spring flowers and good food

[Handstitched]

On 9/19/2022 at 7:18 PM, Handstitched said:

Thankfully, these ' Grey Fergies'  are easy to fix and parts are readily available .  It'll be out of service for a few weeks thats all. 

@chuck123wapati I humbly  and embarrassingly eat my words ....with BBQ marinade and a salad .  I've only just got the cyl head off just this afternoon .  One helluva  struggle , but I got it off. I could see where the gasket went wrong, between 2 cylinders, quite common. Cylinders seem OK too.  So, now to get it back together again and running again .  ' In the next episode ....'  

I do hope you're out and about   enjoying Mother Nature , hunting some good feeds, enjoying a ' cook up' and  spinning a few yarns around a camp fire....*sigh* I envy that   

Have fun

HS

[chuck123wapati]

1 hour ago, Handstitched said:

@chuck123wapati I humbly  and embarrassingly eat my words ....with BBQ marinade and a salad .  I've only just got the cyl head off just this afternoon .  One helluva  struggle , but I got it off. I could see where the gasket went wrong, between 2 cylinders, quite common. Cylinders seem OK too.  So, now to get it back together again and running again .  ' In the next episode ....'  

I do hope you're out and about   enjoying Mother Nature , hunting some good feeds, enjoying a ' cook up' and  spinning a few yarns around a camp fire....*sigh* I envy that   

Have fun

HS

good luck my friend on your build lol getting them off and cleaned up is the hard part, my dad always made me do the gasket removal and clean up lol. I managed to make it back with my old truck in one piece this year. ten days in the mud, snow and muck.

 We have plenty of meat now for the year having taken two cow elk and one calf. It was cold wet and beautiful out there and yes those first two days without a cloud in the sky or snow were celebrated with a hot fire under the milky way. a couple of pics for your enjoyment, that mud hole is typical of many out there this time of year and its on the main road lol. 

[Handstitched]

20 hours ago, chuck123wapati said:

a couple of pics for your enjoyment,

That sun looks so spectacular , as for the mud, that looks challenging , even the snow looks good too   Awesome pics .  

Recipes abound for the year.. yummmm 

The head studs just had  a huge build up of carbon and gunk etc.  around them  making it hard to pull the head right off.  Sure feeling it today tho, I ache all over . I have some bourbon for that...purely medicinal, of course .

Thank you friend

HS 

Edited November 1, 2022 by Handstitched

[Handstitched]

I know you like old iron, but how about old brass? 

I only paid $20 for it at a local antique shop.  Its a ' Companion' brand , made in Australia under licence from Sweden . Works perfect. I didn't even need to replace any plunger parts. Cool   

Pretty happy with that 

HS

[chuck123wapati]

now that is cool!!! i love it!!!  i have a very old lead pot stove that is so old the brass pump is separate from the canister, i guess before they figured out the internal type pump lol. i like restoring things so much my son brought me these old binos for my birthday one year. they were found in a lake lol and had to be completely disassembled to get all the dirt out. 

[Handstitched]

Man, you've done a great job on those   Looks a bit of a delicate job too .  The brass polished up beautifully. Theres a great sense of satisfaction  and achievement when a piece of history comes back to life  My workshop is becoming quite a bit of a ' mini 'museum'  lately . Lots a little bits 'n' pieces and curiosities  everywhere. Just about run out of space now.

I told Mum about you're hunting travels, ( she's a bit envious herself, she wants to go to the  Canadian Rockys .....one day )  she's was wondering if you make anything from the skins? 

HS

[chuck123wapati]

30 minutes ago, Handstitched said:

Man, you've done a great job on those   Looks a bit of a delicate job too .  The brass polished up beautifully. Theres a great sense of satisfaction  and achievement when a piece of history comes back to life  My workshop is becoming quite a bit of a ' mini 'museum'  lately . Lots a little bits 'n' pieces and curiosities  everywhere. Just about run out of space now.

I told Mum about you're hunting travels, ( she's a bit envious herself, she wants to go to the  Canadian Rockys .....one day )  she's was wondering if you make anything from the skins? 

HS

Tell your Mum yes we do, my son tans them the old fashioned way, brain tanning, then we will be making them into period style stuff from the mountain man era. i love those old binos even though they are only about 3 power lol i use them with my black powder shooting gear.  My favorite restore ever was a sunbeam mixer if i remember right it was the model 10. those old bullet looking ones with a ton of accessories. I have since given it to my daughter and she loves it. At almost 100 years those things will run forever and do anything a new one will.

[Handstitched]

Somewhere in one of our sheds is a ' Sunbeam' electric fry pan that we got in the early 70's . Mum did an entire Christmas dinner on it  once when we were kids,  a little ham &  turkey , vegies, gravy , Christmas pudding  custard ,  the lot ,  how  the hell she managed it is beyond me   . It tasted great, thats the bit I remember, LOL .   As far as I know it still complete and  works . The 'Sunbeam' appliances  are built to last.  Might try and find it.

HS

 

[chuck123wapati]

On 11/3/2022 at 2:46 AM, Handstitched said:

Somewhere in one of our sheds is a ' Sunbeam' electric fry pan that we got in the early 70's . Mum did an entire Christmas dinner on it  once when we were kids,  a little ham &  turkey , vegies, gravy , Christmas pudding  custard ,  the lot ,  how  the hell she managed it is beyond me   . It tasted great, thats the bit I remember, LOL .   As far as I know it still complete and  works . The 'Sunbeam' appliances  are built to last.  Might try and find it.

HS

 

Well friend its the day for cooking and eating here in the states!!!! woot!!! Wishing you well and hope your day is going as well as mine. 15lb. Turkey, stuffing is just the beginning two pies ,dinner rolls, gravy with giblets, And Home made sangria from my chokecherry wine. yum fruit salad, sweet potatoes. OMG spinach dip and chips to start out, deviled eggs. My wife wanted a small dinner this year LOL. 

[Handstitched]

15 hours ago, chuck123wapati said:

Well friend its the day for cooking and eating here in the states!!!!

Thats something we don't have here in Oz, ' Thanks Giving' . Quite like the sound of that....all that food.....AND an extra Turkey ....yummo . Although we did get our Turkey  and ham ready for Christmas . The Turkey is around the 9kg mark.   We get ours from a  commercial supplier that supplies to restaurants etc.  The ones the supermarkets are a ...small .  Ham is about the same size. And, as always, nothing goes to waste....it  just goes TO my waist ..lol . Mum has been stocking up on all the ' nibblys', cake  mixes etc. 

Hope all goes well with you and yours . Enjoy   Happy Thanks Giving 

BTW  home made Turkey gravy  totally rocks !!!  

HS

[Handstitched]

@chuck123wapati  Heres a sneak peak....shhh...don't  tell  

Our Christmas Turkey in the freezer. Next to it is one of the packs of sausage meat  for sausage rolls, a popular fave here in our house . 

HS

[Handstitched]

@chuck123wapati Just checking in friend. How's Wyoming? cold I'm guessing. Its really starting to heat up now down here . I've only got 3 more markets to go and then a nice  well earned Christmas break , and then back into it late Jan early Feb . But before then, I have a heap of orders to fill . Doing a mad dash to get them done in time . One of which is cylindrical / tubed shape for a  board game, to make it portable . The client is a lawyer...so I better do a good job eh? Did some practice today , with the help of ' Uncle Al ' . Haven't done a lot of   hand sewing ' round' stuff before. 

HS 

[chuck123wapati]

On 11/29/2022 at 3:38 AM, Handstitched said:

@chuck123wapati Just checking in friend. How's Wyoming? cold I'm guessing. Its really starting to heat up now down here . I've only got 3 more markets to go and then a nice  well earned Christmas break , and then back into it late Jan early Feb . But before then, I have a heap of orders to fill . Doing a mad dash to get them done in time . One of which is cylindrical / tubed shape for a  board game, to make it portable . The client is a lawyer...so I better do a good job eh? Did some practice today , with the help of ' Uncle Al ' . Haven't done a lot of   hand sewing ' round' stuff before. 

HS 

Wyoming is cold and windy, we have already seen -20f here this year. the friggin blower motor went out on my furnace three days ago. We are heating our house with propane heaters so its above 65 lol. Sounds like you have a plan. I'm still working on a few gifts but have slowed down a bit. Hunting season was a rough one so I've been slow getting back in the groove. hand sewing round stuff is pretty easy if its big enough to get the needle in side lol, last one i did i had to cut a set of needles off to get them to work.

[Handstitched]

8 hours ago, chuck123wapati said:

hand sewing round stuff is pretty easy if its big enough to get the needle in side lol, last one i did i had to cut a set of needles off to get them to work.

I modified an awl and a few needles by heating them up with a mini blow torch , a  small vice and pair of pliers, and slow curved them, just like in  AS book of hand stitching. Handy book 

I have a little portable camping  gas heater in my workshop. Thankfully I have plenty of ventilation . Using fans atm  getting hot now. One is an old  vintage ' Hoover' fan from the 70's, works heaps better than cheapies . 

Keep warm  friend 

HS

[chuck123wapati]

11 hours ago, Handstitched said:

I modified an awl and a few needles by heating them up with a mini blow torch , a  small vice and pair of pliers, and slow curved them, just like in  AS book of hand stitching. Handy book 

I have a little portable camping  gas heater in my workshop. Thankfully I have plenty of ventilation . Using fans atm  getting hot now. One is an old  vintage ' Hoover' fan from the 70's, works heaps better than cheapies . 

Keep warm  friend 

HS

was sitting here this morning drinking my first cup o coffee and heard glass breaking, the friggin wind 60 mph gusts blew out one of my windows in the kitchen. mad rush to cut a piece of plywood and put it up before my house filled with snow lol. 

[Handstitched]

16 hours ago, chuck123wapati said:

was sitting here this morning drinking my first cup o coffee and heard glass breaking, the friggin wind 60 mph gusts blew out one of my windows in the kitchen. mad rush to cut a piece of plywood and put it up before my house filled with snow lol. 

Holy shite  !   Man, thats some serious wind, thats around 100k's per hour .  Hope no one was hurt. Must have made one helluva  mess inside your kitchen .  Hope you're all safe. 

HS

[chuck123wapati]

5 hours ago, Handstitched said:

Holy shite  !   Man, thats some serious wind, thats around 100k's per hour .  Hope no one was hurt. Must have made one helluva  mess inside your kitchen .  Hope you're all safe. 

HS

we are all fine now the blower motor came in and the wind died down a bit but its coming back, 80% chance of snow with 40 mph winds gusting to 60. these winds are pretty common for this area in fact its one of the windiest places in the states and right in the center of wind turbine hell. They are planning on installing thousands of turbines here and none of the power for Wyoming its all going to Nevada and California.

[Handstitched]

30 minutes ago, chuck123wapati said:

They are planning on installing thousands of turbines here and none of the power for Wyoming its all going to Nevada and California.

Thats makes perfect sense.....not.  Thats like having wind ' jenny's'  in my town but supplying a totally different town... wha...?? 

Glad you're all OK ...and warm   

Did some satay pork belly skewers on the barby   for din dins....damn good they were too .  Time to give my ol' faithful a clean &  full service  ready for Christmas . 

Be good

HS

[chuck123wapati]

On 12/2/2022 at 7:08 AM, Handstitched said:

Thats makes perfect sense.....not.  Thats like having wind ' jenny's'  in my town but supplying a totally different town... wha...?? 

Glad you're all OK ...and warm   

Did some satay pork belly skewers on the barby   for din dins....damn good they were too .  Time to give my ol' faithful a clean &  full service  ready for Christmas . 

Be good

HS

nothing our gubment is doing right now is making sense.

 That sure sounds yummy my friend we've been feasting on Elk steaks, the calf we got is so tender you can cut it with your fork, the cows just a hair tougher but far better than any beef. Red chili today with Indian fry bread. 

[Handstitched]

Here ya go friend. The view from my window.  Harvesting madly going on around my region , and other towns  before it gets too hot, cos when it does, there'll be  a harvest ban  in place .They can sometimes  harvest at night if  its cooler.   A new Holland harvester, and beside it   (out of view)  is an  IH  tractor with chaser bin .  Been going for the last 3 hrs or so.

You can see how dry it is already . Wasn't long ago when it was all green . 

HS

Edited December 6, 2022 by Handstitched

[Handstitched]

@chuck123wapati just popped my head in to say ' G'day' . Mother Nature has been kind..for now. Its been quite mild , not too hot-ish

Is there a phenomena, scientific or otherwise ,  that causes people to place orders at the last minute at Christmas ?  Thats all I've been doing these last few weeks . Just when I think I'm all caught up, the phone goes, and someone needs something made ' as  a Christmas gift' .  One was a doozy, all hand stitched , my hands are so sore atm . 

One more market to go this weekend.....and its  

Hope things are looking good  in your part of the universe ...and no more trees through windows eh ?? 

HS

[chuck123wapati]

1 hour ago, Handstitched said:

@chuck123wapati just popped my head in to say ' G'day' . Mother Nature has been kind..for now. Its been quite mild , not too hot-ish

Is there a phenomena, scientific or otherwise ,  that causes people to place orders at the last minute at Christmas ?  Thats all I've been doing these last few weeks . Just when I think I'm all caught up, the phone goes, and someone needs something made ' as  a Christmas gift' .  One was a doozy, all hand stitched , my hands are so sore atm . 

One more market to go this weekend.....and its  

Hope things are looking good  in your part of the universe ...and no more trees through windows eh ?? 

HS

Mother nature is not so nice here lol we are on our third day of winter storm with two more days to go, the roads were closed yesterday and when the wind comes up probably again today. 14*f for the high today with six inches of snow so far lol. 

Folks get plumb crazy on Christmas gifts they don't realize custom hand made stuff isn't setting in a bin somewhere waiting for them to figure out what day it is lol. But it makes for a nice income for a guy if he has the time. Hope you and your folks are doing well too my friend and good luck on your market!!

[Handstitched]

On 12/15/2022 at 10:51 PM, chuck123wapati said:

and good luck on your market!!

I have a bottle of champers in the fridge  for our last event of the year and I ain't cooking....nup ......takeaway .  So tired now .  I have one more ' Christmas present ' to make ...and thats  it...woo hoo !! 

We do anywhere around 60 to 70 events per year *sigh*  ( with the exception of covid) .

WOW!! 6 inches of snow!!! .....and heres me cooking up some BBQ  honey pork ribs on the barby yesterday, I used a sun umbrella to cover me from the sun on a warm Summers day.  Quite a contrast eh ? 

Stay safe friend during  the cooler months   

HS

[chuck123wapati]

2 hours ago, Handstitched said:

 

Stay safe friend during  the cooler months   

HS

lol i will tell you why we still use Fahrenheit instead of Celsius.  12 above zero sounds al lot better than 11 below zero. bbq sounds awesome !! We are having breakfast for supper tonight, Steaks, eggs and hash brown potatoes.  

[Handstitched]

On 12/18/2022 at 1:27 AM, chuck123wapati said:

breakfast for supper tonight, Steaks, eggs and hash brown potatoes.  

' a breakfast of champions '   Hope theres a beer or two to wash it down ? 

I did do a champagne breakfast once, first time I  ever got  drunk ...in the morning. 

Did our very last event of the year yesterday .. body aches now , .. takeaway, champers to celebrate....boots off..socks off ( steam...smelly lol ) . Time to relax  

Got my last Christmas order made today.... workshop now closed ...sleep in tomorrow ..woo hoo !!! 

HS