My Shop.

[Fighter-of-Wars]

Well, kinda like an intro post but a little more than that.

Well, I have just recently gotten into cars and thus need a place to work. Well, working outside in the mud isn't a very good idea, parts get lost and dirty easy. Working in my dads shop isn't good because he just likes to steal my tools and mess everything up that I do. So, the search was on for a site. Well I walk out of the big shop, look to the West and wouldn't you know it. A perfect place.

Turns out this place is what we call "The old Shop" it was what we worked on all our farm equipment in till the 70s when equipment got bigger and bigger and bigger. So, pretty much what they did was just abandon the shop and build another one next to it. So the shop still has many tools, tables, and of course junk.

Basic details.

From what my dad says, its around 60' long, 30 or 40' wide, and around 12-15' high. Don't have exact measurements yet.
It has a concrete floor
The walls sit on concrete about 1 foot off the ground
Nice and long with doors on both ends
Lots of Tables, workbenches, and shelves
Electricity
No Insulation
No Heat
And has so much junk in it every surface is totally covered with numerous rusty old parts.

It took me a whole weekend and 2 truckloads of junk out the shop just to get my truck in there and a little room to work (now where the 3 wheeler sits).

Now that I have got parts coming for the truck I had to get to work cleaning. So I struck a deal with my cousin that if he helps me clean he can work on his projects in there aswell (mainly a lawn mower). So we have been working after school for about 4 hours. I talked my dad into getting a role-off dumpster to load it all in. I could sort out the scrap metal and trash but I wouldn't get anything done that way, so were just going to throw it all in there that is junk.

What hurts the most, is that all the parts we throw away were brand new in box parts. Many of them still in wrapping. But after sitting in non-insulated shed they became worthless.

Now the fun part. My current plans for the shop.

Clean it up.

Restore wiring.

Get lights up.

Make a oil drum wood stove to atleast have some heat. Plenty of trees around since my uncles does brush clearing and I can just show up and load up my truck with logs.

Get the Air compressor working

Go to some auctions and find some tools for cheap.

Fix windows

Here are some pics

Whats cleaned up so far now after pic. The table the big fan is leaning against and everything from the fan to the truck and most everything to the right of the fan. A LOT still to go.

Pics running the length of the shop.

First cleanup job. This side was even worse than the other side.

 

[waltmcq]

Theirs got to be a lot of wild stuff in there. Have fun and good luck

 

[Bib Overalls]

Good place to start. Are you guys running all that metal refuse over the scales? Looks like you could make some bucks to front the improvements. Just cleaning up half the shed will give you a great place to work.

 

[Kevin54]

Wow....lots of good stuff in there. I see in the last pic the antique cabinet, the pic above it looks to be a porcelin outside light on the top shelf that a lot of people seek out. And then the numerous bins for bolts, etc. Before tossing, I'd certainly do some sorting. Looks like a great space to start out with.

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

I don't think we're going to sell the scrap. Most of it is trash and not scrap. I don't quite feel like sorting through it all the way scrap prices are.

 

[Fueler]

Veritable gold mine there. Sort carefully and thoughfully. For instance, You will want to get that big old fan working again someday, trust me. For instance, that thing with the double wheels to the right of the truck look like the beginning of a rotating welding table. and on and on. Lucky you to have a place to fix up and...the price is right.

Scrap metal? When someone asks me for a piece of scrap metal I respond with "Son, there is no such thing as scrap metal here. We do, however, have smaller pieces available."

 

[tdkkart]

I had a pretty decent shop when I was in highschool, built in a room in one end of the barn. It was approx. 18-20 ft wide x 40 ft long. Would easily hold 4cars. At 14 years old and with a car that needed bodywork and paint to be done before my 16th birthday,it was a dream shop.
Dad and I did the conversion to shop space, in the following order.

Started with a dirt floor, which we quickly found was mostly sheep ****, and ALOT of it.
The barn had been built on slight hill, on a stone foundation, which was approx. 2ft high in the front and close to 4ft high in the rear. Apparently after it was built it was never filled, rather they just turned the sheep loose and let them fill it up.
Plan was to use the tractor and loader remove the composted **** down to black dirt. This is when we found that the foundation had not been filled. We ended up with a hole inside the building that was 2-4ft deep the entire lenghth of the room!!
Oh well......

Several truck loads of sand and gravel later we were back up to where we wanted final grade. Now we could start pouring cement.......

.......with an electric mixer!!!!

That's right, another truckload or so of sand and gravel, and many bags of cement.One shovel at a time into the mixer, one wheelbarrow load at a time into the barn!!
We poured a strip down the center one day, and then poured each side in the next 2 pours.
It was alot of work, but when you want something bad enough it gets done.

Some wiring for lights and outlets. Built a decent bench with some scrap lumber. No insulation other than some plastic to keep at least some of the heat from going into the hay loft and I was set. I heated it only when I was out there, with a 50,000btu propane salamander. Propane was cheap in those days, seems to me a 100lb bottle was less than $25.

I did all the paint, bodywork, and mechanical work on a '68 Cougar XR7, and in my senior year I brought a burnt '76 Fiat X1/9 back from the dead. Also ran several friends motorcycles and cars through there too.
It wasn't much, but it served the purpose rather well.

Probably 4 years after we poured all that concrete by hand, a year after I graduated from high school a tornado came through the farm and knocked down the barn. I watched a dozer rip up that concrete and push it in a hole.

 

[autoist]

Did I see a big old sand blaster in there? Definitely keep that.

 

[Dragster Racer]

I could take that truck off your hands for starters.

 

[chicane]

What ever you do, DO NOT light a match in there.... .

 

[fasteddie24]

Man, you got a lot of "stuff".

 

[rocketman]

Man, you got a lot of "stuff".

Stuff=**** in my book. keep some of the storage bins and such and get a couple big azz dumpsters to haul the rest away. Wear a good dust mask when going through that **** and keep a gun handy for the inevitable RAT or SNAKE.

 

[Steve in Mi]

Don't throw a thing away, I'll be right there.

 

[tdkkart]

What ever you do, DO NOT light a match in there.... .

How ya s'pose to see where you're going???

 

[v8garage]

What are you going to do with the Ford truck?
V/8

 

[35mastr]

I would sort through it.There is alot of useful stuff in there.I would scrap any steel that I could not use for future projects.

Then use that money to buy tools with.

There looks to be alot of antique stuff in there.I would sell that stuff on the weekends with a barn sale.

That will also drum up some tool money.

Ebay all the parts that you say were NOS.I bet alot of that stuff is sought after by old tractor and equipment collectors.

That will also drum up tool money.

Just use your head while you clean up and you will be surprized at how much money you can make.

 

[Uncle Buck]

That would be fun, clean the place up, build a box for the fan to keep ya cool in the summer, sort and sell or use the goodies. Sell the scrap steel to fund more projects. Way to go, have fun with it.

I hope that ol Henry has a caring home to go live at.

 

[rocketman]

Scrap steel prices are gone... at least in the Chicago area. $.01 a lb. NOT worth any effort. a TON is only $20. My time is worth more than $20 a TON. Get a Bobcat with a bucket and push it all into a pile and scoop it into a dumpster.

 

[Old61]

You have a lot of sellable stuff in there if you want to spend the time. With the collapsed economy, China is no longer buying up our scrap metal so the bottom fell out of that.

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

What are you going to do with the Ford truck?
V/8

I'm going to restore it. Not with the original drivetrain though, another story that later. But I got a couple ford V8's coming with ******'s. I hope to make it into a truck to actually use, not just drive around. But here are some more pics of the shop and current progress.

Area Cleaned so far.

Got breakers?

My little treasure pile

Some old welders.

Some tools I found (grinder, vice, thread chaser seat, some grind stones)

Appears to be an old drill press

Shelves

More shelves

Some more treasures

Old Parts and repair manuals

Another workbench

Air Compressor

Anvil

Bins for Bolts and such.

Outside of Shop *Notice pile of junk on back of truck*

 

[rick42724]

WOW!

 

[mesquiteforge]

Don't give up. I have had the pleasure of cleaning up my grandfather's shop after he passed away back in 1995-we are still working on it....It is a 100'x60' and was packed with all sorts of treasures. That anvil is a great find, along with the large drill press, air compressors, sand blaster, welding machine, bench grinder, etc, etc....

I found a brand new Rock Island Vise wrapped in cosmoline and that was my treasure. My grandfather had kept clorox bleach bottles for years and paper grocery bags full of string from livestock feed sacks, bags full of rocks that he had collected and thought were unique and shelves full of used and new automotive and tractor parts. I guess being 18 miles from the nearest town, you never know when you might be able to use a burned up spark plug( I threw away at least a 100 of the them)...

That looks like a great shop and great workspace, I cannot wait to see the pics when you get it like you want it. Keep up the good work.

 

[PAToyota]

Too bad you didn't post that up for the messiest shop contest the other month!

 

[Greg9504]

Whatever you do, do NOT junk the anvil. If there is any writing on it, post it here. It looks to be an older one (re good). All you need to do is hit it with a wire wheel (not a grinder) to clean up the top. If it is a Peter Wright or equivalent it will be worth several hundred $$$.

 

[Fueler]

I wish we were neighbors. I would take that old crappy drill press off your hands. Maybe the old nasty lincoln welder also.

 

[duderjay]

i wish we were neighbors. I would take that old crappy drill press off your hands. Maybe the old nasty lincoln welder also.

lol lol lol

 

[Uncle Buck]

Was I the only guy that noticed the old "Bomb welder" setting right behind the red Lincoln everyone else is speaking of? Man there has been a serious amount of wrenching that has taken place in that old shop! I would love to root through that place, it would be great.

As for that air compressor, I have the tank and legs just like it setting out behind my shop, I wish I had the original pump and motor like that one has. If all the grease were cleaned from the cast iron platform the pump and motor set on you would find all kinds of words cast into the top, at least if it is a twin to mine that is what you would find.

 

[cletus66]

Man, I would clean it up, partition off a spot, and MOVE IN !!!!

 

[goodfellow]

Was I the only guy that noticed the old "Bomb welder" setting right behind the red Lincoln everyone else is speaking of? Man there has been a serious amount of wrenching that has taken place in that old shop! I would love to root through that place, it would be great.

As for that air compressor, I have the tank and legs just like it setting out behind my shop, I wish I had the original pump and motor like that one has. If all the grease were cleaned from the cast iron platform the pump and motor set on you would find all kinds of words cast into the top, at least if it is a twin to mine that is what you would find.

I noticed it as well. Nice DC generator welder -- three phase. Not sure but it might be a Hobart -- maybe Lincoln. Cleaning that place up and organizing the inventory would go a long way in making this a very useful shop.

I hate dirt floors though. Between the dust and the moisture wicking through, the equipment probably has taken a major beating. Plus wasps and other critters always seem to make their nests in open electric motors which can cause some serious fires when the motors first start up after sitting idle for many years.

 

[HOTFR8]

You could take a lot of that to the next swap meet Clear out all you do not need and make some money.

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

I hate dirt floors though. Between the dust and the moisture wicking through, the equipment probably has taken a major beating. Plus wasps and other critters always seem to make their nests in open electric motors which can cause some serious fires when the motors first start up after sitting idle for many years.

The shop has a concrete floor but its just really dirty.

 

[goodfellow]

The shop has a concrete floor but its just really dirty.

Wow! I stand corrected. You definitely have your work cut out. Good luck with the clean-up!

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

Wow! I stand corrected. You definitely have your work cut out. Good luck with the clean-up!

Thanks, I'm going to need it.

 

[WhatThaFrig]

Wow! Color me jealous! I would love to have something like that to root around in.

 

[914forme]

I would love that anvil, that I-beam, and that compressor, and the hydralic cycl, would make one heck of a long stroke press.

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

More progress. Got cleaned more than halfway back on the right side. I hope to work on it everyday afterschool this week. Then I hope to be mostly done cleaning.

Have now seperated scrap iron from junk. Have found bunch of copper and brass which is seperated.

I have found another air compressor. A DeVilBiss VAP 5050G L 5072 Its either a V2 or V4 style with a 7.5 HP 3 phase electic motor on it. Made back in the 70's From what I know there is nothing wrong with it. The green compressor in earlier pics is a Champion Pneumatic -N- series. Dad said it was kinda slow.

The Drill press is an Edlund 1B. Appears to all be there. Haven't tried to run it yet. Found a few more anvils.

2 1/2 tons of junk taken out so far.

Found some old wood stoves. No details or pics on them yet. But that is what I plan to use to heat with.

Sorry for poor sentences, puntuation, and paragraph structuring, I'm really tired.

Here is pics of yesterdays progress. A lot more cleaned today but was to tired to take pics.

 

[extranjero]

Do be careful what you throw away, as others indicated. Some of that stuff in there is worth some loot. Also, if you decide to scrap things, take the metal and iron to a scrap yard. Perhaps, some others can chime in, but last fall scrap was around $450-475 a ton depending on area. Hell, one of those I-beams is easy money, just in scrap. You do have some neat stuff there. If only that shop couls talk.

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

We can't scrap the I-beams. We use them from time to time on projects we got here on the farm. But I have been sorting through stuff. Most of it was beyond repair/use. But that which I thought we could use I saved.

 

[Fueler]

Using the corn scoop seems somewhat appropriate.

 

[Fighter-of-Wars]

Well, its about 90% cleaned up right now. Just some tidying and organizing here and there and taking out a few more things but is mostly done.

Here is only pic I took.