2000 Jeep Wrangler 6 Cyl 5 spd - SOLD

Hello. I'm selling my brother's Jeep! Do you know anyone who needs some fun transportation this winter?
2000 Jeep Wrangler Sport
4.0L 6 Cyl Motor (one of the most reliable motors Chrysler ever built)
Custom Rims
Newer tires
118K mi.
Recent transfer case and maintenance kept up to date.
Runs great
Soft top in good condition
New seat covers
Newer stereo with aux jack for iPod
Minor scuffs, and dings that you'd expect from a 10 year old vehicle
- SOLD

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1976 Yamaha XS500 Cafe' Motorcycle Project - Post 2

Work continues on the 76 XS500 project. I've taken the rear fender, lights and seat off. The seat pan is rotten so I'll be looking for a different one, or will possibly do some welding on this one to make it work. I also got my aftermarket pipes installed.

Here's one of the new pipes. It's much shorter than the old one.

I had a bit of trouble gettting them to fit the stock headers. I had to make a custom step ring from a piece of exhaust pipe from O'riley auto parts.
The stock "step ring" was too snug for the header pipe. I cut the new exhaust pipe into two 1.5-2" sections. Then I cut them down the center.
I expanded the new "step ring" so I could take a little off the center so it would grab the header pipe tightly once I tightened the new muffler.

I tried placing the new muffler and I still needed a LITTLE more width to grab around the new step ring. A colleague at work suggested I cut up a pop can and add it to my step ring. So...

Now I've got to figure out why she's only running on 1 cylinder..... oh - and here's my new tires. I want to make sure everything's running right before removing the wheels, painting them and installing the tires. Check back soon for more updates.

1976 Yamaha XS500 Cafe' Motorcycle Project

I purchased a 1976 Yamaha XS500 in May, 2010 from a guy who was getting deployed. The bike ran last year, but had stopped running and was kind of a work in progress. All the "skins" were painted Flat black, the bike was not running, and the frame and other components were in dire need of cleaning and touch-up paint. The previous owner had purchased a second engine and a number of extra parts. The bike was complete but pretty "tired". The battery held a charge and the fluids all looked good, but it wouldn't turn over.Of course, I was too excited when I got the bike and forgot to take a picture before I started tearing it down. My plan is to keep this entire project UNDER $1000 (I'll post a total tally when the bike is all done). I don't plan on completely taking everything off the bike, just enough to see what I have and to thoroughly, clean it and touch it up. After getting it running of course. I plan on having the tank, rear finder, battery covers and the centers of the wheels painted at Chanhassen Maaco, ordering new tires, exhaust pipes, K&N Style Air filters, new clutch and brake levers, a different rear tail lamp and turn signal kit, re-upholstering the seat, changing out the gauge covers, and painting the frame and other "tired" parts on the bike.

After taking off the tank, battery covers, front fender, seat, etc. I started cleaning a few pieces to see what I had.

Here's a BEFORE picture of the front wheel:

And here's after about 2 hours of sanding and polishing:

Next, I took apart the switches on the handle bars to try and diagnose why the starter motor would not engage. What we found is that the starter button had come apart inside and the little lead ball that made contact with the ground to start the bike had come loose. We took the switch apart, cleaned all the contacts, and re-sottere'd everything. I painted the switch covers in flat black and put it all back together... and Bam - starter motor worked! What a relief. Then I ran out, got some carb cleaner and filled the tank with a little fresh gas. The previous owner had rebuilt the fuel petcocks and they seemed to work perfectly. I charged the battery fully and then gave it a whirl. She fired up pretty quick actually, I had to adjust the idle a bit (I imagine I'll have a few more adjustments after the air filters are back on the bike).

Here's a video of her running for the first time:

Now that I got her running, my plan is to start going through it, cleaning, painting, and reconditioning from the front, back. I took apart the dash, painted the headlight bucket, and installed the chrome gauge covers (got them as extra parts from the previous owner)

Here's some pictures of the cleaned up gauge cluster:

I was a bit anxious to see what was under the awful-looking large plastic cover supporting the rear tail lamp and license plate bracket, so I took it off to see what was underneath. I think I'll leave the cover off and do something with this solid metal fender in back....
Please check back - more to come as I continue to "frame-on" restore this bike.

Thanking God for protecting my family in a very serious accident!

Thanks to God for protecting my family and thank you Dodge for building SAFE cars! My wife was pulling out onto Engler Blvd in Chaska at around 4pm 1-13-09. She had our three kids and the neighbor girl with her. A large bus blocked her view of the vehicle behind it... a full sized Chevy Pickup Truck! Best guess, is that the truck was up to 40-45 miles per hour. Look at these pictures and see how the energy of the crash was transferred throughout the car. The passenger door on the opposite side of the hit won't even close, and the tire on the rear - opposite the crash blew off the rim! Bottom line... vehicles can be replaced and this one did it's job. Alicia and the kids are sore, but not hurt an thanks to Allstate Insurance for keeping us in good hands! We are thanking God for his protection and sovereign plan. Treasure each day for this minute is all you are guaranteed!

Merry Christmas 2009!

Merry Christmas 2009 from the Stone Family!

It is hard to believe that it was four years ago when our Christmas card featured all of the “new” things in our lives (home, baby Amelia, Jeff’s business). While this year did not bring as many “new” (and voluntary) things, there certainly were several “changes”…

JEFF: This month Jeff is celebrating his first year with Youngstedts. After making the very difficult decision to close the doors of Sold4U Motors last fall, God graciously provided this position through Jeff’s network in the auto industry. As a commercial account manager, Jeff spends his days drumming up business for their Goodyear and Maaco stores. He even got to ride in the Goodyear Blimp in August with a few of the Goodyear Store managers! God has also used Jeff’s photography to provide for our needs, and he’s had the privilege of shooting all sorts of events throughout the year from weddings, to family portraits, to CD Covers to Vikings games. Jeff also had a "blast" deer hunting this year with Alicia's dad and was able to get his FIRST (and second) deer! Jeff was also in the VBS drama at church this summer and continues to be involved with the children's music ministry at Grace.

Deer Hunting

Jeff and Brad from Eau Claire Goodyear on the Blimp

Jeff rocking out as Arlin Schecter with The Optimisitics at Grace!

ALICIA: As his bride of 10 years (!), Alicia thoroughly enjoys her calling as “keeper of the home”. Going gluten-free last February has brought drastic changes to our kitchen, which she is trying to embrace as her new “hobby” of cooking with many new staple ingredients. She recently “retired” from leadership in MOPS and is now investing into the lives of the women of our neighborhood through a Bible study (on the opposite week from Jeff and his guys).

ANIKA: She is 6 ½ years old and blossoming as a first-grader. Life changed dramatically for her as we adapted to our homeschooling lifestyle this fall. We have already made many precious memories as we spend Nolan’s naptimes growing her love for learning. We would not trade this time with her for anything… though admittedly she is very ready for her neighborhood playmates by the time they get off the bus each afternoon! Anika just performed in her first Christmas musical at church (and Alicia served as the assistant to the assistant to the assistant choreographer). The Sparks program at church is the highlight of her week and this was Anika’s first summer in “real” Vacation Bible School and it rocked! (Especially with her rock star mommy as her teacher, and her even rockier star dad debuting in the drama!)

Anika on her first day of 1st grade.

AMELIA: She is 4 ½ (emphasis on the ½!) and loves learning alongside her big sister. She spends a few afternoons each week at preschool and fills notebook after notebook with her letters and numbers. Going gluten-free has been a change for her as well, but thankfully it has been a rather smooth adjustment over all. She loves helping mommy experiment with new recipes in the kitchen! Amelia enjoys the Cubbies program at church and spends much of her free time crafting, playing dress-up or “doing finances”.

NOLAN: Our "little guy" is 16 months old and has obviously changed a lot in the past year! We thought Amelia was an active toddler, but Nolan is busy, busy, busy. His big sisters continue to adore him and can be so helpful at keeping him entertained… and safe. His big brown eyes and adorable dimples melt our hearts… as he swings from the chandelier over the dining room table (you might think we are kidding...). We don’t recognize many words yet, but that does not keep him from chattering almost constantly (accentuated by shrieks). He keeps us on our toes, but we can’t remember life before our sweet Noley!

We are so thankful for God’s clear hand in our lives to bring about these changes over the past year. We are even more thankful for the God who NEVER changes, knowing that we can trust Him in these uncertain times. May you sense His faithful presence as we begin a new year most certainly full of changes!

 The birth of Christ was foretold LONG before his coming 2000 years ago (see Isaiah 9:6-7). Nothing in history has changed history like the birth of Jesus. We want to honor him and celebrate his birth this Christmas, because JESUS CHRIST IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON!

“Feliz Navidad” is what you will hear around our house this year as we celebrate with our Guatemalan brother (Rodolfo Mendoza) and his wife (Debbie) on their snow-filled visit!



Christmas blessings to you and yours!
Love, the Stones