The Poet Creek Express - Foamie Hybrid

[Wolffarmer]

I have found through personal experience and watching others. It is very easy to hit a snake with a rifle or pistol when the Hollywood cameras are running. Without them to help your marksmanship it is pert near impossible to shoot a snake with a rifle/pistol.
Shotgun if you must make noise. Shovel is by far my snake disposal tool of choice.

[KCStudly]

Good point Randy, and you're probably right, but on a good day I can hit a tack at 50 feet with the Marlin. The Mk III has grouped within 2 inches at 25 ft.

In the pin shoot events one table has just the tops of bowling pins sawed off at the neck and we shoot those with .22 at 25 ft. On a good round it's 5 shots, 5 pins in just a few seconds free hand. I don't get them all every time, and sometimes it takes a couple of shots per pin, but a large copper head's head isn't much, if any smaller than that.

But that's all a little off topic. Let's get caught up on this evenings build progress.

Before I put the polyurethane on the locker door and before I glue the vinyl liner in, I want to complete fitting the door prop strut/lid support. A couple of things have to happen first. I needed to check and see that the hinge alignment is okay or can be adjusted to accommodate the aluminum angle trim. So I miter cut the upper piece of trim to fit the locker opening, marked the hinge locations and milled away the short leg of the angle in these areas. (The top is shown with the locker upside down in these pics.)

I will likely have to trim the miters back a little to accommodate the thickness of the vinyl, and will do that once the vinyl is in place, but I needed to be able to locate the angle now for these operations, so be it.

Here is one side with the hinge in position.


In order to hold the trim in place to check the fit of the door, I had to at least put a few of the countersunk screw holes in, but why stop there? Might as well drill and sink them all even if I’m just going to use a couple of screws for now.


Here the door is shimmed away from the trim the proper amount. There was enough play in the slots in the hinges to accommodate the trim, so everything is good there.


Next thing I wanted to check was to see if the hinged lid support I bought to use as a prop for the door would articulate properly with the hinges. Unlike standard hinges that rotate around a single hinge pin, these hinges have a toggle link that allows the door to swing out, then rotate back inward at the heel providing clearance for the thickness of the door. The instructions for installing the support reference all of the dimensions for attachment off of the hinge centerline. My hinge centerline swings thru an arc and I was concerned that this might cause the support to bind in the closed position, or might keep the door from opening fully to 90 degrees. So rather than using trial and error and putting a bunch of holes in my nice door, I decided that the logical choice would be to make a mock-up.

Here I have cut up a scrap (was the router jig that I used to cut the galley wing table blocking recesses) into three pieces and screwed two of them together. The single piece on the right represents the door, and the two pieces screwed together on the left represent the locker case; again upside down. The brass plate strut is just sitting there for now.


Before I can determine how far in from the side of the case to mount the pivot bracket, I need to make the bearing modification to the case side pivot. I’ll do that after work tomorrow using the lathe with the collet chuck. It will be easier to explain with pic’s as it happens.

Night.

[GPW]

Apologies for interrupting serene trailer building with snake questions, but this year seems particularly active ... We’ve already seen more snakes in a couple weeks that we did all last year ...
Digging around in the cupboard under the stairs , I discovered my FIL’s (RIP) gun , a Remington model 341 Sportsmaster bolt action .22 rifle , in just perfect shape ( it’s very OLD) , and a “Western Field” .410 SS bolt action shotgun , which is also an antique , but I don’t know if it’s safe to shoot, not in as good shape as the Remy' ...

I’m a pretty good shot with a bow , able to nail a nock @ 15 yards ... But I think in this case , the .22 would be ... better ... Going to get a brick of LR’s at the sporting goods store... give it a try ... We live on the very edge of the city in a rural heavily wooded area , and nobody would object to me killing off highly poisonous snakes , Especially like the one I saw yesterday ... Unusually HUGE for a Copperhead ...We’ve killed several smaller ones off before , but this one must be the Grandaddy of them all ..
 
No worry about burying them , I skin em’ and tan the skins to make things out of , using the old Indian method (which I will not describe here) ... With rattlesnakes , we’ve been known to EAT them ... They’re pretty tasty if seasoned right ... just another Protein source ... a bit chewy if BBQ’d ... better if parboiled first ...
Years ago , when I was building the house out here, I kept people away by putting a little sign on the gate ... “SNAKE FARM” with a drawing of a rattler wrapped around a wild hog ... even the mailman wouldn’t come down my driveway .

Thanks for the consultation... And now back to the TPCE ...

[KCStudly]

The shot gun is still probably the better choice. If in doubt, take it to a gun store (unloaded) and ask them to take a look at it. If they say it isn't safe then offer to buy it from you for cheap, you know you have something valuable! (scmaybe) I joke. When I had dad's guns evaluated for the estate I felt that the dealer did a fair and accurate job, and subsequent research confirmed that.

Don't forget, where there is one there is more.

[GPW]

The guy across the street (the orange farm) has a Judge , which IMHO is pretty wimpy with that short barrel ... but he has it All the time ... loves it ...
I sent off an e-mail to my buddy with a gun shop in "Red Stick" ... see what he has...

Got two baby copperheads right next to my studio last year ~ 14-15” long ... another one I missed scared the S*** out of the yardman ... This is really snake Heaven , I live in a Woodlands Conservancy ... http://www.woodlandsconservancy.org/ Snake Central!!! Wildlife Central really!!! ... but most are harmless... and a very few are NOT ..

[KCStudly]

Another 2nd to what Randy said about missing. When dad and I were first climbing around above Poet Creek, he carried his 7mm Sako and I had the Ruger single six in my otherwise empty back pack (we were optimistic about hauling elk meat). On the same day that we went thru the wild celery patch, we had sat down along a deer trail to take a break and before you know it a brace of grouse started sauntering down the hill around us, like almost within arms reach. By the time we got the revolver out the nearest bird was on the ground in front and just below me on the other side of the trail; maybe 6 feet away... too close for the sights to be spot on for a head shot. That and I had been shooting the Marlin all summer, not the revolver (practice makes a BIG difference). I missed the first 3 shots and the bird flew up onto a tree branch, now maybe 15 feet straight in front of me. I took the last 2 shots (6 shooter, hammer on empty chamber) and the bird didn't flinch. I picked up a rock and hit the branch next to the bird; it flew away.

From that point on I carried the Marlin and we ate braised/stewed grouse a few times. The key was to take a head/neck shot and preserve the good meat from lead. Grouse heads aren't any bigger than large snake heads.

[Hardryder56]

KC, you woodwork just keeps getting better and better. Those brackets look excellent

We have all kinds of snakes around our house and at our farm so when I am out mowing the fields I carry my 38 special loaded with 5 rounds of snake shot and my Glock 40 S&W in case I run into any hogs. Looking to install a mount for my shotgun on the mower as the hogs are going crazy around the farm. One day I'll have to have a "pig picken" party. Have killed more snakes at the house with a shovel. BTW I HATE snakes
Tom

[GPW]

Tom , I lived in Texas .... BIG snakes (everything’s BIG in TEXAS eh !!! ) , and you guys have Crazy Ants too ... I still have a little land south of Conroe , with NO intention of ever mowing it ... I’d need a 50cal. mounted on front of the mower .... and that’s just for the Ants ...

Personally , I still think KC should write the book ... " The New Yankee Trailer Workshop " ... he’s even Better than Norm ... .... and in the back of the book , he could include some of Mom’s recipes ... I’d bet it would be a Huge success... maybe even a PBS show of his own ... You never know eh ?

[Shar]

Yes, GPW, KC's build photos look like something out of the Lee Valley catalog.

And KC, when the PCE is finished, it will be such a masterpiece that people will swoon at the sight of it! You clearly know your way around wood.

No poisonous snakes here in Calgary- I think the winters freeze them out.

[Mary C]

I like the Idea of the workshop book one from the best! and really look forward to the "mom's recipes" part. Looking good !!!

I am after an armadillo with my .410 I will get him.........

Mary C.

[Hardryder56]

I would like to add my 2 cents in the KC needs to write a book. Excellent write ups and the pictures are great. Throw in the "cook book" and I think you would have a winner.
GPW, I am west of Conroe on the lake. Bet your land is worth a pretty penny now, The Woodlands are exploding with new construction.

Mary, guy down the street from took out a 'dillo with his old nine iron (golf club)
Tom

[Wolffarmer]

Book could also take a few side trips to "Bears, Beer and Snakes " oh, and pumpkin chucking

I think I will stay here in Idaho. Our rattle snakes announce themselves and are really not to big.

Randy

[working on it]

Tom , I lived in Texas .... BIG snakes (everything’s BIG in TEXAS eh !!! ) , and you guys have Crazy Ants too ... I still have a little land south of Conroe , with NO intention of ever mowing it ... I’d need a 50cal. mounted on front of the mower .... and that’s just for the Ants ...

Personally , I still think KC should write the book ... " The New Yankee Trailer Workshop " ... he’s even Better than Norm ... .... and in the back of the book , he could include some of Mom’s recipes ... I’d bet it would be a Huge success... maybe even a PBS show of his own ... You never know eh ?

I feel the pain: Snakes (copperheads and moccasins around my house), fire ants (everywhere), brown recluse spiders (been bit so many times...), occasionally a scorpion or two; just life in N.Texas. And, I agree, KC is the Norm on this site. Now he needs to introduce each new installment of the PCE build with:

"Before we use any power tools, let's take a moment to talk about shop safety. Be sure to read, understand, and follow all the safety rules that come with your power tools. Knowing how to use your power tools properly will greatly reduce the risk of personal injury. And remember this: there is no more important safety rule than to wear these — safety glasses."

[Wolffarmer]

I just looked at

"Bears, Beer and Snakes "

Right there is a title for a book.

I lived in a place here in Idaho I had to check my bed every night for scorpions and my shoes each morning.

[KCStudly]

Thank you all so much for inflating my ego with the compliments, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. I do feel that I have come a long way with my wood working, but I’m not a master carpenter like Norm. Everything is relative to how close you look and how much time you spend. For the amount of time I have spent you may have to look a little closer and spend a little more time, but we all know where the boo boos are on TPCE.

There are plenty of builders here that put my work into perspective, and make their effort’s look a lot easier in doing so. To paraphrase Mel, I wouldn’t want to arrive at my first outing and find myself camped next to anything that Hodder touched; I really admire Woodbutcher’s work on the Slowmobile; there’s the Atma; and many others that are much more refined. That is the beauty of this forum, everyone has something to contribute and we all inspire each other to do good things.

Thanks for noticing.

Okay, let’s look at what I did tonight. First I stayed after work a little bit to do the bearing modification on the lid support for the locker door. Here is a better pic of the strut end that mounts to the inside of the case. You can see that there is an offset bend (which was crooked and needed to be straightened) which is intended to keep the bar from dragging on the inside of the case. In the end there is a hole for the screw. So the strut would have pivoted on the screw threads and you wouldn’t really be able to tighten the screw; it would just loosen itself and/or cause the strut to drag on the face of the wood. Also shown is one of the nylon bushings that I bought separately. (The dial caliper under the head of the screw is just there to prop it up for the picture.)


By drilling the hole in the strut larger and making a T-shaped bushing out of the nylon that is slightly longer than the strut is thick, I should be able to tighten the screw all the way down without pinching the strut, and the flange of the bushing will keep the strut from dragging on the side of the case. The fabricated nylon washer shown under the head of the screw ended up being replaced with a thinner stainless washer, but ends up coming into play again later.



I was right about the hinges throwing things out of spec for the lid support mounting locations. It took several iterations with the mockup to figure out where the ends wanted to be, and I learned that very small variations in screw locations had a big effect in how the strut behaved. Too much separation between the mount points when closed and the folded hinge middle part of the strut could hit the back of the door frame keeping it from closing fully. Move one screw a tiny bit and now the elbow of the strut swings way into the case. I did get the mockup working good tho.




This is a “Left Hand” support used on the left hand side, but it seems to swing backwards to me in this application. For a blanket chest or toy box where the lid is horizontal when closed and vertical when open it makes sense for the left hand, but in hindsight, for this application I think a Right Hand unit would have been better. I think that would have made the elbow of the strut fold up near the hinge instead of down, but no worries; it will work fine.

I took it apart and measured the centers of the final holes for reference purposes.


I count 7 holes to get this end right, and at least 3 pair at the other end.



The head of the screw had to stay below flush with the side of the strut to clear the other end when folded, so I went with the SS washer under the head of the screw, but when I realized I was really close to the trim with just the T-bushing, I added the other nylon washer underneath as a spacer; a little thicker than it needs to be.

I might just take another shot at machining a one piece bushing now that I know what it wants.

The stupid thing is that after all of this trial and error, and success and careful measuring, when I went to transfer the info to the real parts the side pivot hole location was off nearly 1/4 inch. With Karl acting as a second set of hands, we set my head lamp up inside of the locker, and closed the door. With me sighting in thru the far side gap between the door and case (the gap will later get filled with the side trim) guiding Karl, and Karl reaching blindly thru the opening in the well section to stick a pencil thru the bushing we were able to make an educated adjustment to the final location for the case side pivot point.

I’m still glad I bothered doing the mockup. I had a much better idea of what needed to be adjusted, how changes would respond, and how touchy the accuracy was. In the end I got what I wanted. The door opens to 90 deg and closes; the one extra hole in the side of the case will get filled and covered by the vinyl; and I didn’t have to put any extra holes in the maple door frame. I do have to remember to reinforce the screw hole in the pine case with CA glue, otherwise I think it will wallow out in time.



And one more pic just for good measure.