What did you do "IN" your garage today?

[Beerhippie]

This is the one I got. It will be a few days before I'm ready for it.

Looks like you don't need my alchemical recipes. I've never used that brand, so no opinion about it.

 

[Old Man Roger]

Cleaned up a bunch of spilled oil. Second leaker I’ve had in a few months.

 

[racecougar]

Moved the '73 Mustang project from one shop to the other (a mile away) so it could go on the lift. Time to finish up everything under the car.






Gave it a bath while it was on the trailer.






Also took the '65's (C10 and Skylark) to a local cruise-in Friday night and replaced the coils on the '04 GT among other projects this weekend.

 

[cannuck]

Got truck deck project into outer shop and spent weekend playing catch up. #1 grandson helping off and on and Sunday gave him a saw job, stopping him before fist cut to show him how a singe, unchecked setup would have resulted in a set of very wrong, unusable parts. At 15 he has trouble focusing on tasks at hand instead worrying about make stuff in shop and on 3D printer as he sees from screaming IDIOTS on Youtube. He went in for a snack mid day, so I used the time to pour weld onto deck parts. Plan is to first build main frame rails and make removeable from truck frame, install them and tack everything then lift off of and final weld. Had one main gooseneck support crossmember in place on the marks I had placed on frame and as not over top of the fuel tank I figured I could just final weld the to sides....only to realize when I stood back to admire my progress only to notice the turnover latch did not line up on centerline!!!!! Ignored by own instructions to measure mark, measure, measure, think and act....marks were from earlier drawing!!!!!! Out with the plasma and 7 inch grinder and a very humbling experience of chop over guards to protect wiring and fuel tank.

 

[bmwrd0]

Among all of my other activities yesterday, I think I have come up with a solution to my Woodruff issue

because the shaft has the actuator for the half-nuts at the end, it is not an easy fit in any normal machining solution, so a drill press round stock holder seems to be right up my alley for this. The plan is to tram it square, then remove the shaft and place a piece of flat stock in the vise to set my distance from the edge of the vise, replace the shaft and move to center it. Because this isn't a critical dimensioned part, as I am only cutting out the remains of the old key so I can locate the control handle, I am not too worried about getting it down to the .0001 level. But, everyone, let me know if I am on the wrong track with this.

Outside of that, just the constant struggle of cleaning a small shop.

 

[rcktpwrd]

I repaired the broken pull chain for the speed control switch on my patio fan. A couple weeks ago I pulled the chain to turn the fan off and the chain broke, fortunatly in the off position.
Today I took the fan and switch apart and put the remaining longer piece of chain in place. Was a little tedious and I had to look up a youtube video to get the spring back in the right place. Beats paying 10-20 bucks for a new one...

 

[Beerhippie]

Mowed lawns. Fixed and calibrated a couple of pressure gauges that had gone haywire.

Ran up to Joseph and made it official:



I'm a geezer.

 

[niget2002]

Played with a protoboard for the 3d printer. Had to come in to cook before testing.

 

[kaymccampbell]

Rode the chair. Pulled the wheels off the Escape. They were welded on tight. Rode the chair. Destroyed a couple credit cards. I will ride the chair one more time before bedtime.

 

[Fordguy1964]

Looks like you don't need my alchemical recipes. I've never used that brand, so no opinion about it.

So before I just jumped right into the gas tank kit I went ahead with the lye like you suggested. This is the product I used.

The Red Devil was not available. I took 1/3 of this 2lb container and poured it into the tank. Then I added about 2 cups of water and a section of chain. Then I sloshed it around for a while. Boy did that did get HOT! I then took water and flushed everything out until the water ran clear. I repeated the process 2 more times until on the 3rd the water didn't come out brown. I flushed everything out and then removed the chain. The chain I was using went in chromed and came out dark gray. That stuff didn't mess around. I then dried out the tank as good as I could and set the tank in the sun to dry in the hot Alabama sun tomorrow. Tomorrow I will be ready to start the factory bought cleaning process.

 

[Beerhippie]

The Red Devil was not available. I took 1/3 of this 2lb container and poured it into the tank. Then I added about 2 cups of water and a section of chain. Then I sloshed it around for a while. Boy did that did get HOT!

Lye crystals is lye crystals. Red Devil is just the brand I mostly see in stores.

Your solution got hot because you used too little water AND ignored the warning about adding the crystals to water and not the other way around--but it did the job! BBs, nuts and bolts, chain, whatever, really does help to break up crud and rust. Shaking the tank is an excellent workout!

 

[Fordguy1964]

Lye crystals is lye crystals. Red Devil is just the brand I mostly see in stores.

Your solution got hot because you used too little water AND ignored the warning about adding the crystals to water and not the other way around--but it did the job! BBs, nuts and bolts, chain, whatever really does help to break up crud and rust. Shaking the tank is an excellent workout!

I mistyped... not that it would be much better... it wasn't 2 cups of water. It was about 2 quarts. Still obviously not enough but as you said, it worked like a champ!

 

[rd65]

it's gonna be rough for a while.
i think after i sell off nearly all my "working" tools i'll feel a little better

i just have to "be OK" with not having a job anymore.

i do have a "hobby" i'm a competitive shooter i have my guns and a small stockpile of ammo i just have to pick and choose when/where to shoot

I'm three weeks in, it takes a bit to get your routine figured out. I'm still working on it. But it is good.

 

[Beerhippie]

I mistyped... not that it would be much better... it wasn't 2 cups of water. It was about 2 quarts. Still obviously not enough but as you said, it worked like a champ!

But once again, the warning to "do what you oughter, add lye to water" seems to be what you missed. The difference is, adding the lye crystals to water dilutes them immediately--and water can soak up a hell of a lot of the heat that is released by lye dissolving in water. Adding water to lye leaves you with too little water to dilute or diffuse the heat fast enough. You're lucky it just got hot--often, the water flashes to boiling, resulting in a lye volcano. Lye eats flesh--did I mention that? Lye in the face *****.

Same rule applies to concentrated acids.

 

[Beerhippie]

Spent the evening on the 21rst-century **** Tube while partaking of my annual late-summer-fall sport of flyswatting. I must be up to a couple of hundred today.

 

[rd65]

Spent a couple of hours each of the last couple of days working on my daughter's 4runner, clutch job. Got the trans out today, pulled the clutch and flywheel. Ordered the trans input shaft seal from my local Napa, should be in tomorrow afternoon. Clutch looked to be in decent shape which scares me, they had said the clutch was slipping. '96 rig w/ 310k on the odometer. Pressure plate looks to have a date from 2006 on it. Clutch appears to be factory Toyota/Aisin parts. I will install clutch & pilot bearing parts tomorrow along with a lot of clean up work before reinstalling the trans later in the week.

 

[bugnut]

Played with a few 3d parts, realized i'd missed a hole position by 1/8" and couldn't figure out why things would not assemble. Sometimes I'm a da...

 

[Outlawmws]

Clutch looked to be in decent shape which scares me, they had said the clutch was slipping.

Adjustment too tight and not fully releasing? How is the TO bearing? that likely needs replaced too.

 

[Beerhippie]

Found a new athletic endeavor: Speed Mowing! It's a combination of speed walking and lawn mowing.

Trying to beat an oncoming weather system. Got the last of the walks and table pads blown off just before the rain started.

Mowing is done for this week.

Hopefully, this weather system will bring the fire risk down some. I have a camping trip with friends planned for weekend after next and it would be nice not to be camping in an incendiary situation.

 

[Beerhippie]

Sheeit! I just realized my guests are showing up this weekend, not the next! Gotta get my feces cohesive. Rear jump seat in place so I'll have three seats, camping gear--can I use my Coleman stoves? Better check....

 

[Beerhippie]

Cool! We're in Phase C restrictions now, so I can use my stoves and lanterns as long as I'm parked in a cleared area. Maybe I'll bring a rake....

No campfires, but that's OK with me.

Where I'm hoping to go has several free campgrounds--and really not much of any other good places to camp. Finding open ground should be fairly easy.

Now to start packing....

 

[OccupantRJ]

I'm three weeks in, it takes a bit to get your routine figured out. I'm still working on it. But it is good.

A routine is important. Wake up, drink coffee. Eat. Be retired and do retired guy things. Sleep. Repeat.

 

[Outlawmws]

I got back to starting on the Vintage Pik-Nik aluminum cooler fixes before the W/E sales, and then completed it today:

First up were the internal aluminum parts that has slight kinks, so my home brew tongs came out - both of these are on the sliding tray, the ice Block thing ha a couple too:

Before 1:

:

After 1:





Before 2:




After 2:





I loved the complicated AF hinge! And it was instaled with 2 screws each end so the lid was removed for cleanup.

I also removed the 6 inside liner to outside she screws and the drain gizmo and verified it has "Something" inside the shell for insulation. (No Pics) it old enough it is possible its asbestos... Once I knew it was lined I put it back and left it for ice testing later




And some of the gasket mess before - Cleaning it took lighter fluid, lots of paper towels and elbow grease and there was still a hard residue left, so the SOS pads were used on the lid surfaces, as well. That old gasket was just liquefied more or less:





and after then new 1/2 X 1/2 gasket was installed. I had to go to Jeff's jungle store as local hardware stores didn't have the size I needed. I went with white on purpose.

Oh Look! The van Photo Bombed the pic!



It does close:



And Snaps! If a bit tight!

The plan is to use two 1/2 gallon milk carton blocks of ice - one in this and one in my near equal sized Coleman Xtream cooler, and see how fast each melts.

Coleman is 70 Qt. advertized
Pik-Nik is 72 Qt. calculated

If the Pik-Nik does well at all I'm going to guess the liner is Asbestos. Anything else will be maybe R.5 or so for the inch thick stuff.




See that drain? I suspect I'll be getting or making a 3D print of that and its Cap before all is said and done...

 

[kaymccampbell]

Had plans. Rode the chair instead.

 

[zimman]

Well I hope this isn't a double post. Thought I had posted this. Finished framing and staining the faux hutch around the HF tool box. This will be the last of the benches/boxes and tools. Enough is enough. Still have my Matco Service cart to bring in and then the Mustang. I'm ordering another 3 panel kit from Omni Wall to finish it out.
Zim

 

[Mr.zippy]

Had plans. Rode the chair instead.

If you put handlebars on that thing, at least you can pretend you're riding the Bergman Kay!

 

[badmatt]

Pulled this back in since painting the floor.



Same picture more or less from aug 2025

 

[niget2002]

Cut more stuff with the laser for the wife.

Played with a circuit and got it working.

 

[Fordguy1964]

Lye crystals is lye crystals. Red Devil is just the brand I mostly see in stores.

Your solution got hot because you used too little water AND ignored the warning about adding the crystals to water and not the other way around--but it did the job! BBs, nuts and bolts, chain, whatever, really does help to break up crud and rust. Shaking the tank is an excellent workout!

Ok. I read the directions and they said to do it that way... but that was for a drain not a gas tank. Got lucky I guess X3!

They said to get rid of the water and then add the lye and finally add water. Oh well. It worked anyway and I luckily had no disasters. I started the step one of the kit today. The solution came out clean so the lye did a pretty good job. I will remember your phrase for the future.

Flushed out the tank several times and an now letting it sit. Tomorrow it is time for step 2.

 

[M.Brane]

Rode Work Girl™ to work yesterday, and today. Temps in the mid to upper 80s in the afternoon. I can deal with that. The new LED headlights are good. I can see better in the morning, and nobody is flashing me. There was a lot of dumb on the way home today. 1st of the month. My co-worker came by after work, and picked up the second portable A/C unit so they are both gone now. More space!

 

[Jgaz]

Pulled this back in since painting the floor.



Same picture more or less from aug 2025

You accomplished a lot in 1 year.
Nice work!

 

[badmatt]

You accomplished a lot in 1 year.
Nice work!

I thought I was slow..

Thank you for the kind words.

 

[rharman]

ASA works really well to resist heat and UV rays if you decide to 3D print a replacement.

So I need to buy a 3D printer to fix my window switch? Build an addition to the shop to have somewhere to put it?

Oh, yeah--this is Garage Journal.

Come to think of it, there's probably someone at The Samba who prints these. It's a common problem with our 35+ year-old Vanagons. But my no-dollar fix seems to work just fine--until the rest of the bezel crumbles.

Just doing my due diligence and spending other people's money, as is tradition here

But really I bet you could get someone to print it free for you if you modeled it up.

Think my ASA was $19 for 1kg, and that small panel looks like it'd take between 50g to 150g.

I've mentioned this before but..... Check with your local library. Ours offers 3D printing as a freebie. 1 object every 2 weeks. 6 hour max print time per object. You send them an STL or a link to one.

Yes, Timm, I know you're in the middle of nowhere. Just throwing it out there. If not helpful to you, maybe someone else will benefit.

 

[Skyman]

I've mentioned this before but..... Check with your local library. Ours offers 3D printing as a freebie. 1 object every 2 weeks. 6 hour max print time per object. You send them an STL or a link to one.

Yes, Timm, I know you're in the middle of nowhere. Just throwing it out there. If not helpful to you, maybe someone else will benefit.

Thanks for posting this. I had not known that some libraries offered this. I will investigate for future reference.

 

[RonnieC]

Replaced the battery in our Sprinter-based campervan.

 

[bmwrd0]

Taking a break from working on the Dalton lathe to... working on another lathe!

It is rare to find a watchmakers lathe with the tailstock, rest, collet closer, and motor pulley, especially for what I paid for it at a tool sale over the weekend. And, as it is midweek, my wife works from home, and my shop is in the basement, so I try not to make too much noise, which means any metal working machinging needs to be done on the weekend or at night. Which means I need to work on quiet stuff during the week. So, cleaning this up is the task at hand.

 

[Beerhippie]

it old enough it is possible its asbestos.

I haven't encountered asbestos in a cooler, but I guess it's possible.

Asbestos doesn't burn and doesn't melt at any temperature you're likely to achieve. Use your plumber's torch to test it. If it burns, it's organic. If it melts, it's fiberglass.

Looking back at our current fire restrictions, I see there have been some rational changes made at either forest or region level. For decades, they distinguished between propane/butane and liquid (gasoline, kerosene) stoves and lanterns. Now they don't. Back in the aughts, I had my field season restricted due to this, but now it doesn't seem to matter. Too little, too late for me, as I no longer spend months at a time living in the woods.

 

[KwikFab]

I've mentioned this before but..... Check with your local library. Ours offers 3D printing as a freebie. 1 object every 2 weeks. 6 hour max print time per object. You send them an STL or a link to one.

Yes, Timm, I know you're in the middle of nowhere. Just throwing it out there. If not helpful to you, maybe someone else will benefit.

With the number of people on this forum, I'd be surprised if no one offered to print something for someone just because.