Projects from THE COMPOUND!

[DRIVEN]

Start saving now, Jacob. It's great for the most part. It's just a shade under an acre (.98 officially) but seems much larger. There's an acre +/- to the south that is county owned wetlands ( all the trees in the bottom of the last pic) so it won't ever be developed. To the west is several acres of wooded gully with a creek running though it so it won't ever be developed. And to the north is a 12' fence and a row of 30 year old Christmas trees. It feels quite a bit bigger than it is and won't get any more crowded. The neighbors in the 8 townhouses to the north are generally okay now. Nosy/problematic ones come and go but right now, no drama. The little strip mall thingy to the east is really quiet and basically only occupied from 9-6. My main gripe is the traffic noise -- especially the incessant sirens. It's also pretty tough to get in and out of the neighborhood during peak hours due to Intel related traffic on Corn Pass. All in all it's not so bad, just a far cry from when I was a kid and you could only see 2 other houses from anywhere on the property and 4 cars backed up at the 4-way stop was heavy traffic.

[izzo]

I grew up where rocky point and skyline met. I remember back in the 80s man. Wasn't much for traffic. We didn't goto town much, maybe once a month for shopping. only other times we rolled thru town was heading to browns camp for a poker run or riding.

In the summer I would ride with my grandpa. He drove for market transport. That.. Was fun!

[DRIVEN]

Chimney!

[yello620]

Your sure doing an awful lot of work to that shop to be leaving it behind in the next couple of years.

I didn't realize that I drive right past your place everyday that I work.

[DRIVEN]

Leaving isn't a hard decision for me. My wife isn't 100% on board just yet. Just got a notice in the mail about a proposed apartment complex with 206 units on the NE corner of the intersection so that's a bit more leverage. The shop/home improvements are needed though. The way I see it, the next owner will either tear it down and redevelop the lot, be a hobbyist that uses the shops, or possibly a small home-based business owner like a plumber, electrician or landscaper. If it's a teardown I'll take the compressors, lighting, hoist, and paint booth stuff with me. Otherwise it'll be built in to the sale price and replaced once I get settled. I already have feelers out for a building lot in a specific area along with preliminary house and shop plans and a builder. Just waiting out the clock until my daughter is out of high school.

[izzo]

I think you should stay

[DRIVEN]

Picked these up yesterday for 1/2 price. They'll get stuck in the corner and I'll clean them up next spring and sell them at the swap meet. I sold 3 this year and they went fast. Planning to take 5 next year.

[DRIVEN]

My anvil block finally had enough. It was old when it moved here and I can't remember how long ago that was.



I'm thinking I'll fab a new one from scrap metal. Still in the planning stages. Probably just go in the corner for now.

[izzo]

Wow. How often do you use that thing?

[K_trip]

I have one that was at my place when I moved in. I think it was cast in England in the late 1800's - IDK I would have to check to see if I can read the stamping (casting) again. I have used my as a dead-blow to break up concrete, just lift it over the area to bust up as high as you dare and drop it. Of course there are several uses for these things, that's just the furthest away from what it was made to do. You can't hurt them, that's for sure.

I don't think they're worth much, but to me it's worth a heck of a lot more than scrap iron!

[DRIVEN]

You'd be surprised what they might be worth. You should get some info from it and look around. Maybe post it on Garage Journal. Those guys know their shit when it comes to anvils and vises. I'll need to sand blast mine since it's stamped instead of cast. There are several thick layers of paint covering the name/numbers. It deserves a resto and a spot inside the shop.

[izzo]

google anvil. Them things are spendy! Jeez

[DRIVEN]

Now Google railroad track anvil. There's some guys out there with some serious skills.

[izzo]

Now Google railroad track anvil. There's some guys out there with some serious skills.

Lol had actually looked that up. Crazy stuff. Someone on a site had mentioned this when I was looking at prices.

Rail road track. Cutting torch. Then some grinding!

[DRIVEN]

I just bought a shitload of quality, old, used tools. Pics coming soon.

[izzo]

Fuuuuuuuuck. Hook it up! haha. Neer moar tools

[510freak]

Lets see the new loot

[DRIVEN]

Was trolling CL for some large wrenches because I needed a set of 1" and larger for the occasions when I have to borrow from a coworker. Full size truck balljoint nuts mostly. Anyway, ran across an ad for a "tool lot". Here's my haul...

All spread out...





Obviously some just got tossed and much will be used at home but I was stoked about the offset box-ends, the long handled thin profile, small ignition wrenches, and a few specialty sockets. The 3/4" drive socket set is mismatched but almost complete as well as a set of 1/2" and 3/8". I'll probably try to resell the 3/4" stuff since I already have a nice set. Even though they are well used and a couple pieces from the sets are missing, they are almost all quality names. Snap-On, Mac, Cornwell, Proto, S*K, Cresent, Craftsman(old), ViceGrip, New Britain. Even the cheap screwdrivers were USA made. Only a couple were offshore out of the whole pile. Not shown is the bottom of the tub that had probably 50 loose allen wrenches and drill bits, a bunch of screwdrivers and misc crap.

Here's the best part. Total cost...$100.

[510freak]

Nice haul Jess

[DRIVEN]

We were a little slow at work yesterday afternoon so a coworker grabbed the box that had all the throwaway tools and made a few filter punches. They will live in the oil drain tanks and be used to pierce the oil filters after LOFs. The look like smaller, sharper slag hammers. Keeps the scrap guys happy.



I was getting kind of burnt out on the chassis build so I made a detour and did some work on the anvil and stand. Since my boss is on vacation (gotta be sneaky) I took the anvil in and removed a couple layers of paint so I could more clearly read the numbers. This is what I found...
M&H
ARMATAGE
MOUSE
HOLE
FORGE
0*3*20

Through some quick research I found that it was made in England between 1854 and 1875. The numbers are the old British stone weight measurement indicating 104 pounds. This thing is AT LEAST 100 years older than I am. Pretty cool.
On the base I started with a scrap section of 2"x8" box with a section of angle iron welded in to keep the center from collapsing. I capped the end then filled it with dry concrete mix. The theory is that it will add weight while acting as a dampener. It also won't have the same moisture issues as sand. Once filled and compacted I capped the other end.

For the stand portion I welded two pieces of C-channel together and filled it as well.

Welled the top and mount points on then tipped it over and ground all the welds.

Gave it a quick coat of primer then back in the corner until I get motivated to finish it.

I have plans to add a vise mount to it so I can get the vise off of my work bench and out of the way. Once that's sorted out I'll paint everything and dress the striking surfaces of the anvil.