Rick2

Wow, that's beautiful. Lots of talent do do a job like that. How long did a project like that take?

I'm responsible for city sidewalks in front of the stores I snowplow the parkinglots for. the snowbanks are way taller than the snowblower itself. Must look funny to someone watching, just a orange snout sticking up throwing out snow. I've got to get a picture of what my front yard looks like. The snow is so high.

This is nuts. I haven't heard much about Tuesday's storm the weather guys are just saying more on the way. At this rate we will be in school until July. Kinda cuts into my powerwashing time.

That's the way to do it.

I just got it from plowing snow, from 5am to 6:30 pm. I don't remember having a winter like this, ever. I'm ready to get back to powerwashing.

Yup, were getting hit again tomorrow night.

Snow out there? I wouldn't have thought that. Were locked down until at least April but I start to line them up during the winter for the start of the season. Helps to pay for those start-up costs, you know how something always breaks in the first week or two. Usually blow a hose, a pump, or something stupid like that.

A couple times a year I'm good for a Backwoods.

I just got a call a few minutes ago, a wrong number from someone that wanted snowplowing. I answered the phone as "Propower" and she asked me what kind of business it was. To make a long story short... I picked up a roof job for the spring. Funny how those things happen.

Tools Explained DRILL PRESS: A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it smacks you in the chest and flings your beer across the room, denting the freshly-painted project which you had carefully set in the corner where nothing could get to it. WIRE WHEEL: Cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light. Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned calluses from fingers in about the time it takes you to say, "Oh, ****!" SKILL SAW: A portable cutting tool used to make studs too short. PLIERS: Used to round off bolt heads. Sometimes used in the creation of blood-blisters. BELT SANDER: An electric sanding tool commonly used to convert minor touch-up jobs into major refinishing jobs. HACKSAW: One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board principle... It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes. VISE-GRIPS: Generally used after pliers to completely round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available, they can also be used to transfer intense welding heat to the palm of your hand. OXYACETYLENE TORCH: Used almost entirely for lighting various flammable objects in your shop on fire. Also handy for igniting the grease inside the wheel hub out of which you want to remove a bearing race.. TABLE SAW: A large stationary power tool commonly used to launch wood projectiles for testing wall integrity. HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK: Used for lowering an automobile to the ground after you have installed your new brake shoes, trapping the jack handle firmly under the bumper. BAND SAW: A large stationary power saw primarily used by most shops to cut good aluminum sheet into smaller pieces that more easily fit into the trash can after you cut on the inside of the line instead of the outside edge. TWO-TON ENGINE HOIST: A tool for testing the maximum tensile strength of everything you forgot to disconnect. PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER: Normally used to stab the vacuum seals under lids or for opening old-style paper-and-tin oil cans and splashing oil on your shirt; but, can also be used, as the nameimplies, to strip out Phillips screw heads. STRAIGHT SCREWDRIVER: A tool for opening paint cans. Sometimes used to convert common slotted screws into non-removable screws and butchering your palms. PRY BAR: A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding that clip or bracket you needed to remove in order to replace a 50 cent part. HOSE CUTTER: A tool used to make hoses too short. HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate the most expensive parts adjacent the object we are trying to hit. UTILITY KNIFE: Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on contents such as seats, vinyl records, liquids in plastic bottles, collector magazines, refund checks, and rubber or plastic parts. Especially useful for slicing work clothes, but only while you are wearing them. Son of a b*tch TOOL: Any handy tool that you grab and throw across the garage while yelling "Son of a *****" at the top of your lungs. It is also, most often, the next tool that you will need.

I don't know what the restored european ones are worth, I never looked into it. I know the Philcos are not worth much in original or restored condition. They are easy to find and only go for about 50 dollars. It's just a fun way to spend some free time and doesn't cost much. Besides I've always loved woking with electronics since I've been a little kid.

Yeah, real cold this morning. In fact I should be at my other job right now at 8:30 this morning (teaching special ed children) but my wife woke me up at 6:00 am to tell me the house is cold. Furnace went out. Looks to be the pressure switch for the cpu gave up, I jumped the switch and it works fine. So I pulled a sick day in order to fix the furnace.

Well, that's a few of them, hope you like the pictures. There are actually many more (mostly Hallicrafters and others) but I have to go in the "radio room" and dust them off before photographing them.

Here is a rare book from 1922 titled The Miracle of Radio. I love the picture of "The new compact radio device carried in a suitcase." It's an AM radio.

This Philco is one I am working on presently. The electronics are finished but the wood needsa a little TLC.

Two Philcos from 1942 in my livingroom. Both need total wood restoration but work fine. I already have one under construction in the basement and don't need to bring anything else down there.

Another shortwave radio from Bulgaria. This one got me detained at a German airport. A customs agent spent about 15 minutes inspecting the radio and asking me questions about it. He finally asked me if I wanted to sell it to him because he collected radios too. All I have left to do is replace the speaker fabric and polish the metal. Maybe this winter.

This is a 1939 Hagenuk HA362W table model I bought in Bulgaria and restored a few years ago. A nice looking and nice working radio.

Okay, finally got a few pictures together. This is my oldest radio, an Atwater-Kent Model 46 made in 1929. It is in its original unrestored condition and still works fine. Because it is metal I'm a little timid to touch it. In fact it may decrease the value it it was worked on. I swear the speaker weighs as much as the spare tire of my truck.

One of my hobbies too. I have three Yaesus, two hh vhf and uhf 5W and a base/mobile 50W uhf. A fun hobby.

Sorry, my mistake. I don't know what it's like in the warmer climates but we get slammed up here in Massachusetts from (about) April to November. As I type this it's minus 5 degrees and should be minus 15 or lower tomorrow morning. I would guess business would be a little smoother and spread out in the warmer areas. What was the customer flow like before you bought the company?

Personally I wouldn't worry about it if it's only your first year, it takes time to get your name out there. My first year(s) were slow but business has been just crazy busy in recent years. I honestly can't keep up and pass work along to other powerwashers in the area. Hang in there, it'll get better.

My friend sent me that today but I would have added Flashlight: A metal or plastic cylinder used to store dead batteries.

I'll send some pictures of finished radios and works in progress tomorrow. Until then I found something to give the little kids nightmares...Dora the Horror.

Restoring antique radios, the wooden ones from the 40s. Lately it seems like my favorite activity is plowing snow. It would be nice if we had a little break from the snow.