Ups And Downs…. + Projects
I spoke too soon! The websites have been up, down, up, down and up again the past week. At the moment (and for the past couple of days) they’re up, but its becoming quite a pain and if we have too many more interruptions I’l give serious consideration to migrating to a new host — especially now that we’re making a little money from the sites!
Its a shame because we’ve had a good run with the current host and they’ve always been on top of things when there’s been problems in the past. Nice friendly guys too. The past week though the organization has been looking a little shabby. Hopefully it will improve.
As far as other matters are concerned I’ve been busy updating various sites, as well as organizing a few tutorials for Handplane Central. I’ve conducted a bit of a poll there and it appears that most people, by far, want plans and tutorials — so I’ve been digging a few profiles out, sawing some wood and taking a few photographs. I’m part way through making several hand planes and documenting the stages as I go. I had been slowing down on making hand planes in general the past couple of years but I’m on an upward curve again. It happens like that sometimes and I worked out that next year will mark my 15th as an infill plane maker, which is kinda….well weird I suppose. It hardly seems that long ago that I first got into it!
Speaking of which, it’s taken a while — too long really — but I started making a proper tool box earlier this year for taking along to woodworking shows, exhibitions and demonstrations. Previously I’d used a shabby and rather crudely made tote that I had knocked together when I was doing my furniture design course. I basically made that tool chest in a day — and it shows! Still, it worked well enough but it was hardly a showpiece item! This new chest — in a machinist’s style — will be much nicer. For the most part it’s made from mahogany, with rosewood drawer fronts and ebony moldings. The panels are fielded and I’m thinking of designing and casting up the drawer knobs in silver, featuring my trademark “windmill” design. The carcase is done (I should get a few photographs actually) so I just need to do the fitting out of it now - which is really the bulk of the work when you consider those drawer dovetails. Speaking of which, each of the panels for the carcase use sliding dovetails to help keep everything solid. I also want to add a bit of beech wood somewhere… possibly the drawer sides or bottoms. Might add some boxwood and lignum vitae accents as well. Then I’ll have most of the planemaking woods covered!
Hopefully I’ll have it finished by the end of the year. With everything else happening though, nothing is certain!
