One Million Unfinished Projects

[MARKSTANG]

Welcome to my Quarantine, or as I call it 'home'.
My days are spent keeping a 50-year-old suburban 3 bedroom rancher from being absorbed back into Boar Swamp, from whence this subdivision was hewn. We (Wife, Daughter, Myself) live on 3/4 acres carved out of old growth trees. Lots of shade. Lots of wildlife - deer, fox, opossums, racoon, turtles, snakes, lizards.

All appliances and the only utility is electricity. We have a private well and septic system. If the power goes out due to an ice storm, wind storm, hurricane, or wayward backhoe digger you can't flush; and the indoors soon becomes the same temperature and humidity as the outside. We have spent a week 'off-grid' thanks to Hurricane Isabel at the longest. The nearest neighborhood with fire hydrants is 2 miles away.

The house came with a 1+1/2 car attached garage. It's full of stuff. Not my stuff. Every time, five times at last count, a Grandma dies, or moves off her farm into town we had to take her stuff. Only once did we have to also take in the Grandma.

I'm retired and I want to work on my cars. I still have my first car, a 1966 Mustang - bought from a family member and then owned by by me for 41 years. It was a daily driver to high school, college, a cross-country move, and my first 3 jobs for about 20 years. Now its dissolving back into the soil in my back yard.

I'd like to move south to S. Carolina, Georgia, or Florida. Seems like I've got 25 realtors wanting to show me what they think I need. But nobody has found my dream garage yet.

 

[Dumber than lumber]

Dream garage is only a theory.
Pie in the sky.
The million unfinished projects - is that a goal? Or a recent milestone?

 

[harley jim]

Well it can be done. I did it in 2004 left Chicago, the wife, all the so called friends, and the BS and moved to Chattanooga area. I bought a fixer upper bank owned property on an acre rehabbed it and built a 54'x 36' shop, part of it is heated and air conditioned it has wifi and cable tv and almost as many projects as you have.
Oh I forgot the fridge filled with adult beverages.

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[MARKSTANG]

The million unfinished projects - is that a goal? Or a recent milestone?

That’s the Status at this present time. Completely unintentional.

 

[harley jim]

I had a couple of those beverages tonight, how you doing?

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[MARKSTANG]

I’m cheap.
I will squeeze a nickel so tight it squeaks when I spend it. I’ll bet I was the last person in Virginia to buy a HDTV.
My time was valued by my former employer at $15 to $75 an hour, but free to me if I’m spending time on something fun. So auto repair is a parts & no labor cost comparison.

Having a repair shop fix my cars is agony. For a year I lived in an apartment and could not work on my Mustang, despite having a good set of hand tools , the 1965-1970 Ford factory service manuals, and access to every needed parts from Pep Boys, or by mail order. (I used to get something every month from J.C. Whitney or C.J. Pony Parts. 32 years ago that was my Amazon).
Even if I have to buy a new tool, I can change oil, Change coolant, do a lube job, do a brake job for a fourth $$ of the shop. Provided I have a place to work.

Of course there is the value of gathered education by experience, and rebuilding the same car numerous times over 40+ years leads to some adventures. The car has a manual 4 speed transmission, with external linkage from the floor shifter. I replaced the stock Ford shifter due to wear and tear at about 150K miles. The Mustang club recommended a Hurst shifter in a daily driver, so I searched and researched prices for months before overdrawing my bank account on a Ford toploader-specific piece at Loper’s performance in Phoenix, AZ. After another 4 years the Hurst’s plastic bushings had worn out and I decided to replace them. In-car. On the side of the road. I crawled under the car with One wheel driven up on the curb in front of the apartment building front door. It was early Saturday to avoid being scolded by the apartment cops, or real cops. The project only took about 30 mins, and all was well. For about 2 weeks. I was getting home from a business trip, stopped at a toll booth, and attempted to pull away. No first gear. Heart jumps. No second gear. Heart stops. Finally She had some forward pull in third gear. Drove the rest of the way home using 3 & 4. Lots of revs and gently slipping the clutch to pull away from stop lights and intersections. Repair was a simple affair, a cotter pin in the linkage rod had gone AWOL so I replaced it with a bit of coat hanger wire until the next scheduled bushing replacement.

The second biggest expense category of operating an automobile for 41 years? Tires? No. Paint and bodywork? No. It’s INSURANCE. I have spent $18,000 to drive a $400 car.

 

[harley jim]

I just bought a 70 f100 ranger xlt that will be going in the shop for a total body makeover. I am currently looking for some chrome parts and a few other pieces. That's how I spend my time now that I'm retired.

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[kaymccampbell]

Only a million?

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

Had to smile about your nickel story. Our nickels have a beaver on them. My Grandmother was also pretty thrifty. It was said that she could squeeze a nickel so hard the beaver would take a piss. She was a sweetie.
One of my first cars was a 65 Mustang. I didn’t keep any one of them too long. Kept selling them when a profit could be made. Some were sold to the insurance company after I had destroyed sometime with somebodies else’s help.

Good luck on your move

 

[86turbodsl]

You had me at the title - Also suffering with multitudes of unfinished projects...

Subb'd

 

[bj383ss]

I am in for the million projects. But I need pictures they are easier to read.

Bret

 

[MARKSTANG]

Only a million?

Like Bart Simpson, I guess I've always been an underachiever.

 

[MARKSTANG]

I am in for the million projects. But I need pictures they are easier to read.

Bret

Been too long since I have posted photos, my rememberer needs a refresh. Will add some soon.

 

[Vette60]

Hey there from the other side of the County - I'm over close to the metropolis that is "downtown" Glen Allen.

Enjoyed your posts and look forward to some photos!

 

[MARKSTANG]

I am a hoarder.
I get it genetically. When my great-grandma passed away the family found coffee tins full of used rusty nails in her house. A few of us knew what they were for. She had a small orchard in her yard, and would offer a hammer and nails to her energetic grandsons. Every spring we buried 2-3 nails low into the trunks of the apple and peach trees to feed them iron.

I was raking leaves around the house last week. With oak hardwoods and holly trees it's a year-round activity. Under the leaves I found a stack of used brake rotors that were apparently feeding iron into the soil. I seem to save parts when doing maintenance on this fleet of vehicles:
1st and 2nd generation Explorers, SN95 Mustang convertible, Chrysler T&C Minivan, Isuzu P'up, Chevy Silverado, Toyota Corolla, F-250, (2) Triumph Spitfires, Mercury Cougar, Chevy Beretta, Datsun 280Z, GMC Sierra, 300ZX Turbo.....We don't have them all any more, but within the leaf pile are leftover parts, and up on the bookshelf are repair manuals for many of them.

I counted out 10 rotors of similar diameter. They are probably from the minivan and the Mustang since we've been driving them the longest and done the most brake rotor changes. I got an inspiration to start yet another project! Motivated, every project begins by assembling a work space on the driveway. 2 folding sawhorses and a 20 foot extension cord. Ready to make some sparks, I dragged out my Harbor Freight 14" metal chop saw into the yard and started slicing the rotors in half. The non-vented solid (rear) rotors were easy, one long grind takes about 30 seconds. The vented (fronts) took 2 chops from the outside in and met in the middle. Now I have 20 rusty cast iron half circles. Assembly to begin promptly. Someday.

 

[MARKSTANG]

I just bought a 70 f100 ranger xlt that will be going in the shop for a total body makeover. I am currently looking for some chrome parts and a few other pieces. That's how I spend my time now that I'm retired.

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The Freedom Fighter was our last 'real' truck. My son's daily driver to high school and college.

 

[harley jim]

Nice truck

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[rixtrix1]

Nice title; been to my house?

 

[MARKSTANG]

Nice title; been to my house?

Probably, I lived in Scottsdale for 15 years.

 

[Kevkx125]

As other's have said you are not alone. I feel like I will always have unfinished project's but I am going to try my best to get to all of them. Your sons truck looks good.
Thanks for sharing and I look forward to reading more.

 

[MARKSTANG]

Some more work with re-purposed brake rotors. Employing Harbor Freight power tools;
Angle grinder knocked off two corners from each half-rotor:


Used a miter saw - to make this "fixture." 2 2x4s meet at 36°.


Started assembly by squirting some booger splatter Mig welds at the intersections. 20 total.


Finished - a fire pit. About 36" diameter. Once moved to a less-flammable part of the yard, we Will break it in this week with a boxful of 10-year-old bank statements.


That red one was going to be an umbrella base for my son's high school. We made about 6 stands for his Summer service project but apparently had some leftover painted parts. School colors: red and blue. Considering he just graduated from college, I think it is safe to re-re-purpose it now.

 

[jblnut]

One Million Unfinished Projects could have been the name of the Garage Journal lol.

You certainly have a way with words that makes me want to follow every adventure you let us in on. The fire pit looks amazing and is a pretty neat use of some old junk !!

 

[dwall174]

Just listing the current projects I can come up with a few!

Two dust collectors, One for wood & the other for metal.
DIY 20 ton hydraulic press.
10" grinder & stand.
6" carbide grinder
DIY router table & motorized scissor lift system.

Some of the older projects that have been put on hold include the following.

Roubo style workbench.
Dual Craftsman table saw set-up.
12" DeWalt RAS.
2" X 72" Belt grinder.
Air compressor dryer system.
Vacuum pump & press set-up.
DIY wood lathe project.

Doug

 

[MARKSTANG]

I had to google Roubo style workbench. No arguments, I need one.

 

[dwall174]

No arguments, I need one.

I had the opportunity to use a Roubo bench a few years ago & they work really nice with Holdfast Clamps That allow you to clamp stock securely to the benchtop.

With the average Roubo style bench weighing over 300lbs, They don't move around while hand planning or hand carving.

Now if I imagine my Roubo bench with a model like shown in the picture you posted
That would sure motivate me to get it finished.

Doug

 

[MARKSTANG]

Borrowed Dear Abby’s Thanksgiving prayer....

We thank thee for food and remember the hungry.

We thank thee for health and remember the sick.

We thank thee for friends and remember the friendless.

We thank thee for freedom and remember the enslaved.

May these remembrances stir us to service

That thy gifts to us may be used for others.

Amen.

 

[MARKSTANG]

Broken armed and dangerous.

Somehow I survived 57 years of falling from bicycles, motorcycles, horses, windmills and mountains (no particular order or frequency) ...without breaking any bones. Then there is now.

In a attempt to clean the garage, I was storing some long term project parts in the attic, and apparently fell from ceiling to the floor. It’s 10 foot fall lasting a millisecond that I cannot remember. Just recall opening my eyes and feeling a slight pain in my left wrist.

Apparently the fall was interrupted by hitting my head, shoulder, hip, elbow, and ankle on something, maybe the ladder?

I spent 5 hours in the E.R. getting x-rays, head & neck C.Ts, a shot of lidocaine, and a splint.
The diagnosis is I snapped the end off the radius, so a couple of nurses pushed and pulled it back into location - a “fracture reduction “ in insurance and billing terms.

Going to see an ortho doctor tomorrow to see how close they got it.

Here’s the before picture

 

[WarrenJ]

Ouch!

 

[MARKSTANG]

Housecleaning in earnest this Summer.
We cleared a formerly store-packed corner of the garage, allowing me some room to store and access the infrequently-used tools.

I immediately filled the space with workbenches, since I haven't had a workbench in 20 years, and the dining room table was getting a little dented up.

I got a couple of Simpson bracket kits at Lowe's hardware,

https://embed.widencdn.net/pdf/plus/ssttoolbox/lzxuizx7ka/DIY-C-RTC2ZKT20.pdf

some 2x4 studs, and plywood. I also used as much hoarded scrap and leftover wood as I could.

The 2 file cabinets are from the thrift store. The drawers are just the right size for 4 of the small plastic (think tacklebox) Craftsman toolboxes. I've got SAE sockets in 1box , Metric sockets in 1, a Dremel tool in 1 so I can grab and go to the scene of the repair job. Usually at the furthest end of the yard.

The red Paint is a farm implement- colored oil base enamel that came from Tractor Supply, and was applied with a 90's vintage electric Wagner power painter. It gives a fence & deck quality finish.

 

[davo727]

Damnitt on that arm!

 

[MARKSTANG]

More bench and shelf space.

I thought the first one went pretty well, so I put another one together. With This one I raised the bench surface to “bar height”, so I could store 3 rolling cabinets under it.

The bench is the right height for building carburetors. I have a slight backlog of 7 projects underway.

 

[SuperCat]

I feel your pain. I fell off a ladder many years ago and broke my arm. It happened in an instant, one moment everything is fine, the next moment you are on your back wondering how did I get here? I hope you are feeling better soon. Don't overdo things, or your wrist will not stay set correctly in the original position and may heal in a less than perfect orientation. This happened to a friend of mine and insurance would not pay to correct it.

I really can relate to your thread, it always seems that there are an unlimited number of projects that need to be done and never enough time, money, and energy. This is Life in the Project Zone. LOL.

 

[MARKSTANG]

Surgery and Therapy in the Covid-Medical world.

Rather than being seen by an ortho specialist the same date, I will be having surgery (screws and plates) 3 weeks after the fall. Initially the ER PAs got the port-starboard alignment great, but the fore-aft was still tilted back a little, and has continued to curve backwards due to muscles pulling the "scoop of ice cream off my cone".

I have been behaving, essentially confined to chair rest for the past week. The splint just can't immobilize everything that goes on in the wrist and hand. The doctor believes I will regain the full range of motion, and when we asked if the delay will cause arthritis his answer was a disheatening "that ship has sailed."

 

[MARKSTANG]

Getting organized and productive.

I put together a charging station for the cordless tools. Some batteries were still good and took a charge....after discharging for years at the bottom of the pile.



The old Harbor Freight $9.99 Drillmaster still works, even after being dropped and the shell repaired with devcon epoxy.

My treasured Makita 14.4v was down to 1 original battery (of the 3 that I have used for the past 20+ years), and 1 Chinese copy. Now neither will charge. I researched re-building those batteries with 12 new Ni-Cad or Li-Ion C-cells, but it was easier to order 2 generic batteries from Amazon.

Note there are 4 pair of safety glasses in this photo.
I had been preparing a full-on Norm Abrams invoking post about eye protection, before the latest injury misadventure. It will have to wait until I get back use of my digits and brain cells.

 

[SuperCat]

I like the charging station for the cordless weaponry: simple, robust, clean design. Fits all the requirements and fits just right in the space allowed. I also like the parts cabinet, and admire the classic style blue Dymo labels on each drawer. Well organized and inspiring.

 

[MARKSTANG]

Post-operation, now weaning myself off hydrocodone.

I have not seen the damage, but my doctor changed his Word of choice from “fracture “ to “shattered”. Apparently I’ve got some new hardware holding several pieces of my arm bone together. Still no cast, along with a splint I woke up with a new clean bandage. (The old one was stained with spaghetti sauce, which I cooked one-handed)

I had no idea there was so much college football on tv. I guess I haven’t sat still this long. I’ll be detoxifying from TV by reading and writing before basic cable becomes the next addiction.

Update- x-ray of the plate and screws. The whole knob was not only detached, but also broken Into bits..

 

[jake28]

Post-operation, now weaning myself off hydrocodone.

I have not seen the damage, but my doctor changed his Word of choice from “fracture “ to “shattered”. Apparently I’ve got some new hardware holding several pieces of my arm bone together. Still no cast, along with a splint I woke up with a new clean bandage. (The old one was stained with spaghetti sauce, which I cooked one-handed)

I had no idea there was so much college football on tv. I guess I haven’t sat still this long. I’ll be detoxifying from TV by reading and writing before basic cable becomes the next addiction.

Heal well. Don’t skip the stool softeners when taking the opiates. Belly pain trumps arm pain.

 

[SuperCat]

Hang in there, hope you are feeling better soon.
Since laughter is the best medicine, I suggest the "Joke thread" here on GJ for your entertainment:
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=333276&highlight=joke+thread

 

[MARKSTANG]

Out of chronological order...I'll try to share this Summer's adventure in zucchini farming.

We have a small vineyard of reds and whites that came with the house. One end has become overgrown with non-grape vines and volunteer hardwood trees. Once cleared, That section provided a 10x10 area with some sturdy posts that will support a surrounding fence. I have an old, unused dog kennel that provided 2 fence sides and a gate, and several yards of recycled 4-foot chain link fence to enclose it.
Instead of tilling, and mulching I bought bags of potting soil and lined them up in rows of (More recycling), "raised garden" boxes made from re-used 2x lumber.

The bags are slashed on the undersides to promote drainage, and the soil under them tilled up a bit with an auger in a hand drill.

After a week, we had sprouts.


And about 3 weeks - zucchini blossoms.


Since we had plans to attend out-of-town graduation in May, and weeks away at the beach in July, August, and September, I set up a drip irrigation network of re-used pvc pipe fed by a 5-gallon bucket propped up on a stand, and a kit of water emitters that I ordered on Amazon and came straight from China.

 

[MARKSTANG]

We used the same lazy bagged-soil system to plant tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and.....corn!

There's the water tower. The site is longer from the house than I have lengths of garden hose, so I just carry water in buckets to the bucket on the stand. It feeds the pvc pipes after going through a (paper element) water filter to prevent clogging the water emitters. It was an experiment to see if the gravity feed would have enough pressure to push the water through the drip emitters.....
I learned... that we had to add risers to the ends of the 3 long runs of pipe. That way the system self-burps the air that replaces water when the system goes dry while I'm gone for a week at a time.