Don't half ass it

My Dad turns 60 today and this post is dedicated to him.  Over the years my old man has taught me some valuable skills and traits, mostly applying to being a good man and how to build and fix things.   When I was young there was a lesson he used to always drill into me "Don't half ass it".  Of course at the time I just thought he was being a hard ass and he didn't want to have to fix something I did wrong but as time goes by the lesson really resonates with me.   Fixing something with duct tape and bailing wire sounds cool and can be handy in extreme cases but it isn't something you want to make a habit of.  

Brandon's Kegerator

Fellow Dirty Nails Club member Brandon has shared some pics of his Kegerator that he built in his garage.
Brandon has gladly spent many hours tweaking this until he got the temperature and pressure just right, and his hard work pays off with a tall frosty cold one.
Cheers!

Rusty chrome cruiser project - Finished!

The rusty chrome cruiser is now finished!   Some of the rust was a real bear but I managed to get it all cleaned off by starting with a wire wheel on a drill then moved to wet steel wool, I finished it off with a chrome polish. 

The only new part I bought was a tube for the rear tire and some spray paint for the wheels, handlebars and pedals.   The chain was pretty much frozen with rust so I had to soak it in WD-40 then used some de-greaser to bring it back to life.

Overall it was a fun project and I look forward to many more.

Below are before and after pictures, I'll also have more pictures on the Facebook page.  

Weekend Warrior

The definition of a weekend warrior is up to debate but basically it means someone that participates in an activity, mainly on the weekends.  Do you ever think of yourself as a weekend warrior?   I do and it's a great thing but it can cause a problem when you have time to be creative and productive but you just don't.  I know I feel like a lazy pile of crap, and I bet you do too.   Are you familiar with this water cooler conversation:
friend "What did you do this weekend?"
you "Not much, went out on Friday night, watched some TV, ran some errands.  That's about it..."
Once you have actually verbalized your lack of achievement, you feel awful that you didn't really do anything.   Running errands and doing laundry do not count as being productive at an activity you are passionate about.
Soon we will be able to reply:  "I had an awesome weekend, I went to The Dirty Nails Club and met some cool new people, played some Foosball, learned how to restore an antique piece of furniture, then I actually restored one!"
Now that's the reply of a Weekend Warrior.

Rusty cruiser update

As promised, I am providing pictures on the progress of this project.
I stripped down the rims with a wire wheel and painted them with Rust-Oleum Universal Flat Black.
I'm currently removing the rust from the frame with a wire wheel and it seems to be working, so I am going to try to keep the chrome.
I will provide some finished pictures soon!