by Squigie » Wed Oct 28, 2020 11:42 am
My rule of thumb:
Unless it's an emergency or special case, finishes, coatings, sealants, and paints don't come out to play once the temperature is below 60 F. --Unless I can use them indoors with household heat, or some space heaters and heat lamps in the garage (and the garage is available - see "automotive stupidity" below).
It just takes too long for most of them to cure/harden/dry.
In some cases, they never cured/hardened if applied in cool weather.
(My 60 F cutoff used to be lower. But after I had a major failure with an epoxy paint applied at 65-60 F, while claiming 55+ was fine, I increased my limit.)
Once our daytime temps are in the 50s, work stops on big projects and I turn to automotive stupidity* and firearms projects* until Spring.
Or, in terms an outdoorsman might understand better: Once hunting season hits and all of the Aspens have dropped their leaves, it's time to change lanes and go to the 'winter projects'. Other trees are unpredictable. But when the Aspens give it up, winter is here.
I am rarely ready for it. There are always things *that* close to being finished, that I would like to continue working on, but I have had to come to admit that it's best if work stops for the winter. But, I am not far from Tony (same weather here this week, as he mentioned). Our winter is quite a bit different than the Texas panhandle. You should be able to keep at it for most of the winter, as long as you avoid cold days.
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*This year's priorities:
-4x4 S-10 Blazer semi-restoration and V8 swap, with the added complication of using the factory computer to monitor (but not control) a carbureted, HEI ignition, dinosaur of an engine. I obtained an excellent condition donor vehicle for $400 with a seized engine. A little bit of work (aside from the engine swap) will have it looking brand new by Spring.
-Marlin 336 with every part customized, restored, scratch-built, or machined as a one-off part; as a short, handy, one-of-a-kind little carbine. Two little bits of shaping left, and then it's on to metal and wood finishing. This has been a multi-year project, as others have come and gone from the work bench. But this winter is the one. This rifle will be finished by Spring.