Day 389 - ALMOST done with the shop
What a day...what a week! One box and one bin to go! Fittingly, the last box contained my leather aprons and my flags. Two personal touches that make this shop MY shop :)
I was born in Livonia, in southeast Michigan, near Detroit. I grew up with the 90's Red Wings dynasty front and center in society. EVERYTHING was hockey back then. Hockeytown was not just a marketing slogan. So there's no way I'm not flying the Red Wings flag. The "Rebuilding since 1957" Detroit Lions have finally started to play well. The Pistons had a great run in 2004, knocking off the Las Angelas Lakers 4-1 to become champs. And the Detroit Tigers play baseball. I'm not a fan of baseball. Too many games and too slow a pace. But the Detroit D is iconic!
I picked up some S hooks for hanging the lights. I ended up not using them for the lights and found they are super handy to hang stuff from the wall girts. https://amzn.to/3YPsHEc
I've been working on the shop here and there, in between household and property to-do items. With all of the shop unpacked and put in an initial spot, it's time for the dust collection! I initially started with the dust collection, but that turned out to be a mistake. I was constantly hitting the ladder on the pipe with other tasks, so I delayed until all of the moving and putting stuff away was done. It feels really good to empty this dust collection pipe and fittings bin.
Random, I know, but any time I'm driving and see anything of use on the side of the road I pick it up. Today's score was in a relatively new 5-gallon bucket. Buckets are super handy and about $10 with a lid these days.
We bought a forest, and now I'm buying firewood? Well, yeah. We have an abundance of firewood on the property but none of it is cut, dry, and ready to cook with. I haven't had the time to dedicate to firewood harvesting, nor the place to process it, until now. I bought one cord of seasoned hickory for $200 for my smoker. This will be the last batch of wood I buy, hopefully forever.
The dust collection isn't quite operational yet, but I'm at least in a position where I can use the machines a little bit. I've always found my curve-cutting bandsaw to be a fantastic tool for crosscutting firewood. My resaw bandsaw has a 3/4" carbide tooth blade but the 3/16" 4tpi skip tooth blade on this saw cuts firewood better.
Of course, I forgot to put a log round under the lean-to for splitting. That's OK. Once the firewood is crosscut, splitting it with a maul/ax combo is light work. I don't mind splitting on the ground here, an angle grinder will fix the cheap edge quickly. I did put a log rund under the lean-to after the rain stopped.
For Mother's Day this year, I smoked three racks of baby back ribs and a tray of baked beans. Delicious is an understatement. Hickory is my favorite wood to smoke with, and this cooker will make anyone look like a chef.
The dust collection is now entirely run with only the HS950 sander needing to be hooked up. I want to experiment with a custom dust hood at this location. Everything else is plumbed in and ready to work. Next up is electrical, and then clean and calibrate the tools! I'm starting to see the light at the end of this tunnel!
Homestead stuff:
American Green Lights, use code jaybates for 10% off https://americangreenlights.com/
Yard Glider (SO handy!) Use code jbates for 5% off https://yardglider.com/
Tractor/Off Road Lights: https://amzn.to/4bmBfHr
Bad Boy 4035H tractor
Kioti KG4066 grapple
W.R. Long 3rd Function
W.R. Long 3rd Function Continuous Flow
Piranha Bar
Universal Workmaster with D Rings https://www.jufabworks.com/products
Chainsaw earmuff helmet https://amzn.to/3XmPsif
PROYAMA chainsaws, 26cc top handle, 66cc big saw: https://amzn.to/4h0c7b0
Stihl MS250
Husqvarna Rancher 460 https://amzn.to/3AUq9v6
UTV mirror https://amzn.to/4dYHeCz
Measuring wheel https://amzn.to/3Z6cATw
Time-lapse cameras https://amzn.to/4cMR6hQ
LockNLube grease gun https://amzn.to/4g48UHR
7/32 chainsaw files https://amzn.to/3XoFFIs
#homestead
JK Boots: Hands down, without question, the best outdoor working boot that I have ever tried. They aren't cheap, and they aren't inexpensive. USE THE CODE jaybates TO GET 10% OFF! Affiliate link to the O.T. Bison - Canyon that I have:
https://www.jkboots.com/products/o-t-bison-rust-roughout-smooth?bg_ref=BwlWA71DVt
JK Boots Update 4/5/25:
My O.T.s are still great. Heavily worn and holding up great. Still my go-to work boot. I recently got a pair of the square-toe western boots (The Buck - Indigo | Chocolate) for days where I prefer the speed of getting in and out of the boots, or days where I'm mostly on hard surfaces all day, or running errands. Very comfortable right out of the box with zero break-in for me. THUMBS UP AGAIN.
https://www.jkboots.com/products/the-buck-navy-chocolate?bg_ref=BwlWA71DVt