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A year or so ago I did a little experimenting running a 3 phase motor on single phase. You can get full horsepower using a transformer and some capacitors. https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/transformer-based-phase-converter.539211/ A couple weeks ago I picked up an old US air...

I have a little trailer that I had put some ag spindles on but wasn't really happy with the size of the bearings. So I found this 7,000lb torsion axle that the guy said might be bent. Has good bearings, good brakes so I paid the guy $250 and took a chance. I put a 20" straight edge on each hub...

I'm looking for a simple automatic battery charger. Will usually be charging 1-2 group 31's. I want automatic so it can be left unchecked for 24 hours or more. The current transformer charger is simple to operate and works great but somebody drives 6 miles later in the day to unplug it. I also...

Recently I've been thinking about getting my garage sealed up better, maybe even a little insulation. The building is 24x38, it was moved and turned into a garage in the late 70's but was probably built 100 years ago. There is no vapor barrier or air sealing anywhere. The interior is completely...

This week I made this mount for a vise. Fits a 2" receiver. I put another receiver off to the side on my service truck so I don't have to pull out the ball and the tailgate will clear it. Just a cheap harbor freight vice. I wanted another 4 1/2" Doyle but they only had one and that got put in...

Just wrapping up this little project. Needed (wanted) some more room to park stuff inside. It's 24x32 about 8 1/2' tall. Tried keep the cost low. Built on a frame of 4.5" well pipe. Built my own rafters. Still need to build the door. Total price under $5000

Went to replace some vent piping on this heater today. Under closer inspection it has rust holes in the heat exchanger. It's a reznor only 15 years old. Building is only 25x40 14 high and somebody put in a 125,000btu unit heater. I'm going to replace it with a 45,000

I've read about powering a 3ph motor with a transformer and capacitors. Not a lot of talk out there about it but it is very interesting to me. Supposedly the best way is a custom transformer but I read a report of using a 240-120 step down transformer wired as an autotransformer. The step down...

Got this 6 months ago and have been extremely happy with it. 240v 200A DC stick, can also run on 120v up to 120A. It's an inverter so it's very portable, that was my main reason to get it. Has a short 10-ft lead on the stinger. I changed that right away and that's my only complaint. I've seen...

Found this cool little watt meter yesterday. Wasn't aware that robinair ever made electrical test equipment. Works fine although the meter movement for wattage is a little sticky. I have a killawatt meter that I use semi regularly so this will be a fun thing to use instead.

Just thought I'd post about one of my winter projects. Have a shallow foundation under a small part of my house. It has settled some before I owned it but the dry couple years have made it worse. Decided I want to pour walls under the existing footing. Not a big enough area to make it worth...

Picked up this saw earlier this week during our spring clean up day. DeWalt 740, 10" radial arm saw. Nothing real special by the looks of it but the price was right (free). It was kind of noisy so I picked up some bearings for it since they looked pretty easy to replace. So I have a total of...

I'm not much for multiple of the same tool but sometimes you just need it! And yes, it's twice as fast.

It's cold today so it's a good time for some inside projects. Shellac was a very common finish 100 years ago. It disolves in alcohol. This is probably common knowledge to some but it took me quite a bit of reading to realize what it is. Around here everybody says you got to sand it all off...

First door I've ever done but turned out well I think. The old one had been neglected for a long time. The concrete here used to slope towards the garage so the door sill was rotten in addition to the sill plate on either side. Got new concrete poured but the guys left a high spot so I ended up...

Ok so it's not in the garage but the frame of the new window was built in my garage. A large part on this little craftsman table saw. In my house a previous owner had installed some vinyl windows. The other two are mostly the correct proportion but this one was hard to even look at. It has...

Why is it that a good number of roofers are perfectly happy to reuse bad flashing. Often slobbering tar over the gaps or bad spots thinking it will hold up. Seems like you have to hire a really high end roofer to get a good job. Some of our building practices don't help either. Like nailing...

Putting strapping on my garage roof today I noticed one area had a dip and a bit more spring to it. I crawled up into the attic and found one rafter had a crack and the ones next to it sagging noticably. First thought was to sister them but the thought of getting a 14' 2x6, or probably should...

Thought I'd throw this in here. I know there are a few guys here that will understand. Working with a local REC. Normally they just put their CT's in the transformer right over the lugs. When I was talking to the meter tech he asked to put them in my disconnect. I was a bit surprised, the REC's...

My little Craftsman table saw has been making a clicking noise recently. Turns out it's the pulley rocking back and forth on the arbor shaft. Obviously this was a problem sometime in the past... I'm sure a better repair would be to braze the shaft. I think that would require disassembly since...