What did you do "IN" your garage today?

[jblnut]

Not in the shop but in the lean attached to the shop so I think it counts ……

This has been a dumping area since the shop was built and an area on the farm I’m not at all proud of. Today Pops and I decided to do something about it.


Holy tires Batman !!


There is a clean floor in here !!


We drug the pallet racking so it lined up with the other stuff. The plan is to put a mezzanine on top of the pallet racking so I can store even more treasures !!

 

[rd65]

Sunday, fetched tools to replace light in the dining room. Old one hung down to far for FIL to safely walk under it when the table is moved. Box is trash, but it stayed. One hole in it was stripped, off to the shop for a larger screw. I dont have much of that type of thing, so I grabbed a 5mm tap and a couple of screws. New light in with the proper color temp selected. Then it was time to watch the Hawks give me a birthday Superbowl win.
Monday, finished up work on the C6 - 3 new seals and a Transgo SK6 kit installed. Still need to mount the new trans mount and dipstick tube oring. Tuned up the edge on my Council Tool camp axe, will need to store that out of reach of the grands. Celebrated trans work with a beer, followed that up with some Brum after dinner.
Edit - forgot pics. Also, flipped calendars to new month.

 

[niget2002]

Spent a little time here and there working on the 3d printer. I've been switching over to using CAN for all the hot-end stuff. My core XY designed printer also uses belts for the Z axis. The problem with that is if the motors switch off while the printbed is in the air, it comes crashing to the bottom. Someone on the forum I'm on designed an electronic brake to lock the steppers so it doesn't fall down so fast. I've been slowly getting that installed too. I just need to clip a bunch of stepper wires and hook them up now. The brake has been slow going. The device is wanting a 5v signal, but my controller only has 3.3v outputs. Tried using a simple transistor circuit, but the relay turning off kept back feeding it and blowing them up. I ended up finding and using a 3.3v relay I have lying around to trip the circuit.

 

[jblnut]

I must be feeling ambitious. I dug out the beams that’ll make up the floor joists in the lean to mezzanine. They’re 14-15’ long and made from seven layers of 2x6’s glued together. They came out of a chicken barn and held up the 2nd story. Getting them on the racking will be tomorrow’s project. I gotta clean up and go to conferences for two of my little people soon.

 

[zanyad]

Then it was time to watch the Hawks give me a birthday Superbowl win.

Happy hippo day!

 

[bmwrd0]

I finally found enough time to get this mess cleaned, put away, disassembled, and, tomorrow, taken to the back of my truck and then a trip to the recycler. But, I need to find out exactly how I want/can mount the power strip you see there the best way physics allows.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Sorted fill bits.

EDIT: sorted drill bits. . . damn autocorrect.

 

[slomaro3.4]

Pulled apart my future father in law’s snow blower and that gear is COOKED

 

[Outlawmws]

Pulled apart my future father in law’s snow blower and that gear is COOKED

Introduce your FFIL to proper gear lube...

 

[niget2002]

Cut the wrong stepper motor wires on the 3d printer. Put those wires back together and came back inside.

 

[slomaro3.4]

Introduce your FFIL to proper gear lube...

Haha yeah I suspect this thing never had any oil or grease or anything. I’m a little worried about the rest of it so I guess I’m rebuilding a snow blower.

 

[TheClaw]

Glued up some trim on the new bench.

 

[Beerhippie]

Pulled apart my future father in law’s snow blower and that gear is COOKED

What gear? I don't see any gear.

 

[four.cycle]

Got a phone call a couple hours ago.
Sister on phone.
Seems the main entry door knob assembly at the studio decided to self-destrut just as one of her classes was starting.
Excellent timing, as I have to take her to the airport tomorrow morning - this is just what she needed at the last minute.
Got a new lock set from Home Depot and got it installed. Gave her 7 copies of the key (I kept one) so hopefully the rest of her staff can get in to teach classes while she's in Tahiti.
Got an opportunity to use my spiffy new Vessel P2 with the solid shank. NICE!

 

[Motorman55]

Just a little mod to the HF Windsor Design 8-Drawer Wood Tool Cabinet. Removed the screw from the bottom of the chrome metal feet and added these rubber feet from Home Depot. Used the same screw from the HF box, the ones that come with the rubber feet are too long.

 

[bugnut]

Warm today, backed out the tractor and moved a little snow. Set about to design and print a hanger for crossbow release arrows and the string cocker. Cleared the work bench, emptied trash, piled up recycles. Load truck with Goodwill stuff and recycles. Opened the door quick blow out with the leaf blower. Then vacuumed, shop looks a whole lot better and a few feet of flat surface showed up.

 

[FLHCHAZ]

Cleaned an put away ALL of the tools. Swept the floor, and finished cleaning up the Mule. Started making patterns for some patches in the floor of the Riviera project.

 

[kaymccampbell]

I finally found enough time to get this mess cleaned, put away, disassembled, and, tomorrow, taken to the back of my truck and then a trip to the recycler. But, I need to find out exactly how I want/can mount the power strip you see there the best way physics allows.

Too bad you're not closer, that desk would evaporate on the way to your truck.

 

[Sturgeon]

Finally have something, was thinking of relocating so picked up a container of sheetrock mud and a gallon of paint. Man what a improvement. Didn't realize there was so many smudges and screw holes. Paint never fails to bring a fresh look.

 

[rd65]

Haha yeah I suspect this thing never had any oil or grease or anything. I’m a little worried about the rest of it so I guess I’m rebuilding a snow blower.

My FIL is the same way. His career was in construction, but maintenance is something new to him. He was over last Sunday and asked me to order blades for his John Deere. Then I had to almost pry information from him; which John Deere mower, model, deck size, etc. He should have gotten them to his doorstep yesterday, then our youngest will install them since he lives on the property.

 

[rd65]

Fetched some compound and wax to try and clean up my drivers door from a branch strike from a few weeks ago when we drove up some forest service roads. Did ok, scratch is pretty deep but not nearly as noticeable. No after pics.

 

[slomaro3.4]

My FIL is the same way. His career was in construction, but maintenance is something new to him. He was over last Sunday and asked me to order blades for his John Deere. Then I had to almost pry information from him; which John Deere mower, model, deck size, etc. He should have gotten them to his doorstep yesterday, then our youngest will install them since he lives on the property.

This hits home, my fiancee volunteered me to fix this one. I sent him part numbers to order and I'm giving him a week before I just order everything and knock it out. I've been using an electric snow blower this winter and am a big fan (we don't normally get a ton of snow here), but I think he wants to stick to gas and refurbing his will be a lot cheaper than buying a new comparable one.

 

[rharman]

Pulled apart my future father in law’s snow blower and that gear is COOKED

What gear? I don't see any gear.

@Beerhippie beat me to it. My very first thought was "There's a gear in there?" Just... WOW!

 

[jblnut]

Tossed the lifter boom deal on the lawnmower, weight box on the back and we got after putting the lean to mezzanine beams up !! Well, we tried. The poor little loader was just a tiny bit too little to lifter them up there lol.


Out came the forklift. This was lots of fun on the ice


If liftered them up there with way less fuss.


All 15 are up there. Should be roughly 15” between them. I plan to shove them up against the shop wall and get the beam stretcher out for the other side. Either that or I’ll slap a 2x6x4’ on each side of each beam so the 2x6’s rest on the orange racking beams. Should work. I’ve read lots of threads and posts about mezzanines and engineering and such and have learned one important thing. It should really be engineered !! When all is said and done I should be able to put at least 12,500lbs up there according to the “5260 per pair” rating on the racking beams. I have three sets so that makes 15,780lbs of capacity. The beams and decking will weigh 3,000ish lbs so 12,500 is conservative. No way I’ll ever come close to that. See, it’s been as engineered as it needs to be !! Access to the mezzanine is still under debate. I want to cut a door into the shop mezzanine which would be right below the existing hole in the tin. I’d also have a simple ladder to access it from the mezzanine side. Getting fancier I’d like to wall it off from the rest of the lean to keep it accessible from the lean side.

 

[cody1325]

Semi-retired the SK and Blackhawk (plus a fairly decent amount of vintage Proto) stuff to the main "house" box in the basement. I replaced it with all the Craftsman and Kobalt stuff I got when Lowe's decided to heavily change what they sold loose/open stock and blow out the remainder for pennies on the dollar. That way, I don't have to worry about breaking it. May end up getting a couple of Icon metric sets when Harbor Freight puts them on sale, as none of my metric sets (Craftsman and HTD Japan) are that good.

Real reason--I moved most of my mechanic's tools to the unheated shop that's about 100 feet from the house back in the summer; and then I needed some stuff for a project that was in the shop (my good end cutters) when we were snowed in.

Decided I'd just put my vintage stuff in the basement, and buy Harbor Freight to replace it in the shop. I have enough duplicates to begin with, I should have almost enough to have two decent size selections of tools in the garage and shop seperately--with Harbor Freight filling in the gaps.

 

[cody1325]

Also found out--yes, I did apparently lose both my 10mms last time I used them.

I know my HTD set had the 10mm when I bought it at the flea market a decade ago and my Craftsman set was missing the 11mm, not the 10mm.

 

[kaymccampbell]

Fought a corrupted ESP32 Cam in arduino. Opened a Jungle Box. Resurfaced the jointer tables. Jointed and glued a cutting board. Opened another jungle box. Provided IT support.

 

[2001ZR2]

Tried unsuccessfully to remove carpet remnants on bottom of the Hanta Hilton tool chest I bought. Carpet Glue or other adhesive was stronger than the Goo Gone I had. Only heat will remove it and then the paint gets soft...not easy to avoid damaging the paint.

Might try WD40 or acetone/Mineral spirits as the heat method was bad and took a hour for one of the smallest drawers

It is looking more and more like a wire brush might be needed and the drawers will need to be repainted. Then I am looking at the slippery slope of a complete restore and refurbish....what am I thinking? This is Garage Journal so if there is a way that is more complex and more expensive is it encourage if not required.

Edit replaced expansive with expensive but either will work

 

[LeonardY]

Only heat will remove it and then the paint gets soft...not easy to avoid damaging the paint.

Try using either boiling hot water or steam cleaner and a scraper.

 

[bulletpruf]

Identified a Hurst Competition Plus shifter that's been sitting on a shelf in the garage for 15 or so years. I was relieved to find out that it's exactly what I thought it was - correct for a T-10 in an AMC application. Perfect for my '72 Javelin road race build.

 

[Mr.zippy]

Taxes But I did them on the motorcycle lift in the garage. Does that count?

 

[67CarGuy]

Somehow the garage door got left open all day yesterday, so a bird managed to find his way in and got stuck in the loft area above. Thankfully it didn't take too long this morning to take the screen out of one of the windows and crank it open, then walk to the other end of the loft to get the bird to head towards the window and out to freedom. I hope karma was paying attention on that one.

Then spent way too long removing the 1/4 inch hardware cloth a contractor had put up to keep birds from nesting under the eaves of the covered porch and replacing it with insect screening. See if you can relate:

1. Get ladder, screwdriver, pliers, stapler, and screening to job site
2. Realize last guy used a different method to secure thing you want to remove, and you don't have the correct tool on hand
3. Get correct tool
4. Realize correct tool has incorrect bit for removing the fasteners previously used
5. Get correct bit
6. Begin removing fasteners, only to realize last guy hammered a bunch of them over, so the drill only works for about 1/4 turn before the bit cams out and you need to reset
7. Remove all fasteners holding the thing in, and then remove the thing
8. Begin installing the new thing that, in your mind, is going to work better than the old thing
9. Run out of fasteners for the fastener-machine (a stapler, in my case)
10. Get more fasteners from your hoard thoughtfully-stocked supply
11. Decide it's better to move the ladder than stretch too far, slip / loose your balance, and have to yell for help / visit the nice doctors and nurses
12. Move the ladder, only to find that you don't quite have enough room to fully extend it, so you pray to the Tool Gods that OSHA doesn't make a surprise inspection to your home that morning (still better than an upside-down bucket though, right?)
13. Finish securing the thing, only to see a section that you weren't aware of that you missed, so you need to move the ladder again
14. Move the ladder back to where you started, and repeat steps 8-13 until finished
15. Put away all tools, equipment, and supplies. Realize you didn't need 50% (Results May Vary) of the tools you thought you would, and also realize that you did need 100% of the tools you didn't bring with you back in Step 1
16. Clock in to your real job that pays the bills

 

[M.Brane]

Sounds about right.

 

[Outlawmws]

Clock in to your real job that pays the bills

Except for this one yes! I can relate!

 

[Motorman55]

Yesterday, I started building the 7'L x 2'D x 34"T general work bench for our hobby/craft room. This bench will be used for light work & layouts so the frame and legs will be made from 1x3 and 1x4 pine boards with a 3/4 ply top and a bottom shelf in 3/8" or 1/2" plywood.

Each leg has (2) 1x4 pine boards that are glued, then clamped, then nailed together to form an 'L' shape when viewed from the top. They will be glued, nailed and screwed to the upper 1x3 frame as well the lower shelf frame when all is said and done. The lower shelf frame will be about 4-1/2" up from the ground.

Yesterday I finished the top frame and attached the legs. Today I have to pick up some 1x4x8 boards at HD to make the bottom railing and center support legs. Hopefully they'll have their saw back up and running and I can have them make a basic cut to a sheet of 4x8x3/4" ply for the top of the bench. Their saw was down 2 days ago when I picked up the 1x.

I can't use the garage to cut and assemble the bench right now, so I made do cutting the boards in the hallway and assembling the bench in the hobby/craft room itself. Needless to say its a bit cramped for working.

Here's a couple pics of the bench progress....

 

[DGersic]

Tried unsuccessfully to remove carpet remnants on bottom of the Hanta Hilton tool chest I bought. Carpet Glue or other adhesive was stronger than the Goo Gone I had. Only heat will remove it and then the paint gets soft...not easy to avoid damaging the paint.

Try cold? A can of WalMart keyboard duster spray held upside down may freeze the glue in to letting go.

 

[SMOKEYBEAR]

A little time working on the kitchen bench.

Ran the top through the planer, selected a top side and cut to length, maxed out the cross cut of the radial arm saw. . Kinda fought cleaning the legs up on the joiner, ended up using the table saw to get them to the final dimensions. No complaints, the height and width both came in at the desired spec's, lost a little on the width from some tear our on the original passes in the planer, in the end I think its actually better.

 

[WisJim]

Identified a Hurst Competition Plus shifter that's been sitting on a shelf in the garage for 15 or so years. I was relieved to find out that it's exactly what I thought it was - correct for a T-10 in an AMC application. Perfect for my '72 Javelin road race build.

And that's why we should never throw anything away.

 

[bugnut]

couple little things. I had a tangle of single strand dog fence wire, could not figure out how to reroll it. Thought of wrapping it on the outside of a 5 gal bucket but that didn't work. Looked around for something smaller, found a 1 gal paint can. Upside down and wrapped, it worked perfectly, done. Finished the print for arrow and cord holder. Installed loaded and done. Did inventory of buggy parts, need to finish it up.

 

[racecougar]

Installed a Metalcloak HD drag link on a '20 Wrangler Tuesday night to cure some violent death wobble. The stock drag link was toast with just 45k miles on the clock. If I had to describe the replacement unit in one word, it would be "beefy". I expect it to last longer than 45k miles.




Trailered a Taurus with a bajillion DTC's and a flashing low oil pressure warning to the shop yesterday morning. The root causes were immediately obvious upon popping the hood. It seems a visitor had eaten a fair bit of the engine harness. Of course the jerk had to eat the wires down to the connectors in each case. After hosing the engine bay down with peppermint oil and shop-vac'ing the nest(s) out, then de-pinning, uncrimping, re-crimping, soldering, heatshrinking, and looming seven circuits, the car was back in business with zero DTC's and restored oil pressure readings.