The Crusty Cuda: Whole lotta Shakin' (N96) Goin' on!

[njsteve]

I got a message from the guy refurbishing that Sanyo FT-489 I bought. It's all done and awaiting shipping. He actually posted a video of the newly rebuilt unit playing, which is kind of cool. He said it appeared to only have around ten hours total run time on it from the condition of the internals. It needed a belt and the ejection mechanism gears retimed and shimmed and that was about it. He charged around $145 with shipping.

I can't wait to install the circa-1975 vintage unit. (Paperwork has 1976 on the instructions but Sanyo supposeldy manufactured the FT-489 from 1971 to 1974 according to this site, which, by the way is a great site for dating stereo equipment. You just input the model and it will give you various brands to narrow down your search results: https://www.usedprice.com/items/car-...=ft489&x=0&y=0

[njsteve]

Drove the cuda to a show out in PA today. Around 60 miles, roundtrip. She drove great. 90+ degree day and the temp gauge never went above the 1/3 mark. The pollen was a nightmare though. It was actually raining pollen from the tress we were sitting under. I gave up dusting after an hour. My wingman brought his Sassy Grass Green AAR which when covered in pollen looked like it was covered in green flocking fuzz.

Fun show. Approximately 150 Mopars in attendance with a good 1/3 being all sorts of versions of Hellcats and SRT Challengers. (I so want one of them purple ones).

[njsteve]

The refurbished Sanyo FT-489 arrived back today. Only took a couple minutes to swap it with the other radio. It sounds amazing! This guy does incredible work. It plays my old high school Bob Seger tapes just like the old days, only better sounding through the modern-ish speakers.

Now I guess I have to find a matching amp/equalizer...

It's the old tale of "Give a mouse a cookie...and he'll want a glass of milk"...etc.