Perry Owens
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I'm not fanatical about it but I do what I can to reduce variability. I batch brass and bullets by manufacturer and weight, fire-form and then neck size brass, trim to consistent length and use a collet crimper
- Thread starter monkeymark
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dobbslc
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1600w! A beast.
...a somewhat tidier mancave.
Been off work sick for the past few weeks after recent events prompted a visit from the black dog. The little sod is a constant companion and over the years I’ve developed numerous strategies for keeping him at bay, but occasionally he gets close enough to have a snap at me, and when he does, the only way I can deal with him is to work until I literally fall asleep. Soooo, have had a purge throughout the house this week and have got rid of a monumental amount of junk that’s been clogging up my life for far too long, and finally got round to making inroads into the mancave. (When you stand back and look as dispassionately as you can, it’s frightening just how much stuff we keep is useless clutter...)
Before, all manner of junk piled up on the bench and clogging up the floor:
After, junk sorted and a full-length shelf fitted under the bench using gash timber and some old t&g floorboards, with plenty left for another of the same under the bench behind the sheet of checker plate:
Et voila, a usable bench:
Keeping the momentum going, I have some tool racks to fit on the walls and better lighting to sort out. Then as well as having room to work, I’ll be able to see what I’m doing. Result!
Been off work sick for the past few weeks after recent events prompted a visit from the black dog. The little sod is a constant companion and over the years I’ve developed numerous strategies for keeping him at bay, but occasionally he gets close enough to have a snap at me, and when he does, the only way I can deal with him is to work until I literally fall asleep. Soooo, have had a purge throughout the house this week and have got rid of a monumental amount of junk that’s been clogging up my life for far too long, and finally got round to making inroads into the mancave. (When you stand back and look as dispassionately as you can, it’s frightening just how much stuff we keep is useless clutter...)
Before, all manner of junk piled up on the bench and clogging up the floor:
After, junk sorted and a full-length shelf fitted under the bench using gash timber and some old t&g floorboards, with plenty left for another of the same under the bench behind the sheet of checker plate:
Et voila, a usable bench:
Keeping the momentum going, I have some tool racks to fit on the walls and better lighting to sort out. Then as well as having room to work, I’ll be able to see what I’m doing. Result!
MikeBB1970
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- Hayling Island UK
Looking good 4string. Always feels good to tidy. I've tidied lately and given away stuff to a mate who ebays a lot and he's given me good lathe tools in return over time.
Envy the decent work bench area..
Envy the decent work bench area..
northwest
Searching for the Holy Grail.........
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- Manchester UK
I would question that. I am not trying to be clever I have had the Hornady unit, the Lyman unit and a Lyman stand alone digital scales (still have these for some reason). I have gone back to a couple of analogue RCBS scales. Far more accurate, consistently.
Also, spherical powder doesn't meter well with Auto Powder throwers for some reason.
slim_boy_fat
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Nice job there, Martyn.
This last while, any horizontal surface has been deadly for me, but I've kicked myself up the arris and now make a point of putting everything back when I've finished the job I've used it for, instead of leaving it and grabbing something else. 
ronan
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It really does, heading out into a workspace thats like a pigsty is depressing. Keep a place clean and tidy and you are happier in it.
ronan
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I think those Mic's are Mitutoyu's with a different badge on them. Good gear no matter what.
zx9
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That was what I thought, I have an identical Mitutoyu even has the same plastic case. I don't remember what I paid for it some time in the early 90's it would have been.
Wallace
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- Staines, Middlesex, England.
Some of my neighbours use similar gear, for growing their gear.
I have an identical Mitutoyo 0-25mm micrometer circa 1991, same box colour and similar dirt.
It has been raining in Staines.
Farside
Badly Welded Man
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Result!
Yes, it appears to be the case, from a quick scout around.
The other, considerably scruffier one of the pair, is a M&W that probably works perfectly well but I'll use it for pedestrian tasks like measuring brake discs and holding clipboards to the desk.
A tenner for the pair of them. Seemed rude to turn it down.
Wallace
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- Staines, Middlesex, England.
A matching pair of Vernier Micrometers is the only option for such menial tasks. Their opulently lined wooden cases make such wonderful ashtrays in polite company.
Today I acquired......
NiCad batteries with no date from faulty backup lighting. They’re going to be like new, honestly, a year old at most. 7 years the company has been in the building. My Sealey 3/8” impact may live again for a short while.
Last edited:
I do have now....
How will you make them fit? These cells are D, and most NiCd cordless tools use Sub-C.
Wallace
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I will just bundle them up for now with tape as it has been so long since the Sealey impact wrench has been used I cannot remember if I stopped using it because the batteries were u/s, the charger went phut or the wrench faulty. I might be confusing the Sealey with a Hitachi drill where the charger packed up, the wrench used to live in my works van on an inverter and has been sat on a shelf at least 15 years unused and I pulled it down at the weekend in a clearout.
DAPPH
as dyslexik as I'm daft
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Ardy . you should have put fire proof deflector with a hole in it in front of the blower and then had the blower set back an inch or more from the hole , the blown air to pass through the hole into a metal trumpet bell shape to the furnace .. that way there is not conductive path or radiation path for the furnace heat to travel back and melt you blower . Having the trumpet bell will also make a venturi if it is not too narrow so you might get an even greater air flow through it
Again don't put the metal tube into the furnace body
Next time you come here remind me to show you my furnace and home made gas venturi burner .
DAPPH
as dyslexik as I'm daft
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Nice job there, Martyn.
Getting into the habit of take it out and put it back if it's not going to be used in the next 15 min is hard , especially if you've not done that before . No need to get neurotic and put the bit back and take it out 10 times a minute though , be sensible about it .
As I was recovering from a stroke about seven years ago it was easier than I thought to do that in my mancupboard, but I did cheat and have a big board above my work area with " PUT IT BACK , before you move to the next stage" in 1/2 " marker pen .
I also had to put another reminder above my lathe about safety and the need to use both hands as the stroke had left me with problems in my hands and arms .
All those extra thought through movements seem to have helped me in getting going again , I'm back to optimum mobility & brain recovery ( said under my breath … " for an old git of nearly 70 yrs old) "
slim_boy_fat
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Sorry, I didn't explain myself fully
- I do wait until the job's finished [or at least until the day is] before 'tidying'. As a gormless apprentice let loose on lathes and mills bigger than the average house, I had it drummed into me by the boss and the old hands to be tidy and methodical. Sadly, over the years that habit had faded to the point where these days I seem to spend more time looking for the right tool than actually doing the job!!
The past 2 weeks have been an incredible revelation to me in that I’ve gone through very cupboard and receptacle in the house, mancave, van, and greenhouse, and the amount of useless tat that was lurking has been quite breathtaking. For example, why would I need 6 shovels in the shed, or 8, yes 8, 1/2” socket sets in the mancave, 5 pairs of identical neoprene gloves in my dive kit, etc, etc.
Considering what this thread is all about, getting rid of superfluous gear has metaphorically lifted a great weight off of my shoulders, and made life simpler in that I can now walk onto the mancave and take 10 minutes to do a 10 minutes job, as opposed to 10 minute to do the job after 20 minutes wading through junk...
