How do I chop this up?

[Roundtuit]

On 28/05/2018 at 21:40, newhome said:

Need to take it to the tip so how can I chop it up? ie what can I use that isn’t dangerous? Angle grinder? Never used one before mind and don’t know if there is one here. 

 

 

 

 

What you have there is section of contemporary industrial-style trellis, aged to a rich brown patina. Screw it to the fence and break out the clematis!

[Onoff]

1 hour ago, daiking said:

The joke is on her his time though as I fixed the ironing board with previously unseen levels of impetus so she’s all ready to go again tomorrow.

 

We have our tools and they have theirs!

[newhome]

2 minutes ago, Onoff said:

 

We have our tools and they have theirs!

 

You’d be wearing the iron rather than clothes here! 

 

[SteamyTea]

Re: Camming Out and Screwdrivers.

Not all screwdrivers are equal.  Apart from size, the points can be different,  Some are pointy, some blunt, then the angles can be different.

It is a pain in the arse to be honest.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_screw_drives

 

Then you have thread types.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screw_thread

 

And then the ongoing debate about screws and bolts (I know the correct answer).

And there really is a Sex Bolt, flat packed furniture uses them a lot.

[newhome]

35 minutes ago, SteamyTea said:

Re: Camming Out and Screwdrivers.

Not all screwdrivers are equal.  Apart from size, the points can be different,  Some are pointy, some blunt, then the angles can be different.

It is a pain in the arse to be honest 

 

Ah yes, I have experience of camming out. I just googled so now I know what it is (after the first attempt autocorrected to coming out and took me to LGBT sites lol). It happens all the time to me. I can even manage it with a manual screwdriver  in my attempt to ensure that it’s screwed in enough. The drill ones are more difficult as you’ve got the weight of the drill to contend with as well as trying to get the screw in straight. I always find that it wobbles around madly until it catches, and then it sometimes doesn’t go in straight. All things that you do without thinking if you’re experienced I’m sure. 

 

I can do flatpack furniture mostly, assuming you don’t need another pair of hands to hold the bits up. A to Z instructions and youtube generally works for me. I prefer bolts to screws as they seem easier since there is something on the other end to hold it together rather than relying on creating the hold with a screw into wood for example. I haven’t heard of sex bolts but I find cam bolts / locks clever little things. At least with bolts you can take them out and try again having not wrecked the wood along the way. My only task in assembling any flat pack stuff in the past was to sort all the fittings into piles of the different types, plus read the instructions as the OH invariably didn’t bother with those and went straight to assembly. I never attempt to assemble anything unless I’ve read all of the instructions at least twice, checked that I have all the bits, and watched YouTube videos lol. 

[SteamyTea]

44 minutes ago, newhome said:

Ah yes, I have experience of camming out. I just googled so now I know what it is (after the first attempt autocorrected to coming out and took me to LGBT sites lol). It happens all the time to me. I can even manage it with a manual screwdriver  in my attempt to ensure that it’s screwed in enough. The drill ones are more difficult as you’ve got the weight of the drill to contend with as well as trying to get the screw in straight. I always find that it wobbles around madly until it catches, and then it sometimes doesn’t go in straight. All things that you do without thinking if you’re experienced I’m sure. 

What we talking about here.  LGBT or fixings.

My advice is the same, take your finger off the button, or put your finger on the button

(been a while since I have been told off on here)

Edited May 30, 2018 by SteamyTea

[TerryE]

On 29/05/2018 at 21:34, jack said:

Watching my wife try to use a cordless drill to drive in screws is one of the most frustrating things I've ever experienced. When you've been doing it for decades you don't even have to think about squaring it up, how hard to push at what point to avoid cam-out, etc, but it takes time to learn those things.

 

The wonder of Spax hex heads.  They might be more expensive, but they are far more tolerant to the drill shank being off-coaxial to the screw.

[TerryE]

13 hours ago, newhome said:

I always find that it wobbles around madly until it catches

 

Either pre-drill the hole with a drill that is 2mm smaller than the outer screw thread, or make sure that you use a fast start screw (those are the ones that have a longish point and a quarter segment ground out) and use a Glasgow screwdriver to get you started (position the screw and give it a couple of taps with a hammer, because it will just bend if you try to get it too deep; the idea is just to get the tip of that first 5+ mm, so that the screw isn't wobbling and the self cutter is biting when you do use the powered driver).  

 

Another trick is that it is easier to hold the shank of the screw in a pair of piers with one hand and the drill with the other.  Don't try to hold the shank of the screw directly with your hand, especially if you are using thinnish work gloves -- as the screw will end up eating your glove fingers, and  (if you aren't quick enough letting go of the drill trigger) your fleshy ones as well. ?

[newhome]

3 minutes ago, TerryE said:

Another trick is that it is easier to hold the shank of the screw in a pair of piers with one hand and the drill with the other.

 

Thanks! That's where I'm going wrong I think as I don't hold the screw at all as I have one hand on the drill handle / button and the other one holding the front of the drill to support the weight / steady it once the screw is sort of in position. I think pre drilling is the way to go as I can at least get it part way in before I let the screw go. Or I think I may try the dremel next time as I can hold that with one hand. In truth I've only very recently started to try to use a power drill / screwdriver (Feb was the first time I attempted it) and I haven't done it enough to get any sort of technique even half started. Need more practice . 

[newhome]

Going back to bolt cutters since no one has yet replied to my free ads to remove the mesh. What are the easiest bolt cutters to use? I only want a pretty cheap set and they do various ones on Amazon for pennies. Would this do the trick for example or do I need a longer / shorter / different type? 

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blackspur-BC103-Bolt-Cutter/dp/B005EXLAZW/ref=sr_1_29?ie=UTF8&qid=1527720085&sr=8-29&keywords=bolt+cutters

 

 

[TerryE]

That set only has 3 reviews, one bad and one doesn't count so I'd give them a miss.  I would go for a more expensive set such as the 450mm Draper ones. 

 

There are just some jobs where having decent cutters is just so useful.  Also there is a knack to using them, such as taking two bites.  Push the wire or rebar as far as possible into the jaws for the maximum leverage and squeeze in the handles.  If this doesn't cut first time then it will cut into the sides and squeeze the cross-section more oval.  Now open the jaws again and you can push the rebar further into the jaws for a second cut with more leverage.

 

If you are cutting bolts or screws (useful if your screws are just too long and the points are braking through and you don't have a suitable smaller screw size), then the trick is to do a 2-cut but turn the bold / screw through 90° for the second cut so you end up with a more squared break. 

 

PS. If you are worried about strength then you might need  to go for 600mm cutters, but they are also a but more heavy to manipulate.

 

Edited May 30, 2018 by TerryE

[newhome]

I think I’m more worried about strength than the weight of the cutters. I’m not a complete weakling but don’t really want to get some and struggle to cut anything with them. So longer makes it easier to cut then I guess. Another thing I’ve never done before! 

[Ferdinand]

7 hours ago, newhome said:

I think I’m more worried about strength than the weight of the cutters. I’m not a complete weakling but don’t really want to get some and struggle to cut anything with them. So longer makes it easier to cut then I guess. Another thing I’ve never done before! 

 

I think I bought a 12” and a 24” set a couple of years ago, just to have the tools for when I lose padlock keys or have recalcitrant bits of cable that are a stretch for even big pliers or bolts.

 

I guess I have used them 8 or 10 times since, even for things such as separating rusted studs.

 

Will check which ones they were.

 

F

Edited May 31, 2018 by Ferdinand

[jack]

9 hours ago, TerryE said:

The wonder of Spax hex heads.  They might be more expensive, but they are far more tolerant to the drill shank being off-coaxial to the screw.

 

Much better, but still not perfect. One of the earlier jobs my wife took on was screwing down chipboard flooring using spax floor screws with a torx head. Somehow she still managed to regularly get it off-axis enough for slippage to occur. She just didn't seem to be able to "feel" where vertical was.

 

It's nothing to do with her being a woman, I should add. It's a skill like any other, and comes with time and practice. I remember when I was younger that I never seemed to be able to drill perpendicularly, but I'm mostly okay now.  My wife had just never touched a drill until these tasks arose. 

[newhome]

47 minutes ago, jack said:

It's nothing to do with her being a woman, I should add. It's a skill like any other, and comes with time and practice. 

 

I agree that it’s mostly about practice but many power tools are quite heavy and I find it hard to hold them with one hand like most guys go. I’m all for equality lol but not everything is equal. I guess we might just need lighter equipment, and not in bloody pink! Maybe once you’ve learnt how to use the equipment proficiently the weight becomes less obvious and you become more use to the feel and the balance of the things. 

 

 

[daiking]

10 minutes ago, newhome said:

 

I agree that it’s mostly about practice but many power tools are quite heavy and I find it hard to hold them with one hand like most guys go. I’m all for equality lol but not everything is equal. I guess we might just need lighter equipment, and not in bloody pink! Maybe once you’ve learnt how to use the equipment proficiently the weight becomes less obvious and you become more use to the feel and the balance of the things. 

 

 

 

There are ranges of lower voltage tools that are much smaller than the typical 18v monsters that would probably be more than adequate for most odd jobs.

Edited May 31, 2018 by daiking

[newhome]

So I didn't buy a bolt cutter as someone said they would take it. I waited in all morning and into the afternoon for them to turn up having told them the size of it and specifically said that they needed a suitable vehicle. They drove from Galashiels which is about a 2 hour round trip (I would have thought the cost of the fuel would be more than the mesh is worth?). And they turn up in a car!!! No roof rack. They thought it would fit inside a Pajero FGS . He said he wanted it for a dog guard and couldn't visualise the size, and thought it looked small from the photo (really??!).  So now I'm tempted by @Roundtuit's trellis suggestion. Reckon I could cut it into 3 or 4 bits and either use it for that or at least I could get it down the tip in smaller bits. 

 

 

[ProDave]

Another way to get rid of stuff is put it by your gate with a price tag on, say £10

 

It will probably be gone next morning.

[newhome]

2 more people wanted it but only had cars (I double checked how they expected to collect it this time). They either have very poor judgement of their car size relative to the mesh size or they think it will roll up somehow. Anyway, bored with that and my neighbour is now going to get shot of it for me. 

[Nickfromwales]

Bugger. Was just about to merge this with the amputated toe thread ☹️