What did you do today?

[Dave C]

I don't like those shingles, and I damn sure wouldn't be paying that clown by the hour.

[PStechPaul]

The only reason I bought those shingles was the color, to match that of the existing shingles. My first plan was to do a partial roof job, just to put a decent slope over the flat section, but it looked like a complete re-roofing job was best.

Yeah, I cringe every time I give him $100 for 4 hours of such work, but I haven't found anyone else who is honest, reliable, and willing to work with me on projects. But a deal's a deal, and he's still saving me money compared to a pro roofer. However, I think I'll renegotiate for $20/hr for future lower priority projects (like painting, at which he says he is a "master"). I'll also shop around again to find someone. It's summer and there are lots of high school and college kids who are looking for jobs, and most of what I'm doing does not require a lot of skill and experience. I hired a college guy last summer to dig trenches and install drainpipe. I think I gave him $15/hr and he did about 100 feet of drain, plus spreading gravel on a washed-out access road, and did it all in about 8-10 hours.

[Bob La Londe]

Today I am relaxing and doing nothing. Ok, eat and breath air. I spent the last three days organizing and coordinating an annual 3 round pro/am style bass tournament and fishing in it. The tournament was for members of a fishing forum I setup back around 2003.

[brian Rupnow]

Today I'm just dicking around on the computer, adding bits and pieces to the design of a vertical hit and miss engine model. Yesterday wife and I took three youngest grandkids to a live theater production of "Jack and the Beanstock". Great show, very funny, a good time was had by all.

[Jon Heron]

Was supposed to rain so I made 11G of my Wookie west coast IPA.
Didn't rain for a change and the sun just came out!!
Skeeters the size of sparrow's... Good long wet and cool spring for them. I did my part in feeding them standing around the keggle today.
Cheers,
Jon

[Galaxie]

Made some more progress on the Brooks cutter grinder base:

[MattiJ]

Weather has been too nice for any shop projects so enjoyed perfect summer weather here, went for two bicycle trips something like 70km total.
Sauna and cooling down outside after sauna. Luckily we have no mozzies around this area.
Midsummer is easily my favourite season, supposedly midnight or almost 1AM and I can read newspapers outside.

[Cenedd]

Was struck by sudden realisation of idiocy last night.
I've been making a shelf for the top of my lathe headstock. Cut the base to clear the chuck guard, drilled holes in the back for storing centres etc, made threadless transfer 'screws' to get the mounting holes in the right place. Mitred some pine moulding, glued & pinned it to the edge and have waited ages for the obstreperous yacht varnish to dry. Went to screw it on last night and the moulding round the edge adds 15mm to all dimensions...that were cut fairly precisely round the chuck guard.
What's depressing is that I genuinely didn't see it coming!
Ah well, I suppose it's good to be reminded that stupidity isn't just something that happens to other people!
(I drive a lot - other people's driving decisions are disturbing!)

[Cenedd]

Had a think about trying to cut the moulding and base back by 15mm with a mitre join in-place - as it's both glued and pinned in place and I've run out of moulding - and then re-varnish where necessary.....and then decided to bodge it and have done with it! Now there's a second row of false screws that are mostly hidden by the chuck key in this pic. They don't connect to anything....just make it look like it was intentional!




Also had a go this weekend at making a plug for a digital scale. Once all mounted in place and so on, I'll probably just solder directly to the pads and strain-relieve with hot-glue - that seems to be the norm - but I wanted something to prototype it with first. A piece of black acrylic (that's what I had on hand) milled over-size, 1mm holes drilled 1mm from the edge and then the front milled off to expose the slots. Mainly, I didn't have a 1mm ball-nosed endmill to slot with but also the theory was/is to not mill as far as the centre of the holes so that the pins are retained. The pins are 1mm "unplated" copper but I discovered it was actually lacquered when it wasn't conductive. Nothing some sandpaper couldn't sort out though.





The controller is TouchDRO by Yuriy's Toys. This is the self-solder kit that comes as a board and bag of components to solder on yourself but I'm not sure a self-build kit is available anymore - I procrastinated for quite some time between soldering the board and doing anything with it! Display will be an old Android tablet with Bluetooth when I'm done.

[Dan Dubeau]

Back at work recuperating after a backyard bouncy castle birthday party for my 5yo daughter on the weekend. 26 kids were there, and many burgers and hotdogs were consumed. Only got rained on a little bit. The party wasn't the bad part, it was all the rush cleaning up before hand that wore me out. Wife said she's going to plan a party every month now because I got so much stuff done and cleaned up for it.

[Bob La Londe]

Made some more progress on the Brooks cutter grinder base:

That the kind of project that deserves its own thread. I like what you have done so far.

[Dave C]

Back at work recuperating after a backyard bouncy castle birthday party for my 5yo daughter on the weekend. 26 kids were there, and many burgers and hotdogs were consumed. Only got rained on a little bit. The party wasn't the bad part, it was all the rush cleaning up before hand that wore me out. Wife said she's going to plan a party every month now because I got so much stuff done and cleaned up for it.

No good deed goes unpunished.

[plunger]

Made some more progress on the Brooks cutter grinder base:

Can you tell us more about this project.

[J Tiers]

..... Wife said she's going to plan a party every month now because I got so much stuff done and cleaned up for it.

You could just always have it that clean, then there is no problem, right?

I have had that suggested to me.............

[Dan Dubeau]

Yeah right. I cleaned up a bunch of steel scraps that were at the back of the garage (party central) by tossing them in the trailer and driving the trailer around the back of the barn out of sight . Sweeping the dirt under the rug...... The garage looks great, but all that stuff is still in the trailer.....