Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT Bob Heine's Auto Emporium

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Just found this. Subscribed!

 

[Bob Heine]

Just found this. Subscribed!

Scott, thanks for the visit and thank you for your service to our country. I took a few minutes to check out your Italian garage and your Alpha. I have a soft spot for Italian sports cars, especially the Fiat X1/9 but Florida has decided to restrict my license (one arm automatically = automatic?).

I drove manual cars from 1968 through 1996 with one accident in all those years. They tell me I can take another driving test but that's a catch 22. I don't own a stick car anymore and I don't want to take the test on a car I don't own or at least plan to buy. I would happily buy a Fiat X1/9 but if the person doing the test fails me, I own a car I can't drive. Guess I'll just have to suffer with the manual gates in the Caddy and the Corvette.

 

[Bob Heine]

1958 Summer Vacatiton
Because Dad’s book needed to be revised, we stayed home the summer of 1958 and for the first time in my life I had the opportunity to spend a summer vacation like most of the kids in my school. Turned out to be pretty boring and was over faster. I built and customized a dozen Revell and AMT car models. I wasn’t even smart enough to get the right glue. I used Duco Cement and it never did get me high (OK, maybe it did but I didn’t notice).

1959 Mexican Road Trip
When Mom and Dad announced we were going to Mexico I had visions of Dad trading in our 1958 Rambler for a new Oldsmobile, Buick or even a Cadillac so we could pull a much bigger and fancier trailer. I was imagining something like the 36-foot Redman New Moon trailer featured in The Long Long Trailer movie from 1953:

Instead, Dad decided we would travel light and just drive the Rambler wagon (ours was yellow and not a two-tone).

In 1959 I’m 14 and my brother is 16 so it’s going to be four nearly full-size people and all their clothes and "stuff" for ten weeks packed in the car. We are bringing suits and ties and Mom is bringing dresses. My brother and I were flabbergasted and asked a few questions:

Q: Without a trailer, where are we going to sleep?
A: Motels and hotels.
Q: Without a trailer, where are we going to eat?
A: Restaurants.

Now you’re talking. I am prepared to eat hot dogs, burgers and fries three times a day for two-and-a-half months.

As if we didn’t already have a packed car, Dad brought along a 24-can case of Upperlube. The guide to driving in Mexico says the gas is poor quality and low octane and therefore you should add a can of Upperlube to each tank of gas purchased in Mexico. Otherwise your valves will be destroyed. Having gone through the lifter disaster with the Oldsmobile on the Alaska trip, Dad was taking no chances. Luckily, Upperlube comes in 4-ounce cans so a case of 24 isn’t that huge.

This trip isn’t going to be as long as the one to Alaska but it’s still a fair bit of driving. To help with the driving chores, **** has taken his high school Driver’s Education course and has his driver’s license. I’m thinking two more years and that will be me.

An odd thing happened in the first week of the trip. After about six days eating nothing but fried eggs and bacon, fried burgers and French fries and fried fish platters with French fries, I wasn’t enjoying the fried thing. I started ordering boiled eggs, broiled meat and baked potatoes, and broiled fish with vegetables. I was even ordering salads with cold cuts or chicken for lunch. I wasn’t pressured to change, it just happened.

Our route is generally like this map but without all the interstates. The vast majority of our route was on two-lane highways with stoplights in every town. The major cities did have four-lane roads but nearly all of those also had lots of stoplights.

https://goo.gl/maps/sTv51dXBUkT2

The first major stop on the trip is New Orleans. We stayed in a nice hotel and got dressed up one evening to go to Antoine’s Restaurant. I’m 14 years old and have eaten out more than a few times, even at some fancy restaurants so I think I’m going to be OK.

http://www.antoines.com

Problem 1 – the menu is in French. With a little help from my parents I figure I can get by. Problem 2 – the menu is big. I figure I’ll be OK if I stick with seafood. The waiter is a nice elderly man who comes to the table and takes our order. Unlike all the nice waiters and waitresses we’ve had on this trip, the guy doesn’t have an order pad. He just stands there and answers questions and doesn’t write anything down. I ask for Escargots and Pompano ala Pompadour and Mom asks if that’s all I want. I say sure, that should be enough. Spoiler Alert: unlike the ordinary restaurants we’ve been in, which include soup, salad, potato and vegetables with your order, Antoine’s expects you to choose this stuff individually.

[FONT=&quot]After I’ve finished my six tiny little snails in garlic butter and green stuff, my stomach is confused. When my fish dish arrives, it’s a tiny paper bag on my plate. Fortunately there’s a piece of steamed fish inside the bag but after finishing that my stomach is growling so loud I didn’t hear Mom’s offer to share some of her dinner. I thought Cherries Jubilee would fill the void but by the time they finished burning my dessert it looked like another stain on the plate. Before we left I ate all the bread and butter on the table and was eyeballing the bread on the next table. [/FONT]

 

[shortykorte]

Oui, it sounds like we had the same 14 yr. old stomach. I don't know why family would call me a garage disposal. I wish I had a wider palate because I would be wanting steak every meal and getting stuck with hamburger or meatloaf.

Upper cylinder lube. When we had our Texaco station, I thought the little cans were neat. I didn't really know the purpose and we didn't sale that many. This was when unleaded gas was coming out so who needed engine lube, right.

I hope dad was able to take you young men to some of Na'leans finest cultural shows on Bourbon Street. . On to Mexico, I can just imagine what lies ahead.

 

[Bob Heine]

Oui, it sounds like we had the same 14 yr. old stomach. I don't know why family would call me a garage disposal. I wish I had a wider palate because I would be wanting steak every meal and getting stuck with hamburger or meatloaf.

Upper cylinder lube. When we had our Texaco station, I thought the little cans were neat. I didn't really know the purpose and we didn't sale that many. This was when unleaded gas was coming out so who needed engine lube, right.

I hope dad was able to take you young men to some of Na'leans finest cultural shows on Bourbon Street. . On to Mexico, I can just imagine what lies ahead.

Stewart, when I was a teenager I had to take in about 10,000 calories a day just to keep my 125 pound body alive. My grandmother was thrilled that I had such a good appetite. I also had a very receptive palate and ate whatever was put in front of me. **** had all kinds of food allergies and being smart didn't eat anything that made him throw up. Until I was in my 20s my only comment at the dinner table was "Are you going to eat that?" followed by a plate swap. Garbage disposal was the kindest thing people called me. My wife would say "Step on his foot and his mouth opens." referring to the pedal-operated trash can lid.

My grandfather religiously added upperlube to the gas in his Flathead engine-powered cars. It meant the head didn't have to be pulled as often to clean the carbon. I came across a picture of his first car but I don't recognize it. He bought it when he was living in England so it had to be older than a 1912 model. I guess he was into two-seaters back then.

Dad wasn't into exposing **** and me to the realities of life. I think he went out of his way to avoid Bourbon Street.

 

[shortykorte]

Your comment brought back another memory. My parents were not fond of my wife because she had a mind of her own and called a spade a F@#king Shovel. They also believed she was promiscuous and would sleep with almost anyone (says a lot about their opinion of me as well but I guess I earned it).

When our daughter and son were four or five years old my mother commented "Eric looks just like Bob but I can't tell who Jennifer looks like." My wife instantly replied "She looks just like her father, may he rest in peace."

Did your parents ever come around? I see you two were made for each other or did she have to learn to talk your wit to keep you in your place?

 

[Bob Heine]

Did your parents ever come around? I see you two were made for each other or did she have to learn to talk your wit to keep you in your place?

Stewart, I think my father came around but he passed away before our 7th anniversary. My mother took a lot longer.

Shortly after my parents arrived at the hospital in 1965, the doctors came out and gave them and my wife the news that I might have permanent brain damage. Because my wife wasn't crying or hysterical, Dad thought she was making plans to move on. He hinted they would adopt our two kids. Dad went a step further and suggested I might not be able to "perform" if I did recover. My wife's instant response was "The train ran over his arm, not his ****." She also thanked them for the adoption offer but I won't repeat how she declined. Because she stuck with me, my father's opinion of her improved dramatically.

My father never criticized how we raised our children (pretty strict) but my mother constantly undermined my wife's discipline. Both children knew how to use a fork and spoon before they were two years old, including not holding them like a hammer. My mother complained regularly until we let my parents take the kids on a trip to Boston. They dressed our daughter in a velvet dress and our son in a wool suit. They sat in high chairs at the table in a very very fancy restaurant and the two of them ate just like they did at home. The entire kitchen and wait staff came out to see these two little people eating like human beings and my mother gushed about the event for years. She failed to connect my wife's efforts with the kids' behavior.

The most telling thing my mother did was try to help me after the accident. She tried to feed me in the hospital (I don't actually have a problem eating with one hand). At restaurants my mother would try to cut my food for me which was interesting. Very early on I learned that any piece of meat that I couldn't cut with a steel fork was too tough to chew (I can almost cut a two-by-four with a fork). If I was working on a home repair project when my mother visited, she would try to help. As slow as I was at doing things like hand-digging a new septic system dry-well, her help didn't speed things up. My wife always left me alone until I actually asked for help. Even when I was near tears wallpapering the ceiling of our basement staircase (Paisley was IN) she let me work it out (Hint: always buy double the amount of wallpaper when papering a ceiling -- you still may not have any left over).

The year before my mother died at 95, she astounded me. I was making my twice-daily visit to cook her hot meals and make sure she took her pills and she said "It's a good thing you had Liane (my wife) when you lost your arm, I would never have let you do all the things you did." I guess you could say she came around.

As to my wife's wit, hers is razor sharp and was one of the things that attracted me to her. My mother wouldn't say $hit if her mouth was full of it but my wife had no problem using language appropriate to the situation (and sometimes even inappropriate). Until someone gets to know her, the smart-*** comments can put them off. I believe she adopted the "F*ck 'em if they can't take a joke!" attitude while growing up a red-head. Kids and even teachers give them grief for being different and I'm not sure if the quick temper and impatience is a genetic trait or a result of the childhood harassment but my wife does have the legendary temper of a red-head and it is a perfect complement to my patience and "I've never seen Bob mad." temperament.

 

[Bob Heine]

I'm in "What's Next" mode.

Last week the timer on the sprinkler system died so I installed the replacement timer I bought four years ago. The dead one had a 110V indexing valve solenoid and I wanted to add a rain interlock to the system, which requires a 24V solenoid system. Changing the system was a piece of cake but it didn't actually work. I bought a RainBird solenoid and my indexing valve is an Irritrol. Ordered the correct solenoid but before I had a chance to install it (it's been raining -- thank you very much) the blower motor in the air handler of our Carrier air conditioning system died.

I found the motor online but it's over $500 and no one seems to have one in stock. Broke down and called an A/C repair service. He confirmed it was the motor and that it would be expensive to replace. I asked if I was shoeing a dead horse because the system is 17 years old and I've been nursing it for the last two years. It's more expensive but it makes sense to replace the whole system at this point. Dead horses are a popular metaphor but I only found the "beating a dead horse" smiley. It's just not the same.
.

Now I wait for the third horseshoe to fall...

 

[cbacres]

Bob, you have a pool right? Always something to do there.
I just replaced the mechanical seal in my pump, twice, because sometimes I'm just plain stupid. Those ceramic seals do break.

 

[Bob Heine]

Bob, you have a pool right? Always something to do there.
I just replaced the mechanical seal in my pump, twice, because sometimes I'm just plain stupid. Those ceramic seals do break.

Craig, that was one of last year's trifectas but you're right. Waiting patiently....

 

[dlcwent]

1958 Summer Vacatiton
Because Dad’s book needed to be revised, we stayed home the summer of 1958 and for the first time in my life I had the opportunity to spend a summer vacation like most of the kids in my school. Turned out to be pretty boring and was over faster. I built and customized a dozen Revell and AMT car models. I wasn’t even smart enough to get the right glue. I used Duco Cement and it never did get me high (OK, maybe it did but I didn’t notice).

1959 Mexican Road Trip
When Mom and Dad announced we were going to Mexico I had visions of Dad trading in our 1958 Rambler for a new Oldsmobile, Buick or even a Cadillac so we could pull a much bigger and fancier trailer. I was imagining something like the 36-foot Redman New Moon trailer featured in The Long Long Trailer movie from 1953:

Instead, Dad decided we would travel light and just drive the Rambler wagon (ours was yellow and not a two-tone).

In 1959 I’m 14 and my brother is 16 so it’s going to be four nearly full-size people and all their clothes and "stuff" for ten weeks packed in the car. We are bringing suits and ties and Mom is bringing dresses. My brother and I were flabbergasted and asked a few questions:

Q: Without a trailer, where are we going to sleep?
A: Motels and hotels.
Q: Without a trailer, where are we going to eat?
A: Restaurants.

Now you’re talking. I am prepared to eat hot dogs, burgers and fries three times a day for two-and-a-half months.

As if we didn’t already have a packed car, Dad brought along a 24-can case of Upperlube. The guide to driving in Mexico says the gas is poor quality and low octane and therefore you should add a can of Upperlube to each tank of gas purchased in Mexico. Otherwise your valves will be destroyed. Having gone through the lifter disaster with the Oldsmobile on the Alaska trip, Dad was taking no chances. Luckily, Upperlube comes in 4-ounce cans so a case of 24 isn’t that huge.

This trip isn’t going to be as long as the one to Alaska but it’s still a fair bit of driving. To help with the driving chores, **** has taken his high school Driver’s Education course and has his driver’s license. I’m thinking two more years and that will be me.

An odd thing happened in the first week of the trip. After about six days eating nothing but fried eggs and bacon, fried burgers and French fries and fried fish platters with French fries, I wasn’t enjoying the fried thing. I started ordering boiled eggs, broiled meat and baked potatoes, and broiled fish with vegetables. I was even ordering salads with cold cuts or chicken for lunch. I wasn’t pressured to change, it just happened.

Our route is generally like this map but without all the interstates. The vast majority of our route was on two-lane highways with stoplights in every town. The major cities did have four-lane roads but nearly all of those also had lots of stoplights.

https://goo.gl/maps/sTv51dXBUkT2

The first major stop on the trip is New Orleans. We stayed in a nice hotel and got dressed up one evening to go to Antoine’s Restaurant. I’m 14 years old and have eaten out more than a few times, even at some fancy restaurants so I think I’m going to be OK.

http://www.antoines.com

Problem 1 – the menu is in French. With a little help from my parents I figure I can get by. Problem 2 – the menu is big. I figure I’ll be OK if I stick with seafood. The waiter is a nice elderly man who comes to the table and takes our order. Unlike all the nice waiters and waitresses we’ve had on this trip, the guy doesn’t have an order pad. He just stands there and answers questions and doesn’t write anything down. I ask for Escargots and Pompano ala Pompadour and Mom asks if that’s all I want. I say sure, that should be enough. Spoiler Alert: unlike the ordinary restaurants we’ve been in, which include soup, salad, potato and vegetables with your order, Antoine’s expects you to choose this stuff individually.

[FONT=&quot]After I’ve finished my six tiny little snails in garlic butter and green stuff, my stomach is confused. When my fish dish arrives, it’s a tiny paper bag on my plate. Fortunately there’s a piece of steamed fish inside the bag but after finishing that my stomach is growling so loud I didn’t hear Mom’s offer to share some of her dinner. I thought Cherries Jubilee would fill the void but by the time they finished burning my dessert it looked like another stain on the plate. Before we left I ate all the bread and butter on the table and was eyeballing the bread on the next table. [/FONT]

I hope you realize that every story you tell should be printed and assembled to be sent to a publisher. Bob, I am dead serious. You are sooooooo interesting. Your life is a best seller.

 

[Bob Heine]

I hope you realize that every story you tell should be printed and assembled to be sent to a publisher. Bob, I am dead serious. You are sooooooo interesting. Your life is a best seller.

Thank you Dan, I may have to do something (that Cadillac put a dent in my little portfolio).

 

[shortykorte]

Well Mrs Heine sounds like she is quite unique for her generation. You definitely have lived a interesting life with some interesting characters especially that guy you see in the mirror.

...able to "perform" if I did recover. My wife's instant response was "The train ran over his arm, not his ****." Absolutely hilarious and my kind of woman.
Are you sure your last name isn't Holmes? Could be good reason to "stick" with you along with your delightfully patience demeanor.

 

[sublime68charger]

I hope you realize that every story you tell should be printed and assembled to be sent to a publisher. Bob, I am dead serious. You are sooooooo interesting. Your life is a best seller.

what DLC said,

I love reading your story's.

keep posting away!

 

[Bob Heine]

Well Mrs Heine sounds like she is quite unique for her generation. You definitely have lived a interesting life with some interesting characters especially that guy you see in the mirror.

...able to "perform" if I did recover. My wife's instant response was "The train ran over his arm, not his ****." Absolutely hilarious and my kind of woman.
Are you sure your last name isn't Holmes? Could be good reason to "stick" with you along with your delightfully patience demeanor.

Stewart, my father never new what hit him.

Do you mean Sherlock or Mike (Holmes on Homes)?

what DLC said,

I love reading your story's.

keep posting away!

Sub, it will be my pleasure and thanks so much for stopping by.

 

[Bob Heine]

[FONT=&quot]When Craig (CBAcres) stopped by the other day, he liked one of my little projects. I posted it on another thread but I'll repeat it here. I made a rack to hold ten 16-ounce plastic squeeze bottles full of solvents I often use in the garage: Acetone, Degreaser, Denatured Alcohol, Distilled Water, Lacquer Thinner, Mineral Spirits (Paint Thinner), Solvent-Based Wax & Grease Remover, Water-Based Wax & Grease Remover, and two grades of Urethane Reducer. The rack hangs on the wall [FONT=&quot]at the back of the wor[FONT=&quot]kbench.[/FONT][/FONT]

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I also made a rack for my paint cart that holds seven 8-ounce squeeze bottles of solvent.

[FONT=&quot]My obsession for bottle holders branched out into [FONT=&quot]32-ounce spray bottle[FONT=&quot]s[FONT=&quot] that also ended up on the paint cart.
[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT]
[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Then I got a little nuts and made a rack for some polish.
[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]I'm posting this because I have two hundred or so slides to scan from the 19[FONT=&quot]59 Mexico trip. I'm not sure why bu[FONT=&quot]t the[FONT=&quot]se slide[FONT=&quot]s are mostly unlabeled and as a 14-year old boy my brain cells were deprived of blood and therefore oxygen[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] most of that summer. The hormones of [FONT=&quot]puberty[/FONT] have a way of shutting off a majority of mental functions[FONT=&quot]. Tu[FONT=&quot]rns out [FONT=&quot]memory is one of the first to go -- the Mexico trip is not as clear in my mind a[FONT=&quot]s the first three trips. [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] M[FONT=&quot]y fir[FONT=&quot]st day in Mexico City defines another aspect of the phenomenon.[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] Coming soon....[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
​

 

[dlcwent]

[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]I'm posting this because I have two hundred or so slides to scan from the 19[FONT=&quot]59 Mexico trip. I'm not sure why bu[FONT=&quot]t the[FONT=&quot]se slide[FONT=&quot]s are mostly unlabeled and as a 14-year old boy my brain cells were deprived of blood and therefore oxygen[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] most of that summer. The hormones of [FONT=&quot]puberty[/FONT] have a way of shutting off a majority of mental functions[FONT=&quot]. Tu[FONT=&quot]rns out [FONT=&quot]memory is one of the first to go -- the Mexico trip is not as clear in my mind a[FONT=&quot]s the first three trips. [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] M[FONT=&quot]y fir[FONT=&quot]st day in Mexico City defines another aspect of the phenomenon.[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] Coming soon....[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
​

Okay Bob, get a firm grip on yourself.......Oopps, I guess that's what you're talking about. Any 70 something year old trying to remember what was going on when they were 14 is going to be a long reach. I'm totally amazed that you recall as much as you do. But as usual, I'm not leaving until I've heard every story you can recall and tell us. I'm sitting around a campfire listening to a man that is giving my mind a virtual video of his life. Please...........I am on the edge of my seat waiting for the next memory you will share with us. If (no when) I go to Florida again, I hope you can find the time to sit and talk to me. You'll be my first stop if you'll have me interfering with your day.

 

[BBChevro]

...Do you mean Sherlock or Mike (Holmes on Homes)?
...

I think that Shorty may have been hinting at John


The paint cart is pretty neat

Looking forward to the next instalment of "Heine's travels".

 

[bj383ss]

Those bottle racks are neat Bob. Great idea. Anymore details on how they are designed and where did you find the 16oz bottles? I am going to put the exact same chemicals together that you have done that is brilliant.

Bret

 

[HCNDM]

[FONT=&quot]When Craig (CBAcres) stopped by the other day, he liked one of my little projects. I posted it on another thread but I'll repeat it here. I made a rack to hold ten 16-ounce plastic squeeze bottles full of solvents I often use in the garage: Acetone, Degreaser, Denatured Alcohol, Distilled Water, Lacquer Thinner, Mineral Spirits (Paint Thinner), Solvent-Based Wax & Grease Remover, Water-Based Wax & Grease Remover, and two grades of Urethane Reducer. The rack hangs on the wall [FONT=&quot]at the back of the wor[FONT=&quot]kbench.[/FONT][/FONT]

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I also made a rack for my paint cart that holds seven 8-ounce squeeze bottles of solvent.

[FONT=&quot]My obsession for bottle holders branched out into [FONT=&quot]32-ounce spray bottle[FONT=&quot]s[FONT=&quot] that also ended up on the paint cart.
[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT]
[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Then I got a little nuts and made a rack for some polish.
[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]I'm posting this because I have two hundred or so slides to scan from the 19[FONT=&quot]59 Mexico trip. I'm not sure why bu[FONT=&quot]t the[FONT=&quot]se slide[FONT=&quot]s are mostly unlabeled and as a 14-year old boy my brain cells were deprived of blood and therefore oxygen[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] most of that summer. The hormones of [FONT=&quot]puberty[/FONT] have a way of shutting off a majority of mental functions[FONT=&quot]. Tu[FONT=&quot]rns out [FONT=&quot]memory is one of the first to go -- the Mexico trip is not as clear in my mind a[FONT=&quot]s the first three trips. [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] M[FONT=&quot]y fir[FONT=&quot]st day in Mexico City defines another aspect of the phenomenon.[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] Coming soon....[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
​

Loving the bottle racks and squeeze bottles in general!

Can't wait for the Mexico tale. I grew up in a foreign service family and your stories remind me of a lot of globe trotting and road trips across the South American and African continent.

Sadly my parents were not the avid photographers yours were and as such fading memories is most of what I have to go on.

Kr,

Niels


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[shortykorte]

Bob I was think Holmes as in John

I love the bottle idea and will copy this weekend. Beats digging out the gallon cans. I did have a can of WD40 that stop working and put it in a little bottle. Light bulb didn't go off to do that with the bulk solvents. Thanks!!!
I have a tool box I was going to turn into a mobile body tool cart. I like a lot of your ideas on the paint cart. Now have to figure out if it will be one body & paint cart or individual carts.

On to Mexico City!!!

 

[cbacres]

[FONT=&quot]When Craig (CBAcres) stopped by the other day, he liked one of my little projects. I posted it on another thread but I'll repeat it here. I made a rack to hold ten 16-ounce plastic squeeze bottles full of solvents I often use in the garage: Acetone, Degreaser, Denatured Alcohol, Distilled Water, Lacquer Thinner, Mineral Spirits (Paint Thinner), Solvent-Based Wax & Grease Remover, Water-Based Wax & Grease Remover, and two grades of Urethane Reducer. The rack hangs on the wall [FONT=&quot]at the back of the wor[FONT=&quot]kbench.[/FONT][/FONT]

[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I also made a rack for my paint cart that holds seven 8-ounce squeeze bottles of solvent.

[FONT=&quot]My obsession for bottle holders branched out into [FONT=&quot]32-ounce spray bottle[FONT=&quot]s[FONT=&quot] that also ended up on the paint cart.
[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT]
[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Then I got a little nuts and made a rack for some polish.
[FONT=&quot]

[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]I'm posting this because I have two hundred or so slides to scan from the 19[FONT=&quot]59 Mexico trip. I'm not sure why bu[FONT=&quot]t the[FONT=&quot]se slide[FONT=&quot]s are mostly unlabeled and as a 14-year old boy my brain cells were deprived of blood and therefore oxygen[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] most of that summer. The hormones of [FONT=&quot]puberty[/FONT] have a way of shutting off a majority of mental functions[FONT=&quot]. Tu[FONT=&quot]rns out [FONT=&quot]memory is one of the first to go -- the Mexico trip is not as clear in my mind a[FONT=&quot]s the first three trips. [/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] M[FONT=&quot]y fir[FONT=&quot]st day in Mexico City defines another aspect of the phenomenon.[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT] Coming soon....[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
​

Bob I was think Holmes as in John

I love the bottle idea and will copy this weekend. Beats digging out the gallon cans. I did have a can of WD40 that stop working and put it in a little bottle. Light bulb didn't go off to do that with the bulk solvents. Thanks!!!
I have a tool box I was going to turn into a mobile body tool cart. I like a lot of your ideas on the paint cart. Now have to figure out if it will be one body & paint cart or individual carts.

On to Mexico City!!!

When spotted those bottles, I was wondering why I never thought to do that. I guess it's more fun to get a rag, pull out gallon can acetone , dump some on it and by the time I walk over to what I was working on, half of it evaporated. Why didn't I take the can over, because I only needed a little bit of it.

I've added this to my list of things to build for the shop, I guess I can at least get the bottles going though.

Thanks again for the tour Bob. Can't wait to hear that Vett in the center bay start up.

 

[bj383ss]

I think I found them.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OZOW6E0/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Bret

 

[Bob Heine]

Okay Bob, get a firm grip on yourself.......Oopps, I guess that's what you're talking about. Any 70 something year old trying to remember what was going on when they were 14 is going to be a long reach. I'm totally amazed that you recall as much as you do. But as usual, I'm not leaving until I've heard every story you can recall and tell us. I'm sitting around a campfire listening to a man that is giving my mind a virtual video of his life. Please...........I am on the edge of my seat waiting for the next memory you will share with us. If (no when) I go to Florida again, I hope you can find the time to sit and talk to me. You'll be my first stop if you'll have me interfering with your day.

Dan, we used to visit my brother-in-law in the summer. He and his wife have their retirement home in Somesville (on Mt. Desert Island). I especially enjoyed the parking lot mussels at the boat launch ramp. Let me know when you make your Florida trip plans. We live 24 miles from Palm Beach International Airport to the north and 24 miles from Fort Lauderdale International airport to the south.

I think that Shorty may have been hinting at John


The paint cart is pretty neat

Looking forward to the next instalment of "Heine's travels".

Mark, don't know why I didn't think of him...

Those bottle racks are neat Bob. Great idea. Anymore details on how they are designed and where did you find the 16oz bottles? I am going to put the exact same chemicals together that you have done that is brilliant.

Bret

Bret, sorry I didn't reply sooner. Wednesday was Air Conditioner replacement and Thursday was finish the repairs and upgrade on the sprinkler system.

My source for the HDPE bottles was US Plastics. Here's a link to the bottles I used:
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=23604&catid=897

I designed the first rack (red one on the cart) for 8-ounce bottles and the second rack (white one on the wall) for 16-ounce bottles. After the bottles arrived I determined the exhaust tubing size that fit them best.

The small 8-ounce bottles are 2.010" Diameter and they fit nicely into a 2.25" exhaust pipe. I brought the bottle to Advance Auto just to make sure. They sell short pieces of straight exhaust pipe for a couple of bucks and I bought some steel strap from Home Depot, along with some Red Primer/Paint.

I cut the pipe into 3-inch long pieces and tacked them together in pairs and then tacked 3 pair plus one to the wide steel strap. Finally, I welded the narrow strap to the bottom of the tubes to keep the bottles from dropping through. I cut the straps before welding and drilled a hole in one end and a slot in the other so I could mount the rack a little easier.

A little paint and it was done.

For the 16-ounce bottles that are 2.431" Diameter, I found the 2.5" exhaust couplers are the right size (they are 2.5" inside diameter). I cut each coupler in half so five couplers and the same kind of strapping along with a can of White Primer/Paint gives you a ten bottle rack. I bought Walker 41957 couplers (they don't have slots). Prices vary widely but you should be able to find them for about $3 plus shipping.

Loving the bottle racks and squeeze bottles in general!

Can't wait for the Mexico tale. I grew up in a foreign service family and your stories remind me of a lot of globe trotting and road trips across the South American and African continent.

Sadly my parents were not the avid photographers yours were and as such fading memories is most of what I have to go on.

Kr,

Niels


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Niels, I suspect you didn't appreciate the many address and school changes when they were happening but I have to say that living in different countries gives you an appreciation for the one you call home. Then again, Australia is looking pretty good right now! Six week election cycles don't guarantee you'll get the best leader elected but 3 years+ is wearing thin.

Bob I was think Holmes as in John

I love the bottle idea and will copy this weekend. Beats digging out the gallon cans. I did have a can of WD40 that stop working and put it in a little bottle. Light bulb didn't go off to do that with the bulk solvents. Thanks!!!
I have a tool box I was going to turn into a mobile body tool cart. I like a lot of your ideas on the paint cart. Now have to figure out if it will be one body & paint cart or individual carts.

On to Mexico City!!!

Stewart, the little bottles came to me first. I dropped a brand new plastic bottle of Mother's Polish and it cracked. For a while I just put it on the shelf upside down but a squeeze bottle my wife used for vinegar in the shower (hair rinse) made me look for the bottles. In the store they were like $5 each so when I found them with caps for less than $1 I bought a bunch, along with the sprayers that US Plastics sells.

When spotted those bottles, I was wondering why I never thought to do that. I guess it's more fun to get a rag, pull out gallon can acetone , dump some on it and by the time I walk over to what I was working on, half of it evaporated. Why didn't I take the can over, because I only needed a little bit of it.

I've added this to my list of things to build for the shop, I guess I can at least get the bottles going though.

Thanks again for the tour Bob. Can't wait to hear that Vett in the center bay start up.

Craig, I always ended up splashing solvents everywhere. I even found a "better funnel" for filling these 8- and 16-ounce bottles (it has two different threads).

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=85598&catid=1072

I think I found them.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OZOW6E0/?tag=atomicindus08-20

Bret

Bret, those look fine but almost twice the price of the ones from US Plastics:
http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?itemid=117770&catid=897

They may also be a tight fit in the 2.5" couplers. The ones on Amazon are 2.46" and the ones from US Plastics are 2.431". A small difference but those four polish bottles in the stainless rack are 16-ounce but just a bit bigger than the US Plastics ones and they won't fit in the 2.5" couplers unless you force them (the stainless rack is made from scrap 3" pipe I couldn't bear to throw out.

All: I'll get back to the Mexico trip real soon.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Bob, I think I will have steal some of your ideas here, well done and looks great too.

Regards

 

[Lyndon]

Bob

Loving your ideas. And for a one armed man, well, you put me to shame! My excuse is Chemo!!!!! Damn it!!!

I think I could do those holders, but in PVC, and then getting the bottles to match. Have to look into that (as she said to me last night - yeah right!!!)

Lyndon
Still loving this thread.

 

[Bob Heine]

Bob, I think I will have steal some of your ideas here, well done and looks great too.

Regards

Steve, I'm honored to have you steal whatever you like from my thread. I thought the small bottles might see occasional use but I'm amazed how often I grab one to clean up a little mess. It's also real helpful to have the one over the bench because I don't have to search for the bottle -- it's always in the same place and I've actually gotten pretty good putting them back after I use one.

 

[Bob Heine]

Bob

Loving your ideas. And for a one armed man, well, you put me to shame! My excuse is Chemo!!!!! Damn it!!!

I think I could do those holders, but in PVC, and then getting the bottles to match. Have to look into that (as she said to me last night - yeah right!!!)

Lyndon
Still loving this thread.

Lyndon that's very kind of you to say but the reality is I spent eleven days in hospital and two months at home sitting around waiting for a mechanical arm. The last time my stomach was upset enough for me to vomit was 1983 when they took out my appendix. I take for granted that things going down my throat will come out somewhere else. I also have never gone back to the doctor to ensure my arm hasn't grown back. I admire your courage and tenacity.

Remember that missing an arm is just a punchline. My biggest handicap is never saying "I'd give my left arm for a...." with a straight face.

I actually tried to do the bottle rack with PVC but couldn't find inch-size pipe to fit very well. The 16-ounce bottles fit inside 3-inch pipe but it's a very sloppy fit.

 

[sean Buick 76]

Things are looking really good keep up the creative projects!

 

[dlcwent]

Bob, your attitude is incredible.

[Remember that missing an arm is just a punchline. My biggest handicap is never saying "I'd give my left arm for a...." with a straight face.]

You help me realize that I shouldn't be complaining when I have a few aches and pains. I guess it's the old saying, "I once complained that I had no shoes, until I met a man that had no feet"

 

[Bob Heine]

Things are looking really good keep up the creative projects!

Sean, thank you and thank you for stopping by. I look forward to seeing the new "street" tires and rims on the Buick. I'm afraid I was a "goofy tire" offender when I was in my 30s. I had 275/50-15 tires on 10-inch rims on the rear of my Corvette. In the 70s it was an acceptable Hot Wheels look to have tires sticking out...

It was also acceptable to dress like this:

Bob, your attitude is incredible.

[Remember that missing an arm is just a punchline. My biggest handicap is never saying "I'd give my left arm for a...." with a straight face.]

You help me realize that I shouldn't be complaining when I have a few aches and pains. I guess it's the old saying, "I once complained that I had no shoes, until I met a man that had no feet"

Dan, we all complain about aches and pains -- I certainly do. I was extra whiny after I lost my arm but it was mostly internalized. When I started whining to my orthopedic surgeon about the phantom pain and my inability to tell where the end of my stump was, along with my lost depth perception resulting in spilled everything, he tried to encourage me with his worst nightmare. He said the worst that could happen was to lose both arms and be blind. I don't recall that being encouraging for my situation (I was wearing a patch on my right eye because of the double vision and my hair was just starting to grow back with at least a dozen cowlicks from the stitches on my scalp).

Then I went to the Institute for the Crippled and Disabled for my first artificial arm fitting. I went to lunch across the street and as I sat down at the counter, I noticed a well-dressed young woman having a bowl of soup. She didn't seem awkward or self-conscious but she was missing both arms above the elbow. All the things I had been whining about (buttoning my shirt, tying a tie, threading my belt and worst of all buttoning my pants) seemed so simple. Obviously this arm-less woman had figured out the whole getting dressed thing and feeding herself thing and the million other things we all take for granted. THAT straightened me out. Don't quit your bitching but appreciate the simple things you can do without thinking.

And if you aren't feeling better about yourself, Google Nick Vujicic.

 

[stillp]

Bob, your tales about one-armed life have touched me. For many years I had a colleague who'd lost an arm to bone cancer in adolescence. He lived a 'normal' life - well, about as 'normal' as yours anyway! Used to get very annoyed when people offered to cut up his food for him, including ranting at a waitress in a hotel restaurant who asked him how small he wanted his steak cut up. His reply was unprintable, but along the lines of "If I needed (expletive deleted) help to eat a (expletive deleted) steak, I wouldn't have ordered a (expletive deleted) steak". The company we both worked for changed ownership, adn the sales manager at the new owner said to me "How d'you find that disabled chappie? Is he any use, or did you just employ him to make the company look good and help the tax bill?" (at the time, UK companies could claim a reduction in tax by employing certain categories of workers). At first, I didn't know who he meant by "the disabled chap", because M certainly wasn't disabled just because he'd lost an arm. When I realised who he'd meant, I told him what I thought, which didn't go down well. That was just one reason why I resigned a week into the new ownership.

Pete

 

[Bob Heine]

Bob, your tales about one-armed life have touched me. For many years I had a colleague who'd lost an arm to bone cancer in adolescence. He lived a 'normal' life - well, about as 'normal' as yours anyway! Used to get very annoyed when people offered to cut up his food for him, including ranting at a waitress in a hotel restaurant who asked him how small he wanted his steak cut up. His reply was unprintable, but along the lines of "If I needed (expletive deleted) help to eat a (expletive deleted) steak, I wouldn't have ordered a (expletive deleted) steak". The company we both worked for changed ownership, adn the sales manager at the new owner said to me "How d'you find that disabled chappie? Is he any use, or did you just employ him to make the company look good and help the tax bill?" (at the time, UK companies could claim a reduction in tax by employing certain categories of workers). At first, I didn't know who he meant by "the disabled chap", because M certainly wasn't disabled just because he'd lost an arm. When I realised who he'd meant, I told him what I thought, which didn't go down well. That was just one reason why I resigned a week into the new ownership.

Pete

Pete, you made me tear up! Not crying tears, just the pain of not laughing out loud (wife thinks I'm having a breakdown when I LOL).

Sometimes disabilities are invisible, like blindness caused by head-up-the-*** syndrome. I always give people the benefit of the doubt when they ask to help but my wife tells me I'm too nice -- until I refuse her help -- and I'm an insensitive lout.

When I was promoted to a middle management position I was told by Inhuman Resources that they received several complaints about my "quota" position. Since it was IBM (Idiots Become Managers) they were probably not far off the mark.

I retired at 50 for the same reason -- handicapped people get extra money from charities and government agencies just for being handicapped. The charity was Fidelity Investments and the government agency was the IRS refunding my over-payment of income taxes.

 

[Lyndon]

Bob

You are right about Nick Vujicic. I've seen several programs on him (including an Australian 60 Minutes show I think), and his attitude really is empowering. Watching the things he does (not attempts, but DOES) is very stimulating when circumstances get tough.

Lyndon
OK - you have a holiday - we'll work!

 

[BBChevro]

...I'm afraid I was a "goofy tire" offender when I was in my 30s. I had 275/50-15 tires on 10-inch rims on the rear of my Corvette. In the 70s it was an acceptable Hot Wheels look to have tires sticking out...

...

Isn't that why they invented air-shocks
Yep, I was guilty as well (I still have a pair of 14x10s in the shed).

 

[lakeroadster]

Spot On. I love the look on the 'vette purists faces when a hot rodder cruises in with this look.

Bob.... you da man!

My other favorite... 6 tail lights on the back of a mid-year..

 

[Terrick down Under]

He Bob, you might like this!

Can you guess what I got up to this weekend past?

 

[shortykorte]

Bob, very enlightening.

 

[Garageke]

Hey Bob

Like your bottle set up, it's great.

Curious if you had any problems with acetone in a plastic bottle? I read somewhere that acetone will eat plastic.

Terry

 

[Denwood]

Bob, like many others, I find your story, and attitude towards life positively refreshing