Smart Shop tips!

[dragoneggs]

I suggest that your sewing is quite good. :thumbsup:

Many of us struggle to get the thread & bobbin tensions right for the material we sew.

Proves a guy can do more domestic stuff than just cook dinner.

btw, I've been doing laundry & dishes for 50 yrs. We can do this s__.

You're right, TOG, but some things I have deliberately been very slow to learn.

 

[jjp8182]

Thanks. You're very kind!
I sew on machine once a year, maybe. I worked next door to an upholstery shop years ago and enjoyed talking with the guys (I was watching though and picking up tips ). I got up nerve and reupholstered a chair we have. To me it wasn't difficult. I'd love to have one of those industrial sewing machines like they had.
There's no masculine or feminine in being able to do things! Now if I could only cook!

When it comes to cooking it helps to follow a recipe (I know that's an awful lot like reading the directions and not everyone likes doing that ) ....and then just start making variations/substitutions to it that you think you'd enjoy the taste of when it comes to eating.

Different types of cooking oils impart different flavors, spices can be changed tweaked for personal preferences -- one exception to that being some of the things (like salt & baking powder/baking soda) used in baking where the chemical reactions are needed to get things to rise.

Really it's not all that different than creating some new gizmo ...well, other than most people generally understand what different foods taste like which makes things that much easier (especially when it comes to attempting to reverse engineer a dish so it can be copied and/or tweaked for personal preferences).

...and personally I find it's always more enjoyable to go tinker on projects after a good meal (or with the expectation that a good meal will be had following the project).

 

[jjp8182]

"One may learn by reading, a few may learn by observing others, the rest just have to pee on the electric fence."

After working as many years as I have as an engineer reviewing the work of others I think I'd add: "....then there are those who believe they're *educated* and may never actually learn". While it's most frequently the fresh out of college engineers (though not all of them) the attitude can be really bad with engineers who have changed jobs frequently enough that they've never really & fully experienced the consequences of their mistakes/failures. Generally not a whole lot of them around, but the amount of damage and delays they can cause when they show up......

Really makes me appreciate working with those who have worked other careers (beyond just engineering), have the experience or otherwise fall into the original unaltered electric fence quote. ....also makes the case for knowing when to just scrap (most of) what's been done and start over vs. implementing some changes/repairs.

 

[the old grind]

College teaches kids that Latin spelling and pronunciation is all wrong. There always should have been two Ts in datta. And a high tech procissy is more complicated than we thought.

Of course that's just my take. I have few witnessies to back me up. (witnesseese?)

 

[BackRoad]

Nice job on the sewing! Nothing unmanly about that!

My commercial truck driving, heavy equipment mechanicing brother-in-law sews quilts in his spare time...he just has to wash his hands real good before he does it!!!

 

[Fuddy1952]

The guy who ran upholstery shop next door years ago was also a local heavyweight boxer!
Years ago wife & I went to a fabric store with another couple, contractor and his wife. My wife got some doll clothes patterns and I said I'd pay for it. The check out girl said to me... "Soooo...you make DOLL clothes?" Contractor friend overheard her, walked over and said "We both do...but we smoke cigars and curse the whole time".

 

[PILOON]

Speaking of sewing-----
We have 2 machines, (his and hers)!

Mine is a Consew industrial style.
Paid $25. for it at a gov't auction.
I don't use it all that often but sure nice for upholstery and tarp repairs, only wish it were a walking foot for the real tough jobs.
LOL, I can now add sewing machine mechanic to my CV as I had to learn how to adjust and tune it up.
Good thing is it uses the same bobbins as my wife's.

 

[the old grind]

I fixed two zig zags for a friends quilting wife. Both were post-patent Singer clones like my Kenmore vs contrat make for Sears label. Tynee's Pfaff had been troublesome for years and she wanted a backup. When I took the White back Bill said to just keep it for fixing the import. IMO it was the better of the two I'd tuned up.

The import had had thread wrapped around the bobbin winder spindle which tightened the shaft/bearing and stalled out, nearly smoking from friction on the rubber drive wheel. I cleaned it out before any parts got smoked, re-made the plastic double spool holder from brass and aluminum, and earned a freebie.

'Nurse Karen' said her machine wouldn't work. It had a straight-stitch presser-foot mounted and she didn't think to check that, kept breaking needles.

Neighbor has an old commercial machine from his ex's Mom's tarp shop. Motor runs WFO and is engaged by a variable clutch pedal set up. Sews way too fast for not having a walking foot. Too hard to aim the stitch and control its length at most speeds. (unreal-speedy, btw) My guess is that he'd end up sewing a finger trying to work with it.

 

[jaxs]

Another recent discovery.
Fine auto body rubbing compound does a super job of cleaning up baked on gunk on stove tops and oven doors.

We lay cloth or couple layers of paper towel over baked on gunk and keep it wet with soapy water. We leave it in place several hours and rewet occasionally. Putting cling wrap over it extend's rewet intervals but we only do that if leaving overnight. Wipes right off,no scrubbing required unless a spot survived oven cleaner multiple times during earlier cleanings.

 

[Fuddy1952]

Last year (not that long ago...hard to believe) I was helping a 70s mechanic friend in his garage, I went to wash my hands. He had warm water trickle then Goop (he said not yet laughing)...some Dawn (not yet)...Go-Jo...Lava...etc. About 6 different things. I went to rinse (not yet)...after about 5 minutes don't remember hands that clean.

 

[the old grind]

We tend to use too much hand soap vs enough water & scrubbing before rinsing. That's when hands don't get clean. Soap isn't the agent, its a catalyst between dirt/oil and water.

OT, but same goes for laundry soap and shampoo. More suds doesn't mean you'll get cleaner. If there's any suds or slipperiness left the soap hasn't been used up. Being harder to rinse is a sign of using too much, esp shampoo. btw, same with toothpaste. Fill the bristles, spit out the excess foam and bite, and cut it short. The brush does the work. When washing up, the hands do the work .. until someone invents a quick dip that'll clean greasy brake dust. Our hands get clean when doing dishes because of time spent letting the detergent do its thing, not by the amount of Dawn we pour in.

 

[jaxs]

It's kind of like serving spoons at a buffet table.
One's all we need but it is nice to have single use serving spoons in all the entree's :thumbsup:

Is that because people fail to lick the spoon clean when going from one entree to another?

 

[BravoXray]

Is that because people fail to lick the spoon clean when going from one entree to another?

That's one way of making sure there's seconds left for you!

 

[Doofy]

That's one way of making sure there's seconds left for you!

Don't tell. The Wife has yet to catch on.

 

[Tinhack]

Speaking of sewing-----
We have 2 machines, (his and hers)!

Mine is a Consew industrial style.
Paid $25. for it at a gov't auction.
I don't use it all that often but sure nice for upholstery and tarp repairs, only wish it were a walking foot for the real tough jobs.
LOL, I can now add sewing machine mechanic to my CV as I had to learn how to adjust and tune it up.
Good thing is it uses the same bobbins as my wife's.

If you were closer, I would have doubled your money for it.

I use an old Singer 31-15 for my auto upholstery, canvas and leather. I put a 3/4 hp servo motor on it so it'll sew just about anything you can get under the foot. I was so involved in upholstery for a while, I have a walking foot attachment and all sorts of feet for it. I was going to update to a Consew Industrial right before my open heart surgery but that pretty much retired me to hobby work now. That old Singer will even sew auto carpet. The only thing it can't do is backup. But I work around that.

 

[jaxs]

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.

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.

Who's advice I should use?

 

[stuckmotor]

I know how to reply to a message with one quote, only. How do you guys reply with two, three, etc?

 

[Citydude]

Who's advice I should use?

Error on the side of keeping your skin?

 

[jaxs]

I know how to reply to a message with one quote, only. How do you guys reply with two, three, etc?

That information doesn't fall under smart tips. You must apply to Big Barn for membership in the secret socity to intrusted with stuff that delicate.
Decide which post you want to quote first,secound,third and in that order click qoutation marks in black ballon in lower right corner of each post UNTIL final qouted post,click reply with quote like you ususlly do.

 

[jaxs]

Error on the side of keeping your skin?

Thanks. That sound's like advice I will follow.