Just Bob

I have never had an issue with drying or weakening a joint. I suppose it could happen, but let common sense drive and it shouldnt.

I use thickeners all the time. It just depends on what I am doing, and how I am going to use it, that determines which thickener I a going to use' If I am going have exposed joints, but not worried about strength, I will used very fine saw dust from the project that I am working one. This is the most common use for me. If I need a thickener that wont weaken the bond I use the West System 404. It is a silica based thickener that allows you to adjust the thickness without affecting the bond. but it is pure white I will very much show on an imperfect joint. Over the years I have use, used coffee grounds, saw dust, one of my kids even wanted me to use egg shells for her project, that even worked.

Sink cutouts, in counter tops has been my primary use. The saw has an alignment mark indicating where the blade will enter. Make all 4 cuts, finish off with a jigsaw/handsaw and the cutout is complete. Another place is to cut out a bad spot in a wood floor. Same principle. Those are the two that I can think of, I am sure there are more.

Like @ChetI started with the 75" & 55" rails. Over the years I have added different rails that were project specific. I added several accessories, the angle guide, plunge cut stop and parallel guides, to be specific. Again these were project specific, the angle guide and plunge cut stop are very useful in my shop, the parallel guides are not. This was before companies like TSO and Woodpecker came out with their rail square products. Then I bought the TSO rail guide before the Woodpecker guide was available. If I was starting over today I would still buy the tracks, the plunge cut stop, and add the Woodpeckers rail square because of the built in angle guide. One last thing, DO NOT attempt a plunge cut without the stop in place. The kick back is terrifying. Don't ask.

What part of the country do you live? After 50yrs I doubt it is going to get much worse as long as you protect it from the elements. I bought mine in 1976, and didn't do anything with it until about 20yrs ago. It was either in storage or hanging out in my garage. I honestly don't remember what finish I put on it but I suspect it was Danish oil, since that was my preferred finish at the time. If you are concerned about the large crack you could butterfly it in a couple of places. That edge is going to be really hard to finish. If I was going finish mine today, I would brush epoxy on edge and inside the large voids. Then I would finish the top and bottom with Osmo Polyx. It is really durable and easy to apply. It is really too bad that you don't have a place in your house for it. But finished with a base the right person will pay a small fortune! Ours is about 4' x 2' it a root burl, and we paid $75.00 for it. I was offered $3k not to long ago.

I have the pattern makers vise, it is a great addition to work shop. Which gun stock vise? I am looking for one.

Did you get any permitting grief about installing a sink in the shop? When I built my shop, the county declined my permit because they were concerned that we would turn the building into a living space for rent. I took the sink out of the plans.

One last thought before you buy the jig. I bought the jig when I was making a number of raised panel doors, and it really helped. But since then I have changed to just using a backing board to cut the stiles. Doing that saved setup time because I could leave the router at the same height drop in the next bit and move on. Changing to that method left my jig gathering dust. The last time I used it, just a couple of months ago was for some hickory doors, and the hickory kicked my butt and I needed the jig. Guess my point is, it is a great jig, but there are other ways to do the work without spending the money.

I have had the woodpecker sled for at least 10yrs, and have used it with several different fences. I don't see a reason it would not work with a jessem fence. The fence would have to be at least 3" tall for the sled to make contact with the fence.

I agree. Nobody I know would gobble them up. Sorry couldn't resist.

Total Boat is a good product, but for what you are planning, you are going to want something that is easily repairable. At a minimum any epoxy is going to require that you sand down the old finish. If the table is going to be under an awning, and not directly exposed to the elements I would look at "hard wax" products. I have a butcher block table on my deck that I used osmo poly x for the finish. The poly x is intended for interior flooring and furniture, and not for outdoor furniture, but, they do make products that offer UV protection and help to resist warping. I used the poly x because it is what I had in my shop. That being said it has held up well, it is very easy to to repair, and there is no visible warping or other problems after several years. I live in the north west, and our weather is not comparable, but we do have year round high humidity, and this year our summer temps have been consistently in the high 90s. Our table is under an awning and exposed to direct diffused sun.

Yes. It was a good system when I bought it 5yrs ago, but age and heat have taken its toll. I still haven't found one that I really like. There are some that take front and rear vids from the unit that is attached to the front windshield or rear view mirror. Those are the units that I will not use.

My current cam attaches to the rear window, no interior camera views. I absolutely agree with not having an interior camera.

In Washington state, the law requires a police officer to respond, investigate, and issue a citation to the "at fault" driver. Because of the "defund police" movement and a recent state law eliminating the national standard of reasonable suspicion, and now requiring probable cause for police contacts, more and more jurisdictions are refusing to dispatch an officer to non-injury accidents. This leaves it up to insurance companies to determine fault, based on a "he said, he said" basis. Even in a no fault state I want to have the evidence to prove my case in a civil court if needed. I feel far more comfortable with a dash cam, to back up my statements. When I replace my current dash cam, I want front and rear views, accurate GPS to record speed, direction of travel and location. Seamless blue tooth to send the recording to my phone or the "cloud".

I am interested in the replies. I will probably have to replace mine soon I think it is dying from heat stroke.