Good morning!!!!

[rswyan]

RS, that still is a thing of beauty!

Yes it is (IMO)

But since folks interested in distilling are usually doing it to save money on hooch, I wonder how many would be willing to spring for all the shiny gew gaws?

I think the intended target audience/market for that particular product is a little higher end.

Think of an analog to craft/home beer brewing: the connoisseur or devotee of fine spirits who wants to distill his own (or just someone who wants to make his own ethanol fuel)

He does offer lower priced kits to build "Appalachian-style" stills for the more budget conscious ...

It's pretty interesting ... he got started in this strictly as a personal interest, and ended up turning it into a business in fairly short order.

So apparently there is a demand/market for what he offers.

 

[rswyan]

rs, you are a much bigger aquarium enthusiast than I.

Kyle,

If I were really that much of an enthusiast I wouldn't have left the tanks sit dry in the basement for the last 20 or so years ...

Funny how time can have a way of getting away from one ...

I do enjoy watching ... and could sit and watch them for hours on end ...

It's supposed to be stress-reducing ...

That fmueller guy has forgotten more than I've ever known about it.

Count me in as well.

I just try to keep some fish to give the kiddos another avenue of interest.

Surely an absolutely worthwhile purpose ...

At the time I had the tanks set up my kids didn't have much interest ... may too young ... dunno.

View attachment 446637

Nice :thumbsup:

 

[rswyan]

Only if she finds out

Back in my FFL days I had more than one customer that would show up with a couple of extra guns when his new one was ready for delivery. All of 'em paid in cash, and figured the old lady wouldn't notice if they came back with the two they started with or with three.

Not that I'm suggesting that anyone here on TBN would ever adapt such tactics to other situations. :laughing:

Oh I'll have to confess ...

It's really just a matter of timing ...

 

[rswyan]

Was checking tire pressure as the decruster has a lot of tongue weight. One back tire has a knot on its tread. About half the width of the tire and 8 inches long. So tomorrow is find a new set of tires day. These are 4 years old and have 42,000 miles on them. Was going to replace them anyways in the next couple weeks.

Any recommendations? I'm liking the Goodyear wrangler m/t with Kevlar. It'll be a mud tire and 10 ply. Street and a/t's just don't hold up when you start pulling on gravel around here.

Michelins ... but they are not cheap.

Granted it has been pretty all highway miles - although I have spent some quality time on gravel roads and lots at shippers and consignees - but I've gotten anywhere from around 125K (minimum) to as much as 175K (maximum) out of the three sets I've had on the Sprinter. Most were replaced at above the legal limit for tread wear (4/32nds front, 2/32nds rear)

The originals were Michelin LTX A/S, the second set were LTX M/S, the third set were LTX A/T2's ... the set I just put on this last year were LTX M/S2's ... vehicle just turned 435,000 miles on the clock.

 

[rswyan]

Drew,

Looks like you have the makings of some good mulch there ... or maybe compost. Hope ya get a break on the rain.

Irv,

Glad to hear the new chimney install is nearly complete ... just in time for Ol' Man Winter.

Have to agree on the heights thing ... these days my balance and leg strength isn't quite what it used to be. Not looking forward to having to do the gutters or climb up on the roof this week to seal up the cracks in the mortar around the chimney.

 

[Eric Salop]

Good morning. The radio clicked on and I slowly started to come out of a weird dream where someone had made an indoor swimming pool by sticking a barn over a river when the radio presenter said "we have sheep in the garden". Took a while to realise those were my wife's words, then I came to with a jolt. We had strong winds last night and it had popped a gate I hadn't fastened well, letting them into a field where I hadn't intended them to come until later in the week and then on into the garden (I still haven't got around to finishing the fence). What the sheep didn't know is that I bought a new electric fence energiser and was planning on trying it out - they will know soon enough.


RNG - I finally get what you have been doing with the gold and can see why it takes so long. You must have lots of patience to form all those lines and curves. I can see it being quite therapeutic once you found the best technique. What background music did you find best to work to - classical, rock, or pure silence ?

 

[Eric Salop]

Eric, here is a link to one of the lights I'm using.

RDS-Series 20" - Spot Surface Cool White Black 20"... | Rigid Industries
Specifications:
Watts: 150
Amp Draw: 10.87
LED's: 40
Raw Lumens: 10460

Kyle, that is one bright light ! No wonder it is getting a bit warm for a LED lamp.

Did you notice the current draw quoted on the data sheet? Not 11 Amps, or 10.9 Amps, is says precisely 10.87 Amps. Many years ago I had lecturer who explained to all his new students that because a calculator worked to many decimal places, that doesn't mean you should believe what it says. He would have had an interesting conversation with whoever wrote that data sheet without rounding the current off to a sensible number.

 

[Eric Salop]

I put in the chimney for the new woodstove. Managed not killing myself, no injuries even! I find as I get older, I like heights less and less. But that probably keeps me safe. A couple more items, and I will be back in the wood burning biz. Just in time for our winter.

You have my admiration, I am not at all keen on working up on a roof. Being up high is no problem - it's an unscheduled meeting with the ground that scares me.

 

[daugen]

55 degrees going up to mid sixties in steady rain all day and into tomorrow, about 2.5 inches predicted. A good test for my new water diversion ditches.
I was going to go look at a boat this morning an hour South of here but not much fun in driving rain. So a quiet day inside getting things done.

truck tires? My impression was that second tier tires did not give the mileage; and thus cost per mile for a Michelin, for example, was not much more.
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Consumer Survey Results By Category
Consumer Survey Results By Category

lots of good choices farmer. If the truck is a keeper, I'd spend the money on Michelins. But Goodyear and Firestone also make good tires in this segment.
If you rip up your tires, maybe that Kevlar model would be good. You can imagine you are driving a Hummer going through the desert....The transportation section of this forum has some lively discusssions. Some mud tires do well in snow, some not so well, so that is a consideration.
My experience using TireRack has been very good; my only variation from their scores was where i thought the tire was noisier than the ratings, but that could be the car too.

Once this stretch of rain passes through, looks like a week of drier weather. And a trillion leaves to pick up. Tis the season.
speaking of which, seeing xmas decorations on the town's light poles reminds me the year is ticking away.

 

[rswyan]

Woke up around 00:30 ... soaked from the night sweats ...

Managed to get the carb for the Echo blower disassembled yesterday ... it's soaking in a jar of acetone. Ought to be able to get that put back together today.

Also got the heater stand for the still I posted a picture of, all welded up ... except for the pieces that retain the bottom kettle. Forgot to take a picture. Might get that finished today as well.

The Woman decided she wanted to work on the additional leaves that had fallen ... so I had to dig out a gas cap from the Cub Cadet too replace the one I lost off the Simplicity so she could blow them into a pile. After that I had to help her with the Kubota and Trac Vac ... the hose from the blower was disconnected and very stiff from the cold ... so I had to connect that and then start it for her. Opened the petcock, set the choke, and it fired right up on the first pull ...

The report on the kitten is good: eyes are clearing (and opening) up, coughing and sneezing is almost gone, and the little bugger is eatin' like a horse. Has also started to play quite a bit ... stalking/hunting/attacking anything you offer ... including a finger.

Kitten may actually be a little younger than what I was thinking ... I'd guess around a month or so old. I've taken a couple of pics but the USB cable for my Iphone isn't letting the computer see the phone so I can't post them.

Woman is having second thoughts about having brought it home ... is now talking about taking it to a rescue place.

I say just keep the durn thing ... the two current units are around 7 or 8 years old ... be good to have another one in the pipeline so to speak.

Although, it remains to be seen whether the new one will be accepted or not. Our female cat will hiss at it if you bring it close enough - probably because she gets pursued/attacked by the male cat on a fairly regular basis - but she reallly doesn't seem all that alarmed by it or feel it is much of a threat apparently ... more like disinterest mostly.

Different story with the male cat ... he goes from extremely strong interest (and not of a good kind either) ... to being utterly terrified of it ...

I was on the couch earlier and the kitten was on my lap and it managed to jump down and get within about 12" of the male cat's nose who was lying on the floor ... I thought the kitten was a goner for sure ... the male cat rolled up off his side but didn't immediately attack ... but I also scooped up the kitten without waiting to see what would eventually happen if it was left there.

The biggest issue I see is the kitten, being playful and curious, coming up from behind and/or surprising the male cat.

I mean this (the male cat) is someone who is certain that a pile of my clothes that I have left on the floor is going to attack him ...

He regularly approaches anything he's not totally certain about with extreme caution ... and I've seen him jump a foot up in the air for no apparent reason whatsoever ... when he thinks my dirty socks are threatening him ... :laughing:

 

[daugen]

RS, sounds like you are having a great deal of fun with your kitty. And gosh, if I were that cat, I'd stay away from your dirty socks too! Filled with welding splatter, acid drips, leaf bits and a dab of moly grease...sounds like a smart cat to me.
The trick is to find a friendly cat. So many are unfriendly or only come when they want food.
You can train your little kitty to ride on your shoulder while you run the tractor. you get a cat to do that and you have a keeper...

 

[daugen]

The picture of Kyle and his daughter keeps coming back to me.
I keep wondering what she is thinking...c'mon Dad, is this necessary?...but my drink is yummy.

It's nice that those of you with kids who lead such busy full lives still have time to share with us.
I think pics of kids and grandkids get more clicks here than tractors...
Well, Eric's lambs are pretty special...in the fog.

 

[rswyan]

RS, sounds like you are having a great deal of fun with your kitty. And gosh, if I were that cat, I'd stay away from your dirty socks too! Filled with welding splatter, acid drips, leaf bits and a dab of moly grease...sounds like a smart cat to me.

LOL ...

Here's a funny thing: both of our cats absolutely love the smell of my shoes and socks ... and they will rub and wallow all over them with spasmodic delight (the male, only once he determines they are not a threat) ... the female will actually stick her entire head down inside my shoes.

Now, I'm not exactly sure what that means ... or whether it is a good thing or not ... :laughing:

The trick is to find a friendly cat. So many are unfriendly or only come when they want food.

Yup ... my experience has been that if you show them some kindness, most of them will warm up to ya eventually ... but on their terms.

You can train your little kitty to ride on your shoulder while you run the tractor. you get a cat to do that and you have a keeper...

This new one is certainly a candidate ... it regularly climbs up on my shoulders.

I think it would crawl down my mouth if I let it ... :laughing:

 

[Thomas]

25F clear sky mid 50's for high.
Long weekend outside blowing raking leaves plus other jobs check off the list before old man winter comes a knocking...going back to work get some rest.

Enjoy the day all.

 

[ronjhall]

Drinking first cup of coffee. 25° with clear skies this morning. Heading to 55° with plenty of sunshine. Liked watching Jimmy Jonson win yesterday. But those NBC announcers are annoying. Pecking away at winterizing various items. Still need to get tractor and lawnmower oil changed. Should be a good day to get a couple of these items done.
RS, Gold Fish got to be the easiest fish to keep. Have about 2 dozen in our garden pond. Low maintenance and add good color. Our doctor office has some in a 50 gallon aquarium. Big Fantails.
Drew, lawn sweeper looks like it is doing the job. A lot cheaper than a Trak-Vac.
Good Morning All.

 

[KevT]

72 going to 77 and rainy. Gonna dig out the camping chairs and kitchen stuff and pack it in the trailer with the carts, Then off to TSC to buy chow for everything including the dog. I think I will be nice and take the wife to an eatery instead of TSC though.

 

[wngsprd]

38, up from 33 earlier this morning, and going to 52 and rain by afternoon, maybe an inch.

Got more leaves to mulch this morning if the frost and dew dries out before the rain hits. Otherwise, will hit the gym, and then maybe take my wife to the new LL Bean store that just opened this weekend...they had the big bootmobile there, and huge crowds, so no hurry going on grand opening. But we do need to go out that way for a Costco run today or tomorrow, and the rain is a good time, if you have to go shopping.

I've also had good luck with the Michelins - lasting 85-95K per set on my 4Runner, but not much gravel driving, although our local rural tar and gravel roads aren't much better in places. We need Buppies out here.

 

[bakerg]

Good morning, 0F here heading to 55F. Got the snow tires put on the car yesterday and even washed both cars. it was a beautiful fall day to work outside.

 

[Buppies]

38 degrees and raining. Leave for weekend and looks like it snowed leaves a good one at that 6in deep.

Rain all day today and cold to high only in low 40s

Good Morning

 

[Buppies]

38, up from 33 earlier this morning, and going to 52 and rain by afternoon, maybe an inch.

Got more leaves to mulch this morning if the frost and dew dries out before the rain hits. Otherwise, will hit the gym, and then maybe take my wife to the new LL Bean store that just opened this weekend...they had the big bootmobile there, and huge crowds, so no hurry going on grand opening. But we do need to go out that way for a Costco run today or tomorrow, and the rain is a good time, if you have to go shopping.

I've also had good luck with the Michelins - lasting 85-95K per set on my 4Runner, but not much gravel driving, although our local rural tar and gravel roads aren't much better in places. We need Buppies out here.

Would be happy to be of service if I could