Taking Out The Garbage

Tack welded the parts for the can mover. Looks like it's going to work just fine providing I can figure out the spring loaded latch. In the video they demonstrate moving the lever to actuate the release but the pin in the slot doesn't move until you take the weight off the can when lowering it down. Then it pops up out of the slot. When the lever is moved in the other direction, the pin drops back into the slot. I'm guessing that the lever and the pin are connected by a spring and there is also a spring pulling the pin downward into the slot. Still need to give that a bit more thought but I'll figure it out. I'm just like the Mounties - I always get my man.

The crazy weather didn't seem to bother the magnolia tree too much. Even though we got a bit of snow Friday night, it still blossomed out nicely. Good sign.

However, not a good sign, was what I saw in the Wall Street Journal the other day. The students at University of California, San Diego were protesting the announced choice of the commencement speaker as being offensive, oppressive and a few other things.Who is this bad man? The Dalai Lama! I've had the privilege and honor to see the Dalai Lama in person and if you think this man is oppressive or offensive, you really need to get in touch with reality. Maybe book a flight to Tibet right after graduation and see what those people have been putting up with or ask his Holiness what it's like having to live in exile. What a waste of an education.

I'm finishing the current session at my college this week. We don't have any protesting going on but the percentage of knuckleheads attending seems to be increasing. I think it's time to start stringing the concertina wire around the perimeter here at the shack and settle into the life of a recluse. I'm off next week for spring break and then I'm down to only 60 working days left in my career. With breaks and working only two days per week, that'll take me until December to get the 60 in, but I'm ready to go. The boss did me a real favor scheduling me four days per week. Made the decision to quit real easy.

Spring is on the way and taking out the garbage is becoming more enjoyable. There's always that silver lining.

Good Bye Old Paint

I sold the Sportster this past weekend. Surly was trying to broker a deal with the guy I bought it from to buy my Honda but the prospective buyer said he'd rather buy the Sportster back. He shot me a low ball number but I made the deal. I bought it from him when he was dealing with a serious medical issue, mainly to help him out, but also because I always wanted one like this. Thankfully, his health issue has been resolved and I wish him many safe miles in the saddle.

I started working on a device to transport my garbage can like the one in the previous post.

I made up most of the parts at the college the other day. I brought everything home to dial in some details when I had the truck and garbage can together, and to mill the slots needed in the piece of channel iron. I haven't quite worked out the details of the spring latch yet, but I'll get it. I'll get the parts all tacked together and see that it's going to work and then I'll iron out the rest of the wrinkles.

I also got the Dzus brackets made up and installed on the sidecar fender skirt and Surly sorted/organized some parts for the BSA when he came down to pick up the Sporty. There's not a lot left of fab work on the sidecar rig and I'm about 75% done on a Sprint project I've been tinkering with off and on. As soon as I finish the sidecar fender I'll see about jerking the motor on the bike and get back on the VW some more. I've got my schedule finalized at the college for the remainder of the year - two days per week from now on - so I'll have more free time, plus the weather's warming up so I should be able to pick up the pace a bit on the projects. I always say that but it never really seems to happen. Seems there's always something else that comes along to eat up my time. Could be worse, though. I've been there a few times before, as most all of us have.

Have a good week.

Craftsmanship & Clever Ideas

Surly sent me a link to this build. This dude's a fabricator. There's a step by step sequence of the build at the link. Check it out.

Saw this one over at Noot's. This is the way it used to be done. There's another photo of the backside of the drum at his site. Beautiful work. 

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And from the why didn't I think of this file, the cansporter. This goes into your receiver hitch so you can transport your garbage can without a hassle. I park my truck where there's about an 18" drop off from the level of the yard, so yanking it up into the back of the truck isn't too tough but I still have to drag it out when I get to the other end of the lane. It's a bit hard on the back if the can's loaded up heavy. One of these things would make it a lot easier. With shipping it's about $200. Might be worth the investment.

Custom fabrication on motorcycles and garbage can transporters. Good old Yankee ingenuity and craftsmanship - just two of the things that make America great.

Tough Guy

A former student of mine from my high school days posted this and a few additional photos on Facebook the other day. This is a photo I took when we used to train at the high school before we opened up the gym - probably close to 15 years ago. I always liked the photo because he looked so relaxed - he fought that way to. Always under control. He showed up for his first Golden Gloves appearance and he was wearing a black top and black trunks. After stepping into the ring, the ref had me put a band of athletic tape around his waist so the judges could see the belt line. I got about half way around and the ref commented that I might need another roll of tape! He fought as a Superheavy, needless to say. One of many Golden Glove champions Jimmy and I have had the pleasure to be associated with.

Both teaching and coaching can be very rewarding - can be a royal pain in the ass also, however. I'll probably continue to do some coaching in the future but I've made up my mind that my teaching days will be over at the end of the calendar year. I'm not all that impressed with Facebook but it's nice to see that many of my former students have turned out so well. With a lot of them, judging by what they were doing in high school, it could've gone either way. 

For all my fellow teachers and coaches out there, keep up the good work. Even if we get slapped around in the press and by the politicians, the students know and appreciate our efforts.  

Sickle Stuff

Found the top two here - bottom one here. Top two just cuz. Bottom one because I find myself attracted to it both in concept and execution. However, not having seen or ridden one, might be that it doesn't measure up at all. 

My wife and I both drive small cars with small engines. Both cars will get up and go when called upon. Nothing at all like the small cars of the sixties we both were familiar with back then. If a new small car is night and day different than the old one, wouldn't the same hold true for a motorcycle? The Royal Enfield Himalayan is a 411cc single adventure style bike. Seems like it would be a nice practical size for an all weather commuter or a bike you really wanted to take on an adventure. Stay off the four lanes and see the country. I've never undertaken a long distance motorbike tour. The longest was with the sidecar rig from northwest Indiana to eastern Kentucky years ago. I've done several 500 mile bicycle tours. Seems like chugging along on a small motorcycle would be substantially easier but every bit as much fun. I could get everything I need strapped on and keep the weight under 50 lbs. Been giving that a lot of thought of late. I need to scratch that travel itch. 

Also, I got my Motorcyclist magazine the other day. They said they were going to make some changes and boy did they ever. Motorcyclist and Cycle World are both owned by the same company and it became real obvious that was the case if you subscribe to both magazines like I do. Motorcyclist has gone to six issues per year, rather than monthly and the layout as well as the type of content has changed dramatically as well. I haven't read all the way through it yet but I'm liking what I've seen just leafing through it. It's a lot more than just road tests and feature columns - more motorcycle lifestyle, and I mean that in a good way. Like for guys who have been involved with motorcycles their whole life and have wide ranging interests in the sport. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out. You'll be surprised. 

"Tracking" Progress

I installed the hold down track in my workbench in the "new" barn. I got the track and a pair of hold-downs for Christmas. Figured since the weather was still warm, be a good time to get it done. I didn't have a 3/4" straight bit for the router so I bought one of those and some screws. Should make some of the woodworking jobs both easier and safer.

Fixed the conduit bender from the lab at school. Someone tried to bend 1/2" rigid in the bender for the 1/2" EMT and blew it apart. Actually did this one at home rather than in the shop at the college. I've got all the fixin's and they're handy here at the shack.

Finished up the tool stand, paint and all. I still need to bolt it to the bench top but that won't take long.

Surly sent me a couple of sidecover designs for the BSA. Looks like he's got something pretty close to what he'll be happy with. Glad to see that's moving forward again. 

I've got two more weeks until the session ends at the college. After a short break I'll be working again but only two days per week. That'll free up a lot of time for projects. I'm looking forward to that.

I signed up for a 5K race walk the end of April. I'll need some of that free time for training. Looking forward to that, however. It's hard for me to stay motivated to eat right and exercise unless I've got an event to train for. I want to drop a few pounds before then and maybe keep them off afterwards. My new saddle pal lives right down the road now, so we should be able to get out on the bikes fairly often, which will help. It's been almost five years since the heart attack, I'd like to avoid having another one for at least another twenty.

The crazy weather has fooled the magnolia out front into blossoming out. The cold and snow aren't going to be good for it. The other magnolias I have normally bloom later so they should be OK but who knows? 

So things are good in spite of the weather taking a turn to the normal. I'm picking away at the easy ones and having a grand time with the mundane. Enjoy your weekend and get that garden planned out. 

Math Education

y = Mx + b = (delta y/delta x) x + b

Mean anything to you? Me neither. A former colleague I worked with at the high school posted on Facebook that she was helping her nephew with a homework assignment and this formula was needed. Smart lady that she is, she came up with the formula but in the comments she stated that she hadn't needed it twenty years.

I was putting some quick sketches on the board with my class recently and not a single one of them new what an extension line was. One of them got the dimension line but she's planning on becoming an engineer so I wouldn't consider her typical of the students I normally get.

By looking at these two things together, I wonder why in the hell do we stress teaching an algebraic formula that a highly educated chemistry teacher hasn't ever used in her career or since having left the classroom but omit simple drafting skills that most everyone could profit from. Most of my students are not at all familiar with 3 view orthographic projection, isometric or oblique drawings, meaning they can't interpret simple sketches or shop drawings, let alone any type of blueprint like they would encounter in a welding or machine shop.

I think it's time to go back to some of the old ways and come up with the "tracks" or whatever you want to call it like they used to do. Offer some type of shop math and business math as well as geometry, algebra and what we called Senior Math when I was in high school. Only roughly 25% of Indiana residents have a four year degree - a few years ago we were ranked 46th in the nation, in fact. I'm not sure what the number is now but that's not necessarily a bad thing. In the past if you wanted to be a machinist, welder, pipefitter, etc., you received your training on the job or through an apprenticeship program. No degree required, good job, decent benefits, live happily ever after. Granted, industry has changed but I keep reading and hearing about jobs going unfilled because employers can't find qualified help. Seems to me at least part of the equation would be change the offerings in the schools.

I learned some board drafting when I was in junior high. I remember making some simple developments and learning how to properly draw lines of different weight such as object vs center lines. Proper lettering practice was taught as well. While I had both beginning and advanced algebra in high school, most of my career I've used mostly simple arithmetic, right angle geometry and a bit of trig. Algebra, not so much. In fact it's almost the end of February and I haven't used any yet this year. I should probably keep my eyes peeled for an opportunity to use it in my day to day activities and report back when that happens. I wouldn't hold my breath, however.

If I wasn't such an old dude, I'd start my own charter school and then we would do some drafting board work, add and subtract some fractions and then make all kinds of things both beautiful and practical.