Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT The 12-Gauge Garage

[kfainf]

Jack,
Truly a great job on your garage. I always enjoy reading your posts and seeing the pictures over and over. You have given us all great ideas and inspiration in your design/layout and builds. Love the Porsche also.

I do have a question regarding painting the HF tool cabinet. Did you spray paint it or roll it?

Thanks for being so generous and sharing so much.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Garage looks great..

BTW - you got picked up as 'My Favourite Garage' on BuildThreads.com - congrats

http://www.build-threads.com/build-threads/my-favourite-garage/

Thanks. I saw that, and sent the url to my wife -- who sent it to my folks. So the third comment on the thread is from my sweet, 80-year-old mother. Don't anybody make fun of her.

Jack,
Truly a great job on your garage. I always enjoy reading your posts and seeing the pictures over and over. You have given us all great ideas and inspiration in your design/layout and builds. Love the Porsche also.

I do have a question regarding painting the HF tool cabinet. Did you spray paint it or roll it?

I spray-painted it in about the laziest way imagineable. I scuffed it really quickly with some 100-grit sandpaper (although the matte finish it comes in is already pretty good to take paint, then wiped it down with acetone to clean it, then hit it with an automotive self-etching primer, then with Rustoleum. I didn't paint the sides or interiors of the drawers, partly because I'm the only one who sees it, partly because I thought tools hitting the sides would scratch up the paint. I did a very quick and dirty masking job with tape -- but if you slide a drawer open, you'll see black overspray on the sides of the drawers.

I'm willing to live with that. It was a quick job -- and it's a garage.

I've been surprised at how well the satin-finish black and gloss red have held up so far. No chips or scratches yet.

 

[little d]

jack, congrats. not that it means anything to anyone else but, to me, what makes your shop so great is its simplicity and functionality.

 

[HIRISC]

Thanks. I saw that, and sent the url to my wife -- who sent it to my folks. So the third comment on the thread is from my sweet, 80-year-old mother. Don't anybody make fun of her.

Wouldn't think of it.. it's great your Mom is posting on the interweb!

 

[little d]

jack, how'd that rack turn out?

 

[Jack Olsen]

The rack for hauling steel on the Jeep?

It turned out great. It stores flat along one of my fence walls, goes together with only eight quick fasteners, and lets my stubby 12' Jeep haul 20+' lengths of steel.

I was working this afternoon on about ten welds on the first project it facilitated -- a frame that will hold shade-fabric up above my patio.

I wouldn't have been able to get consistent curves in those long pieces if I'd had to cut them and re-weld them together.

 

[trickedoutms]

Always enjoyed the use of space and the car as well

 

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks.

The awning/canopy thing is just about finished. Here are some pictures:

Here it is at night, with the little Christmas tree lights providing that 1980's-Italian-restaurant look.

 

[thomask]

Thanks.

The awning/canopy thing is just about finished. Here are some pictures:

Here it is at night, with the little Christmas tree lights providing that 1980's-Italian-restaurant look.

Hey Jack,

What's for dinner? I love pasta.

Your Jeep rack and the roof cover looks great.

BTW Do you live next to a high rise? That cover will give some privacy too.

 

[little d]

that turned out good. awning turned out nice also, love the nite shot.

 

[blue dog]

Is that the veriety building that i see in the back ground of a few of your pics?, If so, you must be near wilshire and fairfax. Just taking a wild guess in the dark.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Yep, that's the Variety building. I'm right off of Miracle Mile, near the Petersen Auto Museum.

Here are three pictures of the completed shade cover. While building it, I kept reassuring my wife that if she didn't like it, it would be no problem to just take it all down. Looking at it from above, it's, uh, well... pretty darn big.

But so far, she likes it.

 

[blue dog]

I know the area well, grew up on the westside.
I'm assuming you can not see the cover from the street. Looks good to me.

 

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks. Yeah, it's not visible from anywhere other than the patio or the roof. And I guess the upper floors of the Variety building.

 

[Call me the Breeze]

Looks good Jack!

 

[gilach]

how come dat porsche don't leak no oil? something wrong there.

 

[billscamaros]

jack ... that awning is awesome!! you're creative enough to think it up, and then talented enough to build it! pretty cool.

 

[pgray]

Well Jack you've done it. Mixing the Garage Jounal and home improvement together. If the missus see's the awning my goose is cooked! She'll be expecting more from me on home improvement. Great job!

 

[Jack Olsen]

how come dat porsche don't leak no oil? something wrong there.

Oh, it leaks a little. But it wipes right off of the ceramic tiles. My next big project is an engine swap for the Porsche. I want to have it done by September.

jack ... that awning is awesome!! you're creative enough to think it up, and then talented enough to build it! pretty cool.

Thanks. I look out the window every day waiting for strong winds or rain. We'll see whether or not I have to re-do it all after that.

Well Jack you've done it. Mixing the Garage Jounal and home improvement together. If the missus see's the awning my goose is cooked! She'll be expecting more from me on home improvement. Great job!

It's funny. I had to talk my wife into letting me do this so that I can get her okay on a much bigger project: a 20x20 deck and steel pergola in the back yard. It'll be adjacent to my garage -- a place where I'll be able to relax -- part of my effort to slowly expand my own territory on the property.

 

[Kenneth3]

Jack,

As much as I hate to admit... I'm a bit of a fanboy of your work.

I've been and looking for the RIGHT color scheme for my garage, even so far as, looking for 1950s and 1960s popular color palettes of those eras. It would be nice to have the big white, red and black super box with the typical garage styling cues (diamond plate, fancy light covers, etc), but that's not really me, or my house. I've been focused on how it compliments the look and 'feel' of my house when the door is up. Similar to getting in a pristine, orginal only to find they converted the entire interior to digital guages and new racing seats... ugh. It just has to fit. Yours fits perfectly to the architecture and is a timeless color mix. Bravo!

Using your 'looks great, works hard' approach, I broke down a little from my automotive palette and fashion colors of those eras searches on Google, and I searched Google at the most basic level; "Garage Color Scheme". I said, "sh*T! I recognize that one!"

I'm pleased to let you know that you have one of the best garages in the country... if not the world.

Congrats!

http://www.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&rlz=1T4GGLL_enUS309US309&biw=1259&bih=571&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=garage+color+scheme&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

Keep up the great work. Your approach is top-notch!

 

[Corsario]

You did a great job there Jack! As I told you before, your work is inspiring!
Keep posting pics of it
Corsario from Argentina

 

[myamoto1]

Hi Jack - I searched through the thread, but didn't find the dimensions on your garage. Looks like it's roughly 20w x 22d?

 

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks for the compliments, guys. It's just a garage, of course. But it's nice to hear that there are other guys out there who see the possibilities of the surburban two-car garage as more than just some parking spaces and storage for a lawnmower.

Myamoto1, I just went out and counted tiles. It's 21' deep (enough to hold a full length of steel from my local yard, with a little bit to spare), and only 19' wide, but with an extra little bit for the alcove where the sink is. I've always thought of it as 20'x22', but it's a little smaller than that.

 

[TONE]

Jack, I got the same problem with measuring. Of course my slight exaggeration helped me in obtaining some dates off the internet.

Got 11 dates out of my wife before my measuring skills where called out. It was to late at that point, I had her.

 

[thencamebronson]

Jack,

Great garage, I've been following the thread for a while. Your resourcefulness is an inspiration. I am also a fan of anyone else who has "long term vehicular relationships" like you with your 911 and Jeep.

Could you please share the significance of the vanity plate on your BMW?

 

[abstamaria]

I'm new to Garage Journal, Jack. I went through the thread quickly and will make time to read it in detail. Great thread, and congratulations on your work. Thank you.

 

[myamoto1]

Jack - thanks for measuring. It gives me hope for my new garage which is 19x19 (usable) with a small bump back, for furnace & HWH. I'm down grading from a 25x25 garage and a 300 sqft shop. Now I just need to get the wife to buy into the vision

 

[fdizzle]

Jack - Awesome garage. Do those Ikea pendant lamps plug into a regular outlet or are they hardwired?

 

[Jack Olsen]

Great garage, I've been following the thread for a while. Your resourcefulness is an inspiration. I am also a fan of anyone else who has "long term vehicular relationships" like you with your 911 and Jeep.

Could you please share the significance of the vanity plate on your BMW?

Thanks. Every single time I sell a car, I regret it. I don't understand the guys who change every year or so.

The license plate is actually gone as of last week. I got it a long time ago for kind of a silly reason -- I discovered my cell phone number spelled out 'COMA BOY' the same day as I was registering my old Jaguar. As the years passed, I got a little tired of the questions (are you an anesthesiologist? was the most common) every time I filled up the tank. On top of that, I couldn't be described as a 'boy' any longer.

I'm down grading from a 25x25 garage and a 300 sqft shop. Now I just need to get the wife to buy into the vision

Just sit her down and have her watch the video in my signature. Halfway through, she'll roll her eyes with boredom and agree to anything you want so long as you click the stop button.

Jack - Awesome garage. Do those Ikea pendant lamps plug into a regular outlet or are they hardwired?

Right now they're plugged into an outlet that's up there -- but eventually I plan on wiring them in.

 

[e-tek]

Jack, I got the same problem with measuring. Of course my slight exaggeration helped me in obtaining some dates off the internet.

Got 11 dates out of my wife before my measuring skills where called out. It was to late at that point, I had her.

Tee Hee!!

 

[loudrango]

great work on the garage.nice ride in there as well.

 

[sonexer]

Jack, I watched your garage slide show for the first time today. GREAT JOB!

 

[Jack Olsen]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate it.

Here's yesterday's garage project. I have some steel lengths that are leftover from other jobs that I haven't had a place to store. So yesterday I noticed I still had the old wrought-iron bookshelf frame from what used to be a used as a work surface/drafting table thing when it was in the garage.

You can see it in the opening of the garage in this old picture.

This wasn't going to be an elegant project at all -- just something to get the steel that was sitting alongside the driveway hidden on the back side of the house.

It also shows my 'use the whole buffalo' approach to the garage. Before I throw something away, I'm going to try to re-purpose it somehow.

First, I flipped the thing upside-down and cut off the face section, curling up the 'arms' I'd created.

Then I duplicated those pieces with what was left of the face. Here it is in the vise.

The center section stands on its own, but I welded a T-shaped foot to the pieces I made out of the face. They would function as the rack pieces I could position out on either side. I used those leftover ends you see on the floor there. They were from the canopy shade cover I made from the patio last month.

Here's my poor man's welding positioner.

And here's the rack in position. It leans back against the house. You can see I also added some little gussets for strength.

 

[Wingnut65]

Looks great and very usefull.

'use the whole buffalo' ! I like that approach. My problem is that my wife thinks I keep too many parts of 'the buffalo' for the 'just in case' need that might come up.

 

[Jack Olsen]

It's true. Sometimes the buffalo carcass sits out in the sun for a very long time.

 

[SharkD]

From another thread:

I would look for a place outside to store the tires/wheels. I only have one spare set, but there wasn't room in my 20x22. I bought a commercial cover that goes over the stack.

Jack, do you have a photo / model name of your tire storage cover?

I've now got three sets (one race, one rain and one practice), so at any one time, I've got to store 8 wheels and it's eating up an awful lot of space (a rack isn't in the budget right now).

Also, before I bought the trailer, I used to drive to the track with 6 tires on the roof, one in the spare well and one where the back seat used to be. You get really funny looks doing 70 on the highway, in a race car, topped by a Thule Safari Rack covered in R-comps.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Jack,
Nice little job. When I saw the first picture I thought you were going to use the squared off bottom portion as a sort of "shelf". Looking at the last photo you could sit it on that curb - which I assume is the garage or house footing(?) - and if you put some heavy screen on it those misc pieces of PVC and stuff could be up off the ground for when it rains yet not collect dirt, bugs, etc. Just an idea. I like this project and will be looking for a way to adapt it to my shack. By the way, the gusset plates with holes adds a nice little touch.

P.S. As a heavy Construction guy I can't help but notice hazards and those up-pointed metal stubs. I'm thinking of your little man: Maybe glue on some cheapo rubber cane tips would protect him from a painful jab or gouge if he ever gets into that area?

 

[Jack Olsen]

Jack, do you have a photo / model name of your tire storage cover?

I've now got three sets (one race, one rain and one practice), so at any one time, I've got to store 8 wheels and it's eating up an awful lot of space (a rack isn't in the budget right now).

Also, before I bought the trailer, I used to drive to the track with 6 tires on the roof, one in the spare well and one where the back seat used to be. You get really funny looks doing 70 on the highway, in a race car, topped by a Thule Safari Rack covered in R-comps.

I've gotten those same funny looks.

The tire cover is a little on the pricey side at $50, in my opinion. But it's nice and thick and it does the job. Here's a link to where I found it.

...the gusset plates with holes adds a nice little touch.

Lighter is faster, right?

P.S. As a heavy Construction guy I can't help but notice hazards and those up-pointed metal stubs. I'm thinking of your little man: Maybe glue on some cheapo rubber cane tips would protect him from a painful jab or gouge if he ever gets into that area?

I agree. It's not a place the kid has access to -- but I plan on getting some half-inch rubber stops and putting them at the ends. Kids have a way of getting to the places you tell them not to go.

 

[Stuart in MN]

I agree. It's not a place the kid has access to -- but I plan on getting some half-inch rubber stops and putting them at the ends. Kids have a way of getting to the places you tell them not to go.

If you're like me, sooner or later you're going to jab yourself in the leg walking by the rack...even some short pieces of rubber gas line forced over the ends of each one would probably do the trick.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Lighter is faster, right?

So is chromed....and I suppose if you could put a little diagonally mounted big "R" graphic on it!