I have a cheaper Harbor Freight spray gun I bought a few years ago to paint a car with single-stage automotive paint. It worked well and I had no issues. It is always cleaned thoroughly. I've since used it to paint a pergola with water-based Home Depot paint and that went well. I just used it again to paint a small shelf with the same HD paint and the paint was hardly coming out at all. The tip is 1.4mm, I had the knobs all set for maximum paint and air, and I varied the pressure (I think... Read more ..read more

$116 today. They said $280 without a commercial account. The last time filled was only $63. Bottle size 125 cu.ft. They said the cost of argon has gone up. Don't they manufacture their own argon ..read more

Finally built my new work bench/fab table. I picked up the plate as surplus a few years back, and finally had the time to turn it into a table. Here's some details: -1" thick 4x8 Hardox 500 top -6" pipe legs -5" channel sub frame -32" high -1600 lbs -Wilton C3 (another 200 lbs!) Still need to burn holes to bolt down the vise, and radius the corners a bit. I will probably add some large triangular gussets between the legs and subframe at a later date, but I needed it for a few projects, so... Read more ..read more

I need to remove (3) broken off 1/4-20 bolts from an aluminum transmission case. I need expert advise. Tractor repair thread https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/calling-all-mtd-transmission-repair-experts-broken-shift-lever.533401/#post-10715602 This is the shift lever cover showing the 3 bolt locations. The manual says these are (were) Self-tapping Screw, 1/4-20 x .75. The snapped off heads do not have any grade markings on them. These are the snapped of... Read more ..read more

I routinely anodize 6061 aluminum, but I'm working on a project now that uses Alcoa "MIC6" cast aluminum tooling plate. I would like to anodize this because it's just so much nicer than raw aluminum, especially screw threads, but I don't know if it will "take". Has anyone tried it ..read more

I made a plywood outfeed table for my TS. It's two 3/4" thick pieces of birch plywood brad-nailed and glued together. It's been in service for a few years with no issues until now. It is warped such that the left and right ends are higher than the table, so any wood that is fed gets hung up on the left and right. It's warped about 1/4" or so. I bought some steel "L" channel, 1/8" thick, 48" long to put on the ends to straighten it. They only seem to help a bit. They are not perfectly... Read more ..read more

The burger thread got me thinking about a kitchen problem I need to solve. I cook our steel-cut oatmeal in large batches (30 servings), then freeze it. I'd like to figure out a clever tool to portion out 6 ounces of cooked oatmeal. Right now, I weigh each portion, shove it into a measuring cup, and then plop it on to a parchment-lined sheet pan. Slow and sloppy (that's what she said!). I'm thinking of a tube (PVC?) with a piston to push it out. They key would be getting the length of the... Read more ..read more

Just got a new gas grill, first one ever, we always have used charcoal before. It cooks a fine steak and I'm working on getting consistently good burger out of it. After researching some, decided to make a burger press for uniformity in diameter and thickness Started with a pvc female adapter, a piece of 1/2" aluminum, some ss sheet metal and a thumb nut. The raw size is 4-1/2"x 3/4" Just gave it a go and it cooked up a bit thicker than my liking. Think I'll shave it down to 5/8"and try... Read more ..read more

The old boat engine covers hinges pulled out of the wood after 20 years. I made a couple oversized backer plates to put them back on, and decided to dress them up a little by turning a pattern with a wirebrush on the drill press ..read more

This is my bench it’s 3’x7’ 1/4” steel, I am learning to weld and want a small fixture table I can set on it and bolt down to weld on. I have this little 1/2” thick chuck of cast iron but would like for it to be 24”x24” with a little vertical section. I was trying it out today trying to see what would feel right. I’d love to have a Primeweld table but I’m just learning and it’s not for business so I can’t see investing that kind of money in something that I... Read more ..read more