July 29, 2008
The abandoned village at Portsmouth Island lies off the coast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. This area is near the fabled haunts of pirate Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard.
[Image: Michael J. Henderson, 2006]
July 1, 2008
A collection of perennial favorites, the 1949-1951 Ford Town & Country ‘Woody’ wagons. Rusty but salvageable. Starting bid is a reasonable $9,000.
*We have no affiliation with this auction.
June 30, 2008
Just a bit of old-fashioned advice, from our friends at the USDA and those clever urban homesteaders at Path to Freedom. (Warning: this site is addictive.)
June 3, 2008
The search is on for a mid-century Lohman 18cc multifuel engine. Small and slow, these finicky little 2-stroke compression-ignition motors run best on a 1:2:4 mix of diesel, gasoline and paraffin. Biodiesel may be a viable option. Here it is mounted on a 1950 Puch from the Netherlands; notice the kiddie seat. There’s some discussion of a small open-source diesel project, for this century of course.
[Photo: Ad Lengelaar, via John Garrish on Bikes, Mostly]
May 26, 2008
fiberglass, plexiglass, foam, polyester, steel, plastic
mid-1980’s
Bell Helmets, Inc - Norwalk, California, United States of America
Red, white and blue color scheme. Visible scuffs, sticker residues and degraded foam inner lining. Needs front visor gasket, available from manufacturer. Size unmarked, approximately a large, 7 3/8″ or larger.
[Right click images to enlarge]
At the tender age of 23, the UK’s Lewis Hamilton became the youngest driver ever to win the infamous Monaco Grand Prix. The victory came after an accident-filled race on the Principality’s scenic, curvy lanes…in the rain no less. Congratulations Lewis on a great drive, with hopes of many more. Time to watch Grand Prix….
[Photo: Getty Images]
May 25, 2008
A longtime admirer of leather straps (who isn’t?), I recently noticed a subtle brown strap on a nondescript old rangefinder in a Beams Japan advertisement. Perfect. Some quick searching on the vast internets and I came upon Gordy’s Camera Straps. Seeing lots of happy customers around the world, *tap-tap*, and my strap arrived just in time for Memorial Day.
Handcrafted by Gordon Coale of range-toughened California Latigo belt leather, the strap will easily outlast the Canon digital cameras it’ll be attached to. The straps are 1/4″ wide and come in four colors. The thread is 1mm heavy duty waxed cotton, and comes in ten colors. A variety of strap styles are available; pictured is the horizontal lug-mount neck strap, while mine is a shorter lug-mount wrist strap. They are well executed and fit a wide variety of cameras, from tiny point-and-shoots to heavy 5×7’s, and everything in between. The excellent quality, fast shipping and personalized service received from Mr. Coale have made me a believer.
[Photo: Leica M6 - Jon P., Brooklyn, NY]
April 15, 2008
Fresh off vacation (*whew*) and with the weather in Washington finally thinking about breaking, it’s time to clear the way for new stuff. The goal is to clear out the office, the garage and an overcrowded storage unit to the greatest extent possible. Some of these things haven’t seen the light of day in years so it’ll be good to let them breathe. It’ll be a slow process but well worth the wait. Items will be listed in a few different places, mainly here and on ebay. Craigslist is an option, and maybe the etsy page as well. Check back here for updates.
Featured pieces won’t necessarily relate to transportation but include an early 20th-century oak patent cabinet (great for magazines), a mid-century steel lawyer’s barrister cabinet, a great 1962 general purpose/shop desk with drawer, and lots of smaller items including quite a few vintage bottle openers. Who knows what else is hiding in forgotten boxes?
[Photo: Brooms by Chris, handcrafted in Kentucky Appalachia. He makes mops as well. No affiliation, but it’s about time I drop him a line and order a couple.]
March 12, 2008
Keeping track has never been so beautiful with these handmade ’sandglasses’ from Japan.
The glass itself is mouthblown by a craftsman in downtown Tokyo. The wooden casings come in your choice of castor aralia, walnut, or black walnut (1, 2 and 3), and are constructed in Hokkaido prefecture. Tariho Nishimura (who, along with his wife Nish run the design firm Living World) was so kind to provide this background, which may be on their website but I can’t read Japanese. I hope to update with photos from the various workshops.
They have just added international shipping, so take a look.
Living World
#4-8-22 Eifuku-cho
Suginami-ku,Tokyo, 168-0064
JAPAN
Tel: +81-3-5930-9812
Fax: +81-3-5930-9823
February 1, 2008
Owing to the winter doldrums, I’ve been stoking a lifelong obsession with small sailing vessels, albeit through books, the internet, and visits to the Smithsonian. The focus of this particular love affair is the beautiful Melonseed Skiff. These lttle wonders are a modern adaptation of the duck hunting boats that plied the Chesapeake and Delaware Bays in the late 1800’s. Today, they are typically constructed of fiberglass, or wood sealed with fiberglass cloth and marine epoxy. The nicer builds are traditional lapstrake, with brass hardware and lots of other goodies. The Melonseed is a versatile design that sails in winds light or heavy, and is even rowable when a breeze is non-existent. The simple sprit sail and a pair of oars stow inside the boat, making a tidy trailering package. There might be one in the garage soon.
[Photo: Pete Roth’s Lapstrake Melonseed via A.A. Cozzi]