Aw, Nuts!

The chestnuts are falling, and we are picking up every night to stay ahead of our squirrels.

Gade Engines: Made In Iowa

This better than barn fresh Gade was running at Mt. Pleasant last week. Gade engines were made in Iowa Falls, and this spark plug ignition 1 1/2 HP model was introduced in 1912. I have one very much like this in our garage, and fortunatlely, I never had the time to tear it down and paint it up like new. Engines with original paint are preferable now, so I can stop feeling guilty. Mine has always been kept under cover, so it cleans up pretty well. I need to put some fresh batteries in the box and crank it up one of these days.

Here's A Handy Tool

We purchased this Alaskan Mill attachment for our chainsaws several years ago so we could make repair parts for the old barn, and it has been good for that. It clamps on the bar of a chainsaw, and can be adjusted for the width of the cut. We really appreciate its usefulness when we have to join two pieces together, and need straight, matching cuts. In the top photo we have spliced a 16' pin oak 6" x 8" to a 6" x 8" crosstie in order to have a twenty foot long timber with a creosote base.

We have used this tool to utilize trees in our yard as we lose them to storms and disease. We are building a pretty nice collection of boards and timbers in the barn. The only modification to the saw is a chain made for ripping rather than cross cutting. A standard chain will have a top angle of 25 to 35 degrees on each tooth. A ripping chain will have two teeth at 25 to 35 degrees, then two teeth with an angle of 5 to 10 degrees. You can buy ripping chain with the proper angles, or file a standard chain to the proper configuration.

It is a good tool for using in repairs, but I wouldn't want to cut a house pattern with it. You need a saw with at least a 75cc motor if are going to use one of these milling attachments.

Not My Victrola

I spent some time on the road this weekend, and listened to old music on CD's the entire trip. This one has stuck in my head, so I looked it up on YouTube to share with all of the TBS Fan Club. Thanks to TransformingArt for the upload.

Labor Day

Take A Break!

Patience.........

In order to get this....

this.....

this one....

and this....

You see a lot of this. Oh Well. The moral is; Move in, get your shots, and get out of the way for the next looker/photographer.

Crankin' It Up

It's September again, and the goldenrod is blooming, so I just had to recycle this old favorite. The Manhattan Dance Makers performing a nice Fox Trot. Irving Kaufman provides the vocal chorus. Very nice sentiment in the lyrics, and good for dancing.

Watch Your Noggin!

It's good to remember once in a while that trees are quietly waiting to kill us. This pecan tree dates back to 1945, and has a lot of years left, but it is now shedding limbs that will seriously crease your cranium. This limb fell only a few feet from the trunk, but another of the same size landed thirty feet away on a dead-calm day. Planting large trees at least forty feet from your house is pretty good advice, and getting out from under trees on windy days, or when you tip them over is darn important. Keep an eye looking upward when you are working under trees, and wearing a hard hat is a pretty good idea, too.

Remember This?

When we last visited the barn, I wondered exactly how the roof was staying up. We now have solid wood from a foundation rock all the way to the roof again, and will next be replacing another upright that the termites have been in.

We have to jack up the oat bins and block them up away from the ground, and then we can start hanging siding. That big upright was the key to this project, so we are feeling much better now.

Dark Day In History

If you are a history buff like me, you already know what began in Europe on this date in 1939. I revisit some of my books on days like this one to refresh my memory, but am not good at expressing my feelings. I hope others remember the horror, and realize that monsters are still out there in the world. It can happen again if good people do nothing.

The video was posted on YouTube by 24052; he put together a very good slide show.