PEP Badge: Oddball

Not sure if this is big enough of a project to count or not, but it sure felt like a pretty big deal when we got our first 2 nucs of bees and before we were able to get them moved into homes that are big enough for them to really get established in (they come in basically a half-sized hive), they started building comb all kinds of places they "weren't supposed to." (It's almost like no one had told them that or something!)


Anyway, we transferred this "wild" comb to an empty frame and over time they continued adding to it until it connected with the frame itself.

The pictures below are the progress they made over the course of just a week or so...

Here is my submission for the Shear a Rabbit - Straw - Oddball BB.

I've raised German Angora rabbits and they get shorn four times per year.  As there are BBs for shearing several different animals but not rabbits so I thought I would put it here.  This is my first shearing of Sweet Pea but when I got good at it, it takes about an hour per animal.

To document the completion of the BB, I have provided the following documentation as pictures:
    - rabbit
    - scissors for shearing
    - progress of shearing the rabbit
    - finished shearing the rabbit

Here is my submission for Oddball Points - How to Build a Rag Rug Loom/Frame.

This is a 50" wide by 26" tall wooden frame to hold the warp while twinning a rag rug.  The twinning (weaving) area is 46" by 23" and the frame is warped continuously and under tension so the warp will draw into the rug when it comes off the frame.  I've completed two rugs and the frame works well.  The finished rug size is 22" x 44" after resting.

One edge of the frame rests on the weaver's lap and the other is supported by the legs.

To document the completion of the BB, I have provided the following:
 - photos before, during, and after building a rag rug frame to hold the warp while twinning a rag rug
 - bonus photo rug in progress

Here is my submission for the build a spinning wheel from bike parts which I completed during the 2022 PTJ.  I did have some guidance on how to remove bearings but I did all the work myself since none of the participants wanted to help with the build.  It was also slotted for a four-hour window at the PTJ so I spent 2 days in my shop completing all the disassembly and paint removal before taking the parts to WL to build the spinning wheel.  

I started with a 20" bicycle that no longer had a seat/seat stem and was not slated for repairs at my place.


Here are the tools I used: an angle grinder with cutting disk and wire brush, socket set, combo wrench set, electric driver, and various pliers and shop tools.


initial disassembly complete


cutting the top tube and down tube off the seat tube


seat tube separated from the rest of the bike frame and partially cleaned up


removing the stem and headset from the front forks


the parts I'll be using to build the spinning wheel - they are oriented the way they are on a bike


parts reoriented for wheel assembly


removing the hardened steel caps and bearings


The boots cut a slab of wood for the base and I planed it then started drilling mounting holes


I mounted the front forks using the washers and nuts that held it in place on the bike and countersunk the bottom of the board so that it would not scratch the surface of the table it would be placed on.


counter sunk and corked "top" of forks (viewing the bottom of the mounting platform)


mounting the seat tube to the platform with lag bolts and 1-Hole Conduit Straps (which I found at WL)


a total of six conduit straps were used to secure the seat tube to the platform


mounted


with the spinning wheel finished...


it is time to focus on the spindles - the front forms hold the spindles - they are angled away from the wheel


spindle style 1: steel rod (I cut to length from scrap steel at WL) with 3" cylinder of wood (I drilled a center hole and cut notch)


spindle 1 in forks


spindle style 2: 12-inch length of 3/4' wood dowel with notches and pointed end


spindle 2 in forks


added cotton drive band wrapped twice around rim and spindle and tied off

how did I cut the notched on the spindles? I set the height of the table saw to the depth of the notch I wanted and used the sled (it sits in the notch on the table saw and holds the wood).  
This is an advanced use of the table saw and can be quite dangerous.


added spindle lock - the spindle jumps out while spinning so I added a small piece of wire to lock it in the forks on its shorter end


the spindle lock works great on either style of spindle


Spinning

I submit carving wands from dry sticks for oddball points.
Shown are willow and Rose bush I have been saving. I may use wire to attach tumbled gemstones to some. I am still carving on the last one, and my tools are shown. (Swish and flick!)

Needed to put together a solar oven for one of the Food BB. I have plans to make a wooden one in the future, but for a prototype, this on will work. I recycled cardboard boxes for the body of the oven, used salvaged packing peanuts for insulating the bottom and wadded up paper for the sides. Duct tape was my hero with this project. The whole job took around 2ish hours.

Bethany Paschall wrote:Needed to put together a solar oven for one of the Food BB. I have plans to make a wooden one in the future, but for a prototype, this on will work. I recycled cardboard boxes for the body of the oven, used salvaged packing peanuts for insulating the bottom and wadded up paper for the sides. Duct tape was my hero with this project. The whole job took around 2ish hours.

I worry that the duck tape will off-gas something terrible. I made something similar 5 years ago, using allumium metal tape (rather than ducktape), and everything in there tasted like toxic stuff one should not ingest.

I also wonder if it'll cook without a lid.

Maybe show that it cooks, and verify that food doesn't taste like adhesive?

This was my solar cooker, and we ended up tossing it because it was so toxic https://permies.com/t/90518/toxic-easy-affordable-solar-oven:

My solar cooker

It cooked an egg... that tasted toxic

My solar oven BB has been approved. The rice that I cooked in there was not tainted in any noticeable way, all the kids ate it without any negative reaction. I will be cooking some chicken in it today, and I can make sure it is not funkey tasting.

Bethany Paschall wrote:My solar oven BB has been approved. The rice that I cooked in there was not tainted in any noticeable way, all the kids ate it without any negative reaction. I will be cooking some chicken in it today, and I can make sure it is not funkey tasting.

Bethany, can you add the link to your rice BB please.

repaired a hole in a couch pillow and a comforter.