Technical Little tips and tricks for garage hobbyists.

If you have to work under the dash of your car for any amount of time, remove the seat first. It makes it way more comfortable and much easier to do the work needed.

 

As I was quite young, I never gave it much thought.
Being handed a set of channel locks ( wheel bearing service, tutor lesson ).
Found them to work quite well.
When doing a hard pull, there are times they need to be flipped over.
Well today, since life's been giving me sour grapes to the point that I need distraction.
Thought I'd pin-point the difference, here goes.
JAWS The Greater Grabs. The Puny Pushes.
Thanks for your time

 

Moch up block............

Had an old aluminum block sitting around that was junk . Decided to gut it and lighten it with the Plasma torch. Not fun..........ruined a couple shirts and my pants in the process as the aluminum tends to jump out on to you. Anyway, after some quick stops to snuff myself out, I gradually got the bulk of the interior out. Made a flat plate for the bottom that will allow oil pan interchange easily and keep mice out when its parked in the shed. Then made another alum sheet metal cover for the valley and added some adapters for a HF engine tilter to be permanently installed. Bare block (no heads)weighed 120 lbs (per GM) when I started. Now with much of its innards removed and foam installed to fill the voids and keep critters out, heads installed along with the tilter, I'd guess it weighs somewhere around the same weight. The tilter will allow a trans to be installed while moching things up, and its a lot easier to move around than a complete engine. Headers can be test fitted too.


Go to the "Off Topic" Section and look for Moch Up Block and you can see the pictures

 

From the web,,,,,

 

Its a nicely made tool but I looked it up on their website and I think it was kinda expensive. I'm thinking a correct size round steel rod should slip thru all 3 hinges when they are in alignment. If some one wants an actual tool, put the round rod next to a pipe and lay some flat metal spacers between the rod and the pipe. Weld them slowly to prevent warping and after it cools, cut the rod and remove the extra metal. Check the price before you decide.

 

News flash,

Working in the shop today my reading glasses got so filthy I could barely see through them. Not wanting to take the time to go to the house to wash them I sprayed some carb cleaner on a paper towel and cleaned them.

Voila!!!

Glasses look brand new.

 

Don't do that with coated plastic lens!

 

How do you know if your plastic lenses are coated?

Btw, these are dollar store readers. Cheap at twice the price.

 

I only know my expensive prescription glasses are coated plastic lens. The droplets from many of the spray chemicals will destroy the coating and, therefore, the scratch protection. I'm guessing most cheap readers are glass lens. Coated plastic is lightweight and more expensive to produce.

 

Thanks.

 

Clean them with carb cleaner................

 

you can tell by his typing the lenses are hard to see through now!

 

With lens coatings we must also take care to not use Windex.
The ammonia will remove the coatings.
To answer why the coatings: They reduce UV ray damage and reflective glare.
They are also applied to inhibit scratching on plastic lenses.
Another thing to avoid is wiping the with paper towling.
Only blot away the water. I once ruined a pair with Bounty and Windex.
Still I use Bounty and half strength Dawn, by blotting them dty.

 

Talk about timing? Last night I was sitting in my local drinking establishment, having a brew , while the missus was playing her dominoe game with her friends, my old friend Henry walked it! He is about twenty years younger than me. We had a few and he was trying to read some small printing on his phone and was having trouble. So I handed him my pair of $2 readers. He looked confused, so I said put them on! He did! And it was fun to watch him….look at his phone with the readers, then with out,then with! He looked at me said I can see the fine print with these! Then he started looking at pictures of his grandchildren on his phone! Never saw a guy so amazed! See…I’m not a total a-hole! I do a good deed , occasionally!

PS. I gave him those readers! lol


Bones

 

Let a man use your glasses for a day and he will see for a day, give em a pair and he’ll see forever!
Ya did good sir!
Dan

 

I have posted this before, but can’t see it on this particular thread.
To take hubcaps off without damaging paint, use a cheap stiff plastic scraper/ trowel. 6” is good.
The wide edge should have a bevelled edge which can be wiggled under without damaging the paint.
Works better that a screwdriver……..
edit, I just see a similar idea in post 1074

 

Never thought you were, always seemed like a pretty affable guy from your posts...........

 

Ya gotta use the sarcasm emoji or people will take you seriously when they shouldn't.

 

No, wasn't being sarcastic.........I consider Boneyard to be one of the nicer, least assuming people on this site, and has good info and stories that I enjoy.

PS: @Boneyard51, I buy my "readers" at CostCo in boxes of 4. Must have a dozen pairs of glasses sitting around the house and shop.........and a new box in the drawer next to my computer when I still can't find them.

 

The remark was intended for @Boneyard51. No that it matters much.

 

I get my readers in quantities of 4 from Amazon. I seem to like those a little better than the ones from Wally World and the dollar stores. Slightly higher priced but not much.

 

If I get readers, will it help my spelling?

 

No you need spellers for that

 

I've had a 235 chevy 6 hanging on a cheapo (taiwan?) engine stand for at least 10 years with no apparent sagging...

 

For rejuvenating leather or rubber, Ballistol apparently works well (Google it)

 

Also good for locking stuff to your floor, including OT 2-wheelers

 

After seeing me at work with a pair of $2 readers taped in front of my safety glasses, someone gave me a set of safety glasses that had a 2.5 insert at the bottom of the lens. Great idea when you have to choose between seeing what you're doing or keeping crap out of your eyeballs.

 

Part 1:

Part 2: Replace phillips head with a good fastener...

 

I did one better. Eye doctor said I had pretty bad cataracts so recommended I get them fixed. I wasn't aware of that but was wearing many strengths of readers from the dollar store- one for distance, another one for closer, another one for near, double glasses for reading so I decided to see if lens replacement might fix that. WOW! First thing I found was white became white again with the old dirty lenses out. But the big thing - I opted to shell out for the fancy $$$$$ multifocal lenses. They have many concentric rings with different focal lengths and my brain decides which one I need for which depth. I now need zero glasses for anything except the tiniest fonts on ingredient labels. Colors are great, white is white and vision is better than 20/20 far, near, and close up. If you have to get cataracts fixed, save up and get the fancy lenses. You won't be sorry I promise.