The repurposing thread

[kbs2244]

Killer window blinds.

 

[nonhog]

Ended the suspense of what might be inside. Nothing. Going to scrap now.
Fun with Plasma cutter
I'll repurpose something else.

 

[ADSR]

Saw this satellite dish gazebo and had to take a screenshot.

 

[racingtadpole]

Saw this satellite dish gazebo and had to take a screenshot.

I work with RF, we commonly get requests for the old parabolic dishes for that exact purpose when we pull them down.
I've never built a gazebo or shade from one myself, but I did build a dog kennel out of a couple of 900mm solid parabolics once for someone looking for a kennel with a difference. Looked a bit ski chalet'ish when it was done

 

[larry4406]

Interesting repurpose of the old big ugly satellite dish!

I have two in my yard to get rid of. One is huge, maybe 10-12' in diameter and other is the 6-8' range. They were here when we bought the place.

 

[pepi]

Suppose this will qualifie as being repurposed. Luggage cart weed eater, fast, instant and permanent kill.

Greg

 

[lilredex]

Not a new project, but a very useful one.....my welding table, for smaller items. These are meter boxes from some coin-op washing machines, too good to throw out.

 

[gahrajmahal]

Brent, I appreciate all the little thoughtful details. It is what I like about old houses and industrial spaces. They understood the restful ness of adding a little beauty to the living/work space.

 

[Chukster]

Traffic Signal shop used to be in the same building I was. Nabbed a couple of surplussed buttons, repurposed one for my garage door, and gave one to a friend.

 

[shortykorte]

Traffic Signal shop used to be in the same building I was. Nabbed a couple of surplussed buttons, repurposed one for my garage door, and gave one to a friend.

Now that's cool.


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[RandyRanderson]

I don't have a full size bench grinder yet, but I do have an extra handheld. After rooting around in my junk pile I figured out a temporary solution. Whatever that heavy arm is, came off a Mccormick hay baler. I roughed off most of the rust, primered it, then hit it with some leftover metallic red model paint. A 3" 13mm bolt fit through the eye and snugs up the grinder pretty good. Also, it takes less than a minute to pull the bolt and reattach the plastic handle.

 

[bdk1976]

A question on repurposing. Saw on another site that you can use a Turkey roaster as a hot tank for small parts. Recommendation was simple green so not a volatile solution.

Has anyone tried this? Thinking of buying a used one to try.



Movin/on

I use an old $2 crock pot from a garage sale for this purpose- use simple green (from another garage sale) as the parts cleaner. Works great!

 

[bubinga]

I don't have a full size bench grinder yet, but I do have an extra handheld. After rooting around in my junk pile I figured out a temporary solution. Whatever that heavy arm is, came off a Mccormick hay baler. I roughed off most of the rust, primered it, then hit it with some leftover metallic red model paint. A 3" 13mm bolt fit through the eye and snugs up the grinder pretty good. Also, it takes less than a minute to pull the bolt and reattach the plastic handle.

That's Cool, looks good too.

 

[PelicanPines]

I don't have a full size bench grinder yet, but I do have an extra handheld. After rooting around in my junk pile I figured out a temporary solution. Whatever that heavy arm is, came off a Mccormick hay baler. I roughed off most of the rust, primered it, then hit it with some leftover metallic red model paint. A 3" 13mm bolt fit through the eye and snugs up the grinder pretty good. Also, it takes less than a minute to pull the bolt and reattach the plastic handle.

NICE... seen people do something similar but you did it BETTER!!!

 

[JABgj]

Found a oscilloscope(?) stand/cart at the local surplus shoppe. Replaced the rear casters with some proper wheels and now my MIG box does not sit on the floor any more.

 

[Kentuckian]

Time to bump a few informative threads up to the top so they can keep on growing.

 

[C_F]

A couple years ago I changed the location of the crankcase breather filter on my Yamaha Vmax, and needed to make a bracket to hold it. Plus cover up much of the ugly wiring. The breather is centered between the air filters...

So one day I was eyeing the mirrors on my '76 F250, namely the stainless back side...

That's when I remembered that I had an extra mirror in my junk stash, with broken glass! I took it apart & discovered that the side facing the glass was super shiny & looked new! So I made a cardboard pattern, transferred that to the stainless, cut & bent it, and wah-la...a truck part on my motorcycle!

Blurry (sorry) photo without the flash, to show more bling.

 

[The_Geologist]

Nothing too exciting here, but I use a beatup office chair for a rolling seat in the garage. The arms on the chair broke, but the seat and the casters work fine, so it is easier for me to scoot around when I work on the motorcycles, riding mower, and the like.

View media item 75053

 

[C_F]

Awesome thread.

This stuff is right up my alley.

Here are a few things I've got photos for.

I'm not sure what these were used for but I picked them up for a couple dollars each.



I blasted, primed and painted them.



Then, fitted them with some scrap 2x6 and made a small (tall) and heavy work-space I can hammer on. It sits away from the workbench and I seem to use it a bunch.

Hey, I recognize that stand! (BTW, for anyone wondering, this quote is from clear back on page 5 in this thread)

So recently, Brent decided to sell his stand. I thought it looked super cool & knew exactly what I wanted to use it for. I cleaned it up a bit, gave it some fresh paint on the steel, and it now resides in my living room...as both a conversation piece & a spot to display a cool biker dude that my brother gave me for Christmas a few years ago.
Although I may shorten it a little & make a crankshaft lamp to put on it, at some point.

 

[MarkMog]

Here is a re-purposing before picture.
I picked this up on the weekend because I love the look of it and I can picture it all cleaned up with new paint, chrome and maybe some pin stripes.

But what to re-purpose it as? So far I'm thinking of adding draws and wheels and using is as a cool tool chest, but thought I'd post a pic here and see if anyone has any other ideas?????

Its just a shell, structurally sound and complete but no motor etc and I don't want/need it to be a working fridge..

Gut the insides, put your air compressor in there with some PVC pipe to the outside for circulation, and put your retractable air hose on top of it. It'll quiet the hell out of it, and with fresh paint it will be beautiful.

 

[MarkMog]

Re purposed 4x4's !

.

Seen that many times. I've always wondered how it got tipped up like that? Group of friends? And if it was a bunch of people, nobody spoke up about the danger? Still funny though, and I would bet it is still running. Not sure about the welder, though.

Darwin candidate for sure

 

[shortykorte]

For the frig carcass, the compressor cabinet is a great idea. I have a frig similar and known they don't have much depth. You could cut the back center out just enough to clear tank. Line inside with foam, awesome compressor cabinet.
Another idea is add shelves and use for bulk storage or flammables (paint, oil, chemicals).
If you cut the door face into drawer faces attached to drawers that would be a cool *** tool cabinet.


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[22george]

Whatever you do you want to make sure kids can't get in there. They can't get out and will suffocate. That is why they stopped making them. I haven't seen one in 30 years. I agree it does look cool.

 

[22george]

Whatever you do make sure kids cant get in it. They can't get out and suffocate. That is why they stopped making them. I haven't seen one of those in over 30 years. I agree it does look cool.

 

[351cmach]

Re purposed 4x4's !

If the wood breaking doesn't get him maybe welding the tank will

 

[Provincial]

Hey, he has the rear wheel chocked! Safety First!

 

[bonneyman]

Lots of great and ingenious ideas in this thread, guys!

 

[rick carpenter]

So one day I was eyeing the mirrors on my '76 F250, namely the stainless back side...

What are those style mirrors with the support arm called, or who makes/made them? I want some for my '73 F100. I can find "West Coast Jr" mirrors about anytime I want without the separate support arm.

 

[C_F]

What are those style mirrors with the support arm called, or who makes/made them? I want some for my '73 F100. I can find "West Coast Jr" mirrors about anytime I want without the separate support arm.

I believe they were optional from Ford when ordering the truck new. They have a small Ford logo on the bottom of the stainless back. I assume they were made for Ford by another company, but I'm not sure who that would be.
The round white ones are definitely aftermarket. I removed those shortly after I took that photo, the plastic was getting brittle.

Maybe look on some of the Ford truck forums, somebody might have a pair they would like to part with.

 

[BMW Rider]

I've always known them as "west coast mirrors".

 

[magrahamkp08]

A while ago, a good motorcycling friend of mine gave me some leftover parts from builds he has done over the years. I have always thought that the BMW Speedos with the speedos in the bucket would make the coolest desk lamp. Well this isn't a bmw headlight and speedo, so the BMW purists can rest easy. It is a headlight from a mid-sixties Harley Sprint. It had a great patina when it was given to me. It just needed to be cleaned and clear coated.







This is how the headlight came to my possession. Luckily, the headlight switch was still operable after some cleaning. Really the most difficult part was figuring out how the switch operated and what wires and connections I would need to still use the headlight and power a 120VAC bulb.

The headlight bucket got a wash and light scrubbing with a scotch brite pad. Several coats of clear later and the 50+ year patina really popped. I am really quite pleased . with how it turned out. It sold really quickly to a gentleman in a motorcycle facebook group I am a part of. I will be making more for my etsy shop, so if you are interested head there. Trident Cycles Etsy






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[alwaysFlOoReD]

^^^ nice job.

 

[mv213]

That is so cool! I love stuff like this.

 

[JABgj]

That's pretty cool, speedo and all.

 

[C_F]

Nice work, it looks great!

 

[colt zantop]

Lamp is killer!

 

[bonneyman]

Love the lamp! Well-balanced, looks like it could have been a factory item. Great execution.

 

[magrahamkp08]

Love the lamp! Well-balanced, looks like it could have been a factory item. Great execution.

Thanks. It was fun to actually make happen.


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[Ray-CA]

Saved a basket rack and turned it into something useful.

I had this old basket rack that I kept towels in but then started using Scott Blue Towels. Was going to toss the rack but started looking at it closer. Got a few of the HF bins scattered about just stacked up on benches, counter tops, tool boxes in both garages when I got inspired by some of the bin racks I've seen here.

So, about 30-minutes later and a trip to HF for the dolly, I have this.....

Ray

Brown cabinet has been sold.

 

[ilovevocs]

Turned out nice with minimal effort. Thanks for sharing.