Ukraine Refugee Assistance

Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) said:

The bad news is the new starter didn't fix the issue.  I think I know what the problem is, and am working on implementing a solution though.  Basically I'm wiring in a relay to pipe fresh juice straight from the battery to the starter solenoid.

Fingers crossed this works

Wow, this is surprising. A little bit of hasty internetting suggests that the factory did not fit a starter relay at all. I certainly didn't expect that. Apparently they figured that the solenoid would be sufficient. I guess it is, under normal conditions, but after thirty-five years of wear, probably some sticky old grease, maybe a little degradation of the wiring and terminals - normally I hate to modify things that should work, but in this case, do it!

In reply to Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) :

Quick note:  This has the added benefit of keeping everything together as in addition to all of this, the remaining $545usd from our fundraiser was sent to Vikki in cash to purchase a list of meds that Dr. Julia sent her.

Hi everyone!!!

Now for more detail on that 

I informed Dr.Julia that there's some money left and if she needs anything (meds, spare parts for her vehicle or anything else) she could rely on us for it. This way we can support her as quick as possible.

The first thing she asked for was medicine. I ordered and picked them up the day before the stuff Bill sent arrived. 

Now i have to get everything to Dr.Julia and and i've been waiting info from her on how best we can do it. Luckily, i found out Friday night that she would have the opportunity to be in Dnipro for the weekend - to spend some time with her son and pick up some things and... of course!!!... pick up all the stuff at my place!!!

Awesome!!! 

we didn't have much time to talk - quickly loaded everything into the car, quickly took a few photos, a quick reminder that she can count on our support and wishes from all of us to stay safe.

The next early morning she's going to the East again...

Medic fund report 

Thanks you all!!!

*Bill posted the photo on the previous page 

Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) said:

VikkiDp said:

In reply to Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) :

"AMERICAN BOOOOOOOOOOYYYYY" he sings when he realizes he's seen me before

It made me laugh a lot!!! (sorry, man) 

No, it's not that song

This one 

this song from the 90's  it was very popular during the collapse of the USSR.

it's about a poor Russian girl trying to find an American boyfriend 

https://www.youtube.com/embed/W7hAo28NCXc?rel=0

 

Oh, I am 100% downloading that and playing it if I see that guy again

I love it!!!

a little bit of fun  if i may 

before the song "American boy" was released there was another song "Russian girl"  

it was very popular band, i'll say you 

enjoy!!! ha-ha-ha!!! a little bit of creativity made in the USSR 

In reply to VikkiDp :

I informed Dr.Julia that there's some money left and if she needs anything (meds, spare parts for her vehicle or anything else) she could rely on us for it.

Well, Dr.Julia needed help pretty soon.

She had been planning to visit the service station since January this year. Well, when she got back to her service location she had to do that - something squeaked when the car was moving(she mentioned it when she came to visit me).

She called me yesterday asking for help buying spare parts - some parts of brake system(brake shoes, bearings, calipers) and a few parts of the fuel system need replacing.

The spare parts ordered and as soon as they arrive i'll pay for them.

and Dr.Julia's car will be back on the road 

Fingers crossed, guys.

I'll keep you posted 

DarkMonohue said:

Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) said:

The bad news is the new starter didn't fix the issue.  I think I know what the problem is, and am working on implementing a solution though.  Basically I'm wiring in a relay to pipe fresh juice straight from the battery to the starter solenoid.

Fingers crossed this works

Wow, this is surprising. A little bit of hasty internetting suggests that the factory did not fit a starter relay at all. I certainly didn't expect that. Apparently they figured that the solenoid would be sufficient. I guess it is, under normal conditions, but after thirty-five years of wear, probably some sticky old grease, maybe a little degradation of the wiring and terminals - normally I hate to modify things that should work, but in this case, do it!

You know what's funny about that, is I was youtube'n from my phone and every video started "Your starter relay is here on the passenger fender..."

Except mine didn't have one!  I wasn't sure if this was a euro vs US thing or what, but I was way too exhausted and unmotivated to dig in at all.  I started pulling my old starter apart...  thought about snagging the copper contacts from the new starter...  then I decided to test the new starter with jumper cables... I was all over the place (but only doing anything half-way.

Ultimately I decided to put all my tools down and go take a rest.  As soon as I did my eyes popped wide open:  "I could wire in a relay using the old starter signal as the trigger!"

I figure two things with this one: 

1) One butt-splice and I'm back to OEM configuration.

2)  If the ign switch, or relay ever fails then I can jump the starter terminals via the relay socket and crank my engine (hopefully I remember to take it out of gear first).

I started taking pictures, but haven't finished the job yet.  Post coming soon.

VikkiDp said:

In reply to VikkiDp :

I informed Dr.Julia that there's some money left and if she needs anything (meds, spare parts for her vehicle or anything else) she could rely on us for it.

Well, Dr.Julia needed help pretty soon.

She had been planning to visit the service station since January this year. Well, when she got back to her service location she had to do that - something squeaked when the car was moving(she mentioned it when she came to visit me).

She called me yesterday asking for help buying spare parts - some parts of brake system(brake shoes, bearings, calipers) and a few parts of the fuel system need replacing.

The spare parts ordered and as soon as they arrive i'll pay for them.

and Dr.Julia's car will be back on the road 

Fingers crossed, guys.

I'll keep you posted 

man, I really feel that one.  I know it doesn't always seem like it, but we're asking a lot from our vehicles.  I'm glad these issues arose now as opposed to in her area of operation. 

Fingers crossed!

Guys, I made a quick video from clips I recorded on the last run.  I'm still playing around with sound bites, and background music and whatnot but I'm beginning to realize that if I'm going to make an ACTUAL video out of one of these runs then it's going to actually take a pretty decent time investment (read:  Probably not going to happen )

It's all good times though:

 

In reply to Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) :

Cool!!! Funny video - i definitely like it 

Haaa, i'd say those were more than generous liberties you took 

Hi everyone!!!  How are you doing?

A little bit of news from me 

First - monthly transfer for moms ans kids fund received, thank to everyone who continues to support it 

One of the kids has B-day this month - he's turning one. So we can buy some baby food and something as a b-day gift for this baby-boy, and i'm so happy for that  

I think it's a great tradition to congratulate the little ones on their first anniversary and I'm glad we're gonna keep doing this 

Moms and kids fund report

The second one - about Dr.Julia vehicle.

I talked to her on Friday. 

Her car hasn't repaired yet. Dr.Julia just doesn't have time to do that and she keeps driving with broken brakes 

We keep in touch with her  She knows she can count on our help and support at any time 

In reply to Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) :

but we're asking a lot from our vehicles

Agreed, but sometimes (i'd say very often) we're asking a lot from ourselves - even more than from our vehicles. Sometimes we care more about the cars and forget about ourselves. 

So the important thing is to remember to get a technical service for yourself and remember to take care of yourself   

Have a good week, everyone!!!

VikkiDp said:

In reply to Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) :

but we're asking a lot from our vehicles

Agreed, but sometimes (i'd say very often) we're asking a lot from ourselves - even more than from our vehicles. Sometimes we care more about the cars and forget about ourselves. 

So the important thing is to remember to get a technical service for yourself and remember to take care of yourself   

Have a good week, everyone!!!

You're not kidding.  I'm finding it harder and harder to keep the pace up, and I feel like I'm getting further and further behind on just about EVERYTHING

I got the new GoFundMe typed up and edited today.  It's been submitted for GFM's approval.  This will be for our easter run to Dnipro.  For us in the west, Easter will be celebrated in Ukraine on May the 5th, so that will give us LOTS of time to get ready.

Once more into the breach, my friends.

VikkiDp said:

The second one - about Dr.Julia vehicles.

I talked to her on Friday. 

Her car hasn't repaired yet. Dr.Julia just doesn't have time to do that and she keeps driving with broken brakes 

We keep in touch with her  She knows she can count on our help and support at any time 

If she doesn't have her brakes fixed by the April run, we're going to need to coordinate a visit between the two of us.  I'm confident in my ability to do the brake job in the field (if I know what to bring).

We'll get her sorted.  One way or another

Speaking of Monday, I promise I'm trying to be better about getting these out on time:

As she's posted above, we got last months donations sent to Vikki and I am super stoked that we'll be able to get this kiddo their first birthday present

Going on down the list, we'll have our GoFundMe opening soon.  I'll post the link for that as soon as its approved by the people who approve such things.  And it looks like most everything else is closed at the moment.  I do have to be careful with GoFundMe and Dr. Julia as GFM has gone on to specify that collecting donations for a drive to assist a military will not be allowed.  I'll have to be very clear if/when I help Dr. Julia that none of the GFM funds were used to do such things, and probably should go out of my way to avoid collecting our "adopt a medic" and for our children in Dnipro at the same time.

and that's that, folks!

I'll post the links here as well, just for ease of clicking:

Dnipro Express website:  DniproExpress.com

Vikki's "Mothers and Children" (Monthly Sustainment):  paypal@gmail address (Hungarian Forint)

Julia, our "adopted" medic:  Yahoo paypal address (I'll keep this open and send any money that's received, but will put an official fundraiser on hold for now)

P.O. Box address available for any parties interested in shipping items directly to me in Hungary (PM me for address, it is safe to share)

Hospitallers!:  Contact restored!  Tourniquets, israeli bandages, chest vents, and decompression needles are all needed.  We can order locally, or you can purchase and ship them to me for in-person delivery on our next run (Late April, 2024).  PM for details.

Currently being worked on:

Freight forwarding:  I've cast some lines out into the pool but nothing's biting.  I haven't given up and hopefully will have something for us sooner rather than later.

Currently Closed:

Rebekah M:  Contact lost, and I was unable to reestablish.  Effort moved to Dr. Julia

Kisgorbo Refugee Shelter:  Warm wishes to all who took refuge.  May you all find peace and prosperity wherever you are.

Social media accounts:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/510575651154518

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/dniproexpress/

Thank you everyone!

Hi guys!!! 

We got good news this morning (yeah, it's morning here now) 

Dr.Julia car is being repaired 

In reply to VikkiDp :

holy smokes... 

yeah, I think it's safe to say that those weren't going to make it until I got there in April...

Speaking of car work, I got my starter sorted!

Ok, I really cant tell you how much I don't trust off-brand parts.  And out here, everything feels like an off-brand part (this starter being no exception).  It's a big reason I like to order off of Rock-Auto.  It'd probably be the same for a Hungarian traveling to the US, but it's nice to be reassured by the brands you trust that you're not going to be back in the engine bay in two months fixing the same thing you already fixed.

That being said, I really did not want to install this darn starter.  Instead I thought I would take my old one out to see if I could save it.

After taking the old one apart I quickly realized the answer was very much "yes" but that copper Girthquake mentioned was so worn I thought I'd just be back in there in two months... 

Initially I had the idea of taking the good parts out of the new starter, then I thought better of that and just installed the one I bought.  It's something that'd never eat at me back in the states, but getting things out here is already expensive and slow enough to have to do once.  I really hate doing it again (this is why I had such a nice pile of spares back in the beginning of all of this).

Anyhoo, new starter in aaaaaaaand?????

*click*

Using a set of jumper cables, I decided to jump the starter.  I couldn't hit the solenoid but I could hit the motor terminal, so I did.

*wiiIIIRRRRRRRRR*  went the motor.

Ok, so it's the truck's fault, and not the starter...  I pulled everything back out and tested it once more with jumpers:

I spent some time looking for a starter relay  that was in my wiring diagrams in the FSM, before I realized that I was looking at a diesel version of my truck and not my actual truck.

Did I mention it was early on a gray Monday when I was doing all this?  It was really hard to get motivated.

By that time though, I had already done some searching and found a relay that clicked when I turned the key:

Luckily it was buried underneath the dash, and I wasn't eager to pull it apart. 

Instead I took a nap.

about half-way into my nap, lightning struck my brain.  I went back out and looked at my diagrams and sure enough, there was NO starter relay.

I put the dash back together and rummaged through what little spares I had left.  Luckily they still included a 40-amp relay, and a fuse holder.  The idea was simple, wire the relay so the voltage from my key energizes the coil.  Then wire the batter through the switched leg, directly to the starter!

I mocked it up so make sure it would work.  I wouldn't have the actual starter installed, but instead my multimeter so show me if I was getting 12-volts when (and only when) I keyed the starter on.

With everything checking (and double checking) good, I kept moving forward.

Eventually it was time for the real test!

I'll take it!!!

In reply to VikkiDp :

Those look like they could have come off a beat up old 4Runner.

I'm so glad she got that taken care of!

The next day was a bit tougher.  I was really killing time, but still had stuff to do on the truck.  I wanted to take care of those corner lights and that meant wiring up a new circuit that wouldn't blow the fuse.

Except I had an idea.  My radio hasn't been working lately and I thought I'd disconnect that from the circuit to see if any re-wiring of the lights was needed.  I pulled the plug out of it, stabbed a couple bulbs into the corner lights, aaaaaaaand

It turns out that it was the dead radio that was killing my fuses and not my new lights!  I took that as a win.  The dead radio could stay disconnected, the lights could stay un-hacked, and the fuse could stay right where it was.

So then, why was this day tougher? 

(sorry to do this to ya)

we had to help one of our buddies across the rainbow that day.  He'd been having problems for a while now, and we picked this day as the day.  The vet is a great guy and does house calls, so our guy was able to get out for one last wrench session even though I had him set up with a cozy bed just off camera (he's been having bad mobility issues for a while, and his medicine hasn't been helping him lately and I really didn't  want him trying to walk around).

Fixin the lights was just my way of keeping my mind off of things until it was time.  Just another reminder for us that life isn't standing still just because there's a war on...

Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) said:

So then, why was this day tougher? 

(sorry to do this to ya)

I'm really sorry. That's always hard. But the important part is that you got to be a part of each other's lives.

I hope the Hungarlings are doing okay.

In reply to DarkMonohue :

Thanks, man.  The Hungarlings were asked and opted not to be there for the service but are handling it pretty well.  Luckily both Mrs. Hungary and I were home that afternoon before they came home from school so we could schedule it for then.

Guys, some good news:

We are LIVE!!!!

https://gofund.me/8d153851

All proceeds go to bringing our kids in Dnipro a little bit of Easter this year.  Luckily for us, Easter in Ukraine isn't celebrated until May 5th of this year so we have plenty of time on our side.  Please share with anyone you think might be interested in coming along!

Hi everyone!!!

Dr.Julia's vehicle is repaired 

fully repaired brake and running gear systems - new brake shoes, new calipers, shock absorbers and more.

*i apologize, i'm not sure if i know all the names of the parts in English   anyway i'm in the process of learning 

We were able to pay for most of the parts(17600 uah + bank fee, total sum 17991 uah), the rest was paid by Julia herself. 

She asked me to say a BIG thanks you to you all 

I' m really glad we were able to do this and support her  I can also say that this is very timely!!!

So, Adopt a medic fund report 

 we ran it out 

In reply to Hungary Bill (Forum Supporter) :

Glad to hear that work on the truck has progressed  

I spent some time looking for a starter relay  that was in my wiring diagrams in the FSM, before I realized that I was looking at a diesel version of my truck and not my actual truck.

Ohhh, man, you really needed a little rest!!!

So then, why was this day tougher? 

(sorry to do this to ya)

I'm so sorry  It's too hard to lose our pets  

The time they spend with us is very short and valuable, i think.

Our lovely girl went over the rainbow a few years ago, but we still remember and love her. 

Never again - i told mysef... ummm, until we found a homeless kitty