Technical Little tips and tricks for garage hobbyists.

I’ve found that if I use a silver sharpie to document my service records on my daily drivers it helps to remember them. Next service a bit of brake clean and update and I’m good to go!

 

I just write all that on a flap from the oil filter box. Then stick the flap in the glove box of behind the sun visor.

 

That is awesome! Junk parts, a boat winch, a couple of hours and walla! Impressive. Just one week ago, we were at our engine builders place... and it took two guys and a pry bar to turn the engine upside down to check the crank! Awesome and neat!






Bones

 

That works too, but I forget to look at those. This way every time I open the hood it screams at me that it wants some love!

 

Not really for garage/shop but when I go to a wrecking yard I bring a bunch of ziploc bags and some paper. When I take stuff off I note it on paper and put hardware in bags


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Everybody is talking about how to roll extension cords, but it is much better if you FOLD them.

Gather the two plugs together & run it through hands till you hit the middle, fold it over and repeat until you have a manageable bundle. Anything under 30' you can do this a million times and it won't tangle. Anything over 50' gets pretty big pretty quick but as long as you have a place to hang it AS FOLDED it will not tangle.

And if the cord is 20' or less you can just hold both plugs in your hand and toss the rest; it will lay flat and straight. Impresses the hell out of other people if that is your thing.

(By the way "folded" just means end-to-end. Don't try to link it flat)

 

Yup....worked construction my whole life and we always used this method and it comes un "raveled" with perfectly by just holding the plugs and tossing the rest.......works great and easily stored....makes a 100' cord about 8' long.

 

I have a couple of inexpensive engine stands that I welded some adjustable supports out on the extended leg to give support to engines that are going to hang there for an extended time. I also made a stand similar to the chain drive rotator above. On mine I made the engine so it mounts with the bolt holes on the side of the block. This lets you rotate the engine without having the rear of the engine impeded by the mounting arms.
It gives a builder good access for assembling the engine normally, but also allows mounting accessories and brackets on the front to work out any problems. In the rear, the bellhousing can be mounted and checked for centerline accuracy. Then you can mount the clutch assy and check clutch fork relationship or completely check the operation of a hydraulic clutch.
Some simple bracketry will allow mounting the hyd components and checking operation before installation. Another simple bracket can be made that allows an adjusting screw to push a manual clutch fork and see how much movement is needed to make it work...and whether the pivot ball is in the ideal location height wise. Lots of things that can be checked and set up prior to installation. Personally I don't find working under the car to be as enjoyable these days.

Added note: The blue bellhousing in the picture has a large hole cut with a hole saw. This is a dummy bellhousing that I use for clutch set up. When aligning a bell housing I use the one that will be actually used in the car, as every bellhousing is different somewhat.

 

And I found one on my shop fuel can,,,,,,,
Silver Jimmmyyy!

 

For the times when you have to buy a NEW part that is chromed, usually no where near as good as what the old parts were, disassemble if needed, clean well with "wax and grease remover" and clear coat with couple thin layers to help prevent rusting in the near future, I even do some polished stainless steel parts. BigO

 

When using your plasma cutter or TIG it is a good idea to coil up your air hose reel so the air line isn't lying on the floor where hot metal may melt it.

BTW, anyone try one of those crimp-on air hose splicing kits?

 

Good ideas on rolling up cords but what works in the winter when they wont roll up right ?

 

Testify....

 

White-out pens used by typists work well for cutting torch work, the heat doesn't remove it.

 

Move south?

Ben

 

Go West Young Man.




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Today I fabricated a attachment for my angle grinder to cut straight lines in sheet metal as I dont have a guillotine. I searched you tube and came up with this unit. Works a treat. Glen

 

I made my angle grinder attachment so I could make my cycle guards, I also needed to make a guide for my bead roller so I could make a straight bead in the guards, check out pics. glen

 

I have a cheap 48” single strip LED light that I use when I’m working under a car that’s on jack stands, it was 18.00 dollars, its plastic so not to heavy but it’s nice light and has held up for a year and a half so far. I always quit welding a half hour before I’m done for the day just to make sure there is nothing smoldering. In the winter I keep my garage warm but I warm my paint and sometimes bondo in a sink filled with hot water before I use it.

 

I just go outside and piss in the woods

 

sorry...... moved to other post

 

I put an adjustable support on my engine stand for when I want to leave a very heavy engine or leave one for a very long time. Don't like the idea of all that weight pulling down from a few bolts, especially if its an aluminum block. It might not make a difference, but it sure doesn't hurt anything.

 

There’s one I’m going to use! If I left a complete engine on a stand overnight, I would roll it under me hoist to relieve it a little. Mostly for me, it was peace of mind concerning the engine stand it self! I have seen them fail! But now I have a new project! .....to add to my already too long of list! Thanks......I think! Lol








Bones

 

When I first did it, it worked great, but I didn't make it able to clear an engine with a front sump. Never thought about it. Bought a 500 Cadillac the other day and had to shorten it a couple inches so I can rotate the Caddy. Just took a minute, but wanted to point that out in case anyone else copies it. Might think about a pivot to let it lay on the bottom rail when not in use,......

 

Scrubbing bubbles bathroom cleaner by DOW. Works great to get greasy fingerprints off of old paint. Also is a great tire cleaner, leaves tires black.

 

The bigger question is do we calculate gas millage in imperial or US gallons?

 

Anyone wanting to add the adjustable engine support post to their engine stand. I used one of those screw adjusters with a rubber bottom like they have for leveling a washing machine or old desk. Probably find them on line or at Lowes. They work good and are cheap.

 

Same thing with Muriatic Acid. It will get rid of rust on metal but the fumes will cause everything in your garage to rust if you you use it inside.

 

I remember the first time I put my 235 straight 6 on the stand, I bolted it in place and started to lower the hoist, and it just kept going down! We welded some extra bracing to it which is still there (as seen in my avitar), but it keeps me from rolling a complete block and head over. Something like your improvement would help.

 

Imperial, what else?