Any studio builders want to share...

  • Thread starter Thread starter Michael Jones
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Michael Jones

Michael Jones

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... what your most time consumming effort has been?

I've spent the last 2 days caulking the outside, and I'm little more than half way done. :(

Anyone else?
What's been your single most time consumming effort.
 
...not that I fancy myself a real studio builder or anything....yet

Thinking has been the most time consuming thing for me so far. I'm not done yet damnit! Seriously, I do twice as much thinking as soldering.

Pinning 25 pin Dsubs is slow until you get the tricks down, then it's cake. It's strip, twist, tin, shrinkwrap, pin, pin, pin, pin, pin, pin...oops, SHIT!

Caulking is the same way. I put a tiny bit of dawn liquid in my caulk water (it cleans of the hands easier) and try to always use a thin, smooth rag instead of my fingertips. They still bleed if you do enough. Nothing like caulking for 8 hours and getting a splinter in the raw spot the next morning. Be very glad for siding.
 
On any studio I have ever built, home or pro, 55% or greater was spent soldering TRS snakes and patch bays.
 
Yeah, OK, I'll give in to soldering!
I've only done a little for the new studio so far.

Jake, come on man, your a painter! Can't you draw a good bead of caulk without using your finger?
Tsk... tsk... I'm disappointed in you man.
;)
 
Yeah, OK, I'll give in to soldering!
I've only done a little for the new studio so far.
Click to expand...

heh-heh

Jake, come on man, your a painter! Can't you draw a good bead of caulk without using your finger?
Tsk... tsk... I'm disappointed in you man.
;)
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You want perfect beads? Let me give you a good tip.

Buy a plastic scraper. Put a drill bit into your electric drill that matches the bead you want. Turn the drill on, push the lock button so it stays on, and put it between your thighs facing up.

Yes, while its on. And don't lean forward :)

Take your plastic scraper, edge first, and push against the side of the drill bit, and push gently until you have a semi circle notch in the plastic scraper.

Viola, instant bead maker. Works every time. And you made it yourself!!!!!

Fred, King of Stupid One-Off tools Because Hes Too Cheap To Buy The Right Stuff.

:-D
 
Drawing a bead is only half of it. If you don't want to tool it somehow be ready for it to fall out. Besides, I'd get fired if I did that in a custom interior. Boss: "hey Jake, why didn't you smooth any of this shit out?" Jake: "I'm a good painter I don't need to do that boss..."

I guess it depends on what kind of caulking you are doing. I always use the fingers, I've never used a tool that was worth a damn. If it's exterior I place a finger right on the caulking tube's nozzle and it gets pushed in automaticly.
 
Well, I'm certianly not going to tell you how to caulk jake, but if you cut the nozzel at an angle, you know, so it has a beveled tip, and draw the gun towards you, the backside of the nozzel becomes the tool.
Works for me.
 
when I am caulking in new windows in sailboats and such, (I use this Dow 639 caulk...it doesn't set up so fast in the heat), I wipe it off with this special fabric called "monkey fur"... it kinda resembles carpet padding, but not so thick. I soak it with alcohol, and it cleans up the edges perfect and smooths and pushes in at the same time. Gives you car, windshield installation, quality...for sure.. Well I have too when I'm replacing ports on $250,000 boats.

Half the battle on other caulking jobs is a good gun too. Not that crappy aluminum one for $2.39 at Home Depot, that you see used around the household...
 
The problem with that method Michael is that the hole gets bigger each time you use it. For very fine cracks on a smooth substrate it will be effective but probably not so good on say stucco.

Mixmkr, you're right, a good gun does make all the difference. Most of the cheap "drippless" guns work ok with consistent caulk but the more expensive dripless ($20+) guns even keep bubbly caulk under control.
 
When you're doing 90% of it yourself EVERYTHING is time consuming. The 3 biggest problems are organizing (must do this step before the next step remembering what you did 5 steps ago), procrastination and it's evil brother burnout. At some phases things go so slow it's hard to keep things moving. I've experienced burnout several times. Keep in mind the slab was poured LAST August. Things are really picking up speed now since I'm about 99% done. Ordered the window glass yesterday. It'll be here within 2 weeks. By that time everything else should be complete. Damn I'm tired of building but I'm really, really looking forward to getting back to recording.

DD
 
DigitalDon said:
When you're doing 90% of it yourself EVERYTHING is time consuming. The 3 biggest problems are organizing (must do this step before the next step remembering what you did 5 steps ago), procrastination and it's evil brother burnout. At some phases things go so slow it's hard to keep things moving. I've experienced burnout several times. Keep in mind the slab was poured LAST August. Things are really picking up speed now since I'm about 99% done. Ordered the window glass yesterday. It'll be here within 2 weeks. By that time everything else should be complete. Damn I'm tired of building but I'm really, really looking forward to getting back to recording.

DD
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Well that pretty much sums up my feelings too.
My slab was poured in January. I thought I'd be through by now, but I'm just getting the outside buttoned up.
Most of the interior walls have been framed though.
I think once I get some electricty and some A/C in there, (and some rockwool, and some drywall, a water heater, a sink, a toilet, some glass, lighting, some flooring, and some paint) the interior will come together pretty fast.
I hope.
There's SOOOOOOOO much to do though.
 
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I agree with Frederic.... cabling and soldering! And I hated every minute of it until it was done... then I loved it!!! :p


Jake - that icon really is grotesque...!
 
I'd say it 50-50 between cabling and finish wood work. Yeah, it took me 3 weekends and a few late nights soldering and making cable harnesses but I still haven't finished all the detail woodwork... especially once things became functional :)

Kevin.
 
"S'not too bad...kinda like elmer's glue."

So, that explains the facial features!!
 
Im actually going to try to do a solderless studio. Im plotting to buy snakes for everything like a live get up, and Im even going to make a xlr patchbay that uses connectors that are male on oneside and female on the other and screw into blank panels. Yeah, Ive done lots of soldering over the years...Im tired of it. Plug and Play even if it cost me both legs. The most time consuming thing for me was wiring, both power and console. The power was hard because I had to take interesting measures to get power to unusual places. It took me 2 weeks to feed and wire junction boxes, switches, breaker panel, lights. Check ground paths by hooking up gear enough to see if it was clean and quiet before sealing it all. Anything that requires thought and physical labor will always be the slowest. Caulking is tedious yet brainless for the most part, soldering is tedious and if your testing the continuity after dropping the bead, it takes thought. Having to work a day job was probably the thing that took ythe longest ;)

SoMm
 
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