♻️ Grizz’s ~~ ASTRO Van 🚙 Renault SCENIC 1.5dci 🚙 1966 Chevy C10 🚘 1991 Oldsmobile 88 🚙 8/5/26 FORGIVE ME I HAVE SINNED

[Christine]

Next post ...Griz builds an English Wheel... from scrap rsj , and cast iron weights 

[grizz]

2 hours ago, Shandylegs said:

Can't offer any practical advice, as deep down you know what's already ahead (loads of time spent for what seems like little gain 🫣). 

What I can give is some remote moral support - when it's complete, you know it will have been done correctly with no corners cut!

Also looking forward to seeing the side project progress. Step through reverse trike 🤣

 

Ssssssssshhhhhhhh….. !!! 
 

Psychic 😉
 

Very very slow burner. 
 

Next time stamp will be in 4-5 weeks. 

[grizz]

Another one bites the dust. 

I did work it hard. 
 

Need to find another cheap, powerful, corded 115mm grinder 750watts or more  

. 

[bezzabsa]

whats killing them? Brushes or general parts failing??

[grizz]

19 minutes ago, bezzabsa said:

whats killing them? Brushes or general parts failing??

Abuse, long hours. 
 

Today possibly a bit too much sustained pressure. Getting in with the knotwheel of truth where I struggled to get in. 
 

I am too tired to be bothered to open it and see what died. 
 

But maybe I should. 
 

Good idea 

[grizz]

New victim just landed.

 

Primer gun. 

 

£22.00  

[GlenAnderson]

I’ve got a cheap Titan grinder you can have, but I suspect that getting it to you would cost more than buying one from your local Screwfix. 

[grizz]

Postage will be £3-6

In a jiffy bag, depending on weight. 
 

I will be buying at least one more to replace the dead one.  I have commissioned an older Bosch so need to replace it for Flapdisc no2 

[grizz]

16 hours ago, GlenAnderson said:

I’ve got a cheap Titan grinder you can have, but I suspect that getting it to you would cost more than buying one from your local Screwfix. 

Pulled the trigger on an Einhell 750W machine for £32.00

Prices have gone up noticeably. 
 

Life ehhh. 

[Westbay]

10 minutes ago, grizz said:

Pulled the trigger on an Einhell 750W machine for £32.00

Prices have gone up noticeably. 
 

Life ehhh. 

Outlets/suppliers probably follow this thread! 🤣

[grizz]

Hay muchos agujeros, pero los arreglaré todos.

[grizz]

 

While looking at Marketplace for a used grinder to buy, I posted a wanted comment on the local chat group. 

 

Looking for a 220v grinder. 

 

I would not buy a true bottom feeder but often £10-25 buys reasonable machines. 

 

Someone posted they had a hardly used 110v 800w Dewalt grinder (now we know how site tools get abused) plus I had asked for 220volt mains, not 110 volt transformed site equipment. I wanted to be sarcastic but just confirmed it was 110v before declining. I would have to buy a transformer and possibly a site extension. 

 

In the evening when Pedro got home, I was just putting the old grinder in the recycling. He asked what happened, I explained and told him about the 110v offer. 

He immediately told me to buy the 110v unit because he was 100% sure he could get me a transformer at work. Part of the site was abandoned with some equipment discarded there. He would ask his supervisor for permission to remove one. 

Permission which he managed to get. So I got a used transformer. Two days later the boss also gave him a scruffy, knotted up 15 meter extension cable and said he could offer it to me with an apology for not cleaning it. A job that took me 15 minutes and some Amonia based cleaner and a kitchen scourer. 

Amazing that all this stuff had served its purpose and was headed for recycling once the site is cleared. 
 

Also, when I went to store the transformer, I found that I actually had one……. Mickey had given me this one a few years ago as he had no more 110v tools  I had forgotten about it  not safe looking at all  

 

 

So. 

 

 

Back to the grinder, it took me a day to track down the seller and then on collecting it, he turned out to be a really good guy. Electric engineer and volunteer fireman. Plus his shop felt like a place to be happy in. 

Asking him why he was selling what seemed like a perfectly good machine, he said “cordless” and pointed at his wall. 

 

I was not gobsmacked, but rather thanked my fortune for buying a £90.00 machine for £30.00 and having access to discarded stuff. 

 

Cleaning up took probably 30 minutes on the grinder and transformer. 

 

Another grinder got delivered on Thursday, a new, corded Einhell 750w machine. 

 

Grinder count and setups now back to normal. 

 

Life really is good. 

 

 

Video of some progress  

 

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[Jenson Velcro]

Once you have a transformer, picking up 110v gear is a great way to get some high quality tools. If you’re only a hobby user then the convenience of cordless tools is much less of an issue.

[grizz]

43 minutes ago, Jenson Velcro said:

Once you have a transformer, picking up 110v gear is a great way to get some high quality tools. If you’re only a hobby user then the convenience of cordless tools is much less of an issue.

I have a profound preference for corded tools. 

[grizz]

Some random stuff. 
 

Saw the micro bus yesterday. 
 

Dennis a couple of years ago. 
 

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[grizz]

Yesterday I was scrolling through Marketplace.

 

Saw some tools posted 15 minutes before that were being put out on the sidewalk for anyone to collect as scrap.

 

My immediate thoughts were eyes for owls, and a few other bits welded together to create arty stuff.

 

Messaged the seller explaining that I planned to use the rusty junk in creating art or sculptures.

 

He replied that he would have his wife pull it back onto their porch.

 

So I headed over there. 3 miles from my house. Collected them. Then went to my local Coop store. Bought some stuff for £13.00 but including member discount it was £7.89 £5.00 saving paid for the fuel to collect the tools.

 

Back home I decided to just sort the junk out of the plastic crate it came in.

 

Typically being me……….

 

5 hours later I had cleaned and sorted everything out.

 

A few pieces offered to [USER=22412]@CraigRK[/USER] and [USER=14340]@Pauly[/USER]. More of it will find new homes.

 

I have earmarked some bodywork tools for myself that I don’t have.

 

Dennis looked at the photos and said this: 

 

“Several hundred dollars worth of tools there. I could get the broken ones exchanged under warranty for you”

 

I will see if I feel like that.

 

Anyway……

 

I think this was a great, coincidental score.

 

Love the new tools that will get used.

 

 

PS. We need to look at how rich we are and then realise how much we waste. How much we don’t need to replace. How often we can reuse, repurpose, recycle, recover, recharge.

 

It feels great finding free cash.

 

Pocketing that cash.

 

Life is good.

 

 

 

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[grizz]

Bootfair today netted Craig a few nice bits.  Vintage tools and a beach buggy. 

Me?? Not so much. One vintage Matchbox Jeep for 10p  and mate Fil @sparkplug managed to get me a Woody and Buzz Lightyear for £1.00 each.  (They are part of some future plan)  Usually priced around £5.00 each.  Hopefully they don’t come with the kid attached  

This time of the year is great for weather and sunrise and sunsets  

 

 

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[grizz]

Slow weekend with many distractions. 

Free tools took up 6 hours in total on Saturday. After watching the weekly True Blue Travellers episode. 

Sunday Bootfair 2 hours (disappointed) 

Then cleaned up the Cabin (Lil Shed) and modified the door locks.

Full time, but only part time guy was moving in Sunday night. Except I got this text from him: 
“Hi Rian, I am and have been sat on the M6 round the Birmingham for an hour and a half. The toll road is closed and everyone has been routed around Birmingham. I’m looking ahead and there is also closures on the M25 due to an accident. So to keep my sanity and health, I have booked myself in at the hotel at Cambridge services and will stay there tonight. I’m working in Rye tomorrow so will set off early to there from Cambridge in the morning and go to yours after work tomorrow. What a debacle!”

George typically was sitting right outside the cabin while the vacuum cleaner and also grinder and powerfile were being used. 

Watched a bit of YouTube stuff. 

Then headed to the shop to sort, pack away and mount the free tools. I really don’t need them but they are too good to turn into artwork materials. 

By about 13.30 I started on possibly the bit of rust on the bedside. 

Once done, I had planned to take some more horse shoes and turn them into something different. 
Had a coffee and unpacked some, looked at them and thought screw it…. Packed up, closed up and came indoors because the weather was still being unpleasant. 

That concludes my weekend.  

Today I will start on the hammer and dolly work on the first bedside. 

These are going to be marathon sessions and I am expecting more unpleasantness because the metal has previously been worked both hard and unsympathetically. 
I already found some parts to be paper thin and fragile. 

Wish me luck. 

Pic of my hand where the grinder with a knotwheel got away last week and hit me hard, through a thick cattlemans glove. Thankfully it just hurt, not broken. 
That knotwheel of death strikes fear into me, possibly even more than a 9 inch grinder (one which the blade has exploded in my hands when cutting a RSJ in half)  If the small grinder with a knotwheel gets away, it will not stop until your blood short circuits it to death. 
It will be very messy. 

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[grizz]

Rear of cab bedpanel ready for final primer and paint  

 

 

[grizz]

Other than the obvious ding on the edge. 
 

Does anyone have much information on these wheels? 
 

Size, width, offset etc ? 
 

Thanks. 
 

 

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[Erebus]

I think they might be Rimstock wheels for a classic Mini.  I think I can make out 5 x 10 cast into them

[grizz]

25 minutes ago, Erebus said:

I think they might be Rimstock wheels for a classic Mini.  I think I can make out 5 x 10 cast into them

So that could be 5J wide.  
 

[Erebus]

21 minutes ago, grizz said:

So that could be 5J wide.  
 

Yes 10" diameter and 5" wide

[grizz]

Speaking of which……

 

Text received which had me realise Tempest Fugit. 

 

I quietly whispered “Fuggit” to myself. 

 

Stuff is happening again. 

 

And somehow @sparkplug is spearheading the process. 

 

 

Messaged ##### this morning to find out if Sunday is still on. I currently have no address for the pickup or reply from #####.

 

Just keeping you in the loop. I’m sure he’ll come back to me at some point in the next few days.

 

I’m heading up North at 5pm today and will have hit and miss signal once I’m up there.

 

 

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[grizz]

Just headed out to collect some vintage alloys. 

 

Probably 40 plus years old. 

 

Not quite Cosmic wheels but after a repair on one, should be good. 

 

 

Then to Darrens engineering shop. 

 

I have a job to do. 

 

He may have some shortcusts. 

 

I have already spent 40 minutes painting silver Hammerite today. 

 

Video due later. 

 

 

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[Westbay]

"He may have some shortcusts."   Vertically challenged customers ?  😇
 

[grizz]

Long day yesterday. 

Hammerite painting by 7.15

Headed out by 8.15 to collect a pair of 10” vintage alloys. 

Scenic knocked over 66666 miles and I got a photo. 

Alloy wheel seller, Jason was a nice guy. 
Wheels were the worse two off his late dads 70’s Mini. 
When the car eventually died, the wheels were retained and his dad put two on a domestic garden trailer. 
Sadly, when the dad died, the mum scrapped the trailer without the boys knowing that. So two wheels went to scrap. 
And the two he was selling to me, spent the last 15 years in the back of his shed. 
One is dinged, but I will be trying to use heat, and a hammer to try straighten it out. Then more finessing. 
The other one is fitted with a 165 tyre/tire 
Great for mocking up but for driving the ideal is to go as narrow as possible on these 5J 10 inch tubed wheels (yes they use inner tubes). 
Once back home I also gave them the Grizz favourite of turd polishing. 
I am happy with my initial £25.00 plus collection, investing. 

From collecting the wheels I headed over to The Isle of Sheppey to see Darren as it has been a while. 

I needed some scrap steel to progress another tiny little job I had agreed to do for a lady called Jo. 
Repairing a cast iron Victorian coal basket thats been partially burned away. 

Visiting with Darren is always therapeutic. 

Got some steel, agreed and volunteered to make him a Von Dutch flying eyeball using one of the spoked MG wheels I recently bought. Just need to find some good rusty flat sheet steel for the wings. 

Rummaging through the scrap steel dumpster, I pulled a Record No4 vice. 
Missing a jaw face and with a lump of the casting broken off. But it will work. Brought home and cleaned it along with the alloys as well. Fil @sparkplug will be the recipient of this one. I don’t need it, but it needs to live on. 

Got back home after going food shopping on the way home by 1.00pm and straight to the shop after feeding George as my early departure meant he missed out on his second pouch for breakfast. 

So I worked on the fire basket “repair” which is really just extended life. 

Also spent time breaking a 7mm and 13mm drillbit. Both followed by much swearing because I knew it could happen. Use a hand held drill and you are being stupidly optimistic 

Anyway, the “project” that’s been keeping me busy the last three days will get shown soon. 

I eventually shut shop at 8.15pm and came in for a shower and sandwich. 

Today is part two of the coal basket rescue. 

. 

 

[grizz]

Cleaned up. 
 

Much better. 

[grizz]

Gatvol

Moeg

Klaar

Moer

Pok 

 

Two jobs wrapped up today. 

 

One took about three days. 

The second probably half a day if you exclude materials logistics. 

 

One done for Pedro the lodger. As thankful as anyone could ever be. 

 

The other one, because I am an idiot, for someone I want to like but also find myself disliking intensely. 

 

But I live in hope that not being a dick and being somewhat kind, may rub off on her. 

 

Maybe I am still the fool.  

 

More about both later. 

 

Much much later. 

 

On one of my coffee breaks, George came to pee on the grass, in front of me. Then proceeded to try and cover it.  

 

Pedro brought a gift at 10.30 last night after having to go back to work. 

 

 

 

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[grizz]

Filler. Dents. Old accident Damage. 

Rear bedsides. 

The 66 C10 continues to bring surprises 

Not the cute kind either. 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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