A Shot at Redemption...

[David DeCristoforo]

One of my recent posts included some pics of my lathe and tent/shop looking deplorable. I was shamed into doing something to rectify the situation. So today, instead of turning, I cleaned. Don't get too excited here. This will not impress the fanatics. No full overhauls or paint jobs or anything like that. Just the basics. Proof is in the pics:

197412

Most of the time was spent polishing up the steel and iron. Lathe, chucks, Monster rig... all got the treatment:

197413

I must admit that it feels better to have things polished up a bit. I hadn't realized how bad it had gotten! With my shop in a tent I'm going to have to pay much closer attention to cleaning, waxing and oiling to prevent serious corrosion and rusting! I'm gonna go paint my banjo red now...

[Jim Underwood]

Now ya gone and done it.

I got no excuse. I'll hafta clean mine up now.

If it were only a matter of cleaning it wouldn't be bad. But I gotta throw junk out, and that's impossible.

[Harvey Ghesser]

Mr. K will be proud!:D:D:D

[Baxter Smith]

Looking good. Hope there isn't too much glare off the ways now!

[Steve Schlumpf]

Wow! Shiny! The idea of a red banjo sounds interesting ... in an artful sort of way!

[David DeCristoforo]

"...a red banjo sounds interesting..."

Well it's red now. "Hammer Finish" red paint. I may end up painting the whole machine a piece at a time. Maybe a different color for each piece?

[John Keeton]

My heart has swelled with pride!!!:) I have left my mark on the world!!!:D My legacy is assured!!:cool::cool::cool:

[David DeCristoforo]

My heart has swelled with pride!!!:) I have left my mark on the world!!!:D My legacy is assured!!:cool::cool::cool:

Hmm.. that's just what my wife said...

[Steve Schlumpf]

Sounds like a whole nuther business opportunity - custom paint jobs for lathes! Looking forward to the photos!

[Roger Chandler]

Pretty nice setup there David...........I know, shop police.....:rolleyes:.....not really, but I do like to see those valuable tools get some TLC! :)

[Dennis Simmons]

Looks good :), this morning I cleaned my shop also, been a long time since I did it,after shoveling up as many shavings as I could, I wrapped my head in a cloth, and turned on the leaf blower, what a cloud of dust:eek:

[Tim Thiebaut]

The lathe looks a heck of a lot better then the last time we saw it, and the whole shop looks good. I didnt know your shop was in a tent! I think that is very cool, but could never do that here, I live in a very good area but none the less I would be missing half of my tools from one night in a shop like this, and once they knew it was there it wouldnt take a week to empty it out.

[David DeCristoforo]

Here it is. The new red "Hammer Finish" on my banjo. Pretty impressive isn't it? I can't wait to see how much better my turning is now...

197417

[Dick Wilson]

My heart has swelled with pride!!!:) I have left my mark on the world!!!:D My legacy is assured!!:cool::cool::cool:

Sorry to pass on very sad news John. Your pride will be crushed when I tell you my shop is back to being as bad if not worse, probably worse, than it has ever been. I estimate 8-10 lawn bags on the floor:eek::eek::eek::eek: I just shoveled from under the lathe today because my back was hurting from standing 3" higher than normal. My turning bench is piled high with important "stuff";);) I fell of the wagon big time, but I am having a great time:D:D:D:D

[John Keeton]

Here it is. The new red "Hammer Finish" on my banjo. Pretty impressive isn't it? I can't wait to see how much better my turning is now...

197417Man, I am glad you waited until the Flamingo 2 was off the lathe - talk about a fashion faux pas!!! This is going to create real problems for you David - I mean think of the color clashing that will be going on!!

On a side note - those are some really slick looking ways. Nice work! I have notified the local shop police, and they will be making weekly checks to insure ongoing compliance. From Dick's confession, it is obvious you all are a bunch of slackers and need constant supervision!

[David DeCristoforo]

Now just a minute counselor. Shop police I can tolerate. Fashion police? That's another matter entirely. No way!

I just finished scrubbing the last of the rust off some of my tools. I am going to have to keep everything wiped down with light oil from now on. The tent is just like having everything outside except that it does not get directly rained on. Summer's here so it will be fairly dry but as fall comes I may have to start looking for an indoor shop... Either that or I am going to need a boxcar load of camellia oil!

PS I really like the red banjo. I may do the whole lathe!

[Steve Schlumpf]

I was just thinking... wow... a red banjo.... now that works! Pretty cool stuff! A little racy for this neck of the woods but pretty cool just the same!

[David E Keller]

Congrats on getting her clean... I wasn't sure that was possible based on the pics you showed before. I think the red banjo is a nice touch... Maybe you can paint the lathe with one of your classic red to black fades. That would be sweet.

[Roger Chandler]

That banjo now has a strange attraction................hummmn............what color goes with Grizzly Green? :D

[Steve Campbell]

I do believe if I worked in a tent it would be easier to just move the tent rather than clean it out. Let the wind blow all the chips away.

Steve

[David DeCristoforo]

"Let the wind blow all the chips away."

This "tent" is securely anchored to a concrete slab and it has a wood floor. So it's really more like a "semi-permenant structure" than an "actual tent". I tried opening the ends hoping that the wind would "blow all the chips away". But somehow, it just got filled up with leaves. So a bit of discipline is going to have to come into play here.

Sigh....

[Scott Hackler]

Geez David, you must live in a rural area because even here in relatively low crime doodah.... that tent would be cleaned out of everything EXCEPT the shavings, within a week!

Love the red banjo! I am a sucker for anything red. :)

[David DeCristoforo]

My tools are protected by an energy field which is maintained, at my nightly request, by a host of highly enlightened spiritual masters.

[Jeff Nicol]

David, I am in a heap of trouble now! If John is on the shop police I better get in gear as he may be stopping in on his way to the AAW Symposium! My shop looks like a combination of Joplin and New Orleans without the rain and hail!! I don't think there is enough time for a complete cleaning but a spruce up and big bonfire might help the cause.

Bad dreams tonight!! Love the red banjo, maybe a good thing for my old Atlas metal lathe for accents,

Jeff

[David DeCristoforo]

"My shop looks like a combination of Joplin and New Orleans..."

I've seen pics of your shop. I wouldn't want to have the clean that one up! Mine was a mess but it's so much smaller...

[Don Alexander]

now that you are all in practice cleaning up how bout coming over and cleaning mine? :eek::D:eek::D

[Rick Markham]

From Dick's confession, it is obvious you all are a bunch of slackers and need constant supervision!

Hey I resemble that remark! :p


Purdy Banjo... Fire Engine Red... :D

[David DeCristoforo]

I'm on a tear now. I woke up this morning with a vision of how I am going to paint the rest of my lathe. That hammer finish red is going to play a big role! I am thinking that maybe I have been "influenced" by the metallic red finish of my new Glaser tool handles. The red I used on the banjo is a pretty close match!