Pete C. wrote:
Buerste wrote:

"Brian Lawson" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 28 Apr 2010 21:52:59 -0400, "Buerste"
wrote:
SNIP


...whatever special tool or part I need at home is at the plant,
and whatever I need at the plant is at home. Yes, I have driven
the 42 mile round trip in the middle of the night to get a bolt,
drill bit, piece of metal, power tool, etc.

Hey Tom,

But have you ever driven home in the middle of the day "to get a
bit"?

Nope! There are a number of Home Depots and tool room supply stores
close to the plant. It's cheaper to just buy new and get it fast.

I think you misunderstood the question...

Around here we call that "afternoon delight" .

--
Snag
"90 FLHTCU "Strider"
'39 WLDD "PopCycle"
BS 132/SENS/DOF

On Apr 28, 10:22*pm, "Martin H. Eastburn"
wrote:
I can make or repair most anything when and where I choose. *I don't have to
wait for a service truck to come and charge 4x what I can charge anyone else.

I have a contract with one insurance company to fix/replace stuff in the house.
A number of times I have used my tools and shown the repair person how to
fix the problem. *I save deductible on next calls when the 'factory' fix
just replaces a module but not the harness.

Martin



steamer wrote:
* *--I could file and polish the dings off of the spoons, forks, etc
that went into the garbage disposer.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I probably couldn’t justify what I’ve spent on tools and workshop
equipment. Most of the benefit that I get from it is non-monetary –
good for my mental health. I like solving problems and get
satisfaction by fixing things with the tools that I have. Maybe it’s
saved me money by keeping me from seeing a shrink.

On Wed, 28 Apr 2010 16:05:13 -0700, the infamous "Stu Fields"
scrawled the following:


"Roger Shoaf" wrote in message
...

"Ignoramus22435" wrote in message
...
Having a home shop means that I can use my $160 polishing setup (3/4HP
Baldor grinder that cost me $100 plus $60 wheel) to spend 20 minutes
of my valuable time to polish a $0.68 "low prices everyday" Walmart
spoon that fell into a disposer.

i

Close. Having the tools at hand to cover up the fact that you trashed
your
wife's spoon is well worth the time you spent.

You have to realize that it is not a $.68 spoon, it is a spoon she likes
the
pattern of and that they don't carry that pattern any more.

It is kind of like wasting money on a humidifier when leaving wet towels
on
the bed would do the same thing.

--
Roger Shoaf

If knowledge is power, and power corrupts, what does this say about the
Congress?


It is obvious that Congress found another way to get the power.

I wanted to say "Um, Stu, pop your head out for a minute and see if
reality matches your current view. If you dont' see a corrupt
CONgress, your head certainly belongs back up your arse." but thought
it might sound a bit harsh.

So, instead, I'll ask "Are you _kidding_, Stu?"

--
Losing faith in humanity, one person at a time.

steamer wrote:

--I could file and polish the dings off of the spoons, forks, etc
that went into the garbage disposer.


It is rather anoying, I have a shop, decent sized lathe and mill and have yet to use them
to fix something at home. Now the machines at work on my time, I've used them often to
help me fix things at home before I had my shop up and running.

I wonder if this is like having spare parts for the machines I'm responsible for at work
so I seldom need to use them?

Wes
--
"Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect
government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home
in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller

"Denis G." writes:

On Apr 28, 10:22Â*pm, "Martin H. Eastburn"
wrote:
I can make or repair most anything when and where I choose. Â*I don't have to
wait for a service truck to come and charge 4x what I can charge anyone else.

I have a contract with one insurance company to fix/replace stuff in the house.
A number of times I have used my tools and shown the repair person how to
fix the problem. Â*I save deductible on next calls when the 'factory' fix
just replaces a module but not the harness.

Martin



steamer wrote:
Â* Â*--I could file and polish the dings off of the spoons, forks, etc
that went into the garbage disposer.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I probably couldnt justify what Ive spent on tools and workshop
equipment. Most of the benefit that I get from it is non-monetary €“
good for my mental health. I like solving problems and get
satisfaction by fixing things with the tools that I have. Maybe its
saved me money by keeping me from seeing a shrink.

There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that I'm thousands of dollars
ahead due to the time I've spent repairing my own vehicles (and buying
the tools to do it); both the cost of repairs, and the result that I've
been able to buy far fewer vehicles over the decades than would now be
necessary.

If I valued my time at anything above $0.00/hr, I expect the result
would be significantly different...
--
As we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should
be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours;
and this we should do freely and generously. (Benjamin Franklin)

"Joe Pfeiffer" wrote in message
...
"Denis G." writes:

On Apr 28, 10:22 pm, "Martin H. Eastburn"
wrote:
I can make or repair most anything when and where I choose. I don't have
to
wait for a service truck to come and charge 4x what I can charge anyone
else.

I have a contract with one insurance company to fix/replace stuff in the
house.
A number of times I have used my tools and shown the repair person how
to
fix the problem. I save deductible on next calls when the 'factory' fix
just replaces a module but not the harness.

Martin



steamer wrote:
--I could file and polish the dings off of the spoons, forks, etc
that went into the garbage disposer.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I probably couldn't justify what I've spent on tools and workshop
equipment. Most of the benefit that I get from it is non-monetary -
good for my mental health. I like solving problems and get
satisfaction by fixing things with the tools that I have. Maybe it's
saved me money by keeping me from seeing a shrink.

There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that I'm thousands of dollars
ahead due to the time I've spent repairing my own vehicles (and buying
the tools to do it); both the cost of repairs, and the result that I've
been able to buy far fewer vehicles over the decades than would now be
necessary.

If I valued my time at anything above $0.00/hr, I expect the result
would be significantly different...

I see that you're a realist. d8-)

--
Ed Huntress

Stu Fields wrote:

"Roger Shoaf" wrote in message
...

"Ignoramus22435" wrote in message
...
Having a home shop means that I can use my $160 polishing setup (3/4HP
Baldor grinder that cost me $100 plus $60 wheel) to spend 20 minutes
of my valuable time to polish a $0.68 "low prices everyday" Walmart
spoon that fell into a disposer.

i

Close. Having the tools at hand to cover up the fact that you trashed
your
wife's spoon is well worth the time you spent.

You have to realize that it is not a $.68 spoon, it is a spoon she likes
the
pattern of and that they don't carry that pattern any more.

It is kind of like wasting money on a humidifier when leaving wet towels
on
the bed would do the same thing.

--
Roger Shoaf

If knowledge is power, and power corrupts, what does this say about the
Congress?

It is obvious that Congress found another way to get the power.

Incorrect.

Congress has the knowledge of how to manipulate the system, this gave
them the corrupting power.

"Pete C." wrote in message
ster.com...

Buerste wrote:

"Brian Lawson" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 28 Apr 2010 21:52:59 -0400, "Buerste"
wrote:
SNIP


...whatever special tool or part I need at home is at the plant, and
whatever I need at the plant is at home. Yes, I have driven the 42
mile
round trip in the middle of the night to get a bolt, drill bit, piece
of
metal, power tool, etc.

Hey Tom,

But have you ever driven home in the middle of the day "to get a bit"?

Nope! There are a number of Home Depots and tool room supply stores
close
to the plant. It's cheaper to just buy new and get it fast.

I think you misunderstood the question...


OUCH! Now I have to sing the song....

"Pete C." wrote in message
ster.com...

I think you misunderstood the question...

Now I have to sing "the song"...

On 2010-04-29, Wes wrote:
steamer wrote:

--I could file and polish the dings off of the spoons, forks, etc
that went into the garbage disposer.


It is rather anoying, I have a shop, decent sized lathe and mill and have yet to use them
to fix something at home. Now the machines at work on my time, I've used them often to
help me fix things at home before I had my shop up and running.

While I wind up making parts for things at home -- including
things which I doubt that I could buy anyway. Especially, things which
I have designed to fill a need, such as the mast for the new weather
station's sensors.

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells. I don't particularly like climbing 24' in the air to reach the
housings -- especially in the kind of weather during which the cells are
likely to fail (cold, perhaps freezing rain, etc). So, I got 20' of
Sched 80 PVC pipe, turned up a knuckle to fit in the bottom and to pivot
on the mount to the wall, and machined a double pulley which straddles
the pipe at 19' off the ground. A rope goes half way around the pipe,
through the pulleys and down to the ground. Another rope is attached at
the same height to the pipe to pull it out from between the pulleys and
control it (with the pair which go through the pulleys) to guide it
around tree limbs on the way down and up. I can use the combination of
ropes to lay the pipe down on an old B&D Workmate while I change the
cells.

Since the rope will degrade while exposed to weather and UV, I
also planned how to replace it without having to climb up to the pulleys
again. Since it goes through two pulleys and around the pipe, I can
(thermally) splice a new rope to the aging rope, use the old rope to
pull the new up through the first pulley, around the pipe, and back down
through the second pulley. Then I simply cut off the old rope, and tie
off the new.

The other rope can be replaced while the pipe is laid down to
change cells.

The pulley sheaves are made from leftover Delrin from the
fabrication of the knuckle. The frame holding the two sheaves is
machined from aluminum bar stock (about 2x3" stock, IIRC). There is also
a Delrin size adaptor to adapt the ID of the 2" Sched 80 PVC to the OD
of the 32mm PVC pipe which was supplied with the station in three pieces
to stick in the ground and hold up with guy ropes. There is no place
which is sufficiently in the clear to use the ground level mounting.
Where it is, it is a couple of feet higher than the top of the roof.

Where could I buy the custom pulley assembly with a rigid
bracket to cradle the PVC pipe? What about the knuckle/pivot for the
bottom of the PVC?

Granted, only the pulley bracket and pins are actually made from
metal (not counting a bunch of factory made 1/4-20 setscrews), but the
knuckle, sheaves, pins and step-down adaptor were made using
metalworking tools (lathe, horizontal milling machine, shaper and drill
press).

This way -- I only needed to climb the extension ladder to the
19' height *once* in nice weather to attach the pulley assembly to the
house just under the eaves. (Of course, other things will have me on
that extension ladder from time to time, but not this. :-)

Also -- other tools, the ultrasonic cleaner (with some xylene)
and the air compressor helped me get the lawnmower running again after
the carb clogged up over the winter.

Strong UV source killed off a fungal infection over the winter.

Mostly, I don't think about the tools -- I just see a problem
and use the tools to fix it. :-)

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

Jim Stewart wrote:
Ted Frater wrote:

Whats the best find for you all in the past year?
Mine was a compete watchmakers lathe .
Best find ever was a steam whistle of an 1890's London to Brighton steam
locomotive. Solid bronze some 4 ft high weight 60 lbs. they thought it
was a staircase baluster in iron.

You've got me beat. Unfortunately, we have a local
individual who pretty much lives at the recycling
center. He must be on disability or something.
He's rarely gone and he's always the first to score
the good stuff.

My two best finds were a working Dynaco Stereo
70 tube amplifier (cleaned up and sold for $300)
and a broke but fixable gas powered pressure washer.

Hi Jim,
Good that you had some interesting finds as well.
More on that loco whistle, it was a cold and wet January day,
A truck had just tipped a pile of iron scrap on the yard concrete floor.
I just stood there with my mind blank and looked at it all.
in amongst the twisted pile of metal was what looked like the end part
of a staircase banister .
I pulled it out and my heart started to beat real hard when i realised
it was a steam whistle in bronze, which at that time i thought was off a
steam yacht. Were near Poole harbour where boats have been built and
scrapped for a hundred yrs.. .
I asked one the young lads how much for the old piece of iron, he said a
couple of pounds , say 5 dollars.
I paid him and put it in the boot of my car quickly, and drove out.
I have a friend in Holland whose into steam, sent him a picture and he
offered me $700.00 for it.
It eventually went to a steam whistle collector who knew exactly what it
was, for quite a lot more. If I had identified it correctly it would
have made much more that that!!!
The other find acouple of yrs later was an old gas powered refrigerator.
the brass plate on the front said By Royal appointment to his majesty
the king.
That had to be George the 6th. So it had to be 1937 to 1952
I struggled to get it onto the roof rack got it home and put some
propane to it. Lit it up and its still working today.
Electrolux have identified it from its serial no as 1939..
They want it for their museum in Sweden.
The other great place is car boot sales.
Latest find is a carpenters roof framing square by Nicholls MFG co
Ottumwa USA about 1905 to 1910. This was missed by a tool collector who
got to the pile of tools 1 min before I did. All from the same period.
Cant win them all.
Its the buzz of finding thats addictive.
Ted.

On 2010-04-30, Ted Frater wrote:
Good that you had some interesting finds as well.
More on that loco whistle, it was a cold and wet January day,
A truck had just tipped a pile of iron scrap on the yard concrete floor.
I just stood there with my mind blank and looked at it all.
in amongst the twisted pile of metal was what looked like the end part
of a staircase banister .
I pulled it out and my heart started to beat real hard when i realised
it was a steam whistle in bronze, which at that time i thought was off a
steam yacht. Were near Poole harbour where boats have been built and
scrapped for a hundred yrs.. .
I asked one the young lads how much for the old piece of iron, he said a
couple of pounds , say 5 dollars.
I paid him and put it in the boot of my car quickly, and drove out.
I have a friend in Holland whose into steam, sent him a picture and he
offered me $700.00 for it.

Awesome!@

I once bought a welder on ebay for $0.99 and sold it three days later
for $150.

One more deal was buying an impact wrench on ebay for $45 and selling
same two weeks later for $1500, also no ebay. It was an Ingersoll
impact wrench with a 1.5" hammer. 100+ lbs weight.

It is fun like a casino, plus it involves playing with fun toys, plus
unlike a casino, there is a mathematical expectation of winning. The
only problem is stuff piling up.

i

Replacing all those hurty-finger globe screws on light fixtures with
knice knurled knob screws.

Keeping a fleet of old cars running, reliable and presentable for two
decades, sending no money to Detroit or Japan while putting 5 kids
thru university. Side benefit: the kids may choose not to do their
own wrenching but they know how to avoid getting hustled by mechanics.

Making those little metric flat-head screws on the front wheels of VW
Rabbits after having to drill them out on Sunday afternoon.

Welding up cantilever shelving supports for the basement that easily
support the far-greater-than-anticipated loads.

Exactly matching color for milady's curtain rods by mixing colors of
Rustoleum and applying with a jamb gun.

Making polished brass clamps to support rods that hang quilts for
display.

Fabricating and welding a metal gate for a job my neighbor had, in
exchange for him re-roofing my yard shed with rubber sheet roofing
that will last far longer than I'll care.

Repair garage door torque shaft with lathe and TIG, saving hundreds of
dollars with less than an hour's work. The repair is invisible and is
still in service a decade later.

Do treadmill repairs on rollers with contained bearings that failed.
New rollers are available but take a week to get. Cut roller in
lathe, knock out bad bearing, replace with new one from local bearing
shop, weld roller back together, turn joint smooth in lathe.

Last time I used my lathe: yesterday. Last time I used my mill: day
before yesterday. I will be doing a little welding tomorrow.

On Thu, 29 Apr 2010 22:22:19 -0500, Ignoramus15135
wrote:

On 2010-04-30, Ted Frater wrote:
Good that you had some interesting finds as well.
More on that loco whistle, it was a cold and wet January day,
A truck had just tipped a pile of iron scrap on the yard concrete floor.
I just stood there with my mind blank and looked at it all.
in amongst the twisted pile of metal was what looked like the end part
of a staircase banister .
I pulled it out and my heart started to beat real hard when i realised
it was a steam whistle in bronze, which at that time i thought was off a
steam yacht. Were near Poole harbour where boats have been built and
scrapped for a hundred yrs.. .
I asked one the young lads how much for the old piece of iron, he said a
couple of pounds , say 5 dollars.
I paid him and put it in the boot of my car quickly, and drove out.
I have a friend in Holland whose into steam, sent him a picture and he
offered me $700.00 for it.

Awesome!@

I once bought a welder on ebay for $0.99 and sold it three days later
for $150.

One more deal was buying an impact wrench on ebay for $45 and selling
same two weeks later for $1500, also no ebay. It was an Ingersoll
impact wrench with a 1.5" hammer. 100+ lbs weight.


My best score, as a percentage of ROI, was a bag of Remco Johnny Reb
cannon balls that I bought for 10 cents at a church tag sale. I
intended to give them as a joke to my neighbor, who was terrorizing
the neighborhood with the black powder cannon he built, but checked
their value first. They sold for over $100 on ebay -- 1000x what I
paid for them.

http://www.hakes.com/item.asp?AuctionItemID=28549

--
Ned Simmons

On 2010-04-30, Ned Simmons wrote:
On Thu, 29 Apr 2010 22:22:19 -0500, Ignoramus15135
wrote:

On 2010-04-30, Ted Frater wrote:
Good that you had some interesting finds as well.
More on that loco whistle, it was a cold and wet January day,
A truck had just tipped a pile of iron scrap on the yard concrete floor.
I just stood there with my mind blank and looked at it all.
in amongst the twisted pile of metal was what looked like the end part
of a staircase banister .
I pulled it out and my heart started to beat real hard when i realised
it was a steam whistle in bronze, which at that time i thought was off a
steam yacht. Were near Poole harbour where boats have been built and
scrapped for a hundred yrs.. .
I asked one the young lads how much for the old piece of iron, he said a
couple of pounds , say 5 dollars.
I paid him and put it in the boot of my car quickly, and drove out.
I have a friend in Holland whose into steam, sent him a picture and he
offered me $700.00 for it.

Awesome!@

I once bought a welder on ebay for $0.99 and sold it three days later
for $150.

One more deal was buying an impact wrench on ebay for $45 and selling
same two weeks later for $1500, also no ebay. It was an Ingersoll
impact wrench with a 1.5" hammer. 100+ lbs weight.


My best score, as a percentage of ROI, was a bag of Remco Johnny Reb
cannon balls that I bought for 10 cents at a church tag sale. I
intended to give them as a joke to my neighbor, who was terrorizing
the neighborhood with the black powder cannon he built, but checked
their value first. They sold for over $100 on ebay -- 1000x what I
paid for them.

http://www.hakes.com/item.asp?AuctionItemID=28549


That's kind of awesome, in a shocking way!

i

Don Foreman wrote:


Last time I used my lathe: yesterday. Last time I used my mill: day
before yesterday. I will be doing a little welding tomorrow.

Only piece of equipment I fired up yesterday was my foundry ...

--
Snag
"90 FLHTCU "Strider"
'39 WLDD "PopCycle"
BS 132/SENS/DOF

On 2010-04-30, Snag wrote:
Don Foreman wrote:


Last time I used my lathe: yesterday. Last time I used my mill: day
before yesterday. I will be doing a little welding tomorrow.

Only piece of equipment I fired up yesterday was my foundry ...


I used my mill, 1.5 HP bench grinder and the welder yesterday. I
welded two 5/16 clevis grab hooks to a steel plate to make a cheap
analog of McMaster item 9168T7. This is good for using one chain and
1) adjust its length and 2) make sure the chain does not slip in the
hook. I felt like welding and did not feel like spending $63 on the
McMaster hook.

However, this really is not a household product.

i

Ignoramus9191 wrote:

On 2010-04-30, Snag wrote:
Don Foreman wrote:


Last time I used my lathe: yesterday. Last time I used my mill: day
before yesterday. I will be doing a little welding tomorrow.

Only piece of equipment I fired up yesterday was my foundry ...


I used my mill, 1.5 HP bench grinder and the welder yesterday. I
welded two 5/16 clevis grab hooks to a steel plate to make a cheap
analog of McMaster item 9168T7. This is good for using one chain and
1) adjust its length and 2) make sure the chain does not slip in the
hook. I felt like welding and did not feel like spending $63 on the
McMaster hook.

However, this really is not a household product.

Sure it's a household product. I for one will not let the definition of
"household" be whittled down to nothing. Lifting and hauling equipment
has been a "household" item since back in the days when the "household"
largely provided for itself.

Don Foreman wrote:
....
Exactly matching color for milady's curtain rods by mixing colors of
Rustoleum and applying with a jamb gun.
....

Oh - that's hard! I've tried a couple of times with discouraging
results. Good on you.

Bob

On Apr 30, 12:20*am, Don Foreman
wrote:
Replacing all those hurty-finger globe screws on light fixtures with
knice knurled knob screws.

Keeping a fleet of old cars running, reliable and presentable for two
decades, *sending no money to Detroit or Japan while putting 5 kids
thru university. Side benefit: *the kids may choose not to do their
own wrenching but they know how to avoid getting hustled by mechanics.

Making those little metric flat-head screws on the front wheels of VW
Rabbits after having to drill them out on Sunday afternoon.

Welding up cantilever shelving supports for the basement that easily
support the far-greater-than-anticipated loads.

Exactly matching color for milady's curtain rods by mixing colors of
Rustoleum and applying with a jamb gun. *

Making polished brass clamps to support rods that hang quilts for
display. *

Fabricating and welding a metal gate for a job my neighbor had, in
exchange for him re-roofing my yard shed with rubber sheet roofing
that will last far longer than I'll care.

Repair garage door torque shaft with lathe and TIG, saving hundreds of
dollars with less than an hour's work. The repair is invisible and is
still in service a decade later.

Do treadmill repairs on rollers with contained bearings that failed.
New rollers are available but take a week to get. *Cut roller in
lathe, knock out bad bearing, replace with new one from local bearing
shop, weld roller back together, turn joint smooth in lathe.

Last time I used my lathe: *yesterday. *Last time I used my mill: day
before yesterday. *I will be doing a little welding tomorrow. *

I got my Ellie Badge and haven't even done half those things!

On 2010-04-30, Pete C. wrote:

Ignoramus9191 wrote:

On 2010-04-30, Snag wrote:
Don Foreman wrote:


Last time I used my lathe: yesterday. Last time I used my mill: day
before yesterday. I will be doing a little welding tomorrow.

Only piece of equipment I fired up yesterday was my foundry ...


I used my mill, 1.5 HP bench grinder and the welder yesterday. I
welded two 5/16 clevis grab hooks to a steel plate to make a cheap
analog of McMaster item 9168T7. This is good for using one chain and
1) adjust its length and 2) make sure the chain does not slip in the
hook. I felt like welding and did not feel like spending $63 on the
McMaster hook.

However, this really is not a household product.

Sure it's a household product. I for one will not let the definition of
"household" be whittled down to nothing. Lifting and hauling equipment
has been a "household" item since back in the days when the "household"
largely provided for itself.

Well, in my case, it is strictly for eBaying purposes.

i

"DoN. Nichols" wrote in message
...

While I wind up making parts for things at home -- including
things which I doubt that I could buy anyway. Especially, things which
I have designed to fill a need, such as the mast for the new weather
station's sensors.

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells. I don't particularly like climbing 24' in the air to reach the
housings -- especially in the kind of weather during which the cells are
likely to fail (cold, perhaps freezing rain, etc).

DoN,

Why not run a cable from the sensor down to a more convenient height and
forgo all of the business with the pulleys, rope and poles you describe?

--

Roger Shoaf

About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then
they come up with this striped stuff.

"Ted Frater" wrote in message
...

The other find acouple of yrs later was an old gas powered refrigerator.
the brass plate on the front said By Royal appointment to his majesty
the king.
That had to be George the 6th. So it had to be 1937 to 1952
I struggled to get it onto the roof rack got it home and put some
propane to it. Lit it up and its still working today.
Electrolux have identified it from its serial no as 1939..
They want it for their museum in Sweden.


Could this also have been the Swedish King?

Having a home shop means there is always another tool to buy.

Dan

"Roger Shoaf" wrote in message
...

"DoN. Nichols" wrote in message
...

While I wind up making parts for things at home -- including
things which I doubt that I could buy anyway. Especially, things which
I have designed to fill a need, such as the mast for the new weather
station's sensors.

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells. I don't particularly like climbing 24' in the air to reach the
housings -- especially in the kind of weather during which the cells are
likely to fail (cold, perhaps freezing rain, etc).

DoN,

Why not run a cable from the sensor down to a more convenient height and
forgo all of the business with the pulleys, rope and poles you describe?

--

Roger Shoaf

You don't suppose there's an off chance that just maybe, possibly, he might
be worried about lightning? ;~)
Art

On 2010-04-30, Roger Shoaf wrote:

"DoN. Nichols" wrote in message
...

While I wind up making parts for things at home -- including
things which I doubt that I could buy anyway. Especially, things which
I have designed to fill a need, such as the mast for the new weather
station's sensors.

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells. I don't particularly like climbing 24' in the air to reach the
housings -- especially in the kind of weather during which the cells are
likely to fail (cold, perhaps freezing rain, etc).

DoN,

Why not run a cable from the sensor down to a more convenient height and
forgo all of the business with the pulleys, rope and poles you describe?

Because my first weather station *was* wired, and I ran a length
of 8 ga solid copper wire down to a good ground rod. But even so, a
nearby lighting strike zapped the serial interface in the display *and*
in the token Windows PC. One of the serious advantages that I saw for
this setup was that there were *no* wires coming from the high sensors
into the house, so no need for grounding. Instead, I made the mast of
as insulating a material as I could.

I still have that first station, still with the zapped serial
interface, though I've been through quite a few motherboards and
computers since then. The makers refused to sell me a replacement
serial interface (a separate module) unless I would call them during
work hours, and go through a series of diagnostics with them.

Since The weather station was at home, and I was not allowed to
make private long distance calls from work -- even to 1-800 numbers, and
their work hours were similar to mine, I never got the replacement. End
of dealing with that company.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

Roger Shoaf wrote:
"Ted Frater" wrote in message
...

The other find acouple of yrs later was an old gas powered refrigerator.
the brass plate on the front said By Royal appointment to his majesty
the king.
That had to be George the 6th. So it had to be 1937 to 1952
I struggled to get it onto the roof rack got it home and put some
propane to it. Lit it up and its still working today.
Electrolux have identified it from its serial no as 1939..
They want it for their museum in Sweden.


Could this also have been the Swedish King?


Its a possibility, but unlikely.
The fridgewas made in Luton Bedfordshire UK, not in sweden.
Ive taken a look at the royal crest? thats between the words appointment
and to, its very small and could be a lion on the left and a un icorn
on the right with the royal flag in between.

Hope this helps
Ted.

"DoN. Nichols" wrote:

It is rather anoying, I have a shop, decent sized lathe and mill and have yet to use them
to fix something at home. Now the machines at work on my time, I've used them often to
help me fix things at home before I had my shop up and running.

While I wind up making parts for things at home -- including
things which I doubt that I could buy anyway. Especially, things which
I have designed to fill a need, such as the mast for the new weather
station's sensors.

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells. I don't particularly like climbing 24' in the air to reach the
housings -- especially in the kind of weather during which the cells are
likely to fail (cold, perhaps freezing rain, etc). So, I got 20' of
Sched 80 PVC pipe, turned up a knuckle to fit in the bottom and to pivot
on the mount to the wall, and machined a double pulley which straddles
the pipe at 19' off the ground. A rope goes half way around the pipe,
through the pulleys and down to the ground. Another rope is attached at
the same height to the pipe to pull it out from between the pulleys and
control it (with the pair which go through the pulleys) to guide it
around tree limbs on the way down and up. I can use the combination of
ropes to lay the pipe down on an old B&D Workmate while I change the
cells.

I'm running a LaCrosse solar powered wireless set up. Seems to avoid lighting issues just
fine. Buddy gave it to me when he installed a wired system. He is into instantanous wind
speed, something mine won't report since it samples every 10 minutes or so depending on
how I have it set.

Wes

On 2010-05-02, Wes wrote:
"DoN. Nichols" wrote:

[ ... ]

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells.

[ ... ]

I'm running a LaCrosse solar powered wireless set up. Seems to avoid lighting issues just
fine. Buddy gave it to me when he installed a wired system. He is into instantanous wind
speed, something mine won't report since it samples every 10 minutes or so depending on
how I have it set.

This one is Oregon Scientific, and while it has a solar panel, it
is not designed to float charge rechargeables -- it only runs the sensors
during daylight, so the batteries are drained during the night, and when
it is quite dark during thunderstorms. It also reports only every so
often, but it reports both the average wind speed and the peak gust
speed during that interval.

The DavisI one which preceded it (the one damaged by lightning)
reports sort of instantaneous wind speed -- that it it updates about
every second or so, once it counts enough pulses from the anemometer.
:-)

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

On 2 May 2010 05:46:05 GMT, the infamous "DoN. Nichols"
scrawled the following:

On 2010-05-02, Wes wrote:
"DoN. Nichols" wrote:

[ ... ]

The sensors are battery powered, so I could use an insulating
support mast and not have to worry about lighting damage, but because of
the batteries, I will need access to them from time to time to change
cells.

[ ... ]

I'm running a LaCrosse solar powered wireless set up. Seems to avoid lighting issues just
fine. Buddy gave it to me when he installed a wired system. He is into instantanous wind
speed, something mine won't report since it samples every 10 minutes or so depending on
how I have it set.

This one is Oregon Scientific, and while it has a solar panel, it
is not designed to float charge rechargeables -- it only runs the sensors
during daylight, so the batteries are drained during the night, and when
it is quite dark during thunderstorms. It also reports only every so
often, but it reports both the average wind speed and the peak gust
speed during that interval.

The DavisI one which preceded it (the one damaged by lightning)
reports sort of instantaneous wind speed -- that it it updates about
every second or so, once it counts enough pulses from the anemometer.
:-)

My $289 ($599 retail) Oregon Scientific weather station died after
about 4 years. I saw an Accu-rite replacement system for $40 at Fred
Meyer and got it. The only things missing were wind direction and rain
gauge. Since I don't much care about either, I went for deal. The OS
was a wired system, this model 634 is wireless. Wind updates are
spaced at 18 seconds.

I'm entirely happy with the replacement, especially at that price.
They retail at $80. Commoditization at its finest.

--
Courage is the power to let go of the familiar.
-- Raymond Lindquist

--Needed a shaft coupler; couldn't find the one I needed so I made
one. Made two, actually, heh.

--
"Steamboat Ed" Haas : Come see my stuff
Hacking the Trailing Edge! : at Maker Faire!!
www.nmpproducts.com
---Decks a-wash in a sea of words---

Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!


--Winston

Winston wrote:

Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!


They have medicine for that, you know. ;-)



--
Anyone wanting to run for any political office in the US should have to
have a DD214, and a honorable discharge.

On May 2, 2:28*pm, Winston wrote:
Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. *There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. *Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!

--Winston

I'd be happy if I got it for half price with that hopelessly
unrepairable defect.

jsw

Jim Wilkins wrote:
On May 2, 2:28 pm, Winston wrote:
... wheeled plastic
trash can ... one of the wheels fell off! ...

I'd be happy if I got it for half price with that hopelessly
unrepairable defect.

Yes! Always ask for a discount on "broken" stuff. That trash can was
pretty much unsellable except to someone like you (i.e., the very rare
consumer). I've gotten great discounts on stuff with defects that
didn't matter to me. Even at HD.

Bob

On Sun, 2 May 2010 21:54:27 -0700, "Steve B"
wrote:


"Winston" wrote in message
...
Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!


--Winston

I have fixed more than one $1 garden cart, two wheel dolly, or wheeled
device for pennies in the shop. Some were actually a few bucks, but there
was always a profit at the next yard sale.

Steve

Like the Lumina APV driver's door exterior handle, a "bell crank" is
mounted to a pot metal post by peening over the end of a 5mm pivot on
top of the post, when the pivot snaps off, the handle just flops
around. Having a broken wrist at the time, and having replaced both
exterior handles previously (when the low strength casting bent out of
shape) at $27.00 each, I visited the nearest Chevy parts counter. When
he rang it up at $69.++, I told the clerk to put it back on the shelf
and I would repair the broken one. He looked at me as if I had four
ears but sarcastically wished me luck. Back home I drilled and tapped
the post and reassembled the mechanism with a 5M cap screw + lock
tight. No more problems until the vehicle was written off 7 years
latter.
Gerry :-)}
London, Canada

"Winston" wrote in message
...
Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!


--Winston

I have fixed more than one $1 garden cart, two wheel dolly, or wheeled
device for pennies in the shop. Some were actually a few bucks, but there
was always a profit at the next yard sale.

Steve

On 5/2/2010 2:50 PM, Jim Wilkins wrote:
On May 2, 2:28 pm, wrote:
Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!

--Winston

I'd be happy if I got it for half price with that hopelessly
unrepairable defect.

You are right, of course. I *should* have asked for a
discount. I was in a good mood though and the thought
just didn't occur at the time.

--Winston

On 5/2/2010 6:21 PM, Bob Engelhardt wrote:
Jim Wilkins wrote:
On May 2, 2:28 pm, Winston wrote:
... wheeled plastic
trash can ... one of the wheels fell off! ...

I'd be happy if I got it for half price with that hopelessly
unrepairable defect.

Yes! Always ask for a discount on "broken" stuff. That trash can was
pretty much unsellable except to someone like you (i.e., the very rare
consumer). I've gotten great discounts on stuff with defects that didn't
matter to me. Even at HD.

You are right Bob. Should've. Didn't.

Over on the 'wreck', I mentioned the Bonanza available at some HD's
in the scrap pile. They'll sell you the scrap bits from the sheet
saw for almost No Money.
I recently got a couple 8' pieces of laminated chipboard for $1.00 each.

Another 'wreck' participant mentioned that he normally picks up scraps
from his HD that are worth a lot of smackers for next to nothing.

Not all HD's participate and some prohibit scrap sales.

Be sure a clerk spray paints them before you check out.

--Winston

On 5/2/2010 9:54 PM, Steve B wrote:
wrote in message
...
Was at the hardware store looking for a wheeled plastic
trash can for yard cleanup. There was only one that
matched my size requirement. Pulled it off the shelf
and one of the wheels fell off!

The end of the axle was dinged and apparently
would not allow the 'top hat' nut to stay fixed.
Figured I could fix it, so I bought it.

Drilled and tapped the end of the axle for 1/4-20 and
parted off a piece of tubing to make a spacer. Wheel
back on with a machine screw, washer and spacer.

It works a treat and I am *much* happier than I have
a right to be!


--Winston

I have fixed more than one $1 garden cart, two wheel dolly, or wheeled
device for pennies in the shop. Some were actually a few bucks, but there
was always a profit at the next yard sale.

Yup. I don't know about others but I experience a disproportionate
'warm and fuzzy' feeling when I repair something like that.
It's the same deal in fixing flat tires or the odd garage door
opener for neighbors.

If I could find a way to bottle that feeling, I would be
very wealthy indeed.

--Winston