We all like to make things and repair things and we have brilliant threads for those, but being more specific, what have you recycled, up-cycled or repurposed as something beyond which it was originally intended?

The more out of original context the better.

I’ll start with definitely not the last thing I repurposed, but it’s still going strong about 6.5 years later.

Washing machine doors on my allotment shed.

What you got?

Various bits around the house made from an MX5 engine:

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Crikey, that brings back memories – I once made a lamp from a snapped mini Cooper 997 crankshaft. Wish I still had that 1963 Cooper!

Bird (Blue Tit) nesting box made from a ground drain silt trap, topped with a nose cone for for guiding flue liners. Oh, and the supporting bracket is a foot mounting for a Hydromec worm gearbox.

I am nowhere near the level being shown above, but I do currently have an old spice rack being used to keep various bike lubes and things nice and tidy.

Posted this on the “last you made” thread, but seems relevant here – rack made from a pair of old Speedplay Drillium pedals:

All brilliant so far ^^^ 😊
Love those details Geforcejunky!

Currently using an old trouser press “grip” (off the bar you close it with) for servicing forks, the bar itself is in the spares bin having previously been used to make a missing dowel for my daughters cot bed.

Velcro mattress carrying strap to hold the loft ladders out the way when something big needs to go up or down.

Old photography backdrop holder as a shelf for lubes/tapes etc.

Used an old 21″ CRT TV stand (the OEM ones with room for a VCR below) to make tyre hangers.

I’ve the drive shaft from a tractor that I’m pretty sure could be made in to some sort of lamp – I’ll need a proper look and have a think about how to do it as I reckon an electric cable added (somehow) to a wifi-enabled bulb and it could almost look like it doesn’t need power to work (assuming I can hide the power cable).

From a while back. Sold now and converting broken engine blocks into tables has become trendy so doubt I will pick up another for £20

Nothing of any asthenic merit but I made a mini pond from a burst yoga ball. Just need frogs to come find it.

Does keeping hold of old 1Kg peanut butter tubs to use as food containers for coffee/sugar etc. count? 😆

thats some Allotment shed! awesome.

Back when we had an allotment, my Mrs wanted me to make a shed from “old doors”, cause it was trendy. She bought (BOUGHT!) a load of old doors, which i then had the misfortune of trying to make into a shed. It was crap.

Old doors are old because they are rotten or broken.
They were different heights, thicknesses.
She ended up with a stack of old rotten doors that she had paid for, to take to the tip.

My 18month old cant stand over her balance bike yet, (12″ wheels i think?)
Had an old mountain board kicking about the shed.
o used some threaded rod to convert it to a trike using the old wheels.

From a while back. Sold now and converting broken engine blocks into tables has become trendy so doubt I will pick up another for £20

Looks like a promising start to a TARDIS console.

That trike is mint Olly 😊👏

Reinforced the frame that goes underneath the cushions of an aging fold up sofa bed. I used some wood from some basic stand alone shelves I made maybe ten years ago. Was wondering what all the tiny holes in the wood were, then spotted my initials on the wood. Took a moment to realise the shelves were constructed from a canvas support I made at University around twenty years ago, all the holes being where I’d stapled the canvas to it.

Fire pit. I’ve got some charcoal stove spray paint to apply to the outside to tone it down.

Currently in the beginning stages of an extension that involves knocking the garage down. Planning to repurpose the current flat roof osb board, felt and rafters to make a temporary shelter in the garden for the childrens bikes and scooters so they can still have access to them throughout the summer. The current tarpauling I’m using isn’t a usable solution as it just gets ragged about everytime they want to get a bike out.
I’m also repurposing a wardrobe we dismantled at the weekend to use the furniture board to line out the old airing cupboard and make it in to a usable built-in wardbrobe space. Therefore repurposing a wardrobe in to a, er, different wardrobe.

A couple of other recent things I realised fit the bill…

Made my old snowboard into a shelf for the garage by bolting some brackets into the binding mounts:

Made walls for my new shed with a load (literally a shedload at least) of old tongue and groove that was being ripped out of a flat that was being renovated, via Freecycle. The back is still open while I find time to process the rest (with less intact tongues/grooves) to be usable.

Those are awesome thenorthwind. Love the snowboard shelf 👏

Nowhere near as inventive as any of these, but my last repurposing was using a garden sprayer as a pressure bleeder.

I have an old cotic Solaris that used to be called a mountain bike but would now be called a flat bared gravel bike 🙂 does that count

Pallet into “ladder shelves”

I have an old cotic Solaris that used to be called a mountain bike but would now be called a flat bared gravel bike 🙂 does that count

Of course, particularly if photos are included.

POSTING PHOTOS ON STW

Pallet into “ladder shelves”

That’s really nice 👍

I’m turning my back on the camper trend and am planning to turn my unconverted Sprinter back into a van.

We made a garden bench 10 years ago from some old snowboards dumped in a skip in the Alps.

Still going strong

Also made a fold away wall mounted bike stand from an old TV wall mounting and a Park stand head. Strong enough to hold an emtb

https://i.postimg.cc/XvGjm33N/PXL-20210918-162124542-MP.jpg

My Samsung washing machine drum gives a good heat but no longer plays a tune when it’s done

That’s genius that tv arm mounted bike stand Tracey 👏

Does popping a gondola in my garden to use as a summer house count?

it’s been there 2 years but I can’t think of anything else I’ve repurposed since 🤔

Pallet into “ladder shelves”

That’s really nice 👍

Cheers, I’m really pleased with how it turned out. I copied it from an instructible guide.

The uprights are the only bit not made from pallet wood and they’re the worst wood on there (bit of a warp) – damn you Wickes!

Compression fitting seat post clamp 🙂

^^^ Is that a Kirk!? 🙂

It comes out once a year for Christmas cx – one of the guys at Cross also thought it was a Kirk. Slightly more ferrous than magnesium 🙂

That’s ace, 28mm seat ‘collar’ shimmed down to 27.2? Did you use inhibitor to stop it rusting?

Std 28.6 Columbus seat tube (so 27.2 bore once reamed). 28mm compression fitting skimmed out to 28.6 in a lathe. Hacksaw cut through the olive so it springs open to fit the slightly bigger tube.

I had considered taking the label off a bottle of Fernox and putting it on a bike bottle 🙂

@bigblackshed

No need to paint it, just have a fire, they’re a lot less bright after you’ve got the sides glowing red.

Got a pair of 10 foot 1960’s surfboards in the shed as shelves in the roof. No re-purposed as such as I could use them should I ever want to. Ditto snow boardband old skis.
More modified is the huge amount of decking next door threw out. Apart from shelves I have made planter boxs and have just finished a over sized compsoting toilet cubicle attached to the BBQ shed /bunkhouse in my dads wood. Not a new thing used apart from the battery power in the drill and the chainsaw fuel. Even the screws were re-used. Roof is old laminate flooring with felt on top. |Door posts are 8′ x 6″ pine filched from a stack of timber in the woods. Bog seat was a damaged new one not wanted back by the supplier.

Repurposed the kids old bike trailer. Removed the cover and sides, cot some slats from some off cuts of oak, screwed down with some stainless self tappers and a couple of coats of Osmo. The best thing was that I had everything needed in the shed.
Edit, im truly amazed! I used Kayak’s guide and managed to post a picture. My weekend is complete already.😀

I sprayed the washing machine drum fire pit. I think it looks a bit tidier.