Changing Motor Brushes on Milwaukee 12 Inch Miter Saw

The motor brake on Marisa’s miter saw stopped working, so in doing some research I found that the most likely way to repair it is to change out the motor brushes.

Disassembling the Miter Saw

Disassembling the Miter Saw

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Ryobi Cordless Power Scrubber

We live in the country and have well water and a septic system. A long time ago I learned, the hard way, that bleach is not my friend because it bonds with certain molecules and creates a brand new molecule which leaves your whites a crinkly, rough feeling material in a lovely shade of orange, and it will also damage your septic system. For laundry I now use a product called Iron Out. This stuff also works to clean showers, sinks and toilets. My other goto is Bar Keepers Friend, preferably the powder but I also have the spray. The stage has been set to let the story unfold.

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Update on the Fi Dog Tracker

Fi dog tracking collar and device

How does it work when you really need it to work?  The answer is better than a sharp stick in the eye.  Seriously we were all very thankful we had it.  We moved here with a puggle, think stomach with legs and a breathing problem, and added a pyrenes/lab.   The puggle with bad knees came free with a load of landscaping rock, the pyr mix was an adopted lost dog.  They were both stubborn and loved to roam.  The puggle would eventually come back if she could remember where home was after she had followed her nose all over the county.  The pyr mix was too busy singing born free and trying to expand his flocks range to care too much about this thing called home.  We spent many hours randomly driving the roads, walking miles of road and woods with no clue which direction to even go.  They thought it was the best game we ever came up with.  It’s depressing when you realize you are not smarter than your pet and no matter what you come up with to keep them contained to your yard they will figure out how to defeat you.

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Harbor Freight Circular Saw Blade Sharpener Mod

A while ago I purchased the Chicago Electric Power Tools Professional Series 9 Amp Circular Saw Blade Sharpener from Harbor Freight.  I did not think that I would be able to get the professional results I got when I sent away my saw blades to be sharpened, however I did believe I could touch up the blades after a cleaning and stretch out the life of them.  After all, getting them professionally sharpened costs $20 to $30 per blade, depending on the number of teeth.  Sending in a half dozen blades would typically cost about $150.

Harbor Freight Saw Blade Sharpener

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Potato Shaker / Soil Sifter

Last year I made a sifter for sifting compost.  It’s just some 2×4’s screwed together with a piece of 1/2″ hardware cloth stapled to one side.  The rectangle is 35 x 27, with the two shorter sides of the rectangle extended so that it can sit on our dump trailer or gorilla wagon.  This is just a little smaller than the gorilla wagon opening.

Sifter

Sifter

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Lost Dog, again.

Husky, Taz, has purple bo bo in his mouth looking through glass door wanting to come out.

Sam met Taz at work and it was love at first site. Since work romances can get awkward Sam decided to adopt Taz. Taz was so named because of the collar he was wearing when he was found wandering the streets. We are currently fostering him and let’s just say that the first week was not easy. Continue reading

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Microwave Surround

When taking the plunge to remodel our kitchen we had to decide where the microwave would live.  We have had them over the stove, in an upper cabinet next to the stove, on the counter and now built into a lower cabinet.

Microwave Surround

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Safety In All Things Great and Small

Use a power strip with a light plugged in to remind you that some device that might be unsafe if left on is on.

A few years ago I stumbled on a blogger who I enjoyed a great deal. She hasn’t blogged since 2015, which makes me sad, but just the other day I was reminded about how we touch each others lives.
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It’s not just a pen it’s art

The process of turning seems like it could be simple.  You take a blank and you pick out a kit.  Put the blank on the lathe and turn it put in the inserts and there you have it a pen.  I’ve learned it’s very personnel to the individual receiving that pen maybe even more so to the person creating that pen.

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Sawmill Sawdust Control

Man Glitter.Sawdust from cutting one log under the sawmill.

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