What did you do "IN" your garage today?

[welder4956]

After a extended weekend trip for Mothers Day, the stain was dry on the coat rack and I was able to put a coat of polyurethane on it. Then I went through some boxes of books and files from work and tossed some stuff. I'm going to have to find a home for my old metallurgy and steel properties books.

 

[nadogail]

After sleeping late, then reading the newspaper, I had a session with my Fitness Trainer, followed by sitting at my computer until it was time to go to my Dental Appointment followed by lunch and more screen time.
Between my appointments and a nap the woman who does our nails showed up and as a result my hands and feet are now very presentable.
I did think about going to the shop today but decided to have lunch and dessert with my employee who just celebrated her 34th Birthday.

 

[LeonardY]

Grabbed tools to take apart the shed. Put back tools.

Filled the garage with stuff from the shed.

 

[GrayFlattop]

Spent 7 minutes assembling a tool that I had low expectations for. At first glance, it looked like the dumbest thing in the world - but - I bought it anyway. A Ryobi 18v power hoe. At the end of the day, it worked just like the manual version, except faster, with less physical effort.

One of the garden patches that I rototilled in March was already filled with weeds and various other young seedlings. 10 minutes later, the cordless hoe had conquered all of it. Spent the rest of the time putting in the tomato plants and spreading composted cow poop.

The Ryobi hoe still looks like a stupid thing, but I couldn’t be more pleased.

Back in the garage I spent a few more minutes looking for something, then actually finding it!

 

[Jay__Dub]

Spent 7 minutes assembling a tool that I had low expectations for. At first glance, it looked like the dumbest thing in the world - but - I bought it anyway. A Ryobi 18v power hoe. At the end of the day, it worked just like the manual version, except faster, with less physical effort.

Going to have to look that up.

 

[Jgaz]

Got both end panels glued and screwed to the kennel floor and back panel today.

85 degrees and 8% humidity this afternoon. Great drying weather but not great glue up weather.

I knew I needed to work fast but I didn’t think I could get away with using Titebond 2 so I used hide glue and extra pocket screws. I’m really glad I did.

 

[Prospecter]

Serviced the mower. Since it’s been a wet season most of my cutting has been wet/damp and tall grass.

Pulled a 5 gallon buckets worth of green grass chunks from the deck. No wonder it was cutting and discharging poorly.

I usually clean it before it gets this bad, but time has been flying by.

Who has ideas on preventing this?
Would mulching blades improve the situation or make it worse?

I just lower my standards. Saves a lotta time.

 

[rd65]

Checked and adjusted tire pressures on the mower.

 

[glider]

Doing generator prep before the install. Going to cover the holes on the underside with removable stainless screen. Then time for the 280 pound generator.

 

[DAVE94LIGHTNING]

Started restoring / polishing a set of OEM LX tailpipes for the 85GT. Hoping to do the install this weekend.

 

[Outlawmws]

No judgment here, I like to have coffee in my sugar too.

I don't like much interfering with the chocolate. Preference for dark chocolate.

But I'l add dark chocolate syrup and M&M's (preferably dark.) to Ghirardelli brownie mix when I make brownies...

The rear springs and perches I ordered for the wife's VW arrived yesterday, so I put them on today. Finally, after months of chasing suspension noises and ordering parts, it FINALLY rides quiet! All it took was front springs, struts, strut mounts, ball joints, a CV axle, rear springs and spring perches.

So the conclusion was it was the rear springs, or perches?

 

[rzims]

Yesterday was a good day. Started filling the new woodshed...Rain and thunderstorms put an end to that idea. Then went into the barn and worked on several of my ongoing project.
Disassembled and reglued a couple antique chairs that my sister-in-law has, worked on a small knife for a friends upcoming birthday and started re-handling a splitting maul that I've had for many years....

 

[KwikFab]

Nothing, the three motor plates for my table are the slightest bit offset which further delays assembly.



Clocking the motor in different directions makes no difference because the bolt holes are perfect on both the plate and motor.

It's hard to see but you can see some the face exposed on the left/lower left side of the motor, and the plate overlapping the painted face on the right.

The motor has a raised surface that is supposed to sit within the motor plate opening. I can go caveman style and hand file the plate opening a bit since it's aluminum but that's cheesy as **** to do on a brand new $8k table. I also don't want to drill out the holes in the motor itself either cause again, everything is brand new.

This deserves a prompt follow-up.

I called on Monday to ask about the issue I was having (in the above post), and really it was all in all a minor inconvenience.

I still moved forward with installing a few other things as shown here.



Well, during that phone call, I was told that the machined motor plates should not have made it to me (or any other customer) and that it was a quality control issue. I was told I would be receiving motors pre-assembled (to ensure parts are machined correctly) and that the error could've happened during machining - a bolt holding a jig coming loose or whatnot.

Today I got my package and all I can say is holy ****! Well due to that minor inconvenience, STV's customer service went way beyond and actually sent me their gear reduction kit!

This is a $1,300 upgrade (or $900 when you first order) and provides much more precise movement and fluidity between X/Y axis movements and transitions. It also extends the life of the rack and pinion setup, and allows movement speeds of up to 1,000ipm versus 600ipm with the direct 1:1 setup I was going to run.

They are expecting me to send back the plates and motors I originally received (which is more than fair) but ********, that sort of customer service is unheard of...at least for me.

 

[niget2002]

Migrated my homeassistant setup from the older 3b to the newer 4b with an SSD. They made this process significantly easier than the last time I tried to do this.

 

[larry4406]

Yesterday was a good day. Started filling the new woodshed...Rain and thunderstorms put an end to that idea. Then went into the barn and worked on several of my ongoing project.
Disassembled and reglued a couple antique chairs that my sister-in-law has, worked on a small knife for a friends upcoming birthday and started re-handling a splitting maul that I've had for many years....

Nice wood storage shed!

 

[Mike65]

Cut up another sheet of 3/4" maple plywood in 3 pieces to make it easier to get into my woodworking shop to cut to the size I need on my table saw.

 

[Jeff Ivers]

Had to do some periodic maintenance on my mower deck. One of the gauge wheel brackets broke off and had to be re-welded. Since I had to grind the paint off the weld area, I got out my can of touch-up paint.


When I went to spray the paint, the nozzle would not depress. So, I removed the nozzle and dropped it in a jar of acetone.


Then, I dropped a few drops of acetone into the little hole on top using a q-tip. After everything set for a few minutes, I blew out the hole and the nozzle with compressed air, reinstalled the nozzle and painted my repair!

 

[CoogarXR]

So the conclusion was it was the rear springs, or perches?

The conclusion was:
-The noise in the front was a broken spring on the passenger side and a frozen strut on the same side. I replaced the struts, springs and strut mounts on both sides.
-Collateral Damage- I clumsily damaged the CV avle boot on the driver side, but I suspected it was the cause of a wobble on that side anyway, so I went ahead and replaced it
-Collateral Damage- Ohio salt had eaten both balljoints mounting stud sets, so they (literally all 6) broke off when attempting to remove them. So I had to replace both balljoints too.

The front end sounded great after that. But the front end noise was masking noise from the rear. I could now hear a similar sound in the rear driver-side. Both rear springs were broken, and the jagged edges had roughed up the perches pretty good. So I replaced all of it.

NOW it's quiet, lol. It wasn't the parts-shotgun, it actually needed all of it.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

Work was quite busy today to begin the day. But got slower as the afternoon progressed. We had 6 appointments after lunch so we were really dead. I guess the rain and fog kept everyone away. Luckily it’s cleared up now. I didn’t do much today really. We were fully staffed though so that’s good.

I’ve got a Nissan Versa used car in the bay right now but it doesn’t need much. We are trying to figure one out that we had brought to us that’s a Nissan and the wheel just fell off but the lug nuts were believed to be torqued and the bearing isn’t bad so we don’t know it’s kind of a mystery. It snapped all of the studs off too. The wheel didn’t actually come off it was just not attached but was still on the vehicle if that makes sense. Maybe someone did leave it loose but I’ve never seen one do that when they were loose especially since the person had driven it 100 miles from the last shop so it wouldn’t make sense that the wheels were loose unless they just ignored a loud noise. Hopefully we figure it out but we are doing new wheel studs on it and a new wheel as that one is pretty messed up. The rotor and everything appears fine though. It’s a mystery but as long as we get it fixed that’s what matters I just wonder what happened too it actually.

 

[Wrench97]

Work was quite busy today to begin the day. But got slower as the afternoon progressed. We had 6 appointments after lunch so we were really dead. I guess the rain and fog kept everyone away. Luckily it’s cleared up now. I didn’t do much today really. We were fully staffed though so that’s good.

I’ve got a Nissan Versa used car in the bay right now but it doesn’t need much. We are trying to figure one out that we had brought to us that’s a Nissan and the wheel just fell off but the lug nuts were believed to be torqued and the bearing isn’t bad so we don’t know it’s kind of a mystery. It snapped all of the studs off too. The wheel didn’t actually come off it was just not attached but was still on the vehicle if that makes sense. Maybe someone did leave it loose but I’ve never seen one do that when they were loose especially since the person had driven it 100 miles from the last shop so it wouldn’t make sense that the wheels were loose unless they just ignored a loud noise. Hopefully we figure it out but we are doing new wheel studs on it and a new wheel as that one is pretty messed up. The rotor and everything appears fine though. It’s a mystery but as long as we get it fixed that’s what matters I just wonder what happened too it actually.

Are the stud holes in the wheel egged out? If so nuts were loose.
If all the studs are broken off and the holes are round, I'd think over torque.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

Are the stud holes in the wheel egged out? If so nuts were loose.
If all the studs are broken off and the holes are round, I'd think over torque.

Stud holes and hub were fine. New studs went right in.

 

[Beelzeboss]

I worked on the windscreen for my hot rod.

 

[Wrench97]

Stud holes and hub were fine. New studs went right in.

I meant in the wheel.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

I meant in the wheel.

Oh yes. The wheel goes back on fine and the holes are perfectly round.

 

[nadogail]

I decided that there was no point in continuing to disassemble the “free” pallet that I started on a couple of days ago. When it was built the 16 penny nails must have been free, or maybe the original builders were paid by the number of nails they used. I made up my mind that there was not enough value in the 12 feet of used 2X4 and the half sheet of 3/8 plywood to justify the possibility of getting hurt trying to save every scrap of wood. I wound up cutting the pallet apart and keeping just the larger pieces of plywood.

The stubborn part of me didn’t want to quit, but I wanted to end the time in the shop without needing to wear any bandages.

I don’t have a need for the plywood, but I was looking at getting something for free. If I hurt myself I won’t be able to keep my shop. I know that my family will try to convince me that I’m too old to keep working in it.

That day is coming, but it’s not here yet, I think I have a few years left.

I dropped and broke my magnetic pick up tool, a little super glue fastened the plastic cover back together.

 

[Wrench97]

Oh yes. The wheel goes back on fine and the holes are perfectly round.

That sure sounds like somebody over torqued the lugs and stretched the studs to point of failure.

 

[Skyman]

That sure sounds like somebody over torqued the lugs and stretched the studs to point of failure.

Agreed. That leaves the other wheel(s) suspect for the same reason.

 

[LeonardY]

Same as yesterday. Gathered tools...Put away tools...

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

Agreed. That leaves the other wheel(s) suspect for the same reason.

One of the lug nuts was missing from the other front wheel and one was loose.

 

[kaymccampbell]

Cleared the bench. Unboxed and assembled a DeWalt pole pruner. Took it outside. Brought it back in. Staged the box for the fireplace.

 

[KwikFab]

Boring stuff, but tedious.

Never dealt with drag chains before, and after today, I never want to mess with them ever again.

Need to run the last bit of cable from my torch through the side chain, then snap on all the "clips" and I should be done with the wiring part.

 

[Prospecter]

Cleared the bench. Unboxed and assembled a DeWalt pole pruner. Took it outside. Brought it back in. Staged the box for the fireplace.

How'd you like the pole pruner?

 

[JEFFREYWisconsin]

How'd you like the pole pruner?

I was gonna ask the same thing, I am hoping she is burning the box because she is keeping it, but maybe she hates it so much ahe meant she is burning the product also! Let us know, Kay! I will buy one on your recommendation.

 

[alinc100]

Yesterday was a good day. Started filling the new woodshed...Rain and thunderstorms put an end to that idea. Then went into the barn and worked on several of my ongoing project.
Disassembled and reglued a couple antique chairs that my sister-in-law has, worked on a small knife for a friends upcoming birthday and started re-handling a splitting maul that I've had for many years....

Taking someone out to the woodshed has a new, enjoyable meaning.

 

[kaymccampbell]

How'd you like the pole pruner?

I was gonna ask the same thing, I am hoping she is burning the box because she is keeping it, but maybe she hates it so much ahe meant she is burning the product also! Let us know, Kay! I will buy one on your recommendation.

I like it. There's no sense keeping the box. I wish it came with a bag. I'm thinking a 4 level bag would be nice. It's a touch heavy. Battery, motor, etc. Unlike a regular pole pruner, there's no effort involved. Squeeze the trigger and an inch n a half stick just drops off the tree, much like my yellow hand pruner. It's nice and long as stands, and then there's an extension. I think I can reach about 15'. The head pivots over so you can get a better bead on your victim. My primary use case for this is to hunt sumac trees in the rose and willow garden along the east line. Bend the head at about 45° or flatter and then nip them off at the ground. It should lessen the number of scratches I get. I'll report back after I go hunting today.

 

[Skyman]

Good to know about this, Kay. Model number, please?

 

[rd65]

Migrated my homeassistant setup from the older 3b to the newer 4b with an SSD. They made this process significantly easier than the last time I tried to do this.

I would hit the "like" button if I had any idea what that meant

 

[2Rocky]

Took the next step in my DIY Power Station project. Added the solar charge controller and a connector for the solar panels, as well as a positive wire cutoff switch. The heart of the system is a LiTime 100Ah LIFePo4 battery (group 31) the box is a rolling Bauer toolbox. The Build was inspired by the YouTube channel "Fishin N Stuff"

.

Below is the front view with the 12 V charging station with USB and cig lighter ports.

Below is the Solar charge controller and connector from the solar panels. (Wondering if I could also plug in a 120V battery charger there as well....)



The Receptacle I plug in my horse trailer so I can run my 12V lights and plugs in trailer.

Looking inside at the guts.

 

[XJSuperman]

Yesterday I started prepping and mocking up the pieces of steel needed for my next project. Grabbed a beer, was drilling holes, sanding, wirewheeling, deburring, etc when friends rolled up outside in their new mini jeeps (go-cart things that are gaining popularity around here lately). So I hopped in and we tore off. That was the end of my garage time last night.
Tonight I need to clear off the welding bench and get busy. Super stoked to be working on this one finally.

 

[rd65]

Yesterday I started prepping and mocking up the pieces of steel needed for my next project. Grabbed a beer, was drilling holes, sanding, wirewheeling, deburring, etc when friends rolled up outside in their new mini jeeps (go-cart things that are gaining popularity around here lately). So I hopped in and we tore off. That was the end of my garage time last night.
Tonight I need to clear off the welding bench and get busy. Super stoked to be working on this one finally.

Hopefully you grabbed a couple of spare beers before taking off.