Mods – Modern Anachronist

Adding cradle vise to the drill press

So I wanted to be able to safely drill into the end of a piece of round stock, but couldn’t figure out a decent way to hold my work that kept my fingers away from sharp steel bits spinning at high speeds.

Then I went to Harbor Freight and found this cradle vice.

But now I need to be able to secure the vice to the drill press table and the hole on the vice don’t line up with the holes on the table at all.

I mean, I can bolt the vice down, but it won’t line up with the bit.
AT ALL!

A piece of 3/4 plywood will allow me to put holes anywhere I want to, so I grab a a scrap and cut it to match the table.

Adding brakes to the utility trailer- hardware (days 2&3)

Because you know I can’t do a project without things going sideways.

I decided to dry fit my wheels on the hubs before hanging the hubs on the trailer and……

One of these things is not like the others.

…..erupted in a cloud of profanity so robust that Old Man Parker* would have been impressed.

Adding brakes to the trailer – hardware (day 1)

It turns out my trailer has been non-compliant with NJ law for the entire time I’ve owned it. Trailers over 3,000 GVWR must have brakes & a breakaway system. My 3,500 pound trailer had neither when I bought it. So, let’s get to work.

Adding Brakes to the Utility Trailer – Electrical (Day 3)

In which your narrator is flummoxed by a bit of electronics.

So, I’m a firm believer in “Trust but Verify”, so I wanted to be sure that I knew which wires in the trailer wire were carrying which signals to the junction box*. Because I can’t be both in the drivers seat of the Honda and sitting at the trailer tongue with a multimeter, I enlisted the help of the youngest offspring.

He loved sitting in the drivers seat, stepping on pedals, flipping levers and things were going pretty well.

I was able to confirm my ground, hot, turn signals & marker lights. That left two terminals unaccounted for and no trigger voltage for the trailer brakes. No matter how hard he stepped on the pedal or pressed the override button, I wasn’t getting voltage on either post, but I was starting to get pretty hot under the collar.

Time to pull the dashboard apart again and make sure that everything was working correctly. There’s only four wires between the controller and the Honda, so it shouldn’t be too hard to sort.

Adding brakes to the Utility Trailer – electrical (day 2)

Good day, and welcome to day 2.

First step – get the junction box hung so I can complete my day 1 tasks.

Adding brakes to the utility trailer – electrical (Day 1)

Last fall I installed the Tow-Pro into the Ridgeline, now I have to make it so the Tow-Pro can control the trailer brakes.

First off, the brake-less trailer has a four pin plug (Ground, Marker, Left & Right Turns), while a trailer equipped with brakes has a seven pin plug (added Brakes, Reverse lights and Power).

New trailer wire

Adding brakes to the utility trailer this spring. I’m going to post little bits as I go, instead of one big post.

I’m moving from a four-wire cable to a seven wire cable to support the brakes & break away safety system. I’m also adding a seven pole junction box.

More Power

When we go camping, I like to make sure that everyone has a charged phone or watch so that I can find my family. Unfortunately, Honda doesn’t think you should have access to electrons when the engine isn’t running. Time to add some charging ports, without looking like I added some charging ports. (See Rule 2)

How do I safely drill an end cap?

For the bandsaw cabinet I plan to add a work light. I found a light fixture I think will be great, but it’s a bit too short.

I’m going to make it taller by building a base from 3/4” pipe, but I’ve got to attach the fixture to the pipe & get the cord into the cabinet.

I need to drill a hole through the pipe cap, without injuring myself. One hand operating the quill of the drill press, and the other operating the oil can.

Finally installed the Fas-Top

Between work & weather the Fas-Top has been in boxes in my garage for almost a month. The weather was almost acceptable today & I need the space in the garage for some other projects so I installed the top system today.