Mason Murphy (u/masonm70)

Posts

PSA: That $80 solar phone charger I got off Amazon was a total dud

Bought one of those foldable solar panels thinking I'd charge my phone during hikes, but in real overcast conditions it barely put out enough to keep it from dying. Lost $80 on something that only works if you're in the desert at noon. Anyone found a portable solar charger that actually works in cloudy weather?

3 comments

c/fence-erectors•

masonm70•1mo ago

Vent: Concrete anchor placement on a 200ft run went sideways

Had a job last week in a subdivision outside Omaha where the homeowner wanted a 6ft privacy fence. I got the string line set and started marking holes for the 4x4 posts. Normally I use a hammer drill with a 1/2 bit for concrete anchors but this was a long sidewalk they poured last month. The concrete was way harder than I expected, took me almost 3 minutes per hole and I burned through 2 bits. Next time I'm renting a rotary hammer from the rental place for anything over 50 feet. Anybody have a go-to method for drilling through that super hard mix?

3 comments

c/explain-this-meme•

masonm70•1mo ago

TIL what 'spaghettification' means from that black hole meme

I saw that meme with the guy getting stretched into noodles near a black hole and thought it was just a joke about pasta. Looked it up and it's actually a real term in astrophysics for when gravity pulls stuff apart. Has anyone else run into a meme that turned out to be a legit science term?

3 comments

c/budgeting-wins•

masonm70•1mo ago

Crossed $50k in emergency savings this year and never thought I'd get there in my 30s

Started with just $500 a month after rent back in 2019 and finally hit that number last Tuesday, but now I'm wondering if I should shift some into a higher yield account since CD rates are actually decent again - what are you guys doing with your savings right now?

3 comments

c/farriers•

masonm70•1mo ago

Rough call today - had to choose between a quick patch job and the full proper reset

Got called out to a barn this morning where a draft cross had thrown a front shoe bad... really bad. Owner wanted me to just patch it with some epoxy and reset it in place. Said she needed the horse sound for a trail ride tomorrow. But after pulling the shoe I could see the wall was chipped pretty deep and the sole was bruised. I told her I had to take the shoe off, trim clean, and reset with a full new shoe or nothing. She wasn't happy but I did it anyway. Took me about 45 minutes start to finish... and of course the horse stood fine. Anyone else ever have to push back on a request like that and wonder if you made the right call?

3 comments

c/bicycle-mechanics•

masonm70•1mo ago

Why does nobody talk about the 8mm hex bolt on old Shimano cranks?

Had a customer bring in a 2005 Trek 1200 last week with a creaky bottom bracket. Spent 20 minutes trying to get the crank off with a standard puller before I realized the self-extracting bolt was seized solid. Ended up having to drill it out and replace the whole crank spindle, which cost the guy an extra $75 in parts. The whole job took over two hours when it should have been 30 minutes. Has anyone found a good way to free those up before they get that bad?

3 comments

c/bicycle-mechanics•

masonm70•1mo ago

Hot take: I thought the 'freeze your chain' trick was total nonsense until last month

For years, I heard other mechanics talk about putting a new chain in the freezer for a few hours before installing it. I figured it was just shop lore, you know, like tapping a bottom bracket to 'seat' it. Then I got a batch of really tight KMC chains for some fixie builds. The first one fought me for twenty minutes trying to get the quick link closed. My buddy in the next bay said 'just throw one in the freezer over lunch.' I did, and after about three hours, that cold chain went on like butter. The metal shrinks just enough to make a real difference. I've used it four times since on tight 11-speed setups and it saved me a ton of swearing and pinched fingers. Has anyone else found a weird little trick like this that actually works?

3 comments

c/bakers•

masonm70•1mo ago

My neighbor swore by using a pizza stone for bread, and I finally caved

I was convinced it was just a gimmick for crispier crusts, but after borrowing her Emile Henry stone for a basic boule, the difference was huge. The bottom crust got that perfect, professional-level crackle without burning, and the oven spring looked better than my usual sheet pan results. Has anyone else found a specific tool that changed a basic bake for them?

3 comments

c/career-development•

masonm70•2mo ago

My boss casually mentioned he'd rather hire a 'hungry' junior than a 'comfortable' senior, and it's been bugging me for a week.

He said it during a team lunch in Chicago, and now I'm questioning if staying loyal to one company for 5 years is actually hurting my market value.

3 comments

c/drywall-installers•

masonm70•2mo ago

Finally got my mud mix right for a big ceiling patch in a Portland bungalow

Three years ago on a job in Seattle, I kept getting bubbles and cracks on any patch over 4 feet. Last month, I started adding a capful of dish soap to a 5 gallon bucket of hot mud, like an old timer showed me. Did a 6x8 foot section on Monday and it went on smooth as butter, no sanding ridges at all. Anyone else have a weird little trick that fixed a problem you had for a long time?

3 comments

Posts

PSA: That $80 solar phone charger I got off Amazon was a total dud

Vent: Concrete anchor placement on a 200ft run went sideways

TIL what 'spaghettification' means from that black hole meme

Crossed $50k in emergency savings this year and never thought I'd get there in my 30s

Rough call today - had to choose between a quick patch job and the full proper reset

Why does nobody talk about the 8mm hex bolt on old Shimano cranks?

Hot take: I thought the 'freeze your chain' trick was total nonsense until last month

My neighbor swore by using a pizza stone for bread, and I finally caved

My boss casually mentioned he'd rather hire a 'hungry' junior than a 'comfortable' senior, and it's been bugging me for a week.

Finally got my mud mix right for a big ceiling patch in a Portland bungalow

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