The next time you think manufacturing is a thing of the past in this country, think again. Certainly we have lost plenty of business to low-cost, offshore factories; however, there are plenty of factories here that are going strong.
Have I said how much I enjoy trade shows? The ones I attend are usually loaded with great tools and often some great looking machinery. The outside demos, when they have them, are especially interesting. I've got a show coming up that is always fun.
A farm surrounds our 3-acre lot. Hundreds of acres of corn and soybeans, plus more of pasture and woods. It belongs to my nephew, who farms it with his brother and father who have neighboring farms and rented land in the area. Ironically, while I write about large-scale agriculture all the time, I seldom get the chance to experience how technology has changed large commercial operations.
At our place, leaves are raw product. We gather them up and run them through a shredder for mulching perennials before winter. The problem is, of course, that we can't mulch until we've had a hard frost and the weather has turned cool, if not cold.
After years of using a corner of our unheated car garage for a workshop, I am in the process of making a change. With the addition of a hoop building to store the ATV, leaf shredder, lawn mower and accessories, it was time to rearrange other things as well. Our 8- by 12-foot garden shed will soon be my workshop.
The great thing about the Internet is the instant access to information. I use it on a regular basis for owner's manuals and user suggestions. You can find almost anything in the way of how-to videos on www.youtube.com or dozens of other "how to" sites. I got more than 5,000 responses when I Googled "how to fix a chainsaw." Some sites rely on amateurs, while others offer high-quality professional work, placed there by a company to promote their product and services.
You've bagged tomatoes in the supermarket, but have you ever bagged tomatoes on the bush? I did this past week when the garden was threatened with an early frost. I was able to cover peppers and raspberry canes with plastic used earlier this year on high tunnels. However, when it came to my 8-foot tall Early Girl tomato, I was stymied.
Last week, I described finding an old, heavy-duty vise for sale in Crown Trout Jewelers, a fine jewelry store in my community. While that was unexpected, its mounting was even more unexpected. Liz Bucheit, the owner, had three of the old vises mounted to a section of cottonwood log that was about 34 inches long and perhaps 30 inches across.
The other day, I stopped by a local custom-jewelry store and bought a vise. The vise is a big, heavy-duty tail vise that looks more than a little tough. It has been used hard, but has a lot of work left in it.
It’s great finding that tool you’ve been wanting. It is even greater when you get to put it to use and it does what you expected and more. That was the case the other day when I needed to bring a 4x4 post down 1/4 inch on two sides. My new (old) drawknife came to the rescue.
I was visiting my nephew, Peter, and his family the other day. They were at his parents' vacation home, an old farmstead that has been fixed up considerably. Peter did a great deal of the fixing.
The block and tackle were lying there like candy in a dish, just waiting to be picked up and savored. For a guy who loves tools and practical things that work, it was almost too much to pass up. That's the danger of our local summer celebration. The booths in the park always include a number of used tools and other antique items. It’s these displays that always get my attention.
