Extremely Average

Ecocandle said:

New Year...New Hobby

I have been known to take up a hobby or 37. At 42, on the cusp of 43, and well into the 'balding' years, I have decided that, in lieu of a midlife crisis, I would take up woodworking. Don't get me wrong, a new car and a 27 year old with huge, firm, hands would be wonderful; But I can't afford the 27 year old, and I am not into cars that much.

In the summer of 2009, I went to an arts festival in Des Moines. The gentleman, who won best of show, did so with some amazing etched clay bowls. I am not sure why those clay pots inspired me to take up wood working, or if they were the only inspiration, but shortly thereafter I found myself living in the thriving metropolis of Martelle Iowa. I had my first ever basement.

Without a lot of money to buy all that one needs to build furniture, I started with magazines. The first one was called, "Start Woodworking", from the editors of Fine WoodWorking. I read tips on tools, ideas for projects, stories about great woodworkers, and I began to formulate a plan. I would start with a workbench, the workbench on page 24. The editors of the magazine did a good job of designing a project with the beginner in mind. They even provided a DVD with instructions that were really helpful.

The bench took several months to complete, though the plans were designed so that one could complete it is a weekend. I would guess that I spent 5 hours of thinking about building the bench, for every hour of actual working on it. I thought about what I needed to complete each step, but I was always only focused on the next step. The first step was to buy the 2×4s, 4×4s, 3/8" threaded rod, and a miter saw. Not an electric miter saw, a cheap manual one. I could afford it, it would cut, and I didn't at all care about how long it would take to make each cut. I also discovered in the garage and old hack saw that I could use for cutting the threaded rod.

With the wood cut, I decided I wanted to sand my lumber. The next purchase was a small Black and Decker 'Mouse' sander, some 80, 120, 180 grit sandpaper, and a cool looking level that I didn't need but it was shiny and I was powerless to NOT buy it. The next few weeks found me sanding each piece a bit each day. Barely into my first project I was already getting addicted to the process. The feeling of the construction grade lumber in my hand, after it had been sanded, gave me the slightest glimpse into the beauty of working with wood. I thought about how it must be to run my fingers across a piece of glass smooth mahogany or birds eye maple.

The plans required that I route a 3/8 inch groove into the stretchers. Before I read this magazine I didn't even know what a router or a stretcher was. Each new term learned, each skill set explored, opened up the possibilities that developing woodworking skills offers. And each discovery brought the reality home that care needs to be taken to master each aspect of woodworking. So before I could move on to routing I needed to do a bit of research. This is how one turns a 2 day project into a 2 month quest.

I read reviews and comments. There are many good routers to choose from and I decided to go with the Bosch 2.25 hp router with both the plunge base and the fixed base. I bought 3 bits. A 2" Spiral Downcut CL 2BB and a straight 3/8" by Amana Tools, and a 3/8" Up Spiral bit by Freud. I have come to the conclusion that Freud and Amana Tools are the two best out there. Admittedly Amana makes 2 levels of router bits, and I can't speak to their low end line, but the high end bits have been a joy.

With the router in hand, I had all the tools required to build my workbench. Each step was approached with a sense of confusion and fear. The first time I used the router I was filled with trepidation and pizza, as it was after dinner when I gave it a try. I spent close to 40 minutes setting up a guide for my router. Pieces of 2×4 clamped with 2 24" and 2 36" Jet clamps on my make shift workbench, allowed me to position the router to route. I had read that it is best to take several small passes for safety. Since I was already a bit scared that the router would spin wildly out of control and drive itself into my spleen, leaving me bleeding and generally disappointed, I decided that small passes were a good idea.

It worked as advertised. My first 2 passes made a wonderful 3/8" grove in my wood. I was filled with pride and sure that I was well on my way to being one of the greatest woodworkers of the last 700 years. My second board didn't go as well. I had tightened the collet on the router, though apparently not enough and it had slid up slightly. This had produced a slight up ramp for the groove. My ego needed this set back and I retightened it and decided that I was the greatest woodworker in my basement at that moment. This was good enough for me.

The rest of the project required gluing 2 pieces of ¾ " ODF together to form the top, drilling some holes in the 4×4 legs, and attaching the 9" Jet vice. The only difficult part was installing the vice as it didn't come with instructions, but my own insecurity about getting it right, made me take it at a glacial pace. When I flipped the bench back over and put a piece of wood in the vice, I almost wept with joy.

At the end of the quest I learned several things. 1) When marking wood to be cut or drilled, avoid doing it while watching college football. My bench still bears the scars of several errant holes. 2) Drilling holes with a hand drill, so that they are straight, requires a bit of practice. 3) High quality drill bits are much easier to use than really old, worn out, dull, bits. This likely applies to all tools, the better the quality, the better the results. 4) Fostner bits are cool. 5) I love my workbench, with its shiny red Jet 9" vice. 6) The journey before me is perhaps the most exciting one I have undertaken in my lifetime.

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Ecocandle said:

Reflections of a Mortise



Stepping through the beveled corner, art deco inlay, looking glass, into the world of woodworking is an experience that is humbling to say the least. On another woodworking site, a blogger posed the question, are 'Dovetails' overrated? The article was well written, the comments were astounding. The debate between the pro-tail vs. the pro-choice factions was more contentious than an abortion debate three days before a presidential election.

Wonderland indeed! The one point that I took away from the debate was that choosing to learn to cut dovetails by hand required a lot of practice and patience. As someone who revels in his obsessive compulsive side, this epiphany appealed to me more than pizza and beer on a Saturday night. Admittedly I am not a huge fan of beer, but I LOVE pizza; And I didn't want say 'Pizza and Diet Dew', lest any readers think I am a big sissy.

As I cracked a diet dew, I decided that I would begin my study by buying a chisel. My general rule is to always buy the best I can find. My knowledge of chisels was limited to knowing how to spell chisel, and I only recently learned that. The internet pointed me towards Lie-Nielson. Several other articles taught me that socket chisels are nice because the handles are less prone to splitting. Apparently the steel should be around 60 - 62 something, so it is not too soft and not too hard. This sounded like a fairy tale about 3 bears and a porridge stealing juvenile delinquent. But who am I to question the wisdom of those who come before me?! Lie-Nielson chisels are of this design. I felt smarter just for knowing that. I decided that I wanted a set of bench chisels, a fish tail, skew chisel and possibly a 3/8 mortise chisel. They only cost $555.00.

With my brand new 3/8" Irwin chisel (around $10.00) in hand, I took the old mallet I had found in the garage, and tapped it gently into my practice wood. The Lie Nielson will have to come at a later date. The practice wood was a lovely little piece of hard maple; she had a nice figure and was a bit shy. I could tell it was her first time too. As I tapped that wood with my tool I felt nervous. Was I doing it right? Was I hurting my lovely piece of wood? Was it good for her?



An hour later I had finished. I had drilled and chiseled my way to my first mortise. I was sweating but filled with joy. Oh the euphoria. So this is what all the fuss is about! I had chiseled out a 2 and ¼ inch by 3/8" mortise and was now ready to think about moving onto the tenon. Of course, this would have to wait for another day, as I wasn't ready for another go. I just wanted to bask in the glow of my first mortise.
I learned several interesting things about chisels. They are able to remove much thinner and cleaner shavings of wood than I would have imagined. I had assumed that they would take large chunks of wood with each hit. As I pared down the sides and brought the corners to 90 degrees(ish), the need for mastering hand tools became clearer than a D flawless diamond and quite possibly more valuable. I know now that if I can learn to use these wonderful tools, if I can make them do my bidding, then I just may be able to create a masterpiece or at the very least, a nice cutting board.



It is ironic that, two days before, I had been thinking how I might use my plunge router to cut the mortises I would need for the Krenov saw horses I was attempting. I still believe that it will be equally important to be able to cut them with power tools, and I will likely cut far more using a router than I will a chisel, in my lifetime. But I doubt that I will feel the same exhilaration.

So I discovered the joy of hand tools. I have since cut 7 mortises (4 without a drill) and 7 corresponding tenons by hand. The last 2 mortises (no drill) took less than 26 minutes each, which was a vast improvement over 1 hour. As I continued to meander through the wonderland, I happened upon a rabbit that said, "You should probably learn how to sharpen your chisel" and he winked. The wink made it seem dirty somehow. As I thought about the rabbit, I realized that this is why this journey is such a joy. Each day brings a new challenge. Each challenge opens a door. Each door leads to a hallway with more doors. I doubt I will ever find my way back to the mirror.

(Editor's Note: Ok, I don't actually have an editor, but I like the sound of it. I did want to say that I appreciate all the encouraging comments from the 1st post I threw up yesterday. As of the writing of this post there were 321 people who had read my previous post, and 3.4% of you chose to leave a comment. To the 96.4% who didn't comment, I can only assume that your mother told you, "If you don't have anything nice to say, say nothing at all." To those non-posters, please feel free to mock my spelling, grammar or content…But NOT my hat…never my hat!)

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Ecocandle said:

Out Into The Cold



It is cold in Iowa today. It was cold yesterday too. It will be cold tomorrow. Despite this I realized that I hadn't been to Home Depot, Menards, or Acme Tool in several days. I was beginning to get that itch. I needed a fix. So I bundled up and hopped in the car and off I went.

I had a vague desire to buy some rare earth magnets. Do I have a project that requires magnets? No, of course not, I just really wanted them. The reason that the advertising industry is so successful is that there are people like me. I recently read an article or saw an ad about rare earth magnets. I don't remember which it was. I just know that the seed was planted in my mind that they are really cool.

I have no idea what sort of woodworker I will be. Will I faithfully reproduce a 1755 George Haupt commode? Perhaps a Federal chest of drawer will strike my fancy? Or a Greene and Greene inspired end table? Right now, I couldn't say where this journey will take me. I do know that I like to learn how to do new things. So it is quite likely that I will pick many of my early projects, based upon the skills they require to complete, rather than what I would like to have when I am done. I am learning how to use hand tools now, so for the foreseeable future there will be lots of gratuitous chisel work.

This brings me to the point of today's rambling. The joy of woodworking extends well beyond the physical construction. I take pleasure in reading about woodworking, or watching The Woodsmith Shop on Iowa Public television, or just thinking about projects that might be in my future. Of course one of the best rushes, as far as I can tell, is looking at, learning about, and buying new tools and woodworking accessories.

I knew a woman once, a professional Jazz singer. She did very well financially. She tried to explain to me why she had over 1000 pairs of shoes, she tried to justify it by explaining that many of the pairs were less than $350.00, she described the feeling she had just owning them. I did the math. I couldn't conceive of a world where I would want to spend $350,000 dollars on anything that didn't have a walk out balcony and a view. It was what she loved and she had the money.


As I left Acme tools, having drooled over a random orbital sander and vacuum from Festool ($800 ish), the $3000 Saw Stop table saw, and tens of thousands of dollars of Freud and Amana router bits, I thought about the woman with the shoes. I think I finally understand her love of shoes.

Magnets in my pocket, carefully placed on the opposite side from my wallet, I headed home. When I got home I looked around and realized that in my world, one of tech, most things I own hate magnets. I spend most of my life at my computer, or more accurately surrounded by my computers. It was clear that the only place that it would be safe to take them out and play with them, was in the basement, among my tools. I love tech, but I also love it that the magnets won't erase the hard drive on my 9" Jet vice. Sitting at my workbench I took out the magnets. I bought both ¾" magnets and the little holder thingies (I like to use technical terms whenever possible, in this case it wasn't possible, as I would have had to get up and go all the way downstairs to find out what they are called. Perhaps not possible is too strong, let's say that it was inconvenient, and I couldn't be bothered. My daily digression)



They are fun. I like to learn something about woodworking every day. The other day I learned that if one has rare earth magnets and one puts them in the little holder thingies, it increases their strength by 4x. Today I learned that if one is playing with their new rare earth magnets and puts one into its holder thingy, it is no small feat to get them back out again. I used my vice and a poking device. I put the magnets back in their little case and the thingy back in its case, and put them in a drawer. I felt satiated. I had made an impulse purchase, which was loosely related to woodworking, and I had gotten out of the house. The only problem I can see with today, and this blog post, is that it hasn't lent itself well to photos. So I have included several gratuitous cat photos. His name is Harley. He is NOT my cat. He is however, a master craftsman, specializing in reproducing the works of Karl Friedrich Schinkel (Ok, that last part isn't true. Harley is a cat, he doesn't have opposable thumbs)

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Ecocandle said:

My First Project



"When you have completed 95% of your journey, you are only halfway there."
-Japanese Proverb

I need to remember this proverb whenever I approach the end of a project. I find that there are two finish lines when it comes to my tasks. The first finish line is where I start to feel good about what I have accomplished and the second one is where the project is actually completed. This is certainly the case for my workbench. It was, actually still is, my first project. The day that I successfully attached the vice to it, I passed the first finish line. I started to use my workbench and paid no attention to the shelf that wasn't complete.

Today I awoke determined to add that shelf. I dreaded this part of the project for one reason. I would need to flip the bench over to attach the shelf. This one little dread had kept me from this task for a couple of months. So I started the day, with a little chisel sharpening, as a warm up. Best to get some good woodworking mojo going I figured. 30 minutes of warm up and I was ready. I headed downstairs and cleaned off the top of the workbench and then measured.

There is an old adage that you should measure twice and cut once. I always do this. Today I succeeded in misreading the tape measure exactly the same way twice. Every once in a while I look at my tape measure and just get it wrong. Today my tape measure was clearly telling me that it wanted me to write down 45 and 5/8ths inches. I had the 5/8ths correct, but for some reason I looked to the right of the hash for the inch number and went with 46. The terrible thing is that when I checked my measurement I did the exact same thing. So I was off by an inch for the length. In the end, it didn't matter, but I hate making such a silly mistake.



In the interest of practicing my Japanese handsaw skills, I cut the width down by hand. It took me fourteen and a half minutes. I was cutting through ¾ inch MDF. Being curious, I decided to time how long it would take me to set up and cut the length with my Bosch circular saw. I have very little experience with my circular saw, so I need the practice here as well. I bought it about a month ago and have only made a handful of cuts. I have a replaced the Bosch blade with a Freud. The cut took me a total of 6 minutes and 30 seconds to clamp the board, mark the cut, clamp down a guide, and actually do the cutting. I am sure that most competent woodworkers would do this in a minute or two, but I am still a little bit frightened by my circular saw.

The board was now the correct dimensions. I needed to only cut out the notches for the legs and then I would be ready to flip that heavy beast over and attach it. Cutting the notches turned out to be a perfect task for my Japanese hand saw. The only problem with my new saw is that it has a piece along the top to stabilize the blade. This limits its capabilities somewhat. I turned to my other, much lower quality, saw and it worked marvelously. I received a tip from a reader of a previous post. He suggested I cut from below the wood and pull the saw towards the ground. This worked marvelously and I was able to cut quickly and accurately. Learning this trick has made me a better woodworker. Thanks.



Turning the bench over was much less of a pain than I imagined. I attached my shelf and flipped it back over. After centering it in the room I stepped back and was giddy. There was only one thing left to do. I would clean up the cases of my Bosch router and DeWalt drill and then put them on the shelf. I just couldn't put them on the shelf in their current state. Now I actually keep things pretty tidy, but both cases needed a good scrubbing. One thing led to another and I was in the garage cleaning each of my tools. I made great progress and took enormous joy arranging them on the workbench shelf. I cleaned for a long while, and I would estimate that I got it 95% of the way done. I will do the other half tomorrow.

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Ecocandle said:

Horrible Dovetail Blunder



The population of Martelle Iowa is in the neighborhood of 350, so one could use the phrase thriving metropolis comfortably. We do not have door to door USPS delivery, which is a little bit of a bummer, but it does have a tremendous upside. The excitement I get when I hop in the care and drive all the way across town to check my post office box. It is almost like Festivus all year round, without the pole or 'airing of grievances'. Actually I don't care for mail, but last Thursday I made several online purchases. En route to zip code 52305 was a brand new Japanese hand saw, which was rated 'Best Overall' by Fine Woodworking. I also ordered, from another site, 8 DVDs and 2 books.
Since I ordered them both on Thursday of last week, and didn't choose any of the fancy pants options with regard to shipping and handling, I didn't expect them until the middle of the week. As a rule, I am more of a average pantaloon shipping sort of guy. So imagine my surprise when there was a long rectangular box waiting for me. After I explained at length, to the Martelle postmaster, what a Japanese hand saw was, and why I am much cooler for owning one, I headed back across town. I drove down the main street, past the Football Stadium, around the Mega Mall, cut across the parking lot to the Subway, and finally after a few more turns, arrived back home. Ok, I may have exaggerated the length of my trip, and some of the sites in Martelle, but you get the point. Though it is a short trip, I was eager to try out my new saw, and what took 4 minutes, seemed like it took well over 5 minutes.



I don't know how to cut a dovetail. I don't know how to mark them. I have picked up a couple of tips, but that is all. Safety is important. I always read the instructions before trying any new tool. This, of course, goes against the 'guy code', but I do it anyway. Luckily for me it is a hand saw, and were there instructions included, they would say, Step 1. Pull, Step 2. Push lightly, Step 3 rinse and repeat. Oh wait, that last one was from my Japanese hair conditioner. I digress.
Without any instructions to impede my progress, I grabbed a pencil, my little angle marker thingy that I bought from an antique shop last weekend. I have no idea what they are called, but I have seen them used in laying out the tails and pins for the aforementioned joinery. I have also read that the real masters don't measure their dovetails, they eyeball it. It is as if the woodworking gods are begging me not to bother with measuring, but are saying instead, "Go forth and run amok with your new saw."



Not wishing to face the wrath of an angry woodworking deity, I quickly marked the tails on a piece of hard maple and clamped it in the vice. I took great care to mark the waste areas with a 'w' so I would not chisel out the wrong bits. I have read that one should cut close to the line and then pare it up the rest of the way, to get a nice fit. One of the problems that 'amok runners' often face is that they blunder. I made a blunder worse than 1. e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3. Bc4 Bg4 4.Nc3 a6 5. Nxe5 and black taking the queen on the 5th move. Today I was playing black. I took such care to mark my tails and then I immediately cut on the wrong side of the line. Oh well, that is why I am determined to practice these skills before I try them on something I care about.
I am happy to report that the saw rated 'Best Overall' is a wonderful cutting device. The kerf was thinner than Kate Moss. The saw cut a really straight, albeit poorly place, line. Ok, now it is time to do some more practicing, I think I will work on the Sicilian Dragon and thus avoid the possibility of a blunder on the 5th move.

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Ecocandle said:

I have just two questions



"We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret or disappointment"
-Jim Rohn

I thought I would spend the day continuing to work on my Krenov saw horses, since I didn't have any new DVDs or books on woodworking. For those that stopped by hoping to see a rant about John Lively's company The Taunton Press, you will be disappointed to know that I am too happy today to gripe about their inefficiency. Because Monday is a holiday, I won't get them before Tuesday, but that is ok, and I am not going to let it ruin my weekend. There is just too much woodworking to do, to be cranky. Of course, I may be really full of rancor on Tuesday, so today's question of the day is:

Have you ordered from The Taunton Press and how did they do in shipping the products to you?

You may post your answers in the comments, or if you prefer, you may send them to me directly. [email protected]

The first step today, was to cut the tenons in the stretcher for the second saw horse. I move at a glacial pace with my projects. With each micro step I try my best to do better than the step before. To date, I have cut 3 practice tenons and 8 real tenons, the last 2 were better than any of the ones before. Today's two tenons are better still. The journey is one of exploration and discovery. Today I discovered that in order to cut a straight kerf with my Japanese hand saw, I needed to watch the reflection in the blade. Once I started to focus on the reflection I improved markedly over my previous attempts.



Not only were the tenons better than before, they took less time. With each cut I become more comfortable with my saw. It is clear to me that the $100.00 Dozuki saw is worth every penny. The blade is sharp, cuts easily and if it is started on the right path, once it gets into the cut, it will continue to cut straight. It also cuts very quickly. I am completely sold on Japanese hand saws.



The day did not only yield a triumph in tenons, but an additional measure of success in photography. I never imagined that I would spend so much time photographing the minutia of my progress or that this constant work would make me better at lighting my subjects, but this seems to be the reality of it all. I would estimate I spent close to an hour shooting my tenons today. To be honest, I find joy in nearly everything around me, including, the ability to ask TWO questions of the day. Yes, I have that sort of power. It is intoxicating.



So here is my second question: Would anyone be interested in a blog piece about how I shoot, light, and process my blog shots? Feel free to answer with a Yes or No, or a Oui ou Non, or even a Si o No. I will actually accept any language, as I can always look it up online. I do love Babel Fish. Of course, if you prefer to give a lengthy answer, please limit it to English or French, and include a picture of your incredibly attractive, single, and female cousin with a middle aged balding men fetish.



I would also like to take a moment to thank those of you who have been reading my blog. The support and feedback has been wonderful. Today's piece represents the first day in my second fortnight and I am truly loving the ride. I hope you aren't too disappointed at the lack of a rant today. Enjoy your day practicing the discipline of woodworking.

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Ecocandle said:

She Took My Breath Away



Since I began blogging, I have taken to carrying around a small notebook, pencil, sharpener and eraser. I am more of a pen person, but using a pencil feels right to me. I was at the bar in the Dublin Underground, drinking an RC, no straw, my usual drink. This is my favorite place in Iowa City. It is a friendly place.

I was really focused on writing down some thoughts about possible future blog posts. I didn't notice the woman taking off her coat and sitting down one seat over on my right. I didn't hear her order the glass of white wine, or notice the look on the bar tenders face when he first saw her. I was scribbling away, when I felt the slightest tap on my right elbow, and as I looked up, she said in a French accent, "What are you writing about in zee little book?"

Normally that would be a pretty easy question, since I was the writer, and it wasn't one of those tricky multiple choice questions, I should have been able to fire back an answer immediately. It wouldn't have been a problem, had I not looked up. Had I kept my eyes on zee little notebook, I would have been able to say something like, "My woodworking blog". I saw her face first, and my response was, "I…um…It's…huh…I don't remember. What was the question?" I was having trouble breathing. She giggled and pointed my notebook.

I then went into a somewhat incoherent rambling about it being notes for a blog which I have been doing since Jan 2 of this year, and lots of other details, which just kept pouring out of me. The little voice in my head was screaming at me, "You are blathering like an idiot" I was pathetic. She sensed that this could on for a while, unless she intervened, "What is zee blog about?" This second question let me gather myself a bit, and I took a breath and said, "It is about woodworking."

She wore a white silk blouse, black skirt, and had short ebony hair, with the sort of face that launches a thousand ships. I think she said that she liked woodworking, but my head was still spinning a bit and I missed some of her response. It wasn't until she mentioned something about retiring from French national gymnastics team, after she grew 6 inches her senior year in high school, and had been a lingere model for the last 7 years, that I was able to focus on what she was saying again. It was a good thing too, as she asked me another question, "What is the URL for zee blog?"

She had her iphone out and typed in the address as I gave it to her. Since I knew that if I opened my mouth I would begin to blather on like the idiot again, I sat quietly and fidgeted with my pencil. "The photos are tres beau, did you take them?" I was a bit less shaky by this time, so I said, "yes, I enjoy photography."

We talked a bit about photography and then she asked, "So you have the wood?" At that moment I felt the urge to tilt my head slightly to the right and raise my left eyebrow. Tragically I suffer from the rare affliction eyebrowus parallelus, from the Latin, which means the inability to raise either eyebrow without raising the other simultaneously, thus keeping them parallel to the eyes. She quickly corrected herself, "Do you have a favorite wood?" To which I said that I like hard maple and walnut. She reached over and touched my arm, looked into my eyes and said, "I would love to see your wood." Damn eyebrowus parellelus!

She held out her hand and introduced herself. Her hand was warm. Her expression was kind and calming. I guessed that I wasn't the first guy to stammer in her presence. Feeling at ease, I said, "It is nice to meet you Sherri Seurat, my name is Brian Meeks."

Her father was an avid woodworker, and she was the great granddaughter of Georges Seurat. We talked about photography, her modeling career, her grandfather, and I was much less of an idiot than I had been in the beginning. I don't know how long we talked, but every minute was a delight.

I was telling her about my little workshop when she asked, "What sort of air filtration system do you have?" I said that I don't have one, but I wear a mask. The look of shock on her face startled me. "You don't have zee air filtration system? Don't you know that air quality is important in keeping your lungs healthy?!" Her voice began to rise. "My father never took care of himself; he breathed that dust every day until he died." She got up from her seat, sobbing, grabbed her coat and fled up the stairs. I was stunned, but I followed her and went outside just in time to see her hop into a cab and drive off. I watched her head off along the river towards the mountains. The beauty of the setting sun was lost on me. It looked cold and sad.



Thirty-seven minutes later I was loading the Jet AFS-1000B Air Filtration System into my car. I am pleased with my purchases. It has a remote. I can breathe again.

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Ecocandle said:

Photographing my Blog pt. 2



I have been giving one tip to people for years. It is so simple, I hesitate to even call it a tip, but alas I don't have a thesaurus handy, so I have little choice. This applies to every photo, whether it is an image of your latest woodworking project or a prize winning picture of a yeti. The last thing I do, before I press the button, is to slowly force myself to run my eyes around the edge of the image. I know it sounds dumber than Jethro Bodine, but that is because it is so easy. In the words of a thousand commercials for footwear, 'Just Do It'.
When you start to look at the rest of the image, not just the finely turned bowl, you will notice that there is a corner of a box of diapers sneaking into the image. You will also get better at taking pictures of people. The stop sign that is 'growing' out of your girlfriend's head, or the car with your angry wife driving by the shoot, will suddenly pop out to you, and thus you can make slight adjustments (like making sure you take pictures of your girlfriend only when your wife is visiting her sister in Saginaw). This tip will work with any camera you have, though I still think you should get those lazy six years olds their first job, and get a fancy pants model. But I digress.

Along a similar line, when taking a picture of your work, if you wish to put some extra items in the background, like tools behind a project in process, or a delicious ham behind the aforementioned finely turned bowl, try to use a shallow depth of field. Depth of field is the distance (or depth) in the image, which is in focus. This generally applies to SLRs (Single Lens Reflex…aka…fancy pants cameras), but there are some point and shoots which have this capability. My mom's camera, the Powershot G10, is able to set the f-stop. So when I say shallow depth of field, I mean a small number on your camera's lens, or a small f-stop. For example an aperture setting of 3.5 will cause the background to be out of focus, thus causing the subject to stand out, while f22 (f stands for aperture, I could make up a story for why they use f and not a, likely involving a priest, a Rabbi, and an Episcopalian yak farmer, but I have already digressed.), would leave everything in focus. It is also important to understand how aperture works with light.

Shallow depth of field requires less light than a longer depth of field. This is helpful when you are taking pictures in artificial light, because the shutter doesn't need to stay open as long as it would if you were trying to have everything in focus. If you are getting really excited about photography and are starting to read up on the subject, you might run across the term 'fast lenses. This confused me for a long time. It is simply a lens that allows for a very shallow depth of field. They are generally much more expensive than a normal lens. For instance a zoom lens that goes to 300 mm, can be picked up for 3-400 dollars, a 'fast' lens, the giant lens that the photographers use on the sidelines of football games, those start at about $7000.00. This is not a lens you should need, as it is too 'long', for shooting your work, but it brings me to my next and last subject for the day.

This photo shows tilt shift in the table (sort of, it actually just demonstrates perspective, but you get the idea.), an annoying shiny bit from a Jet clamp in the top right corner, and also demonstrates shallow depth of field. This image can be improved substantially by simply removing the clutter in the top right corner. Were I to shoot it again, I would also slide the mortar slightly to the left. It feels slightly out of position where it is.



The amount of zoom you should use when shooting. If you are limited in space, you can use the wide angle portion of your lens, or zoom out. Zooming out, a back up the image, but it also causes something called bowing. Have you ever taken a picture of a tall object, like a dresser, and in the photo it looks warped? That is bowing. If you are taking a picture of a tall building, the building seems to bow out and the edges don't run parallel with the sides of the image. That is tilt shifting. It can be corrected in Photoshop CS 2, 3, or 4, but that runs you another $1000 and 8 or 9 months of intensive study to master, so fixing it, is not the best solution. It is better to try to take the image of your dresser from a greater distance and then zooming in on it. This will give you much better results. If you can put the dresser in one room, and stand out in the hall and zoom in, you will be much happier with the results. One last note, if you are taking a close up of your girlfriend's face while your wife is in Michigan, then try to stand further away, such that the zoom is at 135mm. This will be much more flattering. That is all for now. I am off to do some woodworking.

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Ecocandle said:

Thanks Everyone



Historically it could be said that I have been known to jump into a new interest elbows first. Obviously feet first is the conventional method, but I figure people expect that, so I lead with my elbow and on occasion my clavicle. Yes I have jumped into woodworking clavicle first. I had no idea that when I splashed in neck deep into this new hobby that I would find the joy of blogging too. I really only intended to write that first post.
External validation is a powerful aphrodisiac. Everyone has been so friendly, which isn't surprising to me, as I am a firm believer that most people are pretty decent. What I didn't expect is that there were so many other people sharing their experiences with the world. There are lots and lots of blogs.

Today is my one month anniversary as a blogopotamus. I thought that I might share, with those who have been so kind to endure my daily streams of ridiculousness, some of my numbers. Frankly they are so shocking to me, that I find it hard to believe. I feel like I have hoisted up the basketball of blogging and swished it from center court.



I have scribbled out thirty one consecutive posts and considering that my original goal was to have a streak of one, I count this as a success. I am a big fan of setting the bar low. I was great at the high jump, while the bar was still lying on the ground, of course I later carved a small trough in the field for the pole, just to be sure, but I digress. In one month, the combined number of reads between Lumberjocks and my blog has been around 21,000, with 10085 of the reads being the fine folks who hang out at Lumberjocks, and at least one of their wives, who, on occasion, will pretend to be her husband and once posed as her husband's cat. I am not sure if the cat is a reader or not, but I would like to think he checks the blog out when nobody is looking.

So yes, there has been easily 2000 pounds of external validation. Strange as it may seem that has not been the best part. The best part has been using all the little tips and tricks I have gotten from comments, articles and other blogs. My confidence level is so much higher than it was when the year began. My circular saw and router are less scary. I still respect them and always call them Sir, lest they become angry and try to get me. But it seems we have an understanding, if I treat them well, clean them off after every use, and give them a cookie, they will perform marvelously.

Now before I pull a muscle patting myself on the back for the numbers, I should let everyone know about the wonderful blogs I have uncovered. You may already know these, but if you don't, then go check them out. It will be time well spent. (All the links are on my Blog Roll, so please check them out.)

1) 'The Village Carpenter' and is written by Kari Hultman. She is such a good writer, photographer, and a spectacular woodworker. She left a comment on one of my blogs and I was giddy for hours.

2) This is a fantastic blog, which I am sure you have all found, but just in case, it is called 'The Wood Whisperer' and is much better than the blog the 'The Tree Shouter at the top of His Lungs.' Ok, I made up that second blog. But the point is that his blog is a one stop shop for wood smarts.

3) 'The Unplugged Woodshop' wins the award for best site design. The writing is fantastic too, the projects fill one with inspiration, and the photography is magazine quality.

I have also made some friends on Twitter, who like woodworking. My Twitter handle is ExtremelyAvg and I have had the pleasure of meeting 85 people who are mostly fans of woodworking. If you haven't tried using Twitter for woodworking knowledge you have missed out. The tweets are chuck full of links to stuff that I wouldn't have found.

Some of my Twitter friends, who I would recommend following are: ScottAtMirus, AdamKingStudio, eXapath, iwoodknot, Torch02 Most have blogs too and are worth checking out.
So in conclusion, I want to express my sincere appreciation to everyone who has commented and encouraged me, and to those who have taken the time to blog from their knowledge base, and share it with the world.



Tomorrow I will continue with the adventures of Henry Wood. And after that I will write ever day, unless an emergency golf outing is declared, in that case, Dad and I will be on the tee. I am really ready for spring, the novelty of snow and cold has worn off. Thanks again.

Click to expand...

Ecocandle said:

Thanks Everyone



Historically it could be said that I have been known to jump into a new interest elbows first. Obviously feet first is the conventional method, but I figure people expect that, so I lead with my elbow and on occasion my clavicle. Yes I have jumped into woodworking clavicle first. I had no idea that when I splashed in neck deep into this new hobby that I would find the joy of blogging too. I really only intended to write that first post.
External validation is a powerful aphrodisiac. Everyone has been so friendly, which isn't surprising to me, as I am a firm believer that most people are pretty decent. What I didn't expect is that there were so many other people sharing their experiences with the world. There are lots and lots of blogs.

Today is my one month anniversary as a blogopotamus. I thought that I might share, with those who have been so kind to endure my daily streams of ridiculousness, some of my numbers. Frankly they are so shocking to me, that I find it hard to believe. I feel like I have hoisted up the basketball of blogging and swished it from center court.



I have scribbled out thirty one consecutive posts and considering that my original goal was to have a streak of one, I count this as a success. I am a big fan of setting the bar low. I was great at the high jump, while the bar was still lying on the ground, of course I later carved a small trough in the field for the pole, just to be sure, but I digress. In one month, the combined number of reads between Lumberjocks and my blog has been around 21,000, with 10085 of the reads being the fine folks who hang out at Lumberjocks, and at least one of their wives, who, on occasion, will pretend to be her husband and once posed as her husband's cat. I am not sure if the cat is a reader or not, but I would like to think he checks the blog out when nobody is looking.

So yes, there has been easily 2000 pounds of external validation. Strange as it may seem that has not been the best part. The best part has been using all the little tips and tricks I have gotten from comments, articles and other blogs. My confidence level is so much higher than it was when the year began. My circular saw and router are less scary. I still respect them and always call them Sir, lest they become angry and try to get me. But it seems we have an understanding, if I treat them well, clean them off after every use, and give them a cookie, they will perform marvelously.

Now before I pull a muscle patting myself on the back for the numbers, I should let everyone know about the wonderful blogs I have uncovered. You may already know these, but if you don't, then go check them out. It will be time well spent. (All the links are on my Blog Roll, so please check them out.)

1) 'The Village Carpenter' and is written by Kari Hultman. She is such a good writer, photographer, and a spectacular woodworker. She left a comment on one of my blogs and I was giddy for hours.

2) This is a fantastic blog, which I am sure you have all found, but just in case, it is called 'The Wood Whisperer' and is much better than the blog the 'The Tree Shouter at the top of His Lungs.' Ok, I made up that second blog. But the point is that his blog is a one stop shop for wood smarts.

3) 'The Unplugged Woodshop' wins the award for best site design. The writing is fantastic too, the projects fill one with inspiration, and the photography is magazine quality.

I have also made some friends on Twitter, who like woodworking. My Twitter handle is ExtremelyAvg and I have had the pleasure of meeting 85 people who are mostly fans of woodworking. If you haven't tried using Twitter for woodworking knowledge you have missed out. The tweets are chuck full of links to stuff that I wouldn't have found.

Some of my Twitter friends, who I would recommend following are: ScottAtMirus, AdamKingStudio, eXapath, iwoodknot, Torch02 Most have blogs too and are worth checking out.
So in conclusion, I want to express my sincere appreciation to everyone who has commented and encouraged me, and to those who have taken the time to blog from their knowledge base, and share it with the world.



Tomorrow I will continue with the adventures of Henry Wood. And after that I will write ever day, unless an emergency golf outing is declared, in that case, Dad and I will be on the tee. I am really ready for spring, the novelty of snow and cold has worn off. Thanks again.

Click to expand...

Ecocandle said:

No Surprises



The timer on my iphone was set to 16 minutes. I hit start and it began counting down. My belt sander went to work on the piece of walnut. Slowly it began to remove change the board's face from rough cut to a smooth surface. I focused on even strokes back and forth and let it do the work. When the deep cuts were mostly gone, with seven minutes remaining, I switched to my mouse sander. The mouse sander did a nice job with various grits for the remaining 7 minutes.

The follow three images are, rough, low end sanders, Festool 150.







When I wiped both sides off and compared, I was not surprised that the side which had been worked on by the Festool 150, was much nicer. The side that was completed with my low end sanders was still rather good looking. I would say that I have several hundred board feet of very handsome walnut.

So what did I learn? I learned that the expensive tool is quieter, somewhat faster, and performs a level that is superior to what I have now. This is not at all surprising. The real value is getting to compare my current capabilities with what is possible and then to assess how that relates to the project I am working on now. When I think in those terms, I come to the conclusion, that at this moment, I am not going to spend the money to buy the Festool.

Is this my final word on the Festool sander? No, not at all, as there will come a day, when I am building another project, one in which I desire a higher quality result, that I will likely revisit the issue. It was suggested that I read some of the reviews on the Lumberjocks site. This was very helpful.

So I gained a bit of experience about sanding and really enjoyed seeing how beautiful all the wood, which is stacked in my basement, really is.

It should be no surprise to anyone that 16 minutes of woodworking is not nearly enough. I have begun gluing the 22 inch pieces of hard maple together. The first set of 4 that I slathered Titebond on, were tricky little devils. Who knew that glue could be so slippery? Actually, I would imagine that most woodworkers knew that, but for me it was something new. The best part about the first glue up was that after I had clamped them together, I noticed that the first board had ridden up a bit. Did I panic? No, I put the glued up section in the cauls I built. I tightened the cauls up and the little bit of unevenness disappeared. I was very proud of my little cauls, performing their job so admirably.

The process of building the top for my router table will move slowly, as I only have enough clamps to do one set of boards at a time. That is ok, as I am such a novice at gluing up stuff, that doing them one at a time, will allow me to learn with each set. As with each other skill in woodworking, it just takes practice and repetition to get good at it. Or so I would imagine. Every time I try something new, I get very excited and it makes me happier than a cat who has won a bid on EBay for a giant ball of yarn.

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Ecocandle said:

Eyeballing Challenge



In a hidden monastery, far from the prying eyes of a suspicious public, a great and strange sharpening monk spent his days. He sharpened chisels, he crafted brilliant pieces of furniture, and he doled out nuggets of wisdom whenever someone was unfortunate enough to be within ear shot. There are a few, myself among them, who believe that he was not crazy, but wise beyond most people's grasp.

He used to say, "Hone your senses as you would hone your chisel." He would often follow this up with, "Hone your tools as you would Honus Wagner." It is these sort of statements, that left all but the most ardent woodworkers or Pirates fans, checking their watches and stammering something about the time, being late, and needing to be off.

But if you watch him work, if you paid close attention to how he used touch to gauge the flatness of a board, or sight to start his dovetails or even his hearing, to tell him when his saw wasn't exactly cutting the way he wanted, you knew that he might be onto something. This monk, this wise and charming man, would mark his boards, check his measurements, and then look at them one more time. On occasion, he would cock his head to one side, then measure again, and find that he had made an error. Sometimes just the slightest error, but he would always catch it, before he cut.

I asked him once, how he did this, how he always seemed to sense that something was awry. He said, "I have trained my eyes to smell a bad fish." To which I replied, "Wow, look at the time, I think I am supposed to be…" and backed out of the room. I liked him, but on occasion, he was too cryptic for me.
I was thinking about this wise old sharpening monk today, when I discovered a wonderful online game. A game that I believe will sharpen my sense of space and proportion. I believe it will improve my eyes ability to 'smell a bad fish'. I think he might have meant 'to see something fishy', but I didn't think of that at the time. Of course, he may have just wanted to be left alone, and drove me away. He was very wise and crafty, but I digress.

It is called the eyeballing game. http://bit.ly/dhPhwI I think that it will appeal to woodworkers. I feel that if I am better able to see a 90 degree angle, or visualize where 3 points would meet in space, then I will also be able to 'smell a bad fish'. This will make me a better woodworker, or at least that is my theory.

So my question of the day is this. What is your score on the eyeballing game?

I would love to know what people think about my theory. Does it have merit? Do you think that if one improved this skill, they would make fewer errors?

Wait a minute that is three questions. Oh well, that happens sometimes. Enjoy and please leave your score. My best is 2.91, though I just tried again, and I got 3.2. It is very fun, and very addictive.

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Ecocandle said:

Todays blog is actually titled...



Hello Lumberjocks,

The actual title is "The Footprints of My Words".

My friend is having a party tonight. I have decided to leave the secret undground bunker in Martelle and attend. As you may or may not know, I post my blog to 3 spots every day. Here, at blogspot, and my new domain extremelyaverage.com. It is a lot of work to update them each day, and eventually I want to just have the one, but I fear that my Lumberjock friend and their cats may not like the new location.

So tonight, in order to save a bit of time, and to get some feedback, the blog has been posted at extremelyaverage.com . I ask that you give it a look, let me know what you think, and if you are one of the regularly commenting people or cats, to try out commenting on my site. I am still figuring out this whole Wordpress thing, so the feedback would be lovely.

I am sure that my very clever readers will wonder if it took more time to write this non blog post blog post, than to just post the blog, and the answer is that yes, it took longer.

So if you wish to read today's blog, head on over to http://extremelyaverage.com , or click on the banner at the top of the page. If you are disgusted that I am too lazy to post tonights piece here, then I am sorry. Ok, off to eat some cookies and mingle with people in real time.

Sincerely,

Brian Meeks

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