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Murphy just took my profits

2K views 14 replies 14 participants last post by  jgoetter1 
#1 ·
It is just me and my step son with 50 account 5 of withch are 3/4 acre commercial lots. So I pick up my second 95 f250 for my step son with a 7.5 western pro plow on it. Figured I would put $500 or $600 in preventative maintenence in it. Well it wound up being $1500 parts and labor. Our first big snow the new trucks plow goes down only $200 no big deal. Then the old truck blows a tranny $2000 not good. Call some friends to sub because the plow goes down again on the new truck $750.00. Two of my subs trucks go down. So I go buy an airens blower $750 and off I go to do small driveways. After 2 nights of snow blowing and freezing my ass off I find a western sport utility plow for my cherokee $3500 because they had to make a mount for it. So the next snow I think I am set old truck up and running jeep with new plow but 5 driveways in the jeep has no steering. The plow mount sheered a power steering pump bolt and next push the bottom bolts broke. So call AAA again and borrow the step sons cherokee and back to snow blowing I go. Jeep was only $100 the dealer covered so some good news. So I am back to the old truck and jeep and then get a call the tranny is done but the oil pan is leaking pretty bad. So I go get 3 packs of JB weld and butter her up hoping it will last till spring. So as of tomarrow I will have all 3 trucks up and running, finally. Then x-mass eve morning I go in the basement to have my coffee to find 5 inches of water and my company lap top floating. Things can only get better right?
 
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#3 ·
Wow all that bad luck must suck but now your trucks are all fixed now your luck will change. Good luck in the future,

-Corey
 
#4 ·
Fyi

Let it be know that the only truck running during the whole time the other 2 were down was my beater F250 that we picked up on the cheap with 175,000 miles. Bought it, barely got it home. Did a bunch of front end repair, replaced the fuel filter, and some tune up stuff. Two days after the new fuel filter it starts running funny.. took it to the shop to check the timing. Turns out to be some undercoating in the back gas tank! New fuel pump and filter$! Noticed a bit of a leak on the angle ram- go to the shop to find out the bolt that holds the blade to the A-frame is totally warped. Got some plates welded on and replaced the angle ram$$! Went to change the oil only to find that the filters for the 95 engine don't fit. Now we have a frankenFord. This all before the first snow falls.
Needless to say, my frankenFord, despite all of the little things, saved our asses when it comes straight down to it... and is still in for less money that either of the other two!
 
#5 ·
I feel your guys' pain. It seems like the last two storms have been anything but normal. One 12" day storm before christmas and then a 10" storm when they were calling for 2-3".


I even had water in my basement too! So I know how you feel. Spend 12 hrs in the truck to come home to that. Great.
 
#7 ·
Wow! sounds like my year so far. Two trucks w/ blown brake lines, salter broken, plow motor gone bad, plow wiring burned up, lost a pin in angle cylinder, blew a hyd. line on plow, battery died at 3am and wouldn't hold a charge. Not all in the same storm thank god, but most of this stuff happened first thing in the morning when no parts places are open and set us back a couple of hours each time.
Hopefully, now that it is a new year, things will go better for all of us!!
I guess it could be worse, spend all that dough to fix things up, then get no snow!
 
#8 ·
Wow, that's insane! My winter has only been about half as bad so far. Keep your head up, and good luck for the next 3/4 of winter.
 
#12 ·
Thought snowblowing was for the birds

I have 60 drives out of 110 in a townhouse development.I use to plow with a reg cab 8' box F250.2 ys ago got an extended cab 8'.Could not make the swing into some drives.Last year bought 2 1332 Ariens snowblowers and a 933 cub cadet.Have an almost new 826 Ariens as a backup.I get $25-$30 per drive per blow.Making great money now and worst breakdown is shearpins or a xmas tree cord getting wrapped in the auger.Use to laugh at the snowblower guys.We just unload and go from drive to drive.Have 2 16 yr olds helping and pay them $25/hr.Combined the 3 of us do about 20-25 per hr.But we are usually done in 3.5 hrs.I give them each $100 plus meals they are happy and cannot wait for the next storm and I put a nice BIG chunk of change in my pocket.I do have the cabs for the blowers but have not really needed them yet.
 
#13 ·
Well we have both f250's up and running with the cherokee as a back up. So last night we go out and make sure trucks are ready and the one truck decides it does not want dash lights. Find the fuse replace no problem. Then no plow lights or marker lights. Find a marker light wire broken so repair and we have marker lights. After tracing headlight wires find 4 more either broke or really green, so replace and fix all those and we have plow lights. I thought we would be outside for like a 1/3 of and hour then 2 hrs later were done. But the good news is both trucks went through there routes without a hitch, so maybe this will be a better year after all.
 
#14 ·
that sucks, with plowing there are so many small things that can take down a whole truck... hydraulic line, elec connection, broken steel"weld" etc, tire, salt spreader.. i mean any one thing and you cant "complete" your job to job tasks.

ive had my fair share of problems too but nothing major. Last year, the newest Boss XT V plow had a line start leaking bad, i must have not tightened that one down enough when i installed it, my fault. Fixed it, added some fluid and was good.

I cant ever imagine the stuff like blowing an engine, loosing a trans, having a plow fall off, spreader that breaks, not just jams up, god!
 
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