zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Happy Anniversary Mike. Glad you were able to get away.
Between 705 & 1200 SQ/FT My Mini Garagemahal
- Thread starter fouckhest
- Start date
Workspaces between 705 and 1200 squarefeet.
Thanks, Mike!
After my small win with solving my gate swing obstacle, I wanted to keep progress moving, so dipped out of work a little early to head to the metal store before they closed to get some 1/8" x 1" flat bar, thanks to @SilverJimmy for the recommendation, certainly reduced the number of cuts from my original plan.
Left the metal store with 22ft of flat bar (womp womp about 4ft too short, but that didn't get realized until later....), then headed to pick up another treasure (more on that later).
Got home and unloaded and headed to the shop, my plan for mounting the privacy boards moved from a 1.5" x 3" to strip on each side to 2x 1.5" x 1" tab, so set up a little stop on the Evolution chop saw and went to work
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Many many cuts later, I ended up with 156 tabs, unfortunately I need 176, see above womp womp lol
Before debur
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
After debur
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Also, while on the way to the metal store I was trying to remember where those springs came from, it finally hit me! I was highly confident they are for the attachments to the shifter cables on an mk4 VW. So upon returning home I went to the parts room and checked my excess stock and sure enough I had a pair still attached to an OEM shift mechanism, so they were removed and sacrificed to live another life!
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Tonight begins the fun process of drilling holes, lots of holes, may run back to the metal store and get the rest of the flat bar so I can be finished with that process.
Left the metal store with 22ft of flat bar (womp womp about 4ft too short, but that didn't get realized until later....), then headed to pick up another treasure (more on that later).
Got home and unloaded and headed to the shop, my plan for mounting the privacy boards moved from a 1.5" x 3" to strip on each side to 2x 1.5" x 1" tab, so set up a little stop on the Evolution chop saw and went to work
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrUntitled by fouckhest, on FlickrMany many cuts later, I ended up with 156 tabs, unfortunately I need 176, see above womp womp lol
Before debur
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrAfter debur
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrAlso, while on the way to the metal store I was trying to remember where those springs came from, it finally hit me! I was highly confident they are for the attachments to the shifter cables on an mk4 VW. So upon returning home I went to the parts room and checked my excess stock and sure enough I had a pair still attached to an OEM shift mechanism, so they were removed and sacrificed to live another life!
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrTonight begins the fun process of drilling holes, lots of holes, may run back to the metal store and get the rest of the flat bar so I can be finished with that process.
SilverJimmy
Well-known member
If you need more or better springs you might check with McMaster-Carr, like my old friend used to say “If McMaster-Carr doesn’t have it, you don’t need it”!
I have look around on there a little bit, certainly lots of options, but from what I was able to find in the size the cost got pretty discouraging. Going to test out my two spring theory and see how that pans out, if all else fails, then I'll get back on McMaster and see what I can find, luckily, these springs are usurpingly strong.
Continuing on with my gate project, made another quick trip to the metal store before they closed yesterday to pick up the additional flat bar to finish making my tabs, I decided I wanted to knock out each operation as a group rather than bounce around.
...quick side note, after I got started on making the tabs (~180 in total) I did look at the place where I typically buy tabs, but at ~$1ea, I decided I'd continue with my home made plan.
Once the last 20ish tabs were complete it was time to decide on how best to repeatedly drill 180x holes. Off to the scrap bin I went, found some left over 1x2 rectangle tube along with some other drops from the project and whipped up this quick/dirty drill fixture.
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Drilled my pilot hole through tab #1 into the tube/fixture
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Next was a larger relief hole to allow chips to fall, actually got to use my Rotabroach, they are quite nice!
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
From there, grab a stool and belly up to the drill press for a lot of rinse and repeat
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Unfortunately had to jump on a 9pm work call, so had to call it around 845, but made it through ~110 tabs....more than halfway! woohoo
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
At least the drilled stack is larger, makes getting ready for tonight's work a little easier to think about!
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Weather dependent, I may test out my second spring theory and decide if there are any last minute modifications needed, otherwise, I will be time to pull the gate panels down, head to the lumber store and get started on putting the finishing touches on this project!
...quick side note, after I got started on making the tabs (~180 in total) I did look at the place where I typically buy tabs, but at ~$1ea, I decided I'd continue with my home made plan.
Once the last 20ish tabs were complete it was time to decide on how best to repeatedly drill 180x holes. Off to the scrap bin I went, found some left over 1x2 rectangle tube along with some other drops from the project and whipped up this quick/dirty drill fixture.
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrUntitled by fouckhest, on FlickrDrilled my pilot hole through tab #1 into the tube/fixture
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrNext was a larger relief hole to allow chips to fall, actually got to use my Rotabroach, they are quite nice!
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrFrom there, grab a stool and belly up to the drill press for a lot of rinse and repeat
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrUnfortunately had to jump on a 9pm work call, so had to call it around 845, but made it through ~110 tabs....more than halfway! woohoo
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrAt least the drilled stack is larger, makes getting ready for tonight's work a little easier to think about!
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrWeather dependent, I may test out my second spring theory and decide if there are any last minute modifications needed, otherwise, I will be time to pull the gate panels down, head to the lumber store and get started on putting the finishing touches on this project!
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zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Nice job on the drilling jig Mike. I have found that when having multiples to drill, taking the time to set up a fixture is time well spent. Hell, for most tasks when there are multiples, a jig can be time well spent on the not only the speed of the job, but more importantly, the consistency.
Thanks, Mike. I thought for a couple mins about any way to manage without a jig, but it just didn't make sense as it would result in marking everyone out and/or center punching each one, this certainly was time well spent, biggest bummer is I ran out of argon, so now I've need to make a run to see the gas man.
Trapps
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Jigs and fixtures for the win!
Fun times! Continuing with that theme...wrapped up drilling and deburring the tabs last night, I think I ended up with 179 total
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrOnce that was complete I decided to take some time to start working on the fixture to hold the tabs for mounting the boards that will dress out the gate panels....I knew If they weren't damn near perfect or at least consistent, it would drive me nuts
Started by finding a spacing that was both functional and aesthetically pleasing...also working with some scrap flat bar i had laying around and mocking up on a piece of the gate frame tube
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrNext was to find some angle that would wrap around the frame tube, **** up to the center space bar, but leaving enough room to put a couple tacks on the tabs
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrQuick aside, if anyone has any doubts about the Evolution chop saw, I have to highly recommend this tool, it cuts VERY well, certainly beats the pants off an abrasive saw...my only complaint is is does make a lot of chips, but its also 1/4 of the price of a nice cold saw and runs on 120v....I was trimming the above angle and wanted my pieces to be the same length and this was the "sliver" left, quite impressive IMO
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrThis is where I decided to call it for the night, my 30min longer after feeding the dogs at 7pm, turned into an hour and a half, so by 830 I decided this was a good stopping point, would let me sleep on my design and make sure it was solid before gluing this one together and making a mirror for the other side so I can tack both sides and just move down the line
I added some additional tabs to "grab" the side of the board, they will be connected via the little cross bar, the ram board should allow for a little slop to account for the inevitable variation in size/length
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrHopefully find some time tonight to get this jig finalized and plan to pull the gate panels and support bar down this weekend, get everything welded up and start moving towards calling this project done!
@fouckhest - Just curious.... What was your process/tooling for deburring all those tabs?
I have one of these on one of my bench grinders, 3M debur wheel....buddy of mine has made turbo manifolds for years and this is what he used to clean up the weld el's, it makes for a nice smooth finish, if there was s burr from drilling I'd hit it on the regular abrasive wheel, then smooth all the corners with this.
Funny, when I looked this up, its says it is 6" dia., I think mine is more like 3-4" now, guess i've got some miles out of it...
I hope everyone had a good weekend, lots of work here on the gate project, things are finally starting to come together.
Saturday morning kicked off with a run to the blue box store to get lumber to start finalizing the gate panels. Returned home, unloaded the lumber, then needed to breakdown this extra subframe I picked up last week (market place spare parts find for the project car).
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Once unloaded I needed to wrap up a little "tune up" for the wives gardening wagon, needed a couple new wheels/tires, couple were seized on, so took a couple shots of kroil followed by a BFH to persuade them to come off, Then gave the axles a quick rust removal, a good coat of anti-seize, new washer and lock pins and sent it down the road!
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
With that small task complete and the space available in the garage, I got the gate panels removed, loaded into the truck and moved back down to the shop....apparently my supervisor discovered the bed of the truck and was trying to stop me from getting the panels loaded up LOL
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Once I got him moved and panels loaded, I set up my work area to get ready to start things off
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
I made some small gussets for the center hinges to add some additional rigidity...they all got fully welded out, unfortunately I wasn't as diligent about photos while working this weekend
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Found a couple flaws in my tab jig: 1. I messed up the tube orientation, and realized that wasn't really needed, so simplified them, so now the just grab the board and set spacing., 2. making my jig using 6+month old lumber was not wise, it had shrunk significantly and wouldn't fit around the fresh lumber, DOH, small width adjustment required, then back in business
by fouckhest, on Flickr
Then a whole lot of rinse and repeat, AGAIN, this time, rough cut 5/4x12ft boards down to ~34-1/4", layout 3 at a time on the frame, trim each board to fit, position them and then weld tabs on...Tabs positioned
by fouckhest, on Flickr
Welded both tabs, secured one on each side
by fouckhest, on Flickr
Eventually cut another 2x4 to use as spacing so I could do 3x planks at a time
by fouckhest, on Flickr
One panel almost done
by fouckhest, on Flickr
This was the end of my day Saturday, panels are HEAVY with the lumber on them, curious to see how its going work when everything is hung up
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Sunday morning started with another lumber run to get the remaining boards to finalize the panels, plus a 4x4x8 to reinforce the fence side where the hinges attach. I want to be able to add an additional lag bolt, so I sistered another 4x to what was already there
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
You can see it hiding behind the hinges
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Finished the 4x4, got to work cutting up all the 5/4 boards and started in on panel #3.
Third panel complete, added the one additional board at the bottom, the spacing didn't work out perfect, but these gates are going to have a bit of "abstract" to them, so I think It will work well with the overall concept. I think the openings are going to be covered in a bit of randomness, but TBD
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Finished that part, couple friends stopped by, we ended up hanging in the driveway shooting the **** and having a couple beers, by the time they took off it was getting close to time to start thinking about making dinner and settling in for the afternoon/evening. I was pretty beat after a couple days of pretty hard work and didn't want to be as tired as I am today, but I suppose it could have been worse.
Hope everyone has a good week, I'm looking forward to getting some more work done on the gate project and inching this one to the finish line.
Saturday morning kicked off with a run to the blue box store to get lumber to start finalizing the gate panels. Returned home, unloaded the lumber, then needed to breakdown this extra subframe I picked up last week (market place spare parts find for the project car).
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrOnce unloaded I needed to wrap up a little "tune up" for the wives gardening wagon, needed a couple new wheels/tires, couple were seized on, so took a couple shots of kroil followed by a BFH to persuade them to come off, Then gave the axles a quick rust removal, a good coat of anti-seize, new washer and lock pins and sent it down the road!
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrUntitled by fouckhest, on FlickrWith that small task complete and the space available in the garage, I got the gate panels removed, loaded into the truck and moved back down to the shop....apparently my supervisor discovered the bed of the truck and was trying to stop me from getting the panels loaded up LOL
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrOnce I got him moved and panels loaded, I set up my work area to get ready to start things off
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrI made some small gussets for the center hinges to add some additional rigidity...they all got fully welded out, unfortunately I wasn't as diligent about photos while working this weekend
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrFound a couple flaws in my tab jig: 1. I messed up the tube orientation, and realized that wasn't really needed, so simplified them, so now the just grab the board and set spacing., 2. making my jig using 6+month old lumber was not wise, it had shrunk significantly and wouldn't fit around the fresh lumber, DOH, small width adjustment required, then back in business
by fouckhest, on FlickrThen a whole lot of rinse and repeat, AGAIN, this time, rough cut 5/4x12ft boards down to ~34-1/4", layout 3 at a time on the frame, trim each board to fit, position them and then weld tabs on...Tabs positioned
by fouckhest, on FlickrWelded both tabs, secured one on each side
by fouckhest, on FlickrEventually cut another 2x4 to use as spacing so I could do 3x planks at a time
by fouckhest, on FlickrOne panel almost done
by fouckhest, on FlickrThis was the end of my day Saturday, panels are HEAVY with the lumber on them, curious to see how its going work when everything is hung up
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrSunday morning started with another lumber run to get the remaining boards to finalize the panels, plus a 4x4x8 to reinforce the fence side where the hinges attach. I want to be able to add an additional lag bolt, so I sistered another 4x to what was already there
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrYou can see it hiding behind the hinges
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrFinished the 4x4, got to work cutting up all the 5/4 boards and started in on panel #3.
Third panel complete, added the one additional board at the bottom, the spacing didn't work out perfect, but these gates are going to have a bit of "abstract" to them, so I think It will work well with the overall concept. I think the openings are going to be covered in a bit of randomness, but TBD
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrFinished that part, couple friends stopped by, we ended up hanging in the driveway shooting the **** and having a couple beers, by the time they took off it was getting close to time to start thinking about making dinner and settling in for the afternoon/evening. I was pretty beat after a couple days of pretty hard work and didn't want to be as tired as I am today, but I suppose it could have been worse.
Hope everyone has a good week, I'm looking forward to getting some more work done on the gate project and inching this one to the finish line.
cccoltsicehockey
Well-known member
Congratulations on the anniversary.
The gate is coming along nicely. How was Burnpile?
The gate is coming along nicely. How was Burnpile?
Thanks, anniversary is actually Wednesday (need to remember that!) LOL
Burpile was good, VIP tickets are the key, get in early, try all the good stuff, then when they open the gates, just go hang around the VIP booth and sip beers there. I dont think I even ended up down close enough to hear the music.
Haha, yeah there need a bunch! We talked about doing the boards vertically, but I never found anything that really excited me and I couldn't figure a way that I liked on my own
cccoltsicehockey
Well-known member
Sounds like a good time. Seems key for any beer festival I have been to lately. Either do VIP if you are trying to sample the good stuff or just go to have a good social time and don't bother with them. I keep saying it, but hopefully next year for me finally. It was also the same weekend at Hondas at the Dragon this year as well, which is another October event I keep trying to get to.
Its a fun weekend, the weekend we got married 3yrs ago was the same weekend as Burnpile, so the next year we did that for our 1yr anniversary, last year canceled due to the hurricane, so we wanted to check it out again. I'll likely go just to do a fun get away from town weekend, its close/easy, so makes it all around much better for our experience.
I definitely want to check out the Hondas at the Dragon, I have a buddy that goes every year, so would be cool to link up with him, same if you went.
Trapps
ALLIANCE MEMBER
The Garage Journal Shindig at the Dragon? Sounds like an event in search of an organizer...
I'd be down for that, need to figure out a way to get the word out, but if everyone would be okay to stay at Fontana Village, that would be the move, just need to find a weekend that isn't spoken for and booked out a year in advance.
Thanks Logan!
I have to admit that little cart is pretty nice, it came with the wife/marriage! .....don't tell her, but the upgrade came about to help move the welder up to the gate for any final/last min welding that may come about.
cccoltsicehockey
Well-known member
I organize one dragon trip a year that started as 4 friends and is now up to 12. I can't handle any more and honestly this has gotten to the point it is almost too much.cccoltsicehockey
Well-known member
Fontana isn't bad. That is what we did for the first couple years. We left though and found civilization to a point now.I'd be down for that, need to figure out a way to get the word out, but if everyone would be okay to stay at Fontana Village, that would be the move, just need to find a weekend that isn't spoken for and booked out a year in advance.
Thanks Logan!
I have to admit that little cart is pretty nice, it came with the wife/marriage! .....don't tell her, but the upgrade came about to help move the welder up to the gate for any final/last min welding that may come about.
We have one, too. It's been great for around the yard, as well as taking the kids around the block. Having some fun a few years ago:
We have one, too. It's been great for around the yard, as well as taking the kids around the block. Having some fun a few years ago:
Genius! I was always pulling the kids in mine ..I need to make them pull me!
Fontana isn't bad. That is what we did for the first couple years. We left though and found civilization to a point now.
If you get into the newly renovated cabins, its actually quite nice now. Quite a bit more expensive, but the cabin we've stayed in for years, used to be "able to" sleep 4 people, but with only 1 shower and the one bedroom was two singles, it was not ideal. Now that same cabin is 4bed/4bath, perfect for 4 dudes to show up for a weekend of basically only sleeping there.
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
ToD has been on my "to do" list since I was riding Harleys. Now it is somewhere I want to take our Camaro and run. Maybe someday the wife and I will be able to get out there. Until then I'll just have to enjoy through you guys.
Funny thing... they wanted to! Didn't last for more than a few houses, but good for a photo.
cccoltsicehockey
Well-known member
Hmmm, I need to look into the fact they renovated things. We haven't staid at Fonatana since before Covid. We found a pair of houses that we rent that are next to each other. Getting back to that would allow me to not have to be in charge of as much of the housing maybe lol. Do they have internet and decent TV in the cabins now?
It is worth looking into, especially since you are going to be up there soon, might be able to either find someone staying there or stop by and see if you can check out one of the new places.
Thats super cool if you found houses, especially if the driveways are decent. We stayed up above the gas station at the base of the dragon (entrance by the dumpsters at the end of hell bender, up to the right on the hill), place was amazing, but was tough to get in/out of in low cars.
As for Internet and TV, the internet is always so dependent upon the number of people in there. It has gotten better, we usually do a Wed-Sunday trip and late Friday and Saturday its horrible just b/c there are so many people there. I think the TV was decent if I remember, but we typically dont stick around the cabin much at all, either either, drive, drink or sleep (no mixing of any) LOL
gearhead1960
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Being in the Mini club, the older club members always did Minis on the Dragon. Surprisingly, we always felt we were always looking in from the outside for any of these outings, subsequently never have made it with them. I would be in for a GJOTD or better yet.....GJOTIOM (GJ on the Isle of Man).....
Im down for that!
Mike I had more fun in my cars than any motorcycle I have ever taken up there. ToD, Cherohala Skyway and Foothills parkways make an amazing trifecta of roads that must be driven! Im 45 minutes from the dragon, need to head up there more often!ToD has been on my "to do" list since I was riding Harleys. Now it is somewhere I want to take our Camaro and run. Maybe someday the wife and I will be able to get out there. Until then I'll just have to enjoy through you guys.
zmotorsports
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Thank you. I have not heard one way or the other, bikes vs. cars so that is good to hear, especially since I now only have one option.
The group of friends that we rode with years ago had talked about taking a trip as a group, but we never did. Now most have moved away and/or quit riding and I have not stayed in contact with them, and we haven't had a bike for three years now. WOW! I didn't realize we have been bike-less for 3 years and have had our Camaro for 3 years already. Time flies.I'll have to haul the Camaro back there once we retire and make a trip out of it for the wife and I.
Being in the Mini club, the older club members always did Minis on the Dragon. Surprisingly, we always felt we were always looking in from the outside for any of these outings, subsequently never have made it with them. I would be in for a GJOTD or better yet.....GJOTIOM (GJ on the Isle of Man).....
Funny, I think the first time I ever drove ToD, we were down in Helen, GA for a car show, took off early one morning and ran up there, Thursday, I think, by the time we were leaving the amount of "new mini's" with all the buttons and **** on them became as bad as mosquitos on a hot summer night, LOL
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrI also love the Joyce Kilmer road that they run the SCCA hilclimb on (cuts between 129 and Cherohala), Waya road is another good one (kinda far), but so much good driving!
I've never been to ToD on a bike, likely never will at this point either. I will say, I've spent plenty of time up there and I can only relate/liken
the people on bikes up there to being out west snow skiing and people "think" they can drop into a black diamond run b/c they do it at there local NC/OH/WV run at their local mountain....long/short, in way over their head and end up riding so slow the bikes are damn near falling over
If/When that trip happens, Mike, please let us know, I'm confident there will be few that would love to come meet and help show you the sights!
Limited gate work last night, work work delayed my start.
I did get the fence side hinges fully secured with leger lock screws, the house side hinges are drilled for the 5th attachment point (anchor), got the trim panels cut and a first coat of paint on them. Also removed the upper support bar and glued it together.
Upper brace in the garage, dont poke too much fun at these welds, they are beefy, but I was trying really hard to weld while slowly rotating to make it look nice and pretty...didnt come out as purdy as I wanted, but it will be 9ft in the air LOL
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
Trim boards after coat #1, will throw another coat on at lunch so they are ready to get installed, hopefully work on that tomorrow since we will likely go out tonight for our anniversary
Untitled by fouckhest, on Flickr
I did get the fence side hinges fully secured with leger lock screws, the house side hinges are drilled for the 5th attachment point (anchor), got the trim panels cut and a first coat of paint on them. Also removed the upper support bar and glued it together.
Upper brace in the garage, dont poke too much fun at these welds, they are beefy, but I was trying really hard to weld while slowly rotating to make it look nice and pretty...didnt come out as purdy as I wanted, but it will be 9ft in the air LOL
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrUntitled by fouckhest, on FlickrTrim boards after coat #1, will throw another coat on at lunch so they are ready to get installed, hopefully work on that tomorrow since we will likely go out tonight for our anniversary
Untitled by fouckhest, on FlickrI took my dads miata up there for a Subaru rally about 10 years ago while my car was apart for an engine build. I had a blast in that tiny little car. My XT was a fun ride up there as well and had enough power to rip up the corners. Anytime yall come up to play I always offer my shop and lift if you need to swap tires or play with suspension settings before you hit the roads out here.
Very much appreciate that and will certainly keep that in mind for the future!
I am looking forward to getting a couple drives in this fall now that house projects are slowing down, its been WAY too long.
gearhead1960
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Yeah, the buttons and "****" is a little too much for me. I, for one, like a clean appearance with a minimal amount of badging. When I bought my Mini, they offered a "Stealth Mode" option which eliminated most of the non branded badges. I opted for this and then removed the "CLUBMAN" from the barn doors. Makes for a very clean appearance and lack of recognition (needed for the 3 digit blasts)....here's a few pics...and the shift knob is good for at least an extra 5mph, maybe 10.....
Trapps
ALLIANCE MEMBER
[yodavoice] strong the hops are with this one, mmmmm [/yodavoice]
Yeah, the buttons and "****" is a little too much for me. I, for one, like a clean appearance with a minimal amount of badging. When I bought my Mini, they offered a "Stealth Mode" option which eliminated most of the non branded badges. I opted for this and then removed the "CLUBMAN" from the barn doors. Makes for a very clean appearance and lack of recognition (needed for the 3 digit blasts)....here's a few pics...and the shift knob is good for at least an extra 5mph, maybe 10.....
That plate is awesome!