As I gear up for summer program, I will be taking a little time to reflect on my past year. My bosses at work have kept me on as a teacher, although I smell the terrifying and exciting smell of change in the air. On May 22nd, my students (and I) participated in the 2011Continue reading “(School) Year in Review: Art Car 2011”
Tag Archives: Woodshop
This Week in the Shop: Children’s Picnic Table
This week in the shop, I got the chance to use up a few of the pine boards laying in the woodpile. My son got a picnic table out of the deal. The table is 24″ L, 11″ W & about 11″ H. The table: The chair (the rails are too close together): The resultContinue reading “This Week in the Shop: Children’s Picnic Table”
This Week in the Shop: Reading Stand from Salvaged Wainscoting
Here’s my latest workshop creation. It’s a small reading stand for my wife’s grandmother (or rather, mine too, I guess). The curly flame maple isn’t actual wood, but some sort of printed-Formica laid over some pretty expensive chipboard. The Formica/chipboard came off a local office’s wainscoting, and I just had to grab a coupla panels. Continue reading “This Week in the Shop: Reading Stand from Salvaged Wainscoting”
This Week in the Shop: A Granite Trestle Table (for Grillin’)
There’s a saying in electronic/maker/hacker circles. Sometimes, you just need enough junk before you can start doing cool stuff. You need a “critical mass” of stuff. This trestle table came together because of a “critical mass” of junk. The pressure treated base was scrap pieces from a variety of sources (work, my own projects, etc)Continue reading “This Week in the Shop: A Granite Trestle Table (for Grillin’)”
Bookshelf in Mission Style
This bookshelf recently left the workshop at school. The bookshelf started life as an illustration in The Project Gutenberg EBook of Mission Furniture, by H. H. Windsor, otherwise known as the good fellows at Popular Mechanics. Which the student modified to suit the schools current needs. The CAD mock-up looked like this: In the end,Continue reading “Bookshelf in Mission Style”
This Week in the Shop: Art Car
This Week In the Shop, 80% of our students left for an overnight camp. I stayed back and worked with a small group of seniors building senior gifts. One of those senior gifts happens to be an Art Car, which you can follow along on the Art Car 2011 page. This week’s pictures: And then:Continue reading “This Week in the Shop: Art Car”
The Things they Carried (Cool Tools Everyday Carry Contest)
Kevin Kelly, editor of Wired magizine, runs an interesting blog on Cool Tools. He recently held a contest looking for tools which are carried everyday. This year, I’ve been refining my tool belt to carry the tools that make my job run. So let’s start, shall we? From right to left: Canvas Tool Pouch: It’sContinue reading “The Things they Carried (Cool Tools Everyday Carry Contest)”
Teacher Tip: Use Pilot Holes for Hammering!
When installing finishing brads and nails, I usually chuck the nail into the bit and punch a hole through the lumber. This results in a minimal hole (the length of the nail minus the depth of my drill’s chuck jaws) which prevents most splitting. I recently “discovered” a secret – the deeper the pilot holeContinue reading “Teacher Tip: Use Pilot Holes for Hammering!”
A Quick Reminder – Keep Safe Today
This article from Makezine.com hit my inbox recently. Woodshop, machine shop, handsaws and chisels can all cause injury and at times, death. Constant vigilance and evaluation of our skills is the only way to reduce the our chances, and our students chances, of injury. Take a moment today to evaluate your own practices and routinesContinue reading “A Quick Reminder – Keep Safe Today”
Gear Review: Groz Planes
In the woodshop today, I spent some quality time with a set of 3 Groz planes. The block plane (unsure what the Stanley No would be), the Jack Plane and their Jointer. I’ve been pleased with the results throughout this year. I sharpen the blades about once a quarter or during long breaks, and whenContinue reading “Gear Review: Groz Planes”
WSC Designs 