Car Stereo CD Player for the Shop

I wanted to get some music in the workshop but did not want anything big and bulky.  Ideally, it would be nice to get wifi and hear music from the computer but inside the garage does not get my wifi signal.  I will have to run a cable out there sometime.  Since I already had some nice speakers, I decided to just get an inexpensive car stereo and pair it with an old computer power supply.  Then I made a dovetailed box out of pine and put it up on a shelf I made.

Modifying A Kobalt Handsaw

I watched a YouTube video where a man recommended getting a Kobalt handsaw from Lowes for $11.  It is a saw blade that can be resharpened too.  He demonstrated how well it cut versus some other low cost handsaws.  I decided to try it out.  It is 12 teeth per inch and I sharpened the teeth to a rip cut profile.  He was right, it was terrific!  What a great deal for $11!  With care, this will last for a very long time because it can always be resharpened.  The only thing I did not care for was the plastic handle so I made a wood one.
I got a pattern for a Disston miterbox saw handle from tgia.  Here is the result:

Building A Tenor Ukelele

I got the idea to build a tenor ukelele from Matthias Wandel's YouTube channel.  For many years now, I had thought about building a guitar, but never took action on it.  With a ukelele, the project seemed less intimidating.  I decided to do it starting in November 2016.  I had a nice piece of close grained redwood for the top which I was able to quarter saw into nice bookmatched panels.  I used walnut for the sides where I glued to thin laminations.  Cherry was used for the neck and walnut for the fingerboard.  It was a fun project and I am glad I did it.  It is quite an art to build a nice sounding instrument though.  With all the work to build a ukelele from scratch, it did not compare as well in sound as a Makala Dolphin ukelele I bought for under $50.  I am not sure if I will build a guitar now, but I would not rule it out.  I have construction photos of the whole ukelele build here.

Making Shop Cabinets

I came across a website that had information on building shop cabinets by Tom Clark.  He had lots of cabinets that he has made over the years and they looked great.  He was selling a book on how he did it and I really liked his style so I purchased it.
Practical Shop Cabinets
Since I got the book, I have built two bench cabinets.  One is 10 drawers and the other is 8.  The first one took me about 30 hours over 14 days at about $80.   It has a 3/4" plywood top.  The second one I just finished in about 24 hours over 8 days for about the same cost.  I had built a Ron Paulk style workbench which I cut down and used for the top on this cabinet.  I must say these cabinets are rock solid and should last a long time.  It is nice to have lots of space for organized storage where things have a home.  I also fixed up an old small 2 drawer dresser and replaced it with 4 brand new drawers with drawer slides.  It used to have drawers that just slid in on wood rails.  I painted it black and left the drawer fronts natural.  I just used polyurethane satin for the finish on the red oak plywood.  The 8 drawer cabinet was finished with boiled linseed oil, then 1 coat of satin poly and it looks a bit better than the straight poly.
I made the wooden drawer handles out of bits of cherry and maple.  Some were cut by my cnc machine but most were cut out on the bandsaw.  The handle design is from Matthias Wandel and the ones on the 4 drawer unit are designed by John Heisz.  These handles are much more solid than what you can buy.

Martin Guitars Factory Tour

I went to Martin Guitars in Nazareth, PA on 9/30/2016 for a factory tour.  Martin offers daily plant tours so I was excited to get a chance to see how their guitars are made.  CF Martin started in 1833. Once you enter the lobby of Martin Guitars there are lots of things to see while you wait for the tour to start.  There is a museum on the left which beautifully showcases the history of the company back to its start in 1833.  There are guitars there that are 180+ years old! You could spend a long time in this museum as it is as high quality as any museum you will visit. There is also a gift shop and a guitar playing area where you can actually play several Martin’s hanging on the wall.

The tour starts with a tour guide handing out wireless earphones so you get to hear every word during the tour.  This is a great idea!  They are set up for daily tours and have it down to a science.  There are display boards everywhere in the factory showing what the workcell does and what the equipment does.  There are many cnc machines and robotic equipment but there still is lots of work that is hand done by craftspeople. 

There are about 600 employees in this 200,000 square foot facility.  It is a marvel that this company has survived all these years.  It is a privately owned company and the Martin family is now in its 6^th generation.  For anyone who is a woodworker or guitar player or both, this factory tour is really a special treat.  Even if you are not either, it is still one of the best plant tours you will see.  It is really interesting how the factory and walking tour are set up to showcase the employees and product.  There was careful thought to not make just a factory to build guitars but to market the high quality of the Martin product right in the factory itself.  When you are walking through and seeing the many different styles of guitars in process, you definitely want one!  It is really clever how this was thought out and something you will not see in other factories.  After the tour you receive a laser engraved sound hole cut out.

It is a bit of a ride from Philadelphia, PA but well worth it.

More pictures from the tour are here = Martin Guitar photos.

Chessboard Made With Only Hand Tools

I just finished this chessboard and I used only hand tools to make it (about 95% hand tools).  I did use a circular saw to rip cut 72" piece off a board of cherry for the edging.  The squares are 1/4" thick and thickness planed by hand using a #4 plane.  I was amazed at the precision you can get with a shooting board, hand planes, and a sharp tenon rip saw.  This was a great learning process for me and I really like how it turned out.  The finish is 3 coats of shellac, 2 coats boiled linseed oil/lemon oil/helmsman varnish/mineral spirits mix, then finished off with furniture wax.  I used cherry and curly maple for the squares, cherry for the edge pieces and ash for the dovetail splines at each corner
For more information on how this project is made, see woodworking masterclasses with Paul Sellers.

Hand Cut Dovetails

I have been making hand cut dovetail boxes over the past 2 months.  My goal is to practice making 100 dovetail corners, so that would amount to 25 boxes.  I have 7 various boxes made so far, but I am gaining more confidence with my dovetail saw, chisel and hand plane skills.  No routers, jigs or templates used.  It is amazing what you can do with some sharp hand tools.  In many instances it is faster and much safer than machines.  No loud noise, kickbacks or dust collection.  I can do at any time also and not bother my neighbors.