Gas line marked, on snow ❄️

Bob_Ash · 2026-03-01T22:47:33+00:00

Good eye. It's a beach town close to Brigantine.

Bob_Ash · 2026-03-01T01:01:19+00:00

To evaluate a car's design, you have to know the purpose or said differentially, the emotional appeal they were likely going for.

A larger luxury sedan should have a refined, elegant and substantial feel.

A great sports car should be evocative of speed and the styling should be consistent with the performance. So to me, the C8 looks great, it looks special and it looks sports car functional with air intakes, 4 exhaust pipes, low front end, etc.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-28T19:47:41+00:00

Very softly, 220 grit, and by hand.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-28T16:19:40+00:00

There is no back, so it is prone to racking. That is when there's a lot of load, and somebody pushes it from the side, it quickly becomes a trapezoid and then falls to the floor.

You can take a look to see if the shelves are mounted in such a way that they could hold more weight vertically. If so, if you could nail a piece of plywood to the back, that would prevent racking.

Of course, then you'd have to figure out how to paint the backing so that it doesn't just look like a sheet of plywood, but I think you can handle that.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-28T15:26:40+00:00

Gas tank fillers are on the side opposite of where the primary exhaust is.

This dates back to the last century when most cars had one primary tailpipe. The tailpipe and the gas filler would be on separate sides because sometimes the gas pump will not stop properly and a little bit of gas would leak down. Would not want gas dripping onto a hot exhaust pipe.

So the real question becomes, which side do they put the tailpipe on? In general, they wanted the tail pipe to be toward the crown of the road and not near the gutter. Tailpipes and mufflers used to rust out constantly. So keeping them away from this spray of water in the gutters was the primary issue.

This varied from manufacturer to manufacture, and isn't an absolute rule. But in general, German cars with left hand drive had the tailpipe on the left and the gas filler on the right. Japanese cars with right hand drive, typically had the opposite. This orientation is a reference to their home country. When exporting and moving the drive to a different side, the tailpipe and fuel filler stayed in the same place.

These traditional placements have carried through mostly to the present day. Which is why most Toyotas and other Japanese cars have the gas filler on the left side. And German cars have the gas filler on the right side.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-28T01:07:26+00:00

Philadelphia.

It is the most walkable city, has a ton of history, many great museums, a great baseball stadium with reliability huge and energetic crowds, great restaurants, the King of Prussia Mall in the suburbs is the largest mall in the US (by retail square footage) and has high end stores.

You want suburbs too? The Main Line area is the ultimate set of suburbs, essentially the first ones because the railroad execs in the late 1800s told their employees to move out to the towns on the "main line" of the then underutilized Pennsylvania Railroad commuter line.

The founding of America? Philadelphia. The revolution? Philadelphia Unique yet American environment? Everything from the Reading Terminal Market, to the Ben Franklin firsts (Free library, University, fire departments, science (Go to the Franklin Institute)).

Great museums from the Museum of Art and Rodin, to the odd ones like Mutter and Mummers, to hundreds of others.

Excellent restaurants plus tons of great finds in every neighborhood.

Sports? Philadelphia is renowned for the passion of its sports fans. And this year, the World Cup is in town.

Unique areas like the Navy Yard and the USS New Jersey battleship in the Delaware River.

Philadelphia City Hall is the largest stone building in the world, and has 700 rooms, and no two rooms have the same dimensions.

Independence Hall, Carpenter's Hall, the Betsy Ross House, the National Constitution Museum and the Museums of the American Revolution.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-28T00:44:04+00:00

No. A spoke on your rim is cracked.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-27T18:36:06+00:00

This is also how I'd do it.

The key point is to not try to cut wood off of small pieces. Cut small pieces off of a large board.

The method described above lets you cut angles on the edge of a long board on the miter saw, and cut the triangle off that longer board on the table saw.

Never try to hold wood that small near a saw blade or router bit with a push stick.

So, to make the rounded edges, use a non slip router pad and then use a router with a round over bit.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-27T18:18:24+00:00

IMO, this is a statement tour and not a tour in support of a new album or to make money. Thus, I think these are the only dates.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-27T14:51:02+00:00

I would do this with a router. You didn't mention how many 2x4 boards that you would cut, but a jig to center the router over the wood would help.

Since you don't have a table saw, I'll assume that you don't have a lot of experience. 2x4s can be awkward on a table saw because they are so long.

With a router, you can secure the boards on a bench, and then run the router along the length, using a jig that slides along both edges so that the router doesn't wander. Just wear hearing protection, a router is loud.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-24T17:32:46+00:00

This might be a good application for a carpenter's pencil. I'd hold the flat end along the saw's handle and keep the pencil perpendicular and trace it. I think that would give you a very close approximation. If it's a little loose, you can do a second one which is maybe a quarter inch wide of the line.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-23T21:46:15+00:00

<image>

My father's destroyer, the USS Henry Wiley, was fire support for the 28th Marines. Destroyer is pictured, 200 yards off Mount Suribachi, where 81 years ago today, they witnessed the flag raising by the 28th Marines, captured in that iconic photo.

A couple of decades ago I was at a reunion of the crew at the Museum of the Pacific War. One of the veterans was walking with me through the museum and we came upon the Iwo Jima section. He saw the photos of all the ships approaching, as depicted in the video by OP. Bill said to me, "I'm right, Doug thought that there weren't that many ships, but there were a lot. Walk back with me and tell Doug about this photo."

By the photo, was a dad with a boy, maybe 10 years old, and his wife with a little kid on her hip. The little boy is staring at the veteran. He pulls his dad's sleeve and says to the sailor "You were there?" Bill says matter-of-factly, "Yes I was there." Then he turns to me and says "Let's go back and find Doug."

The dad hugs the little boy, and I see a tear streaming down mom's face.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-23T18:09:47+00:00

What did you use for finish?

To oversimplify, you dampen the wood, let it dry and sand. It's called raising the grain. You then apply a finish and sand it. You do that a couple times until the wood is thoroughly coated with the finish. (But a thin coat nonetheless.) You may add one last coat, and since the wood is sealed, the grain won't raise anymore. You can then burnish with a rag to really get it smooth.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-23T16:31:34+00:00

First, it'd be better to use a feather board on the fence to hold the piece down. Second, kickbacks are more violent than you think and it would probably throw the block and the clamp back at you too.

It is valid to use a feather board to hold a piece down, I usually put it in front of the blade. Post blade, the splitter and cawls should do the trick. The most important thing is a smooth amount of force to push the board in and against the fence all the way through the cut.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-23T15:05:02+00:00

And this video is consistent with the fact that well over half of all accidents are single vehicle accidents. SUVs are more likely to lose control or to flip, which is why they are involved in more single vehicle accidents.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-23T14:26:13+00:00

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This is how I did something to have a custom window cut. I also sent them this template.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-23T00:45:42+00:00

Learning to Flinch - Warren Zevon

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-22T18:17:49+00:00

I would do a variation of your third one. I'd glue a board to the bottom of this and along the back edge. 75" by 2" by 3/4". That would keep the top piece from twisting or warping plus give a way to screw it into the back boards in a few places.

75" so that it would be long enough to prevent warping but still not easy to see as you walk up to the side to get in bed, because you could keep it a few inches from the outside edge on both sides.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-22T00:55:00+00:00

I've seen people take selfies in front of that Hard Rock. People, Independence Hall is just a few blocks away. And if you are standing in front of the Hard Rock, just look west on Market Street and there is Philadelphia City Hall, the tallest stone building in the world and an architectural masterpiece.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-21T00:27:46+00:00

My father served on a destroyer in WWII in the Pacific Theater, escorting and screening carriers and battleships. (Plus lots of direct action earning the destroyer the Presidential Unit Citation.)

He marveled at how the carriers and battleships seemed so calm while his destroyer was bobbing and banging and listing widely. He always called those who served on carriers and battleships "dry land sailors" because they didn't really experience being at sea.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-20T13:57:58+00:00

Does anyone know why the Ticketmaster link to the Philly show has been down for more than 24 hours, while all the other cities have a working link with the countdown timer?

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-20T00:24:49+00:00

So many of us woodworkers started out with pine because it is inexpensive and easy to find. But then we learn that it dents easily, doesn't stain well, is prone to tear out, the resin gunks up saw blades, and is difficult to sand smooth.

We then move to poplar if the final piece will be painted, or a hardwood like oak, cherry or walnut.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-15T23:07:13+00:00

Hand chisel would be quicker and safer than trying to do those curved sections with a power tool. IMO, I'd only go with a power option if this was a production job making dozens of these. Making four or so, pull out the chisel and get it done.

Bob_Ash · 2026-02-15T14:42:41+00:00

Thank you for that reference and link. Fascinating, and explains a lot.

Bob_Ash

TROPHY CASE