h3nry Posted August 30, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2016 Thanks guys - I work as a geologist with the oil industry, so not much available anywhere in the world right now. I'm sure I'll still be lurking here admiring what you're all building. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted August 30, 2016 Report Share Posted August 30, 2016 Interesting occupation. Wish I could offer some suggestion, but oil is pretty scarce in my region. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treeslayer Posted August 30, 2016 Report Share Posted August 30, 2016 i wish you the best of luck h3nry, and no lurking allowed for members, chime in once in a while and let us know how you're doing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gee-dub Posted August 30, 2016 Report Share Posted August 30, 2016 On 7/31/2016 at 2:48 PM, h3nry said: So I see. But what I meant was, I have walls at both ends of my bench. If I clamped it onto my face-vice like that it would literally be sticking into the bathroom. . .. Classic! I can totally picture this in my mind. Repetitive or not, your trim looks great. My hopes are with you for the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post h3nry Posted February 11, 2019 Author Popular Post Report Share Posted February 11, 2019 Well ... I thought I ought to post an update on this thread ... It's not all good news ... on the move back to Canada this piece didn't fare too well for a number of reasons. First ... at some point in the move the package containing this got dropped, and three of the legs broke off, and the rest of the carcass got badly damaged. Second ... the move from a humid tropical environment with no seasons, to the bone-dry climate of Alberta (also the wood was probably just air dried) caused some serious shrinkage ... I knew there would be some, but it was seriously more than I anticipated ... my poor pegged tenons didn't manage to move enough, and so it started pulling itself apart ... revealing all kinds of design flaws. Thirdly ... the wood movement was not even, and any sapwood cupped violently (although the heartwood wasn't too bad). Fortunately there wasn't much sapwood in the project, but I had prepared a whole bunch as secondary wood to be used in the drawer construction ... seriously just firewood now. Fourthly ... the top I had fortunately built out of quartersawn boards, so it remained relatively stable, and ended up surprisingly flat ... However the shrinkage was so significant, that it just wasn't big enough any more ... so I had to rip it in half and splice in about a 3/4" strip. With all the other changes in my life ... even once I got it back into my garage ... I just kept looking at it and thinking "firewood" ... I had a real motivation problem to get enthusiastic about repairing all the damage, and getting back to finishing it all off. Well, eventually I thought I had to do something with it ... either have at it again, or chop it up and burn it ... one way or the other it had to get off my bench and stop cluttering up the garage. So I glued the legs back on, and started to think about what had to be done next. Because of my motivational issues, and all the damage (most of which I just covered up, rather than fixing properly), I was just trying to get it done not necessarily done well. So I'm afraid I wasn't documenting the rest of the build ... but slowly it began to get back into a condition that I thought could be saved ... The wood is a South American wood called "Sapan". It's quite a common wood for domestic use in Colombia, it's hard and dense, with straight grain, and very pretty when finished ... but it is a brute to work with ... it's hard on tools, it has interlocking grain making it awful to plane without tearout, and it's horribly splintery. What's more I seem to be allergic to the splinters. I covered the drawer fronts with a bubinga veneer that I had. There's two small hidden drawers inside, into one of which a printout of this thread is going. Although it is certainly not my finest work (no close up pics since I'm trying to hide damage and poor fitting joinery from excessive wood movement etc.). I knew I was pushing my limits with this one from the start, and the whole process was certainly a learning experience and has made me a better woodworker. So here it is ... 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 All I can say is that it's better than I could do! Congrats on getting it finished! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 So you managed to age it into an antique in a year or so rather than 100? The end result looks good, doesn't matter if it looks iffy on closer inspection most of the time it won't get that. Thanks for sharing, i hope you take us on another adventure some time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chet Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 Well it looks pretty good from where I stand. Show it off, let people look at it and resist the urge to point out the flaws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chip Sawdust Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 I wish my mistakes looked half that good Be proud. That was a huge change in environment. You learned something and you managed not to turn it into firewood. Success story *thumbs up* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkinneb Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 Wow really nice work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gee-dub Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 Very nicely done. Really glad you came back and closed the loop on this. It’s a beauty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmac Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 Wow, that was a really fun thread to follow, having missed it the first time around. Glad you followed up and excellent work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewyo Posted February 12, 2019 Report Share Posted February 12, 2019 Really well done, H3nry. I'm impressed that you got back to it. I know how it is when a project lingers too long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark J Posted February 13, 2019 Report Share Posted February 13, 2019 Nice fix on the furniture. Hope your work thing worked out as well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h3nry Posted February 14, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 Thanks guys ... it's good to see some familiar names still here. Now I need to find something else to clutter the bench up with ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 So, do you have a bigger shop where you are now? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h3nry Posted February 14, 2019 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 1 hour ago, drzaius said: So, do you have a bigger shop where you are now? Yup ... I have a whole one-car garage to play with (apart from a few bicycles). it's a bit colder in the shop though ... it took all the heaters I could find to keep it above freezing for that -35 cold snap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 24 minutes ago, h3nry said: Yup ... I have a whole one-car garage to play with (apart from a few bicycles). it's a bit colder in the shop though ... it took all the heaters I could find to keep it above freezing for that -35 cold snap. Man a whole 1 car garage, that must kick the crap out of doing wood working in the shower . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted February 14, 2019 Report Share Posted February 14, 2019 58 minutes ago, h3nry said: Yup ... I have a whole one-car garage to play with (apart from a few bicycles). it's a bit colder in the shop though ... it took all the heaters I could find to keep it above freezing for that -35 cold snap. Nice. My well insulated garage shop normally stays about 5 - 10C even with the thermostat set at 4.5*, but not the last couple of weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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