Me, and my Shopsmith

[paulrussell]

I've just ordered a Bosch dual-base router (I hope I like it as much as I do the Colt) and on Wednesday I pick up a SS belt sander. I'll be calling SS today or tomorrow to order the drum sander. That pretty much rounds out a full compliment of power tools. I've decided I don't have sufficient need to justify a strip sander, so that's the one SPT I'm passing on. So in addition to my routers and CNC I a pretty full stable: A Mark V 520, bandsaw, planer, jointer, lathe duplicator, belt sander, drum sander, and scrollsaw.

It all started after my mother died unexpectedly in January. After funeral expenses, taking a huge loss on the house, and all else involved with settling an estate, I was left a few thousand dollars. Mom would have been devastated to see how little was left for her children. She didn't have much in this life, and had hoped that the value of her home would allow her to make her children's lives better.

I didn't care if I got a single red cent, but I did vow to myself that whatever I received I would use to try and provide a lasting tribute to my mother.

Since my mother had always loved quality handcrafted works -- paintings, pottery, woodworking, quilting, embroidery and the like, I felt that buying woodworking equipment and producing things that I will in turn leave behind for those I love was the most befitting thing I could possibly do with the money.

Due to the incredible values I've been able to find on SS tools, there is still a bit of mom's money left to finish outfitting what for me is a dream workshop.

So now that the tool acquisition frenzy is winding down, it is time for two children of the 50's to get to work: Me, and my Shopsmith.

Thanks mom.

[osx-addict]

Sounds like a great tribute to me!

[easterngray]

Paul that is very moving. May the Lord richly bless your endeavors in your shop! Alec

[robinson46176]

Be sure to sign and date your work as much as possible. 200 years from now somebody may really want to know. I have a few things from family that date back to colonial times and I would kill to have the story behind them.
-
On a side note, I hereby order everyone here to get out your paper pictures and start writing the names and if possible the dates on everyone that you or other family can ID. Your descendants will thank you very strongly.
Avoid writing things like one I have that I can't ID that says "Me and Mom in front of our house..." Huh?? Who is me? Who was Mom? And where in the hell did "our house" sit?

[paulrussell]

Be sure to sign and date your work as much as possible. 200 years from now somebody may really want to know. I have a few things from family that date back to colonial times and I would kill to have the story behind them.

Great idea! And the same regarding your comment on photos.

Well, I didn't want to start another thread so I figured I'd tack on to one I already started.

Yesterday I finished my shopping for major power tools with the purchase of an 80's era Shopsmith belt sander. Drum roll please....

Shopsmith: 520 & 500, Bandsaw, Belt Sander, Planer, Jointer, Stand-alone Grey Scroll Saw, DC3300, Conical disk & Drum sanders, Lathe Duplicator, Ring Master. Turning plates/Blades/Arbors/Shapers

Non-Shopsmith:
FineLineAutomation FLA100 CNC with Bosch Colt router
(this can also be used manually sort of like the overhead pin router)
Router table w/fence and Bosch 1617 dual-base router
Penn State pen starter kit
HF Workbench
Dremel and a zillion accessories.

Things are gonna start happening to me now!
- Steve Martin, "The Jerk"

[jdramsey]

As far as saving memories for future generations, write down the stories too. Or record the folks telling the stories. Fewer memories get lost that way. For example, one of my great, great grandfathers came from France at the beginning of the 20th century. He changed the spelling of his last name for some reason. All of the family who knew the story had passed many years ago. That story is lost. We had discussed recording my grandmother while she told stories of her early life, such as farm life and the depression. But it was obvious that she was having memory problems. It turned out to be Alzheimers and dementia. Others had heard the stories before and they knew that she wasn't telling the stories correctly or was mixing stories together. We decided that it was a waste of time to even try.

So write down or record the stories, good and bad, as accurately as possible for your children, and your children's children. That history is just valuable as anything else.

[osx-addict]

As far as saving memories for future generations, write down the stories too. Or record the folks telling the stories. Fewer memories get lost that way.

reminds me of NPR's StoryCorps project where they travel across the US and record old family stories.. Good idea!