Exporting/migrating a Joomla website to Drupal7, with code

Submitted by Danny on Thu, 05/19/2016 - 14:16

After building the new webiste for Kansas Public Radio using Drupal 7, I needed a way to export all of the old articles from our Joomla website to the new website. I could have experimented with the Feeds module for Drupal or another Joomla to Drupal solution, but our installation of Joomla was sooooo old and outdated that I couldn't trust anything. I decided to write my own bit of code.

How (not) to make a DIY seat for a motorcycle/ATV

Submitted by Danny on Tue, 04/19/2016 - 14:59

For my This Old Three-Wheeler project, a 1973 Honda ATC90, I needed to make a seat. I didn't care much about looks, I just needed something function and inexpensive. That's why I decided to try and make it myself. For my 1974 Honda CL200, I had a hot-rod upholstery shop make the seat and they did a terrific job and the seat is gorgous. This seat, however, is not.

homemade motorcycle atv dirtbike seat diy honda atc90

Chevy GMC Squarebody Trucks Service Manual Free Download

Submitted by Danny on Mon, 01/11/2016 - 12:22

Download it here, for free. I found a copy of the 1984 GMC Light Duty Truck Service Manual. It will of course work for Chevrolet trucks, not just GMC, and for years 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986 and 1987. It will also mostly work for years 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979 and 1980, though a few things will be differest such as windshield wippers, front sheet metal, interior, etc.

$50 paint job! or: How to paint your truck/car with Rustoleum and a Roller (part 2)

Submitted by Danny on Mon, 10/19/2015 - 15:30

There was no way I could afford a pro paint job. I gave myself an allowance of $1500 to restore this truck which included much much more than just a fresh paint job. So an expensive paint job just wasn't in the budget. Then I started looking at alternative methods, like plasti-dip. But when I did the math, a plasti-dip paint job would have cost $400 at least and would not be a real investment into this truck. Of course I could have gotten a dozen spray cans and bombed it, but I wasn't interested in something with basically no quality at all. Then I came across a youtube video of someone painting a small red car with rustoleum and a roller. And it looked great! I started watching and reading more and more. The rolled on version was much harder, shinier, and more durable than with spray cans. I was sold.

The (in)famous $50 paint job! or: How to paint your truck/car with Rustoleum and a Roller (part 1)

Submitted by Danny on Thu, 09/03/2015 - 13:28

The idea is that oil-based enamel paints from your hardware store can be ROLLED onto the vehicle if you thin heavily with mineral spirits and use a high-quality foam roller. The mineral spirits help it level out while it's drying and its supposed to make the paint cure faster so you can wet sand the next day. A glossy, flat, durable (relative to, say, a rattle can paint job) finish can be achieved with a very small amount of money. However, it's very labor intensive. 

Chevy K10 truck restoration Phase 5: Suspension and Wheels

Submitted by Danny on Fri, 08/21/2015 - 13:54

What I'm about to do is not going to be incredibly popular with the chevy squarebody community, especially the off-road bunch. I'm going to remove the 4" suspension lift and drop it down to stock height. This was the plan all along with this truck. I'm not into mudding. Since buying this truck I tried a few times and it was just alright but the most fun I had off-road I could just as easily achieve with 33" tires and no suspension lift. In addition, the gear ratio in my GM 10 bolt rear end was only 3.42, much too small for 35" tires even with a SBC 350 engine. I live in a hilly area and on several occasions I got in a jam while going up hill in top gear at 30mph, and the truck did not like that. Smaller tires will make it muuuuch easier to drive around town with the Muncie SM465 transmission, although it will lower my highway speed. 

chevy k10 squarebody front suspension

The Reviews are In: Functional Programming in JavaScript "is AWESOME"

Submitted by Danny on Thu, 08/06/2015 - 12:57

From the very beginning, the goal with Functional Programming in JavaScript was to strip the veneer off the language to expose its inner beauty and functional roots, a necessary step in helping the reader to fully understand both the language and the functional programming paradigm. And now that some reviews are coming in, it appears that the goal has been met.

How To Restore a Guitar

Submitted by Danny on Mon, 07/27/2015 - 14:23

While it was one of my most admired possessions in middle school, the first guitar I ever owned had seen better days. It originally came in a satan black finish, but over the years it became shiny in all the normal wear spots which made it look terrible. And it's all around just a lame guitar to me now. So.. time to reinvent it! Here's how I did it...

painted guitar body