Mr. Davisson, I read your garage/workshop article with tremendous empathy. I have a 50'x200' foot building/hangar in Willcox, AZ and I'm in the same situation. Moving the piles from one pile to another really hit home. I'm at a point where I would need to move everything outside and then bring everything back inside in order to properly organize. That would literally take months of solid workdays. Too many projects in my life and not enough time is part of the problem.
Budd, I know the feeling well when I manage to create some available space. My latest was finding the work bench I used to build my model planes. It had been used for several Wolf aircraft wing rib builds for Griggs Aircraft, but I finally reclaimed it for model use.
You don't throw anything away. DON'T fall for that! I threw away a bunch of model airplane supplies I thought I'd never use again. Now I need them and they're scarce as hen's teeth now that almost nobody builds anymore.
By the way, a messy shop is a working shop. Be proud of that. Get that roadster finished so that we can go to Good Guys with it. I'm waiting for that trip!
Feeling your pain/joy back in Carolina. Sold my business and property to retire, new landlord tripled the rent so back home we go. Built a new small two car garage for the finished and project hot rod and then proceeded to rebuild the old horse bar where the rod shop started
In moving/ sorting /triaging stuff I found a lot of stuff I had gorgotten. A lot of work in the summer heat and humidity here but now I have a much cleaner better lit shop. But boy is it full! Gotta move the heavy Pullmax and big Erco shrinker in now to build the P 40 wing as the fuselage is done about to be painted. A log or effort for us guys with early onset calendar disease!
Well Bud your shop and mine looks a lot the same, and I have been struggling just to clean and move enough stuff just to work in it, and mine like yours needs some serious cleaning and rearranging. I had several model "A"s back in the day. But my last airplane project now is at the airport and has about 10 hrs of flight time since being rebuilt after and off runway excursion and collision with Vasi lights.. We my youngest son and I bought it for next to nothing less engine.
Where your model A roadster is in my shop, mine is a bit bigger than yours a full 24' by 24' I have two saw horses with a 4x8 sheet of 3/4 ply wood and on it is most all the parts needed including many extra to assemble a complete O-290 lycoming GPU that has been modified for aircraft use, the case and crankshaft is bolted to my engine stand. My oldest son wanted to work with me to assemble it just to see how it was done.
Also in order to use up all these parts and hardware I have been in the process of acquiring another project, and you will be delighted to know that it is an early Pitts S1-C. Also less engine. And again for next to nothing, but as you know even if someone gives you an airplane it might not be a good deal? However I think one of the reasons I have lived so long is because I always have something to do, and agitates the molecules in ones bean head, something that makes one want to get up in the morning and do something, and what can be more challenging than rebuilding an airplane like the Pitts. I do not know if I will ever finish it and I am probably crazy to entertain doing something like this. But the idea is to rebuild it to look as much like Betty Skeltons little stinker, it would not be a perfect example or exact copy. But I would do my best to make it look like it was.
I do not have much in the way of car parts in my shop, most of my stuff parts hardware nuts bolts adel clamps and material sheet metal alum and stainless plywood, as well as 4130 tubing and plate along with spruce remnants to build airplanes. My problem these days especially at my age is keeping the two airplanes I have airworthy and also helping my youngest son with his two airplanes. And Bud its always nice to hear your thoughts and that you, like the rest of us have many of the same problems, my only salvation I think is, I have fewer projects that you... Dave
Thought of you a lot. Got up Monday to 5 miles in smoke in the Aztruck to GRB. Woke up Tuesday to perfect weather and knew you would be flummoxed! 2 full days trying to keep up with Sandy and two 17 year olds, we kept talking about you. Flew home Thursday- I may be getting too old for this!😎.
Mr. Davisson, I read your garage/workshop article with tremendous empathy. I have a 50'x200' foot building/hangar in Willcox, AZ and I'm in the same situation. Moving the piles from one pile to another really hit home. I'm at a point where I would need to move everything outside and then bring everything back inside in order to properly organize. That would literally take months of solid workdays. Too many projects in my life and not enough time is part of the problem.
Budd, I suspect a lot of people in addition to myself really enjoy hearing you narrate your post, when you have time to do the recordings.
Budd, I know the feeling well when I manage to create some available space. My latest was finding the work bench I used to build my model planes. It had been used for several Wolf aircraft wing rib builds for Griggs Aircraft, but I finally reclaimed it for model use.
You don't throw anything away. DON'T fall for that! I threw away a bunch of model airplane supplies I thought I'd never use again. Now I need them and they're scarce as hen's teeth now that almost nobody builds anymore.
By the way, a messy shop is a working shop. Be proud of that. Get that roadster finished so that we can go to Good Guys with it. I'm waiting for that trip!
Feeling your pain/joy back in Carolina. Sold my business and property to retire, new landlord tripled the rent so back home we go. Built a new small two car garage for the finished and project hot rod and then proceeded to rebuild the old horse bar where the rod shop started
In moving/ sorting /triaging stuff I found a lot of stuff I had gorgotten. A lot of work in the summer heat and humidity here but now I have a much cleaner better lit shop. But boy is it full! Gotta move the heavy Pullmax and big Erco shrinker in now to build the P 40 wing as the fuselage is done about to be painted. A log or effort for us guys with early onset calendar disease!
Well Bud your shop and mine looks a lot the same, and I have been struggling just to clean and move enough stuff just to work in it, and mine like yours needs some serious cleaning and rearranging. I had several model "A"s back in the day. But my last airplane project now is at the airport and has about 10 hrs of flight time since being rebuilt after and off runway excursion and collision with Vasi lights.. We my youngest son and I bought it for next to nothing less engine.
Where your model A roadster is in my shop, mine is a bit bigger than yours a full 24' by 24' I have two saw horses with a 4x8 sheet of 3/4 ply wood and on it is most all the parts needed including many extra to assemble a complete O-290 lycoming GPU that has been modified for aircraft use, the case and crankshaft is bolted to my engine stand. My oldest son wanted to work with me to assemble it just to see how it was done.
Also in order to use up all these parts and hardware I have been in the process of acquiring another project, and you will be delighted to know that it is an early Pitts S1-C. Also less engine. And again for next to nothing, but as you know even if someone gives you an airplane it might not be a good deal? However I think one of the reasons I have lived so long is because I always have something to do, and agitates the molecules in ones bean head, something that makes one want to get up in the morning and do something, and what can be more challenging than rebuilding an airplane like the Pitts. I do not know if I will ever finish it and I am probably crazy to entertain doing something like this. But the idea is to rebuild it to look as much like Betty Skeltons little stinker, it would not be a perfect example or exact copy. But I would do my best to make it look like it was.
I do not have much in the way of car parts in my shop, most of my stuff parts hardware nuts bolts adel clamps and material sheet metal alum and stainless plywood, as well as 4130 tubing and plate along with spruce remnants to build airplanes. My problem these days especially at my age is keeping the two airplanes I have airworthy and also helping my youngest son with his two airplanes. And Bud its always nice to hear your thoughts and that you, like the rest of us have many of the same problems, my only salvation I think is, I have fewer projects that you... Dave
Thought of you a lot. Got up Monday to 5 miles in smoke in the Aztruck to GRB. Woke up Tuesday to perfect weather and knew you would be flummoxed! 2 full days trying to keep up with Sandy and two 17 year olds, we kept talking about you. Flew home Thursday- I may be getting too old for this!😎.