tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75239230670785129762024-03-13T21:06:32.739+01:00Blue Spruce WoodshopAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.comBlogger130125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-62247231042069985902018-03-07T12:00:00.000+01:002018-03-07T12:00:44.421+01:00Again...Dovetails
After I have cut off my dovetails a couple of weeks ago, now it's time to cut new dovetails.
I wanted to do a short retrospective to conclude what I'm working on. And I noticed that I haven't written a post about the project itself.
I wrote that I cut off all dovetails and how I have jointed the legs. And now I'm at the next phase already.
Long story short. The Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-70025498897004893562018-02-28T12:00:00.000+01:002018-02-28T12:00:12.232+01:00Blue Spruce Leather Craft
It's cold outside. And inside too. The last days it was, at least for me, much too cold to be in the workshop. Time to do something different.
To get distracted from my day job I have to make something in my free time. The last week and days have been too cold to be in the workshop. So I decided to make something in the cosy environment of my tiny makers desk.
Do you know the dead Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-91528293404643200432018-02-14T12:00:00.000+01:002018-02-14T12:00:45.365+01:00Corner Joint
Last week I cut off all my dovetail from a frame I have recently built. Here comes why.
I wrote about it a while ago. One of the projects I have on my list is a mid-century phone bench.
It is kind of a honey do project. But I found it is an interesting project and so I simply started to build.
One of the major problems I had to solve was which joint can I use to join legs to a Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-90584354761611718892018-02-07T12:00:00.000+01:002018-02-07T12:36:59.245+01:00I Cut Off My Dovetails
Recently I cut off my dovetails. If you are wondering if I'm crazy, then feel invited to find out what's going on.
You have to think I'm crazy. I assure you I'm not.
I spent a reasonable amount of effort to make a frame jointed by dovetails. While cutting them I already knew that they haven't to be excellent and appealing. Why? Because it was already clear that I would cut them off.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-9583840594504609072017-11-22T12:00:00.000+01:002017-11-22T12:00:13.161+01:00Restoring a Short Jointer Plane
A longer while ago I have found a wooden short jointer plane at one of my flea market visits.
Somehow I didn't spent any time to care about it. Planing a wide board as a top panel caused me to recall.
Recently I wanted to plane the top for the upcoming phone bench flat. I grabbed the #5 and started to plane. After a short while I recognized that I'm already used to wooden planes.
So theAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-53524241325612872392017-11-08T12:00:00.000+01:002017-11-08T12:00:26.026+01:00Coat Rack Pt.3
This was the week of multiple projects. But the coat rack has to be completed.
At the original version the frame is mounted at an angle to the
backboard. To reach this I have to establish a bevel at the back edge of
the frame. For this task I'm usually laying out the angle at both ends
and then draw a line from point to point which I'm planing to.
Marking the right angle
The Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-19678961172520992882017-11-02T12:00:00.000+01:002017-11-02T12:00:26.247+01:00Finding the Right Joint for Mid-Century Legs
Today I would like to share some thoughts about a leg-frame construction for Mid-Century style furniture.
Furniture of this period do have pretty often legs set at a 45° angle (vertically) with splay and rake. Additionally they have got an oval or rounded over shape.
Hard to describe. Maybe once again have a look at these samples then you will get an impression.
The phone bench I'm Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-40940608592704680342017-10-25T12:00:00.000+02:002017-10-25T12:00:18.900+02:00Coat Rack Pt.2
My full attention this week belonged to the coat rack. Nothing very special, but things like stop cut recesses, making dowels and working precisely without damaging anything.
The bridle joints cut and fitted, the first stage of building the basic frame is done. It's dead square and I'm lucky about how it came out.
Dry fitted frame
In the next stage the frame will get a recess to Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-11570224260134943722017-10-18T12:00:00.000+02:002017-10-18T12:00:05.352+02:00Wherever I Lay My Hat
Don't worry. This post is not about the Marvin Gaye song. Although it fits into the period my new project is about. The song is from 1962. So we are talking about the Mid-Century.
Once again the Mid-Century is part of the story. I wrote about it a couple of times. My wife and I are real aficionados of this time. We are always looking for pieces out of this period, when we are visiting Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-49330680439657004842017-10-11T12:00:00.000+02:002017-10-11T12:00:23.913+02:00Another Summer is Over
Man, time flies by. While I'm still waiting that Summer is coming, it is already over.
That was a crazy one. No longer period of having nice weather conditions. Rain every second day.
And personally, I didn't spent much time with woodworking.
To be honest I'm asking myself with what I have spent my time.
I think I have a serious motivation problem. On one hand there are so manyAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-26684545039761284702017-08-16T12:00:00.000+02:002017-08-16T12:00:17.509+02:00Why an Iron is Important!
The explanation why an iron is important for woodworking will be part of this weeks post.
Beside of some progress on the balcony bench project.
But first things first. It is a crazy summer. And I'm not sure any longer, if we can speak about summer.
Since late June the weather is changing every second day. One day it is warm and sunny, the next day it is raining cats and dogs. It Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-35890017025285584962017-07-05T12:38:00.000+02:002017-07-05T12:38:00.401+02:00The Balcony Bench (Pt.5)
I am back to everyday life.
After two relaxing weeks the daily stress is back.
Before it will take me completely I'll try to complete the bench project.
And then getting space for a new project which is just around the corner.
Last time I reported about the back rest of the bench. All m&t joints done, the next step was to round over all the back slats.
Rounding over the Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-11954407692636683842017-06-28T13:59:00.001+02:002017-06-28T13:59:50.075+02:00Wood, but no working!
My last week was more stone than wood.
Nevertheless I have spent a lot of time in the woods.
It's June - Vacation time. This year we have decided to spent our holidays in Saxony. To be exactly in the "Saxon Switzerland". We have never been there before and were surprised about the fantastic natural environment there. Although we have been out for hiking every day and walked Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-56444569310134720632017-06-21T12:00:00.000+02:002017-06-21T12:00:23.328+02:00Back to the making!
I had to have a break from blogging for a while.
My day job required my full attention and commitment.
I can't really remember when my last post was.
And what it was about.
The last weeks to month have been hard times. The company I am working for is in a process, which in modern usage is a so called digital transformation. On one hand it's a good thing. A huge enterprise with a Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-80262230523399021822017-05-03T12:00:00.000+02:002017-05-03T12:00:06.003+02:00Making 30 M&T Joints
Spring isn't getting warmer.
That will give me some more time to complete the bench.
A lot of mortise and tenon work has to be done.
The last week I had a few days off. I thought I could spent my days in the shop. As always, it came differently than one thinks. Nevertheless I made progress.
The main parts of the frame together it now came to the point of caring about the back slats.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-7195237876250933172017-04-26T12:00:00.000+02:002017-04-26T12:00:01.820+02:00The Balcony Bench (Pt. 3)
After the excursion into sharpening last week now back to the actual project.
My English Balcony Bench.
Fancy things like a crest rail and the armrests are waiting.
The crest rail presented me with a small challenge.
I wanted to shape it somehow. Nothing more than two 45° bevels coming in 30 mm from the top edge and 250 mm away from the ends.
Hopefully you can see in the picture Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-74704761646384412052017-04-19T12:00:00.000+02:002017-04-19T12:00:03.884+02:00What Have I Changed?
I had resolved not to write about sharpening.
There are specialist out there who do know everything about it.
I'm just a simple Internet woodworker.
In my last posts I have mentioned pretty often that I have changed my sharpening routine. Maybe once too often. So it came that Ken requested at my last post that I have to reveal the secret.
Now then, what have I changed? Good question.
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-34272188007380848002017-04-12T12:00:00.000+02:002017-04-12T12:00:16.831+02:00The English Balcony Bench
There is some progress on the garden bench project.
It's all about tenons this time.
Making the side rails between front and rear legs is part of this stage of the project.
I had to make four side rails. The stock was prepped quickly. I had some left overs from the workbench build. The material was already squared, so I had only to cut it to length, adjust the thickness and to Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-27969940443106941132017-04-05T12:00:00.000+02:002017-04-05T12:00:00.666+02:00Spring Is There
This weekend spring reached us.
You already know what that means.
Your spouse has got nice plans for your weekend.
So it came that we were outside most of the weekend and the shop time was rare.
Do you notice something? Yeah, spring is there, outdoor activities are starting, bench not ready respectively in the early stages.
Anyway, I managed it to prepare the front legs of theAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-87813256157767877952017-03-22T12:00:00.000+01:002017-03-22T12:00:32.283+01:00Sittin' In The Balcony
Do you remember this old Eddie Cochran song? No?
Doesn't really matter for this post. But check it out.
I like this old song. Among other things because Eddie Cochran is one of my Rock'n'Roll idols.
But this is not why I'm writing this post.
This post is about one of my next projects. Spring is knocking at our doors and it is time to care about your outdoor seating.
Since years my Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-25167272543264160022017-03-15T12:00:00.000+01:002017-03-15T12:00:26.020+01:00Elec-Trickery in the Shop
Beside of the telling-bone, the elec-trickery find its way into the shop.
I'm a hand tool woodworker from conviction.
But it's time to get rid of time killers.
One of my time killers is grinding!
As I like to overhaul the one or other wooden plane it always comes to the point of grinding the recovered iron.
Of course, you can do that by hand. I've tried different methods. Using a veryAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-18769850143226348362017-03-08T12:00:00.000+01:002017-03-08T12:00:05.601+01:00Coopering Progress
My actual project raised my curiosity so much that I have started to investigate deeper into the trade of the coopers.
But beside of all research I found time to complete the bucket a bit more.
I have tried to find more material and as cooper is an apprenticeship in Germany there should exist a curriculum. But I could not find one. There have been some in the past, but no luck. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-61861965000893176882017-03-01T12:00:00.000+01:002017-03-01T12:00:31.536+01:00It Will Be a Bucket
I'm making my way through the coopering experience.
The bucket starts to take shape.
Last week I have reported about my wooden bucket experiment. I have stopped at the point to establish a bevel at all the stave edges. Let's jump in at this point.
The Staves
All the shorter parts I have shot on the shooting board.
Shooting the edge of a stave
It went ok for the shorter Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-74430345303859866232017-02-22T12:00:00.000+01:002017-02-22T12:00:13.685+01:00What Do You Know About Coopering?
Various events brought me to a new project idea.
And this has to do with coopering.
To explain the new project I have to reach out a bit. I love to read and to soak up information.
A few weeks ago I read Mr. Schwartz blog post about one of his upcoming projects - a dust pan.
Reading the post I thought that this of course is a fun project. And if you will read the article attentiveAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7523923067078512976.post-34646379837250942462017-02-15T12:00:00.000+01:002017-02-15T12:00:16.059+01:00Wooden Jointer Plane
Another intermezzo for all tool addicts.
And another exemplar to store.
Maybe a rash purchase.
In one of my last posts I have reported that I have found another wooden plane.
To be exact it is a wooden jointer plane. During the last year some were crossing my path while I rummaged at the flea markets. Most of them had serious issues like no iron, heavily rotten, worm holes, etcAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17569365598390231433noreply@blogger.com22