Weekly Blog - October 1st

[john]

Quite a varied week as fall is here and things swing into a different mode, though the weather is still extremely nice and warm for this time of year.

Had to remove the pump and filter to close our small pond, and cover it to prevent it from filling with leaves as the trees are starting to shed. Also did some repairs to the cracks etc in the driveway so that ice does not result in more problems next spring. And then there is the hockey season which took two mornings away from WW, and required a nap in the afternoon.

On the woodworking side, I finished a second small logging truck and started to fashion a "stake" truck from one of the trailor blanks I had cut. This turned out to be a learning process. Since I had already drilled holes for lights in the ends, when chiseling out cuts in the sides and ends for the stakes, I was too close to the drilled holes and blew right through one. Lesson #1, make the chisel cuts first! I haven't decided yet what to do with this piece, finish it and give it away, or scrap it.

One thing I forgot to mention last week is how usefull the newly purchased SS fence stops were in drilling holes in the truck parts. Holding the small pieces steady while using the SS in the horizontal boring mode for headlights and tailights was difficult but I was able to use two stops and position the piece between them to make it easier to get accurate holes.

I also finished another bread knife, (jatoba and oak), so my inventory there is up to five.

This week and next will be a washout as we leave tomorrow for a visit to our children in Calgary. First is "kid sitting" as one daughter and husband travel to Houston on business and to visit friends, and then our younger daughter seems to have a "Daddy-do" list waiting for me. I will be able to keep up-to- date with the forum while away so it will not be a total loss.

I hope you all have an enjoyable and safe week!

John

[dusty]

john, you are absolutely unbelieveable. You have so many "irons in the fire" and yet you are so productive. I am retired, my kids and grandkids are pretty much on there own and yet I can't find time to complete two projects on schedule let alone what you have.

What ever you are doing, keep it up.

God Bless

[charlese]

I really appreciate John's weekly blogs - wish more of us could find the time to join this weekly "blog". It really gives a sense of belonging to a bunch of friends!

I too am impressed by John's productivity. I purposely moved to a place that has no lawn, just rocks and some desert shrubs. No watering, no mowing, no leaves. Did this in order to be free from the labors of yard maintenance. Still, things like "my bride's desires" eke into time reserved for woodworking. (Not complaining here- just fact. She is really supportive!) There is always some type of minor house problem to confront an already "busy" retirement. Then there is also the MH. Holding tanks need to be cleaned and the outside also needs re polishing after our trip.

Our last two weeks consisted of a very enjoyable journey to MT and back. It was super to see and visit with old friends. Even my "Best Man" and my wife's "Maid of Honor" were at the reunion. Even got to take in a Montana Grizzly football game where the Grizzlies defeated a team from New York to take over first place in the ratings for the 1-AA class. For college football fans: (after Mich. was beat by a small school from West Virginia(I think)) How many batteries does it take to beat Michigan? ans: 1-AA.

Tried to keep up with the Forum while journeying around and did fairly well. It was kind of funny - In Las Vegas, we stayed at an RV park that advertised Wi Fi. Turns out that was the only place where their Wi Fi didn't work. Yep! What happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas.

Anyway after the weekend, the MH no longer thinks it was rode hard and put away wet, The malfunctioning smoke detector in our home has been repaired, and traveling stuff all put away. The malfunctioning smoke detector "entertained" our neighbors while we were away. Yes! they expressed their concerns. Glad they didn't call 911!

Today, I ordered 3 sets of the mechanical works for salt and pepper grinders. Will make them for gifts for our hosts of the reunion. I'll be buying turning blanks locally (almost) down in Canoga Park. The last time I ordered on the Internet and it took 9 months to dry the walnut so it could be successfully worked. For now it's back to work on plantation shutters. Just a trim here and there and a little more shaping of the adjustment rod and should be finished with the first one. Painting is a real problem and I have thought seriously of getting an airless sprayer. Saw a good deal (I think) in the new Rockler Catalog.

[john]

Dusty, Chuck:

Thanks for the kind words on productivity. Funny, because I don't really feel that I do enough. Sometimes my beloved feels the same way, especially about the household chores. I probably spend an average of 1.5 - 2 hours a day in the shop when we are home. Many of my current projects are small so don't require as much time as things like shutters or rocking horses so the output rate can be higher for these items.

Interestingly, though I started out making toys for the grandchildren and a couple of deacons benches for the adult kids, I seldom do projects for the family any more even though I have had a couple of requests. Something like the shoemaker whose kids had no shoes. As stated before, I tend to find something I feel like making and do it, though I have a long backlog of projects I would like to try. That's the penalty for subscribing to three woodworking magazines.

As to the blog, your words were encouraging again. I was thinking of winding this down as these things tend to get stale after a while and I don't want to seem like I am blowing my own horn. Like you Chuck, I was hoping more people would pick up the trend and write and talk about or show their successes and even the failures, but maybe the Shopsmith gang is a little more private than the people on some of the other forums I participate in. I know I am always interested in other people's work and the processes used to do it.

Have fun.

John

[dusty]

I make a lot of sawdust, john. But from that pile of debri rises very few items to brag about. If I had them I would post them.

[greitz]

I'm with Dusty- lots of sawdust but many items are just "practice items" and, frankly, I'm a bit embarrassed to even show them in the same forum as some of you guys' fantastic work.

But, at the same time, I really enjoy these weekly blogs and in all fairness, those of us who want to keep it going should contribute also. So I'll try to take a few pictures this weekend myself.

Now that I think about it, maybe the next time I have a significant "design opportunity" (also known as a "do-over", "oopsie", or even more colorful language), I'll take a picture of it and hopefully get some advice on how to prevent it in the future.

Thanks again for all of your postings. This forum is one of the best things about owning a Shopsmith!

Gary

[alancooke]

Hey John,

Ditto's to all of the above! Keep up the weekly blog!

I don't have nearly the time to complete all the projects I would like to, but this forum keeps me motivated to at least WANT to build more:)

After that first rocking horse, I'm being constantly pestered to build 2 more so I guess my next 2 projects have already been determined:o

I also want to refinish a small boat I built about 8 years ago. I also need to put some venison in the freezer. I also need to build a cradle for the G.baby due next month. I also need to ..... Too bad we can't buy more hours for the day when we buy a new tool!

[charlese]

I'm with Dusty- lots of sawdust but many items are just "practice items" and, frankly, I'm a bit embarrassed to even show them in the same forum as some of you guys' fantastic work....
...Thanks again for all of your postings. This forum is one of the best things about owning a Shopsmith!

Gary

Gary and others - Come to think about it - I also should have posted pictures of some of my oopses! Don't ever be embarrassed about showing your work, or problems. I truly believe the Forum is here to help!!:D

I remember writing about drilling the holes for door pulls on the upper side of a door stile rather than the lower side. This took several days to figure out how to fix it without re-making the door. The results turned out to be O.K., but a lot less aesthetic than the original. I had to saw off the outside half of this narrow stile and glue on a replacement - then re-machine the sides with round over and rabbet. Color of wood was a major consideration and it is somewhat a lessor match than I had hoped for. Look at the right stile of the left door - you can see the abrupt color change.
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I'm pretty sure that what we view as fantastic work by others is nothing more than regular woodwork, but done in a way/style/care/technique that the finished piece looks terrific. What we don't see is the sweat/tears and re-dos that hide any imperfections. We all make mistakes with wood- both big and small. As my Dad used to say - "A good carpenter knows how to fix his mistakes". He was talking about carpenters, but there is little difference in this thought between a carpenter and a furniture builder.

From what I have learned, so far, woodworking IS all about practice! Mistakes happen, but with practice - and care - fewer of them show up.

I must say that I am definately not a journeyman woodworker. I have learned a huge amount about woodworking since buying my Mark V and taking the self lessons from the manual that came with it, and have infinate room for more learning about methods and techniques. This forum has been a gold mine of learning! Previous to buying my Mark V, I had made some hanging cabinets and a couple of simple tables with a radial arm saw, using knowledge from high school shop class and articles in woodworking magazines. But the techniques taught by Shopsmith were and are really great in teaching techniques to make the joints we want.

I must also admit that I'm always scared when I'm working on a project that I'll make an error that will cause failure of the job. The plantation shutters (current project) are a perfect case. First of all, I had no good idea of how to machine the louvers, with the machinery available - asked for help on this forum and got several good suggestions - all which would work to some degree. A bit more research showed me a set of router bits, designed for this application. Then the shutter frames. - - The jig I made for the set up of the entire frame and location of the pivot pins leaves much to be desired. Each hole is 1/100th of an inch off - this makes for a over a 3/8" error in the total height of the frame. Thinking this could be fixed by final trimming, I proceeded. I added to the problem by cutting some of the jig notches from the left and some from the right. This gave really uneven spacing of the louvers toward the center of the frame and necessitated all pieces of the frame be marked with "up", "down", "left", "center" and "right". Any other configuration just won't work! I know - I tried some of them! (whoops!)

Now, after getting the left side, right side and center stiles properly located and top to the top (instead of turning one of them upside down), I'm ready to proceed with gluing the frame and then trim it. What I have learned so far is: When building a shutter (especially your very first one) make it only about 3 ft. maximum height. This will reduce any error in pin spacing and will help prevent any binding of the louvers. In my case I had to make a shutter about 4ft. 11 in. tall. I should have divided this shutter with a center rail.

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[john]

We all have our strengths and weaknesses which is what makes forums such as this interesting. For instance, I don't think I would attempt shutters.

One of the Canadian forums I belong to has a number of people producing "furniture quality" items so most of my "craft quality" items seem not worthy for showing but I did show my rocking horses. Nobody panned my work and a couple of other members came back with their version of rocking horses which made for interesting comparisons and discussion.

By the way Alan, I wish I could bake bread!

Have Fun!

John

[stonesfan]

Nice work on the shutters! How wide are your louvers? Are they elliptical? I'm in the planning stages with my shutters and would like to make them 3 1/2" wide. I might save myself some heartache and pay to have the slats milled into an elliptical shape.

Kevin