Sunbimmer
Well-known member
Just invite them to watch the movie
, I like the idea of the outdoor movie theater btw.
Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT The 12-Gauge Garage
- Thread starter Jack Olsen
- Start date
Workspaces sized between 265 and 485 squarefeet.
Just invite them to watch the movie
, I like the idea of the outdoor movie theater btw.It has been said that whatever one occupies themselves for the day better be worth it because they just traded a whole day for it.
I just spent the better part of 2 days in this thread... I am astonished, empowered, amazed and thankful that we have information like this, with a massive user base to draw from.
Jack, what a work of art, the Porsche is mechanical art and the garage is beautiful. I love the fact you didnt go with black, blue, or red for your major colors. Your garage has almost an old world feel to it, someplace you want to go to learn. Also, the Petrolicious video was excellent, what a memento of your journey!
I just spent the better part of 2 days in this thread... I am astonished, empowered, amazed and thankful that we have information like this, with a massive user base to draw from.
Jack, what a work of art, the Porsche is mechanical art and the garage is beautiful. I love the fact you didnt go with black, blue, or red for your major colors. Your garage has almost an old world feel to it, someplace you want to go to learn. Also, the Petrolicious video was excellent, what a memento of your journey!
alpinewhite
Well-known member
Where's the Jacuzzi gonna go?
pwschuh
Well-known member
Wireless headphones. You just need one transmitter and as many pairs of headsets as you are likely to have viewers.
GolferChris
New member
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2013
- Messages
- 2
New member here looking to make my garage into a better work area. Couple of questions on the folding benches.
Do you think the angled leg design is sufficient to support a vice and possibly a best sander? As well, is it good at supporting left-to-right and vice versa movement? I will be building/regripping golf clubs with it. Finally, I assume for the supports and leg stops you used scrap pieces, correct?
If the area where the leg stops go is concrete, can I just attach the stops to the legs? You have your tabletop built out of ply. I was thinking of using 5/8" MDF. Do you think that would be ok? For one, I would like a smoother surface than ply. Secondly, I was thinking it would be a litter stronger.
Finally, instead of using the top supports for the tabletop, could you use a continuous piece of 2x4 to increase strength?
Do you think the angled leg design is sufficient to support a vice and possibly a best sander? As well, is it good at supporting left-to-right and vice versa movement? I will be building/regripping golf clubs with it. Finally, I assume for the supports and leg stops you used scrap pieces, correct?
If the area where the leg stops go is concrete, can I just attach the stops to the legs? You have your tabletop built out of ply. I was thinking of using 5/8" MDF. Do you think that would be ok? For one, I would like a smoother surface than ply. Secondly, I was thinking it would be a litter stronger.
Finally, instead of using the top supports for the tabletop, could you use a continuous piece of 2x4 to increase strength?
RobSmith
Banned
MDF will sag.
alpinewhite
Well-known member
Plywood does not?
dubber
Well-known member
Great deck area as well. Also thanks as I'm now enjoying 'The Motoring Enthusiast Journal'.
GolferChris
New member
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2013
- Messages
- 2
My question exactly. From the pics his does not. I'm trying to ensure the work surface is somewhat smooth.
csp
Well-known member
Plywood is MUCH stiffer than MDF. For a smooth surface do an overlay of tempered hardboard on top of the plywood. Make it removable so that it can be replaced when damaged.
Dan in Pasadena
Well-known member
It's a Porsche thing...you wouldn't understand.
But seriously, it is done to improve handling and Jack is all about making his car and himself the best he can on the track.
got2boostit2
Well-known member
In for all the goodness in this thread.
alpinewhite
Well-known member
[whispering inner voice]
Jack, weld the bottom part of the piece in the first picture to the bottom of the top half of the stack. You know you want to do it.
[/whipering inner voice]
pwschuh
Well-known member
It's not a Porsche thing. I did corner weights for my Volvo station wagon.
OP
Just the Jeep, the old 911, and a 5-year-old BMW 328i which is my 'respectable' driver.
Thank you! I appreciate it.
No Jacuzzi. With two toddlers in the house, I don't think either my wife or I want that to worry about. Better to be able to let the kids play back there and not have to think about it. However, there will be a gas fireplace back there, so there's at least one thing to worry about. But maybe I can get a lock for the valve on that. Other than that, there will just be places to sit and maybe a small table for having coffee or whatever.
That's a good idea. In fact, I'm sure my neighbors would call it a GREAT idea. I'll look into it.
Here's the exploded-diagram type drawing that Wood magazine did on the fold-down bench. It's strong enough to jump up and down on, so I wouldn't see any problem with a grinder or a vise. It's got one 2x4 running along the underside as a kind of a spine piece.
For what it's worth, I now think that the 'leg stops' are a stupid idea. All I needed to do was put a crossmember (maybe a piece of 1x4) between the two legs about midway between the bench and the floor. That would have kept the legs locked and parallel at all times, which is all you really need to keep them from sliding over (if in fact you need anything at all).
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OP
As I understand it, corner balancing uses ride height adjustments to distribute the weight onto the four wheels of a car to make its handling more consistent, which is to say the car will turn left as well as it will turn right. Since you can't actually move things around in the chassis to change the weight distribution, you raise and lower corners to try and get identical measurements for the sum of each diagonal combinations of weight. In other words, the sum total of the front-right and rear-left measurements would match the sum of the front-left and rear-right measurements.
Dan joked about it being a Porsche thing. But it's pretty common in all track car suspension work. The scales also give me a good idea of how my attempts at weight reduction will change the front-rear weight bias of the car.
[whispering inner voice]
Jack, weld the bottom part of the piece in the first picture to the bottom of the top half of the stack. You know you want to do it.
[/whipering inner voice]
I thought about going taller. And in fact the two-into-one cabinet I made is slightly taller than stock. But in the end I let that section go to the scrap yard.
OP
I did some more work this weekend on the deck that's adjacent to the garage. To keep things remotely on topic, here's a shot of just how messy the garage has gotten during the work on the deck. This is just one of the benches.
The fence along the back of our property had rotted out and was falling over when I started this project. Frustratingly, working on the fence took almost as much time as working on the deck. And unlike the from-scratch deck, the fence is still not remotely straight.
Here it is when the vegetation got cleared away. For years, there were trees planted at either end of the fence and they'd contributed to the rot and heave damage that was done. It's hard to see from the picture, but all four posts had broken, and the whole thing was just leaning back against the neighbor's fence.
I cut the less-rotted middle section out of the fence, and raised it up 36" when I put in new posts. You can see the neighbor's cinder block fence through the lower section here.
I put in the slate facing on sheets of Hardie Board. I also put in some new wood where the old pieces were no longer viable. You can see a sort of shadow on the old wood where the plants and fountain used to be.
It stayed like that for the ten days or so it took to put in the actual deck. Here's one of the early shots of the decking going on.
There were vines growing everywhere in the old yard. I still haven't attacked the mess on the stucco walls yet, but I cleaned all of the old wood in the fence. My son helped, although he preferred working on the stucco stuff.
This weekend, I primed it. I used the Zinsser oil-based primer (at $40/gallon
) and haven't seen any bleed-thru from the newer wood with its tannin-y knots. (You can also see the eighth-inch Masonite that I've covered the thing with.)
Then I painted it gray. The idea was to find a color that worked with the slate, but didn't 'jump out' too much.
There will be some lighting (the candles) attached to this wall, probably along that little ledge at the top of the stone section. But aside from that, I'm pronouncing this one wall 'done.'
Which is good, since I also just took delivery of the shade fabric and about a thousand pounds of steel tubing for the pergola-type cover. After I get the other two walls cleaned up and painted, it'll be time for some welding (and yes, even some sewing).
The fence along the back of our property had rotted out and was falling over when I started this project. Frustratingly, working on the fence took almost as much time as working on the deck. And unlike the from-scratch deck, the fence is still not remotely straight.
Here it is when the vegetation got cleared away. For years, there were trees planted at either end of the fence and they'd contributed to the rot and heave damage that was done. It's hard to see from the picture, but all four posts had broken, and the whole thing was just leaning back against the neighbor's fence.
I cut the less-rotted middle section out of the fence, and raised it up 36" when I put in new posts. You can see the neighbor's cinder block fence through the lower section here.
I put in the slate facing on sheets of Hardie Board. I also put in some new wood where the old pieces were no longer viable. You can see a sort of shadow on the old wood where the plants and fountain used to be.
It stayed like that for the ten days or so it took to put in the actual deck. Here's one of the early shots of the decking going on.
There were vines growing everywhere in the old yard. I still haven't attacked the mess on the stucco walls yet, but I cleaned all of the old wood in the fence. My son helped, although he preferred working on the stucco stuff.
This weekend, I primed it. I used the Zinsser oil-based primer (at $40/gallon
) and haven't seen any bleed-thru from the newer wood with its tannin-y knots. (You can also see the eighth-inch Masonite that I've covered the thing with.)
Then I painted it gray. The idea was to find a color that worked with the slate, but didn't 'jump out' too much.
There will be some lighting (the candles) attached to this wall, probably along that little ledge at the top of the stone section. But aside from that, I'm pronouncing this one wall 'done.'
Which is good, since I also just took delivery of the shade fabric and about a thousand pounds of steel tubing for the pergola-type cover. After I get the other two walls cleaned up and painted, it'll be time for some welding (and yes, even some sewing).
Dan in Pasadena
Well-known member
Jack, the color you chose is perfect in my opinion. It pulls the same color out of the stone, but not TOO much. I don't know about candles on that ledge. Not only small children nearby but candles leave a waxy residue on the walls they are adjacent to. I can't tell from the photo HOW close the candles will be. But you know there are those flickering bulbs they make that give the appearance of candles, right?
Will any of the Boston ivy be allowed to regrow? It does have the advantage of hiding a wealth of sins/inconsistencies. But it IS a maintenance issue.
Can't wait to see the steel work go up!
Will any of the Boston ivy be allowed to regrow? It does have the advantage of hiding a wealth of sins/inconsistencies. But it IS a maintenance issue.
Can't wait to see the steel work go up!
Zengineer
Well-known member
Very nice work Jack, as usual. That fence wall combo looks great, I think you chose very well!
Megadodo
Well-known member
I'm glad i'm not the only one who has a pile of tools left over after doing a job! I try and put them away as I finish but just haven't quite got that discipline yet! Jack, I thought you were infallible, but no, your only Human! Cracking work as usual! Keep the updates coming.
1Garageman
Well-known member
That looks really nice Jack!
dubber
Well-known member
Fence looks amazing; colours, textures and all, job well done!
Stuart in MN
Well-known member
There's another thread about the candles, he is using the little electric ones so no worries.
"I did some more work this weekend on the deck that's adjacent to the garage. To keep things remotely on topic, here's a shot of just how messy the garage has gotten during the work on the deck. This is just one of the benches."
Holy cow, Jack! I had to laugh-you must have taken the photo of the messy workbench to make us mere mortals feel better, right? Seriously, you are an inspiration. Unfortunately, that's what my workbench seems to look like most of the time.
I just finished a project and had to move all my tools and saws into the barn until proceeding to that reorganization. And in the meantime, I've picked up another coulple of projects (tractor restoration, pantry in the house). It takes me a fair amount of time to concieve how I want a project to look when finished. So I admire your vision and ability to see it to completion.
You are also "building" a future helper in your son by letting him help. In the end, that's the "project" you'll be most proud of. Thanks again for keeping us updated.
GGB
Holy cow, Jack! I had to laugh-you must have taken the photo of the messy workbench to make us mere mortals feel better, right? Seriously, you are an inspiration. Unfortunately, that's what my workbench seems to look like most of the time.
I just finished a project and had to move all my tools and saws into the barn until proceeding to that reorganization. And in the meantime, I've picked up another coulple of projects (tractor restoration, pantry in the house). It takes me a fair amount of time to concieve how I want a project to look when finished. So I admire your vision and ability to see it to completion.
You are also "building" a future helper in your son by letting him help. In the end, that's the "project" you'll be most proud of. Thanks again for keeping us updated.
GGB
Dan in Pasadena
Well-known member
marty_p
Well-known member
Jack, I remember what you always say: "If it's important enough to do, it's important enough to do right the first time" (give or take a word or two, that is.)
Great craftsmanship and attention to detail, bud!
OP
Thanks. marty_p, there are some things where I agree about the no-compromises approach, and other times where (I'm happy to admit) I settle for 'good enough.' But thank you.
Today the sitter called in sick, so there was less time to work. My one-year old and I did some scraping on one of the two walls, and then tried a paint over the old stucco.
For reference, here's the old wall with the vines pulled off but none of the scraping done:
I hate to use paint at all on the plaster-like color-through surface on the house, but the vines simply don't clean up any better than you see in this picture. You can also see a square where I tried the new paint (another $40/gallon product
)
Then when the kids went down for their naps, I attacked the whole wall. Now it looks so clean that the window frame and through-the-wall AC unit become real eyesores.
But I'll figure those pieces out down the line. Next up is the neighbor's garage wall, which he's given me permission to paint. His wall is the traditional hard-and-lumpy stucco. So while I was able to use a sharp scraper on mine, I'm going to have to use more serious stuff on his. I got a section cleaned up and tested a little paint, but I'm doubtful that I'm going to get through all of it before I run out of light today.
But I'll keep plugging away.
Today the sitter called in sick, so there was less time to work. My one-year old and I did some scraping on one of the two walls, and then tried a paint over the old stucco.
For reference, here's the old wall with the vines pulled off but none of the scraping done:
I hate to use paint at all on the plaster-like color-through surface on the house, but the vines simply don't clean up any better than you see in this picture. You can also see a square where I tried the new paint (another $40/gallon product
)
Then when the kids went down for their naps, I attacked the whole wall. Now it looks so clean that the window frame and through-the-wall AC unit become real eyesores.
But I'll figure those pieces out down the line. Next up is the neighbor's garage wall, which he's given me permission to paint. His wall is the traditional hard-and-lumpy stucco. So while I was able to use a sharp scraper on mine, I'm going to have to use more serious stuff on his. I got a section cleaned up and tested a little paint, but I'm doubtful that I'm going to get through all of it before I run out of light today.
But I'll keep plugging away.
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Dan in Pasadena
Well-known member
Jack,
I've had a little luck removing the tendrils of Boston ivy on textured stucco using a brass wire brush I got from HF. You've got to have a light touch and it won't get as clean as your sand finish stucco but with fresh paint it will be much improved.
YOUR wall looks great. A little sanding/painting on the window & AC unit ought to improve things. Plus a little artistic license...maybe a potted Ficus tree or something?
Looks great. What color(s) are you thinking for the overhead fabric?
I've had a little luck removing the tendrils of Boston ivy on textured stucco using a brass wire brush I got from HF. You've got to have a light touch and it won't get as clean as your sand finish stucco but with fresh paint it will be much improved.
YOUR wall looks great. A little sanding/painting on the window & AC unit ought to improve things. Plus a little artistic license...maybe a potted Ficus tree or something?
Looks great. What color(s) are you thinking for the overhead fabric?
alpinewhite
Well-known member
Instead of painting stucco, check out a product called Fog Coat. You can read up about it on www.fogcoat.com. I've used it and it's great.
OP
Dan, thanks. A wire brush (brass over steel) is what I ended up using. I got through it today -- and also got it painted. I lucked out, since my wife took the kids down to the swimming pool.
The shade fabric's color is called Sandstone. It's sort of a light beige. I think it will 'warm up' the light underneath it. I have no idea how it's going to look with the wall color. But then, I still don't have much of an idea how any of this is going to look when it's all finished. We'll see.
alpinewhite, I did look into fog coat. But after seeing how it's done, I decided I definitely don't have the skill or the patience (or the Hudson sprayer) for it. I like this paint enough that I might do the back of the house with it as well.
Here's the new wall with the vines gone and the paint applied:
And here's a glimpse around the corner of the office/garage. As you can see, I'm going to have to scrape and re-paint the rest of it. But that will probably come after this deck project is finished.
My shoulders are already sore enough.
The shade fabric's color is called Sandstone. It's sort of a light beige. I think it will 'warm up' the light underneath it. I have no idea how it's going to look with the wall color. But then, I still don't have much of an idea how any of this is going to look when it's all finished. We'll see.
alpinewhite, I did look into fog coat. But after seeing how it's done, I decided I definitely don't have the skill or the patience (or the Hudson sprayer) for it. I like this paint enough that I might do the back of the house with it as well.
Here's the new wall with the vines gone and the paint applied:
And here's a glimpse around the corner of the office/garage. As you can see, I'm going to have to scrape and re-paint the rest of it. But that will probably come after this deck project is finished.
My shoulders are already sore enough.
aggierailroad
Well-known member
Looks great! Sounds like the typical "while I've got it apart I'll just tweak this one thing...."
Pretty soon you'll have fresh paint on everything!
Pretty soon you'll have fresh paint on everything!
Dennis Cavallino
Well-known member
When is your B&B open for reservations?
PAToyota
Well-known member
That's typically how such projects go. Clean up one thing and then you notice the next thing that needs to be cleaned up...
OP
Thank you, guys. If you look carefully at the crowded bench, you'll see a pair of Bilstein shocks. There were two jobs going on simultaneously, new shocks and a pair of springs on the car and also building the deck -- and no break to clean up after either of them.
Today I picked up a fireplace, a vacuum pump (for vacuum-bagging my next wing for the race car) and also put in the order for some deck furniture. Now I've got (actual) work stuff to do. But if I can get through it this afternoon, I should get some time to clean up the garage tomorrow, since the dies I need for bending the steel won't be here until late in the afternoon.
I feel a little like an air traffic controller this week. But it's fun to get some stuff done.
Today I picked up a fireplace, a vacuum pump (for vacuum-bagging my next wing for the race car) and also put in the order for some deck furniture. Now I've got (actual) work stuff to do. But if I can get through it this afternoon, I should get some time to clean up the garage tomorrow, since the dies I need for bending the steel won't be here until late in the afternoon.
I feel a little like an air traffic controller this week. But it's fun to get some stuff done.
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