In all the pictures the Egyptians appear to be ripping the wood, rather than crosscutting.
Again from the OldTools list.
Current Mood: 
curious
curious20 most recent
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Wed, Jul. 16th, 2008, 10:36 pm
Even older saws
( Read more... )
In all the pictures the Egyptians appear to be ripping the wood, rather than crosscutting.
Again from the OldTools list.
In all the pictures the Egyptians appear to be ripping the wood, rather than crosscutting.
Again from the OldTools list.
Wed, Jul. 16th, 2008, 10:12 pm
History of the handsaw
( Read more... )
Current Mood: curious
curiousThu, Jul. 10th, 2008, 08:45 pm
A Period Swiss Army knife/Leatherman
See Princely Splendour: The Dresden Court 1580~1620. Scroll about 3/4 of the way down and see
Folding Multipurpose Tool, Nuremberg, c.1560-70.( Read more... )
Folding Multipurpose Tool, Nuremberg, c.1560-70.( Read more... )
Sat, Jun. 28th, 2008, 10:50 pm
Busy Saturday
- Edited, printed, and mailed the hard copy edition of
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif)
colgaffneyis newsletter. - Tried to blacken some rivets. ( Read more... )
- Mounted a 12-foot cedar pole in a corner of our back deck. Lashed it to the deck railing with a rope. ( Why? )
- Removed some modifications I had made to my Roy Underhill tool tote. ( I goofed )
- Finished unpacking stuff from the two previous weekends camping with colgaffneyis. In the middle of this I found my best Swiss Army knife. This knife is a geek special. Among other virtues it is the smallest I have seen with both a Phillip's screwdriver and a corkscrew.
- Finished--completely--the cloth hose I was working on last night. They are ready for our next event with colgaffneyis. It felt good to finish this, and I am thinking about another sewing project from the patterns by
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
kass_rants (No affiliation--just a satisfied customer).
Sat, Jun. 7th, 2008, 09:11 pm
Later Saturday
Later in the afternoon I did some shopping while mia_mcdavid took a nap. I then made one of the changes to the post drill that I had thought of last night. Then a shower, and off to work. Fortunately, that just meant a trip to the basement, where, with a cable modem and VPN, it is almost like going downtown.
( The joy of MS Windows )
I am not a fan of Microsoft, or Windows (I am writing this on a Linux system). However, Windows is what I have to deal with on the job, and I seem to be pretty good at it. So I guess I am stuck with it.
mia_mcdavid took a nap. I then made one of the changes to the post drill that I had thought of last night. Then a shower, and off to work. Fortunately, that just meant a trip to the basement, where, with a cable modem and VPN, it is almost like going downtown.( The joy of MS Windows )
I am not a fan of Microsoft, or Windows (I am writing this on a Linux system). However, Windows is what I have to deal with on the job, and I seem to be pretty good at it. So I guess I am stuck with it.
Sat, Jun. 7th, 2008, 07:49 pm
The weekend so far
( Friday night )
( Saturday morning at home )
( Farmers' Market )
( Visiting Tom )
( A little shopping )
More later....if I get a chance.
( Saturday morning at home )
( Farmers' Market )
( Visiting Tom )
( A little shopping )
More later....if I get a chance.
Mon, Jun. 2nd, 2008, 12:19 pm
Really Old Tool?
A member of the Oldtools list found this classified ad in his local newspaper.
Ark welder. Older style.
Current Mood: 
amused
amusedSat, May. 31st, 2008, 11:17 pm
Busy day
Fri, May. 30th, 2008, 06:57 pm
A new Woodwright book!
The Woodwright's Guide: Working Wood with Wedge and Edge
I have already ordered it.
I have already ordered it.
Current Mood: excited
excitedSun, May. 25th, 2008, 06:33 pm
"Johndevous" in Roseville
Some of colgaffneyis members are at John O's, down near Winona for a project weekend ("Johndevous"). John has a very impressive shop and invited anybody in the group to come down there to work on their own camp projects. I decided not to go. I have a shop of my own. John's shop is better than mine, but not enough better to offset the hassle of driving to Winona and camping there. Also, here I do not have to share the tools.
( Read more... )
colgaffneyis members are at John O's, down near Winona for a project weekend ("Johndevous"). John has a very impressive shop and invited anybody in the group to come down there to work on their own camp projects. I decided not to go. I have a shop of my own. John's shop is better than mine, but not enough better to offset the hassle of driving to Winona and camping there. Also, here I do not have to share the tools.( Read more... )
Sun, Mar. 16th, 2008, 08:11 am
A useful tool anywhere
Spacewalkers resort to banging, pry bar
What an old friend calls "Engineering method #1: Brute force."
What an old friend calls "Engineering method #1: Brute force."
Sun, Mar. 2nd, 2008, 03:39 pm
Wood from the front yard
A crew from the city came by a few weeks ago and trimmed our front yard tree--the branches were hanging way out over the street. We saved the branches to see if I could make anything out of them with green woodworking techniques using only hand (non-electric) tools. After a couple hours of hard work with saws, splitting wedges and a maul, and other tools, the answer is yes: Firewood (if we let it dry for a couple years). The branches were just too knotty and bent to get any useful length of straight-grained wood. Perhaps I will be able to carve a few spoons. This was about what I expected from the literature; you really need wood from the tree's trunk, and from the trunk of the right tree. My selection here in a first ring suburb is limited.
I kept trying for quite a while, and it was with some difficulty I tore myself away from the effort. However, that was the right thing to do. I was tired, and might have made a mistake. So I quit while I still had ten fingers, and all of my blood was still inside my body. Well, I certainly got my exercise today.
I kept trying for quite a while, and it was with some difficulty I tore myself away from the effort. However, that was the right thing to do. I was tired, and might have made a mistake. So I quit while I still had ten fingers, and all of my blood was still inside my body. Well, I certainly got my exercise today.
Current Mood: 
tired
tiredSat, Feb. 2nd, 2008, 10:07 pm
New old tools for woodworking
This evening I made a cabinet scraper from a broken saw blade. I did not spend a lot of time preparing the edge, but I am already able to make pretty little shavings, leaving behind a nice smooth surface.
What I was trying to do was clean up the surface of a pair of traditional clogs that I had purchased last summer. A big problem was how to hold them in place so I could work on the surface. Because of the irregular shape and the hollow inside I was reluctant to use a vise. If I tightened the vise grip too much it would break the shoe. The solution was to use a hold fast to lock the shoe to the surface of my workbench.
This was a nice follow up tocolgaffneyis meeting: I tried out two traditional woodworking tools, and even with my limited skills and experience, was quickly able to achieve satisfactory and satisfying results.
What I was trying to do was clean up the surface of a pair of traditional clogs that I had purchased last summer. A big problem was how to hold them in place so I could work on the surface. Because of the irregular shape and the hollow inside I was reluctant to use a vise. If I tightened the vise grip too much it would break the shoe. The solution was to use a hold fast to lock the shoe to the surface of my workbench.
This was a nice follow up to
colgaffneyis meeting: I tried out two traditional woodworking tools, and even with my limited skills and experience, was quickly able to achieve satisfactory and satisfying results.
Sat, Jan. 19th, 2008, 08:40 pm
From a log to a table....all with hand tools
A hand-tool challenge
Current Mood: impressed
impressedSat, Jan. 19th, 2008, 12:26 pm
Woodworking article
Sat, Nov. 17th, 2007, 09:55 pm
Not exactly a day of rest
( Read more... )
Current Mood: pleased
pleasedSun, Oct. 28th, 2007, 08:11 pm
Get it while you can
After my trip downtown I went to the Woodcraft store in Bloomington--I had a pretty good discount coupon. After a nice chat with wolfsword, who works there, I looked around and saw an Auriou rasp. These have been very well reviewed, but the company is going out of business. So that is what I bought. There are all sorts of other interesting tools I might have chosen, but I expect to have another chance at most of those. Not so one of these rasps.
wolfsword, who works there, I looked around and saw an Auriou rasp. These have been very well reviewed, but the company is going out of business. So that is what I bought. There are all sorts of other interesting tools I might have chosen, but I expect to have another chance at most of those. Not so one of these rasps.
Sat, Oct. 27th, 2007, 10:07 pm
If I had a hammer....
Well, three hammers....
http://www.break.com/index/skills-w
not recommended by Norm Abrams or Roy Underhill.
http://www.break.com/index/skills-w
not recommended by Norm Abrams or Roy Underhill.
Current Mood: impressed
impressedMon, Oct. 22nd, 2007, 12:38 pm
Primitive Technology with a Modern Material
Johnstone Tools
Current Mood: amused
amusedMon, Mar. 12th, 2007, 09:48 am
Fighting words!
Found on the OldTools Mailing List.
Somebody else promptly commented
Since my SWMBO* is also a "major-league knitter", I understand quite well.
*If necessary, you can look it up at the OldTools faq :-)>
Apparently a few years ago, the Louisville Baseball Bat Museum had a billboard up outside of town advertising that they had "More Old Bats Than A Knitting Convention." The local knitters' group had quite a tizzy over it.
Somebody else promptly commented
And If your SWMBO is a major-league knitter, then you'll understand why.
Since my SWMBO* is also a "major-league knitter", I understand quite well.
*If necessary, you can look it up at the OldTools faq :-)>
Current Mood: amused
amused