Mend it and make do

[mudsticks]

Smaller scaled farming is a constant round of running repairs, fashioning one thing into another, making do, and fixing stuff with wire, cable ties, and baler twine.

(And a lump hammer)

Was considering getting some sexy new front panniers, but might just fix up the old ones, one more time.

There comes a point where things become more 'fix' than original though.

 

[Electric_Andy]

I got rid of my son's bunk bed the other week. I used the wood to make a TV and speaker stand for my bedroom. I painted it black using some old brake caliper paint that I had leftover, and some other black paint that the previous home owner left. It's not that pretty but it does the job, total cost £0. I also used the remaining leftover wood for shelves etc in the garage, they are very handy for hanging tools up.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Not much given to promoting individual brands, but a very honourable mention to Patagonia, who really live this stuff (and whose Founder's book is well worth a read, BTW)

https://eu.patagonia.com/gb/en/worn-wear-repairs/

 

[mudsticks]

Not much given to promoting individual brands, but a very honourable mention to Patagonia, who really live this stuff (and whose Founder's book is well worth a read, BTW)

https://eu.patagonia.com/gb/en/worn-wear-repairs/

They put out a really useful book called "Tools for Grassroots Activists " too - Really handy if you're one of the little ones, trying to go up against the "Big Boys" - tricky to source in the UK - but worth hunting down if you have a campaign going on something - basically using the same tactics that the bigger units go for .

 

[derrick]

If it can be fixed i will fix it.

 

[Chris S]

Not much given to promoting individual brands, but a very honourable mention to Patagonia, who really live this stuff (and whose Founder's book is well worth a read, BTW)

https://eu.patagonia.com/gb/en/worn-wear-repairs/

"How to dry a waterproof jacket"

 

[woodbutcher]

"How to dry a waterproof jacket"

Never mind how to dry it , how do you get it wet in the first place .

 

[ColinJ]

I have a very cheapo pair of walking boots. So cheap, that the loop thingies through which the laces are threaded have sharp edges which cut through the laces in less than a month! I was trying to file the sharp edges off today when one of the loops snapped off, followed shortly afterwards by the other. Nasty, horrible crap!

Still, I'm not made of money - in fact, I'm not even partially made of money so it was time for another footwear bodge.

I drilled out the retaining rivets and have now threaded the laces through the holes left behind. I'm sure that the 'leather' will not last too long unless I make a more permanent repair so I will nip down to Todmorden market tomorrow and see if I can find a cheap kit. I got one last year to replace the missing press stud on my cycling shorts, and I am fairly sure that the same stall will have something suitable. If not, I have just seen some kits on eBay for a few pounds.

 

[Beebo]

I replaced the door opener on our hotpoint washing machine. The handle broke one month after the 1 year warranty expired.
The wife was all for getting a professional in to repair it, which would have taken a week and cost £100 at least. We use the washing machine almost everyday so we couldn’t wait that long.
Hotpoint were very helpful and supplied the new part, the most expensive bit was the next day delivery.
The hardest bit was opening the washing machine door by tipping it at 45degrees and reaching up inside the body. It took me an hour with lots of swearing and help from YouTube.
All repaired in less than 24 hours for £20.

 

[classic33]

I have a very cheapo pair of walking boots. So cheap, that the loop thingies through which the laces are threaded have sharp edges which cut through the laces in less than a month! I was trying to file the sharp edges off today when one of the loops snapped off, followed shortly afterwards by the other. Nasty, horrible crap!

Still, I'm not made of money - in fact, I'm not even partially made of money so it was time for another footwear bodge.

I drilled out the retaining rivets and have now threaded the laces through the holes left behind. I'm sure that the 'leather' will not last too long unless I make a more permanent repair so I will nip down to Todmorden market tomorrow and see if I can find a cheap kit. I got one last year to replace the missing press stud on my cycling shorts, and I am fairly sure that the same stall will have something suitable. If not, I have just seen some kits on eBay for a few pounds.

Why not an old pair of boots, remove the pieces required.

 

[derrick]

[QUOTE 5509376, member: 9609"]I have a scary job in the next few days - diesel injector is blowing up the side, apparently the copper seat thing it sits in cracks and needs replaced. Tried to get it out the other day and it won't budge. I have been drowning it in release fluid the past few days so fingers crossed it will pull out - if not it can be expensive.[/QUOTE]
Good luck with that one.

 

[ColinJ]

Why not an old pair of boots, remove the pieces required.

The kits are only a couple of pounds on eBay incl. p&p. If they don't do something similar at Tod market then I'd only need to wait a few days for the kit to arrive by post.

TBH, I had forgotten that I had these boots. I found them buried under a pile of stuff while I was looking for something else.

 

[derrick]

[QUOTE 5557695, member: 9609"]just popped straight out - couldn't believe my luck. dropped a new seal in and job was a good'un.

scary job though, sometimes they are well and truly stuck. I know a bloke with a wagon, he had to hire in a specialist with hydraulic pullers to remove an stuck injector, £1,100[/QUOTE]
Back before i retired i had a couple of merc injectors, that needded a puller to get them out, i spent a few hours breaking up the carbon around them.

 

[lazybloke]

Most of my stuff is used/repaired. Computers, tablet, bikes, engines & cars (when I had my own), guitar, boiler, furniture, Strimmer, lamps, etc.
Is very satisfying to get something working again when you've saved it from landfill.

 

[DRM]

My laptop battery had seen better days and wasn’t lasting as it should, fitted a new one yesterday, not too bad a job seen as it’s a MacBook Pro and the battery is sealed under the casing, reset the PMC and charged it up fully, then I’ve left it switched on to flatten off, then recharge to calibrate the battery gauge readings, far cheaper then buying another laptop