Fixing pianos, bikes, and myself **New, now with accordions and concertinas!**

[Karate Monkey]

Bonus points if you figure out what the screws are from

Starting the work
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That's called a "chisel plane", and it is exactly for doing what I'm doing: insetting hardware.

 

[Karate Monkey]

Continuing to futz with the setup.
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The "stops" on the miter box are not really repeatable. (If I adjust the angle for one, the next one is off). I've made sure the guides are perpendicular to the cutting surface, and I'm simply using the lock on the bottom to hold the angle in position. Still need to do a bit of fine tuning/practice runs, but it's coming along nicely.

Alignment complete
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All the inserts were attached, and linen banding was glued onto the edges of the cards. It's a bit stiff, but I'm sure it'll ease down when it gets the leather banding glued on. I was having 'issues' with the linen ungluing itself from the cards (linen soaked in hide glue is very much like carbon fiber composite [technically is?]), so I went around and "crimped" the banding using a pair of pliers. It's laying nicer, and is slightly more flexible. I guess I'll find out how good a job I've done when the leather gets on.

I abandoned using the buckskin, though. It's too stretchy to use a manual skiver on, and I'm not going to drop several hundred dollars on a powered one. Maybe one will show up at the flea market, who knows. I'll have to grab a bottle or two of leather stain, though, since the goatskin I have is a lovely (?) natural fleshtone.

​

 

[Karate Monkey]

Getting to know my bookbinder's skiver:

I stitched the back piece on 'backwards', but whatevs, it's practice, eh?

 

[Karate Monkey]

She is airtight:

Things I learned:

My skives were too thick on the edges. (Crinkly edges on the banding)

My gussets were too short side-to-side.

The two combined to cause issues where nearly all the gussets leaked on one side of the joint. My solution was practical/straightforward: thin out a whole bunch of patches, and add gussets to my gussets. I've got a tiny pinhole left (skiver usually has tiny holes when it gets thin), then it's in to stain, bellows papers, and lacquer.

I'm "playing it in" right now to free up all of the glue joints, then I should be able to put it back on the form to complete the work.

 

[OddTrickStar]

That’s nice work. I hope I can get some advice from you when I tackle my 1888 Steinway.

 

[Karate Monkey]

First ride without anti-inflammatories in over 15 months:

Afternoon Ride - William S's 17.2 mi bike ride

William S rode 17.2 mi on Jan 29, 2024.

www.strava.com

Choo choo, next stop, Asbury Park.

Long Branch, Sea Bright, and Highlands next.

I'm coming for you, Hartshorne.

Man, look at that beacon of positivity.

Oh, wait, no, that's just the headlamp. Gotta remember to recharge it.

 

[Karate Monkey]

Everybody likes going down. Going down is easy.

Thanks to the encouragement of @Matt_ , who--in not so many words--told me to stop worrying and just ride Clayton, I set out this morning.

(I swear to god my shoes are tighter. That's absurd, but I swear. My fanny pack definitely was 🤣)​

The trip there was uneventful, other than me leaving my Garmin on the other bike. Had to record on my watch (which only does breadcrumbs), so it took more than a few stops to remember which way to go.

I stopped at the top of Bridges. The first climb always sucks for me, but this time was heart-pounding-in-ears. I stopped for moral encouragement (aka, bitching to friend), then continued on.

​

Anyway, finally made it through all the singletrack and wound up with just under 6.5 miles.

I guess it's time to practice going up(hill).

Why, what did you think I was talking about before?

 

[Karate Monkey]

It's....ALIVE!

In case it's not visible, the arbors are spinning (quite nicely, I might add).

The grinder above belonged to my grandfather, and it's the first power tool of his that I'm nearing completion of.

This is a working restoration (that is, I cleaned it, removed the rust, and applied protectant to the body--mostly cast iron), so you see replaced bearings, a cleaned commutator, and new wiring.

I wish I had taken a pic of the commutator, which was a novel design I've never seen--a spring armature holding a carbon disc, pressed into a bronze ring.

Just need to straighten a tool rest, and modify an arbor-spacer for a 1/2" grinder to fit this one, to replace the broken cast iron one from here.

 

[Karate Monkey]

Parting...is such sweet sorrow.

I still have to turn down a large bushing, press it in, then face the whole shebang. The neck on the arbor bushing needs to be turned down a bit, too, to fit into the shroud properly.

I'll have to break out the 4-jaw for that, tho...this part could be kindly described as "egg-shaped".

 

[w_b]

Parting...is such sweet sorrow.

View attachment 232535

I still have to turn down a large bushing, press it in, then face the whole shebang. The neck on the arbor bushing needs to be turned down a bit, too, to fit into the shroud properly.

I'll have to break out the 4-jaw for that, tho...this part could be kindly described as "egg-shaped".

Been a minute since I’ve seen a Sherline in actual use…

 

[Karate Monkey]

Been a minute since I’ve seen a Sherline in actual use…

Homeowners, not so much.

People who use them for work (miniature shops, trophy places, machine restoration), they're pretty invaluable.

Honestly, this is the right size for me. We owned a 40x10(?) Atlas for many years, and it was a perfectly serviceable machine once setup...but it was enormous and heavy. The only thing it really does "better" than the Sherline for me, is make deeper cuts, faster. I don't need to turn parts that are 6-8" in diameter.

A compound slide is way more convenient, tho.

 

[Santapez]

I had a Sherline mill that I converted to a home-brew CNC that I sold. Part of me wishes I never sold it.

Funny, at the time I never understood having a lathe yet if I had a Sherline lathe I'd have made or modified a million things on it. Every now and then I check Craigslist to see what local options there are used and come up short in the small lathe department.

 

[Karate Monkey]

I had a Sherline mill that I converted to a home-brew CNC that I sold. Part of me wishes I never sold it.

Funny, at the time I never understood having a lathe yet if I had a Sherline lathe I'd have made or modified a million things on it. Every now and then I check Craigslist to see what local options there are used and come up short in the small lathe department.

Have I got something for you 🙂

A genuine Richard Sher Australian-made lathe. Has [actually] adjustable gibs, unlike the modern ones.

Also has magneto bearings in the headstock 😁

 

[Karate Monkey]

Project done(ish). I need to buy a new stone, because grandpa had squished a 1-3/8 wide stone in there with a 5/8 arbor hole.

 

[jmanic]

Project done(ish). I need to buy a new stone, because grandpa had squished a 1-3/8 wide stone in there with a 5/8 arbor hole.

 

[Karate Monkey]

A Ride, Uncomfortable

Inauspicious Beginnings
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I set out today, disquieted--for reasons not important here--with only a pale idea of a goal for the ride: get to Sandy Hook, get back. I haven't ridden more than 1:30 in...what feels like forever, but I figured I would give it a go. The only problem: I no longer had any real "idea" of how long it took to get from A-to-B.

The Local Wildlife, on the Hunt​

I wended my way through Holmdel, eventually working my way up Chapel Hill, and pointing the way towards Hartshorne. I remember the last time feeling this horrendously bad climbing...anything was several months after being cleared post-discharge from the trauma center. The wind never quite seemed to be the direction it "should have" been. It always seemed to be gusting, and pushing back.

The Back Bay​

I rounded the back of Hartshorne, and started the climb up. It didn't feel bad. Not fast, pinned in the lowest gear, committed to the grind. It was getting on at this point, ticking over the 1:30 mark. I hadn't packed anything to eat, vastly underestimating 1) my speed, 2) the wind, 3) the actual distance.

The Ocean, In Sight
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I started the descent to Sandy Hook, and was feeling every bit of depletion, and the impending bonk looming over my head.

Blessed Cover from the Wind
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The wind was howling down the length of the hook; the vegetation was sparse this time of year, and didn't provide much shelter...but what was there, was welcome. I sheltered on the bike path, figuring 1) lack of people with the weather, and 2) I wouldn't be able to make much headway into the wind, anyway.

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I knew I wouldn't have long, at this point. I made a "snap" decision to stop. I had been hearing, for months, about the bar* that opened right outside the chapel at Ft. Hancock. I decided any calories were good calories, pounded a Coke, deposited some extra calories in the bank via a [frankly, gigantic] chicken sandwich+half beer, and got a small container to smush the fries that I literally couldn't stuff in me into the bag, and off I went.

Homeward Bound
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I left, suitably saved from bonking, and screamed down the length of Sea Bright. I knew from the muscle pain that I needed to bug out as fast as possible, so I headed through Rumson/Fair Haven, and made the first really bad decision of the day: I wanted to situate myself to not have to fight the wind on my final leg back, which meant taking Front Street back home. The traffic through Red Bank was...the traffic through Red Bank. I doubt it is anyone's favorite ride, but it was uneventful...until I passed Half-Mile Road, and found out that Front Street was closed at Normandy.

A Rare Opportunity?
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I wasn't very much in the mood. There would be no "taking the easy way", as they worked on the Parkway overpass. Likewise, a USN officer was stationed at the intersection to make sure that everyone went where they were supposed to [weird that they care now, and not for all of the people blatantly using the highway to cut their travel time...]. I had no option but to take a 5 mile detour. My legs were screaming at the small hills. Finally, I was pointed home, and was able to (mostly) soft pedal with the wind.

Not the ride I had envisioned, nor the path, nor the unwelcome discomfort...but such is life.

I survive to ride another day.

*It's the Mule Barn, and by all accounts (and my one-time brief experience) 100% worth the trip out.

 

[rottin']

Great day by the tale told...Mrs rottin' and I love the Mule Barn.

 

[walter]

The Mule Barn is weird, like, if you didnt know it was there, you probably wouldnt find it. I stopped there late fall after a chilly motorcycle ride to rehydrate, pee, and warm up. Took the family back a few days later to eat. It was good, not great, its nice for what it is. Reminds me of Tommys.

Great write up....

 

[MikeyBikey2000]

Enjoyable read, thanks

 

[qclabrat]

Great day by the tale told...Mrs rottin' and I love the Mule Barn.

Food at the Mule Barn is very good. Though I thought their beer selections were a bit thin. I had a diet coke just because...