How'd it go today?

You too! I gave Squish's number to that group that wants to put clothes on animals. His dogs are running around his house naked all the time!
 
FireFighterZero said:
Yeah, the mig welder or stick welder dont do as good of a job at soaking the stud with heat. Sometimes you just train your torch on the stud a while before you add metal, help release the stud.

Machine shop will do fine.

Often times when an engine sits for a few years the condensation will rust up a valve in the guide and stick it. The rod will sometimes bend as a result when you try and start it.

Did you change the oil that sat in the engine or did the owner start and run the truck before you bought it? Did he change the oil?

I have seen water enter a cylinder and cause a hydro lock and bend rods, as well.

Did it run good and then suddenly start running poorly for you guys? Or did it always run this way?
Click to expand...

The guy who tried to weld it for us practiced a bunch on a 5.4L Ford engine that he's replacing manifolds on, apparently he has gotten pretty good at it! Seems the heat in the stud you mentioned is the key.

It was started/moved around the lot by the seller, it ran with a bit of a miss but fine otherwise for us. It was driven home (2.5 hrs) on the oil that was in it, plus some running around locally to get things squared away on it, then we changed the oil. It ran fine for me saturday, went to crap on sunday. We cranked it over today with all the pushrods back in and everything seems ok. We still have a lack on compression in 1 cylinder, and 1 more stud to finish drilling/taping.

In other news, I finally wedged over a tree yesterday. We had this blue spruce in our front yard

IMG_20160228_142844367.jpg

which would have been just fine except for this little oak tree that sprouted itself underneath it.

IMG_20160228_142857892.jpg

So I trimmed the rest of the lower branches off to minimize its back lean, grabbed my wedges and maul and started cutting. I tried to keep the notch shallow to allow room for the bar and wedges, which just barely worked. When it sat back on the saw I had just enough room to get the wedges started, tapped them enough to get the saw released and gave it a few good whacks and over she went!

IMG_20160228_144022069.jpg

I left the hinge alone, in hindsight I probably should have thinned it a bit more but I was afraid of snapping the hinge. It was a low consequence scenario, which is why I wedged it over in the first place, but having it go over backward because the hinge snapped was a bit too scary for me to mess with. As you can see (pointed out by my foreman), the far side of the hinge held all the way to the ground. That was kinda cool as it held the trunk while I quartered it to fit into my burn barrel. My foreman then climbed up the stump, crawled across the trunk, stood up and walked back like it was the easiest balance beam ever.

IMG_20160228_144037709_HDR.jpg
 
Good, Chris.


Remember you can cut half of the back-cut (1/4 cut, some call it) and wedge one side tight, then cut the other half of the backcut, wedge it, too. Bang 'em!

Wedging could have its own thread. Its so useful, and under-used in residential work, IMO.

Especially when you can drop a tree into the woods, or its just Put On Ground Only. Digging/ cutting a pull rope out from under a tree sucks compared to grabbing the wedges from where they sit on the stump, especially the larger the tree is.

I have beaten wedges for over 10 or 11 years. I saw Willie's overlapping stacked wedge picture. Said, "Self, I wouldn't have thought of that". having two stacked wedges sunk without tipping MIGHT have lead me to use a wood block like Stig's nylon plates, but its way easier to learn from collective wisdom.
 
Something almost primal feeling about beating a tree over Chris. I get agitated when someone offers a skid loader to push while I'm wailing on wedges.
 
Skidsteer works sometimes. Shears the hinge occasionally.



When you have a hard beat-over, sing John Henry in a Johnny Cash voice. :lol:
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Gmrh8HhNgyI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
treebilly said:
Something almost primal feeling about beating a tree over Chris. I get agitated when someone offers a skid loader to push while I'm wailing on wedges.
Click to expand...

:lol: I get that after doing this one.

Sean, I thought about the "half backcut" technique, but having never wedged a tree over before I decided to keep it as simple as possible. I'm all about learning from the collective wisdom, as well as learning from other's mistakes. I make enough mistakes on my own, anything to keep them to a minimum is greatly appreciated.
 
Still at the airport waiting on Dave's flight. They keep screwing up his plane. Broke the last one. Wish I could have had him here last week. Oh well. Get some shit done over the next few weeks. I have a ton of stuff to do while the crew does their thing. Have to just let it go and not climb as much.
 
woodslinger said:
And the paperwork came back from the state today, Barefoot Lawn Care has officially become Barefoot Tree Care!!
Click to expand...

Way to go!

Can you tell us what the "barefoot" part means to you and your biz? Just curious, thanks.
 
cory said:
Way to go!

Can you tell us what the "barefoot" part means to you and your biz? Just curious, thanks.
Click to expand...

It made more sense 2 years ago than it does now. .
I used to go barefoot whenever possible. I actually had to drive home a few times because I got the grocery store and realized that I had no shoes or flip flops in the car (and I've snuck through a few stores barefoot in a pinch). So when I started mowing lawns it played into my not using weed and feed, "If I cant walk barefoot on your lawn after I've done "X", then I'm not doing "X". I guess I could still play it in as a standard of cleanup or something, I dunno. Established name recognition really.
 
Had to get a street closure permit for a weekend crane aided removals job. Right by my shop, eleven Pines on a hot spring hotel's grounds leaning over the narrow road. It used to be that I could get a permit at the local police box, one form and two dollars fee, the whole thing taking maybe fifteen minutes. Now that the town has incorporated, I have to go to the main police station and fill out a form in duplicate and pay twenty dollars, then go to the main city office and fill out four of the same form and pay twenty cents for a copy that they make. It takes half a day to get it done. Supposed to do it ten days in advance so they can let the fire department and some other entities know, but they said they would let it slide. Probably the only foreigner that ever goes in there to get the right to close a street.
 
Mick, fist came here to woodworking apprentice when 22, four years then and left after to continue the work elsewhere...your former neck of the woods. Been back here twenty some. Learning the lingo wasn't too bad in an everyday workshop setting where it's all that is spoken and not understanding is no excuse. :lol: It eventually sinks in even with a numb brain such as myself. Writing and reading is much tougher, not using all those characters it's too easy to forget. People often have to help me out with that.
 
My Sister picked up a new mutt from a shelter today and brought him over today. One year old "cattle dog/shepherd mix". Never seen sturdier legs & feet on a dog! Him & Otis had a good romp around the house playing together. Seems to be a very attentive, good natured animal.
 
Good on both of you for saving a couple of dogs like that.

Why dont they make the collar of infants clothes bigger? I mean when the kid has a major blow out the only way to take the clothes off is over his head. Makes no sense. Now Daniel boy needs a bath, and now I need a shower. I have never understood how she does it. I pride myself as being good under pressure, but when it comes to poo, I panic.
 
I have no personal experience with shelter dogs, but from what I've heard that is amazing. I've heard many stories of dogs taking days or weeks to adjust to new humans and surroundings. That dog being comfortable with their new human, plus another human and playing with another dog is remarkable to me. I love happy dogs :D. My dogs were pissed today when I came home smelling like 2 chocolate labs :O
 
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