How did you spend your Black Friday?

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sudsmaster

sudsmaster

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Did you join the throngs at the mall? Empty your checking account, max out your credit cards? Any new laundry/kichen appliances to show for it?

Me, I started Black Friday on Wednesday night. Fry's was having another sale on Toshiba notebooks so I snagged a thin dual-core Pentium for $500. Got the Friday newspaper at 6 am, and read that Fry's was having a 5 am sale with Compaq Celeron notebook for $300. Well, I wanted a dual core Pentium so I didn't rush out to get the Compaq (plus I think Toshiba makes a better machine).

But it's still sitting in the box, unopened. Can you tell I'm kind of jaded about computers? This one will be used for work... machining cam programs, etc. OK, maybe some transfering of LP's to CD's as well ;-). And it will be the first computer I have that might just be able to play Youtube videos without getting all jiggy with it.

Then it was off to Harbor Freight for their one day sale - got a 10" compound miter saw for $50. You can spend almost that much for a single blade.

But the topper was that I finally got the early 60's Maytag DE-500 electric dryer - the one with no time, just buttons for fabric type. Pics are over in the Imperial (Pink Vintage) forum. No lines, no waiting!

;-)
 
Having stayed overnight in Minneapolis, I went to two places I knew wouldn't be mobbed: Los Amigos (Mexican Downy, yay!!) and Litin Party & Everything (the place to go for all sizes of deli containers, bakery boxes, Chinese take-out boxes and to-go coffee cups).

Heading home, I stopped at Sam's Club, Cub Foods (gotta love that Global Foods aisle) and Snell Quick Lube (the Mighty Geo turned over 213,000 on this trip) in Mankato. Sam's was busy, but their pre-scanners were out in full force, so the lines moved v. quickly.
 
me

1. Ace hardware - for a socket wrench extension

2. The gym 45 minutes of weights and 30 of cardio, followed by a dunk in the pool and hot tub

3. back to Michael's and replace the pump on the maytag A806

4 dinner out with Michael...

I hate shopping..
 
I managed to avoid crowds. I got to Fry's just before closing Wednesday night, and managed to snag one of the last notebooks - someone had snagged one earlier in the day but never paid for it "up front". It wasn't very crowded. Today, I got to Harbor Freight relatively early (about 7:15 am) and again no major crowding (power tools are not exactly something the average shopper here goes ga-ga over). And of course, picking up the DE-500 entailed nothing more than putting air in the truck tires and driving about 60 miles round trip. The hardest part was backing the dryer up a steep driveway, then backing the truck up to that, for easier one-man loading (the sellers had left it at the curb for me).

Tomorrow I *might* brave the crowds at the local Sears to look at some of the table saws under $200 they have on sale. But I'm thinking of getting something much different (a $550 Ridgid contractor saw) that would last a lot longer, cut more precisely, with a lifetime warranty. But that will have to wait a little - don't need it right away anyway. Next spring I'm planning on ripping a large stack of 16 ft heart redwood 2x4's in half to make 2x2's to put a sun/egret screen above the koi pond. I'll need a table saw that doesn't walk, jam, or tip over for that. Right now it's covered with reed fencing which is nearing the end of its five year lifespan. And the reed fencing is a royal pain to replace, cause you can't walk or sit on it.
 
Worked the mid shift-and SLEPT thru Black Friday-Hate shopping as well!
Ridgid tools and Sears Craftsman tools are both built by the Emerson power tool division of Emerson electric.Emerson tools makes things for both Sears and Ridgid.They are both good choices.Maybe if you have a stack of lumber to rip-do you know someone or a commercial shop that has a power feed ripsaw?those are nice for ripping mountains of lumber.Power feed ripsaws are expensive though-the least expensive is about $10,000.
 
Thanks Tolivac.

I knew that Ryobi and Dewalt are made by the same company. Didn't realize Craftsman and Ridgid power saws were made by the same outfit as well.

I *could* take the lumber to a mill and have them cut them in two... but then I wouldn't be able to justify a new nifty piece of power equipment... Plus I'm not entirely sure if I want to cut them in half, or in thirds... The lumber wasn't cheap - I think I've spent about $400 so far and I'll need another $200 worth of con com heart redwood to finish the canopy. For that reason, and for future work, I want to make sure a bad saw doesn't ruin the job.
 
We bought a cheap router a few weeks ago at hardware store, it was made in China and it was a bit cumbersome and heavy. My partner took it back and got a Craftsman at Sears but I noticed it was made in China as well. Still it's better than the other one. I was a bit disheartened to see it was made there though.
 
Nothing appreciable in the world of shopping here either. A trip to the supermarket (safest place in town to avoid crowds on the day after Thanksgiving), then to the Villeroy and Boch store for some new everyday flatware, and finally spent the remainder of the day at home. I used the time to put up one of the inside Christmas trees - since it is artificial and prelit, no reason to wait. The real tree in the family room will go up in a few weeks. Also polished all the silver ornaments as well as the good flatware I will use to entertain throughout the holidays - I had forgotten how long it takes to polish service for 16, plus serving pieces and demitasse spoons - thanks Mom!! But it was somehow very soothing to know I was doing exactly what she would have been doing to prepare for the holidays for so many years. Funny how just a simple chore like that brings on a flood of memories - hundreds of holiday dinners, special occasions and the like. It was a gloomy, damp day = perfect for a day at home doing some chores.

I did brave Target and Lord & Taylor around 7PM, but at that time, it was fairly quiet. Just as a note - the local Circuit City and Kohl's stores opened at 4AM and the local news showed the stampede! The outlet mall in Clinton, 45 minutes away opened at midnight on Thanksgiving night and you should have seen the parking lots (shown on the news also) at 1AM - completely full!!! Not sure I will ever understand that.
 
Sadly Craftsman power hand tools are now being made in China-maybe its a different manufacturer than others.DeWalt is a division of Black&Decker-B-D owns DeWalt.Look at one of DeWalts 1.5Hp Routers-Its almost identical to the BD model except the DeWalt model has a yellow motor housing and base.If you are going to do a lot of ripping-best to get a smooth cut"Glue Line" rip blade for your table saw-these blades will make a fast smooth cut-same blades as used in furniture factories nad millwork shops to make smooth cuts to glue up stock to make things like tabletops and such.Such a blade will be worth its cost-Freud makes them.These blades are also carbide tipped-better than a standard steel blade dulling and "burning" its way thru your nice lumber!If you want a REALLY good table saw-suggest you check out a Delta Unisaw-these have been made for many decades-think they are still made in the US Delta factory-they cost $2000-$3500 but would be worth it if you want to do lots of woodworking-the Unisaws have 3-5Hp motors so they won't bog down in heavy ripping jobs.They will need to run from 220V single or three phase-a single ph or three phase motor can be gotten with the machine.I have used Unisaws and they are a really nice machine-school shops and many millwork shops have them.Now very dedicated home woodworkers are getting Unisaws.
 
My wife's uncle stayed overnight, so he & I went out for breakfast. Then we headed to one of our older stores in town that sells work clothes, boots, and other outerwear. They are the only store in town that sells the woolen underwear that he prefers. Then I took him home, he's 83 and doesn't care to drive in Wausau, too many one-way streets. When I got home, I started the weekly laundry. Nothing extraordinary for me.

P.S. Uncle does still drive, but in 2 smaller nearby towns and around home where he lives out in the country.
 
Well, our Sears/Kenmore vacuum cleaner in our basement just broke recently. The front wheels popped off and it was a 16-year-old machine. We bought down our bagless Eureka vacuum cleaner from the first floor and we bought a Eureka Altima bagless upright for the first floor. It cleans very well, in fact, comparable to a Dyson, and it is very quiet.
 
Christmas Lights

I spent the day putting the Christmas Lights outside. Then went over to a friends house for dinner.

MRB
 
My Thanksgiving actually will be tomorrow, so I went shopping for provisions yesterday morning. The grocery store was deserted—it was wonderful!

That’s the only shopping I did!
 
Spent the day relaxing and enjoying a day off!

Not really big on shopping for shopping sake anymore. Guess been watching too much PBS (Suzie Orman, Consuelo Mack,)because my new mantra is to build wealth, not spend every penny that gets into my hands. Really want to start thinking about buying a home in several years, so paying down my debts (two credit cards, Sears is done never to be used again), and student loans. Given how the sub-prime mess has shaken out, people probably are going to be asked for five percent or more down in future, so want to be ready.

L.
 
I only bought

dinner out for my woman friend and me on Black Friday.

I don't mind shopping, when I am in the mood, it can be fun. However, there is no way on earth I would ever ever set foot in a retail establishment other than a supermarket or pharmacy on Black Friday.

What Christmas shopping I am going to do this year (not a lot) is going to be at Walgreens, Lowes, Target, a local INDEPENDENT book store, Amazon, and the supermarket. I am not going to start on it until week after next, too.

Lawrence/Maytagbear
 

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