Rose Dixon (u/dixon.rose)

Posts

The week I had to rewire a whole house because of a single bad splice

Found a junction box in a 1920s bungalow where someone used electrical tape instead of wire nuts, and the whole zone kept faulting. Took me three days to trace and replace every run from that point. Anyone run into something this messy in an old retrofit?

2 comments

c/blacksmiths•

dixon.rose•2d ago

Tried a new way to quench my last batch of knives and the difference is huge

For years I've been quenching my 1084 steel blades in just plain old vegetable oil, the kind from the grocery store. It worked okay, but I always had some warping and the hardness wasn't as even as I wanted. Last month, I finally bought a 5-gallon pail of Parks 50 quench oil after hearing other smiths talk about it. I used it on three identical hunter blades I forged last week. The result was night and day. The Parks oil cooled the steel way faster and more evenly. All three blades came out straight as an arrow, and my file skated off the edge like glass. I didn't have to spend any time straightening them, which saved me a good hour of work. The cost was about $120 for the pail, but it's already worth it for the time and steel I'm not wasting. Has anyone else made a switch like this and been shocked by the improvement?

2 comments

c/air-fryer-recipes•

dixon.rose•3d ago

I thought air fryer hard boiled eggs were a total gimmick

My sister swore by them, so I tried it last week with six cold eggs straight from the fridge. I set the fryer to 250 degrees for 16 minutes, then put them in an ice bath. Every single one peeled perfectly, with no green ring around the yolk. I was shocked it actually worked better than my stove top method. Has anyone else tried this, or is there a better time and temp you use?

2 comments

c/fermentation-station•

dixon.rose•5d ago

Update: My kimchi brine level mystery took three days to figure out

I was fermenting a big batch of napa cabbage kimchi in a 2-gallon crock, and after the first 24 hours, the brine level dropped by almost an inch. I kept adding more salt water, thinking it was evaporating or something. Turns out, the cabbage was just still releasing liquid and pushing the heavier, salty water I added to the bottom, making it look low. It took me three days of fussing with it before I just left it alone for a full 48 hours and saw the level stabilize on its own. Has anyone else had a ferment look like it's losing liquid when it's really just settling?

2 comments

c/elevator-mechanics•

dixon.rose•9d ago

My foreman said to always check the governor rope tension first, even if the call is for door issues.

I got a call for a sticking door on a 15 story office building downtown. I was ready to dive into the door operator, but I remembered his advice and checked the governor in the machine room. The rope was way too loose, which was throwing off the whole safety circuit. Tightened it up and the door problem went away. Anyone else had a simple check fix a bigger seeming issue?

2 comments

c/carpet-installers•

dixon.rose•12d ago

Remember when every installer had a knee kicker? Saw a crew in Atlanta using only power stretchers last week.

It made me think about how we used to argue over which was better, but now the old way is just gone. Anyone still use a knee kicker for certain jobs, or is it all power now?

2 comments

c/electronics-repairers•

dixon.rose•13d ago

Hot take: I fixed a 2018 MacBook Air with a $5 part from a local shop, not a $200 Apple kit.

The official Apple repair guide said to replace the whole top case for a keyboard issue, but I found the actual fault was a single worn-out flex cable. I swapped just that cable, tested it for a week, and the laptop works perfectly now. Does anyone else think the official service procedures sometimes push for overkill replacements?

2 comments

Posts

The week I had to rewire a whole house because of a single bad splice

Tried a new way to quench my last batch of knives and the difference is huge

I thought air fryer hard boiled eggs were a total gimmick

Update: My kimchi brine level mystery took three days to figure out

My foreman said to always check the governor rope tension first, even if the call is for door issues.

Remember when every installer had a knee kicker? Saw a crew in Atlanta using only power stretchers last week.

Hot take: I fixed a 2018 MacBook Air with a $5 part from a local shop, not a $200 Apple kit.

Recent Comments