Spring at Last

Spring is here.......after several very warm days the "normal" temps have returned but the shop is now warm enough most days to get serious painting done and No. 22 is now almost ready for the assembly process to begin.

There are parts of the machine all over the shop being cut, painted and prepared. The back of the machine turned out looking better than I thought (love when that happens) and many of the parts plucked from the junk pile are fitting in as if planned and custom made......not sure if that is the Zen of "art" or the luck of the Irish, either way it is making this project a lot of fun.

The tin parts installed to close in the top section are the rusty remains of old stove pipe that fit well with no cutting required. It has been several years since I used tin in any of my constructions and it has been fun, and good exercise beating and bashing the rust off.

The skeleton fish hanging on the back are the remains of a piece I did several years ago that was partially destroyed by one of the hurricanes that hit Daytona a few years back. Most all the elements in No.22 had a previous life and are now joining forces
as Monty Python's lads used to say " for something entirely different".

Thanks to Sister Jenny's coupon clipping and my frugal nature I now have to small dollies under the machine and can move it about the shop with ease......the photo of the machine basking in the sunlight was taken at 1:23 pm Saturday to celebrate the exact moment of Spring's start.......in my mind these small gestures all add to the "Mojo" being built into the machine.

Today I hope to rearrange things in the shop a bit......with major construction now complete it is time to get set up for assembly tasks......and also to get the "artist's and patrons" lounge area set up for visitors. Don't be put off by the rough appearance of the lounge furniture I assure you it is all quite comfortable.