Took the first step towards building my shop

[Frank S]

Epic.
No other suitable term applies.

In the past few weeks we have watched pile after pile of materials diminish and in some cases completely disappear.
It is hard to believe or even imagine that at one time with the exception of 5 pipes 4 I beams and a stack of purlin all of the materials for this building was hauled here as salvaged materials. I would have barely been able to have built a bare bones 2 car garage for the amount of cash I've spent on this thing.

[metric_taper]

In the past few weeks we have watched pile after pile of materials diminish and in some cases completely disappear.
It is hard to believe or even imagine that at one time with the exception of 5 pipes 4 I beams and a stack of purlin all of the materials for this building was hauled here as salvaged materials. I would have barely been able to have built a bare bones 2 car garage for the amount of cash I've spent on this thing.

Being in the right place at the right time to harvest that original building helped.
But it's your sweat equity to do all the work to dismantle and haul away, and erect at your site, that enabled this.
Your support columns are clever in using scrap wheels and drill piping, and knowledge of clay subsoil mixed with cement.
Delivered concrete has gotten crazy over the years. That is a minor hurtle to you.

[Frank S]

Being in the right place at the right time to harvest that original building helped.
But it's your sweat equity to do all the work to dismantle and haul away, and erect at your site, that enabled this.
Your support columns are clever in using scrap wheels and drill piping, and knowledge of clay subsoil mixed with cement.
Delivered concrete has gotten crazy over the years. That is a minor hurtle to you.

I have been watching several different auctions again lately.
The thought of eventually needing well over 100 yards of concrete plus the distance to the nearest plant has started me thinking about the possibility of maybe finding an old but working portable batch plant. a screed, power trowels and all other needed article's then once the pour and any additional slabs are done sell everything.
My reckoning is I could probably cut the cost of my slab by 70% even with hiring labor. Plus who knows if folks within 10 to 15 miles of me knew I had a batch plant I could wind up needing to provide small amounts to them to be hauled in a 1 1/2 or 2 yard trailer. I used to rent them all the time and they are nothing to build

[metric_taper]

I have been watching several different auctions again lately.
The thought of eventually needing well over 100 yards of concrete plus the distance to the nearest plant has started me thinking about the possibility of maybe finding an old but working portable batch plant. a screed, power trowels and all other needed article's then once the pour and any additional slabs are done sell everything.
My reckoning is I could probably cut the cost of my slab by 70% even with hiring labor. Plus who knows if folks within 10 to 15 miles of me knew I had a batch plant I could wind up needing to provide small amounts to them to be hauled in a 1 1/2 or 2 yard trailer. I used to rent them all the time and they are nothing to build

You think big with getting your own batch plant!

At my local home supply, 1cuft bag of cement is ~$10. How much is that bulk I wonder. I think the current price of concrete delivered here locally is $160-$180/cu.yd. It was $48/yd in 1988 the last time I had it delivered. And that's made with crushed limestone aggregate, which is too soft in my opinion (and why the life cycle of roads here is short, as it is porous to the salt water in the winter, and freeze-thaw spalling is common). I paid extra to have washed river gravel from igneous rock used. But under the entire state is only limestone near the surface. The mix is a 6bag per yd of cement to make the strength yield using limestone.

[Frank S]

You think big with getting your own batch plant!

At my local home supply, 1cuft bag of cement is ~$10. How much is that bulk I wonder. I think the current price of concrete delivered here locally is $160-$180/cu.yd. It was $48/yd in 1988 the last time I had it delivered. And that's made with crushed limestone aggregate, which is too soft in my opinion (and why the life cycle of roads here is short, as it is porous to the salt water in the winter, and freeze-thaw spalling is common). I paid extra to have washed river gravel from igneous rock used. But under the entire state is only limestone near the surface. The mix is a 6bag per yd of cement to make the strength yield using limestone.

It has been a lot of years since I have found the bulk deals I used to find but at one time I bought a freight tanker load of bulk Portland for ten dollars a ton at a derailment site. I hired 3 dry bulk vacuum tankers to pump it out of the freight tanker. However stupid me, I sold the cement to a batch plant for a huge profit, instead of thinking that 20 years later I might need it for my own slab

[metric_taper]

It has been a lot of years since I have found the bulk deals I used to find but at one time I bought a freight tanker load of bulk Portland for ten dollars a ton at a derailment site. I hired 3 dry bulk vacuum tankers to pump it out of the freight tanker. However stupid me, I sold the cement to a batch plant for a huge profit, instead of thinking that 20 years later I might need it for my own slab

It would probably be a solid chunk if you stored it that long, but maybe you have some water vapor proof storage vessels. It screams to be hydrated. I've learned that even the bags that have a plastic film between the paper structural sheets, let moister in. Really disappointing when you find the 3 bags you got on sale are solid. And absolutely do not store on concrete as that exudes moister, and keeps the cement below dew point (the lesson was delivered this way). So I shall see in a few weeks if storing the left over bags in a dry wall mud pails with a sealed lid keeps it dry. That was 3 years ago. I have a critical repair task of my storage building, that is 3 feet from a retaining wall, about 3 feet high. The wall is tilting outward and letting the sand below the building slump along with this. The building is on a concrete slab, made from that crappy limestone aggregate, that I mixed myself. The freeze thaw is making that slab punky. Soft enough that a ground hog (marmot) dug through it 3 years ago, and undermined the building and filled the floor area it could with 2 feet of the earth from below the building. I hate ground hogs, and they are my enemy. And as this building is above the surrounding area this attracts them for a winter home that is dry. They have some instinct that knows the winter melt will fill a den if it can't drain out. I accidentally made a hill for them. They hibernate in our climate.

[Toolmaker51]

Finding 3 bags of solidified quick set is disappointing enough. Imagine 3 tankers worth?
Three monoliths; each in the most unusable, oddly shaped, and significant size imaginable.
DAMHIKT...please.

[Frank S]

Gone but not forgotten. the 4 sheets of 3/4 treated plywood will be repurposed as floor material for the stairway landings
the 2x4s will be part of the stud wall for the restroom

[Frank S]

The end of an era my bus scaffold has come to the end of the line I do not foresee any more bus stops for it so I started removing the scaffold sections. I needed the plywood for the stairway landing so I pulled half of the scaffold down I might leave the other half where it is until I am sure I wont need on the roof again for a while. But I plan on building a more maneuverable scaffold on a much smaller truck chassis but this means it will have to have drop legs for stability as well so it will be a more permanent build possibly even self propelled

[Frank S]

Most of the day spent removing my not so temporary, temporary welds gouging with carbon arc and oxy/act to finally get all of them removed.
A long time ago a guy said he would trust one of my tack welds to hold 2 sections of a bridge together I hope he was kidding but after having to cut out some 50 or 60 welds ranging up to 4 inches long I need to re visit my method of making a temporary weld.
However they are all removed now and I did manage to begin the lift in preparation for separating the box from the trailer chassis

It takes a lot of blocks I bet I have to use a 1/4 of my cribbing blocks on this task alone