ShopNGarage

A combination square may be used as a marking gauge. Slide the rule out of the head the desired distance and lock it with the thumbscrew. Hold the head on the end of the stock and make a mark on the end of the rule. This is especially useful for repetitious layout work.

To clamp a threaded object, cut a slit in a nut with a hacksaw. The slit provides a relief that will allow the nut to collapse slightly when squeezed in a vise. This allows the object to be gripped tightly without damaging the threads.

I purchased a Starrett protractor head off of eBay. The auction photos did not show any rust and none was mentioned in the item description. I won the item for a low price, but wouldn’t have bid on it if I had known it was rusted. The seller offered a partial refund, so I decided to keep the protractor and remove the rust.

I’ve heard Evaporust mentioned on various internet discussion forums and decided it was time to try it out. Armed with a 20% off coupon, I went to Harbor Freight and purchased a one gallon jug. Evaporust is a chelating agent that bonds to iron oxide and removes it from the iron. It contains no acids or other harmful ingrediants.

I placed the parts into a plastic container and poured in the Evaporust until the parts were covered with solution. The solution had a yellow tint and looked similar to soapy water. There was no strong odor noted. The instructions said the items should soak in the solution for 30 minutes to overnight. At 30 minutes, it was evident that the rust was dissolving. At one hour, I think I could have removed the parts, but it was late and I decided to leave them overnight.

This morning, I removed the parts from the Evaporust and rinsed them with hot water. I dried them with a paper towel and sprayed them with WD-40. This was to remove any remaining water and prevent flash rust. I could see dark spots where there was once rust, but I didn’t notice any rust remaining. It even removed the rust from hard to reach areas such as the rule slot.

I was pleased with the performance of this product for removing light rust. I lightly oiled and assembled my new tool.

I decided to make some improvements to my Harbor Freight welding cart.

The wheels and casters that came with the cart were really poor quality. I picked up some better wheels at Harbor Freight. The tread was not very flat on the new solid rubber tires, so I sanded them on my disc sander.

The cart came with a tube welded to the bottom. A 1/2″ axle was passed through the tube and was used to mount the original wheels. I cut off the tube and replaced it with a 5/8″ axle, welded directly to the bottom of the cart.

For the front, I drilled new holes and installed heavy cast iron casters. These casters have a rubber coating.

I replaced the original hardware with 1/4″ grade 5 bolts. I cut pieces from rubber floor runner to line all of the shelves. Here is a picture of the assembled cart with my welder and plasma cutter in place.

To finish the project, I mounted the air regulator for the plasma cutter on the back near the gas bottle.

While trying to spread a smooth layer of joint compound, nothing is more aggravating than a dried chunk gouging a line through the center.

Keep the bucket lid clean and the sides scraped down to virtually eliminate dried pieces from falling into the fresh compound.