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I probably clicked on something inadvertently, all of my editor options are grayed out. I would post a picture... but that's grayed out, too. Suggestions? -- Carl

I am working on building an aluminum boat. Hobby project, not a business. Most of it is 1/8" sheet. Plans call for all outside seams to be welded with a spool gun, then flip it, back gouge inside seams to clean metal, then weld. From what a can tell I need carbide cutting tools that can work in...

I've got a Delta belt sander, it has a 42x1 belt and a table/disc on the side. The belt wheels are black plastic and I see cracks in some of them. None of the parts places I've checked has the wheels. Any source suggestions? Thanks! -- Carl

Central Florida, metal garage with stuff growing on some areas of the roof. Doesn't seem to care if it's in sun or shade. No tree over the patch in this picture. What is it and how do I get rid of it?

There are some three-way switches at work that turn themselves back on after a few second delay. Sometimes the first time you turn them off they stay off. Other times they turn themselves back on a couple times after a brief delay, then on the third try they stay off. It's like they are fighting...

I'm painting a metal door with a fan light insert. It's not installed yet, so I can disassemble everything and do a nice job. I removed the window so i can paint the backsides of the plastic mullion frames. The window was sealed to the outside frame with some sort of elastic material. It came...

Putting together a Bendpak four post lift and things are going pretty well but we've got eight of these star-looking washers and have no idea where they go. A little help? -- Carl

My kid brought me a self-propelled mower drive shaft and he wants to know if the worn area can be built back up. It's a .50" shaft and the worn place is .45" diameter. I told him I didn't know but I'd ask the experts. I have a stick/tig welder, what do you think? -- Carl

I want to attach a piece of Formica to my bench. The current top is 1/8" steel sheet and the dimensions are 4' x 7'. Looks like contact cement will do the job, but I want to be able to replace the Formica down the road. Something kind of like contact cement, only not as permanent. Does such a...

Found a Craftsman screwdriver with a hole drilled in it. Looks like it was made that way, but when I look up the part number there is no hole. Is this something someone modified, or did Craftsman sell something like it? Any idea what the hole is used for? Thanks! -- Carl

I got an energy monitor and have been learning more about our usage patterns. I noticed something I don't understand with the heat pump. We're running AC and normally I see the compressor and fan start up at the same time, then the compressor turns off, then a little while later the fan turns...

I'm setting up a conference room and have a question about power. We've got a floor box with one duplex receptacle in it and we would like to plug in three power strips. Two of the strips will provide power to either end of the table for laptops and phone charging. The other one will power the...

We got this robot vacuum a few months back. Really like it. We've figured out where we want it to hang out when it's resting. I'm not a big fan of the "power adapter with cord hanging down" look. Is there some way I can put that adapter into the wall and run the power cable down so that it comes...

If I'm running two circuits down one piece of conduit, does each one need its own ground wire? Using 12 gauge copper for all wires, each circuit is 20 amps. -- Carl

I'm putting up 3/4" tongue and groove plywood around the lower 8' of our red metal garage. I want switches and receptacles to be flush mounted and solid, so they don't budge when plugging/unplugging cords. What kind of boxes should I be looking at? Thanks! -- Carl

I have a red iron metal building and I want to put up 3/4" tongue and groove on the lower portion of the walls. What's a good way to handle trimming out around the door? The door frame and the red iron are all in the same plane, so I'm thinking overlap the plywood on top of the door frame then...

One of the guys on my military surplus forum posted this up, might be of interest here as well: DuroMax-10000-Watt-Hybrid-Dual-Fuel-Portable Price is $499 delivered. -- Carl

I got an old Craftsman vise from my grandfather. I'm trying to get the paint off of it. Would baking it in an oven for a few hours work? Would it hurt the vise? I need to load test my generator, and I do that with an oven. Since it's going to be running anyway, I thought maybe I could kill two...

I've got a spot where the metal siding on my detached garage is trimmed back for a walkway/steps between it and the house. I want to do something to seal the joint between the trimmed part of the siding and the walkway underneath it. Goal is to keep debris out of the joint and prevent water...

I've got a Delta drill press. I've had to replace the on/off switch about every 10 years. This is a 120V machine. Last time I replaced it I noticed that two conductors are being switched. Why is that? If I had a light bulb I would switch the hot to turn it on and off. What's different about a...