Let‘s be honest: Yes, there are a million things to do around a farm, and it would be easy to work 25-hour days, 8-days a week, if we let ourselves. But the reality is, there comes a time when we‘re almost partway caught up with the most pressing chores. Then we find ourselves leaning against a workbench in our shop wondering, “What should I do next?” Here is my list.
Nuts and Bolts
Sort all the rusty, mismatched nuts and bolts you have been tossing into a 5-gal. bucket, waiting for a day when you had time to sort them. For me, I should sort all three of the buckets that are now overflowing with rusty nuts and bolts.
Spray cans
Throw away all the aerosol spray cans of paint, penetrating oil and other aerosol products that have less than 2 oz. of fluid in them. At last count, there were more than 10 of them scattered around my shop. Why is it so hard to use up the last 2 oz. and then actually throw away an aerosol can?
Screwdrivers
Collect and assemble a complete set of screwdrivers, so all the handles match. Screwdrivers are the “socks” of tools — nobody can figure out why they have 10 different left socks but no right socks. I can never figure out why I have six Phillips screwdrivers with different handles but only one flat-blade screwdriver, with a handle that doesn‘t match any of the Phillips screwdriver handles.
Bolt Bins
Organize my bolt bins so there are actually 5/16"x2" bolts in the bin marked 5/16"x2". Same for all the other bolt bins.
Winter Battery Care
Develop a schedule of regularly putting every battery on a trickle charger or battery charger to bring them to full charge several times each winter. Or, buy a trickle charger for each battery and keep it connected all winter. I‘ve slowly resigned myself to spend $15 to $50 to buy trickle chargers for each battery/vehicle. After vowing for several winters I would visit and charge each battery once a month, I know I don‘t have the discipline to maintain that schedule. Comparing the cost of several trickle chargers to the cost of replacing the same number of batteries has convinced me it‘s better to pay a painful price now rather than an agonizing price next spring.
Odds and Ends That Might Help Around the Shop
Tired of rivets spinning when you drill them out? Put a piece of duct tape over the rivet head and surrounding metal, then drill through the tape into the center of the rivet. The duct tape does a great job keeping the rivet head from spinning. This works even if you’ve already tried to drill the rivet and it started to spin. Duct tape to the rescue ... again.
Got a half-moon key that wants to tilt out of position when you slide a pulley or sheave over it? Use a small center punch to put several small “craters” on the flat sides of the key, then use a hammer to gently tap the “thicker” key into its groove in the shaft.
Vaseline or “white grease” lightly smeared on electrical connectors can help them resist moisture. It also makes them easier to couple/uncouple. Yes, those products are technically non-conductive, but it’s the metal-to-metal contact achieved when the connector’s metal pins rub against each other that transfers electricity.
Need to drill stainless steel? First, select a molybdenum or other high-quality drill bit. Second, once you start drilling in stainless, don’t stop till the hole is finished. Drilling stainless creates rapid, intense heat, and if drilling is temporarily stopped, the heat “soaks” into the bottom of the hole and hardens the metal.
