Homemade Easels

Although these are not made of metal, I made them for my wife and son. My wife likes to paint and didn't have an easel. My son wanted something to use his iPad on where it could stand up. Rather than purchase something for them, I wanted to make them. They came out nice and they appreciated the handmade gifts.

Rolling Metal Work Bench

I acquired a metal work table from a friend of my father in law.  I got an old wheelchair from another friend that I did handyman work for.  I decided to combine the two for an easy to move work table.  I use it in my garage and my wife has used it as a table to do her gardening when starting seeds.  It rolls nicely inside and outside.  

Homemade Forks For Tractor

I had previously made forks to use on my tractor for the main purpose of moving large sheets of steel.  I recently modified them so that they could be used for a standard pallet giving me a fork lift functin for my tractor.  I had to add some length to them and I changed the attachment part so that they could be placed at different widths for different items.

Homemade Charcoal or Wood Grill from Hot Water Tank

This week I made a grill from an old hot water tank (not galvanized). I also used parts from lawnmowers and training wheel frames. We had a grate from an old stove and I had some scrap steel pieces lying around.  I still plan to paint it but we used it for cooking dinner last night over wood. It worked great!

Seasoning and Cooking with Old Cast Iron Pans

Rusty Old Cast Iron Skillets

Sandblasting the old cast iron skillets 

All cleaned up and seasoned

Three of the Skillets in our kitchen

Getting the fire ready for cooking

Bacon, Egg and Toast Breakfast

Bacon Cheeseburger Dinner

This project started when I  read an article in the current Countryside magazine called "Rusty Gold."  It was an article about rescuing old cast iron pans. We happened to have six old skillets lying around.  My friend gave me a set of three skillets and my parents had given me a set of three skillets the same size as the other set. So with six pans and a sand blaster, I went to work.  Some sources say not to use a sandblaster because it may decrease the value of the pans...but we aren't selling them. We are going to use them.  After sandblasting them down to the metal, they were coated with lard, and baked at 450 degrees for 45 minutes.  I  used a stove that is in my garage to do this so there would be no smoke in the house.  After the pans cooled for an hour, they were coated with vegetable shortening and baked again.  At this point they had a nice black shiny coating. We have decided to use one set in the house and one for outdoor fire cooking. I made a set of hooks to hang them on so that they are handy to get to and add a little touch of country to our kitchen decor. It is recommended to cook high fat foods the first few times they are used until they get a really good seasoning on them.  We used two of them on the open fire to cook breakfast this morning and then used one again to make bacon cheeseburgers for dinner. We hope to do this often.

Homemade Wheel Hoe

I made this wheel hoe from bicycle handle bars, bicycle forks, a lawn mower tire, a piece of pipe and an old farm tool.  It works great for keeping the garden weeded between the rows and is easier to use than a standard garden hoe.

1940s Ford Pickup Truck Rat Rod

The two mid-1940s Ford pickup trucks in the woods where they had been

 for the past 15 years after being salvaged from a farm by the previous owner.

This is the truck body I used for this project. The other body is for my son for a future project.

This became the new frame.

This is the cab after sandblasting and priming it.

This is the hood after sandblasting, priming and painting it.

This was just a protective paint, not the intended final color.

This is the front end.

The rat rod with mock-up for the truck bed and a motor.

Mock-up of how I intended the final project to look.

I had the chance to get these two old trucks and intended to have one rat rod project for myself and one for me to do with my son. I got this one to the final point you see here, and I decided to sell it. I had fun working on it, but I had other things I needed to do instead of this. I will work on the other truck with my son once we can get started on it. 

Homemade Oil Barrel Lifter

I made this for a mechanic friend who owns his own garage. He collects waste oil from places and uses it in his shop heater.  With this, he can now lift the  barrel up and down to load and unload from his truck easily.

Fire Barrel Scenery

During the winters we still like to have fires. I had the idea to make a barrel sized fire ring out of a hot water heater.  Since I wanted to be able to see the fire I found one of our metal cutouts that we were not using and I added it for a scene in front of the fire. 

Stock Car Racing

                                          My First Race Car 1977

My First Win in Second Race Car 1977

My Race Car in 1978

My First Feature Win  1979

1979

 1981

 1983

1983

 In the Dirt 1984

 1984

1985

2004
 

     When I was 13 years old, in 1977, I started stock car racing at the Collier County Speedway in Naples, Florida. I lied about my age so I could  race.  I raced at that track until they closed in 1985.  I raced at other tracks in the years following. Some tracks in Florida and then later in New York and Vermont.

Hand Hammered Metal Bowls

I made this hand hammered centerpiece bowl and candle bowls for my wife.  She uses the large bowl for fruit usually, but also has used it for holiday centerpieces.

Abscrapture

I made this yard sculpture out of pieces of scrap metal.  We are letting it rust naturally.  It is an Abstract Scrap Sculpture which my wife named Abscrapture.

Simple Bird Bath

One day my wife mentioned that with all of the yard decor we have, there is no birdbath.  So I made her one!  I had a garbage can lid and I made a simple frame.  It works fine and it was made from metal and paint and a lid we had lying around.