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Post by kiev4a on Aug 14, 2006 15:45:17 GMT -5
New interest:
I am preparing to replace the carpet in a hallway with tongue and groove bamboo flooring. Never have worked with wood flooring. I enjoy learning new skills. Maybe I can use them when I retire.
Tongue and groove requires an air-powered gun that drives a staple into the exposed tongue edge of the board at an angle, far enough so the grooved edge of the next board will slip over the tongue properly. I think it should be easier than putting new shutter curtains in a Zorki 1. Time will tell. I can afford to spoil a few pieces of the flooring while learning since installers charge $5 square foot to do it.
I find it interesting that in today's service oriented society there aren't many people who have even a basic knowlege of simple home or automotive skills. Granted, modern cars are pretty tough for a do it yourselfer but it was only this last year that I quit changing my own oil.
Today a lot of people hire someone to do even the most simple home repair or maintenance jobs. For what my neighbor spends every year to have his lawn mowed, I could afford a Nikon D-200.
Actually, I think the trend is starting to go back the other way to some degree because of resources like the Home and Garden Channel and classes offered by the big box stores like Home Depot and Lowe's.
A lot of guys in my generation probably got the do it yourself gene from our dads. I don't think my father ever hired someone to do home-related jobs. Of course it's a wonder the house where I grew up is still standing given his sometimes-creative electrical wiring. For a time we had a dining room electrical outlet that was unique. If you plugged the vacuum into it you could turn the kitchen lights off and on with the vacuum switch!
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PeterW
Lifetime Member
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Posts: 3,804
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Post by PeterW on Aug 14, 2006 16:08:24 GMT -5
Wayne:
How do you operate an air-powered gun indoors? My workshop is too far away from the house to run an airline all the way up the garden, and the compressor's far too big and heavy to load on a trolley and lug indoors. I didn't think the normal small portable compressors gave enough PSI to drive a decent gun properly.
That was the reason I bought a self-cocking spring-loaded nail gun a year or so back. It's bigger and heavier than an air powered one, and it's got a bigger kick than a Colt or Webley 45, so you have to watch your wrists. But it does a wonderful job. It will drive a headless wire nail through an inch of pine with no problem.
PeterW.
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Post by doubs43 on Aug 14, 2006 17:23:39 GMT -5
Ron & John,
I enjoy all styles of guitar playing with the exception of hard rock and even some of it is interesting. I used to have several LP's by a fellow named Tal Farlow who played jazz guitar. Classical Spanish guitar can be marvelous.
One Chet Atkins album that was released on LP but has not been put on CD was titled "Best of, Live on the Road" and included a superb instrumental version of Orlean's "Dance With Me". Lenny Breau accompanied Chet and Randy Goodrum played Piano....... I do love that song! Why they haven't released it on CD is beyond me.
Two of the Bert Kaempfert CD's arrived today and the music is every bit as good as I remember. The album "Afrikaan Beat" has a bunch of "Standards" on it; "Stardust", "Moonglow", "Where Flamingos Fly" etc.
Walker
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Post by kiev4a on Aug 14, 2006 17:50:56 GMT -5
Peter:
I have a compressor with a 10-gallon air tank on wheels that I can put on our pation and run the air line inside.
I have a finish nailer that is air-powered but it's too light for this work. The tongue and groove gun is made specifically for that type of flooring. I think the reason you have to use the rubber hammer to fire it is because that blow ensures the board will be driven tight against the previous board befor the staple is fired.
My compressor goes up to 130 psi. I think my finish nailer requires about 50 or 60 psi, depending on the length of the nail and the type of material. I'm suere the compressor will handle the floor gun.
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Post by Microdad on Aug 17, 2006 23:13:48 GMT -5
I have a small 1.5 Gal compressor that runs my Bostitch brad nailer quite nicely and holds up the 80 psi the gun requires. Unfortunately it's so small it's not much good for anything else.
As far as interests go, I'm lucky to have converted a hobby into a profession. I have been working as a mechanical designer for about 15 years now and it's also a creative outlet. Mostly I work in 3D solid modeling environments, currently using Autodesk Inventor and AutoCAD. I've tried to change careers a couple of times but still end up designing in one form or another. Currently I work at a manufacturing company that engineers and builds custom valves, mostly ranging from around 6 inches in diameter to bigger ones about 12 feet across. When I get home from work, it's back on the computer to develop my own weird ideas.
Steve
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Post by kamera on Aug 18, 2006 6:18:22 GMT -5
Wayne,
My father was a lot better DYSer than I am. It takes a lot of gumption for me to even consider taking on a simple job. It is beyond me how I managed to do the landscaping I showed some pics on in a different thread. And, of course, with my back problems, arthritis and whatever I
have it makes it easier to hire someone. But I wanted to please wifey so did take on the
'spring/summer' project.
Ron Head
Kalamazoo, MI
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Post by kiev4a on Aug 18, 2006 10:43:35 GMT -5
I enjoy the challenge of learning new DIY skills. In the case of the flooring, a professional installer wants a minimum of $5 a square foot. Even if I spoil a few boards while learning, I'll still be ahead of the game cost wise. I suppose it all depends on how much a person feels his or her time is worth. If I wasn't doing the floor, I probably would just be fooling around with the computer or watching TV, so it's not like I am taking myself away from more productive pursuits by doing it myself.
My dad gave me some good advice years ago. He said there aren't that many manual skills that are really that difficult to learn if one just takes his time and thinks everything through before starting. A case in point: six years ago I would not have believed I had the skills to replace the shutter curtains in a Leica-type camera. It took three weeks of evenings and weekends to do it the first time; the second took a day; the third took less that four hours. Of course now that I haven't done it for several years, It would probably take me several days to "relearn."
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Post by kamera on Aug 18, 2006 12:29:41 GMT -5
I hear what you are saying, Wayne, about just trying to learn it. But I am short of patience and my wife does not like to hear me swearing. I am a lot better at taking things apart and letting someone else put them back together.
Yes...another thread...but you will have to post some pics of your older Nikons.
Ron Head
Kalamazoo, MI
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Post by herron on Aug 18, 2006 13:05:59 GMT -5
Ron and Wayne: For as long as I can remember, I've been a member of the DIY club. Some of that probably comes from my father. The rest definitely comes from my wallet. I find it curious that friends my age do not paint walls, lay bricks, change light fixtures, mend drywall, finish basements, change oil, or mow lawns anymore! Of course, if money were no object and, after buying all that support for my domestic chores, I still had enough to buy the things I'd rather spend money on, I'd probably be the first one on the phone to line up services so I didn't have to be painting, landscaping, mowing or building any more!  Alas.....................!  |
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Post by kamera on Aug 18, 2006 14:17:14 GMT -5
Ron,
Usually my projects are small ones. The spring/summer one I took on landscaping was the largest I've ever attempted.
Car tuneups, oil changes, etc. were always done by me and Jeanneatte used to change the oil in her car.
Agree...that with the high cost of labor nowadays, one must at least do as much as they can themselves.
Ron Head
Kalamazoo, MI
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Post by kiev4a on Aug 18, 2006 15:43:38 GMT -5
I enjoy challenges but if I had the money I would be happy to let someone else have the challenges.
I belong to a coffee group of five guys who have been meeting almost every Saturday morning for 15 years. I keep telling them that if I ever win the lottery I'll be able to buy some better friends!
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Post by kamera on Aug 19, 2006 7:29:27 GMT -5
Wayne,
I like that comment about the coffee group friends!
As I had never done any cement work to any extent I was fortunate to get help from two sources in the show-me and then-let-me-go category. A guy gave me advice on preparing the ground surface and putting in the wood framework. And the cement truck driver stayed awhile and showed me how to spread it out, work the cement smooth and later how to score it. In fact, he even came back and brought me his tools to use.
I wanted to pay both these guys, but they refused. Instead, we exchanged talents. I, in return for their favors, am doing photography for them at no cost.
Can you and your coffee group do any type of arrangement?? It sure is nice when a barter/talent exchange is possible.
Ron Head
Kalamazoo, MI
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Post by jennyandernie on Aug 19, 2006 12:16:36 GMT -5
Jenny and I travel a lot; both overseas and in our caravan.
We are also into fishing and gardening. Another interest we share is tropical fish; we have 7 tanks and breed a few fish each year. It used to be a great passion of mine and I have kept fish off and on since I was a schoolboy (and thats a long time). At one time I had a fish house with around 50 tanks and used to lecture a bit about the hobby. In fact it was this that got me into photography; started taking slides of fish to illustrate my lectures.
In my youth I was a keen motorcyclist and was a member of various clubs; unfortunately my only brother was killed on a bike and it was never the same. Though I continued to ride a bike up to going overseas to live in 1990.
Used to do a bit of shooting and ferreting and kept a pack of working dogs at one time. Also had a go at keeping chickens and ducks lol.
The photography takes up a lot of time these days because we try to use the cameras from our collection and do all our own developing and processing. Fortunately I have the time as I am semi-retired. In fact I am one of those folk who has to be doing something.
Ernie
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Post by kiev4a on Aug 19, 2006 13:32:19 GMT -5
Ron: The members of our goup have helped each other move, repair lawnmowers and cars and many home improvement projects requiring more than two hands.. They even helped me install a lawn sprinkler system about 10 years ago. My specialty is computers. A couple of weeks ago one member's machine wouldn't boot and I spent an afternoon getting it woking again without him losing data and/or reinstalling Windows. The only member who doesn't get too involved in the projects that require expertise other than muscle is the youngest member (one year away from 50) He's DIY challenged but he can't help it. He's judge. Can't expect too much from someone with that background!  Our son-in-law is a construction foreman for a home builder. Trouble is he's so busy this time of year he doesn't have much time to lend us a hand. |
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Post by kiev4a on Aug 21, 2006 9:40:36 GMT -5
Update:
Spent about 7 hours on Sunday on the floor project and am about two-thirds done. Biggest problem is the staple gun periodically wads up a two-inch staple which must be removed (without damaging the board, before continuing. Took some experimenting to get the air pressure on the gun just right so it doesn't drive the staple too far into the board. Other than that the biggest problem is my knees, which are really sore. (Note to myself: Get kneepads) I'll have to get othe the 20mm and get a shot of the finished project.
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