Building Stuff

My latest DIY project is pretty much done. 2/3 done anyway.

I like these sorts of projects. They are fun. But the problem is that I tend to suck at DIY things that are not REALLY easy.

But no matter what, the project ALWAYS progresses as follows. First I have to think up something to do that I figure I can handle on my own. Then I have to decide if doing it myself will be cheaper than just buying whatever crazy thing it is that I need.

Once I figure that it IS cheaper to just get the item in question than to attempt to build it myself, I then have to decide that I will build it anyway.

The latest project was simple. Make some flag staffs that fit into the boat rod holders.

Sounds easy huh? Well it was. But after the first ones were built I thought up ways to improve them. And then they fell out of the boat on the highway.

So I had to go back. I got two more poles. BUT the Home Depot was out of the stainless steel eye bolts I needed. So I go to another Home Depot and they had the correct eye bolts. I also got some locking nuts and washers.

So I am up to three trips.

But then I think up more things I can do with sticks. And I think that some wood stain and varnish would make the flag staffs look better.

Four trips.

And then after applying stain three times (it is way easier than painting, just slop the stuff on, let it sit for a few minutes, then wipe off the excess with napkins or an old shirt or whatever) I apply a few coats of varnish.

BUT.....the gloss is just not right. Because I did not sand the poles before each coat of varnish.

So - back to Home Depot! I need some 220 grit sand paper. And while I am there I decide to get another unfinished pole to make another staff. I also get a sanding sponge to see how they work. And they work very well!

Five trips to the cursed place of improvement. But I am pleased with the end results.


And I learned something! First I should have sanded the first two poles before applying the stain. I sanded the third pole with the sponge which has medium and fine grit. Then I hit it with the very fine 220 grit paper. Before the stain was applied it was smooth as could be. The stain took very well. One application is all it needs.

The other two were already stained and a few applications of varnish were applied. So I sanded them with the 220 and applied another coat of varnish. Then when it dried I sanded them again and applied more varnish. They are drying now.

The third staff will have the first coat of varnish applied sometime later today.

Ill have photos of my handy work tomorrow!!!!!

By the way, 5 trips to the place of curse is about right. I never get all the stuff I need on the first trip. Call it poor planning. Call it screwing up and having to go get more stuff because I destroyed the first batch of stuff. Call it whatever you want. It ALWAYS happens.

DIY Improvements.

Slowly the process of fixing all the crap I broke / lost during the last boat mission is getting resolved. Monday I managed to swing by the Home Depot to get more stuff to make two flag staffs.

But there is an interesting thing that happens with home DIY projects. You get an idea to construct something. So you do.

And then after you are done, you think of something you could have done differently that would improve the design. But you already have a first generation item.

Now sometimes you can modify the item to incorporate the improvements. And sometimes you can't. To implement the design improvements you have to start all over.

And such was the case with the flag staffs. The new and improved design includes locking nuts (they have a nylon insert) and TWO ty-wraps holding the flags on the stainless steel eye bolt. This is an example of a design change I could have made to the old ones.

But now for a design change that was impossible to make with the old staffs. I cut them slightly longer. So now the groove that prevents the staffs from twisting (there is a metal pins in the rod holders to keep fishing equipment in place) is cut deeper. About 1/2 inch of staff extends out the bottom of the holders. So now I can drill a small hole and put a small bolt in the part of the staff that sticks out the bottom of the rod holders to prevent them from flying out again. Even when towing.

I also improved the bow tie down thing. It broke too, but not because of anything I forgot to do. Some of the hardware came loose. What I had was two lengths of stainless steel cable. One length was wrapped around the trailer and held in place with cable clamps. Attached to the other end of the cable was a turnbuckle. And then on the other end of the turnbuckle was more cable, more cable clamps, and a stainless steel S hook.

The way it worked was I would put the S hook on the bow eye, then tighten the turnbuckle. This prevented the boat from bouncing up and down on the trailer. It did very little to hold it on the trailer - that is what the winch is for.

Well the cable clamps came loose and the S hook cable slipped and the whole invention quit working. Not a big deal, I did not really need it.

Well the improved design eliminated one of the cables. I bolted the turnbuckle directly to a part of the trailer, so there is just one cable going from the top of the turnbuckle to the S hook. And 4 cable clamps. I used the red lock tight in the hardware this time. This stuff is glue for nuts and bolts. Once the lock tight cures the nuts will not be able to come loose. Not even with hand tools. Supposedly, according to the package, the hardware will have to be heated to 500 degrees to break the lock tight. In reality you CAN get stuff loose with hand tools, but you really have to work at it.

I really need to photograph more stuff like this.

Anyway now the bow tie down will be easier to use (the dual cable system with the turnbuckle really needed two people because the cable would twist and so it helped to have one person hold the cables while the other person tightened the turnbuckle. Well now there is only one cable so I can easily just grab the one cable and tighten the turnbuckle myself.

But mostly, I like it when a DIY project works out.

Anyhow both these were simple projects. 30 minutes or so for everything. Not a big deal. A nice somewhat relaxing way to end the day.