GRM New Years Game 2022 (ooh ooh)

I got a box!

It says no animals were harmed in the packing, lets see what is inside...

An unharmed cat!

Actual contents include some articles of clothing, a note (that I always forget to include in my box) and an awesome drawing of my Miata. I'm glad it made it into the box instead of on it because it is super cool and will likely end up in a frame on my bookshelf. 

Under the clothing was some Rolex swag, some stickers and a 10mm socket safely trapped in a plastic bag. 

Next we found the source of the intended rattle in the form of a kaleidoscope and contour pin gizmo along with some more playing cards, colored pencils, possibly screwdriver holders for pegboard (?) and assorted hagerty merch. 

Safely contained in a neat latching cigar box were even more stickers and Hot Wheels. 

And finally at the bottom, a cabin air filter that will likely fit my daily Subaru, assorted micro relays and a bulb in a holder, various Lego brochures and instructions, a license plate from someplace called the sunshine state but has a picture of oranges instead of the sun and a Moss Miata catalog. 

Thanks Floating Doc! It was a great box of E36 M3, especially the personalized drawing!

In reply to AWSX1686 (Forum Supporter) :

Aw, crap.   Crap Crap Crap.
I'm that guy. I got the box (let it sit for like a week) I opened with glee, I took pictures, and I completely forgot to post the opening the next day.  I'm so sorry.  January was nuts.

To that end...the unboxening!

Oooh.   Nicely decorated, and a veteran box at that.  (Snort).

Layer 1!  Emergency tool and window switch.  For what?  I know not. 

Layer 2!  Hooks and picks (possibly the thing I've actually purchased the most times at HF...and I was due for a new set).  Car trash can.  And a book for college advice.  God willing, I'm never going back to college, but the advice seems good all the same.

Layer 3...what the hell is it?  It's huge.  It's German.  The part number doesn't look anything up.  I'm gonna guess...something to do with ABS?

Layer 4...Tackle crafting (now that just sounds dirty), a fishhook, Allen keys, wrenches, and...OMG.  A real honest-to-God whistle tip!  Bubb Rub and Lil' Sis' would be proud.

Stickers!  Lug bolts! Wrenches!  Whippets!

All in all, I have to say....it's one of the nicer boxes I've come across in my day. 

I'll keep the tradition going by reusing the decorated box for my victim next year.  Thanks Andrew!

In reply to psteav (Forum Supporter) :

That's the first one of my boxes to show up this year, other than the new one. I suspect some of the older ones might finally have died. If I'm not mistaken that's the one that's got morky on the side- which means it started at Stafford1500, and onward. 

Sorry if kept y'all waiting! Finally made time to upload my unboxing!

The box came from Michigan. Rattle Always OK...could be a vintage box!

 The box weighed in north of 15 pounds, and had a good amount of duct tape; along with the rattle, encouraging signs that it has likely got good stuff like tools/parts, rather than all fluff, or all rusty cast iron brake cores. 

It is a vintage box!

The first layer looks promising; the box is certainly packed!

Got the first bit of loot spread out; Hella cap (cool!) found the 10mm sockets, big honking hose clamps, Michigan towing company notepad, some great stickers (LogDog Racing Mustang II!!!) some coozies (Gonna have to look up Speedcult Detroit) some baseball cards that were apparently thrown in with an eBay purchase, and a GRM shirt (size S.) I'd love to say that the shirt nicely dovetails with my New Year's weight loss resolutions, but given that I'm almost 6'2" and currently 230ish...I might need to regift the tee. 

The second layer looks meaty! 
 

This is where we start getting into the parts! Chebby Express/Savana (only one N, mind you) door latches, and control stalk that looks to be from the same (I deal with lots of vans at work) and a Delco rotor which Google says is for '84-'97 GM/Chevy, and some sort of mystery filter thingie that is dipped in faux carbon fiber. Green Egg BBQ keychain, a sticker and a couple more standard sockets masquerading as the lost 10mm, door handles yet to be identified (GM?) and a SBC water outlet...w00t!

Backside of the fax carbon filter thingie.

Onto the final layer! I paused for adult refreshment to garner the strength to continue.

The box that keeps on giving! As always, starting upper right and going clockwise: some rusty spring perch (?) thingies, pipe cap made in the USA, sweeeeet Bilstein rubber ball filled with the sweet and juicy gold-wrapped Haribo gummibaerchen from the motherland (!!) some sort of switch...probably a door switch for a dome light (?) security pin which I'm sure will be useful, four security lugnuts with key (perfect! I'm putting it on the one wheel those thieves keep taking! ) one of those awesome stick-under-cabinet LED lights...and it even works! Another pause for refreshment so I can take in the awesomeness. 

S-hook for hanging things (where was this a couple weeks ago?)  plus wire separator, yet another standard socket that looked a bit like the elusive 10mm , Valeo clippie thingie and ballpoint, bottle opener, and a couple Rowe keychains. I felt weak at this point, but came to accept that this gift load is destined for horizons beyond me. Try to utilize it all as I might, I feel like some will be forwarded to the next recipient next year and the tradition shall continue. 

The next bit  is one of the highlights. The bigger adjustable hole cutter is a Craftsman!!! Both look sharp...score! Then there's a pin with a pin, two GIANT GIGANTIC bolts, mysterious gasket thingie, awesome manual drill driver ( pour one out for the non-essential trim bit that didn't make it intact ) genuine carbon fiber part, complete with notes on how to improve it (I feel like there's a story here) and a switch panel...the shape is appropriate for an Express/Savana, but I feel like the switches should be side-by-side...?!? 

10/10 Fun box...would do again. Thanks to the one who prepared it, and thanks for everyone's patience! Do we have to wait an entire year?

My outgoing box is now in Montreal, which is a place I've never been.

In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :

At least it should get there the correct year.

Stampie said:

In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :

At least it should get there the correct year.

Is there no thread in which I can be free from such assaults? :-D

No.

RevRico said:

I was starting to worry, not gonna lie, but today my mail lady got a heck of a work out, because not only did both my Dutch ovens show up, but a hefty box from deepest Oregon arrived. 

Love the stickers in the outside.

 hey look, there's more of them. Whole bunch of zip ties, magazines, a New Walbro 255, a freaking centec meter (works most of the time), and a healthy page of gasket material that I was getting ready to buy anyway.

Are those white zipties reusable?

 miscellaneous hardware and bike parts, including rest liking things I'm not sure about, an old school looking loud as hell bell, reflectors, big flared tube with connectors.  And a ratchet strap that "sort of works".

My biggest surprise, a 5 point harness!! Dates are from the turn of the century so I probably can't use it anywhere, but it certainly looks cool.

Thanks Jesse from Oregon (ransom?)!! And thanks Bill for putting this together for us again too put theUSPS through their paces. 

It was me. I did zero stalking, so hopefully some of the stuff is useful for you.

The white zipties are reuseable; a great German innovation. We get them with incoming shipments at my work and they are very handy!

The fuel pump is new, just sat on the shelf for a few years, by which time I had long since sold whatever I was going to put it in, so into the box it went!

The hardware and parts are a mix of stuff I had around and a regift or two. The black plastic curly bit near the ratchet strap is a primitive motorcycle cruise control throttle hand rest thing, the cast aluminum bit is a four-cylinder Toyota coolant outlet which so far defies specific model/engine ID. The position sensor is Subaru, not sure if it crankshaft, camshaft, or otherwise. The flared hardline is Subaru as well, high pressure fuel line for direct injection system. The spring and L-bracket are from who only knows? The round reddish part is a pulse damper I pulled out of some vehicle at a junkyard and was playing with to see if it would help with MAP signal on my old ITB setup I was playing with. The center cap is genuine Braid from a set of real-deal rally wheels....funny that their wheels are bombproof/insanely strong, and their center caps are like any other center cap. The curved parts with the threaded rod sticking out are motorcycle bead locks...they fit inside the rim and the threads go through a second hole opposite the valve hole and clamp the tire to the rim for low-pressure offroad use. I tossed in a couple of my favorite burly key rings, and bits of hardware that might be of use for something.

The multimeter works fine almost all the time, but then it became a little erratic, so I replaced the 9V battery, and it still seems the same (fine 95 times out of 100, but occasionally a wacky reading that goes away with power cycling and re-testing.) I thought about maybe replacing the probes to see if that helps, but I also have a nice Fluke multimeter, so into the gift box went the Centech! I hope whatever the issue might have been was localized to my garage, or user error on my part or something!

The five point harness is out of one of my Toyotas from a couple decades ago. At one point I was going to get them re-webbed when I had a racecar to use them in, and then when those stars didn't align, I figured I would repurpose them to make an awesome tie-down, or for some garage art or something. Now it is your problem....er....opportunity...yeah, opportunity! 

In reply to ae86andkp61 (Forum Supporter) :

Glad you enjoyed the box, I was getting nervous it wasn't going to be posted!

The door latches and window cranks are from my 2000 Firebird after I converted to power. Turn signal is '98 Jimmy after I added cruise control.

Faux Carbon mystery is a Valve cover breather.  Real carbon part is from a past box along with the drill/bits

Thats a Hella-nice-hat...

Got my box today! We already have no mail delivery due to ice, so I didn't even have to wait for a notice and I just went in.

2nd year box, originally from Curtis73. This time from Aaron_King, so the box first came from Berkeley not in Berkeley and then from Delaware not in Delaware.

It may not make a third trip...  (three year old helping point)

The box it pretty packed.

Most of these goodies are self explanatory, but not all. 4 injectors from something, a Japanese ECU that under no circumstances is yo be connected to a 1978 or older car, some reference CD's that I will load up to see what they go to, a fancy pressure port adapter, a weird sensor/valve thingy, and a little sensor cap with a window. That last one will take some more looking at.

Electrical connectors are definitely going in organizer, I always need more of those. The door handles are actually metal and heavy. Hood springs from a Mercedes, a Sony remote, what appears to be a fitbit. The big black thing seems like a tray liner from a center console. HW or Quattro and an RX-7. Any guesses on which one is already claimed? I didn't let him grab the Quattro. There is also a sample of evaporust, which I have been wanting to sample... convenient. That is a GRM koozie under the evaporust.

Lots of stickers (woohoo +15 HP!) and a nice little screwdriver set. One of the stickers came with some good advice:

Thanks Aaron_King! I'll see if I can try the evaporust this weekend on some old bumper brackets.

'twas a good day. I very specifically shaped box adorning the letters "GRM" showed up today.

I know the rules, but I'm hesitant to share the photos. I'm afraid of the amount of envy that will come my direction. But... I guess that's your problem. 

Animal inspection:

A letter... I always forget to put a letter in my box... My supplier correctly identified me from completely legal stalking.

The letter aludes to the awesomeness behind it!

That's correct, I got a one of a kind, custom, hand made, helmet hanger with racing stripes. If it was in the garage, I'm guessing it was in multiple pieces before it was put into the box!

And the just when I thought I was loved, I found the curse... "How to LS Swap almost anything". Cursed to a lifetime of bench racing, and looking at every used car and wondering if I should take it on as an LS swap project... could it be a challenge car? Googling "how to RWD a Mini" Aaaaaaaggggghhhh.... It's already started.

Good thing there's a Carnegie Mellon carabineer to make me look smart well I'm looking at future swap projects. Plus I already have some practical things like brake pads, a squidgy, and a magnetic mount.

Awesome box! Thank you, definitely worth the wait. I'm going to mount the helmet hanger in my office so when I'm on video calls all day at work every will see it and ask me about cars rather than talking about work! 

In reply to matthewmcl :

Glad the box made it mostly -unscathed, sorry it was so late.  Lets try to explain some of the stuff:

• Injectors are from my 9-5 Aero, one was leaking this summer and after 240+ K miles I figured change them all.
• The ECU is a re gift from 2 years ago, unfortunately I don't remember who it came from.
• The pressure port adapter came on one of the Arnott air spring replacements for our R class.
• The valve is a broken windshield washer pump from same Merc.
• The sensor cap with the window came from Curtis and I think its a llight cover from some kind of Ford.
• The hood springs are what happens when you shop eBay after a few drinks, needed two, ended up with 6
• The door handles are from my 9-5, swapped them out with some later brushed ones.
• The mat is from the SAAB also, liner for the glove box.
• The Evaporust is also from Curtis, he sent two.

Thanks to Hungry for doing this again, too much fun.

In reply to ae86andkp61 (Forum Supporter) :

Hell ya, rally bits are always welcome. Some day, when the kids are moved out and I hit the lottery I'll have an actual rally car. 

There's a lot of useful bits in the box, and just some really unique stuff to stare at for a while. I appreciate it man. 

Dear Canadian, your E36 M3 is on its way.

Another update. I think this means you should receive tomorrow:

Woohoo!

AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) said:

Woohoo!

Yup... a box was waiting for me upon my return from taking the wee one to the school bus. I'll open it with him after school.

In reply to P5Racer (formerly BMWGeoff) :

excellent! i think you'll both find something to enjoy in there.

Aaron_King said:

So how much you want for one of the N shirts? 

In reply to psteav (Forum Supporter) :

Glad you enjoyed it!

The big unit best I can tell is a C4 corvette ABS unit. Possibly worth money on eBay. I got it in a lot of parts from a late forum member, and figured I'd pass it along. 

Box received... definitely rattles, mild damage, hopefully nothing escaped.

Looks promising... lots of stickers right on top

A decent selection of stickers so far

A few more stickers, a couple of dirty rags, a CD, the first of several hot wheels, some paperwork, an LED pot light, the requisit fuses in an old school case

My son Bradford documenting the selection of Hot Wheels on his tablet

A closer look at the selection... a Ford and some Mazdas (among others), very appropriate for this family.

Yet more stickers, license plate frame, trailer hitch pin, wooden shim, some American Hand Egg banner, and an oil filter... need to check the application to see if it's useful

Another LED pot light, half a set of brake pads, a power cable, an HDMI cable, battery hold down bracket, a pack of sheet metal screws, and what appears to be a piston pin with a small portion of conrod still on it.

Thanks AngryCorvair for the new cars :D

In reply to P5Racer :

i see Bradford is partial to old-school Hondas, he must be a smart boy! During the year, whenever i found myself being dragged to Target, i'd browse the Hot Wheels and grab a GRM-inspired piece for the NYG box. The oddball Matchbox made the cut because first-gen Civic. Oil filter fits KL-DE from 2nd-gen Probe GT. Given the Mazda origin, maybe it fits the P5? Most of the stickers are regifts from prior years. GRM License Plate Frame is lightly used.  It dyno'd at +10hp on the Saab 9-3. Wife couldn't handle the power. Use it wisely. 

In reply to AngryCorvair (Forum Supporter) :

It does appear that the oil filter will fit the race car. If the plate frame adds 10hp to a little Saab, I wonder how much it'll add to the Excursion's V10?