Automatic Sliding Doors Gin Firearms Restoration
And... Automatic sliding doors are the norm at most supermarkets and large retailers. Sensors detect your approach and prompt the doors to slide open. They open when you arrive and close when you depart, which is convenient when your hands are full. These automatic sliding doors are custom-made to fit the customer's door opening. The doors are programmed to open in 1 1/2 seconds, but that can be adjusted during installation. The door structure and frame are made of aluminum that's been heated to a softened state. It's then forced through a die to give it a specific shape. A computer-guided saw cuts these aluminum pieces to the length required for this order. This is one of the pieces that will form the vertical side of the door structure. Workers insert durable weather stripping into a built-in track. They collapse the end to lock the strip in place. On the opposite side, they fasten long, threaded rods. The rods are used to attach the rails. The rails fit over the rod and are securely fastened to the doorframe with an alignment clip and nut. Once workers have assembled the two door structures, they install a pivot at the top of each one. This top pivot allows the door to swing outward when you push the emergency exit bar. Then, they assemble the door hanger. It connects the door to the top of the frame. The hanger rolls on two wheels. A urethane rubber one allows the door to move sideways along the track... And a plastic one, which prevents the door from going off the track. They attach the door's top pivot to the hanger. An access control release is needed to open the doors in case of emergency. Workers install it into sections of the doorframe that meet when the two doors close together. When you push the emergency bar, this mechanism rotates to let the door swing open. The hanger detent prevents the door from swinging open during normal operation. It attaches the access control release to the door hanger. Workers complete the door structures by applying legally required safety decals. Meanwhile, at another station, workers install the door's electronics in the header. This is one of the many infrared sensors that trigger the doors to open. The sensors detect people approaching by reading the invisible heat energy humans give off. After loading the nuts, they'll need to fasten the remaining components to the header's track. They install a pulley, part of the drive system that moves the doors. Then, they slide the header's cover into a track and continue installing components... First, the end caps, which attach the header to the doorframe, then, the door controller, the brains of the entire system. It has built-in operational software. You can run the doors on the defaults or customize the settings. Now, for the rest of the drive system. They install an electric motor and pulley. The motor has a switch that detects the door's position. Next, a timing belt is looped around two pulleys. They adjust the distance between the pulleys to tighten the belt. The door installers will do a more precise adjustment on-site. Every header undergoes extensive computerized testing. This checks the function and safety features. Then, the doorframe and structure ship out to the building site, where the glass panes go in prior to installation. Gin is a distilled alcoholic spirit. It's flavored primarily with juniper berries. In fact, the word "gin" is believed to come from "jenever," the dutch word for "juniper". It's the base for many popular mixed drinks, such as the martini, the singapore sling, and, of course, gin and tonic. This microdistillery produces gin in small batches using a slower distillation process. They don't add any sweeteners, artificial flavoring, or coloring. At this distillery, everything is done by hand, starting with the main ingredient, juniper berries. Then, spices are added-- dried angelica plant roots... Coriander seeds... Lemon peel and cardamom. All these ingredients go into a 90-gallon copper still. A spirit distilled from fermented grain is already in the still. It's completely tasteless but has an alcohol content of 95%. To lower the alcohol level to 40%, they've diluted it with spring water. Now they prepare to redistill with the spices. This gives the spirit its distinct gin flavor. To do this, they slowly heat the bottom of the still. In about an hour, the alcohol boils and begins to evaporate. They continue distilling for about six hours, constantly monitoring the temperature. If the temperature reaches 212 degrees, the water will also evaporate, ruining the batch. The alcohol steam rises up and out of the still through pipes leading to a chilled stainless steel tank. When the hot steam hits the cold, it condenses back to a liquid, creating gin. Throughout the distillation process, they take samples to measure the density and temperature. These readings reflect the current alcohol level. They adjust the distillation speed as required to produce a target alcohol level of 76%. Only the middle of each batch, known as the heart of the distillation, is collected. This particular distillery adds another step. They infuse the gin with raw parsnips. This gives it an earthy flavor and subtle floral aroma. They peel and slice the parsnips, place them in a tank, then pump in the gin. After a couple of days, they pump it through filters on the way to a storage tank. Then, they dilute the gin with water to lower the alcohol level to 43%. Before bottling, the distillery draws samples for quality control testing. They examine the color, the aroma, and, of course, the taste. There will be slight variations in flavor based on the freshness of the parsnips. This microdistillery has no automated bottling line. They fill the bottles by hand only six at a time. They cork each bottle individually with a hand-operated press. They apply a plastic sleeve, which they heat-shrink tightly over the neck. The consumer pulls a small gold tab to remove the seal and uncork the bottle. This hand-operated machine labels one bottle at a time. The machine removes the backing to expose the adhesive, then presses the label onto the bottle. This is a london dry gin, meaning it's made with the traditional ingredients and contains no added sweeteners or colorings. This distillation process is how gin was made before the age of large, commercial distilleries. Winchester rifles are known as the guns that won the american wild west. Many old guns have quite a past, and it shows. Dents, scratches, and missing parts make a gun look ready for the junkyard. But old guns can be restored lock, stock, and barrel. A vintage firearm may have been used in a historic battle or to hunt for food. Winchester rifles were one of the first repeating rifles, guns that held multiple rounds for a much greater rate of fire. To restore a century-old winchester, they disassemble it and evaluate every part. They decide the gun needs a major overhaul, beginning with the shoulder stock. The master gunsmith assesses pieces of american black walnut for a new stock and decides on one. He then selects a wooden template of a shoulder stock. He traces the template's contours onto the blank using a grease pencil. He leaves a generous margin for error. He cuts the walnut blank with a band saw, following the pencil profile. These band saw cuts remove excess wood. They also give him a basic shape to work with. Next, he clamps the walnut piece in a duplicator beside the shoulder stock template. He follows the shape of the template with a stylus. The stylus controls a router that cuts into the wood. As he follows the lines of the gunstock template, the router moves in sync to duplicate the shape. It also reveals the beautiful grain of the black walnut. The template and walnut copy can be turned simultaneously. This allows the gunsmith to cover every angle with a stylus. It takes numerous passes to duplicate the shape. Next, he brushes black dye onto the receiver, which houses the rifle's operating parts. He slides the receiver into the new stock. The black dye transfers to the high spots of the wood, indicating where the fit is too tight. He scrapes the wood in those locations, so the receiver fits more precisely into the stock. This process is known as inletting. He now refines the shape of the shoulder stock using a coarse file. He also evens any rough patches created by the duplicator. He switches to a finer file as he continues to shape the stock and smooth it. Finally, he sands the gunstock to a uniform texture. He stains both the stock and the fore-end. The fore-end is used to steady the rifle during firing. Once the stain has dried, he applies an oil finish. This both protects the wood and enhances the grain. The finish can make all the difference. Here, we see finished stocks in low to high-grade wood. Next, a craftsman engraves a checkered pattern into the fore-end of the stock. He etches a series of grooves, creating an outline to work with. Then he carves parallel grooves on crisscross angles to form the checkered pattern. This checkering adds visual interest and gives the rifle a better grip. Stay tuned for more as this vintage gun restoration continues. Restoring old guns was long considered taboo. It was believed that tampering with antique firearms would diminish their value. That view is changing. Gun restoration can save it from the junkyard, preserving a piece of the past. Many old guns have a checkered pattern on the stock and fore-end. To replicate the originals, the gunsmith has etched a checkered pattern into the wood. He now darkens the checkered sections with black linseed oil. The oil highlights and protects the design. The focus then turns to the rifle's metal parts, made of low-carbon steel. After over a century of use, the finish has worn off, compromising their strength. Restoration begins with the receiver. It holds the gun's working parts. He files off imperfections. Then, he polishes the receiver using an abrasive cloth wrapped around a block. He uses progressively finer abrasives. This greatly improves the surface. Here is the rifle receiver before it was filed and sanded... And after. He also cleans up the trigger, lever, and other parts. After a hardening treatment, the gunsmith applies varnish. The varnish enhances the swirl of colors created by the hardening treatment. This is a classic look. Here is the rifle receiver in the different stages of restoration. Next, a gunsmith bolts a roll die into a press. He then loads the newly polished rifle barrel into the press and activates it. This press rolls lettering into the metal. This stamped information is known as the barrel address. It includes the company name and original date of manufacture. Another team member boils the barrel in hot, soapy water to remove any dirt or grime. After a rinse, he slides the barrel onto a fixed rod. He wipes off the water residue and heats the barrel with a torch. This preheat prepares the barrel for a rust-proofing treatment called rust bluing. As he brushes the bluing solution onto the rifle barrel, he maintains a steady heat. The hot temperature activates the chemicals, and the metal turns a brown hue. Next, he boils the barrel in hot water. Its color goes from brown to bluish black. He repeats the rust bluing treatment six to eight times. Then, he brushes it against a wire wheel to get rid of excess residue. This century-old gun barrel is as good as new. Sometimes, they engrave a gun's receiver with scrollwork or other designs. The engraver cuts the steel entirely by hand. He views his work through a microscope to get every detail right. He also engraves the manufacturer's name and model number into the tang of the rifle receiver. It's delicate work that he has only one chance to get right. Elaborate engravings on the rifle receiver aren't necessary, but are a nice addition. The client decides whether to keep it simple or go fancy. Restoring a vintage rifle isn't cheap. It costs thousands of dollars or more if expensive engravings and gold inlay work is added. But when it comes to extras, some collectors won't hesitate to pull the trigger.