Above 1200 Sq/FT Restored 1930's Auto Shop

[BB767]

I just had closer look at my version of this wrench...

It says:
COES WRENCH
6 S (& also something else I can't quite make out on one side).

The other side says:
MADE IN USA
UNDER L.COES PATS
Steel

Rick,

Once I'm home I'll take a look and see if that matches up with mine. It's a pretty handy size.

Thomas

 

[BB767]

The engine on the tree spade is a twin cylinder Onan, these were used in a lot of different places, ( motor-home generators, bucket-truck lifts, lawn mowers, welders, etc ) I have three lawn mowers with that engine, 2 John Deer's and an old Craftsman

Ask the man who knows! Thanks dcm5652. It's amazing the power that engine provides multiplied with the hydraulics.

Thomas

 

[BB767]

Up to page 107 and the 1 year anniversary post. That was awesome.

At the rate you're going Homebody, you'll be done in time for the 3rd anniversary post! Way to go!

Thomas

 

[BB767]

Triumph looks great, bit of tidying up but you've tackled bigger projects! It appears to have rust in all the right places

I'd do you a great deal on my GT6.....

GT6, the poor mans Jaguar...
Always wanted one, could never afford it...

Shipping might be an issue.....

Aw come on Joe, it's only money. Be a sport and have it shipped.

Thomas

 

[Brian R]

Somewhat shop related is our plan to put our present house on the market...

...and get it sold so we can build out by the shop. It is 102 years old now, having been built in 1910. Our family has owned it for 53 years but it's time for Chris and I to move to smaller, more suitable quarters.

Seven years ago I moved from the far western suburbs of Philadelphia to McKinney, TX and am just awestruck about how similar the house we sold in PA is to the house you are putting on the market. Ours was built between 1905-1915 and so I guess that has a lot to do with it. Interestingly, it had been in the same family for over 50 years when we (my wife and I, newly married) purchased it. I miss that house and how well constructed it was (and being on over an acre) the fantastic garage we added (sigh).

I hope your home sells as quickly as you want it to and that it becomes a great home for some family.

Regards,
Brian

I really like that Triumph and can't wait to hear the back story.

 

[HOTFR8]

HOTFR8 you need to review your thread notes. We've mentioned about building out there for quite some time. It is so beautiful, quiet and peaceful there, Chris will tell you it's hard to get me away and come home. Looking forward to being just steps away from it all.

Thomas

So much happens here (On the Forum that is ). You go away or get so busy deleting spammers and you miss something. I walk out the back door across the drive down some steps across another drive and I am here. I can tell you it is great to be near the works for many reasons .

I can see we also need to teach you again on how to use the multi quote button .

 

[charlief1]

So much happens here (On the Forum that is ). You go away or get so busy deleting spammers and you miss something.

I know that feeling about the spammers. We had a huge influx of them this summer on turbobuick and I spent 3 days working with admin to kill them off. We're still getting a few each day but in the first 3 days I killed off about 400 and the admin I was working with killed well over 1000.

Now if Thomas and Chris decide to make it to the power tour in June I may be tempted to do a little cooking like I did today. 33 hot links and a 1.5 lbs steak partially cooked over the coals and then seasoned and wrapped in foil. These are my lunches for the week and some of my co-workers keep trying to steal them from me for some reason.

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

Thomas, thanks for the look-ahead on the winter projects. It will be great reading (as always) for those of us that come in from the shop for a warm-up and a hot cup of coffee.

I too, am looking forward to the Triumph back-story, my GT6 is going to get some TLC this winter after being neglected for way too many years.

Good luck on the sale of your family home! Wow, 53 years in the family; I'll bet there's a lot of great memories that were 'built' there. Hopefully, the new owner's family will cherish it also.

Now, about that 'Caution Flag Yellow' snowplow and 'Rudolph Red' beacon for Gus....? lol

 

[tkbowman]

Thomas,

Will there be another garage associated with the new house so we can follow its progress?

Tim

 

[markviii]

Darn right, Tim! What's a home without a garage? I'm not walking outside to get my car!

Busily working,
Chris

 

[BB767]

....

...Busily working,
Chris

On the dreaded test I trust?

Home soon!!! Remember, TLC.

Thomas

 

[hobbitss]

Bill, the Triumph is pretty new to the family and I really haven't given its future use any thought as yet.

It's a fun little car...

...desperately in need of TLC, the car kind of TLC not the Chris kind of TLC though that never hurts ...

...already has a roll bar installed and ...

...trick little nerf bars instead of bumpers...

...and a massive chin spoiler. Not too sure about that though.

Craig already knows how it came to live with us and I'll get to that story shortly. Ya just never know when a day starts, with all the twists and turns, how it's gonna end. And so it is with the TR.

Thomas

About the Chin Spoiler.... I suspect this car has a Track history, hence the roll bar, and I wouldn't be surprised if the spoiler is needed to keep the front end firmly planted at WOT...

 

[BB767]

Love the simulator pix.
A couple of questions - do you train as a captain and a co-captain, or is the training specific to your paygrade?
Who buys those simulators, Boeing or the airline?
Does the chair move on those rails on the floor? It looks like you sit down and take a little ride towards the dashboard! Cozy!

oberst, we are all trained to the same standard and we all are type rated in each specific aircraft that we fly. When doing simulator work they try to pair us up as a captain and first officer team though, since that's how we fly on the line. Scheduling doesn't always work out that way however and sometimes captains are both together in the sim and sometimes F/O's. It's not a perfect world but we make it work. On the line a captain can fly as a F/O but an F/O can never fly as a captain except in long haul flying (more than 8 hours en route) in a relief capacity while the captain is on a rest break. Our larger, long haul aircraft are equipped with bunks for better, more quality rest.


The sims are all owned or leased by their respective airlines. Yes the seats move on those tracks to swing out from the sidewall to aid in us getting our flight bags in or out and then they swing in close to the side to allow us more room getting into the seat. As you might imagine the seats are highly adjustable. Proper seat adjustment is critical when shooting low visibility approaches to get a proper view of the runway environment. Good questions!

Thomas

 

[StretchCt]

I have been reading this thread for 2 weeks now and still nearly 200 pages to go. This has come at the right time for me as my own place needs some serious sorting out so thanks Tom and Chris, your efforts make my task seem trivial. I now know what I should be doing with my motor memorabilia. I have also learnt a lot about tools, garage equipment, anvils etc so thanks to everybody who has contributed.

 

[BB767]

The final chapter for this year's big project, the clean up and prep work for Timber Haven West- THW, the property next to the shop.

I've been waiting weeks for the right weather conditions to burn the brush pile from the hedge row clean up from last summer...

...and I finally had some very light winds from the right direction...

...note the flames are going straight up.

The backhoe was used...

...to keep piling embers and brush on top of the burning pile...

...to better burn it all.

It didn't take long. This was about 1 hour after we started the burn.

It took a day or so to completely burn down and then what was left was cleaned up.

Next the field was sprayed with Round Up and a disc was used on the field to turn over the old vegetation. We'll disc it one more time this fall I expect and then wait till spring for next year's crop of alfalfa to be planted.

Thomas

 

[CrustyD3mon]

Nice job on the field thomas...safety first...

 

[HOTFR8]

What do you do with the Alfalfa ? Sell it for feed or market ?

 

[markviii]

Our tenant farmer will use it for feed. I expect that Tom will fill in with more exact info in the future. It was great having that window of opportunity to burn since the winds from the front that started to move through the next day easily got over 40mph.

Chris

 

[HOTFR8]

Our tenant farmer will use it for feed. I expect that Tom will fill in with more exact info in the future. It was great having that window of opportunity to burn since the winds from the front that started to move through the next day easily got over 40mph.

Chris

Thanks Chris. Do you ever pick some for a salad ? Here our Summer is fast approaching and the seasonal burn offs can make the sky grey for days. The burnt Eucalypt smell can some times be overpowering but all done to prevent things like Black Saturday. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Saturday_bushfires
I have a burn off every so often so as not get such a big pile of material to burn like you and Thomas had.

I use the rule of thumb here that I do not burn if the wind speed is in excess of or over 10kph. Now the way you work that out is the tops of the trees are moving in the wind then I do not burn. That comes from my days as a Firey and when farmers burn the stubble from crops.

 

[markviii]

The brush pile got so big because of the acreage clean-up. Our village does brush/leaf bag pick-up on the 1st and 15th of each month from April 1-December 1, then another at the beginning of January for natural Christmas trees (unless those with live trees take them to the nearest forest preserve with a lake for aiding the fish habitat).

In future years, we won't have to burn, as we'll have more manageable piles to deal with. We're looking forward to that!

Chris

 

[HOTFR8]

In future years, we won't have to burn, as we'll have more manageable piles to deal with. We're looking forward to that!

Chris

Smaller piles are so much easier to burn.

 

[Homebody]

That comes from my days as a Firey and when farmers burn the stubble from crops.

LOL I can relate. Burned about 3 acres of that stubble a few years ago while burning a pile the size of Tom's. All the neighbors pulled up on their golf carts to watch my son and I put it out with my plow.
Went 30 yards out from the fire...plowed down to the dirt to make a firebreak....waited for the fire to hit it...out. Whew! If it jumped across that 7' break, I was screwed.

Been patiently awaiting for another day so I can do two more piles. tenant farmer strictly no tils our land.

 

[BB767]

I just had closer look at my version of this wrench...

It says:
COES WRENCH
6 S (& also something else I can't quite make out on one side).

The other side says:
MADE IN USA
UNDER L.COES PATS
Steel

Rick,

I brought that small wrench into the shop and took a cursory look at it. All the bare metal has a coating of rust that will need to be removed before I will be able to detect any markings. At first glance I don't see anything but thanks for your information. Stand by.

Thomas

 

[BB767]

Thomas, thanks for the look-ahead on the winter projects....

...Now, about that 'Caution Flag Yellow' snowplow and 'Rudolph Red' beacon for Gus....? lol

Omphaloskeptic, that's an interesting idea, the snow plow part, not the Beacon Ray on his nose. Make Gus much more useful as it were. I'll take that under serious advisement. As you know when I see or hear of a good idea I'm not shy about using it. Is there a particular manufacturer that you might suggest? Gus isn't all that large compared with modern day trucks and I'd only consider it for light duty as you alluded to. Taking a 60+ year old truck and banging into big snow drifts probably isn't a wise thing to do.

Thomas

 

[BB767]

Thomas,

Will there be another garage associated with the new house so we can follow its progress?

Tim

Tim, it's interesting you bring that up. The house garage was just in discussion a few days ago. With the shop and barn a few steps away I don't envision anything too elaborate outside of the hot tub, jacuzzi area, not to mention the motorized 90" flat screen that descends from the ceiling with a sophisticated state of the art sound system among others. Of course it's still in the planning stages so that's all subject to change. There are plenty of clever ideas here on the journal so I won't lack for inspiration.

Thomas

 

[BB767]

I have been reading this thread for 2 weeks now and still nearly 200 pages to go. This has come at the right time for me as my own place needs some serious sorting out so thanks Tom and Chris, your efforts make my task seem trivial. I now know what I should be doing with my motor memorabilia. I have also learnt a lot about tools, garage equipment, anvils etc so thanks to everybody who has contributed.

Hello there StretchCt. Good luck with your continued reading. I think you'll find this thread is so informative because of all the input from various Journal members. I've learned quite a bit here myself. They all have my thanks and appreciation as well.

Thomas

 

[BB767]

What do you do with the Alfalfa ? Sell it for feed or market ?

Our tenant farmer raises cattle but alfalfa isn't too appropriate for that so I suspect with all the numerous horse farms around here, most if not all of it will wind up being sold to them. He's a young man, only 25 years old, who specializes in hay and grass and enjoys (as does his family) a solid reputation around here. They just don't come any finer. His grandfathers farm is just a mile away and was a frequent customer of Mr Johnson years ago. In fact his grandfather was one my first visitors just after I bought the shop and had just started my work out there. He wondered and tried to encourage me to reopen it as a repair facility for public use. He has many wonderful stories about what transpired out in the shop over the years. It's a real treat to sit down and talk with him about it.

Thomas

 

[mdbeck1]

Omphaloskeptic, that's an interesting idea, the snow plow part, not the Beacon Ray on his nose. Make Gus much more useful as it were. I'll take that under serious advisement. As you know when I see or hear of a good idea I'm not shy about using it. Is there a particular manufacturer that you might suggest? Gus isn't all that large compared with modern day trucks and I'd only consider it for light duty as you alluded to. Taking a 60+ year old truck and banging into big snow drifts probably isn't a wise thing to do.

Thomas

I did a quick search on "the Bay (EBay)" and found one that might be about right:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Willys-jeep...Parts_Accessories&hash=item27cbab1eb8&vxp=mtr

These guys also have a lot of information about that kind of stuff: http://www.earlycj5.com

...as you can note from my location we don't get a LOT of snow here. So I don't really know much about putting a snow blade on or using one but I've seen pictures and read some about it.

 

[HOTFR8]

Our tenant farmer raises cattle but alfalfa isn't too appropriate for that so I suspect with all the numerous horse farms around here, most if not all of it will wind up being sold to them. He's a young man, only 25 years old, who specializes in hay and grass and enjoys (as does his family) a solid reputation around here. They just don't come any finer. His grandfathers farm is just a mile away and was a frequent customer of Mr Johnson years ago. In fact his grandfather was one my first visitors just after I bought the shop and had just started my work out there. He wondered and tried to encourage me to reopen it as a repair facility for public use. He has many wonderful stories about what transpired out in the shop over the years. It's a real treat to sit down and talk with him about it.

Thomas

What we call here a share farmer. You own the land and he farms it for you.
You get some money for the use of the land and he farms it to make money with out the expense of owning the land.

Those stories about the old garage would have been something to hear.

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

Omphaloskeptic, that's an interesting idea, the snow plow part, not the Beacon Ray on his nose. Make Gus much more useful as it were. I'll take that under serious advisement. As you know when I see or hear of a good idea I'm not shy about using it. Is there a particular manufacturer that you might suggest? Gus isn't all that large compared with modern day trucks and I'd only consider it for light duty as you alluded to. Taking a 60+ year old truck and banging into big snow drifts probably isn't a wise thing to do.

Thomas

Thomas, I'll keep checking for a particular manufacturer but in the meantime I think mdbeck1 has a good lead.

I just stumbled across this in a Google search for 'truck mounted snow blower in Illinois' -


7 ft snow blower 18 hp - $1500 (lake zurich)

http://us.yakaz.com/posts/0003bnkhfqolu63e

Day Trip! Google Maps says - 188 mi, 3 hours 31 mins

Food for thought.....

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

Or there is this if you are out Salina, Kansas on Nov. 24; a 50" Beuhler Allied PTO driven snow blower -

http://www.ksallink.com/auctions/wilson/consignment/consignment.pdf

and a source for a how-to (sort of) -

http://weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=44881

and the link from the above source thread -

http://www.vernco.com/PTO/id44.htm


Also found this source in NY state -

http://www.willystech.com/parts/messages/34258.shtml

 

[BB767]

I was reflecting that is was just about exactly 7 years ago in early November 2005, that I purchased the shop.

When I was deep in the outside clean up phase...

...I had no idea where it would all lead.

I just started with the clean up and as I worked out there...

... I didn't rush into anything, instead letting a plan formulate...

...and then possibilities started to emerge.

With that, I started to act on those possibilities...

...which I now consider to have had...

... some very positive results.

It's been quite an effort I admit, with some personal sacrifices from a very understanding and loving wife along the way. But in the end I wouldn't have had it any other way. It's our little slice of heaven out there. Thanks everyone for coming along for the ride.

Thomas

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

Dedication, perseverance, and skill; these are the qualities defining a C.A.P., they are also the traits that have made it such an enjoyable trip for us GJ'ers. Thanks for taking us along for the ride Thomas and Chris.

 

[markviii]

He just needed a place suitable for the corvette he always wanted, but didn't have at the time. I guess it's only fair for a corvette to move in now that he's built a home for it. Don't they say, "If you build it, he (in this case, it) will come."? (from movie Field of Dreams)

Chris

 

[CrustyD3mon]

Hey thomas...again....thanks to much for sharing this journey with us....

I imagine wath you and your wife pass trough...ahah

 

[ODIS]

Thomas,

Always a great thread and a fun read. Your passion for getting things done around your property is refreshing as well as inspirational. As many have said; Thank you for all the time you take to document your project and adding your easy to read stories and captions.

Best,

Ody.

 

[charlief1]

What's stuck in the roots of the tree in the 9th pic Thomas? It caught my eye and I wondered what it was.

 

[markviii]

Some sort of tile -- chimney? Notice how it's been pressured out of square. Those trees are full of things like that which get grown over eventually.

Good eye, Charlief1.

Chris

 

[BigAl62]

[/QUOTE]

Talk about hitting the nail on the head! This picture is great!

 

[tdkkart]

Can anyone list the missing parts here??

Also, I see a bad part, anyone else see it??