It’s no secret I don’t mind spending a little time behind a wrench. In fact, the majority of my fleet is made up of vehicles constructed, owned, driven and given up for dead long before I even took my first breath in this world. I won’t go into the mental disorders that move one to drive a car or truck that’s less safe, less efficient and more ugly than most of the metal on the road, but I will say there’s a certain something about putting your rig together with your own hands. It’s a form of meditation – unless you have no other way to get to work on Monday. Then the pieces strewn about your garage are a chorus of voices repeating the same questions over and over again: why didn’t you just buy a nice Nissan and forget about this rusty piece of shit? This weekend was one such occasion.

The new Fozzy decided to dump a CV joint on Friday, and by the time I could get the car home, it was already pulling hard to the right side. After a brief conversation with the local parts store, it was clear I’d be waiting more than a week for the parts to arrive, which meant the wife and I would be down to one vehicle between the two of us – the Death Proof International. Only problem with that particular solution was that the truck had decided to spit out a wheel bearing a week prior and we had been waiting for those parts to arrive. As luck would have it, everything I need to do a complete front end rebuild on the truck showed up in the afternoon mail.

Let me just say in advance, I’m sorry for the lack of photos, but it’s hard to juggle a camera when you’re covered in 31 years of axle grease. I spent the weekend battling rusted original parts, beating out ball joints and swearing at universals. By the time all was said and done, I had blown over 20 hours on the project in two days, but the truck is back on the road and faithfully ferrying us about town in disgrace style. New bearings on both sides, u-joints and ball joints all found their way onboard. I didn’t get around to the front brake lines or calipers, but the new rotors and pads are bringing the thing to a stop without an issue. Which begs the question, of all your automotive feats, what’s the best you’ve done in the least amount of time?