Bike builders that have machine tools/shops

[Tom from Rubicon]

Tony, I wish I had your restraint.
Simplicity is not my specialty. If the Step-son's want an inheritance, they will have to have a auction.

Tom

 

[Greg58]

Tony, I wish I had your restraint.
Simplicity is not my specialty. If the Step-son's want an inheritance, they will have to have a auction.

Tom

That’s what my kids will have to do!

 

[Tom from Rubicon]

I just turned 72 this month.
Stopped working Spring of 2020 and took reading past midnight and never getting up before 8AM.

My old schedule was in bed by 9pm and at my bench ready to make company profit at 6:30am.
Six days a week. I have done a poor transition.

Tom

 

[Tony01]

Tony, I wish I had your restraint.
Simplicity is not my specialty. If the Step-son's want an inheritance, they will have to have a auction.

Tom

I just don’t like to have stuff that doesn’t make me money. Also my tools are sort of garbage. I’m the only one that can sell them for what they’re worth. If I could have it how I wanted it’d be a mini cnc shop... but I just don’t want to deal with all that stuff anymore. Something about keeping work at work and not taking it home. Anyway my builds nowadays are all drawn out in 3D first... so I could get all the angles and lengths so it looks how I want. If I worked a little harder at drawing I could have gotten everything laser cut and mitered. My harbor fright tubing notcher worked but has always been 2 degrees off. Stuff like that...

 

[Mossy]

Going from crap cheap tools to top dollar shop tools working tools to crap tools again... But I can't justify spending on something I don't use or reli on for an income... Middle of the road tools so I have a hint of quality and deal with it... I retired in '98 ... 20years later I think I'm just figuring out retired life... Years go by like minutes a decade feels like a month... Takes a month to do something that would take a few hours at work or on the weekend and cost nothing back in the swing of it...
Loose a transmission 20miles down a icy snowing hunting road and drag it out with a kids sled to town get a ride the last 5 Miles of it and rebuild the clutch and reverse and first planetary get ride with the guy at the parts store 10 miles back because he's only got 2 weel drive... By mornings first light have my deer and get in to camp by noon to play cards bull$hit smoke and drink till midnight...

 

[Greg58]

Going from crap cheap tools to top dollar shop tools working tools to crap tools again... But I can't justify spending on something I don't use or reli on for an income... Middle of the road tools so I have a hint of quality and deal with it... I retired in '98 ... 20years later I think I'm just figuring out retired life... Years go by like minutes a decade feels like a month... Takes a month to do something that would take a few hours at work or on the weekend and cost nothing back in the swing of it...
Loose a transmission 20miles down a icy snowing hunting road and drag it out with a kids sled to town get a ride the last 5 Miles of it and rebuild the clutch and reverse and first planetary get ride with the guy at the parts store 10 miles back because he's only got 2 weel drive... By mornings first light have my deer and get in to camp by noon to play cards bull$hit smoke and drink till midnight...

That’s a lot of info!

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

Here's a little video of my current shop that I've been working out of for the past four years...
It's a tight squeeze, but everything I need is in there, & I still have room to work.

(1) Facebook

 

[Greg58]

Norm I know you're a VW guy, I thought you would like this one. It's not mine but looks sharp to me.

 

[Greg58]

Now back to our regularly scheduled thread.

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

My Ice-cream Machine kicked the ice bucket. Actually the motor and gears are OK. It is just that of two machines for dirt cheap $15 each, I had one motor toasted after 30 years. The current one has plastic molded part on the bin lid (sort of gear) that engages with another plastic one the the motor output shaft.

So my idea is to either shim with some metal sheet and epoxy the worn part back to like new or find something made better.

I know I see just a few people rating machines for home use costing between $40, to fancy wood bucket (for show) at $100 saying they broke within a few months. Stuff is made the same with plastic part on both.

I would not mind paying more, but would want metal parts. Planned obsolescence.

See about a light bulb made since 1901, constantly running and still works.

Centennial Light - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Anyway I think maybe I could rechurn the ice-cream or see if it got enough done.

 

[Tom from Rubicon]

March is going out atmospherically about what I expect in SE Wisconsin.
Warming, storming and wet.
In like a pussy cat and out like a Bobcat.
Bandsaw blade broke a week ago. Time to butt weld the blade together again

 

[Tom from Rubicon]

My dearest friend's wife called this afternoon. Gene having Scarlet Fever as a kid, and inherited Dilated cardiomyopathy (enlargement of the heart) . His heart ran out of steam.
He survived Vietnam and went on to care for his father and the family dairy farm on Sand Hill. Ontario, WI
He was good at dairy farming.
His life and mine have been intertwined since the day we were born. Gene Peterson RIP

 

[Mossy]

Sorry for your loss

 

[Tom from Rubicon]

Sorry for your loss

Thank-you Mossy.
Gene Peterson was a easy going father of four, and when the kids went into a cat fight
Gene, would tell em to go at it. Reverse psychology. worked every time. He had a wicked clever smile.

Tom

 

[fasteddy]

That's sad news, Tom. When you've known someone your whole life it makes it even worse. My condolences to you and his wife and family.

Steve.

 

[curtisfox]

Yes I agree with Steve……..Curt

 

[Greg58]

Sad news, thoughts and prayers sent your way.

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

Sorry to hear about your friend, Tom...

 

[Mossy]

The quad springer is $163 cheaper than it was a few months ago... Sitting in my cart so in a few months I'll have another one... If it wasn't for a grand in carburetors this round I would have gotten another one and the steel frame...

 

[MEASURE TWICE]

Condolences on the loss of your long time friend. It is a hard time I suspect, I can hope that the good memories do last though.