newlin-deschler.com Blog

Happy Birthday

Steve — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 23:18:51 +0000

Alex Drumming!

Steve — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 17:11:44 +0000

What I’m impressed about this is not Alex’s technique or sense of rhythm. He needs work on both. What I’m impressed about is that he figured out the double-bass-pedal beat all on his own.

We were listening to some nu-metal song with a double bass beat. I told him to listen to it and notice how the drummer was basically running on his bass pedals. He couldn’t wait to try it out.

He sat behind his drum set and started running on the double-bass pedals, but better than I ever could. He stopped and asked what to do with his drum sticks. I got up to show him, but he said he wanted to figure it out himself. Which he did, the next time he tried it.

Going back a couple of weeks, the smile on his face when he first played what I call the AC/DC beat (quarter note high hat, bass drum on 1 and snare on 3) was awesome to see. I was making him practice a straight high-hat beat with the bass drum on 1. Then the same high-hat beat with the snare on 3. I then tried to get him to do them together. All of a sudden it worked. He was playing the beat. He looked at me with a smile that went from one ear to the next.

I said, “Alex, you did it! You did a real drum beat. Now you know every AC/DC song ever written.”

He replied, “I wish I could forget it. It was so fun to learn.”

I replied, “There are plenty of new beats to learn, but they’ll be a lot easier now.”

Apparently I was right. As I said he learned the double bass drum beat without any problem.

Alex’s MiniMoto!

Steve — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 16:53:05 +0000

Bella TV!

Steve — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 23:04:20 +0000

Our New Dog Bella!

Steve — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 19:04:05 +0000

Kasey’s Talent Show!

Steve — Sat, 08 May 2010 22:58:46 +0000

Review of the Nerf N-Strike Longstrike CS-6

Steve — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 01:34:45 +0000

We decided to test Alex’s N-Strike Longstrike CS-6 against an N-Strike Raider Rapid Fire CS-35 and an N-Strike Nite Finder EX-3. Nerf claims that the Longstrike has the longest range of any of their guns at 35 feet. Can it shoot a dart 35 feet? Check the video to find out.

To summarize, the Longstrike can shoot over 60 feet, depending on the dart used.

The Raider did pretty good, with some of the darts going past 50 feet and one making it 60.

However, the clear winner at distance was the Nite Finder EX-3. It shot a dart a whopping 85 feet! Unfortunately, the Nite Finder is single shot gun that isn’t much use in a battle situation.

We also did some experimenting with some of the darts. The darts that went very far consistently went very far. While the darts that did poorly consistently did poorly. There must be latent defects in some of the darts which keep them from going the full distance.

Update – April 3, 2010:

We got an unmodified LongStrike to shoot an incredible 85 feet today!

Kasey Draws SpongeBob!

Steve — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 23:48:38 +0000

ATV Sledding!

Steve — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 19:48:46 +0000

Yes, You Can Service Your John Deere L-Series Transmission

Steve — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 20:49:54 +0000

If you own an L-Series John Deere (I own an L-2048 while my dad owns an L-130) you might have noticed that the manual says the transmission is “sealed” and that it is “not user serviceable.” I took that to mean that if anything went wrong with the transmission, you had to replace it because it couldn’t be fixed.

Well, that’s not entirely true. Since last summer my L-2048 had great difficulty going up hills after it warmed up. In searching about the problem online it was definitely related to the transmission and not something cheap and relatively simple like the drive belt. (More on that in a bit.) So I started pricing a new transmission. They’re about $600, not including the installation. Ouch!

However, I came across these instructions on changing the oil in the transmission. Those that have tried it solved their “can’t climb hills” problem. So I decided to give it a try and it worked.

It took me about two+ hours mostly because I was by myself (it would have been awesome to have someone help me drop down and lift up the transmission into the tractor) and because I didn’t really know what I was doing. Now that I’ve done it once, I’d guess the entire job could be done in about an hour. In fact, I’d guess it would be easier than changing the drive belt. Mostly because to change the drive belt you have to disconnect and remove the steering column.

I’ve included the instructions just in case the link ever disappears.

I have a JD L118. It had a K46 trans that failed at 177 hrs. It was replaced under warranty with a T40 which is apparently the same as the K46 whith a couple of small changes. I don’t know what those are though. Anyway, I now have 295 hrs on it and I decided at 175 hrs to change the trans oil. JD says that it is a sealed unit and can’t be serviced. Tuff Torque says that periodic servicing would extend the life of the unit. The factory recommends 10W30 motor oil. I use mine 8 hrs at a time so it has plenty of opportunity to heat up. With this in mind I used Mobil 1 15W50 synthetic. I realize that this is not what is recommended, but I think it was a good choice for me. As you can see I have 20 hrs on it so far and have had nothing but good results. Here is a step by step of the precess.

1. Raise the rear of the mower.

2. Remove the rear wheels.

3. Disconnect the brake rod on the left side of the trans.

4. Set the parking brake. This takes tension off the belt.

5. Support the trans and remove the six bolts holding it to the frame.

6. As you lower the trans remove the belt from the pulley and unhook the reverse switch, the forward/reverse rod, and guide teh freewheel rod out of the hole in the frame.

7. Now that the trans is on the ground, clean in very well. You don’t want any dirt to get in.

8. On the top of the trans, on the left side, is the Fill/vent cap. Pry this cap out with a screwdriver.

9. Turn the trans upside down to pour out the oil. You may have to tilt it back and forth to get it all. There sould be 2 quarts.

10. Now slowly pour the new oil in. If you pour too fast, an air bubble will form and push the oil back out. You will need to tilt the trans back and forth to get the air out as you fill it. you should be able to get nearly 2 quarts in.

11. Reinstall the trans, but leave the wheels jacked off the ground.

12. Pull out the freewheel rod. Start the engine and release the parking brake. At this point quickly make sure that the belt is tracking properly.

13. Push the forward/reverse pedal back and forth a few times slowly.

14. Push the freewheel rod back in. Push the forward/reverse pedal again and make sure the the rear wheels turn smoothly and the trans is not making any unusual noise.

15. Shut off the engine, lower the rear end, and test drive the tractor.

Some people have suggested adding a drain plug. I don’t feel that this would be a goo idea in this application, as even if you could drain the oil, there is no access to refill it.

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