Big Barn’s Retirement Farm Shop

[Big Barn]

This DigiWeigh 5K crane scale is what I use:
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And empty tongue weight:
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I always love your photos, X!

 

[Xfaxman]

 

[dragoneggs]

Pics/nomenclature or it's a HFT wood lathe and your tools are too. (got lapping wheel? ) Do you ever turn resin, burls, or bowls? I know, custom furniture/accents is fun if you can get the wood for it.

btw, I'm a metal guy like Terry, but I'm a lathe guy too.

Okay... time to photo bomb BB's thread...

 

[Big Barn]

Dang, Mark. You ALMOST make me want to do a wood project. LOL

Love the lathe. Show us some projects!

 

[Big Barn]

I guess it was time. Today I got flashed using my auto dark welding helmet and realized it needed batteries. And the reason I was using this helmet was because I was too lazy to replace batteries in my other lids.

So today I took the time to replace batteries, inner and outer lenses where necessary and generally clean my helmets.

DONE! I really don't do a lot of welding so I should be good for another 5 or 6 years.

 

[ovrszd]

I had a guy tell me you should not store a helmet in a bag. He said they will keep the battery charged if stored in natural light. Is there any truth to that? I keep both of mine in bags.

 

[ovrszd]

Figured I better add a pic of mine since some may say it depends on the specific helmet in question.

 

[lostcreekranch]

I had a guy tell me you should not store a helmet in a bag. He said they will keep the battery charged if stored in natural light. Is there any truth to that? I keep both of mine in bags.

I have same question .. as I used to store mine in a cabinet.

 

[dstig1]

The solar cell helps extend the battery life but does not actually charge it as that type of battery (typically coin cells) are not really rechargeable. It is more of an in-use battery saver as it feeds off the arc light a bit.

 

[Big Barn]

I store mine in my little “machine shop” which is heated, has lots of natural light and is free from grinding dust which permeates my main shop.

 

[pmsmechanic]

Mine is rechargeable with permanent batterys. I need to keep it facing a light while being stored or there isn't enough of a charge to operated the auto dimming.

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

Okay... time to photo bomb BB's thread...

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Spalted always gets attention.

I would love that lathe. I only have an older Delta where I have to move belts to change speed. I've been tempted to change it over to a variable speed system.

 

[TheFarmerInAdell]

My Miller helmet has a "low battery" warning light when I first turn it on. I've only had to replace the battery once in since I bought it 15 years ago, mostly because of lack of use. Mine takes a AAA battery. I keep it on the gas cylinder. I make it a habit to only hang my helmet there after I turn the gas off. It's my way of making sure I don't lose a full tank because I forgot the valve.

 

[Big Barn]

My Miller helmet has a "low battery" warning light when I first turn it on. I've only had to replace the battery once in since I bought it 15 years ago, mostly because of lack of use. Mine takes a AAA battery. I keep it on the gas cylinder. I make it a habit to only hang my helmet there after I turn the gas off. It's my way of making sure I don't lose a full tank because I forgot the valve.

Good practice for remembering to turn gas off.

My lids have low battery indicators but they either don't work or I failed to notice them.

Surprisingly two helmets actually use the SAME SIZE coin battery. (C2450). Things like that rarely happen to me.

 

[pmsmechanic]

My Miller helmet has a "low battery" warning light when I first turn it on. I've only had to replace the battery once in since I bought it 15 years ago, mostly because of lack of use. Mine takes a AAA battery. I keep it on the gas cylinder. I make it a habit to only hang my helmet there after I turn the gas off. It's my way of making sure I don't lose a full tank because I forgot the valve.

Good idea as I have inadvertently emptied a few bottles. My reminder is that I always clean up my torch and hoses. When I do that the tap gets shut off.

 

[dragoneggs]

Spalted always gets attention.

I would love that lathe. I only have an older Delta where I have to move belts to change speed. I've been tempted to change it over to a variable speed system.

Variable speed is sweet! I was so impressed I got the Nova drill press as well and sold off my belt driven tools.

 

[dnw64]

I would love that lathe. I only have an older Delta where I have to move belts to change speed. I've been tempted to change it over to a variable speed system.

I realize the above response was about a lathe, but.

We have an old (OK, not REAL OLD, about 40 years) Delta or maybe Rockwell drill press. There are three sets of sheaves, with RPM capability of something like 200-5,000 (may be a bit of exaggeration there, just going off memory from maybe 10 years ago which is the last time I really looked at it). It's VERY simple and quick to change - an L-shaped handle holds the motor in place, just loosen that and you can change one or both belts in 10-20 seconds. Unless I were an 8-hr x5-day drill press operator, doing jobs for 5 minutes at a time and everyone required a different speed, I can't possibly see the payoff of a VFD over a simple mechanical setup.

 

[dstig1]

My Miller helmet has a "low battery" warning light when I first turn it on. I've only had to replace the battery once in since I bought it 15 years ago, mostly because of lack of use. Mine takes a AAA battery. I keep it on the gas cylinder. I make it a habit to only hang my helmet there after I turn the gas off. It's my way of making sure I don't lose a full tank because I forgot the valve.

I do similar...and check that the gas is off like 15 times while cleaning up...

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

I guess it was time. Today I got flashed using my auto dark welding helmet and realized it needed batteries. And the reason I was using this helmet was because I was too lazy to replace batteries in my other lids.

So today I took the time to replace batteries, inner and outer lenses where necessary and generally clean my helmets.

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DONE! I really don't do a lot of welding so I should be good for another 5 or 6 years.

Which helmet you prefer? Our old Millers (14 years old) gave up. So did my helmet I bought.

I ordered a cheap, smaller window Miller online for only $86. Waiting for it to come in. Had good reviews.

 

[Big Barn]

Which helmet you prefer? Our old Millers (14 years old) gave up. So did my helmet I bought.

I ordered a cheap, smaller window Miller online for only $86. Waiting for it to come in. Had good reviews.

I really like my $100 (+ or-) Weldcote.

Lightweight and by far the most comfortable I have ever used.

Large viewing area and good clarity.