Curvy Fun

Apologies for non-blogging. I've been busy (Honest!) ;)
My curvy veneered project is back on line, with a few hours spent on it this week. Laminated up the final two component, cut all parts to final dimensions, applied veneer to all exposed edges and started on the solid cherry top. You know, the fun bit!
I decided to go with a curved top-the boards are 25mm thick and I've swooped them down to 19mm thick over the main body of the top. With a little bevel on the outer edges it has a pleasing oriental flavour that really adds to the piece. A result! You'd almost think I actually design these pieces before I build them ;)
Well the fun started when I got to use my new Lie-Nielsen 100 1/2 curved sole block plane. This is an hilarious tool to use-part way between a scrub plane and a model makers mini plane. It has the sole curve from side to side but also from front to back. Kinda like a curved sole spoke shave but in both directions! Sounds awkward but it is so much fun to use, especially with its built in palm handle. It leaves a furrowed pattern in the wood (like a scrub) and I was really tempted to leave it as is. Maybe for a future project.
So the table is coming along well. Just the drawer to make and the much hated glue up. And I think the spray gun is coming out to play, too.
Enjoy the weekend,
Philly

More Fun

Spent a useful morning in the shop cleaning up-and getting my tools back out...... Interesting which tools you need as a "minimum toolkit". Also made more veneer on the new bandsaw (some ovangkol this time). I like this saw!!
Sophie was over the moon with her "first real saw"-she could'nt wait to get in the workshop with me to try it out. I had to have a conversation with her first on the difference between "real" tools and the "toy" ones she currently has. Nearly caught her trying out her new saw on my saw till. And yes, a few more grey hairs have appeared ;)

Have a good weekend,
Philly

He Came, He Saw.

O.k. I admit, things are getting silly in the saw department. Not only do I get my wonderful Wenzloff saw, my massive bandsaw turns up. Now, to add insult to injury I find two smashing Disston panel saws in very good condition. A D7 and D8. How much? "£8 Sir, and I'll throw in the little baby saw for your daughter to play with." Yeah, I suckuth ;)
Put a new 25mm blade on the bandsaw this afternoon. That is a BIG blade! Blade change was surprisingly easy on the new saw and setting the guides pretty simple. I think I like this one! Cut a bunch of 2mm slices off a 6 inch piece of London Plane-I LIKE THIS SAW! I'll try for maximum
capacity over the weekend.
Oh, and I kept blowing fuses on start up (soft start on a bandsaw??) So now it's wired directly into my 32 amp supply.....no problem!
Have a great weekend,
Philly

Another Saw

Hah, I seem to have a run on saws at the moment. A shiny new Axminster bandsaw arrived today (and yes, I know what you're thinking-he's moving house, why the heck would he get a new saw now?) Well I got fed up waiting for the move to happen (hopefully the end of the month/or your guess is as good as mine) Also April was the end of my financial year and the more money I could spend the better my tax bill. Me being sorta kinda a professional woodworker. Henceforth the bandsaw. i was going to make Axminster hold onto it until the move but as the weeks slip by I thought "what the heck!".
First impressions (after the hilarious "it's too tall to fit through the door" moment) are good. It is very well built with serious steel in the frame, a lovely polished cast iron table (that is flat!!), big cast iron wheels, decent fence and a laser so you can see where to cut. No, that's not a joke, they supplied a little lazer to fit so you know where the blade will cut. Just in case you don't notice the flipping great blade flying round and round in front of you ;) Needless to say, the laser has not been fitted. Maybe I could it to a hand plane..........;)

Saw Point

Well I still haven't moved-please, don't ask. I have given up guessing at dates so am going to get back on with life instead of "waiting for a phone call". Yes, it's been pretty frustrating...
On a positive note my Wenzloff saw arrived! It is a beauty and cuts amazingly well. Many thanks, Mike! You have excelled yourself :)
Went to the Yandles Woodworking show yesterday (doesn't time fly-seems like the last one was only a few weeks ago). It was a lot of fun with a very relaxed atmosphere. It was busy but not so busy as to be painful. Spent a few quid at the Classic Hand Tools store and met up Martyn and Martin from the UK Workshop team. There was also some beautiful English Walnut planks for sale. If I had a little more storage (and no impending house move) I would of gone mad on that lot. Sigh......next time.
Cheers
Philly

Useful Site

Came across an interesting site for you Woodies out there. It is http://lumberjocks.com/ and the site is to showcase your completed projects. There are some very pretty pieces to see and you can post your own, complete with photo's and a short description. It is obviously early days for the site but it is professionally put together and looks very smart. As a bonus it is free to sign up! What more could you ask?
Cheers
Philly

Limbo Squared

Arghhhhhh!
We were very close to exchanging and another problem has arisen further down the chain. Packing up has come to a halt, and a glum cloud has descended upon the household. Needless to say, no woodwork has been going on. Can't kick this darn flu, either.
Still, it is the weekend (just) so a relaxing couple of days (and maybe the odd whisky) will be just the ticket.
On the workshop front, I have ordered a new bandsaw today. After much research an Axminster Plus model has been chosen. More on that when it turns up!
Have a good weekend,
Phil

Limbo

Not a lot has happened in the last week or so-the usual Solicitor shennigans, etc....
I'm beginning to break down the workshop, so as you can imagine not a lot of progress has been made on the curvy table. We were hoping to complete on the 31st but as today is the 25th and we haven't exchanged contracts yet I can't see it happening. So maybe the following Friday (which just happens to be the weekend of the the Yandles woodworking show!!).
To add insult to injury, I've come down with the flu quite heavily. Don't worry-you can't catch it by reading a blog ;)

Curvy Veneering-A Whole New World

I've started making my first project with my new vacuum bag press. It's all new to me but I'm making good progress and learning a lot.
The pressure that the bag put on the work is quite amazing, also it's very evenly distributed. I wouldn't like to try it with cauls and lots of clamps!
The impending house move is on my mind. I heard today that it might be the 31st of this month-Ouch! That not a lot of time for all that packing........ :0

Another one in the bag. Well, box.

The saw till is complete! Yup, finally got the till finished. Two coats of oil and a coat of wax and voila. More pics to follow. Had a real problem finding quality brass hardware. The Brusso stuff is great but priced for lottery winners. The stuff available from DIY stores is appalling. Got me thinking about making my own for the future.......
Spent today making up a former for my first curbed/veneered piece. 16 pieces of mdf, cut roughly to size and then routed to a perfect match, nailed together and sanded smooth. not a lot of fun :(
But know let the curvy stuff begin! I had an outlandish idea of making up some presents for Mothers day. It could happen ;) Not!
Any shortcuts for making formers or is it hard work and repetition?
Cheers
Philly

Two Fat Ladies

Nearly done! Just need to fit the hinges and get oiling.
Made up some trim using my #66-the first time I've really used in anger. Came out really well and surprised myself with how classy it looked compared to the "easy option" of using the tailed router. Maybe there's hope for me yet? ;)
I've also been doing some more veneer style experiments. My next project will be a curvy one.....
And where's those tempting photo's, Mike?? I keep running to the computer to check for evidence........Just kidding-take as long as you need.
Cheers
Philly

Not quite a Dozen

Good progress is being made on the saw till. Finished fitting it out for the saws yesterday-managed to get 11 saws in there comfortably. And still be able to lift it ;)
Also been playing with my new Airpress. Very interesting-I am amazed by the amount of pressure the bag is put under! It also makes some scary cracking noises as it comforms to the workpiece. I'll let you know how I get on.

Getting There

Sorry about the tardy blogging-I shall save making excuses, here's the update.
The saw till is coming on well. I have dovetailed the carcass, fitted the floor, made the frame and panel lid and am starting on fitting out the till for the saws. Another few days and it should be done-just need to source some suitable brass hardware.
Broke in my new router table on this project. It is performing really well and I'm glad I made the effort. The router lift facility of the Trend T11 is so cool-it makes me wonder why it's taken so long to be "invented"!
I'm working away from home again so it'll be the weekend before I can get the till finished-until then, friends.

A WW Weekend

I've started on my next project-Hurrah, I hear you say? ;)
It's a saw till to hold my ever increasing pile of hand saws. Black walnut is the timber of choice, with a dovetailed carcase and a frame and panel lid. It will be fully fitted to hold the saws comfortably (although that part of construction is still in the planning stage) and have a locking lid (to keep the Missus from "borrowing" them for Ebay!!) WIP pics to follow soon.
Went to Ally Pally Woodworking Exhibition yesterday-a fun day out apart from the atrocious traffic :(
Met up with Dave L, Gav and Les Mahon from the UK Workshop team as well as chatting with the usual WW scene Superstars (Terry Smart, Martin Brown and Mark Ramuz). The show wasn't as much fun as last year-the sponser going bust a month ago can't of helped on that front..... I will miss Axminster this year. See you all at Yandles in April!
Oops-forgot to mention the Airpress I picked up on the way out. Anyone got any veneer going cheap??
Cheers
Philly

Router-Lite

As I start worrying about how I'm going to move my workshop I have re-built my router table. My last one was, shall we say, a bit big. Weighed a flipping ton, too! Very useful Norm style R/T with drawers, dust extraction, go faster stripes, etc. The new one is a little stripped down (in comparision) The table top was bought at last years Axminster show-a beauty by Woodhaven with ally fence and fine adjuster, a phenolic router plate with levellers and a mitre gauge slot. How much?? £50..........;)
Using my Trend T11 and a NVR switch I think I have a nifty little table-and one that I can pick up on my own! I'll let you know how it works out.
On another note, I'm in "between project hell". The UK Workshop competition is on my mind, as was a dining room suite. That can wait 'til after the move, now. Hmm, what to do.....

Four on the Floor

As you may know, I've now made four boxes. Time to stop, I think ;)
It is surprising how much faster you get when you make more than one of a project. Also, the mistakes drop away quickly. I seem to make most of the boo-boo's on the first one-after that I'm pretty good. So maybe it is a good idea to make multiples of a project? I remember reading that Norm Abrams makes two of each project-the first one he builds works out the construction details. The second (the one he builds on the show) incorporates the lessons he learnt on the first one.
Now I'm not suggesting you set up production of whatever project you are building, but when you consider the amount of time spent making jigs, setting up machines, etc, it kinda makes sense to run enough parts to make a second one. I'm hoping this means the dining room suite I have to build soon will not be as long winded as I think it could be ;)
On another note-I am moving!!! Fear not, the New Dorset Workshop is only moving a couple of miles up the road. But it will be detached from the house, so hopefully nocturnal woodworking will be back on the menu! Stay tuned.........

Gone All Skewish...

Box numero two is nearly done-just need to chop the lid off and line it. A coat of oil has given it a nice sheen. You notice the 140 nonchalently sat in the pic? It's not just a gloat there is a story...
After wiping the oil on the box last night I thought I'd do a little sharpening. Block plane, bullnose, ah! What about the 140? That wicked skew means it'll probably be freehand (as I can't be bothered to find Derek's mkII settings). Swipe, swipe. Yes, done myself proud. Wipe the blade down and oil it, put the blade back in the body. Well, nearly. I dropped it about three inches before I made it, putting three lovely dings in the edge........... Not the kinda dings you hone out. Sometimes you wish you just left well alone.
The Woodkateers Axminster trip went well. The chaps all had a good time, we also popped to a nearby village called (and I'm not making this up) Beer. There's a little antique shop that Martin knew that sells tools. Not a bad selection, but I left with two dozen old copies of Fine Woodworking (some dated 1984!!) 75p each? Done! We had to sample the local speciality after that.
Oh, and Waka spent a fortune that day. But whats new? ;)

The Boxer Returns

As promised, here's box number two. Made of English Elm and American Walnut it is a duplicate of box#1 (although made with the benefit of hindsight so less mistakes!). I've just got to cut the lid off and finish it. Pass the Danish oil.......
Other news-The Dorset Woodkateers are off to Axminster tomorrow! Hope they're ready for us (and Waka leaves his wallet at home)
Cheers
Phil
P.s. There's another Disston on the way off the 'Bay, hand saw fans.

The Boxer

The pep-up project is complete! Finished this little box on the weekend and as I had to make a couple of jigs to ease construction I'm firing into a second one. Might even make a few more....
Little boxes are a great way to use up those pretty little off-cuts that I seem to hoard all over the workshop. This one is made of birdseye maple and purpleheart, the next from elm and walnut. Now, what other combinations can I come up with??
Cheers
Philly

Specialised Tool, Special Tool.....

Howdy Bloggerteers!
My Disston rip saw turned up at last (from the States). It's a "7" rip saw, 26 inches long and has been freshly sharpened (NOT by me). The saw is about a 100 years old, quite amazing really. It cuts superbly, almost too well. Obviously its only good for ripping but thats not necessarily a bad thing. Have you noticed how the tool that promise s"does the work of 10 different tools" never really does anything well. They are too compromised. But this is where specialised tools come into it.
A tool that is designed (successfully) to do one particular operation well is a delight. You may not use that tool every day (even every week) but when you need it, bang, the job is done. And done well. And that makes these special little tools worth the money in my opinion.