Hand Tools

 Had to share this as I just heard it from the Doctor who did the bronchoscopy. The good news is there were no cancer cells in the lung biopsy or in the lymph nodes. That was unexpected because I had already made my peace with having lung cancer. Everything pointed to it. That was a leading reason for my fire sale too. 

Now that I know I'm not under the Sword of Damocles anymore, maybe I can breathe easier. The flip side of the coin is the doc doesn't know what is causing the enlarged lymph nodes (which didn't have bacteria) nor what is in the infected lung area. 

So I'm out of the woods with the big 'C' but on the fence with the unknown with what is out of whack with my left lung. It isn't slowing me down when I stroll. The doc is hoping something will show up on the PET scan I have scheduled for the 11th of Feb. 

I can get back to long term planning and doing. I'm still going to empty the boneyard because I'm sure that I can fill it again. And I decided to do the wood type poster frame. I'll be hanging it in the wife's 'reading room'. Although I'm thinking now of changing the color of the frame from black to some other color, brown maybe?

accidental woodworker 

 I had a few takers on my plane fire sale and spent most of the day packing them up. I also made a few trips to the computer shop for help with my printer. I tried for several days to get the printer to work and finally said NO MAS. The techie at the shop said it booted up and saw the printer right away. He printed a test page and couple more from the Providence Journal site.

Turned out that I was using the wrong USB port. That is the one thing that I didn't think of to change/check. That was a quick $65 for Tech 911. The printer is working and the  4 extra toner cartridges I bought won't be going to waste.

Going to and back from the computer shop was a PITA. They were doing construction at one of the busiest intersections on Post Road. What should have been a 10 minute road trip turned into a 30 minute journey from hell. And I got to enjoy it 4 times.

better

The iron and chipbreaker on the 4 1/2 had a line of rust on it. Of all of the planes on the bench this was the only plane with rust. Cleaned it up and touched up the iron on the stones.

one down

I couldn't believe the prices on the priority boxes. The cost of them jumped more than $5 since the last time I used one. The smallest box was too small for a #3 and and next size up was too big. I had some boxes that were a little smaller. 

The #5 fit in a priority box and the cost is $22.95. That is $2.05 less then the cost of the plane. Yikes.

Still feeling a little out of sorts due to the anesthesia, but better then yesterday.  The throat is still sore and it doesn't seem like it is healing all that fast neither. Fingers crossed it will be better in the AM. It doesn't bother me to eat but I can feel it - a burning, achy feeling that sucks pond scum.

accidental woodworker  

Six years ago, I made an outside mold/work board to make one of my guitars and I disliked the thing so much I sent it to the local dump. With this guitar I made a work board that is based upon the one you will find in Roy Courtnall’s book, Making Master Guitars. Unlike Courtnall’s work board, the dished solera is removable. 


The back with its braces and center seam graft. By carving the ends of the braces I can adjust the tap of the back, it’s quite something to hear the change in the tone as I carve the ends and lower the height of the braces. I can bring that tap tone into a better “focus”, the tone is present without much “fuzziness” to it, it’s hard to explain unless you are in the shop with me so I can demonstrate this amazing change.

 

Since I’ve known it was a possibility, I have wanted to be able to read a book in another language. I studied two years of Spanish in High School, which didn’t get me to the point I could read a book. I took a semester of German in college, which was about one-year’s high-school learning, so not enough.

I tried Navajo in the 1990s from audio tapes and a handout. Didn’t get far at all.

When DuoLingo came out, I started with Italian. That fit with the violin-making vibe. I also used the Pimsleur Italian course and a handful of language-learning books.  After a couple years of that mix, I found a local Italian teacher and added a few lessons with her into the mix. I could read simple newspaper stories and even a couple of easy, short books. Success!  But then my ancestors started talking to me. I looked to the north.

I have since partaken in a couple of other DuoLingo courses, including Scots Gaelic, where I got no where close to being able to read more than sentences, and Norwegian, which I have spent the most time on. 

I have finished other online Norwegian courses, as well as a couple of free courses offered by various universities in Norway. I’ve studied with hardcopy language-learning books, such as Skapago’s The Mystery of Nils volumes1 and 2.  I have gone through the Pimsleur Norwegian audio course. I got to the point I could read short popular science stories. I can make sense of some jokes. I’ve read a few short, easy books. So, success again!

Recently, though, I’ve entered a strange mental space when it comes to reading in Norwegian.

I have long been part of an online language cafe, where we meet in chat rooms with people who are at the same level in learning. We try to speak to each other in Norwegian, ask how we’re doing, what’s the weather like, and so on.

For a few years now, one of the fellows there has run an online book-club, and the books have been the Harry Potter series.

I am not a huge Harry Potter fan. It was fun. But I also realized the language level in the books is actually quite high. They are kids’ books, but complicated kids’ books.  Too high for me.

This year, the third year of the club, they are reading the third book in the series, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, or Harry Potter og Fangen fra Azkaban.  I decided to take the plunge.  I got the e-book version and the Audible version. After a couple weeks of not total failure, I ordered the hardback version, used, not new, from a Norwegian seller.

We meet every other week, Sunday mornings my time, and discuss a chapter.  Currently we are reading Chapter 9, “Grim Defeat”, or Kapittel Ni, <<Tungt Tap>>.

Something weird is happening in my head.  When I previously read a Norwegian book, a sentence might appear as << Hesten løpt rundt banen og hoppet over gjerdet. >> and in my head I would convert to “The horse ran around the field and jumped over the fence.” Maybe not 100% word-for-word, but my brain would work word-for-word as best it could.

Now, in Harry Potter 3, when I read a chapter for the first time, I put the headphones on, fire up the Audible version, which I’ve set to 85% speed to give myself a chance, and read along in my hardcopy as I listen to the narrator.

A sentence from chapter 9: << Lærerne fat på unnskyldninger for å følge ham bortover gangene, og Perry Wiltersen (sikkert på morerns ordre, tenkte Harry) skygget ham overalt, som en spesielt selvgood vakthund.>>

The corresponding sentence in the English version: “Teachers found excuses to walk along with him, and Percy Weasley (acting, Harry suspected, on his mother’s orders) was tailing him everywhere like an extremely pompous guard dog.”

If you drop the Norwegian text into an online translator, it comes out fairly close.

However, some are not so clear. The last sentence of chapter 8 in Norwegian is <<Ikke god å kommen ut for, han der Serius Svaart.>>. Drop that into an online translator and you find something like “Not good to run into, that Serius Svaart guy.”  Whereas the sentence in the (American) English version is: “Nasty temper he’s got, that Sirius Black.”

True Harry Potter fans will also note that the character names are not the same, with the exception of Harry Potter himself. Since I am not well-versed in Harry Potter lore, this is not a huge problem in my head. I can barely keep the names straight in either language.

So here’s where I’m starting to feel weird. In my initial read-through, I don’t translate anything, I don’t look up anything, I don’t read the English version first. I just sit there with my headphones on, listening and reading along in Norwegian.

And I get the idea of the story. I know what’s going on. I could explain it to you in my own words after having read it.

But I didn't really "understand" the words, the individual words.

That last sentence of chapter 8, I understood the feeling of it, what was meant by it, even though those words don’t actually make sense to me on first reading.

After my first read-through of any chapter, I do not have all the details. If I stop and look at the words on the page in front of me, I’m lucky if I know what half of them mean, individually in English. But in context, I understand what’s going on. So I’ve stopped worrying about it, and just read the first time through.

Now, when I'm on my second or third time through a chapter, I do tear it apart, try to understand what this or that word means. Not always successfully. The thing about the Harry Potter books is that they are relatively deep in the language — a combination of words means something different than the combination of definitions (translations) might mean.

People who are bi-lingual or more must have already experienced this. It’s new to me. And it’s made me question how it all works. Here I am, writing — putting shapes in an order — and you are reading it, interpreting it, and creating your understanding of what I’m trying to convey.

It’s just black shapes against a white background.  Or vice-versa if you are in dark mode. 

So strange to think that we all have decoded our language into meaning, and to wonder at the similarities and variations that exist from person to person.

<<Hesten>> means “the horse” which means a certain sort of animal that you are thinking of right now.  You may even have a color-scheme and a location in mind, even though none was mentioned.

Language itself is more magical, and weirder, than any of the Harry Potter stories.

 I didn't feel 100% today so I took it easy. Anesthesia makes me feel funny for a couple of days. I spent most of the day cleaning and sorting out the boneyard. My wife wants half of the space for a reading room. That will happen after she gets back from going to North Carolina. She is going to keep daughter #2 company while her husband is away on business. 

flattening

This is the frame I glued yesterday. All of the corners were proud. Knocked them flush before doing the merry go round routine with the #4.

survived

Sanded all the sides with 80 and 120 grit and nada. None of the corners whimpered or wiggled in the least. Strong and secure and I'm thinking of using it for a photo.

wee bit of twist

Both the top and bottom had some twist to them. I'll have to think up a way to hold the photo within the frame. I want it to be set in from the front.

boneyard

This is actually cleaned up some. I can the bookcase against the far wall.

hmm......

Forgot I had these molders. If I remember correctly these are Ohio tool molders and the far right one is a 1/8" beader.

another batch

These are 4 match planes that I never got around to playing with. I offered these up to someone  and if he declines I'll send them to whoever expresses an interest in them.

Lie Nielsen leg vise

This is up for sale too and priced to move. $40 plus the dreaded S/H. I couldn't find it on Lie Nielsen's website and I think I paid around a $100 for it. 

last of the scraps

I filled up 1 1/2, 30 gallon shitcans with wood scraps. I got rid of every piece I had in the boneyard. I had the heebie jeebies doing this last pile. I know that I'll regret it in the next couple of days because I could have used it.

xmas gift from 2008

I made this for my wife but the movement never worked properly. The chimes never worked even once. It kept time good until the pendulum stopped moving. Don't understand that because the pendulum is/was independent of time keeping. I put another movement in it (no chime) and I'll let it go for a few days. I was going to give it away to my sister but my wife wants it back.

5 hours later

Except for the clock and the 15 drawer dresser, the rest of the stuff is going to my sister Kam. I'll email her first to see if she if interested. Fingers crossed on that. If she says nay, nay, I'll put it curbside.

blast from the past

I am in the 2nd from the top, on the far left. Hard to believe it has been over 50 years since this pic was snapped.

old delta mortiser

This is going to cost a fortune to ship so local pick up only. It comes with a 1/2" mortise chisel that I think is unused or at least I don't recall ever using it. It is missing the fence and it is no longer available at any of the tool part sites I tried. It would be easy to make a new one - just need a 25mm rod and someway to fix a fence to it at 90 degrees. Free to whoever wants it.

accidental woodworker

 

 I need to move along 12 planes. A few years back I went nutso rehabbing planes for my own use. These 12 are all extras but I did use them.  I have tried to sell them before and this will be my last attempt at that. I think I've priced them to sell quickly too.

All of these planes were used by me in my shop for a couple of months. I didn't have any problems with any of them making shavings. You'll be buying a plane that can be put to work after you fettle it to your way of working.

first lot

Four #3 hand planes. From the left - my personal user for several years. I only replaced it because I rewarded myself with a Lie Nielsen #3. This plane has my initials engraved on the lever cap. If yours are RJB, it is a done deal.

2nd from the left is a Union #3. Every bit as good as any Stanley #3.

3rd&4th from the left are Stanleys. Both of them don't have the frog adjust. 50 years of using planes and I have only used a frog adjust once. IMO they aren't necessary.

2nd lot

Five #4's. The first one on the left is a Miller Falls. Again this was a personal user that got used for about 7 months of work. No complaints with it all. The other four are all Stanleys and all got a work out with no headaches.

3rd lot

First one on the left is a 5 1/4, the second one is Miller Falls #5, and the last one is a Stanley #5. This Stanley jack plane is the only one in all the lots with a frog adjust. The Miller Falls was my first non Stanley jack and it impressed me. It was the first time I had compared another plane against a Stanley. It opened my eyes to start to look for other manufacturers plane's to rehab. I use the MF plane for almost a year.

4th lot

I had to satisfy my curiosity about these. I rehabbed 4 others and sold them, and another I kept because I couldn't find parts for it. From left to right #3, #4 1/2, #5, and a #7. I used these for a short time. They have a different feel and it took me a few to make shavings and get used to them. They are easier to push and worked as well as their metal siblings.

All the planes are for sale for $25 plus actual S/H ( I know S/H sucks pond scum). All the #3's (except the transitional #3) and the #4's will fit in Postal boxes. The rest will need custom boxes. 

I would like to sell the transitionals as a set for a discount at $75. Barring that they go singularly for $25 ea. 

My email is rjboumenot at gmail dot com. The one with the earliest time stamp wins the brass ring.

accidental woodworker

Here is a question for you: should the point of a marking gauge be sharp or dull? And why?

Woodworking instructors answer most questions based on their experience. And most of the time when you're studying with a woodworking instructor, what you're paying for is not some universal truth of woodworking but rather your instructor's way of doing something. "This is the way I do it and that's what I know how to teach," is the instructional mantra. The more open-minded of the group will also say something along the lines of, "This is the way I was taught, and I recognize other traditions do it differently, but as I said, I teach what I know and I know that's just works very well." Some instructors have been teaching the same way for decades, whereas others see themselves as lifelong learners and explorers so their instructing evolves along with them.

My own woodworking mentor, Maurice Fraser, was compulsive, and basically taught woodworking techniques only if he had explored them extensively. The reason he taught a particular technique a particular way was because he tried every other possible method he could think of (or found out in his books) and determined that that way was the best.

Many years ago I wrote extensively about flatness of the back of a chisel or a plane blade and I polled some woodworking experts for their opinions. A very famous woodworker, a writer and instructor addressed my question, Why flatten the entire back of a chisel rather than only the first 1/32" - especially considering that Japanese chisels are purposely not flat and have a hollow? He responded by saying it was easier to teach a student to flatten the entire back properly rather than stop after the first 32nd or 16th of an inch.

A secret of woodworking is most techniques actually work. They may work at different speeds and efficiencies; they may require more or less capital investment or practice; but they work.

Certain tools fall out of favor for one reason or another, and then they can come back into vogue. Sic transit gloria mundi.

The ancient Egyptians built stone pyramids, furniture, and an empire with bronze tools.

When it comes to marking gauges, I have seen all sorts of modifications. Many of the modifications seem based on misunderstandings about how these gauges can be used. When you start out you don't know anything, you feel free to assume the problem with the tool is that it's not as good as it should be. As I turn on the treadle lathe I am connecting with New Learner energy. The trick is to bring some humility to the process as well. The wheel has been invented; I have to continually remind myself that I do not need to reinvent the wheel.

Incidentally if you want to know how to use a traditional marking gauge click here to a article I wrote ages ago. If you just want to cut to the chase, the answer is a slightly dull point works a lot better than a very sharp point because it doesn't cut the fibers. The dull point simply depresses the fibers of the wood - no scribe line that will catch stain or finish and leave a mark. The dull point also isn't as vulnerable to grain shifts as a sharp point is, so it stays straight and doesn't wander in the grain.

I'm hopeful that this year I will be able to write more blogs. I'm constantly getting comments about people who say they enjoy reading them, and I like writing them. I really do. But my time has been very very constricted this past year because I'm working on the lathe and running a business in a very tough environment. Whoever said necessity is the mother of invention is actually completely and totally wrong. Leisure is the mother of invention. If you don't have time to sit down, relax let your mind free and wander, you won't get any new ideas, and if you don't have time to actually explore new ideas from a practical sense, you won't have them fully fleshed out either.

Happy New Year, everyone!

 That is what the pulmonologist said was the time needed to do their procedure - a bronchoscopy and a needle biopsy of my lymph nodes. . Well boys and girls that didn't happened. Three doctors did the procedure starting at 1300 and the they completed it at 1637. I woke up in the PACU (Patient After Care UNIT) at 1655. I felt a used dish rag. Tired, disorientated, and weak as new born babe along with a wicked sore throat. I was able to go home at 1740 with a happy face on.

I debated even posting a blog for today I was feeling so crappy but decided to do it to maintain the streak. I got in a couple of shop hours in the AM. I didn't leave for the VA until 1030. Not much but I got to play woodworker before the procedure just in case.

super glued frame

Absolute toast. I barely twisted it and popped apart effortlessly. Super glued miters are garbage and unreliable. It is good for holding miters together while yellow glue does the actual securing of them.

yellow glue frame

Like night and day against the super glue frame. I twisted all the frame sides and nada. The miters held. I didn't go Cro Magnon on them but I did use a wee bit of force.

hmm........

What to do with this? This is the frame I clamped off the miter box rough and trimmed the miters to fit with a chisel.

cooking

Yellow glue applied. Glued it just see how it will come out. Sized the miters first before applying the 2nd coat of yellow glue. I couldn't get the top left corner to seat flush.

done at 1800 last night

The plywood bottom blends perfectly with the box sides. Four coats of shellac and I'm calling it done. The wife doesn't want it but I do. I like how the inside and the bottom looks. I'll use it at my desk for something?

1900

I had to come to the shop to get the camera so why not? Unclamped the frame and twisted the sides 2 at time. I didn't feel like Cro Magnon man so the twist was on the weak side, but all the sides held. The miters look decent with no gaps and I'll clean the smooth them in the AM with a plane.

accidental woodworker 

Before we get to dowel joinery and angled joinery, let’s briefly cover some more options for joining with a pair of mortises and a loose tenon. I mentioned the Multi-router. It has been around for a long time and now done by Woodpecker. Then there is the PantoRouter, designed by a very clever engineer prolifically […]

 “Traditional methods endure because they always have worked and they always will.”

Roy Underhill, The Woodwright’s Eclectic Workshop, 1991

There was a day several years ago, when I pulled out two blanks of wood from my wood cache, one was California laurel and the other was black cherry. I had two small Hock tool spokeshave blades, I made the laurel blank into a flat sole shave, the cherry blank got a rounded sole. Both have an East Indian rosewood wear plate and both use set screws to adjust the blade’s depth of cut.

I used both shaves to refine the heel on a neck for a steel string acoustic guitar that I am making, the above photo shows the laurel shave in action on the neck shaft, the cherry shave is on the bench next to a carving knife with an extra long handle. That knife I also use to shape the heel of the neck.

It’s pretty fun to use a tool that you made, and that it really works!

So, take time today to get out into your shop and make that hand tool you have always wanted!

  Normal 0 false false false IT X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Tabella normale"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-ansi-language:IT; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}

Normal 0 false false false IT X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Tabella normale"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-ansi-language:IT; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;} Normal 0 false false false IT X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Tabella normale"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-ansi-language:IT; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}

Hello.

Just restored an Italian style plow plane.

It is particular:

The craftsman likely purchased the metal hardware and built the wooden body and the adjustable fence himself.

I added a video of the plane in use and a couple of pictures of the cutter. Its shape is unusual, as the cutting portion is decentered relative to the blade tang. This allows the cutting edge to sit properly on the rear skate.

Regards from Italy

 

 

 Saturday was supposed to rain and turn to snow. That didn't happen but sunday around dinner time the snow came. It looked like fluffy stuff and when I peeked outside in the AM about 4 inches had fallen. I had gotten up early to shovel the driveway so I could go for my monday breakfast. When I got back from breakfast I finished shoveling the driveway and the front walk. That wiped me slick and I didn't get to the shop until after lunch.

winter wonder land

The snow I had to shovel is what we call in these parts here about, heart attack snow. It was heavy, wet, and packed together. Every other shovel half of it would stick. Made shoveling a royal PITA.

wee bit of twist

Both the top and bottom had some twist I planed away. This is the taped miter experiment I started yesterday.

hmm......

I didn't like the uneven stick out on both ends. I made this end the same as the other end - 3/8".

bottom on

I need another box like I need a third eye in the middle of my forehead. I'll ask the wife if she needs it and if not, I'll toss it into the boneyard.

2nd part of yesterday's experiment

I'm using the extra stock I made for the bead moldings. 3/4" x 5/16" which is way smaller then experiment #1 stock. 

pit stop

I had to sharpen the iron in the LN 51 because the iron was chipped. This is an O1 iron which I prefer over A2. This one I can sharpen on my diamond stones.

hmm......

Gluing the second one. On the first one when I rolled it up the tape wasn't fully secured to each piece. On the 2nd one I pressed the tape down on each piece to ensure it was fully adhered.

better

Happy with how well the blue tape closed up the miters. Much better then how the blue tape did on the super glued miters.

not bad

This is the super glued miters and they look pretty good. No gaps to speak of and the frame is square.

super glue sucks

When I removed the tape on the super glued frame, it came apart like it wasn't glued at all. I hadn't sized the miters before applying the super glue. Glued it back together with super glue and taped it shut again.

done

The miters looked about the same as the first set. However, this is why I don't like super glue for joinery. It can not handle any stress to the joints. I have tried several different types of super glues and all of them failed the same way. 

got curious

I sawed a new 45 on my Poor Man's miter box and clamped it up off the saw. Not pretty but it also isn't ugly. The miters are open (to varying degrees) on all four miters. This is something I should have done yesterday but didn't. I don't think this would survive being glued with yellow glue.

hmm......

Used the chisel, shaving the miters a wee bit, and checking the fit. The bottom right miter improved as did the other three.

happy with this

It took 4 trim and checks before I got to this. I find this acceptable - the miters are decent looking without any glaring gaps.

super glued frame

The tape didn't pull the miters apart as I removed it. The miters feel secure and they survived the shake test.

hmm....

This miter is flexing on this side. It is tight on the opposite face. It took nothing to twist the miter apart.

needed help

I don't know why I'm wasting so much time trying to glue this frame with super glue. This is the final time I'll be gluing it - the next failure will be free flying lessons right into the shop shitcan.

shellac work

Got four coats on the bottom of the cleat and I'll get 3 on the top of it. Two coats on the new box with one more to go. I plan on returning after dinner to finish this two.

Did more searching for a Stanley #59 decal and nada. Instead I bought 5 Stanley Tools decals from ETSY.  Bought five because one was $2.15 and S/H was $2.99. Same S/H for five decals.

accidental woodworker

Since finishing the fourth floor of the barn fifteen years ago I’ve used that space for a lot of things; a meeting /presentation space for Groopshop,  a video studio, a classroom, a Gragg chair workshop.  With the demise of my teaching schedule here the function of the space has (d)evolved into primarily storage especially for extra workbenches and such.  Over the years I’ve probably moved benches from the main floor to the fourth floor (and back) a dozen times or more, using my compound block-and-tackle hand hoist.

But here’s the part where the story gets very mysterious.

Somehow the benches gained weight over the years, and I was at the point where hoisting them by hand was problematic.  What was once no big deal is now a very big deal.  And, since in recent months I’ve been reorganizing and reducing the contents of the main floor, I was faced with the task of hoisting several benches up and out of the way.

Hmmm.

The solution?  Buying and installing a Harbor Freight power winch.   Their smallest 120v plug-in model was more than adequate.  I bolted the winch unit to a 2×8 then lag-screwed the 2×8 into a number of the 2×6 rafters.  The new system works perfectly and moving heavy things up and down to the barn attic is now a piece o’ cake.

 Yesterday I thought was done, complete. nothing left to do with the Stanley #59 box. I was wrong. Last night after dinner I had  got the last coat of shellac on. This AM when I inspected the box and lid I saw some boo boos I had to address.

loaded up is next

The last shellac coat was dry. No stickiness but before I loaded it up and found a hole to stick it in, I eyeballed it one last time.

sigh

All the corners on the lid and bottom had waterfall drips. They were visible in raking light and set off my OCD alarm. Steel wool didn't touch them - it just smoothed them. I used a small card scraper to remove them and slapped another coat of shellac on the box.

now it's done (one hour later)

Now it is 100% complete. I double, triple eyeballed the corners and declared them all drip free. BTW that is not a gap between the lid and the bottom.

chamfers

I planed a small chamfer on the lid and bottom. There was (still there) a small defect in one of the plywood edges on the bottom. The chamfer hid it and the two unify the joint line between the lid and bottom.

japanese toolbox

I took inventory in the boneyard because I'm thinning the herd and bringing the excess to my sister Kam. I don't like the look of the locking cleat.

yikes

I don't remember this being this askew. It is in an inch at the top and it sticks out at the bottom over 2 inches. I don't remember this being this much out of whack when I finished it a few months back.

sigh

Made a replacement cleat but I got the angle wrong. The cleat is tapered and angled top to bottom and it is also handed. Unfortunately for me, I made it for the wrong hand.

done

When I made the 2nd one I kept eyeballing the original to make sure I did the taper and angle correctly.

hmm......

The cleat extends about the same on both ends. Unsure about whether or not to flush them. It doesn't look to bad to me and it gives something to whack to set or remove the cleat. I've got time to think about it while I apply shellac to it.

step one

Decided to try an experiment to satisfy my curiosity. First step is mitering four pieces of pine.  The pine is too tall for my poor man's miter box so I sawed them this way.

love seeing this string

I started with 1/2" thick stock but a one board was thicker than the other one. Ran a knife line and planed the two boards down to them. I had to redo the boards to  3/8" because I planed a taper on one of the boards. Didn't expect to be this rusty planing the boards to thickness.

finishing the miters

The miters don't look that bad off the saw. I am getting better but I still need a ways to go yet. I saw Paul Sellers saw 45's at the Springfield woodworking show and they were a perfect 90 when put together. That is a goal of mine that I hope to reach someday.

hmm......

Not there yet but this is close. I should have but didn't, try clamping it with a band clamp to see how it looked. 

cleaned up

Miters, cleaned up and smoothed.

the experiment

I have seen miters glued and clamped up this way on YouTube for years. Two inch wide tape and the stock is 1 7/8" wide. I sized the miters before I applied the final glue and taped it shut.

the experiment failed

I pulled the tape as hard as I could. It was square, I checked each corner both ways and all were square. However, there were gaps in the miters. None of the corners, top or bottoms, were tight. I had to clamp it to fully close the miters.

Maybe this experiment was too ambitious so I'll try it again. Although I have seen bigger tape jobs than mine on YouTube. I'll try it again with smaller and thinner width pieces. Might do two of them because along with yellow glue I have seen  super glue used too.

accidental woodworker 

I was going through my tool collection yesterday when I stumbled on this little plane. It looks like any other coffin smoother with a convex sole until I took it apart to look at the blade.

When looking at the back side of the plane, you can see where there is a screw mechanism to advance the cap iron up and down.

I took a brad awl and stuck it in the hole spinning the screw all the way down  hoping I could remove the cap iron, but it didn’t work. My thread got stuck underneath the nut and I couldn’t turn it anymore.

Then, as luck would have it, when I wiggled the cap iron a little bit, it came loose off the blade. My tool oil I used must have loosened up the rust that has been sitting in the blade for decades. You can see a little nib at the top of the blade where  the cap iron mechanism lays into.

The plane was made by some French company but I can’t read the name. ACIER FONDU is cast steel in French.

The body of the plane looks to be made from oak. Quite possibly French Oak made by the original owner as you can still see the knife marks on the side where he was marking where to cut out the inside of the plane.

This is a really neat plane that I have ever seen anything like before. The owner may have used it on making wine barrels, but who knows?

After posting this post, I did find an image of this plane from a French website. The maker of the plane is Aux Mines De Suede as it has the same cap iron mechanism.

I did a Google search on Aux Mines De Suede and found a downloadable PDF file of their catalog. Interesting tools in it.

 

bushing block

I determined the height of the block by how little would stick out and I could still grab and remove any of the bushings. I ripped the block to that and glued on a piece of 1/8" plywood to the bottom.

I waited

I had gone back to the shop after dinner and I resisted the urge to unclamp it. I was a good boy and waited until now.

done

Ripped the lid off with my rip carcass saw. I had one little glitch that bit me on the arse later. Wandered off the cut line and I had to plane the lid to flatten and straighten it out.

sigh

The jig and the bushing block don't fit side by side. I need the width to be 3/4" wider to account for the thumbscrew on the left.

depth stop

At least where I planned to put the depth stop had plenty of real estate. 

keepers

At this point the plan was to finish this box and make a new, wider one for the #59. These keepers will be glued to the inside of the lid.

serendipity

It fits this way. I had put the jig back in the box to set it aside and found this. The thumb screw extends a wee bit into the bushing block, but it fits. I had thought of removing the thumbscrew but that would have meant having two more things to stow in the box along with the jig body.

hmm.......

I'm ignoring the thumbscrew intrusion and instead focusing on the depth stop. I had space for it in the corner but not enough for a 1/2" dowel to put it over on. I notched a block to hold the jig secure and then a half round (7/8") to secure the depth stop. I like this, it is compact and all parts are secure. Nothing is rattling around. 

dry fit

I mitered the keepers in place. I found out that mitered corners work better then butt joints. One corner had a gap due to a short length keeper. I glued a piece of veneer in the gap closing it.

done except for the shellac

Got the lid to fit in both orientations. I had to sand the outside face of the keepers to loosen up the fit. It was too snug before I did that.

shut out

Does anyone know of where I could get a decal or tag like the one on the box? Doesn't have to be an exact match to the color and the lettering and numbers. I'm open to a rework of the label as long as it has Stanley, #59, and Dowel Jig. And I'll pay in US dollars.

doesn't fit

The instructions didn't fit in the new box no matter which way I tried. I think the use of the jig is intuitive and doesn't need instructions. I'll keep them in the original cardboard box.

still working

The Bim Bam movement is still counting out the hours and the time keeping matches the shop's digital clock. The hour count is still sounding with the minute hand at 6 o'clock. I'll get back to this next week. I wanted to plane the cherry today but there was rain and snow in the forecast for today and tomorrow.  As I'm typing this no rain or snow has fallen yet. Should have done it.

99% done

Got four coats of shellac on the box but it still isn't shiny. I'll go back to the shop after dinner and get the 5th and final coat, shine or not. It is just a shop box and 5 will be the charm.

accidental woodworker 

For the mini chest of drawers that I recently completed, I struggled to decide what type of drawer handles to use.  Eventually I chose small wood handles that angled on each side and had a tenon to fit into a mortise in the drawer face.  After making a couple of one-off prototypes to figure out sizing, I decided on a shape I liked.

The prototypes - one sticks out 3/8", the other 1/2"

I needed four of these handles.  Sometimes when making small parts like this, it makes more sense to make them all from one stick of wood, then cut them apart.  You can get greater consistency between parts, and it's far safer and easier to work with a longer stick of wood.

A 5/16" thick, 1" wide stick laid out for 6 handles. Always good to make extras just in case.

Routed out dadoes which will be tenons later

Then removed the tenon sides

I used this "stop" to chisel a bevel on the wide sides (top and bottom of handle)

You can see the beveled shape with the piece on edge

Then I used the stop again to bevel the edges (sides) of each handle

The tenon areas were made longer than needed so that I could cut the tenons off at the length I wanted (1/4") and still have some cleanup to do on a shooting board to get the next handle ready.

Cutting off a handle with 1/4 long tenon

That leaves the next handle with extra material ...

... that I remove safely on the shooting board

The tenons were just over 3/16" thick and they fit nicely into mortises chopped into the drawer fronts.

One handle fitted

The moral of the story is this.  When making multiples of small parts, it makes sense to lay them out on a stick much larger than needed for a single piece.  It's easier to lay out this way, safer to do the cutting, and the repeatability is probably better, too.

After more than a month being out of commission, between family gatherings and what my dear old Dad would call “the epizootic,” as of yesterday I am back in full swing.  Not quite full strength and speed, but that will come with ongoing activity.

I am now fully caught up with all my orders of polissoirs, waxes, and videos.  Interestingly, for the first time in many years I got zero orders for Christmas gifts (the buyers always tell me).  I’m looking forward to getting my PayPal annual statement, I am expecting that this past year I only sold half as many as the year before.  Perhaps the market is saturated.  Given that at this point it is just barely even a hobby I am fine with that.  In looking backward, I noticed that the shipping/postage costs for my first order more than a decade ago was $2.97, padded mailer included.  My latest per unit shipping cost is now approaching $8 for padded envelope and postage.  Good thing it is not a growing enterprise on which I am pinning my retirement hopes!

At the moment my greatest concern is my supply.  My broom maker has also been under the weather and unable to make any new inventory since the beginning of November.  If this continues, I’ll soon be out of stock.  Fortunately, I spoke to him this week and he is confident he can be back in his own shop in a week or so.

Wish him well. Perhaps now he will take me and his wife seriously when we implore him to train a successor.

‘

 I am not somebody who gives a rat's ass about original boxes tools came in. I have the original box for my Stanley #59 along with the instructions for it. Today I made a new, wooden box for it. I'll put the original instructions in the new wooden box and I'll save the original box. I've seen Stanley boxes for sale on eBay for high prices that seem to sell real quick. I just hope who ever gets my workshop doesn't shit can the empty boxes I have - a mix of Stanley and Lie Nielsen.

final prep

Sanded the poster frame, first the wood putty on the nails, and then the frame itself on both sides.

done

Ready for milk paint. A little hesitant about making it. There are a lot of variables with milk according to the author. Before I go pissing away $$$ on milk I'll do a wee bit more research.

hmm....

My wife wants this corner of the boneyard for a reading room. I'm thinking of taking down the beach painting and putting the wood post frame there. The bigger headache is where am I going to put all the crappola I have in the boneyard?

wee bit off

Using 6mm plywood to make the box for the Stanley #59. The miters don't line up at the toes - one is a wee bit longer than the other.

shop computer is back

Got it up and running. Ubuntu is different then Linux Mint but I am slowly working my way around the OS. It is going to be a few days before I get used to having this one to look at. Here I'm watching the Wrist Watch Revival YouTube channel. 

correct sequence

Miter the corners first and then do the groove for the top and bottom. No blowout on the grooves or the exit. I made the bottom groove a few frog hairs higher than than the top groove is down. Concerned about the weight of the #59 bearing on a thin web of plywood.

checking

Making sure that there is sufficient room for the jig. Nothing will ruin your day quicker than being a frog hair too short. That over sight has bit me on arse more than once.

double, triple checking

I think I dodged the big one, but not by much. I accounted for the top and bottom panels but not for the lid separation. I think I'm ok but my spatial ability lives in a shit can.

glued and cooking

The top and bottom panels were snug fitting and they could have kept the box together while the glue cooked. But to be safe, I used the band clamps top and bottom.

bit of a pain

In the Stanley cardboard box all the bushings were tossed in to roll around loose. Don't like that so I made this block to hold them. It was difficult to find the correct size drill bit to drill for each bushing. I used two metric drills, one for the 1/2" bushing and the other for the 3/8" one. Used imperial drill bits for the others. I was shooting for a 64th over the OD for each one.

hmm......

This is the depth stop and the id is a 1/2". I have a few ideas for securing this one but I need the box done first. I need see how much room there is in the corner I'm thinking of using for this.

hmm......

It has been over an hour since I glued this up but I'm not going to unclamp it now. It is mitered and I want them to stay clamped for a wee bit longer - till the AM at the earliest. I'll probably saw the lid off by hand because that will have the smallest kerf. The table saw kerf is a 1/8" and I don't trust the bandsaw to saw plumb

accidental woodworker 

Progressing in the discussion of mortise and tenon joinery, it is now time to bring in Domino.  Put simply, it is a way to make a pair of matching mortises into which is placed a manufactured tenon. Properly set up, it gives fast, precise mortising and an accurately fitting tenon. We all know Domino. I […]