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it fits

When I took the box out of the clamps it stayed together. I was half expecting it to fall apart because I used super glue to secure it.

gone

The box was twisted so badly that I didn't need the sticks to see it. Both the top and bottom were three lines twisted. It took 3 runs (top & bottom) to remove it.

the winner

I wanted to use the brass nails but they were fatter than the winners. I didn't want to risk splitting the thin stock. I predrilled for all the nails before driving them home.

bottom

Used 1/8" thick plywood for the bottom. Pencils, even with the boatload this will hold, isn't going to stress the bottom in the least.

hmm......

The one in my hand is too thin. I cut another piece of scrap pine in half and after planing it smooth it ended up about 5/16" thick.

filler

This is too fill in and add some strength to this spot. Without it was just unsupported 1/8" plywood and it would be prone to possibly breaking/splitting out.

sigh....

It was a 1/4" and in order to get it to fit I had to remove another 1/8".

screwed up

I thought it was too wide so I cut it down to 3/4". That was the me-steak. I should have stuck with the fixed batten being an inch wide. 

fits

There is about a 16th of wiggle room for dropping the lid in place.

locked in place

I think the 1/8" that is catching on the right side batten is sufficient. With the lid locked in place, I couldn't pull up and remove the lid.

fixed sliding batten

I am just using glue for securing it to the lid. I am leaving the clamps on until the AM. It is ready for finish and I have a model to build the next two of them.

came today

I had bought a set of these chisels years ago and when I took them out of the package they sliced my fingers up. None of the squared edges had been filed/chamfered. I sent them back and regretted that decision ever since. When LN sent me an email these were being made soon I asked to be notified. Bought them on sunday and they arrived today. 

These have had all the square edges relieved - nothing sharp and no blood letting this time. These aren't something that you need on a daily basis but when you do they sure are handy. I can feel an urge to make a french fitted box for them coming soon.

accidental woodworker

It started out as a red maple (Acer rubrum). The top half of the tree snapped off a month ago across the road. I hurried and started carving away on some of it. Maple doesn’t store well for long in … Continue reading →

If you’re into hand tool woodworking like I am, this next build is right up your alley. I’m making a custom book rack for a customer, packed with advanced joinery and thoughtful design. Watch along as I tackle the tricky bits and aim to keep everything looking clean and seamless.

We were thrilled to be included in Mortise & Tenon magazines Issue X, their 10th Anniversary special (and almost double-sized) issue. As we told M&T, 10 years in publishing is an impressive feat, especially in a field whose obituary had been written many, many times, challenged by increasingly short attention spans and the supposed yearning of all content to be free. M&Ts answer to the challenges of contemporary publishing has been the exact opposite of the conventional response - the magazine article as a hot take or a series of captions. Instead of summaries designed to entice the mainstream reader with attention span issues, M&T has offered erudite research on admittedly narrower topics related to woodworking.

In doing so, the magazine also created a sense of community among woodworkers who want to understand the best practices of woodworkings past and their own place in this realm. At the same time, the magazines beautiful physical presentation also conveyed a certain timelessness, durable enough for return reflection and discussion.

We were asked to explore the topic of The State of Woodworking in 2025, and provide some photographs to accompany the article. So along with the text, our article features some pictures of the new Gramercy Tools lathe and some catnip for fans of vintage shop tools.

We now have the magazine for sale in our showroom and online, and while these photos have gotten some attention, probably the biggest conversation starter is the photo of the miniature tools I made as a young lad. These tools were inspired by Eric Sloanes Museum of Early American Tools and are made of steel with boxwood handles. I used an X-ACTO saw, Dremel, a drill, files, and a tiny torch all obtained from local hobby and hardware stores. And yes, the tools all function!

Some of our customers have responded by sharing their miniature craftwork with us. Our friend Tony showed us the tiny ornaments he made, including one of his dog and another of himself. Merry Christmas!

If you are intrigued by the miniatures, it's worth seeking out Barbie's Woodshop instagram account - a truly wonderful site!.
Barbie was profiled for the in the Lost Art Press Blog by the great Nancy Hiller.

An article about Barbie is included in Quercus Issue 12.

A picture of my tools made it into M&T Issue X
My mini - doll house scale panel saw nested under a mid-19th century short 12" panel saw.

PS. Festool expects to apply an import fee on August 1, 2025. Buy before Festool applies an import fee.

 

nope

It has been a long time since I played around with motors. I used to experiment with any motor I could get my hands on. Learned a ton simply by combining wiring in groups just to see what would happen. Burned out a few motors and got a boatload working but that was in the dim past. I forgot that changing the line and neutral will not effect motor rotation. The field winding wires need to be reversed.

it's the blue one

Blue 5 swapped out for Blue 6. Duh.

hmm.....

Getting the two pulleys aligned with each other was a PITA. The small one caused all the headaches due to being attached to the motor. Gently persuading that I finally got it positioned by using a pry bar. Another Duh.

first cuts

The motor was singing a different tune than the original 1/2HP one. Sounded quieter and felt stronger in the cut. I didn't notice any hiccups sawing these two - a curve and a rip cut.

one more rip cut

I was expecting this rip to be quicker and easier. It was, just not up at the level I thought it would be.

Yikes

This sucks pond scum. One thing for sure I was expecting was for this 3/4HP motor to eat resawing for lunch. It didn't happen this time.

hmm......

I didn't check the blade blocks nor the thrust bearings - upper and lower both were out. Readjusted them and tried to resaw again.

with difficulty

This resaw was a chore to do. The blade bogged and going was slow. The two parts came out ok considering that they look like snot was blown all over them.

new blade

I had bought this one specifically for resaw. That is what I mainly use my bandsaw for. The blade on it now was obviously dull or a hop, skip, and a jump from that. Time to swap in a new one.

new blade going in

Got a bit confused taking out the old blade. I thought that I would have to remove the fence rail to get the blade out. FYI - it isn't in the way. Had to reset and adjust the blocks and bearings again. The original blade was 3/8" wide and this one is 1/2".

1" thick pine

The new test subject - first a rip cut and then resawing.

resaw

The rip cut went off like I expected it too. Quick, fast, and easy. The blade sailed through it like a hot knife through butter. The resaw behaved the same. Compared it to the previous resaw it was like night and day.

smiley face on

Happy with how this resaw went off. I was able to push it though the blade with hand pressure only. With the previous set up I had to use a push stick.

like one I see

Not tapered and that is encouraging. I didn't go nutso keeping pressure up against the fence as I fed the wood through the blade.

sigh

Tapered but not as bad. The board bottom started to kick out away from the fence as I pushed it into the blade. Not as bad as previous trips through the blade and it is obviously a quirk to deal with.

helped

This is the way I have been feeding the stock through the blade. The blade is sharp and I was able to make thin cuts. I didn't try for veneer but a couple of heavy 1/8" cuts.

easy, peasy

I'm done with testing the bandsaw. I'm happy with this final result. All five of them came out with a slight, teeny bit of taper. I can live with this. I'll have to get another blade on order and check YouTube for vids on sharpening bandsaw blades.

shoulda, coulda, woulda, but didn't

I should have swapped out this motor right after I got it. I have had it for over two years but I finally took my head out of my arse and did it.

hmm.....

I see a new lot of mini japanese boxes. I think the first one I'll do is a pencil box. I tried making one of them but it came out short on the length.

cut my hair

I am amazed by how much black hair I still have. I have some graying around the temples but the rest, what little I have, is still dark brown.

done

Three coats on the errant nail box - done. Two coats of tung oil and two coats of hard paste wax on the far four - done. Got the last coat of wax rubbed out after my post lunch stroll.

new pencil box

This one will be a test box. If it goes well I will make two more of them, one each for the grandkids.

checked with a pencil

I didn't check the length of the ID of the first one I made with a pencil. Instead I made the length of the outside the same as the pencil. Forgot to take into account the battens on each end. Oops - couldn't get a pencil in the box.

inset ends

Used super glue to secure the ends. I'm putting 'handles' on this box, they are to the right of the box.

handles

Sized the ends of the handles and the ends and let that dry. After that I applied a second coat and put the box together.

glued, clamped, and cooking

Not sure what nails I'll use on this. The stock is roughly 3/8" thick and I'm leery about using cut brad nails. I have wire brads that may work better and I also have brass 18 gauge nails. I will let this set up overnight and I'll decide what to use in the AM.

accidental woodworker

Standard XX is now complete and is now available for sale via my website. One of the key features of this lovely instrument is that it has been made without the use of any tropical/rainforest hardwoods or animal derived products.

Here’s the video and some photos for you.

Thanks for looking.

Cheers Gary

What a whirlwind of a year it has been so far. There’s been an interesting mix of work for which I’m incredibly grateful. This spring I had some cool furniture commissions, followed by teaching in Kentucky at The Year of Mud once again, as well as a separate trip back home to MN to visit… Read More »Tomobe – Jacking Up Posts

The post Tomobe – Jacking Up Posts appeared first on Big Sand Woodworking.

I printed shamrocks in three sizes and taped them to the sides. I drilled some large holes in the corners and then cut them out. This pushed the depth of my coping saw. I also have a fret saw with a deeper opening that I used for a couple spots.

tracing through paper to leave impressions that's about as far as it can reach

Prior to carving the edges I took care of the smaller things. I made three rails with curved bottoms. Two for the bottom and one under the top shelf. I also drilled small holes where the pilot holes for the nails will go.

under-shelf support rails pilot holes for pilot holes. pre-pilot holes.

For the sides, I created curves for the top corners by tracing a tomato can, and the bottom edge by tracing a bucket. I also filled in most of the visible bug holes with shellac mixed with sanding dust.

tracing a round object. and I filled those bug holes.

I carved the edges of the shamrocks, mostly with a #7 gouge. This reminded me of a Mary May lesson "Carving a Donut" on reading the grain. When I carve against the grain I can feel it and I can hear it. So there's a lot of changing from left to right handed, or moving to the opposite side of the bench to keep approaching from the right direction.

don't quote me on these

When the two directions meet in the middle of an arch, it's not easy to free the chip. I get little snags and fuzzies.

hard to free the fuzzies

After carving twelve sides of six shamrocks I was about ready to put things together. Not having dados to house the shelves complicated things a little. I marked the edges of the sides for the shelf locations and then clamped it all up. While clamped I drilled proper pilot holes for the nails. I used 1/8" for 40mm nails and 9/64" for 50mm nails.

center lines for shelves dry fit

During this dry fit I noticed that the curved support rail under the top shelf was too wide/tall and was visible through the hole.

that doesn't look good

This was a problem as I had already (titebond genuine hide) glued it to the shelf. I had to unglue it. My method is to use a clothing steamer. After 1-2 minutes I could pull it apart. Rather than ripping the rail narrower I moved it back where it woudn't show.

lock the trigger in the on position I've come undone

Prior to glueing and nailing I hand sanded the visible parts with 180 grit. I did not sand the carved edges, just the flat fields. For glue-up I did one side at a time. I coated the end grain of the shelves with two coats of glue. I set the nails in the sides with their points poking through so they could find their matching pilot holes in the shelves. The lowest, thickest shelf got 50mm nails, all the rest are 40mm.

nails and glue nailed and glued

I still have two curved rails to fit under the bottom shelf, and I will plane the front and back edges of the shelves flush with the sides. Then I will finish it with shellac, though I don't know if I will use a rag or a brush or spray it.

glued and nailed

For several years now, if I needed to route a dado or groove that was less then 1/4" wide, I used a makeshift router plane.  This was nothing more than a block of wood with a 45-ish degree angle on the front end, a 1/8" groove cut into that angled front, and a 1/8" chisel clamped into the groove.

My original small "router plane"

The clamp block holding the chisel in place is a piece of wood screwed to the main block

While this worked well during the infrequent times that I needed it, I always thought it would be nice to have a dedicated tool.  So recently I did something about it.

For the blade, I used an old 5/32" Allen wrench.  The 5/32" dimension is flat to flat, and the dimension from apex to opposite apex is close to 3/16".  The short leg of an Allen wrench has one flat face facing up when standing like an "L", so the 3/16" dimension is horizontal, and that becomes the width of the cutting edge after some filing, grinding and sharpening.

The Allen wrench in cross section

I heated the 90 degree bend to red hot and bent it to more like a 100 degree angle.  This gives a "clearance angle"; it allows the blade to cut a dado without the heel of the blade rubbing on the bottom of the dado.

This shows the approx. 100 deg angle on the Allen wrench

One major concern was about how to hold the blade.  I got a 1/4-20 bolt and tried to drill a hole through it.  Nothing doing!  That bolt must have been some sort of specialty bolt, as it was as hard as kryptonite.  I annealed it and it was still way too hard to drill.  So I got another bolt and that one was far easier to drill, though I found out the 1/4" bolt was too small for a 3/16" hole and I had to go with a 5/16-18 bolt instead.

Punching a center point into the insanely hard bolt

Successful 3/16" hole in a 5/16-18 bolt

Here's how it'll work: Allen key through the hole in the bolt,  nut at rear of the wood block tightens the Allen key to the wood body

I grabbed a chunk of scrap from the bin that just happened to have a 1 1/8" hole bored through it.  About 2/3rds the way up from the bottom of the block, I drilled a 5/16" hole through the back and into the larger hole of the block.  The 5/16" bolt was inserted and a washer and nut placed on the back end.

Also made a groove where the cutter will rest as a sort of "bed"

Made two thumb holes in the back end for a better grip

Then made a large bevel on the top surface (as seen from the right end)

The plane's body is 4" wide, 1 1/8" tall and just over 2 1/8" front-to-back.

Shaping and sharpening the iron was not too tough, but it was tedious.  I filed or ground a flat on the bottom, then filed a bevel on the top.  The diamond plates were used to refine the surfaces and get a nice edge.

Dragging the bottom flat backward on the diamond plate

And sharpening the bevel.  This took a lot of patience.

But I got a good smooth surface on the bevel ...

... and the bottom flat

I finally got a wingnut to tighten the iron in the body - a nice upgrade from a hex nut and wrench to tighten.  A nice project - I'm looking forward to using it when the need arises.

In use cutting a ~3/16" dado

Glamour shot

Back view showing wingnut

And lastly, I made two more smaller irons - one about 7/64" wide and one about 5/64" wide.  It was a challenge sharpening these tiny irons, but they all came out great and work well.

Three small Allen keys became router plane blades

All for now.  Hopefully I'll get back in the flow soon and post more often.  I've been in a woodworking slump for the last couple of months.

 

Front carving mostly done. Mortice and groove the back of the stiles, for the side panels and rails, groove the back of the bottom rail, for the floor boards and then ready to drawbore and join.

 Ta da, the 3 mini japanese toolboxes are done. No drips or any other warts appeared to my eyeballs when I checked the finish on them. Glad to finally put a check mark in the done column. Which works in my favor because my sister is returning home to Indiana a week early. Saves me from having to mail them to her.

only one glamour pic

I have four more of these needing a good home. Asked my two other sisters today at a picnic and both had zero interest in them. They will collect dust in the boneyard until someone adopts them.

the errant nail box

This one is almost done. It needs one more coat of shellac before it is 100%.

cell phone holder

I gave this to my sister Donna. I think it is borderline being too large but for a dedicated purpose it is ok. I had to explain to her how to use it. The notch sailed over her head like a helium filled lead balloon.

quick run to Lowes

Got the correct cord this time. It was only 97 cents a foot and the two conductor switch cord I bought in error yesterday, was $1.12 a foot. Go figure on that one.

they fit

I had no problems getting both cords through the romex connector. No oil and no excessive cursing required to get that done.

wired

 I had plenty of room to fit the wiring without having to squish and flatten it. One last visual check of my wiring before playing with the on/off switch.

$13 male plug

This was a pleasant surprise - the plug lights up when there is juice applied. Wasn't expecting that at all. I like that because it is an indication of power available up to this point.

contact

The moment of truth came and there was much rejoicing and dancing in the streets of Mudville. No sparks, fire, or explosions when I said contact and flipped the switch. The new motor purred liked a content kitty and it sounded a lot better then the 1/2HP original motor.

one last check

Installed the cover the cover and loosely tightened the motor down on the bandsaw. The last check - motor rotation - the blade has to go downwards.

had a 50/50 chance

Big negative on the correct rotation of the motor. The blade is spinning upwards. The odd thing was it was still cutting the test piece of pine both in rip and crosscut. Don't understand that. Maybe it was cutting due to the set of the teeth?

It is simple to reverse the rotation of the motor. All it involves is switching the hot and neutral. That will have to wait until tomorrow because I had to get ready to leave for a picnic. This is the first time all the surviving kids (all four of us) have been together in over 5 years. I'll do the reversal of the wires in the AM.

accidental woodworker 

I believe that no matter the skill level you have as a woodworker, there are going to be times where you will have to take a giant step backwards. This AM I thought I would be putting a check mark in the done column for at least 3 of the japanese toolboxes. Well boys and girls I'm here to say it ain't so. I saw waterfall drips at the corners on all three of the boxes. A real big sigh and more rework after taking the giant step backwards.

waterfall drip work

Sandpaper or steel wool isn't enough alone to remove the drips. First I scrape them off with the mini card scraper. Then I follow that up with a good rubbing with 4-0 steel wool.

Lowes road trip

Bought 8 feet of tool cord, a male plug connector, and some spade connectors.

failed the bounce test

Removed the plastic cord connector and got disappointed that the romex connector didn't fit - about a 1/8" too small. The hole diameter is small and there really isn't much room to enlarge it.

possibility

This is the bottom of the cover and it could work for a romex connector. I may use this if I can't get two cords in the romex connector.

time to enlarge the hole

Before I took this off I wrote down where the wires went. Speaking from experience it can be a nightmare trying to figure out which group combination of 3 wires are.

done

Forgot that I had this step drill. This is my 2nd time using it and the first use in several years. Worked a treat with enlarging this hole - a wee bit too large but it will work.

2nd headache

The hole is too small for two cords too past through it. I drilled out the romex hole with a 5/8" drill bit.

hmm......

It is a tight fit but I'll be able to pass both of them through the hole with a little help. I think if a lube them with a bit of oil I'll be able to pull both of them through.

ugh.....

I had checked this wire before I bought it. I saw two wires and assumed a third one was buried under the paper insulation. This two conductor switch cord. The stuff I want is 3 conductor - one black, white, and green wire. I'll be making another run to Lowes tomorrow.

Checked the waterfall drip boxes in the PM and all of them looked good. All of them now look like they have a finish on them. I will do the final check tomorrow before signing off on them. 

The other four boxes got a 2nd coat of the tung oil finish. Never made it back to the shop after dinner yesterday. Tung oil does not pop at all on pine. It looks the worse on white and becomes a little discernable on darker or figured pine. Either way these last four are getting two coats of tung oil and two coats of the hard paste wax.

accidental woodworker

Woodwork that you put yourself into creating can last a long time and have personal meaning. Consider that these are among the reasons it is worth doing. Look back at the item from over 60 years ago discussed in a recent post: Still here My 50-year file of Fine Woodworking magazine is still mostly housed in […]

In England, working on Listed Buildings often needs Listed Building Consent. This is a good thing and means that our heritage buildings are protected from ill-advised building practices by law. Conservation officers are there to advise on best courses of action and help to protect our historic fabric.

Part of the Consent application is providing scale drawings. I was lucky to have been at school at a time when technical drawing was still taught. Technical drawing as a separate subject in English schools was merged into the larger Design and Technology national curriculum in 1989, which was a great shame I think. I have used CAD software, but still get great pleasure from producing measured drawings by hand.

I was good with more academic subjects also (I was being pushed in the direction of becoming an architect), but my favourites were Art and technical drawing. When I finally went to college it wasn't Architecture but 3D design(Exhibition Design) with stage and Museum design, that I studied. Lots of opportunities for visualization, modelmaking and more drawing. We had fantastic workshops at college, and I was able to explore my love for woodworking, metalworking and sculpture. I delved quite deep into lots of woodworking traditions, and more often than not I could be found in the workshops, not the design studio.

Later on I got into framing and carpentry and building; I am glad I took the more practical route; understanding buildings from actually building them, working on them and caring for them. It gives you knowledge, which you just can't get from Architecture college, and hours spent in front of some CAD program. Yet again, doing things by hand, you notice things which machines and computers get in the way of. Stuff Artificial Intelligence, give me real Knowledge any day.

And a hand drawn drawing....

37C

Came close but peaked at a two digit value. Sweltering with an oppressive, wet blanket slap to the face humidity. It was uncomfortable doing the post lunch stroll today and I cut it short with a shortcut on the return trip to the barn.

Mr Darcy

He turned 18 this year and has been an indoor cat since we took him home from the animal shelter. He usually jumps up on this chair around 0700 and doesn't stir until dinner time which is around 1700. He is oblivious to the heat.

nope

I have 4 coats of the hard paste wax on these and nada. It looks like bare wood to my eye. Using the hard wax only on eastern white pine is a bust. I want some kind of indication that there is a finish applied.

shellac

I know that you can use shellac over wax because Don Williams finishing DVD told me I can. This is the second time I've applied shellac over a wax. The appearance of a finish was evident after the first coat of shellac. Three coats and I'm calling these done.

next four

These will get hard paste wax too but first they will get two coats of tung oil.

done, almost

Got three coats of shellac on them and once that is dry, I can call it 100% done. My sister said she is giving these to her grandkids for xmas this year. Plenty of time to the shellac to set and harden.

 The box at the top right is the one with the errant nail. It is getting three coats of shellac then a check mark in the done column. I'll keep this one for me to use in the shop somewhere.

one coat of tung oil

First one on post lunch stroll. The second coat might go on after dinner. Don't know what I'll use these for and I'm already thinking ahead to another run. Those I will make a little differently by putting in 'handles'.

 I didn't make the Lowes run this AM. Inside I ran a couple of errands and after them I went to the shop forgetting all about it. Good thing no one is holding a gun to my head, I'll try doing it tomorrow AM.

accidental woodworker 

So, in the little free time that I seem to have these days, I’ve been building the obligatory dining room table. It’s to be in solid red oak, a no-leaf design, and fairly large: about 7′ long. (That’s roughly 2100mm for those who measure in sensible.)

Lengths that long make things unfortunate. I’m not using really thick stock, so there will be battens and such underneath to keep things straight, but just finding clear boards that aren’t excessively bowed has been a problem. In any case, I’m getting somewhere:

Now, the length introduces another problem, that when edge-joining, you’re going to have a really hard time getting everything to line up. Even if you were somehow to find perfectly straight boards, they start flexing around a bit at that length, so managing it is annoying.

There are several ways around this, such as creating index battens to clamp to the faces while gluing up, but in the end, I’ve decided just to index with inserts. In this case, sort of small loose tenon things, and matching mortises for them to fit in.

Even though I recently bought a mortiser (blasphemy, I know), this stuff is so hard to manage that I decided that it would just be easier to do it by hand. And since I wasn’t really in the mood to whack it out with my normal mortise chisels, I went for the old “clamp a guide to the face” method:

Essentially, mark the edge away from the face with a marking gauge, clamp on the guide/jig/whatever, drill out most of the waste (a brad-point bit is helpful in this small size), and excavate with the chisel up against the guide. It’s surprisingly quick.

When finished, a board looks like this:

I don’t bother to put much (if any) glue to affix the loose tenons during glue-up because it’s a hectic time, and the edge-glue joint all around is much stronger anyway. But it really does help tremendously to keep everything behaved while getting the work in the clamps without worrying about if things are flopping around or sliding into the wrong place. Sometimes I’ll also put small F-clamps over the very ends to bring those into alignment, if necessary.

This is one of those times when you are tempted to buy a biscuit joiner or something like that because it might save a little bit of time (or at least seem easier), but I really don’t want to buy another tool. (I guess I have a doweling jig for some reason, but dowels make me go meh.) And really, preparing the faces and edges has been the most time-consuming thing in this project anyway. So far.

But I do wish it were as easy as the smaller table tops that you can just slap together all in one shot.

I learned recently that the first Roubo volume, To Make As Perfectly As Possible — Roubo On Marquetry has sold out!  Plans are underway to revise the book format into a semi-deluxe edition as was done with great success for the Roubo On Furniture volume.  I am currently reviewing a couple text passages that I thought might need some wordsmithing (to quote LBJ, “I reserve the right to be smarter than I used to be”), but otherwise the redesign and printing are in Lost Art Press’ hands.

Stay tuned.

going for it

No balls, no blue chips I say. Jumped into nailing off the top battens willing to risk any splitting. Besides, nailing off the top will strengthen the box's butt joinery.

sigh

First box and I got a few tiny splits on 3 of 4 of the end nails. I also got 2 splits on the center nails. But it could have been worse and I can live with the teeny splits.

this sucks

Wasn't expecting this to happen. The nail appeared to go in straight, in the middle of the end, but it came out at an angle.

lid fits in spite of it

At least the nail isn't interfering with the lid fitting. The lid still fits in both orientations too.

simple layout

I could have eyeballed it but the ruler wasn't in the way and stayed while I drilled the holes.

side trip

The fence company dropped two fence pickets off. 3 pickets were loose and I was able to nail them back in place. I got permission from my next door neighbor to walk behind her fence to get to mine and put the two new ones in. I used screws instead of nails. The fence company used what looked like aluminum spiral nails - thin and flimsy looking. They certainly pulled out easy as can be - nothing like pulling spiral nails I have dealt with before.

done

Nailed off the remaining 5 boxes. Doing it with brass nails didn't register until I was done using the cut nails.

replacement box

This is the replacement for the box with the errant nail. I tried to back it out but it wasn't happening. I don't want to chance some young fingers accidentally getting stabbed by it. Got the first coat of the hard paste wax on it. Two more to go and it can join the other 2.

I got a third coat on all of the original 3 boxes. The final coat I rubbed on a thin coat, waited 15 minutes, and buffed them with a face cloth. I didn't bother with the soft or hard buffing pads. They weren't making any difference with the look of the finish.

hmm.....

Two cords for this 1/2HP motor. One is the line cord and the other is for the on/off switch. I want to reuse the on/off switch on the 3/4HP motor. Should be doable without wasting too many calories.

this sucks pond scum

The switch and the line cords are soldered - not crimped or wire nutted together. That will make reusing this motor a wee bit involved, ie, soldering a new on/off switch. I left the wires I snipped long so I will be able to figure out how to do that.
 

old line cord

This one has had the snot beat out of it. It still works but definitely not OSHA approved. I'll have to buy a new cord at Lowes - I think they still sell line cord by the foot. This one is a few inches over 8 feet long.

hiccup

I'll have to wire the motor and switch before I secure the motor on the bandsaw. This cover will be up close and personal with the bottom frame of the bandsaw.

hmm....

This deserves a bit more than a 'hmm....'. I need to feed in two cords and that isn't going to happen. There isn't enough room for that. 

might work

There isn't a lot of extra real estate to put in a 2nd opening for a cable clamp. I'll remove this one and check if a romex clamp will fit. I should be able to get two cords in that with no problems. I don't have a good way of securing the two cords this way. And there is zero strain relief not mention it would be easy ingress for sawdust from the bandsaw.

I'll make a road trip to Lowes first thing in the AM. I rely on the bandsaw too much to have it unavailable to use. No turning back now because I can't readily swap 1/2HP motor back in service.

accidental woodworker 

You can check out my latest Substack. 

Be warned, it’s not a quick read, though I do give some free advice!

Applying the finish to 3 of the mini japanese tool boxes. I am using the hard wax paste only - no hard wax oil(?) as the first coat . I am also experimenting with it on these boxes. If it works out, I'll use the same method on the remaining 5 boxes. 

the 3 I picked

These aren't totally wart free but they are the best looking of the 8. These are the ones I'm giving to Donna on sunday.

ready for hard wax paste

The finish feels dry - it also feels smooth to the touch all over.

hmm....

Got the first coat on and it doesn't look like any finish has been applied. This is what I saw too on the other mini japanese toolboxes I made. I guessing that this will take a minimum of 3 coats before I have a warm and fuzzy with it.

looks different

There is a slight difference in the look. Not the shine of a shellac finish, but nonetheless you can tell there is a finish applied. Not sure at this point if I'll apply another coat or not.

the experiment starts here

I bought these buffing pads a couple of years ago and only tried the soft buffing pad once. I wasn't happy with how it worked - I didn't see any difference in the finish post application.

The other pads to the right I don't remember anything about them. I'm not sure if each color is a different grit or denoting an order in which they are used. Other then the color of them, they all look and feel exactly the same.

I tried the soft pad on the cell phone holder hoping to raise a higher sheen but the overall matte finish stayed the same. The only hiccup I had was the sander spit a ton of fine dust all over it. Wiped it off with a face cloth I use as shop rags.

trying a hard pad

It had been about 10 minutes after applying the hard wax to these boxes. The pad definitely made the boxes feel a lot smoother. I didn't detect a discernable change in the sheen but I have few more applications to go. On the next one I plan to apply the wax and immediately buff it with the hard pad. The last one I apply I will buff out with the soft pad.

it is not happening

Buffed out the bottom box (one coat) and the top one just has one coat too -not buffed out. Can't see a difference and I doubt I will. I think that the best I'll get is a matte finish that may shimmer a wee bit in raking light. However, on the bottom box I can feel a difference. It is much smoother feeling to the touch vice the top one. The top one I applied the wax and wiped it down after 10 minutes or so. It feels smooth but not as like the bottom box.

came today

Lee Valley said these would take 7-10 days to come in. Took only 4 days. I've been tossing around in the brain bucket whether or not to nail off the top end battens on the boxes. On one hand I don't want to risk a split at this stage of the build. On the other hand, the top battens being nailed off would match the side nails. It is a toss of the coin decision with film and updates on the 11 o'clock news tomorrow.

This is all I got done today, all in the AM session. My wife's sister came to Rhode Island from New York like she does every summer. That is where I spent my PM time. I want to go see her home for a weekend maybe in september. I have a had hankering to go to the Stewart's gas station by her house for a coffee and a muffin.

accidental woodworker