Ryan McFarland

The house with the front trees removed

Originally uploaded by zieak

Here’s a picture from the street of the house after the trees had been cut down.

Today seemed like it was going to be a good day.  It was partly sunny, a Friday before a long weekend, and my site was getting some mad traffic because of Palin’s candidacy.  I couldn’t get in touch with Earl to help me haul the restroom partitions we have prepped to move to the concessions building so i decided to start wo work on trimming out the windows.  I needed to get my table saw to rip boards though so i headed home.

I saw an ambulance on the side of the road and across the street from our house.  Police cars, EMT’s and even a POLICE LINE DO NOT CROSS tape were over there.  I’ll skip all the details but just say that i ended up taking the afternoon off, was questioned by the police about my neighbor (and friend) and former neighbor (and friend).  We bought flowers and put them over there after the EMT’s, police, tow truck, and fire department left.

Out of respect for the victim, the offender, the witnesses, and their friends and family i won’t say much more.  There will be some tough weeks ahead.

The Petersburg Pilot had this news posted in a rare between-issues update.

Police received a call reporting the death of two people not far out the road at 10:39 this morning. Police Chief Dale Stone stated that an investigation is currently underway.

“What we are investigating is the death of two adults, one male and one female, at a residence out the road. The death appears to be caused by gunshot wound,” he said.

Although police were quick to gather information at the scene, Chief Stone said he is not yet comfortable to release any further information.

“We have not positively identified the bodies. We have a lot of indicators that give us reason to believe we know who they are, but we don’t have a comfort level right now to release names,” he said.

One of my least popular Instructables has been an entry for the “Fridge Magnet Challenge” on how to reuse cheap fridge magnets.  The contest was over a year ago and my Instructable only has 2,600 views.  (Compared to the cart-bike with 66,000 views, Kevin’s and my t-shirt printing press with 49,000 views, or my geek wallet with 198,000 views.)  I didn’t even rank as a runner-up in the magnet contest.

I’ve been very happy with the exposure that the Instructables site has given my projects.  My first project for the site ended up in Popular Photography magazine.  It looks like i’ll have two projects in the upcoming book.  I’ve had my stuff in Australian and Italian magazines.  Of course, i’ve won a number of t-shirts and a few other prizes but to date none have ever brought me any direct money.  (Not that i do it for money but some cash wouldn’r hurt!)

Then I got an email from someone at HowCast.  They would like to pay me $50 to use “my” idea for a video.  They also are offering 50% of the ad revenue generated if i embed the video on zieak.com or in my Instructable.  It sounds like they will do all the production but will “work with” me.

Since this project has been one of my bigger flops i’m willing to sell off my idea for a few bucks.  Maybe I’ll stop waiting around for worthy contests to create and post my ideas now.

It seems that i might end up with two projects in the Instructables book.  I didn’t even enter this one in the book contest so this one has been selected purely by the editors and not because of popularity.

Hi Ryan,
It looks like we are considering a second instructable of yours, the “Stool made from bike parts and crutches” project. If you haven’t sent back the agreement yet, I can resend another one with both of the instructables in it, or just send you a new one for this one. Let me know what works best for you.
Thanks,
Terry

Yeti on the porch swing i just finished

Last week while we were in Juneau there was a 60% off sale at Fred Meyer for outdoor/garden stuff.  I guess summer is over.  We saw a porch swing that we really liked except it had a canopy attached to the frame.  Regardless, i loaded the box up on a cart - it was $79 instead of $200.  But i changed my mind at the last minute and put it back.

Instead i bought three outdoor cushions and told Cena the oft uttered phrase “i can make that.”  The cushions were also 60% off so i only ended up paying $30 for all three of them.  I didn’t like the stand - it would occupy too much of the porch.  I also thought that the whole setup was rather flimsy.

So on Tuesday afternoon i began work on a porch swing and by Friday at 7 PM people could enjoy it.  Naturally i didn’t spend all that time working on it bu there were a few hours put in.

I started by looking online for some plans.  There is a great collection of free instructions from around the web on this site.  However, none of them used the materials that i had or quite matched how i wanted the swing to look.  So i set out on my own.

First i determined the width that the frame would need to be.  I lined up my cushions and added a few inches to each side for an armrest.  Then i made sure that the swing would fit in the space i wanted to use it — between the posts on our front porch.  With just a few inches to spare i pressed on.

Using the cushions i also measured the height of the back and length of the seat.  With Cena’s help we determined that the angle of the back should be at 105 degrees from the seat.  With the seat tilted at a 5 degree angle from horizontal we thought that would be comfy.

I used wood from the railings that i removed last year.  I had to plane a few of the larger boards but had a good stack of the smaller uprights already done.  That gave me plenty of 2×2 cedar pieces and a number of 2×4 cedar boards.

First i ripped one of the 2×4 boards with my table saw at a 15 degree angle.

Then i cut that board and two others to the length that the cushions needed plus space for arm rests and a few inches to cut off later — giving me some contingency room.

I cut the ends of the 2×2 boards at 15 degree angles just so that they would match the angle of the back and also so they would not have a sharp edge where the backs of people’s knees are.  I made a jig so i only had to cut one end and then slide the board to hit the jig and then cut again.  Then each piece was cut to the right length.  I cut both ends off of the 2×2 boards to remove the parts that had screw holes.  Then i repeated the process for the slightly longer back slats.

Then i drilled holes for the screws and countersunk for the heads.  I had a bunch of beefy stainless steel screws from a basket sale the hardware store had two years ago.  Red cedar and stainless steel porch swing? I’m doing this project right!

Here you can see some of the 2×2 pieces cut and drilled.

2x2 slats cut and drilled

Then i began attaching the seat and back pieces to the frame pieces.  I made sure the whole setup was square and then started putting them in.

Detail of 15 degree angle

Attaching the back and seat pieces

After the seat and back pieces were all attached i cut two 2×4 boards that i then attached to the two seat supports.  I put the screws in off center for them because of the cable that would run through them.  I then cut two more boards to attach from the front seat rail to the back rail.  I made angle cuts on them and only attached the board at the back.  This prevents the weight from closing the bench — i knew i needed support other than the screws to keep the back from either being pushed off (if the cable was not attached to it) or from folding in (with the cable run through the back rail).

I tied the cushions in place and then drilled hols for stainless steel cable.  I used two cable clamps - one to close the cable loop (under the swing) and the other to make a small loop at the top so that the swing doesn’t slide in the eyebolts.  (I’m sorry - i should take some good pictures of this.)

Porch swing

Back of porch swing

Now i would like to add cup holders to each of the sides (and a more complete arm rest) and then i can call the project done.

Total cost for the project was only the cost of the cushions.  I had all the hardware and wood kicking around.  Yesterday we looked at the swing and our deck chairs and commented about how inviting the porch is with the hanging plants and furniture.

Despite the fact that the “Instructables Book Contest” that will be produced by O’Reilly (”The Best of Instructables Volume I” on Amazon.) is not yet closed it looks like one of my projects has been picked as a potential for the book.

Here’s the email I received:

I’m part of the editorial team working on The Best of Instructables book, a joint effort between MAKE and Instructables. We’re interested in using your “Wallet-made-from-a-computer-keyboard” project. Can we have your permission? If you are interested, please reply with your name, mailing address, email address, and the name you’d like to appear in the book. I will send you a Permissions Form to review, sign, and return…

We’re still in the process of sifting through projects and getting the right mix for the book. It’s possible that, even after seeking permissions on projects, a few won’t make it into the final cut. If that happens, you still get a credit in the book and a free contributor’s copy.

We’re very excited about this project and hope you’ll consider being a part of it.

My direct email is: [redacted]

Many thanks,

Terry Bronson
For Make: Books and The Best of Instructables

It has been quite a while since i made any new and significant projects.  But my old ones can still earn me something.  Check out the Instructables Book Contest.  They are holding a vote for the best Instructables to include ina new book by O’Reilly publishing.  Feel free to vote for mine!

Installed a trailer hitch

Originally uploaded by zieak

For quite a while I have wanted a trailer hitch. Unlike my last vehicle (the 6MC Sonoma) the Suzuki Grand Vitara doesn’t have a bumper you can just put a ball on. I had shopped for a “three point hitch” before for my car but the prices and shipping just didn’t make it worth it.

Ever since Cena sold her vehicle I have had to borrow Mike’s to use our trailer. Now that I move the trailer every Wednesday morning before work to the harbor having the hitch is now a business need.

I found the hitch on eBay and the seller was willing to ship priority mail instead of UPS.

Hanging skateboard decks on the wall

Originally uploaded by zieak

Cena and I decided that we liked the artwork on these skateboard decks that we had a Zoom. We bought them and then did some research and learned that there is one other design in this style. I hung them by running some fishing line through the holes for the trucks and then tying a loop which is hung over a nail. We have room for the third design if we get it.

I also spent a good bit of time today working on framing art and images that we have had kicking around for a while. We hung a piece that we bought in Bali over the stairs too.

Failed wheelchair project

Originally uploaded by zieak

One of the wheelchairs didn’t make it. Two plastic struts that help hold it open failed. So I finally had the excuse to use it for parts for another project. I stripped the chair down and decided to try and make a scooter. Well, scooters allow you to steer the front wheel instead of having two crazy caster back wheels. Oh well.