Long weekend
In a first, I went to PA to help out Jeff's parents without Jeff. It was strange to have time spent up there without him. I had other reasons as well. ;)
His dad's lawn tractor was acting up and in need of a blade drive belt. I had ordered the parts a while ago and took them along with tools and stuff Friday evening after a day spent running errands. I also gave him my old wood lathe, which he seemed happy to get. I didnt have any extra chisels, though. Grizzly Industrial was having it's huge tent sale on Saturday, and I had wanted to go up anyway to pick up some goodies. A nice convergence in the big sale and my weekend to go up was a cool welcome. Saturday morning Jeff's dad and I headed up, actually arriving before the official start. The parking lot was quite full, and a line at least 400 feet had already accumulated. I guess Grizzly's boasting of the one-day event drawing thousands was not an exaggeration. After getting in line and still 20 minutes before opening, the line began to stretch around the corner and along the front of the building. The showroom/warehouse is huge, with a corner of it dedicated as the showroom. This 'small' corner of the building is bigger than a large supermarket. With all these people showing up, and a first come-first serve free-for all awaiting, I actually wondered if there would be scuffles or outright fights over the bargains. While in line a representative from the place was handing out flyers with sale prices, discount coupons and instructions on how to 'work' the tent sale. Despite the crowds, things went remarkably smooth. I focused mainly on things I was more in need of at the moment. I lucked out.
I found a Porter-Cable electric pressure washer to replace my 25-year old worn out one. Issue with it? Discontinued, and was missing the soap tank. Big deal, I can use the soaping attachment from the gas powered ones I have. It was less than half the original price. Verdict? SCORE! Other people were eyeballing the thing as if it were fresh meat at the leather bar.
Needed a milling vise. Found lots, but settled on a 4-inch swiveling unit. Issue? The lead screw was bent slightly, but did not interfere with operation whatsoever. Originally $120, bought for 10 bux. Score!
Needed a machine tool lamp. Had been looking at a gooseneck fluorescent model, but did not want to pay the 60 dollars for it. Found one minus the cord for 20. Score!
Wanted one more simple miter gauge with a clamping arrangement to use among all the woodworking machines. Found one supposedly with a warped slide bar for 10 bucks. An easy fix at home and it was as good as new. Another score.
Jeff's dad shows up with a big ol' grin on his face. He managed to find an 8-piece woodturning chisel set to use with his new lathe. Issue? Missing one gouge chisel. 7 pieces for a mere 15 bucks. Verdict? Timely score.
My main reason for the trip was to pick up a monster 12" bench grinder. Conflicting info I got between the catalog and the website indicated the thing might be discontinued. Upon writing up the order, I discovered it was indeed discontinued and I got the last one. Score!
I picked up a stand for the grinder, some buffing supplies and a few other trinkets and got in line to pay. There were 14 cashier windows working, and I was still waiting more than 45 minutes to finally pay for and pick up my stuff. A woman was pushing a refreshment cart full of sodas and such for the people waiting. A really nice touch. It seems the people running the place are used to this sort of thing. There were 15 cashiers in a building outside just for the tent sale. Amazing.
I got loaded up, drove back to the parent's homestead, loaded the truck with a bunch of used, free dimensional lumber to be used for making raised garden beds here at home, among other things. I managed to thread the new belt through the six pulleys on the tractor without disassembling anything or using any tools, countering what we were told to do, in about 5 minutes flat. A happy dad then took the tractor for a test drive and mom, dad and I headed out for an early dinner. I drove home shortly after, unloaded everything (the grinder by itself was about the same as carrying a pair of aadromas at once) with Jeff seeing everything upon coming home and basically giving me the "Ho-lee hell!" expression. I told him how much I saved, etc. The rainy evening was spent sizing up and fixing the bargains, all of which are good to go. Jeff headed out to get groceries , I stayed home because we always seem to spend more when I go along. Still, Jeff came home with a haul (Me: Ho-lee hell!), but told me how much he saved, had coupons, etc. We are so alike, yet so different at the same time. lol
Today I did mostly cleanups and other sorts in the garage and basement. The weather is (again) cold and nasty and my old body reminds me of it's age. This week, aside from earning my paycheck I will be working on the trailer to get it all ready for the season. I think I have everything needed now. I seriously need a vacation.
His dad's lawn tractor was acting up and in need of a blade drive belt. I had ordered the parts a while ago and took them along with tools and stuff Friday evening after a day spent running errands. I also gave him my old wood lathe, which he seemed happy to get. I didnt have any extra chisels, though. Grizzly Industrial was having it's huge tent sale on Saturday, and I had wanted to go up anyway to pick up some goodies. A nice convergence in the big sale and my weekend to go up was a cool welcome. Saturday morning Jeff's dad and I headed up, actually arriving before the official start. The parking lot was quite full, and a line at least 400 feet had already accumulated. I guess Grizzly's boasting of the one-day event drawing thousands was not an exaggeration. After getting in line and still 20 minutes before opening, the line began to stretch around the corner and along the front of the building. The showroom/warehouse is huge, with a corner of it dedicated as the showroom. This 'small' corner of the building is bigger than a large supermarket. With all these people showing up, and a first come-first serve free-for all awaiting, I actually wondered if there would be scuffles or outright fights over the bargains. While in line a representative from the place was handing out flyers with sale prices, discount coupons and instructions on how to 'work' the tent sale. Despite the crowds, things went remarkably smooth. I focused mainly on things I was more in need of at the moment. I lucked out.
I found a Porter-Cable electric pressure washer to replace my 25-year old worn out one. Issue with it? Discontinued, and was missing the soap tank. Big deal, I can use the soaping attachment from the gas powered ones I have. It was less than half the original price. Verdict? SCORE! Other people were eyeballing the thing as if it were fresh meat at the leather bar.
Needed a milling vise. Found lots, but settled on a 4-inch swiveling unit. Issue? The lead screw was bent slightly, but did not interfere with operation whatsoever. Originally $120, bought for 10 bux. Score!
Needed a machine tool lamp. Had been looking at a gooseneck fluorescent model, but did not want to pay the 60 dollars for it. Found one minus the cord for 20. Score!
Wanted one more simple miter gauge with a clamping arrangement to use among all the woodworking machines. Found one supposedly with a warped slide bar for 10 bucks. An easy fix at home and it was as good as new. Another score.
Jeff's dad shows up with a big ol' grin on his face. He managed to find an 8-piece woodturning chisel set to use with his new lathe. Issue? Missing one gouge chisel. 7 pieces for a mere 15 bucks. Verdict? Timely score.
My main reason for the trip was to pick up a monster 12" bench grinder. Conflicting info I got between the catalog and the website indicated the thing might be discontinued. Upon writing up the order, I discovered it was indeed discontinued and I got the last one. Score!
I picked up a stand for the grinder, some buffing supplies and a few other trinkets and got in line to pay. There were 14 cashier windows working, and I was still waiting more than 45 minutes to finally pay for and pick up my stuff. A woman was pushing a refreshment cart full of sodas and such for the people waiting. A really nice touch. It seems the people running the place are used to this sort of thing. There were 15 cashiers in a building outside just for the tent sale. Amazing.
I got loaded up, drove back to the parent's homestead, loaded the truck with a bunch of used, free dimensional lumber to be used for making raised garden beds here at home, among other things. I managed to thread the new belt through the six pulleys on the tractor without disassembling anything or using any tools, countering what we were told to do, in about 5 minutes flat. A happy dad then took the tractor for a test drive and mom, dad and I headed out for an early dinner. I drove home shortly after, unloaded everything (the grinder by itself was about the same as carrying a pair of aadromas at once) with Jeff seeing everything upon coming home and basically giving me the "Ho-lee hell!" expression. I told him how much I saved, etc. The rainy evening was spent sizing up and fixing the bargains, all of which are good to go. Jeff headed out to get groceries , I stayed home because we always seem to spend more when I go along. Still, Jeff came home with a haul (Me: Ho-lee hell!), but told me how much he saved, had coupons, etc. We are so alike, yet so different at the same time. lol
Today I did mostly cleanups and other sorts in the garage and basement. The weather is (again) cold and nasty and my old body reminds me of it's age. This week, aside from earning my paycheck I will be working on the trailer to get it all ready for the season. I think I have everything needed now. I seriously need a vacation.