Retirement Projects
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Last year I dragged out all of my insulation from my crawl space, I thought pipes were leaking there was so much water down there. It was all water from humidity. There is debate about crawl space encapsulation and termites, but I refused to replace that insulation and let humid air flow into my crawl space and have to drag the insulation out a second time. I got a dehumidifier and would rather create a more hostile environment for termites than to listen to debates about termites, encapulation and crawl spaces. I am happy that I didn't get bitten by any black widows while removing that insulation, I killed quite a few of them3
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When my parents moved from an oil furnace to an electric heat pump, their basement got quite humid as well. I found it odd because I've always heard that electric heat was drier than fuelled heat. Anyway, dehumidifier was the solution.Last year I dragged out all of my insulation from my crawl space, I thought pipes were leaking there was so much water down there. It was all water from humidity. There is debate about crawl space encapsulation and termites, but I refused to replace that insulation and let humid air flow into my crawl space and have to drag the insulation out a second time. I got a dehumidifier and would rather create a more hostile environment for termites than to listen to debates about termites, encapulation and crawl spaces. I am happy that I didn't get bitten by any black widows while removing that insulation, I killed quite a few of them1 -
The Encapulation seals off the crawl space, so humidity has to come through the floors. If humidity can flow beneath your house, I don't think the type of heat matters. It's going to get humid down there.1
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Unexpected purchase. Been keeping an eye on Craig's List for anvils and saw one less than 5 miles away. It is damaged, missing a section of hard plate on the working face but it is a good name anvil. 125# Hay Budden made sometime in the late 1800s or early 1900s. Was kinda hoping seller would reject my offer as it was $105 less than his asking price. Nope. Its mine now.
Now I gotta get my brake rotor blacksmith's forge up and running (still need time during working hours to hit iron yards.. and don't see it coming anytime soon).4 -
Wow! What a great surprise to get one so close to your place!!1
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Another project from Buhka's Workshop. A book display rack for my favourite school teacher's primary classroom.
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d_thomas02 wrote: »Unexpected purchase. Been keeping an eye on Craig's List for anvils and saw one less than 5 miles away. It is damaged, missing a section of hard plate on the working face but it is a good name anvil. 125# Hay Budden made sometime in the late 1800s or early 1900s. Was kinda hoping seller would reject my offer as it was $105 less than his asking price. Nope. Its mine now.
Now I gotta get my brake rotor blacksmith's forge up and running (still need time during working hours to hit iron yards.. and don't see it coming anytime soon).
I looked up Hay Budden on Youtube to figure out what you have.
Looks like you have some metal work in your future. So cool to have this piece.
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Another unexpected purchase. This one is a blacksmith's post vise. Here's a generic pic. Not mine but gives you an idea of what a post vise looks like.
This was on Craig's List again. Guy lives out near my wife's family, roughly 20 miles from my place. Turns out this guy played Little League with my wife's dad back in the day. Both are in their 80s now.
Vise needs a little TLC. Main issue will be reshaping the jaw spring. Vise is about 150 years old and was this guy's great great granddaddy's who had a shop in Sibley, MO at the start of the Santa Fe trail.3 -
Very neat!
A while back, I found a blacksmith's post drill being discarded. I didn't need it but the thought of a lovely old piece of kit ended up in the landfill bothered me so I rescued it and then donated it to an agricultural museum where it's now part of a blacksmith's shop display...4 -
Made a little progress setting up my smithy. Mostly buying parts online to help with construction.
Pulled the trigger on a torch circle cutting jig. (This will make cutting round flanges easy.)
Also spent some time cleaning my 'new' post vise.
Behind the vise on the ground to the right you'll note a tractor front wheel weight. Bought that 20 yrs ago for my '56 WD-45 but the guy only had one. I never found a mate so this 200 lb wheel weight will become the base of my vise stand.
Also been looking for a service cart to mount my brake rotor forge in without much luck. This morning had an epiphany... an old gas grill! Prefect, and includes a matching hood! Craig's List has loads for under $50.4 -
Found an old Brinkmann four burner gas grill for $10. Kinda rickety but it is a starting point.
Had a false start making casting sand (also called greensand) using cheap kitty litter. It never hydrated as it should even after soaking for two weeks. So started over with the slightly more expensive clumping kitty litter we currently use. Hydrated perfectly.
Eight cups of the new litter mixed with 15 cups of water. Hit with a drill style paint mixer until it reached the consistency of warm cake frosting. Mixed about two cups of that with about two pounds of fine masonry sand using same drill paint mixer. Repeat. Had enough clay to mix with a 5 gal bucket of sand. A bit too wet to cast with but time will fix that.
Now I need to make a couple of wood casting flasks. I'll be recycling pine boards broken during martial arts testing.
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Such a neat project! Thanks for continued updates!!1
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Well, so much for being a gentleman of leisure. I've returned to the workforce. It started as a day helping with the electrical portion of an industrial job, then being asked to be lead hand on a couple upcoming industrial projects, a few weeks duration. Then, the guy who had contracted me decided to leave the company for a teaching position, and now I'm the Operations Manager for Nova Millwrights Contracting. www.novamc.ca It will be two or three days a week in periods of normal demand, more when bidding on big jobs or lots of work on. We provide skilled tradesmen to light industries in the province, a work force of around 35 people, many of whom I've worked with when I was with Michelin Tires.
Looking forward to being back in the game with still having lots of free time.6 -
You are all making such great stuff in your retirement. You could probably sell a lot of this stuff for good money. But then, it might seem like a job and that would ruin it all.5
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Nothing much happening on the hobby projects these last two weeks. Working 6 days a week, 10 hours a day (yes, I am retired) doesn't leave much time for fun. One more week of pushing hard and then things should slow down, particularly after the time change on 11/5.
"Two weeks, tops."2 -
You retired guys tire me out! lol4
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »I am in awe of each of you who do things beautifully in retirement. I have skills, but they are not useful or transferrable outside the semiconductor design industry.
I plan to die on the job. In this industry, there is no forced retirement age. There are a lot of people who die on the job, too.
I heard that the lead layout guy for the Pentium chip collapsed and died in the midst of tape out.
I have a new plan. Actually, a new plan was given me last week in the form of a 2-week notice of contract non-renewal.
I will make my living by trading stock option calendar spreads in my IRA, and withdraw proceeds each week. I'll have one day per week of work, but it's closer to half a day, and all the rest of the time free to engage in actually living. I'm not sure I know how to do that. I've only ever been really good at working.
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JeromeBarry1 wrote: »JeromeBarry1 wrote: »I am in awe of each of you who do things beautifully in retirement. I have skills, but they are not useful or transferrable outside the semiconductor design industry.
I plan to die on the job. In this industry, there is no forced retirement age. There are a lot of people who die on the job, too.
I heard that the lead layout guy for the Pentium chip collapsed and died in the midst of tape out.
I have a new plan. Actually, a new plan was given me last week in the form of a 2-week notice of contract non-renewal.
I will make my living by trading stock option calendar spreads in my IRA, and withdraw proceeds each week. I'll have one day per week of work, but it's closer to half a day, and all the rest of the time free to engage in actually living. I'm not sure I know how to do that. I've only ever been really good at working.
Prediction: You're going to love it!
And I hope you do.
Obligatory on-topic: Below is my most recent project. It's very small, and not very well done, but I'm unnaturally and disproportionately pleased with myself because 1) I learned how from a book; (2) anything like this involving saws and measuring and stuff invariably takes me an absurdly long time and includes many errors; and (3) I've been procrastinating it for a very long time, often stepping out of my garage into a mud puddle meantime. It will serve, I think.
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