Chitty job

[Al Smith]

In the process of laying down about 12-15 tons of crushed stone for a pad for a 40 foot shipping container two trees had to come out .The stumps had to cut cut off below grade .I really dislike doing that but it had to be done .

I used an 024 Stihl for two reasons .One it's the only saw I have with a short bar .Two if it tried to jump out of the bore cuts I could hold it .If I used the larger saws they could over power me,not good .Snapped it off with the old Oliver crawler .

It's a 1954 OC-6 model .About the size of a Cat D2 or a Case 350 .

 

[MasterBlaster]

Watch out for that saw!!!

What did the shipping container cost?

 

[Al Smith]

Container is around $2400 delivered for a standard height 40 footer .It's basically to store Georgie Girls' stuff and some of mine .Rental storage with less than half the area would be $2100 a year so it's a no brainer .

 

[MasterBlaster]

Any need for storm shelters up there? I've heard they make good shelters.

 

[Al Smith]

The shipping containers I'm told are around 2-2400 made new in China .Many are only used one time .They discount them to brokers all over the world .It cost more to ship them back than what money they fetch on the open market .That's why there are so many of them .If you think about it at my age it should last the rest of my life .I'll paint it "hunter green" to match the rest of the place .Couple hours with the paint sprayer and a couple gallons of Rust-Oleum ,good for 20 years .
.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Interesting... China imports stuff from us - you'd think they'd had a system going to get them back. No rule says it has to come back empty.

 

[Al Smith]

Now the old dozer .I bought that thing for 200 bucks about 35 years ago ,about scrap iron price .Rebuilt the engine ,rebuilt the entire under carriage track rollers .Reworked the straight blade into a manual angle hydraulic tilt blade .I had about $600 in it .

In the last 2-3 weeks it took me another 200 to rebuild the carb,replace half the hydraulic hoses and buy new oil etc .It's just a hobby just like the chainsaws ,weird hobby maybe but that's just me .I yam what I yam

 

[Al Smith]

They say the US imports more from China than we export .The shipping companies were spending 8 % of their profits shipping empties back .

 

[Mellow]

There's a heck of a lot more "stuff" coming FROM China than going TO China.

 

[BlackSmith]

Their great for instant storage space but the sweat like it’s raining inside. Vents or dehumidifiers are a must.

 

[Al Smith]

Yes they say two 10" by 10" vents should get-er done .Some suggest wind vanes but I'm not so keen about cutting a hole in the roof .

 

[MasterBlaster]

What? You can't find a good welder???

 

[theTreeSpyder]

Butch, i hear they don't have any in that part of the country.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Well I can't imagine what Al's gonna do! Maybe a Craig's list ad?

 

[Tree09]

Hahahahahahaha

I have a solar powered vent that mounts on the side of the companionway of my sailboat, that could work so you wouldn't have to cut the roof. We use those shipping containers all the time for portable offices and storage, you can cut doors into the side and windows too. I've never noticed them sweating a bunch, but we're in them everyday and I'm usually working so i didn't notice. The office/ break room ones are usually insulated on the inside, so that might be it too. Pretty cheap to add some studs, fiberglass, and some quarter inch plywood. I wouldn't imagine them being too bad, i mean they ship stuff around the globe in them so it can't be too bad right? We drop them off in the middle of fields, muddy lots, and sometimes even on gravel. Just about everyone of them used for tools has shelves, so that might help too. I dunno, i was thinking of getting some for storage too, so let me know.

 

[Al Smith]

Generally speaking if the inside temp is the same temp as the outside you won't get condensation.Where you get into problems is where the day time temps being hot and nights are cooler .The hot air carries more humidity, as it cools during night it condenses on the metal .I have that problem in my shop during spring and fall .
It can get as hot here during summer as it is in Louisiana .However being basically in the woods the container should not get as hot as if it were in an open field in the hot sun .I'll see how it goes .It won't take long to cut in some vents ,the sides are like 12 gauge sheet metal .Couple hours with a die grinder or a metal cutting blade on a power saw ,pop rivets .

As far as long term stuff ,I have almost enough steel to put up a 36 by 40 building .I have the bar joists,12,000 square feet of 22 gauge standing seam roofing nearly enough I beams .It's a time factor more than anything . After this container thing is done I'm going to get a free standing metal car port which is movable .I can buy one cheaper than I can build one .

Retirement is cool but my word I'm as busy as a one legged man in an ass kicking contest .I'm going to have to live until I'm 100 to get it all done .

 

[theTreeSpyder]

More Power to ya Bro!
.
Well Butch it was nice fishing with ya,
even tho we didn't get no bytes.

 

[treesmith]

Now the old dozer .I bought that thing for 200 bucks about 35 years ago ,about scrap iron price .Rebuilt the engine ,rebuilt the entire under carriage track rollers .Reworked the straight blade into a manual angle hydraulic tilt blade .I had about $600 in it .

In the last 2-3 weeks it took me another 200 to rebuild the carb,replace half the hydraulic hoses and buy new oil etc .It's just a hobby just like the chainsaws ,weird hobby maybe but that's just me .I yam what I yam

I'll give you $1500 for it...if you'll deliver to Alabama.....

 

[MasterBlaster]

Well Butch it was nice fishing with ya,
even tho we didn't get no bytes.

Yea - kinda odd!

 

[Al Smith]

I'll give you $1500 for it...if you'll deliver to Alabama.....

Be careful what you wish for .I've wrenched on that old antique so much I'm almost as well versed with the old gals internals as I am two wives and several girl friends .Most people would have cut it up for scrap 40 years ago---I'm not most people .

 

[theTreeSpyder]

Must need better bait!

 

[MasterBlaster]

It's breaking my heart seeing this place so dead.

 

[flushcut]

It's a 1954 OC-6 model .About the size of a Cat D2 or a Case 350 .

Do you have any more pics of the old gal?

 

[Nutball]

It's breaking my heart seeing this place so dead.

It's like every day gets slower. Even the topics are less tree related, not that they have to be.




I hope this place isn't directly linked to your health in some mysterious way

 

[Al Smith]

Do you have any more pics of the old gal?

Pictures aren't a problem .I have dandy Nikon camera .It's just an ingenious application of home spun mechanical stuff .The entire blade assembly is home made including my modifications .It was used for years as push back machine in a municipal dump site where they burned the trash and pushed it back about twice a week .It had a 4 feet high blade which is good for garbage but way too big for pushing dirt on a machine that small,9600 pounds and 34 horse power . I cut it down and changed it to a mechanical angle hydraulic tilt with about 2 feet of blade height.
The guy that had it for years had built hydraulic track tensioners from 4" hydraulic cylinders .However after about 50 years the seals went bad and to repair them you have to detrack it .I've done that 35 years ago and and am not about to again .So using hydraulic jacks and stacked steel wedges I got the tracks right,two inches of slack and pinned them in place using split 1 1/2" pipe over the cylinder rods held in place with muffler clamps < junk yard dawg stuff .
if you run a track too loose you can throw a track which is a pain in the butt to get back on .Too tight you take a chance of ruining the bearings on the front idler wheel .

Let me know what you want to see .I'm going to be out of town for a few days .A little "honey moon " or rendezvous depending on how you look at it .Man cannot live on bread alone must have a little "sugar" every now and again .Shall we just say I have a little "sweet" tooth --I"ll get some pics when I get back

I had some time before I have to shove off .First the engine .Gasoline same as an Oliver super 77 216.5 cubic inch which incidentally has the same bore and stroke as a 1954 Chevy .Except the Chevy is around 90 HP the Ollie being governed at 1600 RPM is almost 35 .

Next the blade assembly .The swivel plate is a cut down I beam .3" cylinder tilt , 3" lift cylinders .The angle blade has three positions ,left,center, right .When cutting grade you need the tilt more than the angle .About the only time I use the angle is for pushing snow and that has not been necessary for some time using a dozer .My Jeep is certainly a lot warmer place to be.

The track adjuster I had to cobble up .It isn't pretty but it worked