Shop Tricks

[tallyho8]

Give this man a dollar. . . Best tip of the day

I'll go for that! Let's see,,,, there are 68,000 members on TBN so if each one of you sends me a dollar, I can get that new tractor with all accessories and even a barn to keep it in.

 

[radioman]

if you used paint thinner or gas to clean up up your paint job, save the left used thinner tainted with paint. let it sit for a few days in a container to let heavy paint settle to bottom and then drian into another recyled container. the result is usable paint thinner to dip your rag in to clean the oil gunked work bench or tractor parts. after you get most the gunk off, you can use a clean dry rag to do a final wipe and it works great. I did this on my wooden work bench that was covered in oil from drill press from drilling metal. the result was I had a clean bench again that not black anoymore!

 

[czechsonofagun]

I actually remember seeing plans on mineral spirits separator. It was a piece of black plumbing pipe with the bottom for sediments and clean spirits to be taken from the middle - it worked on the very same principle.

 

[DJ54]

With all of the guys building their own buildings on here, I thought this tip I learned from my grandpa' years ago might help.

Driving larger nails, wood screws, and lag screws can be made easier, by applying just a dab of Bee's Wax to the end of what ever you're driving. Just dipping in 1/8 of an inch will do. Maybe a little more on the lag screws. I use my electric impact wrench to drive lags. Sure beats wrenching them in..!!

Most toilet bowl rings are made of bee's wax, and are cheap. Even cheaper, are the ones that are deformed, and on the clearance rack.

I drill a 3/8" hole in the end of my fiberglass hammer handles, approx. 1 1/2" deep, and pack these holes with bee's wax. Your container is always with you when driving nails..

When driving screws, I cut the rings in chunks, and melt them in a metal coffee can, with a formed pour spout. Just kinda' squeeze one side of the can with your hand.. I do this on the cook stove, over a low fire. It doesn't take much to melt it. Just be cautious.. Don't want someone burning down their house..!! If you have a camp stove, you may want to use that, outside.

I pour this into various sized pill bottles, vitamin pill bottles, etc. What ever size that I need. It cools, and sets in a few minutes, and you have a handy, sealable container to use out of.

I have also poured it in to the hammer handles ( I have like 6 hammers) when doing larger projects. It's lots faster than packing it in with a knife, or screwdriver. Just grab another hammer...

You may get a dab on the face of the hammer, and cause it to glance off though... I'm usually wearing my Bibs, and a quick swipe on the pantleg, and it's clean.

 

[Dave5264]

Ok Guys, here's a product that ive used so many times, I love this stuff. its a 2 part mix, has the viscosity of water, but hardens in minutes like plastic.

I use this stuff to repair wood,

I use it instead of fiberglass resin (it penetrates the old repair panels on Fiber glass really well). when i do Fiberglass repair, i can take a grinder to this stuff after 10 minutes.

Repairs wood in minutes, PolyAll 2000

i will not be without some of this stuff, its truly amazing.

 

[Travelover]

Ok Guys, here's a product that ive used so many times, I love this stuff. its a 2 part mix, has the viscosity of water, but hardens in minutes like plastic.

I use this stuff to repair wood,

I use it instead of fiberglass resin (it penetrates the old repair panels on Fiber glass really well). when i do Fiberglass repair, i can take a grinder to this stuff after 10 minutes.

Repairs wood in minutes, PolyAll 2000

i will not be without some of this stuff, its truly amazing.

Looks like it would be good for repairing some punky wood where it is difficult to replace the piece.

 

[Ken45101]

Looks like it would be good for repairing some punky wood where it is difficult to replace the piece.

I have used regular Bondo for that. It worked perfectly well on a wooden door frame for an outside door.

Ken

 

[Travelover]

I have used regular Bondo for that. It worked perfectly well on a wooden door frame for an outside door.

Ken

I was thinking more of something that would saturate dry rotted wood similar to Git Rot. How thick do is your Bondo?

BoatLife Git-Rot : Cabela's

 

[Ken45101]

I was thinking more of something that would saturate dry rotted wood similar to Git Rot. How thick do is your Bondo?

BoatLife Git-Rot : Cabela's

It's been many years since I did that. I dug out all the bad wood and just filled it back in with Bondo. It held up perfect for the ten years that we stayed in the house.

 

[Dave5264]

Apperently it does work well for Rotted wood.

My Main use has been Fiberglass - it whicks well and gets into the old glass where regualr resin cannot....the repair is much stronger.

Ive used it on Wood where a bit of strength is required.

ive also ised it to Make/shape parts for my Vintage snowmobile hoods/cowls etc. you can use kid's Plasterseen (modeling clay) as a mould, pour this stuff in and bingo...peel away the clay and you have a shaped part that, while still needing some sandig and final shaping, takes much less time that trying to build it up with glass matt and resin.

 

[Runner]

This one is not rocket science, but I found that a bungee cord helps keep my C-clamps from falling of the edge of my table when they are stored there. By doing this, I don't have to screw them closed to keep them on, which is a pain in the neck.

 

[BearKiller]

>> STOCK UP ON ESSENTIALs <<

Whenever you go to the hardware store after a few bolts/nuts/whatever, always buy at least twice as many as your job requires, even if you don't think that you could possibly ever have need of one again.

Keep these extras in an appropriate organized manner, such that they can be found should they ever be needed again.

A few extra pieces are always cheaper than having to make a special trip back to the store to replace the one that got flipped out into the bushes, never to be seen again.

Also, should you need the same thing again, no trip into town will be necessary.

I never leave TSC without at least twenty pounds of miscellaneous bolts/nuts/washers, which I keep stored in jars; I can take care of most projects without leaving the shop.

 

[larryccf]

This one is not rocket science, but I found that a bungee cord helps keep my C-clamps from falling of the edge of my table when they are stored there. By doing this, I don't have to screw them closed to keep them on, which is a pain in the neck.

I've got almost the exact same setup storing my clamps - but i built a small rack under the end of nearly the same table - but that strap idea is killer - no matter how careful i am when i walk past, if i bump em, one or two fall off - don't know why i never thought of a bungee strap

 

[czechsonofagun]

>> STOCK UP ON ESSENTIALs <<

Whenever you go to the hardware store after a few bolts/nuts/whatever, always buy at least twice as many as your job requires, even if you don't think that you could possibly ever have need of one again.

Keep these extras in an appropriate organized manner, such that they can be found should they ever be needed again.

A few extra pieces are always cheaper than having to make a special trip back to the store to replace the one that got flipped out into the bushes, never to be seen again.

Also, should you need the same thing again, no trip into town will be necessary.

I never leave TSC without at least twenty pounds of miscellaneous bolts/nuts/washers, which I keep stored in jars; I can take care of most projects without leaving the shop.

Yup. thats the way to do it. When I was stay home dad, I did the same with food. I could cook at least 5 different dinners without leaving for a grocery store. The trick is to keep all the popular ingredients at hand and replanish them when you use them - like Taco seasoning next trip after you made Tacos.
I am afraid that concept is beyond comprehension of The Wife Best Of All

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I've got almost the exact same setup storing my clamps - but i built a small rack under the end of nearly the same table - but that strap idea is killer - no matter how careful i am when i walk past, if i bump em, one or two fall off - don't know why i never thought of a bungee strap

You're lucky. My clamps hang from a rafter and when they fall, it's on my head. I'm implementing the bungee idea immediately.

 

[BigE_]

>> STOCK UP ON ESSENTIALs <<
Whenever you go to the hardware store after a few bolts/nuts/whatever, always buy at least twice as many as your job requires, even if you don't think that you could possibly ever have need of one again.

I go one further - whenever I need a nut or bolt, I buy a box of them. You generally get a pretty good price break on a box vs. individual pieces. Then, when I get them home, I put them in one of those storage units with individual drawers.

Instead of labeling the front, I carefully cut the picture and description off the box and use that for my label. Another tip: I split the cardboard to make it thin and easier to attach, and then I use either 3M spray adhesive or contact cement to attach.

I've actually got a pretty nice collection going now, so I rarely have to go to the store for nuts or bolts.

Now, I do draw the line when I only need 1 or 2 big nuts or bolts, and they are in the $1 each range. When the box is $20-$30, I really think hard about whether or not I really need all of those.

For me, it's pretty easy to justify. It's a 30 min round trip to the hardware store, about 12 miles in each direction. I get about 12 mpg, so it's costing me about $6 in just gas. (Actual cost is probably closer to $15 when you consider all factors). So, if I can save a trip for less than $15, I do it.

Final tip: when I buy the screws/bolts in bulk, I'll buy the longest version I think I'll need. It's pretty easy to cut the screw down to the size you need (especially if you have a screw cutter built into your crimping tools), but really hard to grow the screws longer. I'll do this up to the 1/4" or 5/16" size. Beyond that it starts getting cost prohibitive.

-Steve

 

[BearKiller]

Final tip: when I buy the screws/bolts in bulk, I'll buy the longest version I think I'll need. It's pretty easy to cut the screw down to the size you need (especially if you have a screw cutter built into your crimping tools), but really hard to grow the screws longer. I'll do this up to the 1/4" or 5/16" size. Beyond that it starts getting cost prohibitive.

-Steve

Along the same line of thinking, mixed in with the plain old bolts at TSC, are often fully threaded bolts of the same size/length, threaded all the way to the head.

I have found these as big as 3/8 X 3-inch.

They just dump them in the same bins with the regular ones, so they get all mixed up.

I separate these from the regular bolts for those special occassions.

 

[sgrol]

Another Funnel Tip

I keep my funnels in white plastic garbage bags to keep them clean. Smaller ones go in appropriately sized zip lock bags.

 

[czechsonofagun]

you know those red nozzles on WD40 and such - I keep them all in one place, keeping them on the spray bottle gets them lost too quickly.

And of course, I never throw them away when the spray is empty.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

...And of course, I never throw them away when the spray is empty.

Same thing goes for spray nozzles from aerosol cans. I've broken enough spray nozzles on mostly full cans of lube, carb cleaner, etc. that I've learned to keep one or two of each style from empty cans so I can replace broken ones.