updating my newfangled bench & other tool thoughts.

Hi folks,
 up 'til now I've been writing about what I've done and/or experienced in the past.  My shop is an utter disaster right now, but I thought I'd better actually get out there and DO something today.

 There's my existing Newfangled bench. Up until now it has mostly been a dust and clutter collector. I've decided that needs to change. As designed it has the two main bar clamps that run width wise. I never made the two cross pieces that allow it to clamp items, so one of my tasks is to take the piece of 2x6 on the bench top and cut two slots allowing it to rest on top of the bars. Still working on that, as my bandsaw is clogged with cutting board strips on its table at the moment.

I picked up two vises long ago, I'm guessing off of a craigslist ad. Here's the one that I want to mount on the left end of the bench. That wasn't originally in the design, but hey, it's My bench after all. It is a Morgan model 106A, which has a quick release action. I just cleaned it up with some PB blaster and a bit of WD-40 to keep the rust off of it.



I plan on putting a 12" wide set of wooden jaws to line the face. If I need to I'll put some leather in there as well, but that's down the road.

I'm going to add on to the left end of the bench, putting about 12 to 14" of laminated hardwood (ash, maple?) with dog holes in line with the vise.  There will also be a birds mouth so that I can add a planing board to the lower section where the vertical pipe clamps are, this will allow me to hold larger workpieces on end, for planing or routing tasks. I want to add two dog holes on the moving face of the vise.

I also picked up a belt sander the other day, nothing fancy, but hey, it's a new tool. I used it to smooth down a couple of small cutting boards, and only on one of them did I leave it in one place too long, dishing out the board a bit. I'm going to use it to get boards 95% smooth, then put them through for one light pass through the planer to level things out, at least until I pick up a drum sander.

My 2014 woodworking Bucket List

Hi folks,  been a busy week at the daily grind, several thousand miles under the wheels since I started this blog. That's good for the wallet, not so good for shop time. I have loads of time for thought though, and this week I've been thinking about where I want the shop to 'go' as it were.

I'm Horrible about finishing projects, so this list is more of a wish list than a must-do list. That being said, putting 'pen to paper' (fingers to blogging keyboard?)  helps get me moving in Some direction, so here goes (in no particular order) :

• Solar Heat project for my shop.  see Builditsolar.com
• router insert in my table saw extension wing
• tune up table saw
• set up Wolverine under my grinder
• tune up bench planes
• add front vice to bench (here's a pic when I first built it... back in 2008
  
• rebuild the entrance to my shop (new door & re-fit steps to shop)
• install window on north wall (finally)
• turn 5 bowls (small steps...)
• make and sell 50 cutting boards
• install drop ceiling in shop (to keep the heat in over the winter months)
• finish the upper section of the shop (planning on working on that this weekend)

That ought to keep me busy though christmas. 

Thanks for checking in. Work safe!

What a short strange trip it's been

To paraphrase the Grateful Dead...

I just had a very surreal couple of minutes. I was doing a bit of account maintenance on google+ adding friends to circles, following some of the woodworking stars when I noticed Christopher Schwarz' name in a suggestion.

I just had to take a moment and appreciate that uber-strange world we share. Here I am just your average joe, and thanks to reaching out and making a couple of connections, suddenly I'm getting connected with some big names in the woodworking sphere of things.

I listen to Marc Matt & Shannon and they relate just how approachable these teachers are, and I believe them. It is still just a tad unreal to me though, that thanks to the internet, I have even that peripheral connection with a published author and teacher.

I suppose it isn't all that strange though when I truly think about it. A few years back I attended one of Bill Grumbine's 5 Barns gatherings. While there I made dozens of friends, not the least of which was Bill himself, but I also met Doug Thompson from Thompson lathe tools, Ellis Wallentine who runs the WoodCentral forums, and Andy DiPietro who is a phenomenal turner just to name a few.
 I mention all of this not to name drop, or to puff up with self importance. I know, really KNOW just who I am, an average guy who has a woodshop in his backyard. The really cool thing is that because of that interest, I've managed to meet many great folks.  However famous they are in our shared hobby/avocation/profession (depending on their level of fame, not mine),  To a man (not to exclude the women) they've been gracious with their time and always willing to share their expertise.  If you're new to the craft, I want to encourage you to reach out and ask questions, or simply to make a connection, you never know where it may lead!

I 'made the show!'

As I've mentioned, I listen to the guys when I am traveling around central NY. Today I was pleasantly surprised to hear Marc mention a segment about oil finish inhalation hazards in the shop overview....

I had emailed them a few weeks ago:

I've been woodworking about 15 years now, and I've found that I have a problem whenever I apply Watco Danish Oil. The results are great, I love how it pops the grain etc... woodworking wise, but whenever I apply it, I get a headache and am very lethargic for a day or so after I use it. I use Nitrile gloves, and my shop is well ventilated. I generally apply finish with the main shop door wide open on a bench near the exit (for all intents & purposes outdoors). I've had a similar reaction when I used a wiping varnish I picked up from Rockler; their Sam Maloof wipe on poly blend. This lethargy is so immediate that I have to essentially put on the finish, put the rag somewhere safe to dry, strip off the gloves and immediately lock up my shop and leave it overnight while I go inside and crash. 

I'll let you listen to their replies, suffice to say I was extremely pleased that they replied and with excellent advice at that!

Check out Episode 189: Grandma's got Big Needles !

Thanks again guys!

Dealing with Issues and not having a shop

Hi folks, thanks for checking (back?) in.

At the risk of veering away from my prior two posts, I thought I'd share a bit about dealing with issues which have interfered with my hobby/avocation, hopefully it will help others who may be facing or have faced similar situations.

As I mentioned in my last post, I took a hiatus, putting my tools in storage for a couple of years. Our house doesn't have a garage anymore (my wife's ex turned it into a family room/bedroom), nor does it have a basement. That left me with backyard woodworking or renting space somewhere else once I pulled my tools out of the shared shop.

I didn't Want to give up the shared shop, but neither could I afford the upkeep. I suppose I could have found another space somewhere, but I had my heart set on building my own shop. I'll leave that whole process to another post, suffice to say I had to save up awhile.
I've had my shop for almost 6 years (counting from when it was dried in). During the 'between years', I kept busy online in a couple of different forums, soaking up information wherever I could get it. I also focused on what features I wanted in my shop when I finally could afford to build it.

I brought a few tools home from time to time, especially my scroll saw. I could set that up on the porch, or in the living room and make some sawdust from time to time.  The big thing I managed to do was to keep the goal in mind as I scrimped and saved up to afford the build.

Since my shop went up I've had yet another hiatus and 'recovery'. Three years ago I moved my family from central NY to the beautiful Shenandoah valley of VA to be near family. Eventually that proved to be a 'bridge too far', and we migrated back to NY less than a year later. Luckily we hadn't sold our house in NY, so we simply hauled all of our gear back up and put it back in the house and shop.

I'm still getting things in order out there... after all what shop is truly 'done'? One of my biggest challenges is organization, and that's never going away completely no matter how hard I try to keep on top of things. Look for future posts about how I'm going to tackle the current mess out there.