Its the summer, and we're closed for the most part... Not because we're rolling in cash, but because our clients don't seem to do a damn thing then... At any rate, it lets my partner and I do other tings we need to do...
We vacation to re-gain our sanity from the 7 months of hell proceeding the summer.
We catch up on personal projects, which is now a never ending list for me as a homeowner.
We get to clean and re-organize the shop. (this year we picked up a new warehouse, so we're slowly getting that set up, and equipped properly)
I get the time to fix all the tools that have developed issues during the busy season. Usually that's pretty minor stuff, because if its major, then the tool gets tagged out, and either fixed, or replaced during the busy season since we need almost everything to work all the time.
This year the list is as follows:
Switches on 2 sanders.
Alignment plate on a belt sander
Bearings if possible on 2 circular saws (we already replaced them, but if they're salvageable, I will)
Blade washer on the miter saw
Guides, bearings, and adjustment knobs on the radial arm saw
All in all pretty easy stuff except the radial arm saw which will be easy enough, but you need to be very patient and careful...
So off I go to the parts lists... Pour over the exploded views, write down huge part numbers (bigger than some of the parts required), and get the lists together... I try to check online for updated parts lists and numbers for whatever it is I'm dealing with, and the manufactures have gotten pretty good about keeping that information current... Now, you can order almost all the parts you need online... Used to be you would go to the local service place and talk to some crusty old guy that knew the gear inside out, and you always had faith in getting it right... Now if you do that, you seem to have to pay a premium for everything, and the guys aren't so old and crusty, mostly they're young idiots that you need to tell to pull up their pants and buy a belt... So I moved from the old way to getting all the info myself, and calling the factory direct to order parts... That was great for a while too... The people taking the orders didn't know the machines, but they knew part numbers, and almost every one was friendly and as helpful as could be expected... Recently, I spend more time on the phone tree than talking to the rep, and I seem to have to get transferred around a lot. This year, I find that almost all the manufacturers I need this year have an online parts department now... How bloody convenient... While speaking to a human is nice at times, there is something nice about typing in the part numbers, and finding uot right away what the cost, and availability is... The system works so well, that I was able to cross reference back to a compatible part from a different saw (same manufacturer) since the one I wanted was back-ordered for a month...
Every now and again someone seems to get the technology right....