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Jasmin Cottage, Totnes. Early 19th century grade 2 listed with later extensions. Masonry ground floor and timber frame first floor. Investigation of cracks in external, portland, cement render below and around upper left window. 

In a meeting with the lime renderer, it is discussed that it would be better to plan for removing an 8'/2.4m strip of cement render, around the window and down to the overhang above the downstairs window. This should facilitate examination and repair of the timber frame and subsequent re-rendering in lime. Obviously, it would be better to be re-rendering the whole elevation in lime, but there are financial constraints for the owners. Making some of this wall more breathable is taking this building in the right direction. A conversation with South Hams Conservation agrees this course of action.

It would seem sensible to go slowly with removing the render, as we really have no idea what lies beneath. A heat sensitive camera has been used but that has revealed nothing about the timber frame; there are no differences in surface temperature, across the wall.

The cracks.

Keyhole surgery.

It becomes clearer why the heat camera is showing us nothing. There is render, EML expanded metal lath (badly corroded), then tar paper/sarking then battens, then the frame with tightly packed fibreglass insulation in between. Gypsum plasterboard on the inside; perfect conditionsto rot the frame. That's a 3" screwdriver up to the hilt.

Oh dear, oh dear! Fortunate that Rivers Joinery are here.

Dec. 7.

 Who knew there was a wolf hiding in this elm tree in the back hedge? Call of the Wild.

There is the sanding and applying shellac yet to come but I'm calling it done. Posting about sanding/shellac application is like trying to jazz up watching water evaporate. I got the last holder thing glued and it will cook until tomorrow. Maybe by sunday I'll be ready to post the glamour pics. Stayed tuned to this bat channel for updates and pics on the late news.

last night

After dinner I came back to the shop and glued the edge guide holder in the lid. It was cold yesterday but the shop temp didn't dip below 61F with the high being 63F. Today it was colder - the high was 34F (1.1C) - but shop was still a toasty 63F.

checking the fit

It fit yesterday when I tested it and fingers crossed with it glued in place, that it still would fit. The only obstacle I can see is maybe the wrench holder might stick out enough to hit it.

new home?

Trying to place where the guide bushing will reside on the lid. With it here the router won't be in the way as this will fall down towards the front edge of the box.

a big sigh

On the plus side the epoxy set up and it set like a rock. On the flip side of the coin (the brain fart side) I switched the screws. The one for the guide bushing belonged in the circular edge guide holder. I'll have to redo it but luckily I have a correct length 1/4-20 screw.

nope

I wasn't expecting this work and it didn't. It was a light tap, tap, tap effort but the epoxy held nonetheless.

bonus

This is left over from the first circular edge guide holder I made yesterday. More than enough to whack out a 2nd one.

done (ubiquitous blurry pic)

I super glued the sides to the body and used hide glue to secure it to the lid.

wasn't laying flat

There is a raised ridge on the right U shaped leg so the washer wasn't laying flat. I filed a facet on it so it would lay flat on the U shaped legs.

hmm......

I liked placing the circular guide holder here but I needed to ensure that  some part of the router wasn't going to shake hands with it.

more white 5 min epoxy

It sets within 5 mins, sands in one hour, and reaches full strength in 24hrs or more depending upon temp etc. It does sand after an hour without gumming up the sandpaper.

six bits

Decided to make a storage rack for the 6 router bits that came with the router.

drilling the holes

I used a 17/64 drill bit for the 1/4" shank router bits. That is a sufficient amount of wiggle room - I haven't had any problems using this size hole with other bits.

I'm an idiot

I used dividers to step off what I thought was six holes. Turns out it was seven and I should have left it but I sawed it off. Thought of keeping it as I sawed it off.

last check

I had the edge guide, the guide busing, and the circular guide all glued in. Last time to ensure the lid closed and nothing was hanging up on anything. Everything passed. I set this aside to let the circular guide cook and set up.

they gotta go

I've been looking at these two drawers and especially so the right one, while I made the dresser and the router box. They are still bugging me big time. I can't get past the huge gaps on the right drawer so these two are history with replacements to come.

the replacements

Going again with continuous grain left to right or right to left. It just depends on how you look at them.

hand thicknessing

Too much trouble to run one piece through the lunchbox planer. I will start by establishing a reference face and edge. I criss crossed it twice and went straight across twice before I checked it for any twist.

took a few dance steps

The far right and lower left corners were high. Chipped away at it until it went bye-bye.

stickered

I'll let this hang out until tomorrow and give it a chance to do any stupid wood tricks. I don't expect any but I'll give it all the the rope it needs.

lid residents

The circular guide on the right needs to cook and set up. The current shop temp was still a toasty 63F so it shouldn't hinder that. I put a 1/8" spacer between it and the side of the box. It didn't need the clearance but there is some wiggle room.

I didn't get much PM time because my wife and I went out for lunch. After that we strolled around Garden City for a couple of hours doing some xmas shopping. I rewarded myself with some Sweenor's chocolates to have the stamina to do all that walking and waiting. I am now almost done with my xmas shopping. I just have to get one more thing for my wife and something for the grandkids.

accidental woodworker

A book review this week. More accurately, a thinly disguised chance to boast. I’ve been waiting for this book for a long time. Dutch Tool Chests is a book Fitzpatrick has been talking about on and off for years. When I built my mini Dutch tool chest it was based off Fitzpatrick’s article in Fine Woodworking. I read every article and watched every video I could get my hands on before building it. Given the volume of material I have ingested on the topic, I believed this book would serve as a nice one stop shop on the topic, but would not teach me much new.

Wedged Mortise and Tenon Joinery Last week I covered cutting the box joints and mortises for this keyaki tabi-dansu, and this week we’re continuing on with the wedged mortise and tenon joints. Since I laid out and cut all the mortises by hand, the location and size of each became somewhat unique. So I decided… Read More »Keyaki Tabi-dansu 2

The post Keyaki Tabi-dansu 2 appeared first on Big Sand Woodworking.

If you follow the blog at all (or my new BlueSky handle: @aptwoodworker.bsky.social), you know I build a fair amount of workbenches. In fairness, it’s been a while since I’ve built one for myself. But I have some exciting news: I am making one more workbench, before hanging up my cleats forever. This new bench […]

The time was fast approaching when I could button up the wire frame tunnel, wrapping it with the 6mil greenhouse plastic.

First, concurring with reader EarlM, I secured al the wireframe panel edges with hog rings along the joints.  Yes, zip ties are not what was ultimately needed but sufficed for the initial assembly, but the metal hog rings were necessary for the long haul.  Addressing the issue of stable edge joints was paramount as the ongoing vibrations of wind against the wire/plastic would eventually breach the film membrane.  Not good.  However should that ever occur I can repair it with special tape made for that purpose.

And speaking of tape, I decided to cover the edges and hog rings with Ace Hardware store brand heavyweight packing tape.  It is not very good for packing cardboard boxes but really excelled at this application.  Two layers of the thick transparent tape had me ready for the final step of this episode — draping the whole thing with the plastic film and affixing said film to the edges of the wooden structure.

I’d arranged for my friend Boyd to come over to help, and he was a great help with excellent ideas on how to actually do the task.

I spent the next few hours tacking down the edges to secure the lid.  Not all of it was aesthetically exquisite, but it has been holding fast through some pretty fierce winds already.

 

It’s beginning to look a lot like greenhouse, just in time for Christmas.

Dec. 6.

 I rolled out of the rack early today with the intention of gathering up yard waste to get it curbside. When I looked outside, I saw that it had snowed overnight. I thought that was great because the forecast said rain overnight. By the time I got outside I found that it was raining and the snow was mostly all slush. That nixed the yard waste idea and I starting working on the sudoku puzzle from yesterday. It was kicking my butt and the current one is the 5th time I printed it out and started over again.

holder for the trim router

This was the 5th option and the one I'm going with. This is just to contain the router in the box so it doesn't rattle around when it is picked up and moved about. It is a simple box sans a bottom. It is rabbeted and I would have done dovetails but this is 6mm plywood. My two previous attempts dovetailing plywood were dismal failures.

two other failures

The four other options that failed revolved around me trying to make a cradle for the top and bottom ends. I couldn't orient myself with especially the top - it has weird rounds and moves off into other shapes/angles. I kept sawing the round parts in the wrong axis - instead of this one being horizontal I should have done it vertically. I doubt I would have been happy with it whether I sawed it correctly or not.

glued and cooking

I put spacers in this because the clamps were bowing in the long sides. I did the half moon cutout to facilitate getting the router in/out of it.

small wrench

Started playing with where to put this and stopped myself. If I hadn't I would probably be still obsessing about its placement.

1/8" plywood

The wrench is a  frog hair less thick than the plywood. It is a slip fit pulling and putting it in the holder. I still don't know what this small wrench is for.

put a back on it

I didn't need the back for this to work. I put a back on so I could glue the holder to the box with hide glue. This way I can remove it for whatever reason in the future.

big wrench holder

I really wanted to put the big wrench vertical but the height of the box is about 3/4" short. This was placed horizontally on the front of the box. I put a front and back on the big wrench like I did for its smaller sibling.

all stop

I was opening the box and the lid got away from me fell. It didn't rip the hinges out and I immediately stopped everything and installed a chain fall. 

it fits

I made this box about and 1/8" bigger in the length and the width. I glued it in the box with hide glue.

nope

I really liked the big wrench here. It would be secure and out the way. However, I tried it and I didn't like it. It wasn't as easy to get out as I thought it would be.

2nd spot

I like this for being out of the way but the router/holder is too close. It will throw me into a tizzy fit if I have to fumble to get this out or put it back.

space hog

This takes up a lot of real estate in a couple of planes. This one had to be placed first and I temporarily attached it with super glue so I could close the lid.

good feeling

The edge guide doesn't interfere with the closing/opening of the lid. I got my happy face on here.

1/4-20 brass RH screw

I wanted to use a carriage bolt here and chisel out a recess for the head. ACE didn't have any in the size I wanted so I used this.

which one will win?

This box is big enough to warrant a handle of some kind on the top. I thought of side mounted handles but it isn't big enough for that.

the brass one won

The top panel is only 6mm thick and I don't want to attach the handles with screws, nuts, and washers. I glued a 1/2" thick block to the top so I would have some meat to screw into.

oval head screws

I didn't want to rely solely on the glue bond so I added 3 screws. I swapped out the middle oval head screw and put in a flat head. That is where the edge guide holder was going.

might as well

Added the catch for the lid. I'll remove it and the handle when I apply the shellac

cooking

I preferred placing these on the sides but that wasn't working. I think I have enough real estate to put a block to hold the router bits that came with the router. Currently they are residing in drawer #1.

hmm.......

Time to make another trip to ACE. I didn't have any 5min epoxy and I also needed another 1/4-20 screw and wing nut. I need the epoxy to fill in around the screw so it won't turn when I tighten a wing nut on it.

the easiest one

This is the only guide bushing that came with this router. I don't ever see myself using it but I'll find spot to put it in the box.

done

I got holders for everything now. It is just a matter of gluing them where they will reside in the box. I am going to try and get all 3 of these fitted into the top of the lid.

it is white

I got all three of the screws for each of the holders epoxied in place. This is a marine epoxy and the blurb said it was stronger than normal 5min epoxy. This was probably overkill but hopefully I won't ever have to worry about the screw spinning as I tighten the wing nuts on them. 

I wasn't expecting white and this is the first I've seen this epoxy in this color. I was expecting it to be clear but it doesn't matter here. Once the holders are glued in place no one will ever see this.

accidental woodworker

Back in August or September, I found a few interesting things at two estate sales.  The combined haul was not huge, but included an almost complete set of auger bits, a 10" brace, an 18" auger bit extension, 3 chisels and some used and unused hacksaw blades.

The modest haul was still worth the time

This post will cover the boring tools and a follow-up post will cover the chisels.

The auger bits comprised an almost complete mixed-maker set.  They were all fairly rusty, but they cleaned up nicely using the rust removal formula I wrote about a couple months ago.  There was at least one bit that was too far gone to be useable - it's cutting spurs were bent horribly and there wouldn't have been enough left to be functional if I had filed them smooth.  A couple others had spurs that were about even with the cutting lips, so I filed the cutting lips down to allow the spurs to score wood before the lips would start removing material.  Filing the lips that much is not optimal, but at least they'll cut a hole now.  And if I'm careful, the hole will be reasonably clean.  Here are the sizes and makers or markings (a slash "/" denotes different lines of markings):

• 3/16     No markings  (unusual size - not sure I've seen one before)
• 4/16     ACRABORE / TAYLOR-GUEDE / MADE IN U.S.A.
• 4/16     RUSSELL JENNINGS
• 6/16     CLEAN CUT / TRADEMARK
• 6/16     No markings
• 6/16     GILMORE SPECIAL  (This one is beyond restoring)
• 7/16     ACRABORE / TAYLOR-GUEDE / MADE IN USA
• 8/16     IRWIN / USA
• 9/16     GREENLEE / ROCKFORD ILLINOIS / MADE IN USA / No. 22
• 10/16   IRWIN - U.S. of A.
• 13/16   GREENLEE / ROCKFORD ILLINOIS / MADE IN USA / No. 22
• 14/16   THE JAMES SWAN CO. / SEYMORE CT, U.S.A.
• 15/16   THE JAMES SWAN CO. / SEYMORE CT, U.S.A.
• Small Expansive Bit (Small Cutter Only)   CLARK / CONVALCO / EXPANSIVE / U.S.A.
• Large Expansive Bit (Long Cutter Only)   HSB & CO. / OUR VERY BEST

The missing sizes were 5/16", 11/16", 12/16" and 1".  By coincidence, I found a C. E. JENNINGS & CO. No 10, 11/16" bit in great condition at a garage sale within a couple weeks of finding these.

The former owner had made this neat holder from a big chunk of wood

A few of these bits needed remedial attention.  They hadn't been taken care of and had a hard life.

The Gilmore Special 3/8" bit looked like it had been down a kitchen sink "dispose-all".  The spurs are hopelessly dubbed over and the lead screw threads were beyond repair.

The 1/2" Irwin - USA bit was in rough shape.  The left spur has been filed here, the right spur is dubbed over and is next up for filing.

Because I had to file the spurs down, the cutting lips also needed to be filed so they wouldn't start cutting until after the spurs engage. Not optimal, but it does work now.

Here's the lot of them, all cleaned up

The smaller of the two expansive bits was a Clark.  I'd never seen one so small.  It can bore holes from about 1/2" to 1" diameter.  The expansive bits I'd seen previously were for boring holes larger than a typical set of 1/4" to 1" diameters.  I'm guessing that this bit was made for people who didn't want to buy a full set of bits.

The Clark (below) and the H.S.B (above)

There is a problem with the Clark bit.  The spur on the moveable arm is bent inward a little.  This means that it might get stuck in a cut because the top of the spur cuts a smaller diameter than the rest of the spur will fit into.  I tried to straighten the spur, but didn't get it much better, if at all - I was too worried about breaking off the top of the spur.

You can see the problem in this picture. Note how the tip of the spur bends in a little.

I tried tapping the spur to get it to proper shape, to no avail. I may try to heat it to make it more malleable and then tap it.

The larger expansive bit is from Hibbert, Spencer and Bartlett and it will cut holes like all the other expansive bits I've seen: about 1 3/4" to 3".  The smaller cutting arm was not present.  The spur on the main body is a bit short - about at the same level as the cutting lip on the main body.  But it will still cut a hole because the spur on the moveable arm is plenty long.

The business end of the HSB expansive bit

I've sharpened both of these bits and they'll cut, but they could be better.

The auger bit extension that I found looks like it was user-made.  There is no maker's mark, it's not exactly straight and an auger bit just fits in the end with no locking mechanism at all.  It was really rusty as found, but I cleaned the rust off and it looks better.

The auger bit extension

The business end - looks to be hand forged

Probably hammered around another auger bit's square tapered shank

A defect

I bought this because recently when making a chair, I couldn't fit my other bit extensions through a 5/8" hole in the arm to bore a hole in the seat.  My other bit extensions have diameters of 11/16" where they hold an auger bit.  But this one has a diameter of about 9/16", so it would have worked in that instance.  Too bad I found it a couple weeks too late!

The 9/16" extension above, 11/16" extension below

Lastly, there is this 10" sweep brace.  I still need to clean it up, but I can tell that it'll clean up easily and work perfectly.  I don't know anything about this brand.

It's marked: MOHAWK    MADE IN U.S.A. SHELBURNE          NO. 1710

I can see the ball bearings in this ring below the handle

That's it for this post.  Next time I'll write about the chisels - they were quite interesting.

I’ve been busy, but not in-the-shop busy these days. Recent fall seasons I’ve made several carved boxes for sale – but this year I have one – and won’t have time for another before the end of December. I’ve written a bit about it on my substack blog – but the details are these. I’m selling this one through a silent auction method – send me an email with the subject “carved box” – bids start at $1,000. I usually sell these boxes for $1,500 – I’ll take bids until Sunday 8pm eastern time. Then I’ll send a note to the winner. Shipping is through USPS – runs between $50-200 depending on distance from Massachusetts. My email is PeterFollansbee7@gmail.com

H: 8 1/2” W: 24 3/4” and depth 14 3/4″. Linseed oil finish.

There’s a carved panel for sale at the same time – details here: https://peterfollansbeejoinerswork.substack.com/p/carved-box-and-panel-for-sale

Maureen and Rose have updated the etsy site – Maureen’s knitting and Rose’s crochet-ing. They have more than 2 items for sale – in case someone in your life is looking for textiles

The link is here – https://www.etsy.com/shop/MaureensFiberArts

Woodworking next time…

Dec. 5.

 The box is coming along nicely. So far I haven't said oops and nothing has gone south neither. I'm at the part where I need to fit the router and the goodies inside of it. I'm going to try and not vacillate like I did with the Dowel Max fitting.

ready to unclamp

I came back to the shop last night to check on this. I was mostly concerned with the temp in the shop - it was 61F (16C) - so the hide glue wasn't going to freeze.

gap

I hit this tail with the plywood and the mallet to separate it after a dry fit yesterday. When I hit this tail I dented it and it didn't swell shut with the glue. I'll fill in this gap with pine wood putty. I got lucky that this was the lone tail that had a hissy fit.

slant lid line

There is no way that I could find where I split the tails evenly. I neither got shorted like this and the opposite end was split or vice versa.

just as bad

I thought this line was flatter but it came out parallel to the top one with it being about an inch lower.

the back

The tails and pins wouldn't have had sufficient meat after sawing the slant which would be roughly at 45 to the face. If I do this box again I'll have to factor in the how I split the pins/tails. They are going to have to be a lot bigger than the ones I did on this box.

teeny bit of twist

I planed the twist away and than I flushed the top 360. I did this first because I am using the top as my reference to mark the lid saw off line.

lid sawn

Went with a flat lid but I'm determined to make a slant top lid. I had planned to saw off the slant lid with the Ryobi saw and a 45 guide.

good enough

I planed the two edges (T&B) smooth and then planed them 360 to even/straighten them out. I didn't go nutso making the joint line invisible 360 - just till the front and side joint lines closed up. 

last one

Initially I was going to plug the holes (8 of them) with walnut but decided on pine. This is a shop box and it doesn't need to advertise plugs for the through grooves.

Along with plugging the holes I had to shim the top/bottom half pins. 7 of them had gaps that I filled with veneer. Only one was gap free.

last defect to fix

The hardest part of this was trying to dig out the waste so this would fit and have something to glue to.

hinges

I wanted to use a piano hinge on this but the 3 short ones I had were too long. Used a pair of butt hinges from ACE. They are decent but they are still too soft. It is way too easy to deform them when tightening the screws.

a left over gap

Didn't dawn on me until I was flushing this that I did it wrong. The end grain should have been facing up and not on the sides. It was gap free on the dry fit so the clamp must have shifted it when I tightened it.

transferring hinge location

Fussed with this for a while trying to equalize the top fit on the bottom. I would get it flush on one side and it would be off on the opposite side. Finally got it and nicked the bottom and installed the hinges.

survived

The hinges didn't come out perfect. The front top is shy of the bottom on the left. The lid is just a frog hair or two skewed. I can push it flush but it won't stay. There is too much slop in the hinges. I'm going to leave it as is and plane/sand the T&B flush on the sides and the front.

I am going to try and get everything in the box with the exception of the router bits. The top drawer of my 4 drawer cabinet has my herd of them. I'll have to drill a few more holes to stow them.

edge guide holder thing

This was the easy part and it was something I thought of doing even before I made the box. I plan on stowing it in the lid. I looked at it and I think I will clear the router in the bottom. That is going to be a PITA to do. I have already made and shit canned two options. I'll start on #3 in the AM.

should be ok

The plan is to glue the holder here and position the router so that when lid closes, the edge guide clears it (will protrude about a 1/4-1/2" into the bottom). From eyeballing it I couldn't see any road blocks with that. I'll find out in the AM.

accidental woodworker

About a month ago I wrote a post about laying out this walnut bowl to account for the shrinking that would come with drying. Well, I got lucky and it dried pretty close to a circle, but there was still … Continue reading →

Dec. 4.

I go the box together today and I wasn't expecting that. I usually plan on getting a lot more than I actually do. I hadn't really thought much about it and I just starting today working on it. I think it might be done by the weekend. (will this bite me on the arse?)

came last night

The wooden nails came from the Lost Art Press xmas guide. There have been a few times where I wanted to use 'wooden nails' and my smallest Miller Dowels were still too big. I thought I had another bag of larger nails coming but I missed putting them on the order. Don't know now if I need them or if I just wanted them because they were available.

The pry bar caught my eye and I like the size of this one. Supposedly it is a scraper along with being able to pull nails and lever things. I am still looking for a mini cat's paw - I lost mine a while ago.

happy face on

Both boards look like they did when I killed the lights yesterday. Glad they behaved but I was expecting to see stupid wood tricks.

only one glamour shot

The Dowel Max storage dresser is 100% done. 5 coats of shellac and a final rub down with Howard's Feed 'n Wax. This is where it will live for now but I may rearrange things on this cabinet and the 4 drawer unit to the right at a later date.

a first for me

I haven't made grooves for any purpose before I did dovetails before. Today I plowed the grooves for the top and bottom panels right after I sized the box parts.

too tight

I know the plywood is 6mm - I bought it from WoodCraft. The iron is 6mm and the panel doesn't fit. I remember it fitting the first time I used it but it being snug. I dealt with the fit later.

tails done

The half pins on the ends are the largest I have ever done. I did it that way so the half pin contained all of the groove.

hmm.......

A knot that fell out. I tried to work around it trying to place it within a pin socket but I gave up on it. I will fill in the void after the box is glued up. The only headache was laying on the slant of the pin. I was able to nick the front and back and when I sawed it I lined them up eye.

pins laid out

I got to this step just before lunch. In the PM session I knifed the baselines, sawed the verticals, and chopped the pins.

double, triple checking

Making sure the router will fit. For whatever reason I thought I had switched the height and width measurements.

not too bad looking

I already knew that this pin fit. I did good lining up the back and front nicks when I sawed it.

easy fix

Fitting a dutchman in this will be easier than trying to do it on the top.

off the saw

I didn't have to trim anything and it was square when I checked the diagonals.

fitting the top/bottom

It was only 2-3 frog hairs difference I had to make up. I still wanted to have a snug fit - I don't want either panel moving once the box is glued up. I used my 120 grit sanding block to sand a chamfer on the edges until it fit in the groove.

oops

The second time in so many days I used my LN 98&99 side rabbet planes. The groove didn't line up at this corner with the other groove. It was off by a strong 32nd. There is no way I could move/adjust one panel into the grooves when the box was together so they had to line up 360.

the 2nd misalignment

I should have plowed the grooves after I had dry fitted the box. I plowed them before so I wouldn't nick any tails doing it after the chopping. In my favor is these two misalignments are kitty cornered from each other. I will make sure that the top and bottom panels are fitted into it these grooves first.

dry fitted

Got the fit of the top and bottom panels on the first try. The fit of everything was snug and breaking it apart was a nail biter. I had to use a block of wood to separate the tail boards from the pins. I had to go slow and easy so I didn't dent the wood. Thankfully I only had to do these dance steps twice.

glued and cooking

Needed help closing up the tails. Two of them have some damage from me hitting them to separate. I'll have to wait until the AM to see whether or not I'll have to shim them.

I don't think I'm going to be able to do a slant top lid on this. I didn't do any before hand layout to account for it. I knew that and I was just going to go with whatever came from sawing it. But looking at what I have to work with I wasn't happy with what I perceived the slant lid would look like. I'll eyeball it again in the AM without the clamps.

I remembered

As I was killing the lights I saw the trim router and remembered to check the collet/router bit size. The router bits are all 1/4" shank. The imperial calipers were dead on a 1/4".

digital calipers

I would bet that this is close enough to call it a 1/4". I haven't used the router yet and other than the wonky wing nut, nothing else has go down the southern avenue of crappola.

accidental woodworker

My son and I were shooting sporting clays the other day and his 20ga Lefever Nitro Special (side by side) suddenly stopped closing correctly.  The forend was loose, and that prevents the gun remaining together when opened.  For safety, we stopped shooting it until we could figure out what was wrong. The the bottom rib […]

Since we have had a six-week stretch of amazingly beautiful weather, although to be truthful a day or two of rain would also be nice, I’ve taken some time to go strolling through the woods, trolling for firewood.  Here’s the standing inventory of firewood just awaiting harvest within about a hundred yards of the cabin or barn.  Expend the perimeter farther and the inventory grows proportionally.

Just above the site of the old shack, recently cleaned up and ready for bush hogging itself, is this cluster of trees from a storm last winter.  All tolled I think there are eight long trunks, each around a foot in diameter.  Definitely a couple little truck loads.  I think these were birches but will confirm with my chainsaw.

Along the same ridge line, about fifty yards above the cabin is this magnificent pair of locust trunks.  The tops were snapped off in a windstorm maybe three winters ago.  You can just barely make them out in the picture.  The trunk on the right is massive, perhaps a dozen feet or more in girth.  The one on the left is about eight feet in in girth.  Both will require the manly chainsaw of my pal Bob, who will come and fell them some time this winter.  If the wood is sound I might try to split them into fence rails.  If they are not good for that they will become most excellent firewood, probably two winters’ worth.

The tops of those two trees are laying scattered on the ground and I will harvest them in the coming weeks.  Since they are locust they could be downed for many years and still be good firewood.  This hunk is almost two feet in diameter.

Working west along the same ridge line about 100 yards from the cabin is this pair of mighty big trees, brought down in the same storm as the first cluster in this post.  All of the major trunks are 16″-18″ in diameter.  One is cherry, I cannot recall what the other one is.  Either way that is one honkin’ big pile of firewood.

Moving around to the hill up behind and within sight of the barn is another cornucopia of BTUs.  The first picture is of a maple, the second a cherry, and the trunks strewn about in the third picture are all locust.

I can hardly wait to turn my little chain saw loose on cutting all this up and stacking it in the staging area.  But it has to wait until I get all done with the greenhouse.

Christmas is just around the corner, and while I don’t celebrate it myself, I respect those that do. It’s a time for joy, family, and reflection, bringing people together to share in the festive spirit. To all who celebrate, I wish you a Merry Christmas filled with warmth, laughter, and happiness. May your holidays be safe, and your new year be bright. Cheers to embracing the season in whatever way brings you the most peace and joy!