Ace-Garageguy

Gobble, gobble, gobble...and remember to set your scales back 15 pounds.

Yes indeedee. Step right up. Get it while it's hot. The one, the only...

I think I'll see if I can develop a multifuel engine that runs on snake oil or hot air. Just think...endless free energy.

It certainly was a different world before social media, wasn't it?

And be sure to remember what the holiday is all about.

Yeah, you could probably truthfully say I'm a "handy guy".

I gotta agree. Years ago (I have a sizable collection of old mags, thanks), there were multi-page tech articles with a lot of writing, math, numbers, science...all that kind of boring old-fashioned geezer stuff.. Today it seems to be mostly ads between a few fluff articles apparently written with as few words as possible, and whose primary intent seems to be avoiding TLDR syndrome. But hey...anything you really need to know, you can just let Google vomit up the wrong answer, and repeat it endlessly while wowing everyone with your knowledge because now you're an expert. Facts and analysis and basic understanding? We don't need no stinkin' facts and analysis and basic understanding.

Yup...the one that just died is Proctor Silex. Good machine. I never really expected it to last as long as it did, and of course there's no preventative maintenance you can do to them to prolong their lives. Far as I know, there's nothing in it but an illuminated ON-OFF switch and a heating element, though I seem to remember hearing it click sometimes, like maybe it had a simple thermistor/transistor controlled physical relay, or maybe a bi-metal reed-switch, to control the temp...but probably not. Just out of curiosity I'll most likely open it up to see what failed. The ON light still works, but nobody's home. It may seem silly, but having a faithful mechanical servant die after 25 years makes me a little sad.

Wood should be perfectly adequate, and the shape looks great. I'd suggest some relatively hard surface coat, like epoxy or possibly a catalyzed urethane primer, sanded to at least a 1500-grit finish, and polished. The better the surface is, the better your part will be. You want to avoid thin spots where you can see the substrate through the surface coat if at all possible. If the wood isn't very hard and close-grained, you might get some vacuum-bleed through a thin spot, leading to local distortion, waviness, or a dull spot.

It'll take careful work with a good airbrush that has excellent atomization and precise fan-width adjustment...and practice.

Especially if it identifies as a flamethrower... Buttcha gotts to look at the bright side. Think how much fun it would be to toast marshmallows with a psychotic coffee maker.

See the "Numbers Are Hard" thread...

Cheapest coffee maker I could find within a couple of miles, to replace my old, faithful friend of 25 years who went to the great Starbucks in the sky early this AM. The coffee maker is dead. Long live the coffee maker.

One of these, mostly to get some parts recommended by a builder I have much respect for. About 1/2 the average price too.

That's real pretty...

My 25-year old coffee maker finally passed away this AM. I had to make cowboy coffee, as it's simply impossible for me to become fully conscious without a hefty belt of caffeine...or four. My old one had no bells, no whistles, no clock, no internet-connection, wouldn't remind me my dental appointment was coming up, or do the laundry while it cleaned the cat's box. It was just a simple, dumb machine. You put ground coffee in the filter basket, filled the chamber with a carafe-full of water, turned it to ON, and it made coffee...for 25 years. The cheapest one I could find today, without going out of my way and wasting time-is-money, is programmable, has lots of cool lights and a screen and pretty buttons that look like they're fun to push. I'll be surprised if it makes it to two years.

Not everything on the web is true and correct, but here are a few things to think about. EDIT: And for those short-attention-spanners suffering from TLDW (too long didn't watch) syndrome, it would appear the real card-reader scam is the folks selling anti-RFID wallets.

Or...ummm...just look at the receipt before you walk out the door.

Cool. An actual physical hobby shop tucked away in a back alley, surrounded by equally disreputable businesses I presume?

Thanks to your excellent and informative photos, I'm seeing just exactly what needs to be corrected on this little body shell to achieve the right look. There are several subtle but important flaws as-was. Most helpful.

To a chimp that can swing a hammer, pretty much everything looks like something to hammer on.

If you haven't already, be sure to look at Pierre Rivard's to see more...

Thanks again for everyone's interest and comments. I'm always glad when somebody can learn something useful from me, as I've learned a whole lot of good stuff from other builders here.

My daily lament.