Old HS Project

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 12:23 am

'Uncovered' this the other day.

Sophomore high school shop class project.(1954)

It be a hang on the wall knife holder.

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I liked the poplar sap - the shop teacher did not share that opinion.

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Every thing was hand tooled except the knife slots(shop teacher sawed those on table saw).

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Got a B grade. At the time I thought I deserved better. Now I consider myself lucky to have gotten that!;)

bffulgham · Post by **bffulgham** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 10:13 am

Your first shop project looks a lot better than the first project I did. We did not have a wood shop class, but we did have several basic stationary power tools for woodworking in the Ag classes. Everyone had to build a small wood toolbox (about 11" wide x 7" deep x 13" long) for the intro to the shop (somewhere around '67 or '68). 3/4 pine 1 x 12 for the ends, a piece of 3/4" dowel for the handle, and we used reclaimed 1/4" or so apple box slats for the sides and bottom. I wasn't too proud of my final product, but Mom kept it beside her chair to keep her knitting needles, chrochet hooks, patterns, etc. at hand until she passed.

That same year (my freshman year), I was introduced to using the wood lathe, band saw, and table saw. The next class project we did was to cut several hundred 3/4" plywood disks for the local grain elevator to use in liquid feed boxes for cattle.....liquid feed supplement was a new concept in our area at the time. They would stack a couple of disks together with a piece of all-thread as an axle. My assigned task for that project was to rip the plywood sheets on the table saw and then make squares that would be taken to the band saws where they free-handed the disks. Knowing what I know now, I'm very surprised all of us survived with all fingers intact and no one was speared from a kick-back from that project. No fence on the table saw and no upper blade guard......just follow the chalk line while ripping

BTW....I like the sap wood in the front as well on your knife rack:)

dusty · Post by **dusty** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 10:36 am

Great job, Ed. I have a couple of my old projects as well. What amazes me is that they have held together over these many years. I can contribute to nothing other than the durability of hot, hide glue.

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 1:51 pm

dusty wrote:Great job, Ed. I have a couple of my old projects as well. What amazes me is that they have held together over these many years. I can contribute to nothing other than the durability of hot, hide glue.

Yep!

FWIW my 'first' shop projects were earlier in the 7th grade. There I learned to detest sanding! Everything was cut with a coping saw! Everything was pine. Everything was cherry stained and shellaced

Dusty: Please do not continue calling me 'Ed"!:D

dusty · Post by **dusty** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 2:37 pm

JPG40504 wrote:Yep!

FWIW my 'first' shop projects were earlier in the 7th grade. There I learned to detest sanding! Everything was cut with a coping saw! Everything was pine. Everything was cherry stained and shellaced

Dusty: Please do not continue calling me 'Ed"!:D

Sorry about that. Don't know what I was thinking.

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Wed Apr 04, 2012 2:40 pm

dusty wrote:Sorry about that. Don't know what I was thinking.

De Nada Dutsy!;)

S Brian · Post by **S Brian** » Fri Apr 06, 2012 8:16 pm

[quote="JPG40504"]Yep!

FWIW my 'first' shop projects were earlier in the 7th grade. There I learned to detest sanding! Everything was cut with a coping saw! Everything was pine. Everything was cherry stained and shellaced

JPG - My first projects were also in 7th & 8th grade in '62 & '63. I remember two assignments. The first was a napkin holder, with two initial "M's" cut out with a coping saw after smoothing edges with a block plane, followed by what seems like weeks of sanding. Second project was a Plexiglas letter "M" which was about 2.5" square and 1/4" thick. It was also cut with a coping saw and more weeks of filing and sanding. I don't know what happened to those items, but I still have the gun cabinet I built in '64 for a 4H project.

mgdesigns · Post by **mgdesigns** » Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:14 am

[quote="JPG40504"]'Uncovered' this the other day.

Sophomore high school shop class project.(1954)

It be a hang on the wall knife holder.

[ATTACH]16901[/ATTACH]
I liked the poplar sap - the shop teacher did not share that opinion.

[ATTACH]16902[/ATTACH]
Every thing was hand tooled except the knife slots(shop teacher sawed those on table saw).

[ATTACH]16903[/ATTACH]
Got a B grade. At the time I thought I deserved better. Now I consider myself lucky to have gotten that!]

Excellent - I have seen ('cause now I am officially an old geezer) that public schools don't offer shop classes much anymore. The liabilities have shut them down. So, as a result, we are creating a generation of young people that don't know how to make anything - except maybe a dent in the couch while playing video games. From the Great Manufacturing Nation the world had known - to couch potatoes in one generation. Thanks for sharing your early works. I am teaching my little kids how to make stuff. I am nearly 60, and have a 7 & 9 year old boy and girl, and they are making toys out of wood, and even electric guitars. Pass these skills down to the young folks - they will appreciate it later.