Show Us a Tool

[PedalUma]

The internal fuses were blown

That's great. I once took a car into the shop with a blown fuse. I asked them to trace the source. When I picked it up and asked what was wrong they said, 'Blown fuse.' I knew that! But what shorted to blow the fuse? On that bike I will bet a power wire was crimped or crushed and it would short batteries all day long. On mid-drive kits people will try to run power between the motor and BB. Then the motor shifts forward and up against the down tube and it welds a hole in the frame and or motor housing. Darwin Awards.

When they wanted to know how to get the little spring back in I said that it sometimes happens with left side pedals and sent them a left crank with the pedal pre-attached and an 8mm Allen key and said that an LBS will have the puller tool for the faulty crank arm spring.
Late this afternoon I was called to assemble an eTrike. It was in a box 10in wide and 48in long, all just detached parts, like the bare frame, chain, and derailleur. I had it working in an hour-and-half. I will return tomorrow as a house call to do final details such as the fenders, rack, and lights. There is no way Joe consumer could ever assemble it. They wouldn't even know where to begin. Maybe these days Darwin would have forehead reduction cosmetic surgery, so he could fit in better socially with his peers. And then show dance moves on Tic-Tock.

 

[spokewrench]

That's great. I once took a car into the shop with a blown fuse. I asked them to trace the source. When I picked it up and asked what was wrong they said, 'Blown fuse.' I knew that! But what shorted to blow the fuse?

Did you find the cause? Fatigue can blow fuses. It can get a no-name fuse sooner and a reputable brand later. If the replacement fuse blows soon, then there's probably a circuit problem.

 

[Slaphappygamer]

Ones had a dealer who rang if we could ship more batteries.... The internal fuses were blown when he put them in a certain bike....

That’s one hell of a way to troubleshoot. Expensive too!

 

[fooferdoggie]

Got this airless sprayer for a job painting these big letters I made for a customer. But it put out so much paint that it was not practical. So it sat around for the last 3 years. I finally had to break down and paint the house. I debated on painting it and painting everything gray, but I used a roller and brush instead. But I painted the skirting today with it. about 200 feet of it in less than 2 hours, about 1/2 or more time was used refilling the small tank.
You can see the before and after. a good roller and paint, I can paint just as smoothly as the sprayer, just slower. I started painting my small garage, only 14x14, one wall, but realised the neighbor's truck would end up getting painted, so I rolled the rest. The paint is a little spotty as it was not fully dry.

 

[spokewrench]

I was high on a ladder painting my aunt's dairy barn when the bull approached. By his ears, he appeared to be on the verge of violent anger. I froze. He calmed down and went about his business. That barn was a lot of square feet, but I didn't know how to use a roller on an extension ladder. I've used brushes more than rollers because you need a place to put a roller pan and I've found brushes easier to clean than rollers. I still use brushes I bought in the early 1980s.

Loading a brush was easier from a plastic pail than a paint can, but I usually had to turn or walk a few steps to reload. To repaint a shed, I bought a pump-up sprayer. I sprayed with one hand while brushing it in with the other. The job went faster but I had to keep cleaning the nozzle.

There were other problems with brushing. In the time it took to apply half a gallon from a pail, some paints required stirring. To reduce running and dripping, paints have additives to speed thickening on exposure to air. Increasing viscosity could make it harder to spread the paint and get it into corners and cracks. Thickening could make it hard to clean brushes and other equipment.

I began ladling paint into a quart-sized plastic LLoyd's Barbecue tub. Suppose it took half a gallon to cover 200 square feet. Suppose it took an hour. That's how long the paint in the pail would have been stiffening when you finished. Instead, I might ladle a pint into the tub to do the first 50 square feet. I'd brush the excess out of the ladle, drop the ladle into water, and put the lid on the can. Holding the little tub in my other hand made reloading the brush much quicker than using a pail, whether I held the pail or set it down. The tub would be empty within 15 minutes. Not exposing more paint than I could use in 15 minutes meant more consistent viscosity and an easier cleanup.

I clean the mating surfaces of the rim and lid and apply a film of silicone grease. That way if I need the same paint ten years later, I can remove the lid without damage and the paint will still be good. I switched from ladles to syringes because a syringe is better for keeping the rim clean and it's easier to clean. Yesterday I wanted to prime 30 square feet, indoors and out. The lid came off easily. I mixed, cleaned the mixer with the brush, and dropped the mixer into the pail with enough water to keep the painty part wet. I have a vinyl tube on the syringe to pick up paint without getting the outside of the syringe wet. For that job, I estimated 10 oz, or 2 syringes. Some paint clung to the walls of the tube. I dropped the syringe into the pail so water would keep air out of the tube. I used a 24 oz Glad food storage container instead of the slightly larger barbecue tub. Painting didn't take long and cleanup took 2 or 3 minutes.

 

[fooferdoggie]

I toss rollers; they are cheap enough, even for good ones, or wrap them in plastic for the next day. I used a 4" roller that fit in the paint pail along with a brush held with a magnet. I had one for gray, one for the green, with hooks to hang it from the ladder. Did the whole house in a day and a half that way.

 

[spokewrench]

Wow! ... and using a roller with a pail on a ladder!

I haven't done ceilings in 34 years, and I need to do it again. I seem to recall cutting in with a 2.5" brush and doing the middle with a Wagner device that used D cells for a pump that sent paint to a roller. Maybe I still have it.

 

[fooferdoggie]

I use these pails, they work for rollers and brushes. I bought ladder hooks so I can carry two up and hook them on the ladder so I don't have to hold them. Also bought the liners. Don't even have to wash the bucket, saves a huge amount of time

 

[Gionnirocket]

That's A Cool BULB !!@

I WANT ONE.

I was just watching I Love Lucy... the episode where she tells Ricky she's pregnant... and I noticed the guy on the ladder is holding a 1500watt A lamp!