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My enameled cast iron was leaving sharp little blue flakes around, so I decided it was time to take off the enamel. I tried a brass drill brush first, which only dislodged the loosest flakes. Then I got the cheapest Harbor Freight needle scaler ($40), and it worked great.

My small compressor couldn't really keep up, but working 30s at a time gave me time to grab the drill brush and clean up the exposed iron.

Washed, dried, seasoned, and ready for use. (I didn't bother with the lid, which isn't in as bad shape.)

Rates vary by utility but generally offer lower distribution charges in colder months, encouraging broader heat pump adoption.

Each utility’s program is unique—contact your utility directly for details and enrollment links.

Eversource has more info and an online form to upload a photo of your heat pump's sticker.

MassSave may have automatically enrolled you but does not seem to have done so for many.

The third step, burnishing the edge, at a slight angle towards the face “turns the burr upwards”. The SEM clearly shows a blade-like bevel has been formed, perpendicular to the card face. However, rather than simply turning the burr, metal has been reformed, and the burr has buckled rather than rotating. Additionally, the burnishing rod has honed the side of the bevel, removing metal just as a honing rod removes metal to restore a knife edge.

I've been struggling to sharpen my card scraper, and was happily surprised to see that scienceofsharp.com has an article (from 2019) that helps visualize the burr structure.

I haven't gotten around to making a nice board with slots for each hone, and for some reason this setup wasn't obvious to me so I thought I'd share. Front is against a bench dog, back is pressed against the rubber foot of the edge of the bench. It is easy to swap in the different hones, and doesn't scoot around.

(Still figuring out how to put a burr on that card scraper though.)

Proofed and going into the oven:

NYT cooking recipe, though it's by volume and I ended up adding a cup or more of flour and still getting a very wet, slack dough.

Bondi alleged that a "wave of violence against ICE has been driven by online apps and social media campaigns designed to put ICE officers at risk just for doing their jobs." She added that the DOJ "will continue engaging tech companies to eliminate platforms where radicals can incite imminent violence against federal law enforcement."

When contacted by Ars, Facebook owner Meta said the group "was removed for violating our policies against coordinated harm." Meta didn't describe any specific violation but directed us to a policy against "coordinating harm and promoting crime," which includes a prohibition against "outing the undercover status of law enforcement, military, or security personnel."

The statement was sent by Francis Brennan, a former Trump campaign advisor who was hired by Meta in January.

Join the ACLU of Massachusetts, Indivisible Mass Coalition, Mass 50501, and partners from across the pro-democracy and pro-worker movement as we rise together. This is not a typical rally: learn how to get involved locally at our action tables, participate in creative resistance and enjoy entertainment on our main stage.

OUR CALLS TO ACTION: 1. Protect our immigrant neighbors who are being profiled, threatened, and kidnapped. Join a community ICE watch group so agents know we are watching them, volunteer to assist with vital mutual aid, bond and legal needs, and stand out in solidarity at ICE offices. More information from organizations, including LUCE, MIRA, BIJAN, and Bearing Witness @ ICE in Burlington.

Similar to the one I made in oak, the other piece of hardwood board I had for this project was ash.

The jig was a bit cobbled together, which mostly worked fine for doing 2 of them. The 1-inch spacer did slip, which is where the divot I was filling with sawdust came from. Doing any more of them I'd definitely want a more thought-out jig (or CNC).

I initially had a lot of burning on test pieces. Turned out my router bit just got dull a lot faster than I expected, and after sharpening on a DMT it cut fine without any special care to speed.

I put butcher block conditioner on it, though I didn't know if that's enough to protect it from dirty pans.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/36359014

"We didn’t wait 20 years for Bobby to finally speak and then get served Tylenol as an answer," anti-vaccine group Georgia Coalition for Vaccine Choice wrote in an unhinged Facebook post on Monday morning. "If that's all we hear - is that the end? Not thimerosal. Not aluminum. Not MMR. Not Hep B. Not the insane schedule pushed after pharma got liability protection. Are we supposed to just forget?"

Outdoor sofa to replace our falling-apart fake-plastic-wicker one, reusing the same cushions.

It's roughly following Wilker Do's Outdoor Sofa plans, however I adjusted the size, changed from a two-layer construction to lap joints / mortise-and-tenon joints, and filled in some missing details.

First time hand-cutting mortise and tenons, for the arm rest supports:

First time making half-lap joints, for the side frames; very happy with my new Infinity Tools Dadonator:

After some attempts at CAD, I ended up just cutting out scale paper parts and then measuring angles/lengths to fit them together. It mostly worked, but some lengths didn't work out in wood.

I used western red cedar for rot resistance, since this will sit unsheltered. I haven't finished it yet, I'm considering poly, boiled linseed, or Thompson's water seal (glad for recommendations). First time working with cedar, it's very soft and scratch prone, smells great, and is noticeably lighter than pine. Also pricey; one thing I didn't like about this design is it is fairly overbuilt.

I wanted an iron golem farm where the villagers could roam freely. Optimal production isn't that important, just a reasonably steady supply.

The key details from golem villager mechanices are:

• Villagers population depends on beds with 2 open blocks above them, and villagers have to have slept to summon a golem.
• Villagers summon golems at villager block position ±8 blocks along x/z axes and ±6 blocks along y axis, so we need everything but the spawn area to be solid within this range of any possible villager location.
• Villages run when they're within render distance (not a hard block distance), so take that into account when choosing the site.

So, first step is to dig down 7 below ground level, ideally in an area with few/no caves. (You could also build up in the air.)

Then, make beds for as many villagers as you want. If you want to concentrate the golem spawn area, you can put a low roof over the sleeping area, but leave 2 blocks open above beds. You may get some golems spawning in there but they'll suffocate.

Then add a water feature and lava blade. If the villagers have access to it, make a side exit that's only 2 tall by 1 wide so they can walk out but golems die.

Villagers summon a golem more often when they're panicking, and golems walk towards threats, so you can lure a zombie into a boat (so it won't despawn) in a little room behind the water.

Then add a little farmland and a couple composters so you have farmers to maintain population (but don't go crazy with the farm since golems can't spawn on it).

This has a lot of overlap with optimized farms, but looks a lot nicer for your villagers.