Build your own home network, Part 2.

Netgear Gigabit Switch

In part two of this article I am going to be talking about each piece of networking equipment and how it interacts with the network and its importance.

The basic goal for any network is to create a reliable, fast and easy to maintain infrastructure. Our network had the following criteria:

All Television, Telephone, and Internet is to be powered by Time Warner Cable (TW).

• Telephone via TW VOIP, Using the 66 block all house phone jacks work.
• Television via TW Digital Cable, our house has two High Definition, and two Standard Definition TV’s.
• Internet via TW High Speed Internet, by setting up a simple network we can share this with our 6 computers and have network enabled backups.

In the last article we talked about our goals for the network and outlined the network map. … Continue Reading

Build your own home network, Part 1

In todays day in age almost everything we use is a small computer, and while devices are getting smallerand smaller every day they are also getting more complex and require all sorts of connections.

In this article i will talk about setting up a home network and centralizing the entire home telecommunications into one central location out of the way of normal life.

This article is based on my house and a few years ago I had spent 2 weeks completely rewiring all the telecommunications of the house and relocating it from outside the house to the utility room in our garage, this required installing over 1000 ft of Cat5e ethernet cable used for both Ethernet and Telephones and 500 ft of RG6 television cable. Each room received three Cat5e cables and two RG6 cables, this provided for 2 Ethernet, 2 Telephone and two Cable Television ports.

The reason I choose the utility closet to use for the telecommunications room was done after careful research and planning, the garage is on the lower level of the house and stays cool year round allowing the equipment to stay cool and not worry about overheating. The second reason for this was the ease of running wires to the attic, In this setup I have a 2.5“ bundle of wires running into the attic where it then is split to each room. Another advantage of having the networking equipment located out of the normal day to day area is the network becomes seamless and you don’t see networking cables and tv cables running all over the house, It gives the house a much nicer feel. … Continue Reading

Project Code Yellow: Paint and Body

So now that the Jeep is running and drivable we wanted to spruce the exterior up a bit.  We thought a nice change in color was in order,  and since we already have a white Jeep we decided to go with something a little more exotic, like, uh, yellow. After a bit of research we decided to get nasson paint since it is available at Carquest in any color combination.  After some debate, and much asking of opinions, we ended up with a yellow that was one shade lighter then the Nissan Xterra color.

The supplies needed for this was:

• One Gallon Paint
• One Gallon Primer
• Paint Activator
• Primer Catalyst
• Laqour Thinner
• Measuring Cups
• Stirrers
• Sand Paper Varied Grits 60 – 2000 Grit
• Polishing Compound
• Electric Buffer Polisher
• Spray Gun ($14 Harbor Freight)
• Air Compressor and Hoses
• Tack Cloth
• Bondo for smoothing body panels
• Resperstor masks!!! !! Very Important !!

The paint supplies cost us about $350.   This included everything but the aircompressor and air hoses. Everything else on the list had  to be purchased.

Once we had finished researching how to paint a vehicle and we had all the supplies,  it was time to start prepping the body of the Jeep.

First we had to remove all the trim and windows from the Jeep.  Most body shops just tape around all the trim but we wanted to take the time to do it the right way, which meant removing any windows that could end up with some paint mist on them.   Ditto with all the rest of the trim and door handles, resulting in only tape off three parts which ended up being just the door locks.

The Jeep had been repainted at one time in it’s sordid past,  using spray paint (rattle cans).  Because of this, the paint was chipping and flaking away, which meant we had to sand down past the spray paint and create a smooth clean surface at the original primer level. … Continue Reading

Project Code Yellow: Transmission Rebuild

When we got the Jeep the transmission was slipping badly and was not drivable, because of this we wanted to rebuild a transmission we had pulled from our 88 Jeep Cherokee. 

We started by removing the transmission from the Jeep and carefully examining all the components, we took a close look at the torque converter and quickly noticed that the oil bearing was stuck to the shaft. This would explain why the transmission was slipping, but since we had the Jeep apart we decided it was smarter to go ahead and put in a new torque converter and rebuild our spare transmission. 

The first step in the process is to source the parts, We have used Transmission Parts of Oxnard in the past and decided to stop by the shop to see what they had.  After a few minutes we where on our way with a new torque converter and all new seals and bushings for the transmission, the owner of the shop had a look at our clutch pack and we both agreed that it was unnecessary to replace them at this time because they had minimal wear. We also inspected the oil pump and sun gears for signs of wear but they all looked good with very minimal wear. 

Digging into a transmission may sound like a daunting task but it is really a strait forward repair and with a little patience anyone can do. We also recommend downloading the factory service manual for the transmission you are working on, this will have many detailed images and tips for working on your transmission. … Continue Reading

Project Code Yellow: Game Plan

Now that the Jeep is registered we had to make a game plan of what we would do to the Jeep. Since the plan was to create a daily driver (DD) that is also highly capable off highway, because of this we wanted to lift the Jeep but also have a smooth ride on highway. 

After a bit of research we came up with a list of major parts to install into the Jeep. 

1. Rubicon Express 3.5″ SuperRide lift 
2. Rubicon Express 1600 Adjustable Trackbar 
3. Doestech Shocks 
4. Rubicon Express SYE Flange, Custom Yoke
5. Coast Driveline, CV Rear Shaft
6. Nasson yellow paint & epoxy primer 
7. New master cylinder & booster
8. Interstate Battery
9. New pads, shoes, rotors, and drums
10. Peel – N – Seal for the floors
11. New Carpet, Seats, Headliner

So now that we had a list of the parts we needed it was time to order, we decided to get the lift online and the rest of the parts locally. After a week of part gathering we had a pile of parts ready to be installed.

In the next article we will show the process of rebuilding the transmission and getting the Jeep running.

Project Code Yellow: Purchasing and Registration

We started Project Code Yellow by searching for a proper donor vehicle, we wanted a Jeep Cherokee for this project as we have lots of previous experience with this model Jeep.  After searching Craigslist and other online sources for a cheap Jeep we found one that was about 100 miles away, the advertisement stated that it ran good and that the transmission slipped. The seller preferred to sell it to someone that would fix it rather then dismantle it, so we had priority in the sellers mind. After looking over the Jeep we discovered that the torque converter was bad and the transmission condition was unknown, the seller did not allow us to test drive it as he was afraid it would not make it back in the driveway. 

While looking over the vehicle we where constantly making mental notes on the condition of different systems and what would be needed to get it to a running state. … Continue Reading

Boats, Cars, Trains and Planes

Since Obama’s election, it’s been very quiet here at Techimoto. In truth, we’ve had nothing much to rant about! Bush has evidently found himself some other hobby than trying to run a country, most likely trying to figure out how the Dewey Decimal System will work in his presidential library and hitting neighborhood yard sales on weekends to pick up a few volumes for the shelves. Cheney still rears his ugly head now and then, uttering some bitter ferocious nonsense regarding how the new guard is ruining everything, but in general, he’s also fading away from our collective 8 year nightmare.

Of course all is not perfect. Republicans still engage in some media spectacles, usually accompanied by shooting themselves a nice collective hole in their foot. The economy stinks for sure. Obama may not have THE answer, but so far, it’s the only one that makes much sense. So forge ahead we must (besides, if Obama’s economic strategy doesn’t work, computers and “blogs” will be a thing of the past; in 10 years we’ll all be busy outrunning howling gangs with painted faces and Mohawk haircuts, intent on robbing us of our precious gallon or two of petro.)

So, where do we go from here? Well, we’ll likely continue to write occasional rants, as we said, the world and our country are far from perfect. And, we’ll continue our “ecological” bent, but with even more with a focus on how it’s applied to modes of transportation (boats, cars, trains and planes). In fact, for the foreseeable future, we will be writing a number of articles on how you, the budget conscious and/or out-of-work average person, can save money by doing-it-yourself when it comes to “pimping out” (now, in these economic hard times, translated as “making into basic transportation”) your boat, car, train or plane.

Author Max Wilson will be doing a series of articles accompanied by useful “how to” pictures and videos about reviving a once DOA Jeep Cherokee. Also soon to come for those of you that can be described as “nautical escapists”, articles from Captain Jimmy about transforming his 1984 41 foot ketch into something that can actually be used as an “escape pod” (that is, escaping in style, without danger to life and limb). Since The Captain is basically professed escapist himself, it will also include some techniques and projects that might contain just a hint of survivalism (example: “Jerry Cans that can Catch Rain Water”).

So, when all is said and done, “moto” means “motion”, so “motion” it is!

A Jeep’s second life.

techimoto has been hard at work the past few months rebuilding a 1990 Jeep Cherokee Laredo giving it a second life. The project started with a search for the right donor vehicle, after a few weeks of looking we came up with a $500 broken down junker that was soon headed to the junk yard for recycling, we saw something in it that the previous owner had not. The Jeep had a working 4.0 inline six motor with a blown transmission with 173,000 miles on the clock, the body and interior was dirty but rust and dent free. This provided us with a good foundation to build off.

Some of the appealing factors for this purchase were:

1. Laredo edition, this means the Jeep has power windows and locks.
2. NP242 transfer case, this transfer case provides 5 different modes of operation (2WD, 4WD Part Time, 4WD Full Time, Neutral, 4WD Low Part Time) this makes it ideal for highway and off highway use. 
3. The 87 – 90 use the same transmission, we already had one from an 88 Cherokee that we rebuilt. 
4. Body was in good shape with only a few minor dings, paint on the other-hand was in horrible shape. 
5. Dana 30 High Pinion front axle and Dana 35 rear with LSD, both geared at 3.73 gear ratio.
6. Factory Tow package prewired with class III hitch. … Continue Reading

Build your own CNC Machine

Complete Machine.

NOTE: I am currently trying to sell the CNC that is in this article, If you are interested please contact me at Max@9xnet.com.  Thanks for all your continued support!

Building your own CNC Router can be a fun and exciting project. CNC stands for Computer Numeral Control and is used to cut designs that were created in a computer CAD program.

This article will walk you though all the steps in planning, choosing the parts, building and using your DIY CNC.

Computer aided design, or CAD, has always interested me but up until recently I haven’t needed to manufacture parts requiring CAD, , and finding out how much companies charge to mill parts, I decided I would make my own machine to do the job.

… Continue Reading