Firewood Crib Build: Part Uno

Mario had a big arse oak tree cut down so I was able to scavenge some nice firewood for the winter. The only problem is Idon't have a proper firewood crib to stack the wood in so that it will dry adequately to burn well by winter, and so that the pile won't topple over atop myself, or any innocent bystander. I have therefore decided to make a firewood crib from some 2x4's and a bed frame that I salvaged. I have just a rough picture in my head of how this project will come together, but I've already started cutting steel so hopefully it comesMy coworker together alright. So far I've cut up the bed frame and removed the casters and such by drilling
out the rivets that hold them on. It was a bit of a PITA to do so because my drill bits are apparently crap. That, and the automatic center runch that I got from Metro Tool flattened its point after the first two blows. Oh and "runch" was not a typo. That's actually what the cheap Chinese tool said on the package. That's how you know that it's a quality tool. I've also cut the arms that will connect the two angle iron beams together to form the base of the crib. It would be really nice if I had a cut-off saw to do this, or even if the battery was charged in my sawzall. Alas, neither was the case so the situation required the trusty ol' hacksaw. There are brackets already attached to one end of each of the beams on which the headboard would normally be fastened. This will be a handy way of attaching the 2x4's to one end of the base. The other end will require that I fabricate and weld a bracket on for the same purpose. For the bracket I'll just use the angle iron that I cut from the cross beams earlier. That's all for part one. Stay tuned for part 2 where I discuss the perils of drilling without properly fixturing the workpiece, and how much it hurts to be hit in the testicles by a rapidly spinning piece of angle iron.

From guns to cars: Using advanced polymers from firearms to fabricate parts for my RC car.

While I wait for some replacement parts to arrive from Tower Hobbies I've decided to fabricate some parts for my old RC10. I decided to use some plastic parts from work that are otherwise going to be thrown away. They are made out of a polymer called polyphtalamide which is a relatively new polymer that is most commonly used in the automotive industry. Lee and I decided to use it because of it's dimensional stability and stiffness. That, and we found that a high priced European rifle had used it in a similar application. Some people may consider that to be copying someone else's idea; we prefer to consider it "reverse engineering". Anyway, this stuff is pretty sweet so I've hacked up the parts with a Dremel and a utility knife and made a transmission brace and battery hold down bar. I'll probably end up fashioning the body out of gun parts if it remains back-ordered too long.

Remote Control Carnage

I recently dusted off the ammo box containing my old remote control car. I'm not sure what made me decide to get back into toying with it again since it has sat in that box for the past fifteen years or so. It didn't take me long to remember why I gave up the hobby. First off, I've lost many of the small but integral parts. I've fixed that for the most part through many trips to the hobby shop near work. So, now I've spent $100 or so to get it back in running shape; meaning that it goes forward, reverse and it turns. It still lacks a body to cover the innards and a cover for the exposed transmission gears. So I've chased the dog around the back yard three times. This last time I managed to break one of the steering blocks. Now, this part is very cheap to buy at about $2, however, it takes weeks to get a new one because the car is so old that most places don't keep parts in stock. I've ordered some parts now I have to wait for them to come. Stupid RC cars.