Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Ain't no Feathers...



"Ain't no feathers around here boys..."

I just received an email from Greg in Glastonbury, CT.
He just finished the second project from Made by Hand, the dovetailed wall shelf.
Here is his letter and some pics.
Great job Greg!
And thanks again for sharing~; )








Dear Tom,
I’m really enjoying your book, and I’ve worked through project number 2.  I made it pretty much the way that you described.  I went with different hinges and a slightly different take on the front curve, but other than that, it’s about the same.
I did take a stab at french polishing this one.  I found a good tutorial by a luthier online.  This was my first attempt, and it turned out pretty will, all in all.  I’ll do a lot of things differently next time, but that’s the way it works.
The thing I’m proudest of is that there’s no plywood in it at all!  I resawed a mahogany plank for the back and some scrap walnut and maple for the bottoms of the drawers.  I didn’t think it would work at all, but you said I could do it, so I did!
I’m attaching a couple of shots!
Sincerely,
Greg
Glastonbury, CT

P.S. You were right about the dove tails.  My abilities improved greatly throughout this project, although I find that the half-blind dovetails are much easier to get right for some reason.  Now all that is left is to start saving my pennies for the wood for skinny legs!




Edit

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Sally



My last post was written with a light heart- this one isn’t.




It’s always hard to say goodbye so instead I’ll say thank you.
Thank you for 12 years of love, loyalty and constant companionship.
Waiting for me after endless hours in the wood shop, curled up in a big pile of wood shavings!
Your quirky, larger than life personality will always be remembered.


Rest in peace ‘ol girl.
I’ll see you on the other side…




Monday, January 30, 2012

Saw Stop





I really don’t know what all the fuss it about- saws with automatic stopping mechanisms and the like. Not to brag but my antique Disston has been equipped with this so-called ‘new technology’ ever since I got it.
Yesterday, while ripping some maple my thumb somehow got in the path of the blade. Yikes! Could have been catastrophic but as soon as it started cutting into my flesh it stopped- go figure.
Saw stop old school style.

; ) It’s Monday morning- time to get at it…