Smart Shop tips!

[sea2summit]

When you’ve got those pliers/side cutters/fence tools/etc that won’t fall open or open as easily as you want find an old sawzall blade, cut it off at about 3” long, drill a hole and make a solid loop of wire. Chuck up one handle of the tool in a vice, apply a generous amount of lube, loop the loop of wire around the other handle (tape or otherwise protect the handle), attach sawzall, run for about five minutes. Works like a champ.

 

[JK22]

When you’ve got those pliers/side cutters/fence tools/etc that won’t fall open or open as easily as you want find an old sawzall blade, cut it off at about 3” long, drill a hole and make a solid loop of wire. Chuck up one handle of the tool in a vice, apply a generous amount of lube, loop the loop of wire around the other handle (tape or otherwise protect the handle), attach sawzall, run for about five minutes. Works like a champ.
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Pretty clever. I like it.

 

[radios1]

Always buy another box of nitrile gloves as soon as you open one...especially during the last 12 months.

still, not safe around machinery that can grab your glove, and pull your hand into extreme danger!!. imagine your hand, and arm being pulled off your body by a 10HP machine!.. I used to run those!.. and I never allowed anything but plain paper rags in there, because of the extreme danger of it.. welding is an exception, because of the extreme heat, but that's about it..

 

[dragoneggs]

Always buy another box of nitrile gloves as soon as you open one...especially during the last 12 months.

Indeed, I was sort of stocking up on HF 5mil gloves when they would go on sale. Covid has definitely caused my stock to dwindle.

 

[GeneV]

Me, I'm not worried wearing disposable nitrile gloves, and I work on a lathe and mill. Anything that would pull my hand in with the glove I'm sure would pull my hand in while not wearing a rubber glove.

After working for years with wd40 (I mostly machine aluminum), the skin on my right hand is permanently damaged, so I now wear gloves when machining.

That could be my smart shop tip for this thread: don't allow wd40 prolonged exposure to your skin.

Another tip is, wear nitrile gloves! I like wearing them now, very convenient. Hands grimy and I gotta go take a pee? Easy.

 

[the old grind]

My tip for the day is to re-purpose long appliance cords for battery chargers/tricklers & task lighting. (weld much?)

Cords from old vacuum cleaners are long and durable (fiber reinforced). Long pool pump and electric pressure washer cords must be vetted for cold weather flexibility (HFT-anything, btw) or be planned to be left in place as alt to outlets, etc.

All 'wet' batteries will self-discharge when sitting, Gel/SLA the least but they still will. Anything that sits for weeks at a time deserves something. A car/truck battery that's run 2x/wk will far outlast a tractor battery (o'sized for svc life, considering common use) that's run 2x/mo. Life expectancy is proportional to time spent topped up, period.

btw, I have six or so tricklers, and Battery-Minder 1500/1510 is my #1. (YMMV) Dual-battery trucks get maintainers rotated weekly whether equipped with isolator (F-450) or separate/spare (Chev 2500 HD). I'm rotating six chargers/tricklers/maintainers between > a dozen batteries in vehicles and three spares in waiting. (also for trolling motor & 15 gal 12v sprayer) A $50 gizmo that'll > dub'l the life of three or so $100+ batteries is just Scottish of me.

 

[fried1765]

My tip for the day is to re-purpose long appliance cords for battery chargers/tricklers & task lighting. (weld much?)

Cords from old vacuum cleaners are long and durable (fiber reinforced). Long pool pump and electric pressure washer cords must be vetted for cold weather flexibility (HFT-anything, btw) or be planned to be left in place as alt to outlets, etc.

All 'wet' batteries will self-discharge when sitting, Gel/SLA the least but they still will. Anything that sits for weeks at a time deserves something. A car/truck battery that's run 2x/wk will far outlast a tractor battery (o'sized for svc life, considering common use) that's run 2x/mo. Life expectancy is proportional to time spent topped up, period.

btw, I have six or so tricklers, and Battery-Minder 1500/1510 is my #1. (YMMV) Dual-battery trucks get maintainers rotated weekly whether equipped with isolator (F-450) or separate/spare (Chev 2500 HD). I'm rotating six chargers/tricklers/maintainers between > a dozen batteries in vehicles and three spares in waiting. (also for trolling motor & 15 gal 12v sprayer) A $50 gizmo that'll > dub'l the life of three or so $100+ batteries is just Scottish of me.

I have a total of 17 Battery Maintainers/Tenders.
I do not rotate.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

The Wife just hates it when I lick the butter knife before sticking it back in the butter.:licking: (just kidding)

I saw my FIL do that once with a spoon in a serving bowl. Uh, none for me.

 

[chim]

At a picnic, guy across the table ate a fork full of whatever and then used the fork to cut a piece of pie. Yuk.

 

[PILOON]

I recently purchased a bundle of , I'll call them 'cord keepers' on the web.
They are short double sided Velcro strips designed to coil computer and power cords.
They have a slit on one end so as to be able to loop them onto your cord.
I now have every corded power tool sporting one as well as my many extensions.
Sure prevents tangled messes of cord.

 

[PILOON]

Another:
Nitrate gloves doing tractor oil changes never worked for me.
I'd end up just as dirty, greasy as if not wearing any.

I now have a dedicated pair of HD rubberized gloves like used to clean toilets, no more tears!
I spray them with WD40 and wipe B4 removing them which leaves them reasonably clean for next time.

While on WD40, after rinsing paint brushes I liberally spray WD on the bristles.
They then keep nice and soft 'til next used and just a simple rinsing in a thinner preps them for the new painting job.

Also discovered WD40 sprayed on my dirty greasy tractor dirty hands wipes off 95% (flushes?) hands to acceptable presentable condition.
Seems to 'float' off the crap to the point that simple soap/water makes them lunch time ready.
I discovered this once when I needed to grab my phone and was so greasy that I probably would have dropped it.

 

[dragoneggs]

Can't remember if I or someone mentioned this one... use shop air to briefly inflate your nitrile gloves to remove them. Easier to get them off and the air will dry the insides so you can use them again if not too dirty.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Can't remember if I or someone mentioned this one... use shop air to briefly inflate your nitrile gloves to remove them. Easier to get them off and the air will dry the insides so you can use them again if not too dirty.

Good one

 

[Ford850]

Can't remember if I or someone mentioned this one... use shop air to briefly inflate your nitrile gloves to remove them. Easier to get them off and the air will dry the insides so you can use them again if not too dirty.

I go a step further and have a couple clothes pins hanging from wires. After blowing my gloves open I slip them off and hang them by the cuff to keep them open and dry for next time. I only do that if they are relatively clean or will dry (varnish, paint, etc) Some projects I can get 5 or 10 uses out of the gloves.

 

[jjp8182]

....hang them by the cuff to keep them open and dry for next time.

Also a good thing to do with other types of gloves to let them dry out. Almost all of my work gloves are clothespinned (in pairs palm to palm) so the gloves hang open and dry between uses. It's also helps keep them from getting smelly and funky (in a bad way).

Not fun to slip on a glove that's still wet from sweat (or even rain) from the prior day. ...even worse if it's already started to smell.

 

[the old grind]

Dad would say "smells like the inside of a motorman's glove" .. (I'll just copy & paste that into the ".. know you're old when" thread.)

 

[fried1765]

Can't remember if I or someone mentioned this one... use shop air to briefly inflate your nitrile gloves to remove them. Easier to get them off and the air will dry the insides so you can use them again if not too dirty.

Thanks !

 

[user.69169]

You guys sound like studyin up fer admission test to Granny Clampett Medical School.

Just squirt gob of dishwash soap in hand, rub in and let dry or wipe extra off. Get done wid job wash crud off hands.

Crisko real good hand cleaneer too, best you swipe can out of kitchen if married. Wimmen get real mad about dirt mixed in der can of Crisco.

Greasy clothes, pour ammonia in washer wid clothes. Tub grreasy throw some ammonia in and run HOT cycle to clean. Better den listening to yelling.

 

[pmsmechanic]

Can't remember if I or someone mentioned this one... use shop air to briefly inflate your nitrile gloves to remove them. Easier to get them off and the air will dry the insides so you can use them again if not too dirty.

I just turn mine inside out as I take them off and leave them like that to dry out. If I want to use them again just hold a hopefully clean cuff against your mouth and blow them back inside in. It's quick and convenient and if they are too dirty it just doesn't happen!

 

[Gem99ultra]

Also a good thing to do with other types of gloves to let them dry out. Almost all of my work gloves are clothespinned (in pairs palm to palm) so the gloves hang open and dry between uses. It's also helps keep them from getting smelly and funky (in a bad way).

Not fun to slip on a glove that's still wet from sweat (or even rain) from the prior day. ...even worse if it's already started to smell.

When I pull mine off I just grab the top edge and pull them off, leaving them inside out. I leave them that way until the next use (if they last that long), then use the air hose to blow them back right side out. At the new high prices for nitrile gloves, I try to use them more than once to save a few pennies.