We arrived about 3:30 AM local time this morning. I was a bit too tired to type this before I went to bed. Suffice to say the trip back was not uneventful, but thanks to the resourcefulness of my traveling companion Jim, we did make it back with the car. A million thanks Jim!
When we left the hotel on Monday morning we decided to try the old tires that were on the car to see how well they would hold up. They did fine for awhile, but Jim noticed the car swaying on the highway and so when we pulled off to get fuel, one of the old tires was found to be mostly shredded and we decided to change both so we should have no more problems.
A truck stop was nearby and so we went there to have the tires switched. An hour and $30+ later we were once again on our way. The truck stop did not have a tire changer so that was part of the reason for it costing that much. They had to basically beat the tires off and then back on the other rims.
Due to the high cost of the tolls coming through Chicago, we decided to avoid the toll roads on the way back. TomTom said it would take another 45 minutes, but with the additional charges another axle would be it was well worth the extra time, or so we thought.
Mostly because of the time of day (evening rush hour) we went through Chicago, but partly because of the small towns we traveled through, it seemed to take forever and a day to go that way. But we actually came through it with TomTom saying our original estimated arrival time would still be the same, or at least very close.
Once back in Indiana we thought we were home free and was originally supposed to arrive back home about midnight. Then disaster struck! We stopped for fuel again in Lafayette, IN and one of the tires on the car caddy was found to have a huge knot in the side. This was about 8:30 PM and no one knew where we could get a tire changed that late in the evening.
Jim had brought a spare tire for the caddy, but it was not on the rim, so we again needed to have a tire removed and mounted on a rim. The only one available to do that said it would cost $100+ which was totally ridiculous, so Jim said we could do it ourselves. I was a bit skeptical about that because we really didn't have the proper tools to do this job.
Long story short (too late!), the old tire was removed and the new one was back on the rim. A lot of words were said which I cannot repeat here during this process, but suffice to say it was a job that neither of us ever wish to repeat!
All well and good, the tire was back on the rim, but not inflated. I had a small air compressor which we tried to use, but was unable to get the bead to seal due to insufficient air pressure. The police department next door said they had a better air compressor and that was tried, but once again failed. I had a can of fix-a-flat, which also didn't work.
All along Jim had been talking about using gasoline to get it to seal. Basically you pour some gas around the bead of the tire and light it with a match. He was reluctant to try it as he had not actually done it before, but only been a witness to it's miraculous ability to accomplish this feat. I of course was very skeptical about this as well and thought sure it would result in ruining the tire and then we would be stuck until morning.
At some point though, you reach that desperate stage in an event where you are willing to try anything to get the job done. So Jim went over and got a small amount of gas and a match, imagine the attendant's surprise when he asked for that, and brought it back over to the place where we were working on the tire.
I stood back a good ways and watched in total amazement. Jim poured on the gas, lit a crumpled piece of paper and threw it on the tire. Of course it burned, but not for too long. And then just as the fire went out, the tire popped out fully onto the rim. It was totally freaky to say the least! Bravo Jim!!! We finished pumping up the tire with my small compressor and soon were on our way once the wheel was put back on the caddy and our tools all cleaned up. Total time for this fiasco was about 3 hours, plus a lot of sweat, all Jim's.
Other than a slight miscue in Indianapolis, the final part of our journey was uneventful for the most part. Just as we were within 3 miles of being home, I saw a deer in the roadway, which is very common where I live. I said "deer" out loud and once Jim saw it and reacted, the deer had changed course back into the path of our oncoming procession and was promptly run over. We don't think any real damage was done to the truck or car as Jim said he believed it hit the tire of the car caddy and was ran over.
I want to take this opportunity to publicly thank all of those who assisted with this adventure and aiding me in obtaining my dream car. Randy for the use of his truck, my mother, for a little cash advance, but mostly to my friend, and brother-in-law, Jim, without who this would not have been possible. He was the one who encouraged me to follow my desire and buy this car. He promised we would get it home if I bought it and we did. His resourcefulness, companionship and conversation during this trip was more appreciated than mere words can explain.
By the way, although I was tired last night and it completely slipped my mind, I haven't forgotten about the money you loaned me will pay it back as soon as I see you again. Thanks buddy, I really do appreciate all of your help and really look forward to those swap meets we talked about. And if you need help bringing home that Nash, let me know. I don't think I could ever be as much help as you were, but I'll be there for the ride and any other assistance I can provide.
P.S. I dumped some gas in the carb and she fired right up! JK
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