GRM New Years Game 2018 Pictures

In reply to Robbie :

Hahaha, all good mate, at least I didn't poison you. It's probably a bit of an aquired taste, and ironic that you mentioned beer given that vegemite is/was a byproduct of beer brewing 

Regifting an open and partially used jar of vegemite, yessir, I like your style hahaha. 

On a related note, your box turned up this morning, photos to follow soon, just have to finish trying not to lose my E36 M3 at local government for their inability to get things done......

I always wanted to try vegemite. Bet I can get some on Amazon...

A day late posting images, but here we go anyway!

My youngest son saw the box on our porch as soon as we pulled up to the house, and knew right away what it was.

The first peek inside:

I spotted a note inside and pulled it out first.  Right about then the gift vultures in my house (10 and 11 year old sons) started to circle 

The first haul- some really awesome decnals and a Lexus racing desk calendar.  Honestly I was stumped by the "This Old Tony" one, I had to look it up.  If I have it right, it's a Youtube channel that looks right up my alley!

Next up: two really cool hats, an American made Flexon chain (for a road or mountain bike?), a Quinn bottle opener, an Aaron's can coozie, a proper 6 speed shift knob and an oil pressure gauge!  My youngest absconded with the TRD hat saying "I'm wearing that to school tomorrow", and my oldest tried to claim the dork hat.  I told him we will arm wrestle for it (joking of course).  I'm going to see if I can build the oil pressure gauge into my Rabbit project :-)

A Michelin flag, some long Ty-Raps, some "LRFs", three proper Swagelok fittings, a wrench (hmmm), and a "Miraculous Liquid Pro Radiator Activating Formula" kit.  I don't know what that last one is, but it has to be good!

The wrench needed more examination though, as I had not seen one like it before.

I suspect what we have here is a friggin skookum thumb detecting nut berkeleyer!

Last but not least, a boingy air hose and a CB radio!  I've never personally owned a CB, and honestly haven't used one since I was six years old in 1980.  Probably...  Same goes for a boingy air hose too I guess.

I told my kids (gift vultures) they can't use it until they research, learn and can recite proper CB lingo.  So technically, the radio is an educational gift!

In all honesty, this was a great package and a lot of fun to open.  Thank you secret GRM santa gifter!

In reply to paranoid_android :

I'm confused... why would you cover your address with something that has your address on it?

In reply to ultraclyde :

Hopefully the industrial strength 10MM won't go missing too easily.  The Mopar filter is from my horde of Fiat bits, and the center cap was one of the few pieces of my Malibu that didn't disintegrate. Im sure it's hard to believe but I have more buses somewhere, now I have a year to find them.

AClockworkGarage said:

In reply to paranoid_android :

I'm confused... why would you cover your address with something that has your address on it?

To protect the sender’s secret identity of course.

Mndsm said:

oldopelguy said:

volvoclearinghouse said:

In reply to Mndsm :

We'll see...they haven't posted their box opening yet.  ;-)

Well, since I had an egg in my box that must be me you're typing about, and I just got home and opened:

Which seems innocent enough from the outside. The return address looks eerily familiar though, like I have written it somewhere recently. 

Inside I got wood! Wood with words!

 And stuff!

And an egg!  Know what I'm having for dinner tonight. 

Wow. If my math is correct, vch has about 6 more ford big block pistons to go. 

Woe be to the next 6 years' recipients of my boxes...

But, on the flip side...you'll get an egg freshly squeezed out of hen's butt.  I'm actually amazed...I'm 2 for 2 with shipping eggs cross country and having them arrive intact.  

Mezzanine said:

Who else loves seeing re-gifting?

 

Me!

I mean the "No Trespassing" sign is in a league of its own, but seeing things get passed from person to person within the community (like a running gag) is a favorite of mine

In reply to paranoid_android :

LRF's = little rubber feet, to keep stuff from getting scratched or moving around...

Glad to see some it will be fun for the family

A wild box appeared!

My sender was sneaky, using a fake name and address.

It's a good thing it was delivered successfully, if it had gone back these vintage smartphones would have been lost forever. 

The required sticker, a hammer, some leftover vinyl in a very nice blue, a tire pressure gauge/window breaker, and a window switch from a Taurus (with one dead switch, apparently).

Some very small hammers, assorted balls, a charging cable that may or may not fit my new cellphones, and a twist on the traditional license plate - it's temporary!

And the crown jewels of the box - car magazines from the early 90s (and some vinyl, from which the sender can be easily deduced).

When's the last time you opened a magazine to a full 2 page Marlboro ad?

Also, there's an armorall ad proposing that you slather it all over your slant nose Porsche. Probably not recommended these days.

Thanks John Welsh!

In reply to cmcgregor :

Was gonna say, I bet I know your your secret Santa was.  I got a box from him last year.  ;-)

We need close-ups of the packaging for the miraculous radiator fluid. The marketing claims are fantastic.

Also, that R&T with the blue Miata on it is a collector's item for Miata nerds. At least I hope it is, I've got a copy or two. First full test of The Answer IIRC.

Keith Tanner said:

We need close-ups of the packaging for the miraculous radiator fluid. The marketing claims are fantastic.

Also, that R&T with the blue Miata on it is a collector's item for Miata nerds. At least I hope it is, I've got a copy or two. First full test of The Answer IIRC.

Keith, I got the miraculous radiator fluid from a Japanese importer/engineering friend of mine out in California. I have been sitting on that sample package for a few years, but never felt like I NEEDED the extra power it promised on the package. I can check to see if he still has any more...

Keith Tanner said:

We need close-ups of the packaging for the miraculous radiator fluid. The marketing claims are fantastic.

Also, that R&T with the blue Miata on it is a collector's item for Miata nerds. At least I hope it is, I've got a copy or two. First full test of The Answer IIRC.

I think I qualify as a Miata nerd - I was/am irrationally excited about it.

In reply to cmcgregor :

I wanted to send you something Miata but I'll admit I was not willing to part with the C&D version. 

I bought my 1990 Red Miata in 1993...and I still have it.  It now has just less than 100k miles and is serial number 008869  

I completely overlooked that one of the mags has my subscription label and name still on it.  So much for sneaky.  

Wow, those pics suck.  Here is some closer shots if anyone wants to read the old article.

In reply to cmcgregor :

Another humorous note.  When I got your name and address for the game I did not recognize the name immediately.  Then, I googled your address and though your Mazda5 is not in the driveway of your google street view, I recognized the house immediately from having seen your recently purchased Mazda5 in that same driveway from the picture you posted in the Mazda5 thread.  

In reply to DuctTape&Bondo :

You are most welcome.  The slime is pretty nasty when added to the bath, I recommend a bucket and a smaller volume of water for best results! 

Look what I found on my porch!

Lets see what’s inside

It’s a heated ice scraper.  I will be using this for something!  

Old-school wrench. I’ve decided to kill Professor Plumb with it in the Library. 

A drill index. I thought there was only  1/8, 1/4, and 1/2.  Imagine my surprise!

Not one, but two foot pedals. One will be the foot rest in the FiST, the other goes on the motorcycle. 

Gauges!!! Boost and Oil. Now where could they go? hee hee hee

I love this!  And it’s true!

And a 10mm socket so I can swap engines in a 4th Gen Civic. 

And a nice letter, which I forgot to do, and they even figured out who I was. (Damn Rondo fan club!) 

Thanks to whomever you are!

Ok, after a bit of a delay, time to show of my new stuff!

My box also had a bit of a menu thanks to customs, although only cookies and small car parts were listed.

Nice and full, a boost gauge, letter and brown paper to kick things off, I'm liking it already!

A letter from Robbie containing greetings from Chicago and a bit of a run down as to what's in the box. Beer is mentioned, so no time for further reading, time to find said beer!

Brown paper feels heavy, making liquid type noises, this must be the beer! Or Robbie's playing some kind of cruel joke.

It is beer! It feels like you know me so well hahaha. It immediately went in the fridge, will report back on it once sufficiently chilled.

Now onto the rest of the loot! Boost gauge, pattern opperated padlock, obligatory stickers, Luz Anderson auto museum trophy for best specialty car. A bag of drill bits from the mr2 parking lot build (that's awesome, and about as close to the challenge as I'll be getting for the foreseeable future)

Next up we have a pair of floormat shaped coasters, a set of red anodised valve caps, a husky 10mm spanner (used and regifted, I'll see if I can engrave it and regift it again), a sta-lube bottle opener (perfect for the beer!), An antenna to suit ?? (Cool none the less), more sticker, a Datsun 510 badge (very awesome, wouldn't find one in Australia easily as they were sold as Datsun 1600's), a bmw bbs rim center cap, a cool little Fiat? Which has rather temperamental wheels and tyres (sooooo, definitely Fiat), part of the beers packaging and lastly a box of trader Joe's candy cane flavoured Joe Joe's (I've got a bit of a sweet tooth, so looking forward to trying them)

Several hours later, the all important moment arrived! Time to test out the beer!, Krank shaft kolsch, it poured really nicely and tasted great, thanks so much!

Thanks for everything Robbie, awesome

In reply to ultraclyde :

Keep your eye on eBay, there could be a jar of low mileage, barely used Vegemite listed shortly in the Chicago area.

Seriously though, you should be able to find some somewhere over there to try in all its salty savory glory

In reply to daeman :

Glad the beer made it and was still good! 

Yes, even the toy Fiat suffers from parts randomly falling off. 

In reply to Keith Tanner :

I got the images as quickly as I could.

Swmbo stopped at the mail, and lo and behold- there was a box! whoa. The REAL enzo ferrari? I am not worthy. I also didnt know he had an office in florida. 

I also believe mr. Enzo has been stalking me- because someone is an artist in their own right. well played, mr. Ferrari. I elected to not open the box aggressively this year (and work would not let me borrow the 461 with the 28" bar. THATS a fun chainsaw) . This served me well, as the first layer was..... bubble wrap! Swmbo was very upset when i didnt let her pop all of it. My bubble wrap, dammit.  Once removed, the bubble wrap revealed many treasures, most of determinate origin. DIY tackle maker book covered the top. Neat stuff. Book set aside- 

Stickers, bungee cord, zip ties, 1/4 compression cap (with ferrel) super neat Porsche hot wheels semi (sorry next victim,  definitely keeping that) and a Windsor fuel pump block off. I know ford entered lemans to spite Ferrari 9r something- I didnt know enzo would send the guts of his slain enemies. more things! Tent stakes, a super sweet audio catalog (that had a womans name on the back? Mr. Ferrari....does your wife know? A radiator cap (presumably from a windsor) microfiber towels, a crizal lens cleaner (I need all of these. Seriously. I ruined all my other ones) tent stakes, a 3/4x6" brass nipple (this is actually a really nice piece of pipe work). A general tire can cookie, some ptfe tape, two reflective stickers,  a 10mm deep socket,  surgical dressing scissors....what I THOUGHT were grm stickers (even better, they're magnets!) A Haynes for a honda accord, a valve from a motor lovingly wrapped in little trees, a windsor oil prime, some hose clamps, a magnet with some of Britain's finest metal attached, and easily the scariest fish hooks I've ever held. But, once I uncovered ALL OF THAT- there was.....a live cat? He seemed pretty content in the box, so...

Ok, just kidding. That's pastrami. He likes boxes, apparently. (I got him on Sunday. Still learning). 

All in all, some really neat stuff. Between the piston out of the tunachucker I got last year and the windsor bits, I'm pretty sure I own more Ford horsepower than my 89 escort. 

Thank you, mr. Ferrari. I shall treasure all of this. 

now my fridge is fast.