Uncle Bob
Well-known member
Over the past 55+ years of playing with cars I've worked in all manner of garages and not garages.......including swapping a trans on snow covered ground. Oh the silly things we car guys do!!
Last year we moved from Wa. State to Central Tx and left behind a pretty nice garage that had served well for years of hot rod building, storage, and so on. Part of life's progression is to recognize that some things don't last forever, including interests and stuff. Part of the thought was to reduce the fleet and some of the acquired shop equipment that years of hobby craft had allowed. Preparatory to the move I sold off a welder, drill press, shop press, brake, slip rolls, 80 gallon high volume air compressor, boom lift, and on and on. Not a complete sell off, just lightening the load. The plan was to sell off a couple of the cars and see if I could learn to live within the confines of a "normal" 3 car garage. As the thread title implies.......................I'm apparently not very good at that!
After getting settled into the new (to us) house, neighborhood, and circle of new friends and acquaintances I think I'm just going to have to keep playing with cars..............it's what I do. No laments about all the equipment sold, I'm not as physically able to do that kind of fab work any more, so they served their purpose and have moved on to other hobbyists to cherish. My last build, a '32 Ford sedan, is in the paint jail now and won't need more than a good collection of hand tools and space to complete when it's released. There won't be another complete build, just maintenance and mild modification. To that end, we decided to add more garage space to the property.
Given the architectural constraints of a residential community (yes, many loathe HOAs, sometimes for good reason, but we're adults and knew what the consequences of our choices were ahead of time) the building will be stick construction with materials consistent with those of the main house. No metal building, no building down to a low budget, but up to a standard. And, truth be told, at my age I prefer certain comforts. Some can identify with that, others...........................oh well.
Without getting too wrapped up in detail at this point the footprint will be roughly 27 x 40, there will be a small patio-esque structure over the side man door. The back left corner will be enclosed to a 12 x 12 room to house the mower and the rest of the gardening detritus. Elsewhere on this site I've got a couple articles/reviews of a large tool box and metal cabinets from New Age products; those will be moved to the new structure. Like any others who have gone down this trail, I've considered a wide variety of options for layout and equipment. My choices won't suit everyone, but they are the best ones I know how to make for the circumstances I face. So.....let's get started with breaking ground and forming up for the pad. That's where we are today. How long will this take? The safe answer is.............longer than I want it to..........after that, I ain't setting any unrealistic expectations. Been there, done that, didn't buy the T-shirt.
Last year we moved from Wa. State to Central Tx and left behind a pretty nice garage that had served well for years of hot rod building, storage, and so on. Part of life's progression is to recognize that some things don't last forever, including interests and stuff. Part of the thought was to reduce the fleet and some of the acquired shop equipment that years of hobby craft had allowed. Preparatory to the move I sold off a welder, drill press, shop press, brake, slip rolls, 80 gallon high volume air compressor, boom lift, and on and on. Not a complete sell off, just lightening the load. The plan was to sell off a couple of the cars and see if I could learn to live within the confines of a "normal" 3 car garage. As the thread title implies.......................I'm apparently not very good at that!
After getting settled into the new (to us) house, neighborhood, and circle of new friends and acquaintances I think I'm just going to have to keep playing with cars..............it's what I do. No laments about all the equipment sold, I'm not as physically able to do that kind of fab work any more, so they served their purpose and have moved on to other hobbyists to cherish. My last build, a '32 Ford sedan, is in the paint jail now and won't need more than a good collection of hand tools and space to complete when it's released. There won't be another complete build, just maintenance and mild modification. To that end, we decided to add more garage space to the property.
Given the architectural constraints of a residential community (yes, many loathe HOAs, sometimes for good reason, but we're adults and knew what the consequences of our choices were ahead of time) the building will be stick construction with materials consistent with those of the main house. No metal building, no building down to a low budget, but up to a standard. And, truth be told, at my age I prefer certain comforts. Some can identify with that, others...........................oh well.
Without getting too wrapped up in detail at this point the footprint will be roughly 27 x 40, there will be a small patio-esque structure over the side man door. The back left corner will be enclosed to a 12 x 12 room to house the mower and the rest of the gardening detritus. Elsewhere on this site I've got a couple articles/reviews of a large tool box and metal cabinets from New Age products; those will be moved to the new structure. Like any others who have gone down this trail, I've considered a wide variety of options for layout and equipment. My choices won't suit everyone, but they are the best ones I know how to make for the circumstances I face. So.....let's get started with breaking ground and forming up for the pad. That's where we are today. How long will this take? The safe answer is.............longer than I want it to..........after that, I ain't setting any unrealistic expectations. Been there, done that, didn't buy the T-shirt.
The former president has two hot rods of his own, and the current was one of the first to come over and do a meet and greet when he saw one of the cars in the drive when we first moved in.............. You're probably right though, there's always a crank **** somewhere!
