Elephant Garage

[elefan]

Weekend is gone, and some progress is made.

The Outer wall was taken care of. It only took a few hours now that i knew how to go about doing it. Used some insulation the previous owner left me.

Then i could make some progress on the tool boards.

I started going through my tools sorting them in sizes and Metric/SAE.. Once that was done i could begin hanging them on the boards. Im not done yet but you get the idea. Metric on one wall, SAE on another. And various other tools on the third board. The upper portion of all the boards will also be used for "special tools" such as pullers, oil filter wrenches, pliers etc.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend good people.

 

[BUGTHUG]

you might want to check out Menard's store on there stainless steel peg boards, that would help to hang all the different tools on.

 

[locul]

VA??
This looks as Scandinavian as possible? In which counrty are you located?

best regards

 

[elefan]

Scandinavia yes.. Va is short for the city.

 

[elefan]

you might want to check out Menard's store on there stainless steel peg boards, that would help to hang all the different tools on.

Thanks. But i like the look and feel of wooden boards too much.

 

[vegar]

Scandinavia yes.. Va is short for the city.

Vasa?? Varberg??

 

[elefan]

Managed to move this big sucker inside today. Had it outside in a carport thingy. A friend did not show up 2 weekends in a row, so i had to do it by myself.

I found out i could tip/tilt it onto a small trailer, and roll it inside, and tip it off again. removing and inserting the drawers is what has taken most of the time. But now i have enough drawers to store all those rubber grommets, carburator springs and various small parts one gather through time when wrenching on older cars..
Cost me around 50 dollars. A steal in these areas.

Only slightly rusty on one side, but it adds character so I don't mind.

 

[elefan]

Small steps will get you there. Just not as fast.

During the week i have had some time to work in the garage. Not more than an hour here, and an hour there. Sometimes more. This I do not mind, as long as I'm able to make progress still.

I started making a workbench using the cabinets i bought super cheap earlier. I've done alot of mockups, measuring and comtemplating how to do it. The initial idea was to make a workbench where the cabinets fit in. But i ended up going the easy way, using the cabinets as support for the bench top. After levelling the cabinets, i was ready to purchase the bench tops.

I bought the cheapest wood possible(Fir wood in this case) in the desired thickness. Meaning i had to join two tops to get the desired lenght.

As you can see, they are not completely straight, and even the depth varies. Under the bench top i placed parts of a thin Yoga mat to absorb to pounding from when beating on it.

Then i started cutting some legs using a regular hand saw. I cut them in a lenght where they would make the benchtop float slightly above the cabinets. Again, to help when pounding on the bench so that the vibrations wont end up in the cabinets.

It took some practicing but i got pretty good at making a straight cut through the wood. Mind you, this is my first time playing with wood. Thus no circular saws or any other fancy tools for woodworking.

A shelf!

The benchtop is attached to the cabintes and legs. And under the shelf there is some cross bracing front to back and side to side to make it more sturdy. And the legs are both bolted to the wall(where possible) and bolted to the floor. The bench is very sturdy, Im quite happy with the results.

The bench top is not wide enough, so there is a gap in the back of it im thinking of various ways to close. Im thinking about adding beam to make it some sort of shelf. Time will tell.

After that I just need to bolt down the vise and add the drawers to the cabinets. Then the bench is ready to take some abuse.

Have a nice sunday.

 

[taumac]

That cabinet is awesome and a great deal at $50. That bench is sure coming along. Keep up the great work.

 

[sean Buick 76]

Nice work, and bold move on the floor but I like it!

 

[95riosnake]

Very impressed at the cuts you're achieving with just a hand saw. The results look better than what I've seen from some people using a miter saw and table saw...

At first I was a bit shocked at the floor color as well, but it's growing on me. That lift and raised ceiling is quite a nice setup, you did very well getting this shop space!

 

[elefan]

Very impressed at the cuts you're achieving with just a hand saw. The results look better than what I've seen from some people using a miter saw and table saw...

At first I was a bit shocked at the floor color as well, but it's growing on me. That lift and raised ceiling is quite a nice setup, you did very well getting this shop space!

Thank you. I found out that if i marked it all the way around and cut it carefully a few millimeters on all sides, it would greatly improve how even the cut would be. Very time consuming though. Until i did that things did not go equally well. The image showing a straight cut also shows some leftovers i hadvto cut off from 2 other beams that didn't go as well.

And thanks for the kind words all of you.

 

[elefan]

Had some time this weekend again..

Bought some cheapo bent up semi rusted used POS nuts&bolts organizers some time ago and had the time to mount them on the wall today.

If you look real close you can see where i put my bench grinders as well this weekend.

And finally, if you look even closer, you can see i made a bracket to hold my not so often used bigger pliers as well. It's down there, by the end of the workbench.

Oh, and the vise is also mounted to the workbench now..
I **** at taking pictures of my work. I only remember to do so as im about to leave and am in a hurry. Once i am done i will take some better pictures of the entire garage.

 

[bottom feeder]

I just read through your whole thread, and am enjoying seeing your progress.

How do you like your Ravaglioli lift? Would you recommend that brand/model to others?

 

[stevenhs]

Whats the brand lift you are using?

 

[elefan]

I just read through your whole thread, and am enjoying seeing your progress.

How do you like your Ravaglioli lift? Would you recommend that brand/model to others?

Whats the brand lift you are using?

Thank you.

I havent used it that much yet. I parked my project car there and havent touched it since more or less. The grinding of the floor created so much dust that i dont want to use the lift again until i have taken the covers off and somewhat cleaned and greased the mechanism. Otherwise the lift will wear out too fast I believe.

From the little use i have and my first impressions i'll say it is strong (3tonnes i think?) and i like that the arms can fold in and out completely..

 

[1/2 Cup]

You have done well elefan

Regards

 

[elefan]

You have done well elefan

Regards

Thank you sir.

 

[elefan]

It takes about 5 minutes if you have some leftover iron and a punch, a drill, a hammer and a vise to work the iron with. Super cheap easy simple and well working way of storing pliers.

 

[elefan]

Tackled a project today!

As you may have noticed, the walls had some bricks missing on 2 sides opposed to each other. This is because the garage was once divided in 2 by a wall. The previous owner removed most of the wall, but left it unsightly. I removed the last remaining bricks when moving in, but this left an ugly wall. See image

Using these babies

i could remove the damaged bricks. At the top the bricks were loose so i removed them as well.

Im not really proud of the results i achieved. If you look closely you can see the gaps are not identical, a brick or 2 are not level, and at the top the wall is sloping slightly. However, I am satisfied. Especially being that i have never done any masonry besides closing that window with aerated concrete blocks earlier in this thread. And that's a whole different (and easier) method used.
Have a look

I used some leftover bricks the previous owner left outside by the back of the garage. Had to hit them with the hammer to get the desired lenght and drill out the old concrete. I can only imagine the bricks are leftovers from when he teared down the wall.

Have a nice day

 

[BUGTHUG]

Looks like you have some street bricks outside the window? those are the really thick, and are good for side walks and patio's. Do they have any names on top?
My town was one of the earlier towns in Kansas that had solid streets, this was due to them being made of bricks. They were made in another town about 100 miles away. I can imagine all the labor of putting them down by hand, everyone.

 

[elefan]

Yes. I have quite alot of them. Approximately 35-40m2 as i have 2 stacks of them.
One day i will learn how to lay them and place them by the shop as a parking space. Right now theres just grass there.

Edit
No names on top

 

[elefan]

A friend of mine dropped of a squat rack today we built in our youth..

 

[BUGTHUG]

That would make a nice place to store scrap metal on, if you weren't using for weights

 

[Grizz1963]

Just looked through your thread.

Like the car perched on the lift.

I was in Herbs (Bugthug) garage the week after he gave it the first coat.... It looks good.

I love your floor too. Maybe one day I will unpack my 30x30 and do the floor.

 

[motorbreath53]

The organizer for $50 is a steal no matter where you're from. I've seen those listed for thousands by the interior decorator folks. good find.

 

[elefan]

The organizer for $50 is a steal no matter where you're from. I've seen those listed for thousands by the interior decorator folks. good find.

So far ome my greatest scores. It only happened because the owner was a stand up guy and decided to sell it to me as i was the first to call although others called afterwards and offered more money. I've tried this before.

 

[elefan]

Had some time to do some cleaning and organizing. Swiped the floor and started organizing the drawers. The floor is stained and could use a washing, but i think you get the picture.
Below is a small comparison of then and now

vs

vs

Next up is replacing a broken window and frame in the far left with the one that is on the floor(the one i removed when i closed off a window to make room for the tool boards)

Then i will do some masonry work on the other wall where there are bricks missing.

Once those things are done i just need to save up for a press and a lathe. And make room for my parts washer i have stashed in a container outside.

Merry Christmas to you all.

 

[BUGTHUG]

Hard to believe how well the paint covered the rough concrete area that has the rock showing. It sure looks like ice. Is it slippery? Mine is real slick even dry, I think I need to add some sand to the paint and do a light coat again. Will have to wait for it to warm up again.
Merry Christmas

 

[elefan]

Hi Bugthug.. It's not just epoxy paint there. I grinded the floor with a small grinder, primered, poured some self-leveling, and then primered again, and poured the epoxy. And the results are not perfect. A pro would have made it look like a million dollars!

-A bit more progress. Keep en mind i don't know anything about masonry or how to lay bricks other than what could be found on youtube(which is surprisingly little!) so the results are not perfect although a little better this time. Practice makes perfect.

First i had to drill out the remaining half of the bricks.

Then putting in "new" old bricks i had cleaned up yesterday.

Happy new year to you all

 

[elefan]

Hard to believe how well the paint covered the rough concrete area that has the rock showing. It sure looks like ice. Is it slippery? Mine is real slick even dry, I think I need to add some sand to the paint and do a light coat again. Will have to wait for it to warm up again.
Merry Christmas

Almost forgot!

No, it's not slippery. Happy new year

 

[BUGTHUG]

shure doing a fine job I would say. I bet when it all dries out it will blend beautiful. First rate job I think.
Happy New Year to you all

 

[ajohno]

Great job with the bricks.