A reader submission showing creativity in his lifting Solutions! A big Thank You to “A Treehouse Dweller” for this story about building a house crane to access his tall home. Of course, this is pretty cool in my opinion.
DIY
Escape From COVID In DIY
What more can we say about Coronavirus? The daily press updates are full of horrible news! There’s so much concern and sadness everywhere. Then there’s the “Stay at Home” mandates. I need an emotional escape from COVID !!
How Much Will It Cost?
Before starting a project we always want to know — or at least have some idea — how much will it cost to build? If you’re like me, resources are limited, so knowing how much you’re going to sink into a project is smart.
What Do You Want In 2020?
A new day, A new Year, and a new Decade! We don’t get to say that very often, so it’s kind of cool. Anyway, as we look to the near future for Mechanical Elements, we want to know what you want in 2020.
Building A Trailer — Customer Video
We’ve been working with the great folks at Johnson Trailer Parts for a while. Their business is primarily selling trailer parts, but they understand the greasy hands-on Do-It-Yourself paradigm!
Trailer Folding Tongue – What I’d Do Different
On a recent trailer, I experimented with a new folding tongue design. Now it’s time to review — What do I like? What would I do different if building another?
Recommendations For Trailer Frame Painting
(And finishing other DIY Projects.)
Now you’ve invested all that time and effort into building an awesome trailer, how should you finish it? Of course we don’t want it to rust. And, we want it to last.
Starting Yet Another Project
This is what the beginning of a new DIY build looks like. Of course, there’s the planning stages, the design stages and finally the acquisition stages where all the raw materials begin to come in. With all of that behind us, this is the start of the build,
Making Changes To The Plans
I can’t find quite the right plans for the trailer I want to build. Can I make changes to the plans at Mechanical Elements to fit my needs?
Old Time Tiny House Trailers
The Tiny House Craze is cool and feels New, but it’s actually one of those things that has come around — though with a twist. There is a lot to learn from the past if we take a few minutes
How To Make A Trailer Longer
Sometimes I wish my trailer was longer. Is there an easy way to make a trailer longer? Is that even possible? And, what are the limits
Gantry Crane Failure Modes
There are a lot of ways to abuse a crane. We won’t go into those, but let’s do take a minute on crane failures and what they look like.
Solutions! Reverse Car Parking Stop
Yeah, I know, most of the world doesn’t like or use the parking brake any more. Yet, some of us still prefer a manual transmission for the driving experience — and rely on the parking brake. So, what happens
Air Tools Lost & Found
A simple Solutions! reader submission for easy access and organization of his common Air Tools. Simple enough to build in an hour, and great enough to keep . . . forever. Try this.
Mother of Invention?
Do you believe the old saying “Necessity is the Mother of Invention”? Well, I have a need, but I don’t need an invention, just a quick solution. So, maybe Necessity is really the Mother of Creative Solutions!
Increasing Trailer Load Capacity
Have a trailer that you want to repurpose? Or a lightweight trailer that needs a little beef? Is it practical to strengthen an existing trailer? Sure, there are several ways to increase trailer load capacity,
The Trailer Build – Project Progress
Update on building a new design specialty utility trailer. The trailer build is going well, and we thought you might have interest in following the progress. Especially for some of the experimental new concept features.
The Economics of DIY Projects
“I want to build a new trailer.” That’s an awesome thing to say, and it’s even better to do. Yet, many such adventures don’t launch because of project economics? What does it cost to build?
How Do We Make The Plans?
What goes into the engineering of Do It Yourself Plans? How do we make them? When you purchase and download project plans from Mechanical Elements, you get a TON of work and information, much more than first meets the eye.
Trailer Build: Where Does The Axle Go?
Trailer axle position? This is a good question. Unfortunately, there is some popular, but misleading information around. So, how do you know proper trailer axle position? Here’s the whole answer,