Thanks. I'll snap some pics tomorrow. I'm still at the ferry in North Sydney, NS. I"m killing time at my computer (free WiFi) watching free DVD movies on the TV, and checking the Marine weather. A lot of people seem to be waiting for my load: the 'metal parts' I have on the trailer are actually RAILS they need for a big crane to ride on. No rails - no crane. So, truckers are an important link in the chain of things and it feels good to be providing an important service. All the more reason for the shippers to pay us a fair rate especially when we spend holidays in the middle of nowhere trying to get their freight to the destination on time!

 

Yeah Tracer, it seems like that's the only good thing about your trip. Interesting story!

 

I got up this morning and walked around the truck before heading to the ferry terminal for breakfast. The tire that I paid $200 on Monday seemed kinda low on air again. I looked at all tires to compare the bulge at the point of contact with the ground and something was wrong for sure. I grabbed the tire gauge and the pressure on the "repaired" tires was at ... 15 PSI! So I called Mecanitek in Edmunston, NB who worked on the tire 2 days ago, explained the situation and asked for some kind of a refund (I paid with my VISA). They said, "Sorry but we don't provide a warranty on tire repairs, so we cannot give you a refund." So, not only did their guy damage my trailer by putting the jack in the wrong spot, but he failed to fix the problem with the air leak as well. I just called another tire repair company here in Sydney, NS. They charge $100 to come out and $30 to fix the tire. Well, I'm waiting for the tire truck to arrive and I killed the time by googling Mecanitek in Edmunston NB and leaving them a negative feedback/rating.

 

I have a strong feeling, that your adventures is far from over! It's going to be fun, not business wise tho. Consider that a paid vacation. I'm preferring Caribbean islands this time of the year, must be getting old.....

 

I would dispute the charge with Visa. Lot's of times the merchant doesn't reply and you get a refund.

 

Good idea. Thanks. I"m going to call those Mecanitek guys and told them about calling VISA and disputing the charge. They did a major screw up with the tire - see my next post.

 

The Island Tire guy who came out to fix my trailer tire showed me why it lost all the air again: the idiot from Mecanitec did not patch it, he just put a PLUG in the hole... You can see the thing sticking out form the outside, which of course can never hold 125 PSI of pressure and - get this - he missed the actual hole! He drilled another hole in the tire and put the plug in it, but the initial small hole was still not fixed. Jeez... some of these guys are just unbelievable! The Island Tire guy took the plug out and affixed a rectangular patch on the inside which covered both small holes. And he charged me only $135 as opposed to the previous guy who charged me $204.

I took some pictures of the place. It was drizzling outside and the sky was covered with clouds so the quality might not be as nice as I'd hope it'd be.

 

204 for a service call and plug? what a major ripoff.
you could have just drove to a tire shop if it was not too far, and it would have been alot cheaper.

plugs do work in truck tires if done properly, we do it all the time on our trucks.

 

The shop was 15 minutes away (30 km) and I knew I'd destroy the tire because of my 47,000 lb load if I drove.

 

Marine Forecast

Winds

Issued 03:30 PM AST 22 December 2010
Tonight and Thursday
Gale warning in effect.
High water level warning in effect.
Wind northeasterly 35 to 45 knots.


Waves

Issued 05:00 PM AST 22 December 2010
Tonight and Thursday
Seas 6 to 8 metres subsiding to 5 to 7 late overnight and to 4 Thursday evening.
Friday Wind north 40 knots.
Saturday Wind north 35 knots.
Sunday Wind northerly 20 to 25 knots.

NOTE:The knot is a unit of speed equal to one nautical mile per hour, which is equal to exactly 1.852 KM/H and approximately 1.151 MPH