Worst part about the virus

[fishnjim]

isn't getting sick or listening to the talking heads and X-spurts spew non-sense, it's the damage done to the economy and lack of availability.   I needed some extra thick washers and drove down to the local Fastenal store to get some and they were boarded up.   Casualty of covid.   I had to order some and it cost >$100 to get 2 dozen flat washers, up to 1/2", and 3/4 of what I order is not available to ship!  They wanted double shipping for the back order, so I'll have to pick up at the other store, 1/2 hour away.   WOW.   Can't live like this, cramps my style.
It was bad enuff getting things before this govt flu, now it's impossible, and no one cares if we're getting ripped off or not.   Ripping off is NOT inflation!   I'm in the middle of a two week wait for a simple refrigerator, and that's the quickest I could get.   It's just the one in the garage but still need somewhere to keep the cold ones cold!   Might have to give up wrenching and fabrication...   Still no ideas on what to do when the cad goes off lease in 4 months.   Might have to order something now or buy a bicycle.   I gave my old bike away because i never rode it for the last 6-7 years.
It'll beat owning a EV!   I was hoping to go to the museum show and north fish'n, that's off the table.   Lets hope this thing is winding down and a majority of people own up and get vaxed, so we can start to resume living.

[hornetball]

Agree.  Economy is really damaged and lots of people have decided to never work again.  It's going to take years to recover and re-establish the American work ethic.

[TJ Hopland]

Ya it doesn't matter what industry or country you are in, stuff is hard to get.   None of it is just one reason.   Darn near everything is a long list.   Can't get the raw materials, can't get labor to build it, can't get labor or a truck/container to ship it,  can't get it through the ports/customs, then we are back to can't get it on a truck or someone to drive the truck.  If somehow it makes it that far can we get someone to put it on the shelf and open the store so you can walk in and buy it?

Hopefully you were joking about getting a bicycle, 2020 was beyond a record year for bicycle sales and pretty much all the parts and bikes in the system were sold by mid 2020 and the 2021 stuff that was already in the pipeline was sold late 20 and early 21.   Same thing that happened with cars, once the new ones were gone people started looking at fixing older stuff.   There was several months last year you could not find an innertube.  Even patch kits sold out because people had no choice. 

[Cadillac Jack 82]

There is a meme (modern term for a photo with a catchy or funny sentence below it) that showed a kid eating ice cream and smiling.  It had the very morbid sentence below it that said "The world that you grew up in doesn't exist anymore".  While I'm not trying to be cynical here its a very true statement.  The hobby, parts, etc that we enjoy now will exist in some form years from now...but I seriously doubt it'll ever be the way we remember it.  The best way to shake this dark looking future is to pull out that Cadillac, give her a nice detail, fill her up with some 93, and hit the road.  Life is too short to stress about what might be.

[TJ Hopland]

I can't drive the Caddy at the moment because of a minor fuel leak.  Waiting on some O rings.  Its been down most of the summer mostly due to waiting for parts.   Takes forever to get them then they turn out wrong or don't come at all so its back to waiting again.  Finally get the part and that leads you to the next issue which guess what needs parts that take forever to get. 

Parts for older cars I think will continue to be available but the quality of them I think is going to be the problem.  There is also the more complex stuff like tires that I think is going to be tricky.    Its a lot easier to make a brake caliper or fuel tank than a tire.   We may all be on custom rims with barely any side wall showing at some point till we can do the hover conversions.

[skinny_tom]

I understand the predicament. I live in a "small town" with two hardware stores and two auto parts stores. I went looking for the proper flange bolts to reattach the water pump, water pipe and such to the caddy. Prior work was done with low grade bolts that were the wrong length and lots of washers. Needless to say, not even the Fastenal in the next town over or their hardware store had every thing I needed.... Ended up buying about 5 times too many from McMaster Carr just to get the right sizes and lengths. Can't buy them individually from them. It's either 5 or 10 of each. 8 bolts cost me $100 with lots of spares.

But the car has the right bolts on it. 

Also, I've been an electric bike nay-sayer for a long time. Then I rode one... If you're looking for two-wheels to get around on, you may want to test one out.

[Daryl Chesterman]

fishnjim, Israel, the most vaxxed country in the world also has the highest incidence of delta variant Covid.  Covid is NOT going away!  The nature of a virus is to mutate, and Covid will become like the seasonal flu—there will be a "vaccine" available for it, and you can choose to get it or not.  I choose to remain unvaxxed because I see absolutely no reason to introduce an EUA "vaccine" into my body based on what it does to some people's body.  Some die, some suffer from myocarditis, pericarditis, as well as other maladies per the VAERS reporting system.  I'll take my chances without the "jab".  People with the vax are still getting Covid so what good is it?  Please explain to me why there are people in the medical profession who are not getting the "jab"!!!  Also explain to me why the federal government along with social media and the main stream media are censoring the KNOWN and PROVEN fact that Ivermectin, Hydroxychloroquine, Budesonide and other treatments are very effective in treating Covid, and all of its variants, when administered before the necessity of hospitalization.  Explain why the federal government is exempting the Postal Service workers from getting the "vaccine"  and why is Congress exempt from the "vaccines".  There are too many things that DO NOT add up.  The federal government has lied to us too many times to have any credibility.  It is all about control.  Our freedoms are being removed from us one by one, and one of these days we will wake up and we won't have any freedoms anymore!!!  Call me a conspiracy nut if you want to, but I can still read, think and reason in a logical manner and what is happening surrounding the Covid pandemic does not make sense, anywhere in the world.

Daryl Chesterman

[fishnjim]

Discretion, the better part of valor.
I cancelled that order, I don't need any $8 washers sitting on the shelf!   
Alternate plan B worked when I found I had to raise to it higher anyway for clearance.
I guess the old man needs to slow down and think more.   

[fishnjim]

Shucks, TJ, there goes my back-up plan; peddling.   I guess I'll have to hoof it.  Nothing to buy anyway so I won't be very tired...   I got shoes!
I knew I was wise when I bought that used boat because I couldn't get a new one.   The dealer tried to talk me out of it, he was successful for a month until he dropped the price...   
I was partly sticker "shocked" yesterday at the parts store buying a set of shocks for the tow vehicle.   At least they had them!  On pickup, the 2019 XT5 got in the local car show at the parts store.   I parked like the classics because there were no spaces and someone came and took a picture???   Wish I had the '58 going now.

[TJ Hopland]

Be careful you don't wear out your shoes,  that may be the next thing we can't get.

Interesting about the quantity thing.  I was needing a magnet to repair my bike and the best option seems to be that I have to order 50 of them.  Price isn't bad but I don't think I need 49 spares.

I didn't get e bikes either till I tried one.  Maybe we better try and swing this into Cadillacs?  I have a hitch on mine so I can carry my bikes.   You don't see many classics with racks on em but I do it all the time.  Sure you don't get as much exercise as you would on a regular bike but its way better than sitting on the couch (or our couch like car seats) which is usually the alternative. 

There are for sure idiots out there on ebikes just like everywhere else making the group look bad but 98% of the people I see are out there looking and acting just like any other bicycle and either getting where they need to go or just having a good time.     

[Mike Josephic CLC #3877]

I drove by the local Wexford Cadillac dealer a few
days ago.  This is not a "mega-dealer" that sells
multiple makes, Cadillac only.

To my surprise, there were NO CARS in the lot and
nothing in the showroom.  I knew that some GM
plants were closed, computer chips hard to obtain,
etc., but this was a shocker to say the least!

This will take many months to correct, maybe until
2022 at the earliest.  Supply chains are strained
to the breaking point.

Mike

[TJ Hopland]

That is curious how you see some dealers with little to no cars and others that look like they have decent stock.    Is it just the indies vs the larger groups and their buying power?   Or are the larger ones just moving what stock they got to the more visible sites so people still come to them? 

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

The problem with Parts Supply, is that for too long, too many people have been reliant on the making the "quick buck", so to speak, and using the cheapest form of manufacturing, and now we are realising what that meant.    It was good whilst it lasted, but when things go wrong, everyone complains.   And rightly so.

If one needs something good and reliable, then build it yourself.   Third Parties don't care who gets hurt.

I know that I am not an expert on anything, but one thing we all need to do when commenting on anything health-related, it to get the information from your own personal Doctor.

Forget about what is being advertised on Social Media, and Doctor Google, as nobody has your own health in mind than your personal Doctor, or health professional.

Bruce.

PS.   One good thing about Wrecking yards is that one can scrounge so many parts that are laying on the ground, or when taking any part off, take all the fastenings, clips and the like.   You never know when you might need them.   Heck, I am using bits that I scrounged 50 years ago.

[Cape Cod Fleetwood]

fishnjim, Israel, the most vaxxed country in the world also has the highest incidence of delta variant Covid.  Covid is NOT going away!  The nature of a virus is to mutate, and Covid will become like the seasonal flu—there will be a "vaccine" available for it, and you can choose to get it or not.  I choose to remain unvaxxed because I see absolutely no reason to introduce an EUA "vaccine" into my body based on what it does to some people's body.  Some die, some suffer from myocarditis, pericarditis, as well as other maladies per the VAERS reporting system.  I'll take my chances without the "jab".  People with the vax are still getting Covid so what good is it?  Please explain to me why there are people in the medical profession who are not getting the "jab"!!!  Also explain to me why the federal government along with social media and the main stream media are censoring the KNOWN and PROVEN fact that Ivermectin, Hydroxychloroquine, Budesonide and other treatments are very effective in treating Covid, and all of its variants, when administered before the necessity of hospitalization.  Explain why the federal government is exempting the Postal Service workers from getting the "vaccine"  and why is Congress exempt from the "vaccines".  There are too many things that DO NOT add up.  The federal government has lied to us too many times to have any credibility.  It is all about control.  Our freedoms are being removed from us one by one, and one of these days we will wake up and we won't have any freedoms anymore!!!  Call me a conspiracy nut if you want to, but I can still read, think and reason in a logical manner and what is happening surrounding the Covid pandemic does not make sense, anywhere in the world.

Daryl Chesterman

[Cape Cod Fleetwood]

I know that I am not an expert on anything, but one thing we all need to do when commenting on anything health-related, it to get the information from your own personal Doctor.

Forget about what is being advertised on Social Media, and Doctor Google, as nobody has your own health in mind than your personal Doctor, or health professional.

Bruce.

G'Day Bruce,
Although I only had one mission to "down under", Brisbane, it was a beautiful country and I met warm, lovely people.

Here in America the VAST majority of doctors work under 'medical groups', they're associated with mafia level 'health care' institutions and worship at the altar of the hospitals who give them admitting privileges. Ergo, the doctor's will do as they are TOLD, regardless of whether or not its in your best interest health wise. Its how they keep their jobs and hospital privileges. The level of competence or compliance is based on the state you live in here, and that's not only wrong, its been proven deadly. The "hippocratic oath" is simply a wall hanging the cleaning crew have to keep dusted.

I've always seen this, and I'm seeing it now in spades as I'm officially 100% disabled/service connected. Ergo ALL of my 'health care' now comes via the VA. This is the epitome of 'government health care', so its totally on me to keep the doctors and my health managers on my page, on my side, and most importantly, to not let them kill me as they have NO responsibility for incorrect decisions unlike those in private health care. Now, more than ever, worldwide, it is CRUCIAL for the patient to be well informed, and more often than not, that information won't come from your doctor. Here in this country its common for patients to bow and worship their doctors, they're "doctors" after all. I treat them like mechanics, its what they are, and they work for me. Doctor's here don't like being told 'no' or 'yes' as the case may be to their opinion. As the patient, my opinion is the only one that counts, I personally will decide on drugs or procedures recommended. Sure, I'll listen to the 'doctor', but there will be a whole lot of research done on my part as well, and not always from government agencies/websites. If I decide a second opinion is necessary, I'll pay for it if I have to, my life is on the line. Modern doctor's here are counting on patients not being able to think for themselves or to simply bow to what the doctor's say. And that's a recipe for disaster for the patient. IMHO. What's even worse is this 'god complex' has now bled over into the pharmacies. There are now pharmacists who will look at a prescription, written by a DOCTOR, and 'they' will decide if its proper or not. Imagine someone who went to a state run community college nights for 2 years having the ability to over ride the prescription written by someone with 8 years (minimum) of college study with a final degree in medicine and who successfully passed the Bar. That's insanity, we here in America have reached Critical Mass in our health care systems. Now, more than ever, its crucial for the patient here to be well, VERY well informed. And I understand completely in an emergency situation, if I can't speak for myself, I'm at the mercy of the doctor or who ever is treating me. Fingers crossed.

And to stay on topic for the CLC forum, here's a pic of me and The Ark's doctor. 

[Cape Cod Fleetwood]

Lets hope this thing is winding down and a majority of people own up and get vaxed, so we can start to resume living.

Why would you care if others get it or not? You're vaccinated after all. You're safe, right?
I've been vaxxed for TB, measles, mumps, rubella, polio, typhoid, small pox, etc.
I don't care if you have the above illnesses or have been vaccinated for them. I can't 'catch' the above,
nor can I spread it since those vaccines, work.
Odd...
PS millions of us never stopped living, I haven't missed a minute yet, other than cancelled car shows. 

[Big Fins]

Today marks 30 days that I have been out of work. All due to a $300 computer sensor that monitors the emissions system in my truck. Although I'm still being paid, because it's not any fault of my own, being off for this time and knowing I'm just 2 years away from full S/S benefits, I'm seriously contemplating retiring and counting on dividend income to back savings until I can collect on it. Being debt free makes it easy.

Our company has 3 trucks out of service because of this sensor. New truck inventory is "0", used truck inventory, if you can get one that meets your needs is at or near "0". They are pricing them with 300,000 miles on them above the cost of new, just like the automotive market.

I am on the list for a garage freezer which I bought 2 weeks ago and won't come until October. I have to wait until November to get the tires I want for the 'new' Cadillac. I couldn't pass up the price on that one. It should arrive next week.

I've started on my own fruits and vegetables garden so that when the grocery stores become run by the government and they allow you WWII rations, I'll still be able to eat.

I have a government mandate that says I have to submit to a drug and alcohol test and these are given by just 2 walk-in clinics in my area that are lined with Covid patients waiting to get some sort of treatment. I fought with them yesterday that I'm not going back in that place again. They carried a body out in a bag while I was there for my physical. Just another reason why you can't get a truck driver these days. They want to force their Wu-Flu on me and I'm not going to do it.

But at least I'll have another Cadillac to keep me busy! 

[cadillac ken]

The short sighted anti-vaxers/anti-maskers are the culprit in all of this.  They are so busy fighting for personal rights that they cannot see the damage this Virus is doing to the country. Beyond the death toll--- which in and of itself is horrendous, the economic loss, the stress on the healthcare workers and the hospital overruns, the loss of workers in the work force, the non payment of bills (and hospital bills) and mortgages are all products of this Virus out of control.  And coming back from all of it is not going to be a wave of a magic wand.

I'm vaccinated and I still wear a mask.  Vaccination does not mean you are immune.  It is an insurance policy that pretty much assures you that you will not be hospitalized and die. Until folks start to take all of this into account I don't see how things are going to get better.  And yes, I have had more than a few folks in my life die from this virus-- a totally preventable outcome if you just get the vaccine.

Many of you here know I have a restoration/custom car shop of 30 years.  You can only imagine how someone like myself who depends on the timely delivery of parts and the, in some cases, non-availability of parts I need to make a living is costing me big time.  I have guys I am trying to "keep busy" that is costing me.  And of course my insurance has gone up 65% as well as all other supplies. So yes, I'm feeling it big time.

Get the vaccine.  It's the only way to turn the corner on this Virus and hasten it's effects on all of us.

[fishnjim]

Closing in on 7 decades, and one of my life's lessons, just about when it gets it's worst, it'll start turning around. (by definition, can't get worse if the worst!)   Lots of heads spinning out there.
Hang in there!   It'll get better.   Have faith.   
Sad to see German teens on hunger strike for "climate change", because they think there's no future from all the UN propaganda?   What are we doing people?   It's not "social media", it's mind control...   
I think nature is much smarter than politicians and Drs.   When there's too many of one specie, nature has it's ways of correcting the population.   Nature is on nature's schedule not ours.   We can chose to get in sync or not but take the consequences.   

[Cadillac Jack 82]

Cadillac Ken, with all due respect, saying that the anti-vax croud is the cause of all of this is a very one sided way of looking at things.  It is your opinion which you're absolutely entitled to have but it just comes off as elitist.  Just my .02