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

[Bob Heine]

Nothing clever to add but I do love every aspect of your home.

The gardens really do it for me as well.

As always Bob, I just grin madly when I read and enjoy your updates.

Rian, good to have you stop by. I didn't know it was my perfect home when I first saw it. Perfect might be a stretch but it is closer than anything else we've ever seen. It's all on one floor and it isn't so big that we need a second kitchen (one house we looked at had a mini-kitchen off the second floor master suite).

Bob, thank you so much for sharing, your pictures speak a thousand words.

Steve, like yours there is a tranquility that makes home more restful than going off on holiday.

Bob, I think your banana picture is from when you were living Downunder.

Stewart, those are northern hemisphere bananas! Notice how they swirl clockwise from the top? [Actually I have no clue!]

Hi Bob,

Thanks for the background. I can bore you with some of mine. Was born in LA, and grew up in San Francisco during the 60's and 70's. Moved to the Bahamas in 76, and left in 81. Joined the US Navy for 6 years, and then to Uni.
I came out here after Uni. Mum was Australian, and dad is American, so the move made sense to me. Went to Uni, and graduated from UT Health Science Ctr in Houston. Degree was in Cardiovascular Perfusion, and they needed perfusionists here in Aus.
Moved to Melbourne, and met my wife shortly afterwards (didn't know it at the time). We got together after a few years, and she has been by my side for the last 22. Funny she loves the house we live in now, and says she never wants to leave. I keep pointing out spots where I can bury her
Worked in heart surgery for 24 years, and became exhausted with the hours.
Moved up to Clifton Beach to retire, and got bored going to coffee and lunch with SHMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed). Ended up with a job as a Corrections Officer at the prison near by. Hence a job I don't have to think at, and good pay for the amount of work I actually do. Good retirement job.

Great to see pictures of your yard. Looks beautiful, and well looked after. We have lots of the same plants here in the tropics. Fla. is a place I would consider if we ever moved to the US.

Schooling, lifestyle, and healthcare are some of the reasons we still live here.
Photo of my wife's obsession, with mine in the background.

Ken, thank you for your background. Even your obsession speaks to me. In 1987 we celebrated our 25th anniversary and I decided to buy two silver cars to celebrate. I bought a year-old Dodge convertible with a turbo 4-cylinder for her and an eight-year-old BMW for me. I think I paid $10K for each of them. The 1979 BMW 733i had been brought in from Germany. It didn't have the giant US bumpers and minimal smog equipment. It also had manual windows and sheepskin upholstery (not seat covers, upholstery). Upgraded the wheels and installed Eibach springs so it handled pretty well.

When we moved to Australia in 1989 I went to the BMW dealer in Sydney and asked if they had a used 733i. He said no but they had a used 5-Series that they would let go for $100,000 Aus. I ended up buying a new Toyota Camry for $27,000 and sold it back to the dealer two years later for $17,000. My wife was upset until I reminded her that the company gave us $8,400 toward a car so it cost us $800 a year plus operating expenses. As much as I loved the BMW, my wife hated it (didn't have one-finger power steering like the American cars she was used to). A couple of repairs on the car cost thousands more than expected (Bosch ABS unit was $2,500 just for the part). When a blown head gasket left me stranded at 1:00 in the morning on I-95 coming home from the airport it was time to let it go (after I did the head gasket, fixed some rust and painted the car).

Bob you have done a wonderful job with your property! It is simply gorgeous

Thank you Bears Fan. It doesn't feel like we live "in town."

Beautiful Bob just beautiful.

Gerard, thank you. I try to keep after it.

Thank you Bob. I wasn't thinking you ignored me (OH YES I WAS).JK. You have beautiful property. That memorial garden is very nice, both in thought and visual delight (once you move the bag of )

I very much enjoy gardening (flowers as well as vegetables) but I haven't kept up with it in the last few years. If I had, I would be able to show you some our work. Maybe you've inspired me to get back at it and show off a little of our effort. I'll see where the summer (and my ambition) take me.

Again, thanks for sharing. Now go move that bag out of the memorial garden and take another picture of it.

Dan, guess I dodged a bullet. There's four more bags of pine bark mulch just out of frame. We were working in the noonday sun again and rather than spreading the mulch as my final act, I went in the pool to cool off and quit for the day. When the lawn guys were done the next day I decided to take pictures rather than start the sweat festival again. It's been torrential rain every day since then so the bag is still there as well as the other four.

I rose at the crack of something this morning (8:30 as I recall) and washed the Cadillac so it would impress my son on Father's Day. After all, he indirectly bought it for me!

 

[Bob Heine]

Just to finish the tour of the yard for Dan, the northeast corner is a quiet sitting area that we used to enjoy with friends. Used to because it's a long walk back up to the kitchen to get whatever it was we forgot to bring down on the first trip.

Looking back from the hillside, this is the sitting area. When we used it a lot the sand was covered with cypress and/or eucalyptus mulch. Between the mulch and the millions of ficus leaves, the area only looked nice for the week or two after fresh mulch went down. We do keep a number of tables, chairs and lounges and a chiminea (clay fireplace) under the tree either because we are becoming delusional and expect to wander down there to die or we are too lazy to carry the chairs up the hill (for now I think it's the latter).

From the same spot you can see the hillside where we set up a visqueen water slide for our grandkids and young visitors. Actually, there were quite a few old farts who thought a sheet of plastic and an endless supply of soapy water was a great idea. Most of us only did it one time (by the third or fourth party, the elderly kids had learned bruises last a lot longer once you are old enough to be president).

The gate on the right side of the last picture leads to the north side yard....

 

[Bob Heine]

The north side yard is the dog's yard although the dog believes the entire yard is hers. Luckily she has accepted the fact that the front yard is a leash-only part of the yard. Ironically this makes it easy to put a harness and leash on her (pugs are neck-less so a collar is only decoration).

Hurricane Wilma in 2005 blew down most of the fence in this side yard but repairing it gave me the opportunity to build a gate to the front yard. It was an odd thing not to have a gate because this side of the house has the electric meter. Through the gate we are back in the front yard.

Backtracking a little, there is a screened patio on the back of the house that we passed in an earlier post. The house originally had a small screened room off to one side. The original owners used it to take their 3 or 4 small dogs from their room (our guest room) to the dog yard. I removed the screened wall and the space is a sitting area for the guest room as well as my barbecue grill area. Guests staying with us can go out their room to the side or back yard and even sit under the tree way way down the hill.

Depending on our guests' home location, they may be tempted to take a dip in the pool. It's unheated so in the dead of winter it has been known to drop below 70-degrees. South Floridians consider water that cold to induce hypothermia in a matter of minutes.

To confirm the feeling of living in the sub-tropics, we have our second growth of Christmas Palms just outside the screened enclosure. Rats have recently taken up residence in these palms at night. They gnaw through the palm fronds, which fall to the ground while still green. I have set out poison bait guest houses they will hopefully enjoy.

A sliding door to our master bedroom leads out to the pool but because it faces east, the morning light floods into my our sleeping cave. A large umbrella filters the light enough so my bride rarely bursts into flames (OK, that's an exaggeration but she really hates sunlight in the morning).

 

[dlcwent]

Beautiful place you have there Bob. Thanks for the cyber tour.

And you owe me a cup of coffee as I just spit mine all over the keyboard with that "burst into flames" line. I'm sure you'd be pulling double duty today if she heard that one.

As to your "cold" 70* pool, well up here if water gets up to 70* we call it bath water.

Again, thanks for sharing and have a wonderful fathers day.

 

[Mudnut]

Wow Bob,

What a beautiful place, and garden. Hope you have a ride on mower for all that grass. Especially in summer when it grows so much it needs a weekly mow. (I know as we had a large yard in the Bahamas).

Like the photo's of the cars also. Yes very expensive over here, but the price we pay for living in what I consider one of the best places on earth.

Cheers,

Ken

 

[shortykorte]

Thanks for sharing the pictures of your little bit of paradise and the future location of the 1st annual GJ-FC luau. I'll have the FC president's people get with your people on the arrangement. How fast will it take to get the vette sanded with 20 drunks yielding power tools.

Bob, go give your wife a big kiss. Anybody who gets a silver K car (while husband gets BMW) for an anniversary present and does road over said husband with said K Car will definitely not burst in to flames at mornings first light.

Pictures of Pug please. I like me some Pug.

Oh and as asst. sec. of safety my wife and I will have to inspect your place prior to the luau.

 

[Toolfool]

Your place looks great. Nice to have some space after growing up on LI. We're on 10 acres in the woods. I don't landscape, just try to manage the natural growth.

 

[pitterpat]

Bob, my first time seeing your thread; I've been off GJ most of this year doing some home remodeling projects. Great stories and a beautiful house you have. Your garage and workshop have great storage and ideas I will be stealing. My mom live further north in FL in Wesley Chapel so I get to FL 2-3 times a year.

Keep up the posts, I'm subscribed now so I'll keep reading.

Thanks,
Pat

 

[Bears Fan]

Wow! Great pictures Bob, Looks like a fancy resort! I want to book it for a week in February

 

[hnsy]

 

[Bob Heine]

All: Sorry about my delayed response. I was visiting my subscribed threads and shot Monday with a shopping trip to Home Depot. Spent Tuesday in the yard assisting the Yard Master (SWMBO) move plants, some to new locations and others to former locations. I am glad plants can't talk or scream because some of them would be doing a lot of WTFing.

Beautiful place you have there Bob. Thanks for the cyber tour.

And you owe me a cup of coffee as I just spit mine all over the keyboard with that "burst into flames" line. I'm sure you'd be pulling double duty today if she heard that one.

As to your "cold" 70* pool, well up here if water gets up to 70* we call it bath water.

Again, thanks for sharing and have a wonderful fathers day.

Dan, thank you for stopping by and for the nice comments about the yard. I apologize for the coffee mishap. I am frequently reminded of my wife's special powers (she believing it has slipped my feeble mind) and am able to rest easy knowing she's a "White Witch" and I have nothing to worry about during daylight hours (or maybe it's the other way around). I have learned to sleep like the dead, day or night and I'm hoping it helps.

In the late 1960s we vacationed at Hampton Beach, New Hampshire over the July 4th week. Being a northerner, I went in the ocean. I don't think the water temperature had broken out of the 40s so a unique kind of numbness struck me. The water reached my waist before I could turn around and I am pretty sure there are parts of my anatomy that still have not forgiven that mistake. When I took up water skiing it was a matter of pride to start the season Easter weekend. When Easter falls in March, that is another "How stupid are you" event.

Wow Bob,

What a beautiful place, and garden. Hope you have a ride on mower for all that grass. Especially in summer when it grows so much it needs a weekly mow. (I know as we had a large yard in the Bahamas).

Like the photo's of the cars also. Yes very expensive over here, but the price we pay for living in what I consider one of the best places on earth.

Cheers,

Ken

Ken, thank you and I'll pass on your compliment to the Yard Master -- she allows me time off for good behavior if the gardens are up to snuff.

I have several ride-on mowers that come with a crew of three to five workers twice a month. When the grass gets long in the spring and early summer, they make multiple passes to turn the excess clippings into fine mulch. When we moved to Australia, the company paid to have a lawn service take care of our yard. Living carefree in a rental unit in Manly spoiled me so I continued to spoil myself by keeping the service when we moved back 25 years ago. I don't hate mowing the lawn but I really like having the free space a riding mower and all the trimming machines normally fills.

The shock of the high prices for cars and other imported goods didn't last very long. I realized that good paying jobs meant there needed to be some compensating revenue.

Thanks for sharing the pictures of your little bit of paradise and the future location of the 1st annual GJ-FC luau. I'll have the FC president's people get with your people on the arrangement. How fast will it take to get the vette sanded with 20 drunks yielding power tools.

Bob, go give your wife a big kiss. Anybody who gets a silver K car (while husband gets BMW) for an anniversary present and does road over said husband with said K Car will definitely not burst in to flames at mornings first light.

Pictures of Pug please. I like me some Pug.

Oh and as asst. sec. of safety my wife and I will have to inspect your place prior to the luau.

Stewart, I look forward to the party. I assume the board of directors will be arriving a few days in advance to help me paint the interior and exterior of the house along with the driveway (water-based); pressure wash the roof and walkways and scrub the floors. You know the drill -- whoever is coming, assume the Queen of England will be in the entourage and will be wearing white gloves,

As to the K-car, the hint was dropped for a convertible. In late 1986 there were very few convertibles offered: Corvette, Ford Mustang, Pontiac Sunbird and the Dodge K-car. The Corvette and Mustang were out of my price range so I stopped at the local Pontiac dealer. I wanted a Sunbird for my wife and a Fiero for me. I asked how much and the salesman said I had to bring my wife in first. When I told him it was to be a surprise, he said she had to come in anyway to be sure she liked the car. I walked out, never to return and bought the two silver cars the next day for less money and no need to bring my wife to the dealerships. We sold the K-car before moving to Australia and the BMW soon after we returned. I chose to sell the BMW rather than be run over by it (she really didn't like it). I bought her a nice '89 Chrysler LeBaron turbo convertible.

Then she made me buy the '87 Corvette as revenge. Women....

The gentleman sitting in the Corvette is a co-worker from Australia. He's trying to figure out why there's a steering wheel and pedals in front of the passenger seat.

Our pug, Eleanor Roosevelt Heine (Ellie) came from the shelter near us. She was six or eight weeks old.

We let her pick out her own apartment and this one was close but she chose a larger unit...

She likes to spend time in the yard, resting close to the remains of her reptilian conquest...

Your place looks great. Nice to have some space after growing up on LI. We're on 10 acres in the woods. I don't landscape, just try to manage the natural growth.

John, I really like having just a little extra space but 10 acres would overwhelm me. My wife would have me manicuring all of it and complaining about how hard it is to take care of.

Bob, my first time seeing your thread; I've been off GJ most of this year doing some home remodeling projects. Great stories and a beautiful house you have. Your garage and workshop have great storage and ideas I will be stealing. My mom live further north in FL in Wesley Chapel so I get to FL 2-3 times a year.

Keep up the posts, I'm subscribed now so I'll keep reading.

Thanks,
Pat

Pat, it's nice to have you stop by and thank you for the kind words. You just described Florida to a T "My mom live further north in FL". I feel like the exception because we moved down first and my mother followed six months later.

Wow! Great pictures Bob, Looks like a fancy resort! I want to book it for a week in February

BF, I kid my wife when she says we should get away. I say sure but it has to have an en-suite bathroom, a coffeemaker, microwave, color TV and a pool. And my limit is $9.95 a night. We spend a lot of time at home but it's not as bad as it sounds. I even have a public library with about 10,000 DVDs I can rent for $1 a week. It's a 20-minute round-trip walk.

Hnsy, back at ya!

 

[1/2 Cup]

Just awesome Bob and thank you for sharing.

PS when did you say we can visit????

Regards

 

[BBChevro]

Then she made me buy the '87 Corvette as revenge. Women....

:

I'm sure she really had to twist your arm there Bob.

 

[dlcwent]

I'm sure she really had to twist your LEFT arm there Bob.

Fixed it for you Mark. (Dan feels comfortable saying that to Bob)

 

[jbmatth]

I'm sure she really had to twist your arm there Bob.

So that is what happened to his arm. Bob, you really should have given in sooner.
JB

 

[Bob Heine]

Just awesome Bob and thank you for sharing.

PS when did you say we can visit????

Regards

Steve, the welcome mat is always out. Just give me 3 weeks to get the place up to you-know-who's standard. After all, you rewired the new place in that time so I should be able to at least get rid of the dust bunnies (more like grizzlies).

I'm sure she really had to twist your arm there Bob.

Mark, it only hurts a little, mostly phantom pain.

Fixed it for you Mark. (Dan feels comfortable saying that to Bob)

Dan, my wife and I have agreed to stick to the train story. Everyone who knew the real story is dead now. Some died quietly in their sleep in their nineties but they all died.

So that is what happened to his arm. Bob, you really should have given in sooner.
JB

JB, my 'real' story involved a very large and homely girl I picked up in a bar. I had a lot to drink and I thought she was pretty at 2:00 in the morning. When I woke up she was lying on my forearm and I couldn't get it out from under her without waking her up. I just gnawed it off at the elbow and left as quietly as I could. This is the genesis of the "Coyote Ugly" legend.

 

[Toolfool]

JB, my 'real' story involved a very large and homely girl I picked up in a bar. I had a lot to drink and I thought she was pretty at 2:00 in the morning. When I woke up she was lying on my forearm and I couldn't get it out from under her without waking her up. I just gnawed it off at the elbow and left as quietly as I could. This is the genesis of the "Coyote Ugly" legend.


Damn, now you come up with the solution. I could have used it a few times.

 

[Craptain]

JB, my 'real' story involved a very large and homely girl I picked up in a bar. I had a lot to drink and I thought she was pretty at 2:00 in the morning. When I woke up she was lying on my forearm and I couldn't get it out from under her without waking her up. I just gnawed it off at the elbow and left as quietly as I could. This is the genesis of the "Coyote Ugly" legend.

Over here in west Florida, we call them "gnaws" when they are that bad. Same results.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

 

[dlcwent]

Over here in west Florida, we call them "gnaws" when they are that bad. Same results.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

Up here in Maine we call them our wives.

 

[Lyndon]

Up here in Maine we call them our wives.

Dan

What, after you've chewed your arm off.....?

Gees - you guys have a hell of a courting process.......?

I did it the old fashioned way - I liked her first!

Lyndon
Ok, so it's late on a Friday night - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

 

[jbmatth]

JB, my 'real' story involved a very large and homely girl I picked up in a bar. I had a lot to drink and I thought she was pretty at 2:00 in the morning. When I woke up she was lying on my forearm and I couldn't get it out from under her without waking her up. I just gnawed it off at the elbow and left as quietly as I could. This is the genesis of the "Coyote Ugly" legend.

Up here in Maine we call them our wives.

I'm once again glad I wasn't drinking coffee while reading these replies.
JB

 

[ODIS]

Beautiful in all respects! Always great to see the yard too.

 

[zmotorsports]

Bob, I don't know how I ever missed this thread but I won't in the future. Great, great stories of your youth traveling with your parents and your life in general.

Like you I am one of the fortunate ones who have a lovely better half who keeps me grounded and seems to not put up with my **** yet also makes me a better man. I look forward to growing old with her and creating more lasting memories.

I look forward to future stories and following along.

Mike.

 

[don long]

Hi Bob
Thought I'd let you know that I'm still following along with your lifes adventures
and that I enjoyed walking through your back yard (very nice)

I too split a gut reading Coyote Ugly. Your story has happened to a few of us less the gnawing on the arm.

Love your humor

Don

 

[BBChevro]

...

And you owe me a cup of coffee as I just spit mine all over the keyboard...
.

I'm once again glad I wasn't drinking coffee while reading these replies.
JB

I couldn't find it just now, but I did post a suggested warning about drinking coffee while reading Bob's posts.

 

[Bob Heine]

JB, my 'real' story involved a very large and homely girl I picked up in a bar. I had a lot to drink and I thought she was pretty at 2:00 in the morning. When I woke up she was lying on my forearm and I couldn't get it out from under her without waking her up. I just gnawed it off at the elbow and left as quietly as I could. This is the genesis of the "Coyote Ugly" legend.


Damn, now you come up with the solution. I could have used it a few times.

John, poor visibility from tobacco smoke in a poorly lit room is always a problem but the real problem is the fuzzy brain from too much beer. I used to think my best ideas were lost at the bottom of the last glass of the night. I'm really glad I didn't follow through on the vast majority of them.

Over here in west Florida, we call them "gnaws" when they are that bad. Same results.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk

Craptain, I hadn't heard that but I obviously haven't spent enough time in West Florida bars.

Up here in Maine we call them our wives.

Dan, I won't repeat that -- you know we have to sleep some time.

Dan

What, after you've chewed your arm off.....?

Gees - you guys have a hell of a courting process.......?

I did it the old fashioned way - I liked her first!

Lyndon
Ok, so it's late on a Friday night - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

Lyndon, very wise advice. You could have changed my life had I known you way back when.

I'm once again glad I wasn't drinking coffee while reading these replies.
JB

JB, apparently I need to add a warning line to my signature.

Beautiful in all respects! Always great to see the yard too.

Ody, your former and current homes as well as your car collection are a true inspiration to me. Your yard is the one thing I won't be showing my wife because I know she won't let me get a tractor but she will expect me to move a big section of the Rockies into our back yard (she loves big rocks -- luckily only the garden kind).

Bob, I don't know how I ever missed this thread but I won't in the future. Great, great stories of your youth traveling with your parents and your life in general.

Like you I am one of the fortunate ones who have a lovely better half who keeps me grounded and seems to not put up with my **** yet also makes me a better man. I look forward to growing old with her and creating more lasting memories.

I look forward to future stories and following along.

Mike.

Mike, so glad to have you stop by. Road trips are not everyone's idea of a great vacation but you do it on a wonderful level -- luxury and roughing it at the same time.

We certainly share the financial wisdom that the rush of a big purchase doesn't last anywhere near as long as the crushing debt that often accompanies it. Best part of having a retirement plan is having someone with the same goals.

My better half has kept me from buying even a tiny motor-home. Our boat camping days left her with a bad taste. Our cruises and resort vacations put the end to my "it's a wonderful way to see the world" argument. It wasn't really fair to use the "bring your home and all its chores with you" counter-argument.

Hi Bob
Thought I'd let you know that I'm still following along with your lifes adventures
and that I enjoyed walking through your back yard (very nice)

I too split a gut reading Coyote Ugly. Your story has happened to a few of us less the gnawing on the arm.

Love your humor

Don

Don, I'm really glad to have you along for the ride. When I see the energy you bring to your "fun" projects it's clear to me how you grew such a successful group of businesses.

I'm really impressed that you took a break to let your foot heal. I think I know how hard that was. While I was in the hospital, my neighbor visited me and I mentioned I would have to convert my car to automatic and how much I hated Powerglides. The day I came home from the hospital I found a small block Chevy engine and a 4-speed Hydramatic from a GMC truck on the dirt floor of my garage. In 1965 some of the fastest drag cars in the country were using B&M hydrostick transmission setups. There was also a ClutchFlite conversion kit I was hoping to use. Those commercial Hydramatics had a 4.08 first gear so I was planning a fairly high gear in the rear end to make it a reasonable cruiser.

My wife helped fit a Wonderbread bag over my bandaged stump to keep it clean and allowed me to crawl under my '55 Chevy to do some measuring. Also managed to get the battery out before my father arrived for an unannounced visit. He generously offered his Rambler station wagon to solve the automatic transmission issue. IBM also generously offered to pay all moving and living expenses to a new location. These two things ended my conversion plans and meant getting rid of my five project cars.

I couldn't find it just now, but I did post a suggested warning about drinking coffee while reading Bob's posts.

Mark, you certainly did post a warning. I'm going to try to fix my signature.

 

[Bob Heine]

I was in the garage and came across one of my problem tools. It's a Harbor Freight 7-inch variable speed buffer. It's a problem because it's big and it takes up a lot of room. At one time I had it hanging from my paint cart but it's always in the way.

There is an almost unused space in the garage. I say almost unused because it has an $15 IKEA stainless steel towel rack mounted on it.

A big thank you to Dubber and 55Cadillacing for introducing me to that product. I used to hang wet towels, freshly rinsed gloves and sweat bands from all sorts of weird places (and often forgetting where those weird places were). Now I know where those things are and when it's not in use, I just swing it out of the way (it's over my head so I don't even walk into it. Here's a link to the Towel Rack at IKEA:

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60047896/

I just happened to have a foot-long piece of 1/2-inch wide by 1/4-inch thick aluminum that's been in my "should throw that out" pile for more than 20 years. Because I now have that vise brake, it looks like a perfect solution. I was so excited I decided not to measure anything and just started bending (I expected it to fracture). When I held it up in place, it was too long but it didn't need to be that long so I cut one of the ends off and measured how long it needed to be. It's a bad thing not to measure but I didn't mind because I got to use the vise brake again (I put it away after the first set of bends).

The small holes you see were in the piece when I started. With holes drilled and countersunk, it was a screw in one end, a moment with a level and another screw at the other end and the project was done. Even with the do-over it took less than a half hour. Another wasted space filled and a bulky tool stored out of the way but still handy.

Did I mention how much I like my little 4-inch vise brake?

 

[1/2 Cup]

Bob, now that's a neat idea..

Regards

 

[Bob Heine]

The idea of a bar to hang grinders and buffers came from Jack Olsen's Twelve Gauge Garage thread. In my life before acquiring a vise brake, I made those bars with a more time-consuming process.

My stainless Costco (CSPS) tool chest had handles on both sides of both the top and bottom boxes. I don't move my tool chests around so all but one of the handles came off. The one remaining handle serves as a ladder hanger. It's a handy location, right at the man-door entrance to the garage.

The other side of the tool chest has my first buffer storage rack and hooks to hang up some hoses.

The space originally had a couple of extension cord reels but they were displaced when I decided to store the Breathe-Cool II fresh air supply system there.

That's a lot of wasted space above that little box so I filled it up. The fresh air supply system uses hoses to supply the fresh air so I decided to store the hoses there. I needed some hooks so I cut some cast rope guides from a sailboat project in half.

I cut several in half, giving me two hooks and cut just the ear off one side on another to use it as a power cord strain relief. I mounted all of the hooks and brackets using the threaded holes that originally mounted the handles.

The clear vinyl hose hanging in the rear connects the fresh air unit to the pipe that runs through the wall. The white/clear hose is a collection of used CPAP hoses that I saved in case I wanted to make an auxiliary fresh air supply for an assistant.

The 50-foot black hose connects the face mask to the pipe coming through the wall. The pipe has male garden hose fittings on both the inside and outside of the wall. This way I could put the fresh air supply outside when using it for projects inside the garage or put the fresh air supply pump inside the garage for projects done outside (supplying cool air conditioned air).

That orange line is a 12-foot triple outlet extension that is always plugged in behind all the hoses and the excess cord hangs from another of those hooks. My two "good" buffers hang on the bar that is mounted with longer bolts so a couple of pieces of stainless tubing to hold the bar off the tool chest.

My "good" variable speed buffer is a Flex L3403VRG and my Random Orbital buffer is a Porter Cable 7424XP. The Flex buffer is much lighter than the Harbor Freight buffer, something that I hadn't considered when I bought the HF unit. I couldn't buff more than one door on the car without taking a break -- holding up a heavy buffer with one hand was just too painful for me. I can still use the HF buffer for horizontal surfaces but I suspect it will just hang in its new spot and collect dust.

 

[Bob Heine]

Bob, now that's a neat idea..

Regards

Thanks Steve. Your weekend is over so you must be at work slaving over that hot drone controller.

 

[1/2 Cup]

Thanks Steve. Your weekend is over so you must be at work slaving over that hot drone controller.

Bob, its 7 am here now, I have been at work since 6.15 am a quick peak at the GJ over a coffee before get into it.

Unfortunately the weather has not been all that conducive to flying the drone.

Have a great day ( evening in you case )...

 

[rmalkow2]

Bob,
What a great thread and I'm subscribed to follow on from here. It took various parts of this past weekend but I made it through all 26 very enjoyable pages. The stories from your youth were just awesome, the tour of your house and tales of past and present vehicles are great reading. I'm also enjoying your various tool storage tips and projects and will likely steal a few myself.

 

[shortykorte]

So when is the class on buffing? That's something I want/need to learn.

Maybe you can teach me while Gerard is working on the pre-luau to-do list.

 

[Bob Heine]

All, it's amazing how a week disappears. It was a wonderful thing when I was working for a living but now that every day is a weekend, the weeks (and months... and years) just slip away.

Bob, its 7 am here now, I have been at work since 6.15 am a quick peak at the GJ over a coffee before get into it.

Unfortunately the weather has not been all that conducive to flying the drone.

Have a great day ( evening in you case )...

Steve, your morning is almost over and my day is coming to a close. It has been hot and rainy for the past week. I get started on the yard and a shower turns it into a garage day. I kinda look forward to the showers.

It's your turn to have a great day. Thanks for stopping by.

Bob,
What a great thread and I'm subscribed to follow on from here. It took various parts of this past weekend but I made it through all 26 very enjoyable pages. The stories from your youth were just awesome, the tour of your house and tales of past and present vehicles are great reading. I'm also enjoying your various tool storage tips and projects and will likely steal a few myself.

rmalkow2, what a wonderful surprise to have you stop by. I enjoy your vise rebuilds and really envy your car trailer, not to mention the nice upgrade to your truck's wheels. I now have one car parked outside in the driveway (under a cover). When I added the latest toy (old man Cadillac), something had to move out and the PT Cruiser's metal roof meant the soft-top Corvette stayed inside. I believe your Mustang convertible gets the same treatment. I won't mention your project car if you don't mention mine....

Steal any idea you like because I'm stealing your Swiss Army knife cart top (the one with the grinders etc.).

So when is the class on buffing? That's something I want/need to learn.

Maybe you can teach me while Gerard is working on the pre-luau to-do list.

Stewart, I have not conquered the world of buffing so I'm more of a student than teacher. So far I've learned that I need a lightweight rotary buffer. A Makita 7" buffer weighs 13 pounds while a cheap Harbor Freight 7" buffer weighs just 6.6 pounds. Both these buffers are also big so they are hard to control with one hand. The Flex 6" variable speed buffer weights 4.8 pounds and is powerful enough to spin a 7" pad but the bigger the pad, the harder it is for me to control. Here's a size comparison:

The Flex buffer is much easier (and less painful) for me to use. Unfortunately the Flex buffer is about 6 times the price of the Harbor Freight buffer ($299 vs $49) but I found an open box Flex for $180 (only 4.6 times as much). I wasn't crazy about spending that much but being able to polish the whole care in one day makes it seem worthwhile.

 

[BBChevro]

Hey Bob, great work with all the hangers, etc., I'll have to do something similar with my Rupes polisher and my (seldom used) 7" grinder - those big suckers take up a lot of shelf space.

As for controlling a polisher with one hand - have you ever considered entering any arm-wrestling competitions?

 

[shortykorte]

Thanks Bob. I need to remember about the weight. Helpful when working on side of cars. I'll bring my 'ho down so you can practice before giving us a lesson.

 

[dlcwent]

Bob, buffing isn't the easiest thing to do even if you have a clue how to do it. But I can't imagine doing it with one arm. Do you use a prosthetic when you attempt it, or are you determined to master it single handed?(No pun intended)

 

[Lyndon]

Dan

I reckon, knowing Bob's ability to think outside the square, he would probably have a device that static mounts the buffer, and he just gets in the car and drives it toward the buffer......

That's how I reckon Bob attacks problems!!!!

Lyndon
Now that I think about it - I might patent that....?

 

[dlcwent]

We'll have to wait for his response to that one Lyndon. But you might be on to something there.

 

[Bob Heine]

Hey Bob, great work with all the hangers, etc., I'll have to do something similar with my Rupes polisher and my (seldom used) 7" grinder - those big suckers take up a lot of shelf space.

As for controlling a polisher with one hand - have you ever considered entering any arm-wrestling competitions?

Mark, I did win a gold medal (gold foil covered chocolate coin) as the best arm wrestler in my daughter's Girl Scout troop but that was a long time ago.

Thanks Bob. I need to remember about the weight. Helpful when working on side of cars. I'll bring my 'ho down so you can practice before giving us a lesson.

Stewart, I would be happy to practice but it's really time consuming so you'll have to leave your 'ho with me for a couple of months.

Bob, buffing isn't the easiest thing to do even if you have a clue how to do it. But I can't imagine doing it with one arm. Do you use a prosthetic when you attempt it, or are you determined to master it single handed?(No pun intended)

Dan, at one point I did use my prosthetic arm to hold the big buffer but the second slip-up took a chunk of paint off the Corvette. Bad enough to buff a car wearing jeans with rivets or metal belt buckle. A hunk of stainless steel that has no sense or feeling has not been as helpful as I'd hoped.

Dan

I reckon, knowing Bob's ability to think outside the square, he would probably have a device that static mounts the buffer, and he just gets in the car and drives it toward the buffer......

That's how I reckon Bob attacks problems!!!!

Lyndon
Now that I think about it - I might patent that....?

Lyndon, your idea sounds like an excellent upgrade. My system involved my wife driving the car back and forth in the driveway while I held the buffer steady (using an old carry-on bag strap around the neck). It worked great until the outside mirror caught me off guard (not the fender kind of guard) and dragged me down the driveway too close to the street for my comfort.

Now I'm thinking about a creeper attached to a garage door opener lying on the driveway. Open takes me from front to back. Close takes me back to front. Just need something to keep me from falling asleep on the creeper.

We'll have to wait for his response to that one Lyndon. But you might be on to something there.

Dan, Lyndon is definitely on to something but I'm pretty sure it involves an unscheduled doctor visit. Not a big problem because the doctor has already seen to my puncture wound when I nailed my hand to the shed. Nothing seems to surprise him anymore.