Throw a sign!

a little while ago i saw a fantastic picture on Facebook. it was an old race car from the around the 70s, Grand Prix style, was difficult to tell exactly what is was because it was from behind. it had a stunning set of exhaust pipes, three on each side. all abreast. there is something about exhaust pipes stacked like that. i have always loved it, a symmetrical outflow of power i suppose? really messes up my brains just thinking of it. must be why i really enjoy the 6 cylinder bikes from long ago. cannot get enough of it.

anyway, back to the point. what made the said photograph that much cooler was the caption. "Let me play you the song of my people". i instantly needed that in my workshop. like an utterance over my Honda that one day, it will sing that song again!

the gears in my head started turning. i found some fonts that i liked and made the printout in A3. seemed to be the right size for my sign. those letters then got stuck on some Masonite and individually cut out on the scroll saw. this was some great practice on a piece of equipment i do not use often enough!

i sprayed the letters and then edged them all with a little brush. i worked on the layout and blackened the wooden backing (that i picked up on the beach) to add effect using a heat gun.

i'm fairly satisfied with the end result. i'm still needing to fabricate some brackets to hang the sign from the rafters. but this is its temporary spot.

while making this i was thinking that all of this could get laser cut or the lettering could just get bought of the shelf, but would this then appeal to my people? ;)

Look back

A quick look at the fountain area now. i really enjoy peoples projects and love watching them evolve into what is happening inside the builders head. i get so involved in some of the projects that i even get a sense of self satisfaction when someone else finishes a project and show the completed picture. 

however every so often i come across deeply gripping projects, you know like that TV series that you almost cannot wait for the next episode. except these projects come very close to completion and then the builder and the updates just disappear. in vain you visit the blog, YouTube channel or forum thread, hoping you missed the update and could catch the next exciting bit but only to be disappointed. some of these projects never, ever reappear. 

being busy with a grocery money project myself i understand that some projects take long. you work in spurts that are powered by every little bit of cash you can squeeze out of your budget. these projects do take long and updates are few, but they get completed. so i thought i must show off what the fountain area looks like now. i'm very happy with the way it turned out.

i added some edging around the beds and raised the level of the soil to make the beds a little more level. planted some greenery (this is going to take a little while to grow and fill the area). most of the flowering plants have started flowering - that was with a little coercion using some refined chicken manure. it is in powered form and waters into the ground really quickly. less stench and a nice little kick start for the newly planted plants. 

.the grass however seems to be taking its time. hope that it will show face again in summer! 

Fixed up in flames

i love dumpster diving! whenever i get rid of my garden refuse or drop off some recycling i have to stop at the steel recycling dumpster. it is incredible what people throw away! (its also incredible what people will take out the trash! *drops head in shame*). i dropped off some chopped branches after an excessive garden cleaning spree and stopped at the metal bin again and found this three tier metal shelf. it was rusty but the shelves seemed not to be rusted through and the whole thing was still in a sturdy fair condition.

now the recycling part of the dump is a low income site and there are people that work there that sort all the rubbish and then generate an income from selling the scrap steel and glass. so you always need to enter into some negotiations to buy what ever scrap you would like to take. i approached the guy in charge and motioned to the dumpster that had the shelf sticking out the top. "how much you going to charge me for that shelf?" he gave a deep sigh and a slight whistle, "that is a lot of steel, uh, R30." thats about $3 and i had that in my pocket. suddenly i owned a rusted shelf.

At home i took it apart and put a wire brush to it removing the rust and loose paint. it was somewhat pitted but the shelves would still be able to hold what ever i had to put on it. i got hold of some gloss black Rustoleum appliance epoxy and gave it a couple coats before re-assembly. just leaving it plain black would have been terrible so i  scratched around and got hold of some colors i had left over from previous projects and set the back plate alight.

always nice to have some fun in the workshop. i've made some brackets for the shelf to sit on since i'm planning to mount it on the wall. you can barely see them sticking out from behind the little blue desk next to the shelf. they still need a little finishing, some holes and some paint. hope to have the shelf on the wall  by the end of friday. yay for more packing space!