I am a buyer, not a builder, but I still have been having a blast stocking the hangar with things that make maintenance easier. Some shiny, new, high quality tools. Some acceptable, Chinese, once-a-year type stuff. And then this.
My limited metal working skills were put to the test once, when a trim piece around the horizontal stab started peeling back. I stole some .016 from my mechanic, cut the replacement, treated the edges with a file, and passed a deburring tool down the edges. Then I hit it with a scotch-brite pad, getting rid of any roughness noticed by drawing a finger, which will do for trim. But I decided I needed a better finishing process for the inevitable structural pieces.
I scored a good deal on a gray scotch-brite wheel on eBay. But how to drive it? Sure, I have plenty of coupons at Harbor Freight, but I remembered putting an old grinder in pretty rough shape into the corner of the garage. It came out of a house I renovated some time back.
1/4 HP Commander brand, sold by Sears, Roebuck & Company, according to the dataplate. A little sleuthing revealed this is a precursor to Craftsman branded grinders, circa 1930's. How bad could it be, besides the crumbling insulation on the cord? Blew it out real good with some compressed air, sprayed the windings with electronics cleaner, and then modernized it by stripping the end of a computer power cord to replace the crumbling one. A tip of the hat to the Chinese economy by mounting it on a $30 stand from Harbor Freight. Made a bushing to adapt the wheel to the shaft, and Viola:
Fired it up, spins smooth as silk, does not wander thanks to the heavy casing which was oh so common in days gone by. My 'new' 75 year old grinder. Used it today to clean up the 'final' aluminum rudder trim tab that replaced the blue painter's taped on 'temp' stainless one I installed prior to my last long cross country. Of course, that required a test flight, dang it.
This RV life does not disappoint!
My limited metal working skills were put to the test once, when a trim piece around the horizontal stab started peeling back. I stole some .016 from my mechanic, cut the replacement, treated the edges with a file, and passed a deburring tool down the edges. Then I hit it with a scotch-brite pad, getting rid of any roughness noticed by drawing a finger, which will do for trim. But I decided I needed a better finishing process for the inevitable structural pieces.
I scored a good deal on a gray scotch-brite wheel on eBay. But how to drive it? Sure, I have plenty of coupons at Harbor Freight, but I remembered putting an old grinder in pretty rough shape into the corner of the garage. It came out of a house I renovated some time back.
1/4 HP Commander brand, sold by Sears, Roebuck & Company, according to the dataplate. A little sleuthing revealed this is a precursor to Craftsman branded grinders, circa 1930's. How bad could it be, besides the crumbling insulation on the cord? Blew it out real good with some compressed air, sprayed the windings with electronics cleaner, and then modernized it by stripping the end of a computer power cord to replace the crumbling one. A tip of the hat to the Chinese economy by mounting it on a $30 stand from Harbor Freight. Made a bushing to adapt the wheel to the shaft, and Viola:
Fired it up, spins smooth as silk, does not wander thanks to the heavy casing which was oh so common in days gone by. My 'new' 75 year old grinder. Used it today to clean up the 'final' aluminum rudder trim tab that replaced the blue painter's taped on 'temp' stainless one I installed prior to my last long cross country. Of course, that required a test flight, dang it.
This RV life does not disappoint!
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