Why I Don't Buy Local! + THANKSGIVING 

I feel my age, 67, tired, don't sleep as well as I used to, but still change the oil in my truck every September here in my drive way, noticed the battery was just a bit sluggish the first cold snap this year (5 year old battery), went and got a new one, replaced the old one and took it back to the auto parts store for proper disposal. had a light switch go out in the house, one I never use but replaced it. Noticed my laminate floor was puffing up by the kitchen sink..a leaking turn off valve under the sink, turned the water off, ran up to the local hardware store bought a replacement installed it, but the puffing continued, a bad value under the dishwasher (over 20 years old), disconnected it, will order a new one, the laminate floor is ruined , ordered 3 boxes to redo most of the kitchen. Just needed to write this down even if no one reads it. All day today I was in the kitchen preparing, for T-Day tomorrow, brined the turkey, made the green bean casserole, the dressing, and have a schedule for tomorrow morning to get it all done by 12 noon been doing this for 10 years. My daughter and her family are coming over. Next year I hope to move from south Texas to Colorado in a little town of Evergreen or Conifer and will be spending thanksgiving with my oldest daughter and her family there in Evergreen. Moving will be a challenge but after visiting Evergreen its all I can think about, the mountains the clean air... sorry for rambling but your video brought it out. and this is an abbreviated list.. :))

Just a tip on the extension cord hooked up to your van. I was taught to hang the cord on the drivers side mirror. Then you know you'll see it and it won't get buried under snow.

How's Jack's treehouse looking? That was one of the first projects I watched and I'd be interested to see how it's weathered over time.

All undone because I'm trying to recover from cancer treatment. 7 weeks of radiation and chemo. I'm 72 and now still very weak. So far they think the cancer is gone.

Just loop the extension cord that you use for the heater over the driver side mirror. You'll notice it when you get in the van.

I think I've only commented once in all your vids but your closing has stirred my heart. Trash or Treasure/Homeowner or Renter. I take pride in my 1870 log cabin here in Wyoming in a rural area. Unfortunately there are a few rentals around along with some uncaring home owners. Oh well. My caring & upkeep of my home has gotten many compliments by passerby's when I'm out doing my thing. And that puts a smile in my heart.

The wire behind the blank is wiring for what ever option Ford usually has in that spot. One vehicle wiring harness for all models, just add switches when accessory is added.

I am that guy buried in unfinished projects. It seems that more pile on each day, these words of wisdom help. You said several videos back that “Discipline is freedom “ those words have helped a bunch. I say them to myself often now when I want to just drop things where that are instead of putting them away as I should. Keep up the good work. The world needs us all to get our own houses in order before we worry about other people’s house.

Bet that loctite turkey will really stick to your ribs lol.

Hey Wranglerstar family--Happy Thanksgiving! New subscriber here... I've really been enjoying your channel and videos, and have been binge watching for several days now! LOL Keep up the great work! Your videos inspire me to get back to basics, back to simpler times (with some modern conveniences of course), away from the modern grid, and away from all of the "baloney" in the world today. I also appreciate your openness of faith. After all: "But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven".--Matthew 10:33 I have rediscovered my faith in recent years, and have experienced His miracles in many ways. God is good all the time; all the time, God is good. Peace to you and to your subscribers!

Love that even in today's standards you're not afraid to speak the word. Respect for you, and your family. Love the videos keep it going.

Hey Cody, love the Van build so far! I only have some advice for you constantly storing water within the vans system. Constant storage of water without circulation and in the warm conditions the van could be in if you run the heater all winter makes perfect conditions for water born bacteria to grow. I've no doubt that you are probably boiling this water if you are consuming it which will kill bacteria but you also need to consider if you use the hot shower system for legionella which is caught by inhaling the aerosol water vapour from shower nozzles and hot water etc.(this is what my company is based around). If you are using and refilling often enough then this isn't a problem but if its anything like my dads boat tank then it can last months with only small top ups which are not sufficient to flush the system. At the very least you need to keep the water chlorinated, in the UK we aim to keep the level around 0.5mg/l(sorry for metric measurements..). You can buy very simple and cost effective chlorine tablets and test kits which would be suitable for you. I'm just thinking about the sweet loaf as the rest of you are probably fit enough with a good immune system but shes much more vulnerable. Take care and keep up the great videos Wranglerstars! If you want any more advice hit me up! :) EDIT: this might seem silly to some but for the sake of a couple of dollars and some knowledge you could prevent something deadly serious to your health and others.

I agree with Robnord1. You’ve made a deep impression on me Cody. I didn’t have what I see exhibited by you to your son and I am finding lessons for life everywhere in your videos. Please accept my deepest thanks for providing the type of content that you are providing. Great video.

Here's a trick I used on my Bomb Trucks shore power cord: Simply take your extension cord and loop it over the drivers side outside mirror. You cant get in the truck until you un loop and disconnect the cord. I try to support my local merchants as well. However, selection, quality and price do have a bearing. Hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving.

Quick tip from a Canadian when plugging in a vehicle have a long enough cord to hanging over the driver side mirror so that you see the cord it's still plugged in

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. I pray for you that everything goes blessed. Here in western NY we too are coold in the 20s. I'm just psyched that ice fishing will come soon. Keep up the Lord's purpose for you and your family.

I think your moment at the end is very important for us as believers. I have read a ton of books in addition to scripture, but the way I read scripture now is I read with the intent of answering some questions: 1. What does this tell me about God and His character; 2. What does it tell me about human character; 3. What does this tell me about Christ and my salvation; 4. What does this tell me about the church as a body of believers.

We use non-ethanol gas as well for the small engines and most of our vehicles. But I have an older Stihl 026 chainsaw and a Stihl FS 110 gas trimmer. I have had the gas trimmer for 4 or 5 years . Maybe more. The manual says it is rated up to 10 or 15 percent ethanol. But I still use the good stuff anyway.

I plug my diesel in during the winter and found myself or the wife doing the same thing driving off with it plugged in.. So I just started draping the extension cord over the driver's side mirror, seems to work like a charm!!

Some of my favorite videos are the ones where Cody just talks. Of course forestry and tractors keep me and the kids enthralled but just listening to him speak. As a young father of 2 it really helps me see what I need to focus on in my life.

That wire was there because it's wired for options you didn't get. Plugged into blank to keep it out of the way through assembly of the vehicle. I work in auto manufacturing lol.

The wire plugged into the blank switch is probably for a feature you didn't get on your van. Vehicle manufacturers will often make one wiring harness that works with all of the options and just leave out the switch if you don't order the option.

I love NASB version of the bible. I also enjoy reading the amplified version as well! May our Abba father bless you and your family this Thanksgiving season with great peace and joy..and a time of perfect rest in his Son Jesus Christ 😊

Those yellow jackets *finally* died and the queens are hibernating. Took my first hike in the hills on some old logging roads since like June. It was wonderful! Fantastic. Then rain. I missed it so. Good day indeed.

Happy thanksgiving wranglerstar family! What people don’t understand is that rigs built with the high quality parts like yours are upwards $150k. Not to mention generally when stuff breaks it’s out of town or on the trail. Building it yourself also means you’ve got at least a decent chance you can self repair. Loving the van so far, killer build out. Keep the scripture coming! God bless

Have a blessed Thanksgiving and stay safe. I always thought that the imparted wisdom of that particular passage was that if you kept up with things then you would not fall to ruin. "A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest." His view was that at one point this man's vineyards had been tended, his walls in good order, and his grounds kept but slowly over time he let it get away from him and it fell to ruin. I always took it to mean don't rest on your laurels. Anyway it is a good lesson to think on again. Thank you.

Your message really spoke to me in a timely manner. My house has been a disaster and I haven't been comfortable having company. Part of the fault is we moved into a house that was too small for our needs and didn't have enough storage. But the vast majority of the problem was ME. We are now moving to a much larger house with TONS of storage, and I am truly grateful! NOW it's time to work on ME! Thanks for sharing!

Loctite makes for a crispy Thanksgiving turkey, just not tasty. Or is it? Hmmmmmm????

Yes, Cody, there is much wisdom in prioritizing your work, maintenance, and organization. Whether mostly succeeding or mostly failing, it is a constant battle for all of us.

Thanks for adding the elements of scripture teaching. Even though I’m sure you cop a heap of flack from it. Keep it up man !

So, that wire into the "blank" switch is the harness for whatever option is otherwise located in that spot. they don't make 10 different wire harnesses for the vehicle, they make 1 and eliminate extras by the "blank" switch. makes it really easy if you wish to add that option too

Thanks for the motivation. It always seem that when I’m starting to hit a low mentally about my life and at the moment my living situation, God finds away of sending me the words that help open my eyes. Thank you for being the person that delivered the helping words today. God bless you and your family this Thanksgiving.

Ever thought of draining tank and blowing air back throughout to drain. Seems greener,cheaper,and more " pioneer" Edit: plugged in, wasted energy.....is wanting

Another classic from Mr Wranglerstar. I’ve enjoyed going along the journey with you Cody. We both seem to be the same place at the same time. Learning from God to get stuff sorted. I’ve learned the second part of that scripture to be a real blessing. “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands”. I take the opposite to this “a little attention (to detail), a little alertness (to spot stuff going wrong,before it goes wrong) and a little movement of the hands (getting a little work done everyday.) and I find great blessings come from this. I don’t think you have to be ahead or get ahead of yourself. But just to do something or a couple of things every day, so things don’t pile up and get out of hand. Eventually things become more enjoyable to do. I also find planning is paramount. To have a list of things to do and get them done. I find the Mrs is very agreeable to this too. The more I fix stuff up and look after stuff, preventative maintenance etc. The easier I find it is to get a cuppa tea or a bacon sandwich made. Most of the time I find I don’t have to ask she just makes it for as a “well done hon”. Women seem to respect a man that gets stuff done, when they don’t have to nag all the time to get something fixed. Nowadays she just says “can you....” and she knows I’ve got it.....happy wife, happy wife, I also have focus to take proper rest and not be working all the time, no matter how much I enjoy it. I like you take one complete day off. I find I’m more alert, more attentive, more able to work hard all week.

One thing we did in the fire service is hang the cord across the door and side mirror, so when you go to get in you have to move the cord to get in.

16:10 the wire is there probably because they put it by default so it is quicker to install an optional accessory, it is attached to the blank so it does not get lost or rattle inside. I have no radio in my car because it was the cheapest option available but ISO connectors are there attached to a blank panel and speaker wires are present as well so installing a radio would take about 5 mins.

The second accessory on the left of the wheel is for Parking Aid System. When the switch is off, the tone signal will not sound when reversing near an object.

ye I have to travel about 1hr for ethanol free fuel so i have 2 55gal drums i fill and then store in my shed for use in all my small equipment....

The plugin that was in the blank you pulled out was for what ever factory switch that went there. Ford does that instead of what they use to do. And that was to tape up back in the wiring harness. It makes it easy for everyone in the event the owner to go install that accessory at a later date.

Cody, I used to supervise a small fleet of commercial vehicles and they required electrical cord extensions as well. We used to instruct the drivers to run the cord through the mirror bracket or driver's side door handle as a hard stop reminder on the cord.

The wiring being at the back of the blank means the vans harness is wired for whatever that switch is for but does not have the accessory installed.

At the Fire Department/EMS that I work at the station extension cords are hanging over the mirrors so they don’t get torn off the walls as trucks are Responding on a call.

I believe the reason the "blank switch" that you took out had wires going to it, is because the van is already wired for accessories. You could have bought factory switches from Ford that snap in there AND plug into those wires and it would look REALLY slick when the factory switch "lights up" and matches the color of the rest of the interior lights.

Those switches your in love with pop in and out like the stock blanks do. Take the switch out of the 3D printed housing and pop it into the blank stock panel. It's not that hard to make a square hole for the switch.

I like your switches for your lights and have used something similar in our van for our fog lights that were added. We also had off road lights added to a similar switch but after using the lights more than we thought we would, we had them switched to a old style floor dimmer switch for headlights. This mod made using the lights timely and so you never have to take your eyes off the road. The fog lights we left on the switch as they were not used as often.

Need to construct a giant insulated cover for the van to keep the heat inside the van if you're going to do something like that. Lots of wasted energy doing it without any added insulation. You can build it using several large panels of material that attach using buttons or heavy velcro to make the van accessible without taking the whole cover off. Also with it being individual panels you can throw it in the washer if you happen to use it outside.

Still have the old adventure van!! I offered to buy it long ago when you announced that you were getting a new one and you mentioned that it had already sold. If that deal fell through, my offer still stands!

the wires in the blank switch housing are for optional extra factory parts the wiring is there both ends just connect the factory part and switch

"I passed by the field of the lazy one, By the vineyard of the man lacking good sense (or in want of heart). I saw that it was overgrown with weeds; The ground was covered with nettles, And it's stone wall was broken down. I observed this and took it to heart; I saw it and learned this lesson: A little sleep, a little slumbering, A little folding of the hands to rest, And your poverty will come like a bandit, And your want like an armed man." Thanks although I've read this, I've never thought about it like you explained it.

I noticed at a fire station they had short extension cords, maybe 3 feet plugged into their drop cords. Took me a moment, but the extra connection isn't a right angle to the rig like the inlet on the side so if they forget to unplug the connection breaks as they drive away.

For future reference those switches are labeled with 1 and 0 to represent on and off in binary 1 being on and 0 being off.

Totally unexpected - but the message at the end of this video struck me today. Thank you for the lesson, Cody.

I like the switch setup , handy ! Driving light on the left behind hi/low beam , flood lights on the right behind shifter ... handy for when reversing

I'm a new subscriber to your channel and my first impression is that I'm so glad to find someone who isn't afraid to speak about their Christian faith. I've been attacked mercilessly, both verbally and physically, because I profess Christ in my day to day life. I've learned since I was born again that, as a Christian, God is calling me to lead a simpler life. I believe the events of the past 3 years, including losing everything in tropical storm Harvey, has been God telling me to simplify, get back to basics. Thank you for your great videos and thank you for sharing your faith. God bless, Matt

Thank you. Great video. The end was especially inspiring. Just what I needed to hear right now. I appreciate your words.

Great message Cody

“This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” - H.C. Randall-Stevens (EL EROS), Atlantis To The Latter Days.

Hey cody if its not too late i know your wanting to try that blower but i would plow the first snow load or so or pack it down. I would rather snowblow but hate feeding the lawn with rocks and stuff the blower tosses whats not snow all over your lawn to find in the spring

You can also run 6% Toluene in your gas. I run it in my 2 stroke dirt bike gas and use the same premixed fuel in my lawnmower. It’ll keep the carbs from gumming up

I've been sporadically watching your videos for a few months now & have really enjoyed them - tool testing, etc. However, I've never heard/seen you mention Scripture until this video - I am blown away (and overjoyed) by this! Wow. Praise God, Brother! Keep up the videos - you've got another subscriber!

Coming from The Great White North, and block heaters in engines, to remember the extension cord, I'd just loop it up under my windshield wiper blade, or depending on the vehicle, just put a loop around the door mirror. The van looks great! Cheers from Tokyo!

The reason that you have wires clipped into the factory switch blank is that every vehicle is wired up for every “option”. For instance, if you didn’t have traction control, you’d have a blank where the switch should be and the harness would be clipped into the back.

Vehicle manufacturers use one standard wiring harness that can be added to to upgrade accessory components. Your owner's manual should show the (not included in all models) accessory for that spot. I had an Opel Omega that I added power windows, locks, sun roof and tilt head lights by pulling parts from other cars in a strip lot on our Army post.

Thank you for the wise words at the end. I’ve been watching your videos for a while and admittedly have been envious of what I’ve seen you build. However I’ve removed said envy and much like your words at the end of this video. Learned from it. Learned to start emulating your life in a way. I may not have the nicest house. The nicest vehicles. I take care of them much like you. May not have the perfect family but I take care of them. Like you. Keep up the good work. Your wise words and knowledge don’t go unnoticed.

The blank with the plug attached is part of a standardized wiring harness that includes wiring for an option you didn't select, you can probably repurpose this for your lights.

The antifreeze won't hurt your seals. It actually helps protects your seals from drying out over the winter. I put antifreeze trough my pressure washer and my 3" trash pump.

I run PNE in all of my outdoor power equipment. You are right - ethanol gas will ruin carburetors, fuel lines and ainy rubber part, like diaphragms, in the fuel system. Ethanol gas will start to deteriorate in 30 days. If I am going to store fuel for over 30 days I add stabilizer to the fuel. I use Brigs AFT stabilizer at one ounce per gallon of gas. This will protect the fuel for up to 3 years at this dosage level, although I never leave fuel in anything that long.

I used to work for a very large civil construction company and they always used winter windshield washer fluid in all of their pumps to prevent them from splitting over the winters. Just thought I’d mention it incase it can be of help to anyone

14:30 hmmm, sounds like someone is exaggerating....

With regard to driving of with a power cable still plugged in to a vehicle. If you route it in a safe manner over the drivers side door mirror it will act as a visual reminder to unplugged the power before driving off.

My offroad light I wired to a relay run off my high beams. That way if I need to quickly turn your natural instinct is to turn off your high beams and that kills your light bar. Then I also have a switch to disable the link for on road use so I can have normal high/lo beams.

You can buy this kind of switches from amazon (probably a whole bag of them for a few bucks) and fit them straight to your blanks, that way it colour matches your dashboard and they're even more customisable that way, as in, possibly fitting two switches onto one blank. Happy Thanksgiving from across the pond :)

Re: Stihl - I don't know about 2018, but now when you buy (most) Stihl products today (June 2020), they'll extend the warranty by another year (or 2? check the website) if you buy one of their cans of premix. Yes, you pay 3-4 times what you would at the pump, but it's a cheap warranty extension on an expensive tool. I'm guessing they do this because there are a lot of people who buy a chainsaw for a project, want a premium tier tool, but then only run a half tank of gas through it, and then it just sits on a shelf for a few years. If the gas doesn't have any ethanol in it to begin with then it's not as much of an issue. Best bet is just to empty the gas tank if you know it's going to be sitting for a while and then run it till the carb is dry.

I'm assuming the wires plugged into the switch blank are for whatever upgraded accessory/option is not on your van? I know that's worded terribly, so for example, say your van comes with optional fog lights available, and that's where the switch is mounted when you order your vehicle with that option. Makes sense the wiring harness would already have those wires included and just mounted to a dummy switch blank. Otherwise they'd have to make a separate harness for all permutations of option purchases.

We winterize our buildings with that antifreeze. Works great. I've built a injector to fill and push antifreeze through lines. 2 feet of 2" PVC with threaded plug at end to fill. At glue joint drill and tap for a air valve stem. 2" T at bottom to make base and a reducer bushing to attach a valve with a steel braided flex line to attach to injection point. Fill injector and push through drained system with air

Put all ball valves at half open half closed so that humidity can't freeze behind the ball in the valve! We do this for under ground sprinkler ball valves so they do not freeze in a Saskatchewan winter.

Most of the Antifreeze is petroleum based and that should be find with most seals. Most automakers run all the wiring for all their models and just add or not based on the specific model. It's cheaper to expense the extra wire than to set up a whole new process for each configuration of a vehicle. My vehicle didn't come with cruse control and I bought the switch for it and installed it and now have cruise control.

Happy LocTurkey day Wranglerstars!! I hope you have a great Thanksgiving and all the friends and family who come over make it home safely.

Funny thing about this is I'm the guy that keeps all sorts of stuff arround the property for projects etc. But I try to keep it in the beat order I can. I had worked on and off for at least 8 years to finish all my home projects. New bathrooms, kitchen, floors, doors, trim tou name it. Got all the messes cleaned up outside made the whole place sparkle and then sold it! In looking back I sure wish I had the time to enjoy all that hard work a little more but it looked better the day I left than it ever had in 8 years prior. Dont know the lesson here yet but it did sell in just a few weeks so I guess it looked good to some other folks too.

Now I wonder whatever "package" or option that the button that was supposed to be there includes, because with small wiring harness/plug in there it must be just a combination of having the switch and the computer being told that option is not there. For a $1.00 switch and uploading a few more lines of code from the factory then turns into a several hundred dollar option or package.

A friend bought a brand new camper last year. Damn thing cost as much as a house! And it leakedand dealer said they were busy and to use silicone to seal the roof. He did........after it leaked 2mo. And then soposedly the water damage was from owner missuse of inproper sealant and wouldnt cover nothing.......no water damage nothing..........keep your van and build on brother

Regarding driving off with your cords still plugged in, as an old paramedic, we used to drape the cords over the mirror. So you have to handle it to get in. Just a thought.

greetings from northern vermont - 8 degrees below zero and 53 inches of snow so far this season. Ice is the worst, won't trade with you. Hope you have a great holiday with your family.

I do not recommend putting antifreeze in your pump, I did it with mine and the next year the cast iron impeller and aluminum bell were subject to some serious electrolysis from the antifreeze and I had to remove the bell and break everything loose. If you do have to put antifreeze in it I’d try automotive antifreeze but I don’t even do that.

If it's on a main harness all options will be wired in and available somewhere. When they're nice they'll be terminated right where the option is needed.

Hi, insted of killing the wire for the van use a relais so you couldn‘t start the engine. You also could fix a buzzer(is this the right word?) to the relais. Then you can hear the“remove before flight“!

I lol'ed when you said: "I pity the fool who's gonna drive in this weather!" Too funny!

Little trick for the electrical cord is to drape the cord over the driver side mirror. We do that with our semi trucks so that we don't rip them off.

Thank you for sharing your day and mostly your comments toward the end. Happy Thanksgiving!

Beet juice is a wonderful anti freeze and non toxic oilfeield trick

Helpful tip for remembering your block heater cords, run the cord up over your driver door mirror. You can’t miss that.

One of the best videos ever! Thank you Mr. Wranglerstar!

Instead of own switches for the lights you could take a look at the control units for police lights. They fit in a normal radio shaft and you can program them that in example all lights turn on/off with just one button. And you can easily ad more lights

Cody, loop your extension cord through your driver's door handle or drape it over the driverside mirror. That's what we do at our fire station so we dont drive off and damage our cords!

celebrate or don't personal choice. We have a local fresh turkey instead of store bought frozen bird. This is from a local butcher/meat shop. Hope it is good. I am making stuffing using my moms recipe. Should be good. Only three of us hubby, me and our daughter. teaching her this year how to make the stuffing. Have a safe holiday

Hi i'm from up in Canada , and what i took from this video is 2 things . There are two types of critics , constructive and destructive . I learn from the constructive , and ignore the destructive type . I watch your videos and have loved them all . I only have to say one thing , be true to yourself , and ignore the idiots and what they say . God less to you and your family .

This is my favorite type of video. The mini series like the recent forestry videos are cool in their own right, but an occasional Q&A vid is really great.

Here in Idaho I have to plug-in my pickup during the really cold months. I was always scared that I might forget to unplug it before driving as well. I solved this by running the power cord under my windshield wipers where it is quite visible. Have not ripped a plug out of the socket yet.... I enjoy your videos

Mr. Wranglerstar could you put a link for the 600 pc marine grade connectors with heat shrink you bought please. I'm going to be putting off road and area lights on my truck and found the same outrageous prices at my local store.

Kussmaul auto eject will eject the power cord from your van when the ignition is turned on. We used to install these units on our emergency services command vehicles.