Other Projects I'm Working On

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Did you try turning the screws in both directions? Sometimes, they use left hand threads.

Though it might turn the other way, the disks haves flats on the vertical of the shaft so no screw and it would still work. The real problem, looking at the first screw is Lock-tight or some such on the thread.

OK, back to your water leakage problem and by the way, it is raining here and supposedly snow down to low levels over night.

I live in a small area (by SSA standards; we are a large country) that tends to get less rain than the surrounding areas. Since the last rain, areas around my area have been getting gully washers, often violent with flooding (yeah, flooding in a desert), while all I got was a light sprinkle or two. Last night was a quiet one for the Phoenix, AZ metropolitan area and probably will be for the next few days (weather here can be quite unpredictable) so it probably will be a while before the "drain" gets tested.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Hyperbole alert!

I'm baaack with another exciting project for your edification and amusement.

OK, enough with the Baloney Sausage and back to somewhat duller reality. The original casters on my desk chair wrecked the vinyl floor tile around my desk so I got some urethane tired casters, made with repurposed inline skate wheels, that claimed to roll better and prevent floor damage. They lied! After replacing the damaged floor tiles (a real chore since the desk was in the way and I'm old) and installing the new casters, they rolled better (for a while) and I really liked the added height the larger diameter wheels gave but the wheels still damaged my floor tile (*&^%$#@!) and, after a few months, due to the added side thrust on the vertical thrust bearings due the added height and narrower width of the wheels, those bearings wore out and the chair would roll where it wanted to, not where I wanted to (more *&^%$#@!).

After searching around online, I found some more casters that also had urethane tires on smaller diameter dual wheels that should put less stress on the thrust bearings so I ordered them. They seem to be working fine after a couple of months of use. I'm not worrying about the floor tile. I'm just going to patch the damaged areas with Bondo and get an opaque floor mat to cover it.

One problem I've had with office chairs in the past is the plywood they use for the base of the seat eventually flexes, tilting me forward (I have a tendency to slouch forward in a chair even though I try to avoid it). I also missed the added 1 1/2" of height the first replacement casters gave me (I lost one inch with the latest casters) so I decided to shim the the seat base up higher. I had some 6061-T6 1" aluminum tube knocking about so I cut it down to two pieces. They weren't as long as I would have liked but should they still give enough added support to the front of the chair base.

Today, I got ambitious and started by removing the base of the chair. I forgot to take a picture before taking off the chair base but here is how it looks afterwards. If you look close, you can see the four 1/4"-20 threaded holes the chair base screwed into (probably tee-nuts).

The first step was to lay out the mounting holes in the two pieces of aluminum tube. I was going to use fender washers between the chair base mounting flange and the tubing to spread some of the stress to the side walls of the tube. The holes closest to the back of the chair have to be as close to the end of the tube as possible so I laid the first hole out using a fender washer and a sharpie.

Since the location of this hole wasn't critical, I just eyeballed the center of the circle I traced of the hole in the fender washer and center punched it with an automatic center punch.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

The distance between the two holes on each tube (10 1/8") was critical so I used a scale from one of my combination squares to carefully measure the distance between the mounting holes in the seat base and transfer it to the first tube. I used my scriber to mark the length from the scale, marked the center of the tube using Baby (my cute little 4" combination square), then center punched where the two lines met (I saw the punch mark was a little off after taking this photo so I moved the mark over to where it needed to be by using the center punch at a slight angle to nudge the mark over until it was dead nuts on before drilling).

Next, I taped the cracks around the lid on top of my washing machine to keep chips out of it, then lugged my little drill press to the washing machine (I swear that thing is gaining weight!). I then drilled 1/8" pilot holes through the top and bottom of the first tube. After drilling those holes, rather than risk messing up the layout on the second tube, I taped the two tubes together. This held them fine lengthwise but nor so much sideways so I used a 6" F clamp to maintain the side to side alignment, then drill through the holes in the first tube into the bottom of the second tube (I moved the clamp to the other end before drilling there). Here, I'm ready to drill the first hole.

Take a close look at the column of the drill press. I mentioned the last time I posted using the drill press that I had trouble with the machined surfaces rusting between uses, even when using a lube that claimed to inhibit rust (another lie). A machinist on YouTube based in Florida recommended using CRC 3-36 so I gave it a shot the last time I used the drill press. It worked; there was absolutely no rust! The 3-36 had dried to a film I didn't even have to remove to use the drill press. When I finished drilling today, I reapplied the 6-36 before putting it away. I'm sold on that stuff.

Moving right along, after transferring the pilot holes from the first tube to the second tube, I used those holes to drill the holes in the top of the tube. I then drilled out the holes to 17/64" to give a little extra clearance for the 1/4"-20 bolts in case the holes weren't spaced quite right. To give some more support to the tubes so they wouldn't crush when tightening the bolts and when using the chair, a few days ago, I used my little band saw and 50P emery cloth to cut some snug fitting wooden plugs to go inside the tubes.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Here, I've already tapped in the plugs ate the end of the tubes with the holes closest to the end.

Since I wouldn't be able to see how far into the tubes the remaining plugs would go, I eyeballed and drew a line on each plug so I could see it through the hole in the tube.

Here, I've tapped in the plugs, using a 12" impact driver extension (it was the first thing I saw that would do the job). I got a little overambitious tapping in the first plug but it's close enough.

Then I drilled through the wood. I also drilled a 1/4" hole at each end of each tube for screws to hold the tube to the base of the seat so I wouldn't have to juggle so many parts when putting the seat back onto the chair base. I temporarily used the chair base mounting screws to help hold the tubes in place while I loosely screwed them down to the base through the added 1/4" holes on the ends. I then removed the chair base mounting screws and installed the chair base to the seat. I had to use the fender washers over the chair base mounting flange since the holes in the flange were ginormous and the heads of the screws I had bought for this would have slipped through. I forgot to take pictures of this part. Sorry!

[Lady Fitzgerald]

And here is the final result. I would have liked for the tubes to be an inch or two longer but that was the only 6061-T6 tubing I had. The only other 1" tubing I had was the softer mystery aluminum you get from the big box and hardware stores. The ones I used should be long enough.

It went better than I expected and only took between 1 and 1 1/2 hours to complete everything today (I didn't bother to time myself), put everything away, including the QE 2 boat anchor (aka the drill press), and clean everything up, which is less time than I had expected. Still, it took the starch out of me, disturbing since it wasn't that strenuous of a job (other than lugging around a boat anchor). Forget the Senior citizen discounts, I want my youth back!

The chair is exactly the correct height for me now, which makes me a happy camper. I love it when a plan comes together!

[MurphCID]

WOW! Amazing.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

WOW! Amazing.

Thanks, Murph!

[rossdv8]

‘Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’

'Give a woman a hammer, screwdriver and a hacksaw - then stand back and be amazed !'

[Lady Fitzgerald]

‘Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’

'Give a woman a hammer, screwdriver and a hacksaw - then stand back and be amazed !'

What would be so amazing? Women can do pretty much anything a man can, fathering children being the notable exception. Come to think of it, you can give a man an egg but he can't make a baby from it but give a woman sperm, she can grow a baby.

When I used to work Renaissance Festivals, I would tell women, "Give thy man a fish, thou wilt feed himself for but a day. But teach a man to fish and thou shalt be rid of himself for the weekend."

[rossdv8]

What would be so amazing?

Exactly why I wrote that reply. Sticking my tongue out at gender stereotyping . .

[Lady Fitzgerald]

What would be so amazing?

Exactly why I wrote that reply. Sticking my tongue out at gender stereotyping . .

Thank you!

[rossdv8]

A few years ago I took three French girls who had never been on a sailing boat or a dinghy, out on one of my yachts for a couple of weeks. BY day three I was only doing the anchor raising and lowering the sails.
By day five I was relegated to cooking, washing dishes, taking pictures and sunning myself on deck while they raised and lowered anchors and sails AND did most of the navigation.
On the second last day we had a storm with waves high enough that we could not see land except when the crest of a wave lifted us high enough, and yes, I had to reef the sails because 'I wasn't sure' someone might not lose balance and take a dive. Even I wore a safety harness that time.
Other than that, between them they handled the storm better than some 'supposedly experienced' male crew I've had.

This BTW is not stormy, this is one of the girls steering Sheppy on her second day of instruction on a normal day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWoDgIUmqPE

And this is another of them taking my mate's kids for a sail a couple of days later (He's on the yacht off in the distance) on a rare 'smooth' day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eSTW8GLOAm8

In both cases the girls had never sailed and claimed they had not even been allowed to control a motor boat

So yep, plenty of reason to stand back and be 'amazed' when women are given a few tools and a little bit of knowledge.

[MurphCID]

‘Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’

'Give a woman a hammer, screwdriver and a hacksaw - then stand back and be amazed !'

What would be so amazing? Women can do pretty much anything a man can, fathering children being the notable exception. Come to think of it, you can give a man an egg but he can't make a baby from it but give a woman sperm, she can grow a baby.

When I used to work Renaissance Festivals, I would tell women, "Give thy man a fish, thou wilt feed himself for but a day. But teach a man to fish and thou shalt be rid of himself for the weekend."

Currently places and things my wife has forbidden me to handle: Ladders, power tools, electricity.... There is a story for each.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

...Currently places and things my wife has forbidden me to handle: Ladders, power tools, electricity.... There is a story for each.

Come on, don't leave us hanging here. Share those stories, already.

[MurphCID]

...Currently places and things my wife has forbidden me to handle: Ladders, power tools, electricity.... There is a story for each.

Come on, don't leave us hanging here. Share those stories, already.

Oh, no, falling off the ladder attempting to trim the tree in the front yard and laying there while my wife and next door neighbor roared with laughter is painful enough of a memory. Especially when she told me; "I don't think you should do that..."

[Lady Fitzgerald]

...Currently places and things my wife has forbidden me to handle: Ladders, power tools, electricity.... There is a story for each.

Come on, don't leave us hanging here. Share those stories, already.

Oh, no, falling off the ladder attempting to trim the tree in the front yard and laying there while my wife and next door neighbor roared with laughter is painful enough of a memory. Especially when she told me; "I don't think you should do that..."

Oh, come on! We've all done something like that. I once did a pratfall (I tripped on a too long belt) while representing a Renaissance Festival in a parade in Phoenix in front of hundreds of people. In situations like that, you just get back up and take a bow.

[MurphCID]

Come on, don't leave us hanging here. Share those stories, already.

Oh, no, falling off the ladder attempting to trim the tree in the front yard and laying there while my wife and next door neighbor roared with laughter is painful enough of a memory. Especially when she told me; "I don't think you should do that..."

Oh, come on! We've all done something like that. I once did a pratfall (I tripped on a too long belt) while representing a Renaissance Festival in a parade in Phoenix in front of hundreds of people. In situations like that, you just get back up and take a bow.

I am NOT even going to address the episode with the power saw, nor the time I told my wife: "See it was easy, as sparks shot across the room, which filled with the smell of something burning..."

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Oh, no, falling off the ladder attempting to trim the tree in the front yard and laying there while my wife and next door neighbor roared with laughter is painful enough of a memory. Especially when she told me; "I don't think you should do that..."

Oh, come on! We've all done something like that. I once did a pratfall (I tripped on a too long belt) while representing a Renaissance Festival in a parade in Phoenix in front of hundreds of people. In situations like that, you just get back up and take a bow.

I am NOT even going to address the episode with the power saw, nor the time I told my wife: "See it was easy, as sparks shot across the room, which filled with the smell of something burning..."

Coward! Back when I working in a cabinet shop the summer between my Sophomore and Junior years of College, I nearly cut off my left ring finger through the last joint with a table saw (it was just hanging by a flap of skin). It's still crooked and has only partial mobility on that joint.

I've created many a "fireworks show" working (or playing ) with electricity. My latest faux pas was cutting through a Romex line with a portable circular saw while reframing the rough opening in the wall for The Water Heater Door from Hell last Spring (see my post on 03/14 in this thread).

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Reviving this thread had me thinking (yes, it hurt) that I need to replace the functional but ugly steps to my back door. Also, the steps are a but narrower than the door although still wide enough to be safe. I've been looking off and on for replacement steps over the summer and found nothing I would like, even with modifications or would cost an arm and both legs (which I'm reluctant to part with since I've grown rather attached to them) so I have decided to buy another set of the steps/platform I got and modified for the front door and modify them the same way, only as a mirror image. When I worked on the steps for the other door, I had to settle for some materials that were less than ideal because that was all I could find locally since I didn't really have the time to wait for some things to be shipped in.

I decided to upgrade the aluminum angle I used on the other steps to attach the bottom of the skirting to since these steps will set on the end of my asphalt carport and on pavers set into the gravel yard instead of nice (kinda sorta) flat concrete the other steps are on and would be easier to bend if I dragged them out of the way for any work I may need to do under the trailer. A little while ago, I went to FleaBay and ordered some 1/8" x 1-1/4" aluminum angle in various lengths (most are drops so I don't have pay full price for them) and some 4" wide 1/8 inch aluminum flat bar that I wished I had had when I filled in the space between the ground and the bottom of the bottom steps. It will make that part of the job way easier!

I need to bomb (set off insect foggers) underneath my trailer to deal with an ant invasion in my home (cheeky little buggers!) which means I have to get lost for a few hours. Thanks to the delightful pandemic most of the world thinks is over , there isn't anywhere safe I can go to hang out for a few hours while the fumes from the foggers that leak into the house dissipate so, after I get around to doing it, I'm going to go for a long drive, stopping back at the house occasionally to quickly use the bathroom as needed (I still do not trust public restrooms to be Covid safe). I need to get some putty tape for when I remove and reinstall The Back Door from Hell so I can hit the place where I get my skirting from (it's quite a drive from the house) to get the putty tape from and also get the skirting panels I need for the steps (they have run out of them before so this will make sure it doesn't happen before I need them for the steps). I'll probably do that Monday. I was going to do it today but I didn't get much sleep last night and I don't like driving with toothpicks holding my eyelids open (I've tried matchsticks but they weren't much better).

I'm not going to order the steps just yet since I need to work on The Back Door from Hell, replace/repair the half arsed battery cable job that one mechanic couldn't do at all and the other one screwed up big time when the battery that was in my truck leaked and corroded the terminal end (I'm really sick and tired with dealing with lazy, incompetent, and/or downright crooked "professionals"), and get my old shed moved and a new one ordered before ordering and working on the steps and railing since I don't have room to store them right now.

The weather is finally starting to cool down to a level I can work in so it won't be long before I can start working on outside projects.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

I picked up the aluminum I ordered for the new backdoor steps (when I get them). This is a picture of the 1/8" x 4" x 36" aluminum flat bar I received:

I'm so sick and tired of dealing with incompetent and/or stupid people.