Chamfer Sanding Block + Free Plan

I am making an end grain cutting board, and for the edge treatment, I decided to go with chamfers.  Now while the router left a nice edge, it did need sanding.  I could have just used a sanding block and hoped I kept it perfectly on the chamfer face, but seeing as this face is only about 1/4″ wide, chances were good that the edges would get knocked down or rounded.

I decided to make a sanding block for sanding the chamfer, with a flat registration face and a sanding block face set off by 45 degrees.  I mulled this over for a couple of days, and the resulting jig can be seen below.

Chamfer Sanding Block

Chamfer Sanding Block

Continue reading

Posted in Plans, Shop Tips, Woodworking | Leave a comment

Repairing a Broken Corner

So this isn’t really a corner.  Well, kind of.  It’s the corner of a walnut strip in a cutting board I was making.

After gluing up the board, and cleaning off the squeeze out, I noticed one of the strips had a broken corner.  I could opt to just cut this end off, or fill it, but since this will be an end grain cutting board, filling it wouldn’t look good, I thought.  And just cutting that much of the end off would shorten the board by an inch and a half.  I opted to repair it.

Board Cleaned Up

Board Cleaned Up

Continue reading

Posted in Shop Tips, Woodworking | Leave a comment

Making Celtic Knot Pen Blanks

Celtic Knot Pen Blanks

Celtic Knot Pen Blanks

I have a couple of pens to make.  I wanted to make them similar but contrasting, and have always wanted to try making Celtic knot blanks.  This was the perfect opportunity.

Continue reading

Posted in Wood Turning, Woodworking | Leave a comment

Walnut Cutting Board

Walnut Cutting Board

Walnut Cutting Board

I made this cutting board about 2 1/2 years ago.  Well, I FINISHED it 2 1/2 years ago.  I started it a year before that.  It sat unfinished for a whole year.

Continue reading

Posted in Woodworking | Leave a comment

Havel’s Helmet

Long story short don’t give up.  Wherever you are at it’s progress from where you started even if it’s 12 steps back.  The delay actually turned out pretty cool because had I done this 7 years ago he would have outgrown it.  Now he should be able to wear this for as many years as he wants to.  This started 7 years ago with a promise to my youngest son that I would make him Havel’s armor from Dark Soul’s.  Fast forward to today, still no armor.

Continue reading

Posted in Cosplay | Leave a comment

Custom Foam Inserts or how to test your marriage Part 1

When you take the bottle stoppers your husband turned.  Take everything out of a storage box in his office and head to the office with a can of spray foam even the best of marriages is put to the test.

Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Makers Spaces

SHAK maker space kokomo iN front of building

What is a “Makers Space” and why would you want to join? Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Laser Engraving Pens

Years ago, shortly after I began pen turning, I discovered that you can have your turned pens laser engraved.  I would send them off and they would be returned with my requested text engraved on them.  They were always spectacular, and I wondered what it would take to be able to do this myself.

Curly Satinwood

Curly Satinwood

With the price of lasers as the currently are, this now became a possibility.  It was one of the primary things I wanted one for.

Continue reading

Posted in Laser Engraving and Cutting, Wood Turning, Woodworking | Leave a comment

Fertigation

Ever since installing drip irrigation to our gardens, it has greatly reduced the amount of time spent each day watering.  One of the things I wanted to add from the start was a fertigation system.  We currently have 5 zones set up on 2 timers.  I plan to add 2 more zones to one of the timers, and add an additional timer with 3 zones.

Fertigation Setup

Fertigation Setup

Continue reading

Posted in Gardening, Homestead | Leave a comment

The Littles are Sleeping!

They are all asleep, and that lasted about 10 minutes.  They came home on May 7th for comparison here is how they fit in that box back then.  The Littles on May 7th

They now take up the entire box and stand about as tall as the sides.  Introducing them to the big kids can be a little complicated especially since we have a rooster.  Max is a good guy but if anything makes a weird noise or moves to quick he freaks out and well tries to create the new generation.  This is hard on the girls who are his size I worry about these girls who are much smaller.  For the past month I’ve been taking them and their tub outside and putting them in a fenced in area just outside of the big kid fenced in area.  They can look at each other and get used to each other and maybe that will reduce some fighting.  The past week or so I’ve been shutting the inner door to the big kids and opening the other inner door so the Littles can get in the inner pen and inside the coop.  It just so happens that there is a hen that we believe was injured by Mac in one of his attempts at romance.  To keep her safe we have her in a small caged area from night to morning when we come down to let the big kids into the main pen.  She is getting better, thanks for asking, but still not well enough to get away from Max.  This has worked out with the Littles because they like her and she isn’t fast enough to teach them any hard life lessons.  On top of that on several days another one of the hens would be in the inner pen and I wasn’t making a big deal about getting them out.  So far so good.  If I can rotate enough of the hens in with the Littles they may be fine with each other when the Littles go out full time.  For now I’m waiting a few more weeks till the Littles are Max’s size.  At least that way they will stand a chance against him and hopefully have learned from the girls to run and don’t make weird noises.

I hate to break this to Max but he is kind of small for his breed and these girls are a breed that is large, they will be larger than him.  Look out Max there coming for you!

Posted in Homestead | Leave a comment