well, that answers that.
Our newest best friend Mike was at the house already. We had talked about his brother who past a bit and the plans they had with the house. He was ready to have the new owner take possesion and be done. Also, it was as is. So......I asked if he would mind if I just took the conduit and wire on the wall from the rotary converter to the power plug. He agreed it was a great idea that I should do. We pulled that off the wall, took it apart and loaded all the bits up.
At 9:30, still no word from Louie on them arriving. I sent a message over to just check on things. About 15 minutes later he sent a response that they were running behind at the forklift place. He thought they would be out in about 20 minutes. I think he got there around 10:30. Not a big deal, but it ends up making a huge difference later.
The Forklift wouldn't fit into the garage, so we needed to do some finagling. 
You can tell its an action shot from it being all blurry!
He had a large pallet jack, and we lifted up the machine to fit that under it. We discussed the way we wished to load it up. What direction and such and....had a plan. Always scary I know.
Once in this position, we were ready to bring in the big guns.
It took a bit, but, it did fit through the door.
The forklift pulled the piece out and made its way down the drive. These have an "open" containment area under the machine where cutting fluid and such is stored. We gave back to Mother Earth by leaving a trail from top of the drive to the bottom. Mike was on it, and as he kept saying he just wanted more work he grabbed some kitty litter *its like he knew we would make an ENORMOUS mess*. Once to the bottom of the drive, I jumped in the truck and pulled the trailer up to load.
As you look at this picture, I want to call some things into your conceous that you may not realize.
1: This thing is fairly heavy. Approx 4500#
2: This is not just sitting on the trailer exactly. We put some wood under the rear to help keep the trailer from angling up.
3: Those forks wont drop this bad boy where I need it on the trailer.
As you can see from the pic, we had the 4x4 setting to allow for the machine to spread more weight over more crossmembers. Seems like a good idea, I know. We got the machine set and pushed it forward to where it would sit for the next few days as it experienced America. If you notice the boards are now across. When looking under it, I think the supports were under strain some. So, we put a piece of Plywood down and rotated the boards. It seemed to work a little better. Also, notice the tarp. I get an email the week before I left that Bill sent. He made sure to leave this so we could wrap the machine for the trip. Just a great guy that Bill!
Ok, we got it loaded up.....and I dont know how quick we want to roll.....
This may take a while to get back......and the next update will cover that one.
Wow, don't know how I missed this earlier. I grew up in Lompoc. Not far from where your hotel is. Left a lo-o-ong time ago but still have family there. Some very good Mexican food not far from your hotel, like just around the corner on A Street. Cafe San Martin. Always a stop when I'm in town.
Did you learn the correct pronunciation of Lompoc while you were there? Lompoke is how everyone that lives there pronounces it. How we tell those from there and not.
I learned it from hearing on the local radio.
I have been dyin' to hear how the move went. Glad to know you got it home safely. What an odyssey! Thanks for posting.
--bb
I still owe the return trip. This week has been busy. The short notes.
LA traffic socks
Stay is the right 2 lanes when towing in Cali
7.3 Godzilla super duties pickups are more to the front of the tank
Alright, Let's see if we can wrap up this trip.....
When we loaded it up, as said we set the 4x4 sideways across the trailer. We debated as to speeds, and all that. Before we rolled out of Lompoc, we stopped to fill up again and top up on the energy drinks. I mean, when you roll over 1200 miles in a day, you need them.
So, here is a aerial of the city. I found it, its cool, and we had to drive in through them mountains and back out through them.
So, we pull out of the Gas station and start heading back down to LA, cause its 200 miles closer drive than goins slightly north......yep this comes back to bite us. When we get to the first turn, honestly before. Derek and myself chat breifly. We decide, "It's been a good trip, and if this thing falls off somehow, we are flooring it and not looking back.....
We stopped a couple miles in at a pull out, just to check straps and such. All looked good. So, back on the road and back the same way we rolled up. WHICH WAS NICE! Being that I am OFT, Oilfield Trash, having the haze lift and seeing the rigs off the coast was nice. I mean, why not.
So, we rolled the 1 to the 101 all the way into LA. It all rolled well through Santa Barbara, and down through Ventura. Somewhere between Thousand Oaks and Burbank I started getting calls from my kids schools and hitting traffic.
Those who do not know me, I have 4 kids. I hear from the school......about 4 days a week. I have some emotional children and also a couple are fairly ADHD. As in, they are the "poster child" for it. This is from a Dr., so take it for what its worth. I talk to the school who tell me my eldest refused to get on the bus, and they needed him to get picked up. I informed them I was sitting on the wrong side of Los Angeles, California and it may take me a bit to get there. The wife was MIA on the phone, which we later found out that her phone died, wouldn't charge, and since we have a nanny to be at the house for the kids to get off the bus she went to the store for groceries. Anyways, I tell them I can get our Nanny to pick them up.
As stated, we had hit traffic, so that made it easier to line this up. The school graciously allowed for verbal confirmation of pickup of the children from someone not on the list as we couldn't get there. Not the first time, and I travel a lot now. Not just for dum.....random assorted tools I can use. Yes, we will say that.....
I finally line the kids up, get a pic of them with Nina *the nanny*, so thats good. Now, we just drive. NO BIGGIE!
The right lanes, well they aren't moving fast, so we move left, and left, and left, and then the HOV. The sign says 2 or more people. We fit that! So we gained a lot of time through that. This let us traverse to Glendale without quite as much delay.
Somewhere around Glendale, the HOV slowed to some of the other speeds and slower. I ditched out to some more right side lanes. As we do, I see a CHP car rolling up and cruising through the HOV. Which, I must note, he was only 1 person, not 2+. Anywho, I see a gap in front as he rolls next to us and rolls his window down. Something tells me that he wanted to speak to me. So, I roll down the window and he says, "In the state of California you have to be in the right 2 lanes when you tow." I said, "OK, Thanks" and move to that side. I figure, I can't argue not knowing if he yelled it at me. My hearing isn't great, but doubt I could work that one, so...
With this, we stayed with this CHP officer for some 8 miles.....which is like 18 hours or something. Just craziness...
We drive through LA, and keep driving. Around Pasadena, our map gives a reroute. So we exit, turn north, cut through a couple neighborhoods, and back down and onto the freeway again. About 3 miles, and saves us like 45 minutes. THANK YOU! we are still short of San Bernadino. One other reroute pops up, that tells us to go 15 North.
15 North goes up to Barstow and then 40 back east. This adds a lot of miles. Plus, we made it to 110 and 15. Which is getting darn close to out of LA, at least from where we came from. So we ignored it, then the secondary GPS on the phone said to do it. So, we decided finally, F IT! and we went up to hit the 15. The secondary GPS took us about 5 miles up and then back down the 215 to I10. Somewhere in this time frame I get some messages from my friend in Huntington Beach area. I give him my 20 to which he texts back, "OMG, in Pasadena?" This was at 8:38 PM.
Here is a diagram of the trek through LA:
So, if you have been keeping up, we rolled out at 1:43. Its 8:38. We had traveled approx. 212 miles, which according to Google maps right now should take 3 hr and 16 minutes. This had taken a total of near 7 E36 M3 HOURS!!!!
I was pretty much done. I made it to another Casino which showed to have many different food options and stopped to fuel up. We attempted to grab Panda Express, but they didn't allow in house dining. This made us feel great about life, so we went to the interstate and got on. I got onto my hotel apps and found one in Palm Springs.
We swung into a Circle-K, grabbed waters, food*only the best of gas station fair for this crew!* and a nice big IPA they had on the shelf. I mean, I never said I didnt self medicate. We went around the corner, checked in, and were out in about 30 minutes I am sure.
We got in and it was hot. It was hot when we left. I did note that Palm Springs is the desert. So that appeased Derek as to why it felt like that.
I drove from Palm Springs through Pheonix, and down to Tuscon. Derek slept for another 2 hours in the truck I think and I lost track of where exactly we stopped. When we did, I was surprised at the near 15mph winds it felt like we had been driving in. I like my truck....I just gotta say. Never noticed this.
We pumped in some more fuel at a Love's, and on to Tuscon. Here, we stopped at a Texas Roadhouse. We didn't have to be in a huge hurry and with all the...well, crap, we ate the day before. I figured we may as well treat ourselves. I had the plan to show Derek "The Thing". If you hadn't seen, well you should! This is right at 75 miles from the RoadHouse. We were showing 72 miles range.... JUST PERFECT!
I drove this stretch. We got on the highway, and to conserve fuel I dropped behind some semi's running and we dropped speed down a little. This seemed to work. We put the range up and were looking just GOLDEN!
Around Benson, AZ there is a climb. It keeps climbing to the Texas Canyon Peak, at which, there is a rest stop. We got to see this rest stop....
As we climbed, and climbed our range dropped. At 4.7 miles from "THE THING!" we dropped to 0 mile range. The truck ran for another 2 miles. At which point, the on dash display still showed 2* climb rate. The truck stumbled. We coasted to the entrance of the rest area. THE ENTRANCE! There is not a shoulder, we were it. We blocked the entrance as I could do nothing. The bad part? This was less than 1/4 mile from the summit. I firmly think that had we been on flat ground we would have rolled in on the fumes.
I called back to Benson to a truck stop to get 2 gallons of fuel sent up. I called "THE THING!!!!!!!" also, but they couldnt bring me fuel. While we waited, a hot shot driver swung in and backed up to us. We spoke for a moment and he pulled us into the rest area. This was a huge safety increase for us, so that was nice. The fuel delivery showed about 10 minutes after this. We rolled out and made it those last 2.5 miles. YEA!!!!
This place is amazing! Spend the $5 to go through the "WHAT IF" Museum.
The "What If" portion goes that an Alien race came to Earth, enslaved the Dinosaurs, and used them to progress themselves. Then, there was some dino's that didnt work. Since their DNA didn't match with the mind control headsets and there was a war.
I mean, I REALLY want to use this mural in my home. How could you not? Yes, That also in a full size T-Rex there!
Then they go through the non-prehistory and how the aliens have had a hand in all the things. ALL OF THEM.
Finally, you see "The Thing". It's like the missing link.
They do have a REALLY sweet Farmall tractor, and a Model T Speedster, a Graham? Bros. truck from the 20's, and a Rolls from the 40's. Plus, this awesome old RV!
\
We finish out this great learning experience and jump in the truck. Derek says he wants to drive, so, fine. I got the name of a place to eat in Los Cruces, NM. Timing sounds about right, so we shoot for there.
We roll in around 8pm. We go to Habaneros.
Decent spot, but I stand by my assesment that they needed more spice to the spicy green sauce.
We ate, and calculated how far to go. After the last unscheduled stop, we played it a bit safer. Also, knowing some of this area, I knew there is NOTHING there. So, Van Horn was slated as the stop.
TX is great, we got some high speeds we can run, especially in the west of the state. When we cross over and break out of El Paso, Derek bumps the speed to the speed limit. I politely say, "Stick to 75, we aint doing that...". After I drifted in and out of sleep after El Paso. We get to Van Horn, and stop for fuel. Derek said he's good and wants to drive. Look at the range vs map, and say Ozona or so will work. I crawl into the back seat to lay out for a spell.
I time travel those 200 some-odd miles and awaken to off I10 going to a gas station. We fuel again, and he says he is still good to go. I crawl into the back into the back seat.
I awoke in Boerne next. We fuel and I ask if I should drive. This was the right question and we swapped. I drove that last stint to the house.
Overall, we had a fairly uneventful trip. We rolled into the house about 9am. Derek went home and slept for about 2 days straight. Im not sure, but sounds right. I, on the other hand, worked with the wife to make sure the garage was clean. We washed the floor and swept it all out. Then setup fans and such. In the middle of it all, we got lunch, and stopped by Home Depot. Around 8pm I finally showered and sat on the couch.
In the midst of all of this, I had setup an unload on Monday morning. Able Machine Movers is who I had been directed too and their price sounded pretty good. So, I had set that up before we rolled out. Friday, as we were loading, they called to confirm. I said the machine was in Cali with me and we would be in Sunday. I don't know they believed me. So, I said I would call if we had any issues and kept the time.
They, true to word, were there before 8am. 
They brought out a decent sized forklift. The fact that my garage had an 8' door aided immensely for fitment. The arm, well, that was cool.
I pulled the trailer up and they hooked on to pull it off. Really, they picked up, and I pulled the trailer from under it. A bar was slid through to keep the machine level for move in.
I had marked the spot of where to put it. It was a PERFECT spot.
So, when we got it there, I decided, "no, lets move it back about 3 foot."
The back corner I think looks pretty good though....
Able is great, call them often! Just saying. This unload took 30 minutes. Thats it. I know the fitment was better, but still, they had this down and knew what was what!
My dad has been an electrician for, well, my whole life. I have done electrical since I was about 5. He would take side jobs when my parents got a divorce and had to do them when I would come for a weekend. So, since we were doing that, and I couldnt go fishing until we finished, I would have him show me how to wire and start on one side and he would start on the other. He checked my work and I got to go fishing a lot sooner! Of course, he never paid me....and I never got passed apprenticeship, or ever was called one. Dangit, I think I got the bad end of that!
Ok, my childhood aside, I sent him pics of it loaded, then at the house. I talked to him this past week when I rolled to Pleasanton after this unload for my real job. Hey, they pay me so its real enough! He said he planned to stop in this Saturday. I was good with that. Then, he asked what I needed. I thought I had it all and told him what all I had. He thought we were good, but brought some stuff anyways.
He got in Saturday morning and we pulled out all the stuff. We put the rotary 3 phase converter and motor in there. I showed him the pics of the wiring as it was. He did 3 phase up to 720 quite often, but it came in as this. No converter needed. We looked it over and came up with a plan.
The back of the garage has a 30 amp 220 outlet. You check the tags on the converter and, hey, we are good. 
You can see it on that wall in the background.
So we put up the converter box, then wire in all the parts. First, the motor. Then, the plug for the machine. Then, the plug into the wall.
Then, I turn the switch and fire it up.
IT TURNS ON!
One small problem, the computer will not boot. So, its like you have the windows screen up on your laptop and it wont do anything more. DANGIT! I went and tried to go through and see what I can see, but to no avail. I can get the motor to do a test run and spin, but no X,Y,Z axis or computer.
I mean, could a 1700 mile trip shake something loose? Surely not.
I did speak to a friend who deals with large machines to get them running. Ill supply the Michelob Ultra and he'll swing by to look at it. So, chips will need to wait a bit. I will get them done though!
And, for those wondering, 
A good little trip and Ill get more info up hopefully soon!
No chips, but you could probably check everything and make sure it stayed level and square?
In reply to Mr_Asa :
Yep, that will be done. I returned the trailer yesterday, THANKS MARCUS again. Also, I will be gone during everyweek from here till mid November. So, progress may be a bit slow through years end.
In reply to Thinkkker :
That corner of the shop looks fantastic. I did just post an ad I saw for a better lathe, nice Clausing, but not sure it's a good enough deal to travel for! I'll definitely help, if your interested.
Lookin' good, and great road trip stories.
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