These little lights. Let them shine, let them shine, let them shine!

A long time, ok, check that. Several years ago, I rescued two disused lanterns from dark and dusty corners of the UCC Vermillion church. These original soldiers (c. late 1920s) had been replaced by modern outdoor fixtures that give off the ubiquitous dreadful orange, almost radioactive-like glow so common among municipal streetlights.

Once I started into the triage phase, it was quickly apparent that I wasn't going to be able to preserve the patina while successfully removing the exterior paint splatter and other environmental indignities. One of them had suffered considerable abuse that included seemingly random holes drilled into the copper, some sort of grinder or file bruises, and a number of clumsy cold solder joints. Besides, getting to bare, shiny copper was the only way to ensure good solder repairs. The remedy called for taking the entire finish all the way down to bare copper and allowing the patina process to emerge naturally over time.

The before photo shows one of the fixtures (with bulb) and its decrepit wiring still in tact. The other one has a length of new wire temporarily fitted just to give me a sense of possibility. It took almost two years of casual pursuit to find glass that was a suitable match to the original.

As of today, one fixture is finished and ready for another century of service back at the UCC. The other one isn't far behind. Who doesn't love happy endings that make for new beginnings?

Two original UCC Vermillion copper lanterns before restoration 

The same two lanterns almost ready to go back "home" at UCC

New Old Cast Iron Framing Vise

Pictures of before and after my restoration of a loverly Stanley 400 framing vise bought on eBay.  I built the portable base to allow it to swivel and tilt as designed.

Stanley 400 "before" restoration

Same Stanley 400 "after" elbow grease restoration!

New Kitchen Faucet

The water here in Vermillion is so hard it's been described as liquid rock. Hard rock, perhaps. It's hard on faucets certainly. So, I managed to get around to replacing our kitchen faucet with a fancy, schmancy model we found on close out. We're still trying to get used to having so much pressure. Pix are before and after.

My New Old Table Saw

Once again, I neglected to pick up the camera as the first tool for the project.  Thus, I have no before shots of a 1970s-era Delta/Rockwell Contractor's Table Saw that I rescued last year.  It was destined for the scrap yard.  After countless hours of tearing it down, cleaning, polishing, painting and with less than $100 in new parts, the most expensive of which was the new 60 tooth blade, it's good as new.  Cuts wood as if it was warm butter.  The motor is super quiet -- as table saw motors go.

If you're interested in seeing other restoration projects I'm involved with, head over to The Vermillion Guild's blog.

To give a sense of its condition when it arrived, here's a shot of the rusty table.

Here's the restored c. 1974 Delta/Rockwell Contractor's Saw.

Replacing cast iron

Finally managed to put my courage to the sticking place and replace the 100 year-old cast iron sanitary lines for the first floor bathroom. Only took three solid days.  Top picture is before; bottom, though different perspective, is after. 

The impetus for replacing the cast iron was that it was rusting from the inside out.  You know it's time when a finger can be poked through the wall of the pipe.  The bizarre copper supply lines are more evidence that the plumbing in this house was done by an electrician and that a plumber muddled through the electrical work.  More on the electric down the path.

Here's a beautiful snapshot of the Missouri River valley taken from the scenic overlook just steps from "Our Old House." That's a thick coat of hoar frost on the trees; a remnant of dense overnight fog on a sub-freezing morning. It didn't last long with the bright sunshine. Taken in early February of this year.

Nigel on Skype

Nigel isn't really on Skype. He's getting a language lesson on YouTube from Herbie about "How to Talk Like a Corgi."