We all have one—that old, beat-up piece of gear we just can’t let go of. For me, it’s my HP DV6-6022TX laptop, a machine that’s been with me for nearly 15 years. It was a major purchase back when I decided to become a self-proclaimed “clumsy technician,” and we’ve been through countless jobs together. We’ve…
If you’ve ever worked with motors, you know the pain. That tiny, deceptively simple piece of metal—the parallel key—is a marvel of power transmission. But when it’s perfectly fitted into its keyway, trying to remove it can be one of the most frustrating jobs in the workshop. I’ve been there. In my younger days, I…
We’ve all been there. You buy a cheap, articulated phone stand, hoping it’ll be the versatile tool you need for online classes, video calls, or filming your projects. It looks decent online, but when it arrives, you’re stuck with a fatal flaw: a clunky, ugly, and impractical phone holder. That’s the story of how my…
A few years ago, I solved my then-elementary-school-aged daughter’s ever-growing toy storage problem with an unlikely IKEA product: the TRONES shoe cabinet. It was a simple hack born from necessity, but it has stood the test of time and remains one of my most successful home projects. This isn’t just a “how-to.” This is a…
A dial indicator is an essential tool for any machinist, used for precision tests of concentricity, parallelism, and flatness. My old Teclock indicator has been a trusted companion in my workshop for years. But over time, its crystal face became covered in scratches and scuffs. It wasn’t unusable, but the hazy, blurry view of the…
It was a holiday, and I was lounging around, one with the living room floor, when my wife summoned me. No special reason, just: “Come help make mandu if you’re not doing anything.” Sigh… Well, for an old guy like me, you gotta earn your keep, right? So, my answer was an immediate “Yes, ma’am!”…
It was a classic “while the cat’s away” scenario. I came home to find that my wife and daughter had teamed up to commit a terrible crime. The victim? My Amazon Fire TV Stick remote. The story was simple: my daughter, with freshly painted nails, used the remote. My wife, in an attempt to clean…
A while back, I needed to install a new electrical distribution box in my personal workspace. While this is a job best left to certified professionals, my pride as a self-proclaimed “clumsy technician” wouldn’t let me call for help. So, I decided to build one myself. This post is a record of that past project….
This isn’t a story about a new project. It’s a look back at a memorable machine I worked on a long while back—a project that taught me a lot about reliability and the true nature of our work. Often, I hear people complaining that a certain controller or piece of software is unstable or even…