notes from the insane asylum

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Rasper
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notes from the insane asylum

Post by Rasper »

It must make sense to someone. The politicians here have decided to close the beaches and prohibit the sale of alcohol until the end of August. As if that will prevent the spread of covid. We are having a little flash epidemic here. I am not sure what drinking or swimming in the ocean have to do with catching covid, but thank God this is Mexico and not the United States. Here we view laws more as suggestions than as rules to obey. I just ordered four cases of Stella Artois beer from Amazon in Mexico City which will be delivered to my door by DHL on Thursday, along with eight bottles of Botran rum. VIVA MEXICO! That will get me to September.

I am actively writing a novel and making welded wire sculpture, but I am getting the itch to pour some bronze. I have one major sculpture piece in wax and another in oil-based clay. The wax has been living in a plastic garbage can of water for several years. The clay figure is standing on the work table in my atelier. Both are calling to me, "Hey Richard, get off your ass and cast us." I'd better hurry up and do it while I still have the strength and the time. I'll be 78 in a week, and I am not the man I used to be. I take a lot of naps interspersed with bursts of energy. A concern I have is that I handle a #40 crucible of bronze single-handed. I don't have an assistant. An un-trained assistant is worse than no assistant, an invitation for disaster. As all of you well know, a lot of people want to be in on a pour, but few of them want to take the time to learn what to do. I built a gantry crane to do the lifting, so I have a good system, but it's still scary. I have been pouring bronze for maybe fifteen years and still: a #40 crucible full of molten bronze commands my respect.

Metal casting seems to have declined. Ten years ago there were a lot of projects underway. Now, not so many. The same thing happened in the metal shaping world. I was an active metal-shaper for many years when I lived in California. The forums had many great projects underway---mostly guys building cars. Now it's mostly about getting ready and questions about technique and theory. The casting forums have mostly been about getting ready to cast. With exceptions.

The biggest disappointment for me is the lack of conversation on the forums. I know people have their problems. Don't we all? But I miss the conversations we used to have here, and on AA and other places.

That's enough for now.

Richard
cae2100
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Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2017 5:39 pm
Location: Middle of Nowhere, Ohio

Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by cae2100 »

lol, I dont think anyone really knows what is going on with this last year with this virus or those who are grasping for every bit of power that they can get.

Ive needed to pour some castings also, but here, the weather is either super hot and humid with chance of rain, or just wants to rain on and off, so not enough time to pour and let everything cool down, and just crap for doing any castings. It's not just quiet on the forums, it's also quieter over on the discord servers and on youtube also it seems. I think alot of people are just tired of being cooped up inside all this time and just wanting to work outside on stuff, and with everything open up for a while, they've finally got thier supplies that they needed and are just working on the stuff. That, or have been stuck at home for that long and realized how much stuff is really broken down around the house and now just working on other stuff than personal projects.

As for the insane asylum part, I think that's everywhere right now, lol. Im starting to really question if it really will ever end, and things will get back to normal. I did get to go to a steam show the other day, but that was out in amish country, and the state says that everything is shut down, and they dont give a crap, they just keep doing what they were doing. There's supposedly a new strain out there, so it looks like they may close it all down again and reinstitue the masks, which around here, it caused more damage to people's health than the virus did. All I know is that if they shut down the one festival that I go to for this bullshit again this year, Im going to blow a gasket. I wish they would just let people live thier lives already, and if they get sick, it's thier own fault. Maybe Im too old fashioned for this idiotic world, but I seem to remember something called free will.
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Jammer
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by Jammer »

Insane Asylum! That's the whole stinkin world. Everyone is totally nuts. You can't believe anyone on any news channel. They all skew the statistics to fit their narrative. If they banned alcohol around her, I think it would be the Zombie Apocalypse. I pick up so many beer cans in my yard, the trash man thinks I'm an alcoholic.

I wanted to go to both the recent Steam Shows but I didn't feel good for the one near me and forgot about Mt. Hope. It kind of snuck up. My wife likes most of the stuff I do except Steam, too much smoke and soot.

As far as casting, I have dozens of projects in my head rattling around. Just getting to any of them is about impossible. My bursts of energy consists of trying to make it to the john in time. Pouring rain right now along with thunder and lightning, plus a little hail. I've gotten hooked up to on line auctions, that's bad... anyone need 35 Milwaukee battery chargers?

Good to hear from you guys, hope your book goes well Richard. Maybe some others will chime in. My life has been so boring the last 18 months I don't feel I have much to say. Stay safe and stay healthy, don't believe everything you hear or read. :D
quando omni flunkus moritati 8-)
cae2100
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by cae2100 »

lol, you too with the auctions? We're going out to pick stuff up at local online auctions every other day it seems, lol. We're usually looking into the wallick's auctions, which is the same guy that is the auctioneer at the local auction house and handles alot of estate auctions around harrison county. I have a few listings/lots Im after right now, lol.

Maybe we should get together again after the weather turns to not shit, and just throw all of our castings in the ring and pour everything all at once, lol. I got my furnace all patched up and everything is ready to go there. I also picked up a few other crucibles too in case I wear mine out. Right now, Im just focused on iron castings, but after that's all done, everything I have to do is some bearing bronze as soon as I get the copper for it, and aluminum castings, which I can do when it gets colder since propane melts that without much effort.

Right now, I havnt been doing much tbh, I messed up my foot and cant even get my shoe or boot on, so casting is out for at least a week till that heals up. Until then, Ive been fiddling with my mini wood lathe I cobbled together and have been turning some pens on it, lol.
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Jammer
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by Jammer »

Have you got your stuff out of storage. You said you were going to fix your shed. I have 6 crucibles that I've never used, 3 twenty pounds of copper size and 3 forty pound. I fixed up my big furnace but haven't fired it up for a long time. I had built it a little too tall so I cut about 4 inches off the top and resealed it. I do have about 35 gallons of diesel fuel I can use maybe mix it with a couple gallons of used oil I have.

I bought a little wood lathe and a little metal lathe. I have to wood lathe all apart and am cleaning the rust off to repaint it. I want to set them up so I can run them both with a treadmill motor...Not at the same time.
quando omni flunkus moritati 8-)
cae2100
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Joined: Fri Dec 22, 2017 5:39 pm
Location: Middle of Nowhere, Ohio

Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by cae2100 »

The stuff in the shed is still there, was going to rebuild it this fall when the casting season was pretty much over, but then this summer has come around and it's just been wanting to rain nonstop, or everything else has come up and you cant get enough time to actually pour something. Im hoping that this next week coming up, it looks like we may finally have a few days of nice weather, so wanted to get some of the iron castings poured and out of the way, but we'll see how things go since it's been a bit chaotic and everyone else wants to do everything also at the same time.

Yea, a treadmill motor would work pretty well for a wood lathe and metal lathe in low pulley setting, and they're pretty cheap on the auctions. I picked an extra one up a few weeks back for 5 bucks and tore it apart for the motor and electronics. I also saved the belt that you walk on because I was going to use that on my mill and such as a way cover to keep the chips from going on the ways like usual. That and the 3/4" thick MDF under that belt was a major plus for making patterns with too, lol.

I do know that I need to mow the lawn sometime soon, it's been raining pretty much nonstop, or so hot and humid that you cant do anything outside, so the grass has just shot up like crazy and the other night going to the shop, I almost fell when I tripped over a clump of high grass, lol. So that'll get done saturday since it's not supposed to rain. It seems like the never ending list of stuff that needs to be done before we can play always seems to just keep getting longer and longer, lol.
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Jammer
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by Jammer »

It's been no rain tomorrow. But tomorrow never comes. If it's not raining it's 95 degrees and 95% humidity. I know that's nothing for Rasper, but I can't seem to handle it anymore.

I've picked up a couple treadmills. One had a mouse nest on the power supply, I cleaned it up but it doesn't work. I built a 120 volt DC supply but I need to put it in an enclosure so the grandkids can't grab the capacitors. The MDF board is crazy dense, I use mine as a table top.
quando omni flunkus moritati 8-)
cae2100
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by cae2100 »

Yea, I think he may have the heat, but not the humidity, or even anywhere close to the humidity that we have, lol. As for the treadmill electronics, you can find the controller boards for pretty cheap on amazon tbh. The one that I got to use on the vertical head for the mill, I think I paid 20 for it because a friend kept saying to get that one, but most are around 10-15 bucks tbh, and they all seem to be the same really. I had gotten that thing, which is just an overbuilt and caseless router speed controller, and hooked it up to a bridge rectifier. It seems to work well, even tho a bit more noisy than with the board, but I added a choke made with a modified microwave transformer in series with it and that quieted it down alot.

The last one I tore apart, it was a much older one, but had a 1HP, 8500 rpm motor in it, and was thinking of just using it to make a belt grinder with, to replace my little 1x30 that Ive used mostly to death over the years, lol. I'd probably just be another 1x30, but just overbuild the crap out of it and have variable speeds for using it with metal and so Im not standing there for an hour trying to sand patterns anymore, lol. I figured the 2HP face mount one would be perfect for the vertical milling head, and I believe that they're pretty good at keeping mostly full torque throughout thier whole speed ranges too as long as they're run at full voltage.
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Harry
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by Harry »

For some online auctions can be eBay 2.0 back in the day it was really fun hunting deals and sniping them at the last second. Now thats just a junk market for the most part though there is some things I still buy there its nothing like the beginning. by beginning I might mention my handle there is my first name, not many can say that.

Covid hasnt really changed much for me other than wear a mask when going to the store. Living life pretty much as a hermit means constant isolation anyhow. I do love the home delivery Amazon gives free with the cost of course of Prime, if a day goes by without and order there it seems something isnt right :-)

My foundry is going on 8 years now in mothballs. Its all there, ready to fire up and go. I kneaded some petrobond sand just a little the other day and it started coming right around. A trip through the muller and I am sure it will be right as rain. I really want to cast something, trying to get things ready to move the cnc machine to a better area, where it is now its tough to use and just doesnt inspire much. I am putting it into a new open but covered area in the garden which is where I spend most of my outdoor time. Hoping this will be the kick to get it going again.

So many other interests have come along over those years, Gardening and landscaping our property which included two 1800sq ft greenhouses, Beer and mead making, distilling, dehydrating and canning, raising chickens (we raised over 200 cornish rock cross last year), new animals to care for like our Desert Tortoise and Goats. Most recently is Beekeeping. My Daughters bought me a hive setup for Fathers day and since then I have purchased another plus all the gear to go along with it, every time they give me a gift it seems it costs me $2000 or more to finish. We now have with the gift of an active hive from a neighbor one hive populated and I am learning the ins and outs of getting in and what to look for. I read that if you are not in your hives every two or three weeks during the season you are a Bee Haver, not a Keeper. Its really nice seeing our own bees out working the garden, in the past its been feast or famine depending on which big outfits might have their apiaries stocked out here and this year seems like none of them so its extra nice having our own.

Just a day by day trying to make the homestead a little 'better' as each passes. Hope all is trending upwards for the rest of you folks, I know a lot of us deal with the getting old shit part of the game but beyond that finding the gems as we move along can still be rewarding.
I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints the sinners are much more fun...
Muller
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Harry
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Re: notes from the insane asylum

Post by Harry »

Oh, starting the breathe a bit easier now, the last two weeks we have been under the smoke of the French Fire. This isnt one of the huge ones in the news but it is around 25,000 acres and directly upwind of us. Some days I could not see the mountains in the picture below just beyond the greenhouses. It made eyes burn and messed with sinuses.

Last years fires were worse, much larger and left us under smoke for close to two months during the summer. Hopefully everything that can burn is burned now and we can have some respite in the coming years.

The bottom two pictures are taken about the same time one day apart from the same spot looking ENE from the goats yard out front. In one you can see one end of the goats teeter totter which is 10' 2x6s screwed to a log, they have a blast on that thing. Also some of the trees I planted this year, chitalpa, fig (one of them is making figs already), jujube, mulberry, elm, at the far end and south of this area is pomegranate, olive, elderberry pistachio, almond, california pepper, chaste, desert willow, palo verde, pines, bay and camellia sinensis (Tea). I put in close to 100 trees and shrubs this year and planning to add a bunch more in the fall as temps come down. I have peach, apple, olive and apricot. On the shrubs there is lots of sages, white, cleaveland, russian and texas greenleaf. Also trumpet flower bushes, goji, butterfly bush, grapes and of course loads of flowers and garden crops.



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I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints the sinners are much more fun...
Muller
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