Projecting, tinkering, fiddle-farting around: whatcha building? (2 Viewers)

[Hack]

Finally got the wife's closet project finished:

ClosetMaid shelving 'system' The one is mounted on a slide so it can be moved out of the way:

The rear area of the closet, is where the stairwell comes up from the main floor, it was a tricky project to cover up, as it was only drywall and some cheapo 3/4" partical board orginally:

I built it all up with 3/4" plywood (maple veneer), and several re-enforcements. It's rock solid, and will handle a lot of weight if necessary.

Now back to my projects....

 

[Land Shark]

Awesome use of slides. Love it!

 

[Hack]

More drill press mods.

After wrapping up the wife's closet project, I got back to the drill press mods. Added a large wheel to replace the original crank for raising/lowering the table:

Got that off eBay (direct from China...), and I'm somewhat impressed with the overall quality. The center hole was not finished machined, which worked out, as I needed to fit it to the extended rod. The hole for the handle was finished drilled/tapped (10mm), and I could use the original Harbor Freight crank handle:

Let me say, that the wheel is the way to go. It makes raising the table (especially the large/heavy one) so much easier.

Then I moved on to the dust collection:

This is 4" PVC, reduced to 3" PVC, reduced to 2" PVC. The actually hose is a Dust Right (Rockler house brand), but I can also use a standard 2 1/2" shop vac hose/ends if I want to. I adapted the 2 1//2" hose to the 2" PVC by using a heat gun on the PVC. Got it nice and pliable, shoved the 2 1/2" hose fitting into it, and Bob's your uncle (as the Brits say).

My intention is to extend the existing dust collection system over to where the drill press is located, but that's going to take a bit of work running the 4" PVC from one wall to the opposite wall. In the interim, I will be using my small 1hp HF blower to help move the dust over to the main systems line. My thought is that the smaller blower will act like a lift pump to move dust into the main system. Ya know, it's only temporary, unless it works.

 

[Hack]

Awesome use of slides. Love it!

Thanks! It worked out well, considering that I was venturing into unknown territory. The slide is a beast. It's rated for 500 pounds, and has a slide lock to prevent unwanted in/out movement. They would be great for inside a truck bed, etc. I had to purchase a pair, so I've got one bastard slide waiting for a project to use it on.

I did Hack Fab up a lower 'slide' for it, rather than use the second slide. This was more to keep the unit vertical, than anything else (the slide has a bit of 'bearing slop', which is expected.) I used a series of recessed conveyor ball bearings:

Turned out good, again venturing into uncharted territory for me.

 

[Land Shark]

Thanks! It worked out well, considering that I was venturing into unknown territory. The slide is a beast. It's rated for 500 pounds, and has a slide lock to prevent unwanted in/out movement. They would be great for inside a truck bed, etc. I had to purchase a pair, so I've got one bastard slide waiting for a project to use it on.

I did Hack Fab up a lower 'slide' for it, rather than use the second slide. This was more to keep the unit vertical, than anything else (the slide has a bit of 'bearing slop', which is expected.) I used a series of recessed conveyor ball bearings:

View attachment 3262560

Turned out good, again venturing into uncharted territory for me.

How is it attached to the wood with the ball bearings?

 

[Hack]

How is it attached to the wood with the ball bearings?

I used a Forstner bit to drill a recess for the ball bearings. Actually, I needed to drill two different diameter recesses: One for the large outer flange, and one for the bottom where the bearing is incased. The ball bearings are incased in a steel shell with a couple of holes pre-drilled in the outer perimeter flange for mounting. I used some #8 (IIRC) screws to mount them into the plywood. Getting the recesses to the correct depth was critical to making the whole shelf vertical/plumb. Took a lot of trial error on test pieces before doing the final board. The plywood is mounted to the drywall with #12 screws. Two are in studs, one is into a heavy-duty drywall anchor. It (similar with the slide) isn't coming off that wall without a lot of effort...

 

[firestopper]

Built a shelf using remnants dedicated for charging batteries. I wanted to make it easier not to leave anything unattended. Don’t trust any manufacturers claims about the safety of leaving batteries on charge indefinitely. Things can malfunction regardless of quality. I’ve seen first hand damage and life changing effects a house fire can have from something so easily prevented.

The frame is 1/8”x2”x 2” with a 14ga. Sheet of perforated.

Four wood screws secure the shelf next to the man door for a last glance prior to shutting down for the day.

Loaded with M18,M12,and Ridgid batteries.

The 2” angle flange allows for the use of tool clips for storing the commonly used tools.

Just a fire safety reminder not to leave your batteries charging unattended.
Be safe…

 

[The Jade Bean]

Built a shelf using remnants dedicated for charging batteries. I wanted to make it easier not to leave anything unattended. Don’t trust any manufacturers claims about the safety of leaving batteries on charge indefinitely. Things can malfunction regardless of quality. I’ve seen first hand damage and life changing effects a house fire can have from something so easily prevented.

The frame is 1/8”x2”x 2” with a 14ga. Sheet of perforated.
View attachment 3262817
Four wood screws secure the shelf next to the man door for a last glance prior to shutting down for the day.
View attachment 3262816

View attachment 3262815
Loaded with M18,M12,and Ridgid batteries.
View attachment 3262818
The 2” angle flange allows for the use of tool clips for storing the commonly used tools.
View attachment 3262819
Just a fire safety reminder not to leave your batteries charging unattended.
Be safe…

Nicely done.

 

[PAToyota]

Prepping for dual batteries

That's kind of funny you're using cardboard boxes for batteries. We do the same...

A few years ago, we were mocking things up and "the kid" at the shop ended up drilling into the brand new battery. So now we have a cardboard box the same size for mock up...



Reason for mocking things up in the first place was that a different "kid" at the shop welded the battery tray in such that you couldn't get the battery in or out of it without taking the body off.

 

[65swb45]

That's kind of funny you're using cardboard boxes for batteries. We do the same...

A few years ago, we were mocking things up and "the kid" at the shop ended up drilling into the brand new battery. So now we have a cardboard box the same size for mock up...

Reminds me…

About 30 years ago I managed to acquire an NOS H41 transmission with a 10 spline output shaft. Being the ‘modern’ H41, as opposed to the version available in the’60s, it was a pretty rare bird.
The guy I sold it to drilled a hole through the top of the trans while he was locating the shifter hole.

 

[DRANGED]

Got my dad's old truck and going to make it the bike shuttle and kid's eventual HS rig (despite his grumbling )

BUUT, low-slung 2WD and modern mt bikes make for bad geometry..
So I pulled the old rack out of the back yard to start thinking through options....

but the tailgate doesn't shut

Reconfigure and cut off part and we're getting somewhere....

This set-up was okay

but needed refining.


So today, we added some anchors to the front of the bed for tie-downs, U-bolted it in, and added a leg (conduit and unistrut FTW) on the back for trays for the back tires, access to some trailheads is a little bumpy

 

[Land Shark]

That's kind of funny you're using cardboard boxes for batteries. We do the same...

A few years ago, we were mocking things up and "the kid" at the shop ended up drilling into the brand new battery. So now we have a cardboard box the same size for mock up...



Reason for mocking things up in the first place was that a different "kid" at the shop welded the battery tray in such that you couldn't get the battery in or out of it without taking the body off.

Definitely find that by laying it all out and building on bench first I eliminate a bunch of rework and work out issues first there. What is not shown yet is the winch, fuse boxes, extra “ always on” outlets, two way commas, etc.

 

[Land Shark]

Got my dad's old truck and going to make it the bike shuttle and kid's eventual HS rig (despite his grumbling )

BUUT, low-slung 2WD and modern mt bikes make for bad geometry..
So I pulled the old rack out of the back yard to start thinking through options....

but the tailgate doesn't shut

Reconfigure and cut off part and we're getting somewhere....

This set-up was okay

but needed refining.


So today, we added some anchors to the front of the bed for tie-downs, U-bolted it in, and added a leg (conduit and unistrut FTW) on the back for trays for the back tires, access to some trailheads is a little bumpy

Love the great project

 

[Hack]

Got my dad's old truck and going to make it the bike shuttle and kid's eventual HS rig (despite his grumbling )

Dang, I'd have done dishes for a year to have a sweet looking truck like that given to me for High School. If he doesn't want it, I'll take it!

 

[Hack]

Yeah, I have a problem...
Left SE Michigan at 11:00 AM
Drove 3.5 hours
Had a catastrophic left front tire blowout on US2 west of Sandusky, OH
Waited an hour for AAA to show up
Saw some really interesting (and sketchy) areas of Cleveland, OH
Made it to Cleveland Heights, OH
Had to re-negotiate price (some undisclosed issues)
Battled the rush hour traffic out of Cleveland to find a Discount Tire that was still open
Ended up buying four new tires (Michelin Defender LTX M/S - $1180)
Made it home at 10:00 PM

Seller had this listed for $150. I ended up paying $130 for it, which was still a bit too much. But it's the 7 drawer + bay lower that I've been looking for. It has a 02/74 date of mfg, and is a bit rough around the edges. But it's got 'good bones'. No major dents, only minor dings around some of the drawers, and the bay door. One of the caster wheels is bad, as all the ball bearings have went MIA. Which isn't unusual. Happens when these cases (usually overloaded) are rolled around over cracks/bumps/curbs/etc. with reckless abandon. You don't buy (or shouldn't buy) any tool box, with casters/wheels that are basically only meant to support the box. Maybe move it a couple feet every now and then, not drag it fully loaded the length of the building (with a bad or no floor) several times a day.

The big issue: It is missing all the outer slide spring clips. Which prevent the drawers from being pulled out of the box. Not having them, makes the box unusable, and basically scrap metal. Those clips are available, cheaper ones ($12-$25) are drop shipped from, you guessed it: China. The good quality ones (and probably also Chinese), are double/triple that price. They are also sold in 12 packs, which means... I need two packs (7 drawers x 2 clips = 14). Advised the seller of this, and almost walked away, when he balked at re-negotiating the deal. Which would have been a bummer, having had all the problems already, and not knowing what problems I might have on the way home. It also didn't have a key, but it did have the lock cylinder, so that was going to be another $25 to get one cut to the lock code. Obviously, the Craftsman Chevron logo is missing. And those are unobtaineum, although 3D printed versions are available. But also pricey.

The Husky 8 drawer upper box, is in very good condition. I'd give it a 9 out of 10 for a box of this age. Made in Canada, haven't found a date of mfg yet, but I've gotten it all cleaned up. Drawers are all in excellent condition. Only a bit of surface rust/pitting inside the top storage area, but nothing extreme. The drawer slides are all in excellent condition, not all gooped up. I had to get a key cut for the lock, but that was all I did, other than remove the labels and clean it up:

The photo (fluorescent lights in basement) make the color look orange. I wish it was orange, but it's red.

Don't know what I'll do with it. I may try and sell it, but I could also use a bigger box to hold all my measuring 'stuff'. I currently using a couple smaller Craftsman tool boxes for that. This one is sort of an odd-ball width: 26.5", where as the Craftsman are all around 26".

More to follow....

 

[Hack]

Current 'Wall of Craftsman':

Plus a couple more 2 drawers and the 'baby box':

Wife seems to think I have some sort of a problem. My only problem is the four missing boxes to complete the collection.

 

[Land Shark]

Current 'Wall of Craftsman':

View attachment 3268709 View attachment 3268711

Plus a couple more 2 drawers and the 'baby box':

View attachment 3268720 View attachment 3268721

Wife seems to think I have some sort of a problem. My only problem is the four missing boxes to complete the collection.

Which boxes are those? I can keep an eye out here in the RVA for ya

 

[Hack]

Which boxes are those? I can keep an eye out here in the RVA for ya

3 drawer intermediate box. These intermediate boxes, were only available for a couple of years, have no dates stamped on them, all have Craftsman chevron logos. There's a stack (FB Marketplace) for sale that has one, I offered $200+ to buy just the intermediate box, but seller didn't want to separate. He wants $750 for all three boxes. Too much, even though they are in nice condition. And he's about a five hour drive from me.

12 drawer upper box. Super rare to find, and expensive if found.

10 drawer lower box. Again, rare to find, and expensive if found. I'm not certain if they had 10 or 11 drawers, as I've never seen one in person. And don't have a picture either.

2 drawer upper box with the recessed handles. Probably built around 1975-1977? Not certain, only seen a picture of one for sale, and it was too far away.

Like a lot of things in life, they are all overpriced for what they are.

I'm also looking for another unicorn: Winchester Stainless Steel Classic Model 70 with B.O.S.S. in Weatherby .270 mag. The sales brochure shows it, but I've never seen one for sale. I'd pay dearly for one, as it would fill out my collection (sorry about the blurry pic):

Thanks!

 

[Land Shark]

3 drawer intermediate box. These intermediate boxes, were only available for a couple of years, have no dates stamped on them, all have Craftsman chevron logos. There's a stack (FB Marketplace) for sale that has one, I offered $200+ to buy just the intermediate box, but seller didn't want to separate. He wants $750 for all three boxes. Too much, even though they are in nice condition. And he's about a five hour drive from me.

12 drawer upper box. Super rare to find, and expensive if found.

10 drawer lower box. Again, rare to find, and expensive if found. I'm not certain if they had 10 or 11 drawers, as I've never seen one in person. And don't have a picture either.

2 drawer upper box with the recessed handles. Probably built around 1975-1977? Not certain, only seen a picture of one for sale, and it was too far away.

Like a lot of things in life, they are all overpriced for what they are.

I'm also looking for another unicorn: Winchester Stainless Steel Classic Model 70 with B.O.S.S. in Weatherby .270 mag. The sales brochure shows it, but I've never seen one for sale. I'd pay dearly for one, as it would fill out my collection (sorry about the blurry pic):

View attachment 3270975

Thanks!

"hello, my name is Hack and I have a problem".... ha ha. for sure will keep an eye out. I am always looking for tools and the like so never know what I may uncover. One hell of a collection BTW

 

[Hack]

"hello, my name is Hack and I have a problem".... ha ha. for sure will keep an eye out. I am always looking for tools and the like so never know what I may uncover. One hell of a collection BTW

Thanks! My wife definitely doesn't approve of, nor understand my problem.... (guns or tool boxes)