Okay, day before yesterday our over the range microwave went out.....we have lived here about 22 years and this is the third microwave for this house. When we bought this new double wide it came with all new appliances, GE was the brand. The first one lasted 2 years. Next we bought an LG microwave that was a returned model to the store for what ever reason???? It lasted 20 years until day before yesterday...Called around to see if anyone would install it for free if we bought a new, any brand. About 300.00 was not   an exactly quote for they all said nothing ever fits the same holes as the last brand so this will probably cost for from all those exploritory holes drilling before they could come up with the holes in the exactly the right place... So being one who never liked strangers in my house beating on the walls trying to find wood on the other side of the sheetrock and then giving a poor excuse of their wasting so many drill bits I just told wife we would install the new microwave our selves.

  No one wants to ever admit being born in 1935 has something to do with not being able to lift half of 50 lbs. 

So now is the time to use my little brain and come up with some mechanical aid.

   But honey a counter top model is half as much as the ones people hang almost up to the ceiling.     So in comes the first part of our helpers, a roll around router table on wheels. Next I have to get it the same height as the cabinets so lot of shims and large pieces of BB and a few clamps for underneath all that the dials and knob ends of the cook top has to be protected. Next in comes a roll around transmission jack with an extra piece of BB to go on the top of the jack to sit the microwave on.. and if anyone has ever uninstalled and installed a microwave then you know the back bottom of the microwave has to go in first and sit in the little holder one has to attach  in the right area of the wall. Then you raise up the front of the microwave to the three holes one already marked and drilled the holes in the top of the cabinet for the long screws to go through...

This is what the scene looked like after we took out the old wave and the new one is sitting there ready to set upon the lift and get a joy ride up in to the hole . This last picture shows the rea after I took the jack away and was starting to clear away the residue after the new microwave was in and working. Now All I got to do is take away the helpers and reattach the rope lights under the coulter.

  It might have went quicker if we had have bought another LG but no one in Breckenridge sells them and going to Abilene and finding one was no guarantee the holes would be in the same exact location being 20 years apart in the time of manuf.  This microwave we got had 3 ways one could configure where they wanted the exhaust to exit out the microwave , from the top or from the side or recirculate within itself.. But, the old one come out the top in the exact middle but this new model did come out the top but only on the side of the middle and was a bugger to make the pipe stretch and curve over to the side... 

 But anyway, my invention of the transmission jack sitting on the portable router table made it extra nice to work on new holes especially after I added a Gandy milk carton to sit on the top of the jack so this old model body didn't have to exert any muscle especially with wife taking care of the other half of the things we had to lift made it a nice easy job.

  And with the added safe of using clamps to make sure the plywood did not damage the knobs gave me a job I started out dreading. By the way this is a Fridigaire this time.

  Just another example of a wood worker having the ability of thinking with his little brain!

 

 

Gonna have to remember this for when ours takes a dump! I'm a little more fortunate in that ours is mounted over the stove, which can be pulled out for a little easier access.

 

We recently had to replace the refrigerator. Mimi picked out one of those with the freezer on the bottom and double doors that open to access the cooling area. The width was the same as the old side by side model but the height was a little over an inch too tall. There's a cupboard above the opening so I pulled the cupboard (the kitchen is a modular cupboard style), took it to the basement, cut an off the necessary amount around the bottom perimeter of the cupboard and put it back up in place. Problem solved and no loss of storage space.

@Smallpatch, sir, can you resend your shipping address to me please, I have an Easy Wood Tools cap to send you, thanks!

Pretty slick idea

You left out the

 

 

Nicely done.  Looks perfect.

You are so smart, Daddy! I am glad you can outsmart lifting a heavy object. 

 

Sure wish I could do the same with these computers. I thought I had put six different pictures here of the steps I took with the microwave but when I went to load them here I realized 4 of the pictures were of the same photo so I only loaded three of them and didn't delete the others. Then when I posted the three I see where the others loaded also but since I couldn't delete the extras here they sit taking up valuable space. Or else I couldn't find where that button was hiding to get fid of the same pictures not needed? Is this right John for once a person post them they can't be removed from the post or am I not seeing where I can do that before hitting the Submit Reply button?

@Smallpatch

You have to hover over the photo you want to delete to show the delete button.

Hey, I never thought of that..... Thanks Larry!  but most of my problem now is my mind wants to go off on its own just like a few minutes ago for I walked over to the microwave with a coffee cup in my hand and stood there for a few minutes turned around and came back and sat down here like nothing happened but as I went to take a sip of the hot coffee I realized thats what I went to the microwave for and flat forgot why I was standing there...that sip of coffee was cold!

  I never could pat the top of my head and rub my bell with the other hand at the same time and now its a chore just getting both hands in those positions at the same time is another problem.

  This might sound strange but all my spare time I sit here and play free cell but I honestly think it has helped my thinking ability.

 

 

Edited July 25, 20214 yr by Smallpatch

20 hours ago, Smallpatch said:

Hey, I never thought of that..... Thanks Larry!  but most of my problem now is my mind wants to go off on its own just like a few minutes ago for I walked over to the microwave with a coffee cup in my hand and stood there for a few minutes turned around and came back and sat down here like nothing happened but as I went to take a sip of the hot coffee I realized thats what I went to the microwave for and flat forgot why I was standing there...that sip of coffee was cold!

  I never could pat the top of my head and rub my bell with the other hand at the same time and now its a chore just getting both hands in those positions at the same time is another problem.

  This might sound strange but all my spare time I sit here and play free cell but I honestly think it has helped my thinking ability.

 

 

Don't feel bad, I'm forever losing things right in front of myself.

Ever look for your glasses only to find them on your face?

Larry I only use the glasses for close up doings so they stay in one of two places when not on my head. Either in my shirt pocket if I am always in the upright position then if I am bending over a lot I change and insert one of the ear pieces in the top of the v inside my shirt......no problem at all but I can still not find them even though they are still on my body? At one time I even tried drilling a hole in the end of the ear pieces and using a long  rubber band to hang from around my neck but this ended after getting shot with a bullet speed set of glasses after getting them hung on something and backing up real quick. I even decided one time if I am needing glasses for any procedure to just cut out those times from me doing them anymore! Wow, that was a wild thought like walking to town because I just might get a flat if I use the car?

 A perfect example on how to work smart & not hard