Building a work shop

[fasteddy]

Greg,

I've always said that there are only so many things that you can experience in life but it seems that anyone who messes with tools lives most of them. Must be our mind set that does it.
If a problem arises we all seem to tackle it the same way. Some of us more completely than others. I'm more the extension cord (or 3 or 4) type of guy where my brother would rewire the house.

One trike in the permanent temporary building. One bike and sidecar in the trailer and half a one in the garage and none of them work. More tools than I ever dreamed of and I had to buy two stacking tool boxes to keep the dust off them. Shelves full of parts for future builds and I'm buying more parts just because those parts need them.

The family's talking intervention but I can stop just as soon as I see a need and a reason to.

Steve

 

[Greg58]

Steve you sound just like me! Dan below is a link to a voltage drop calculator.

http://www.nooutage.com/vdrop.htm

 

[rustycase]

200ft!!!

Gosh, Dan... did Carol get a court order???
that's just about a legal distance!

Greg is correct. ditto, and all that... You're not gonna be able to do much more than run a sidewinder to cut boards, and it's gonna wind up to speed at that kinda distance on a drop cord. and it will probably bog in power and overheat!
You could run a couple small lights or a charger, overnight...

Gosh.
200ft, and probably farther to the service panel...
You should probably run #6's at least, to a small sub-panel in the shop.
That ain't gonna come cheap! ...1000ft spool!

Yep.. a 50amp 220v feed to a sub-panel where you can split it off to what you need. There will be some loss, but you'll get plenty enough for what you'll probably do out there except for real serious heavy duty welding.

Goodluck, Dan!
rc

 

[fasteddy]

Dan,

My buddy in New Hampshire was on his way to buy a shovel to dig a trench to bury a water line that was about 300' long. He drove by the local heavy equipment dealer and stopped in to see about renting a small backhoe to do the job since N.H. is called the Granite State for good reason.
Salesman and he was indeed a salesman, runs the innocent victim out to the back row to show him an old whezzer of a backhoe that he was guaranteed to be able to sell for what he paid for it when he was done. This thing was so bad it had a 55 gallon oil drum strapped to the top of it just to keep up with the leaks.

They did deliver it after dark so his wife and the neighbor couldn't see it and I suspect they taped paper over the company name on the doors so if they were seen they couldn't be positively identified.
Took 3 weeks to get it operational as well as a huge amount of money since the sale was final as stated on the bill of sale so there were no returns but before he got the bucket in the ground half the neighbor had something they wanted done and the rest of them wanted to see if he was any good before they hired them. Not bad for a guy who only had a very vague ideal of which end of a shovel went into the ground.

He did quit his job after a few months and sold that hoe for way less than he in it and bought a new and larger excavator and a dump truck to tow it on the new trailer. He never did put the water line in because he had to build a building to house all the other equipment he found he needed and it had to be on commercial land.

He sold the business before every thing crashed and bought a small back hoe and a small dump truck and just does what he feels like. When your rich you can afford to do that. I still raze him once in a while about heading off to get a shovel and he usually replies that if I keep it up he can think of a new and rather unusual use for it.

Steve.

 

[Dan]

Steve you sound just like me! Dan below is a link to a voltage drop calculator.

http://www.nooutage.com/vdrop.htm

Thanks Greg! Trying to work it out.

200ft!!!

Gosh, Dan... did Carol get a court order???
that's just about a legal distance!

Greg is correct. ditto, and all that... You're not gonna be able to do much more than run a sidewinder to cut boards, and it's gonna wind up to speed at that kinda distance on a drop cord. and it will probably bog in power and overheat!
You could run a couple small lights or a charger, overnight...

Gosh.
200ft, and probably farther to the service panel...
You should probably run #6's at least, to a small sub-panel in the shop.
That ain't gonna come cheap! ...1000ft spool!

Yep.. a 50amp 220v feed to a sub-panel where you can split it off to what you need. There will be some loss, but you'll get plenty enough for what you'll probably do out there except for real serious heavy duty welding.

Goodluck, Dan!
rc

LOL, Rusty. No, she did not get a court order. (yet)

Dan,

My buddy in New Hampshire was on his way to buy a shovel to dig a trench to bury a water line that was about 300' long. He drove by the local heavy equipment dealer and stopped in to see about renting a small backhoe to do the job since N.H. is called the Granite State for good reason.
Salesman and he was indeed a salesman, runs the innocent victim out to the back row to show him an old whezzer of a backhoe that he was guaranteed to be able to sell for what he paid for it when he was done. This thing was so bad it had a 55 gallon oil drum strapped to the top of it just to keep up with the leaks.

They did deliver it after dark so his wife and the neighbor couldn't see it and I suspect they taped paper over the company name on the doors so if they were seen they couldn't be positively identified.
Took 3 weeks to get it operational as well as a huge amount of money since the sale was final as stated on the bill of sale so there were no returns but before he got the bucket in the ground half the neighbor had something they wanted done and the rest of them wanted to see if he was any good before they hired them. Not bad for a guy who only had a very vague ideal of which end of a shovel went into the ground.

He did quit his job after a few months and sold that hoe for way less than he in it and bought a new and larger excavator and a dump truck to tow it on the new trailer. He never did put the water line in because he had to build a building to house all the other equipment he found he needed and it had to be on commercial land.

He sold the business before every thing crashed and bought a small back hoe and a small dump truck and just does what he feels like. When your rich you can afford to do that. I still raze him once in a while about heading off to get a shovel and he usually replies that if I keep it up he can think of a new and rather unusual use for it.

Steve.

Har, 2 funny. Honestly Steve. You could just take a lot of your posts, put em together and would make a book I would love to read. Title suggestion; "follow that car"

 

[fasteddy]

Follow that car! Dan, I'd forgotten about that. I was going to call N.H. and ask him just what brand of shovel he had planned on buying. It's always good to listen to him sputter a little before he realizes it's me once again. It's to late in the evening so I'll get him tomorrow. Thank Heavens for distance because I know I'm safe.

It always has amazed me how life takes some people along and not others. Digger was just working a dead end warehouse type job and wound up an accidental millionaire. He worked hard for it but it just intrigues me how life changes for some people with out them planning it.

We have to get together and do that book. Between us we have enough to make sure they don't put it down until the last page is read. Maybe it would be our turn.

Steve

 

[Dan]

Made me think of a thing, Steve. Mike Rowe from "Dirty Jobs" on the Discovery Chanel did an interview on NPR.

One of the things he said stuck with me. This guy had been a therapist but quit it to go into portapotties or the like. Mr. Rowe asked why he left a white collar thing for human waste. The reply was "I got sick of taking peoples crap"

The guy ended up rich and more importantly, happier. (and cracked me up)

Yrs back, we had a drain cleaning business. (like rotto-rooter) My battle cry was "some men are born to ****. Others have **** trust upon them."

In the plumbing industry, getting covered in human waste is referred to as getting "baptized" and really, really unpleasant. But pays well. So....

 

[fasteddy]

Dan,

You've done it again brother. In 1968 I needed a job and someone had one. It was replacing septic systems in houses in a built up area. Flush the tank as best you can and the new guy went inside to bust it up with a sledge hammer. That and digging up the old tiles was not a dream job but as you said it paid well.

Owner and I had a brief discussion one day and after he stayed ahead of me and my Garant #4 shovel for a couple of blocks. I got in my car and went home and my career in the plumbing business came to an end.

Six months later I was delivering for a wholesale hardware company and one of the stops was the same plumbing company that I worked for. I was delivering a couple of dozen Garant #4 shovels and I took one into the office and there was the owner sitting at his desk and I leave you to imagine the look on his face when he saw me lumber in the door with the shovel in my hand and I asked him where he wanted it.

Life is sometimes better than it should be.

Steve.

 

[Greg58]

Rusty described what I did, mine is 100 feet from panel to panel using #6 direct burial 3 conductors with a ground. It is in PVC conduit. I have a 100 amp panel in the shop with a 60 amp breaker feeding it from the house, never have tripped the 60amp so total load for the shop is not that high. I have run my welder, air compressor and 10 overhead light fixtures along with the refrigerator with no problem.

 

[Dan]

Got the mill/lathe not only in the shop, but up on the shelf! Took 2 men and a Carol. (the later being worth a good bit more then the former)

We lumped the 423LBS onto a trailer towed by a lawn tractor. Slid it in to the shop with relative ease. But the thing had to be lifted 3 feet. We made a ramp, block and tackle and just grunted "Larry" along.

"What will we do with a drunken sailor?
Early in the morning

Way hay and up she rises
Way hay and up she rises"

Took a bit but got her on top. (lol, stop it Tom)

I plugged Larry in and to my great joy and surprise, did not trip the breaker. Then I turned on the lights and radio. Switched Larry back on and still didn't trip the breaker.

Gives me some breathing room $ wise. A bit of a great thing about now.



Post Script. Every time I called the thing "Larry" today, Carol laughed. (she has a wonderful and infectious laugh) When asked, I blamed you, BA.

 

[2door]

Nothing of interest to read on the forum?
Nothing good on TV?
Wife have a headache?

Go back to page one of this thread and start reading. You'll have an evening of entertainment, guaranteed.
What a fun romp this has been.

(And whatever happened to the fox from page 23?

Tom

 

[Dan]

Tom, was drinking a cup of coffee the other morning waiting for sun to get a little higher to get out here to build some shelves. Got to thinking about this thread. Then remembered that I forgot to paint a giant bird, black hole and put a giant dowl on the butt end of the building so it looked like the worlds biggest bird house.

I don't get out here a whole lot. But that morning when I did, I noticed a box on a high shelf had twigs sticking out of the top. After a few minutes a bird flys in where the sophit (SP) should be under the eve. Looks at me. I look at her, and she flys back out. A minute later, comes back in and jumps in the box. LOL, I was very surprised to learn how many breaks birds take. Always assumed they woke up and went around looking for food all day. Nope. They go home often and seem to just hang out. My tenet, any way. (Bet she believes her self to be the land lord though)

Think we are getting used to each other although I doubt I am welcomed. Been leaving food up on the top plate.

Carol and I sat in here Sunday and watched a netflix movie. My friend flew in and out a few times. 1st time Carol looked very surprised. Happily so but think she thought I made it up or some thing. snork.

 

[Dan]

LOL, now I have to apologize to birds. Turns out Mom and Dad Bird look identical and I thought it was the same bird coming back to the nest. Was just sitting here pretending to work when Mom flew in one side and the Dad in the other.

We here at Shelly transportation do apologize for our unfortunate suggestion that birds are slackers and take many breaks during the day.

Birds are an industrious and hard working species. Of whom we have only great respect for. (and please don't sue us)

Man! I hope I am not interrupting feeding babies. They both just came in with stuff.

Real question. I don't hear any chick, chirps and this late in the year, could they still be raising lil ones?

Mom and Dad look like sparrows but with kinda long, curved beaks and this is the dead center of Connecticut.

 

[Dan]

This is odd. Now the chicks (turns out they are there) chirp madly when Mom or Dad come in with food but stop as soon as they leave.

Bummer part is the box the nest is in, is on top of a text book from school that I could really use right now. Dang kids. Always in the way.

Really wondering how they are gonna learn to fly from the top of 5ft shelf, inside a shed.

 

[rustycase]

I can see it now, Dan...

First of the room additions!

A runway for takeoff, and an aviary...

Or,

The Winchester Mystery House.

rc

 

[Dan]

LOL Rusty.

No kidding, now as I make any sounds or noise, the lil ones start screaming and can see a lil open mouth above the box top asking for food. Sounds like there is at least 4 of them in there. Can only see one pop up. $20,000 and all's I have to show for it is some baby birds.

LOL, and am kinda thrilled.

wut? Like the world would stop with out the next incarnation of a MB kit?

 

[Dan]

Dad bird just flew in. He had a beak of food for the kids but was POed. Screeched at me, gave the what ever to the kids. Then screeched at me and flew out.

ruff day at work, I'm guessing.

 

[rustycase]

OK, Dan,

I'll admit I got birds, too.

Mine are disadvantaged low income birds, though, without a fancy condo in someone's back yard.

Between tasks in my garden, I sit under a large bush which has a potting table, chairs, and a lot of empties around it...

A bluejay stopped by regular, so I set out a few bits of dry dogfood.
Now he will eat them from my hand.

A week ago he brought a friend... younger, not fully feathered... probably his offspring.. it sqauwks as he takes a bit of the dogfood over and puts it in his mouth. So now the little guy has learned to eat dogfood, and he learned really fast to land on my palm and grab a piece of kibble!

These are scrub jays...

What kind are yours?


rc

 

[2door]

A robin built a nest on top of our front porch light. Char was watching the progress and I wanted to tear it down. Didn't want bird doo-doo on the front of the house. She won and the nest stayed. Soon there were little ones and Char would watch the parents bring food to them. They were getting bigger and almost ready to leave the nest.

One day she was out front when a red tail hawk swooped in right over her head, snatched a baby robin out of the nest and flew off with it. Not once, but twice! He took them to a pine tree across the street and had dinner. Char was out there throwing rocks at him.
Nature can be cruel by our standards but hey, everything has to eat. Right?

Tom

 

[Dan]

LOL, Rusty! "disadvantaged low income birds"

Living in Carol's ancestral home, our birds are upper middle class of high degree and easily insulted.

Is to funny. I will be mowing the lawn and people will stop and yell at me as I of course do not understand English, "How much!? you mow my lawn. How much? (I'm Irish and Russian but stocky, short and poorly dressed) I reply; Wut? And they yell louder; "YOU MOW MY YARD? HOW MUCH YOU CHARGE? I say back; "wut?" LOL, on a good day, I can get em to yell this 4 times, at me. Then I go back to mowing my lawn.