Friday, November 7, 2014

These things I know.
These things I believe to be true.
Science and religion are not mutually exclusive. If anything they are mirrors reflecting the truths evident in each other.
Having children makes understanding Gods existence easier.
The love for a son or daughter is transcending. A fundamental change in world view that opened my eyes to the wonder of the world and all the danger that exists in it.
Do I shelter him from exposure or guide him to see the danger on his own. Knowing that I cannot always shelter him I gave him guidance and I trust him to see the dangers.
God gave us the ability to see the dangers. That ability of free thought and free will leads us to use, what we call, science to understand the world around us. Gods guidance doesn't shelter us from the world. It lets us understand the existence of what we can see and propose to be real.
I awake each day to live life anew. I will never understand all that I see, but I can believe l will wake up tomorrow.

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Building a new workbench Part 12 - Mounting the vise - by Old Sneelock's...


Here's, for me, one of the best parts of mounting the vise. Boring the mounting holes and seeing the whole thing come together.

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Cleaning A Shapleigh Diamond Edge Backsaw - a video tutorial by Old Sne...







I stopped at an estate sale on the way home from the store. I picked up a Craftsman pushdrill, a Disston #12 Crosscut saw, and a Craftsman Miter box with a Shapleigh Hardware Co. Diamond Edge Back Saw. Before buying the Shapleigh saw I hadn...'t head of the company or the brand. With a little research I found that the company began in 1843 and continued until the early 1960's. This saw was made between 1918 and 1935.
I cleaned up the Shapleigh and recorded the process that you can see here.

Saturday, September 20, 2014

Building a new workbench Part 4 - Laminating the top - a video tutorial ...


I learned a few things while laminating the first half of the bench top. I'm applying those lessons to the second half. The first one is Douglas Fir makes a much better bench top than pine.

Building a new workbench Part 5 - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's Wor...





Augers whether they are brace and bit, a t handle barn auger, or a twist drill in an eggbeater have always held a fascination for me. They were one of the first things I learned to sharpen and I continue to learn new things about their design and use.
This project lets me use my biggest auger to install the vise screw.

Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Building a new workbench Part 3 - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's Wor...


Building a workbench or a building requires making sure the foundation is strong enough to handle the load. This video involves designing  and building the base. Two leg assemblies with different purposes.

Monday, September 15, 2014

Building a new workbench Part 2



Part of the fun of building is designing the project to fit a specific need. This workbench has to incorporate a solid top at least 3" thick to support using hold downs. Ryan is right handed like me so mounting the vise on the right hand side will help with sawing and planning. Ryan's workshop is in the basement so it has to go down a set of stairs with two 90 degree turns. Making it modular and easily disassembled and reassembled is a requirement.
Above all the bench has to be strong and stable. Planing, chopping dovetails and mortises, and sawing are all easier if the bench rigidly holds the parts in place.
So far the bench is coming along fine. It remains to be seen if I can make it fit all the requirements.

Saturday, September 13, 2014

The First New Workbench Part 1 - a video tutorial from Old Sneelock's Wo...



It's Ryan's birthday and I've been wanting to build a classic woodworking workbench. I took the opportunity to build a two by six foot workbench complete with face vice.

Thursday, September 11, 2014

What you are is who you are when no one is looking.


If you want people to like you then be like them. If you really don't care then be like whatever you want.
I favor the latter.

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Tinkers Work - Soldering On A Patch - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's...



Gerry or jerry can, whichever name you use it immediately brings to mind an image of a squat rectangular can strapped to the back of a jeep bounding across the desert.
Well maybe not for everyone but I really liked Rat Patrol when it was on.
In any case the convenience of the design and it's ability to outlast almost any other container for the same use has endeared this 80 year old design to farmers, construction workers, military members, and off road enthusiasts the world over. Perhaps that was helped by the leaving of millions of these containers world wide after WWII. Developed by German engineers in the 30's, both sides used essentially the same design to disperse fuel and water though out the world to their respective armies.

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Romancing The Stones Pt 2 Flattening A 1000 Grit Stone a video tut...



The 1000 grit King Deluxe stone wasn't in as bad a shape as the 6000. The stone was really loaded with steel and had pits in it. I had to take just as much material off of this one. 10 minutes work on the flattening stone and I had it done. Next on to sharpening a kitchen knife.

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Romancing The Stones Pt 1 Flattening a video tutorial by Old Sneelo...



This weekend I stumbled onto a couple of water stones. So I decided to try using them.
The stones had been used incorrectly so before I could sharpen anything with them I had to dress them flat. So I setup my trusty sandstone brick and started. It didn't take long and the results are very good.
Take ten minutes and see what a severely damaged stone can become.

Saturday, August 23, 2014

Tool Aquisition - a slide show by Old Sneelock's Workshop



Another step on the road to making a workbench. Also a few tools that I wouldn't have bought at full price but they were at a garage sale. I helped someone get ready to move and picked up some cool stuff.

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Resurecting a Swan Beam Drilling Machine - Pt 1 - Evaluation by Old Snee...



Beam drills are an interesting study in old tools. Long before electric motors were used to do most of the work in carpentry men used their muscles for power. Leverage and gearing were the advantage that beam drills had over the old fashioned T handle barn drills.
By allowing the operator to use both hands to crank in continuous motion, providing a guide for the drill bit, and  some high end models had two speeds.
This drill is complete but it needs some of the parts replaced. Best bet is it laid on a wet floor because the power head isn't rusted but the end of the curved brace and the top bar on the rack is dry rotted.
The wood is going to be replaced with new oak. All the screws will be replaced. The set screw in the chuck is frozen and will have to be replaced. With those and 2 new knobs the drill will be in top shape again.

Friday, August 15, 2014

Tips & Shortcuts - #8 - Mounting Sand Paper on a Pad Sander By Old Sne...



In a lifetime of projects, ideas develop spontaneously. Usually they are in response to a problem that crops up. This one was because I spent way too much time sanding with a pad sander. Grit changes from 80 through 220. Each one requiring fiddling with the paper and trying to fit it in the clamps. Then I read somewhere about improving the life of the paper by bending it and breaking the grit loose from the resin. This idea sprung forth.

Monday, August 11, 2014

Weld Repairs To 3 Point Grader Blade - Pt 1 - by Old Sneelock's Workshop



After finally getting the welder setup in the garage I pulled the tractor and blade in so I could weld up the damage from last winters heavy snowfall. Like most projects a simple weld turned into a much larger project. After about 6 hours I was done.
This is a video of highlights from the grinding and preparation prior to welding.

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Teachers Union Supports Common Core With Aggressive Language



6 years of schooling, a minimum of a masters degree, and this guy can only resort to threats of violence. Do you want your child taught by this guy?

Thursday, July 17, 2014

Garage Bench - Part 4 - Modifying The Legs - from Old Sneelock's Workshop



With the bench top and shelf removed the next step is to disassemble and modify the legs for the new bench.

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Lessons learned.

When I was a boy growing up in Coldwater, Michigan, an old gentleman named Mr. McGinnis lived on Tibbits St. just around the corner from my parent’s house.
Mr. McGinnis had two cherry trees in his side yard. They were the kind that are deep red and as big around as my thumb. None of us kids ever ventured into his yard or bothered the trees because that just wasn't done.
One year Mr. McGinnis called my brothers over from where we were playing and said that he couldn't pick the cherries that year, but if we were careful and used his ladders we could have all the cherries.
We ran home and told our mother the news. She said if we got enough cherries she would bake us a pie.
My brothers and I along with a couple other boys from the neighborhood, armed with pans and buckets, went and picked all of the cherries that afternoon. Being boys and perpetually hungry, it was one in the bucket and one in the tummy. We ended up with a dishpan full of cherries, about 3 gallons or so, to take home.
Flushed with our success we marched home and presented the bounty to Mom. She spent the rest of the day pitting cherries and made us a great cherry pie.
The only catch was she only had enough cherries for one pie. Out of the 3 gallons of cherries most of them were full of worms.
One in the pan. One in the tummy.
Mr. McGinnis hadn't been able to spray the trees that year.

Sunday, July 6, 2014

Tips & Shortcuts - Pulling a nail with a broken head - video tutorial by...



You are trying to disassemble something that was nailed together. Everything is going along smoothly until all of a sudden the head pops off of a nail. Now what do you do?
You can't pull it out with the claws can you? Yes you can. Try this trick and you can be back on the job in a couple minutes or less.

Being Thrifty - Old Sneelock and his philosophy of "Waste Not Want Not"



Have you ever just had one of those days when nothing seems to work and you just want to chuck it all?
Whom ever had this saw must have had one of those days. Fortunately for Old Sneelock he was able to take advantage of another persons misfortune and gain a working circular saw.

Garage Bench Part 2 - Disassembly - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's W...



Rather than building a new bench to fit my needs in the garage workshop I decided to rebuild the old bench.
With the lumber from the old bench I was able to build a stronger, smaller bench that fit my needs much better.

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Ryans New Service - Grounding - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's Works...


Publish Post
In the final video of the series Ryan installs the ground wire to the water main and the driven copper ground rods.
The supplier installed the underground cables on June 11, 2014. The service is officially completed.

Monday, June 2, 2014

Creating Custom Sanding Disk Holder



Rolock discs are handy but the sandpaper is pricey.
Using psa paper and multiple holders will dramatically reduce the PIA factor of changing grits.

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Who is Old Sneelock?






When I started the Old Sneelock's Workshop channel there had been some discussion on the Old Tools mailing list. oldtools@ruckus.law.cornell.edu of how to sharpen a woodworking auger bit. I have a fascination with old tools, mainly barn augers. I had studied the problem of how to bring back old, rusty, dull auger bits to useful condition. Word pictures are an art. Very few people can get an idea across to a diverse audience using the written word alone. I worked as an Industrial Engineer for many years. One of the facets of the job was to create work instructions for building and assembling hundreds of different products. I decided to use the skills others had taught me to put up a video showing how to sharpen an auger bit. If a picture is worth a thousand words, 30 frames a second adds up to a lot of words really quick.
One thing led to another and I've found myself with more than 70 videos ranging from using a tractor to wiring a house. It's a niche channel but we just hit 600 subscribers and are rapidly approaching 100,000 views.
It's a great way to share what I've learned over a lifetime of work.

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Design and building Lydia's desk - a video tutorial from Old Sneelock's ...



Faced with needing a desk and finding that office furniture is expensive we decided to build a new one ourselves. With Lydia helping we created exactly what she wanted at 1/10 the cost. We also had a geat time doing it.

Sunday, April 27, 2014

Sunday, April 20, 2014

 In 1972 I was digging a bearing out of the sand at the bottom of a 20' deep pit under the floor of the Midwest Foundry. I looked up at the top of the ladder and my boss the Maintenance Foreman was looking down into ...the pit. I decided that I was on the wrong end of the ladder.
It took 10 years and 4 job changes but I worked my way up out of the pit.
I had taken college courses and technical courses to better my skill set. I worked long hours and did what I was asked to do and more. When I finally got a supervisors job at United Technologies it was really very much like climbing out of a hole into the light. Each step up the corporate ladder at United Tech brought me into a bigger arena with more opportunities.
Do I regret digging out the bearing? No. That's what got me started. The apprenticeship that I served at the foundry working with my father and the other 10 guys in the maintenance department taught me the basic skills of doing a job.
a. Some of the crews would screw around for half the shift and then work like hell to get done before the boss came in. We would work hard at the start of the shift and get everything done then prep for the next days work. If there was a tool needed or a special part we had time to get it around.
b. One of the guys on another crew held up a roll of plastic tape and said it was hydraulic, pneumatic, electrical, and mechanical tape. When the lines would fail he was always having to dig out hoses or switch runs to repair them, with more tape.
We would cut out and replace the leaking hoses on the pouring line dumpers every weekend and seldom had a line down from a burnt hose, or shorted wiring.
c. It always took two guys a full eight hours to remove 3 links from the elevator chain in shell shakeout.
The first night we were given the task I asked what we did with the links after we took them out. I learned that we pitched the worn out pieces in the scrap pile. That night rather than spend 4 hours driving out the pins, with sledge hammers and punches, we cut the links with a cutting torch, pulled the pins with our fingers, and rejoined the chain. We were done in 4 hours and the next time we were done in 3.
Working hard is good. Working hard and thinking is better.
Following my Dad I learned the most important lesson. People will follow you almost anywhere you lead. Never give an order you wouldn't do yourself.
Knowledge is power. When people can believe what you say they are willing to listen.

Friday, April 11, 2014

Rewiring the South Bend Lathe Pt 6 - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's ...



When I was mounting the motor on my 65 year old South Bend Lathe I check the connections. I'm surprised that it never caught fire. It needed to be completely rewired.
Part 6 shows how I soldered the connections to the socket terminals. All that is left to do is a run test and painting.

Rewiring the South Bend Lathe Pt 5 a video tutorial from Old Sneelock's ...



When I was mounting the motor on my 65 year old South Bend Lathe I check the connections. I'm surprised that it never caught fire. It needed to be completely rewired.
Part 5 shows how I mounted a handy box to house the wiring and socket to protect the connections.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Rewiring the South Bend Lathe Pt 4 - a video tutorial by Old Sneelock's ...






When I was mounting the motor on my 65 year old South Bend Lathe I checked the connections. I'm surprised that it never caught fire. It needed to be completely rewired.
Part 4 shows how I unsoldered and cleaned the wire terminals on the socket.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Brazing The Silver Drill Press Flywheel Pt 2 -- a video tutorial by Old ...






It was a real bad day when my drill press fell off of the truck. I finally got time and equipment setup to repair the broken casting. Oxyacetylene torch, brazing rod, borax flux and clamps all had a part in the fix.
The thing that made it work was a suggestion from my son Ryan to use red modeling clay to support the spokes for assembly.

Monday, March 24, 2014

Nozzle Rack - 5S For The Workshop - a video tutorial from Old Sneelock's...


Managing the clutter in the workshop one step at a time.
Also passing on a few tips on how to avoid getting in trouble.
I've always thought that learning from the mistakes of others would help prevent unsightly bandages.
I haven't always done it but I've sure thought of it afterwards.

Monday, March 17, 2014

Building a Shelf - 5S For The Home Workshop - a video tutorial by Old Sn...



Downsizing or rightsizing both involve thinking about what you really need and then setting up the area to accommodate it.
I've been thinning the junk box by using the hardware for building storage. A few boards and screws and problem solved. Takes longer to edit the film than to do the project but sharing is so much more fun.
Enjoy.

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Stained Glass 101 - Starting Out






Twelve years ago as part of my therapy after my first heart surgery my Mom taught me a little bit about stained glass. I never got the chance to finish the project we started. I inherited her stained glass equipment and supplies and now that I have a little time I want to get back to the project.
I like to research things before I start. I've found that having someone explain what not to do is easier and cheaper than finding out on my own. Back when I worked for a living I was a manufacturing engineer. I created procedures and work instructions for welders, machine operators, and technicians. Your video Stained Glass 101 is one of the most clear and concise presentations of how to I've come across to date.
Thank you for allowing me to learn across the bench from you.

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Why are emails scrambled by IPhones?



IPhones have a feature where they anticipate what you would like to say and enter the word for you. They also autocorrect misspellings. One problem I have had in the past is the anticipation is often a little skewed. I ran into a possible reason for the mix  up. Professor Irwin Corey. What would he have to do with this you ask? I believe that instead of Al Gore inventing the internet it was a grad school project for Professor Corey's Masters In Phraseology.
I was going through and checking the status of some of my videos on YouTube. One of the features is automatic captioning. The following is the transcript of the captions provided for my video  Safe Operation of a Bench Grinder - a video tutorial from Old Sneelock's Workshop, http://youtu.be/9Ym7L6nWynk , by the little elves of YouTube.


0:13
they work

0:16 talking

0:16 her better survive how people

0:19 right writer very useful

0:23 the right here with proper use your

0:27 very good job powerful use power tools they can do things that we can't do

0:34 they can to it we don't want

0:37 let's talk a little bit about the when you're working out a background really

0:42 want to have enough light

0:43 yeah be able to see clearly make sure that there's nothing going wrong

0:46 I like to use the best like over-the-top

0:49 writer that his like right needed keeps it on my way

0:58 I can see clearly where the wheel is what's going on well the first thing you

1:02 wanna check to make sure before we do anything

1:04 right here that isn't what there's

1:11 kids are very important there hola

1:15 and the spark guard to rest is there to support the park

1:20 being ground if the gap is large enough between

1:23 cooler and the wheel for this shit will drop into it

1:27 it will quickly what we'll to a stop

1:30 stopping this big writer using this

1:33 fragile little wheel I'm going to shatter this wheel

1:36 so we always want to have this Tara

1:39 up close the wheel are watching

1:43 minimum is considered to be within one day

1:46 that that saw he visto left is closer than 18

1:52 that for the spark guard

1:55 progress well from flying around the clock the wheel

1:59 your face in the event that the wheel brake the spark guard will help contain

2:04 the pieces inside this route

2:06 heavy cast-iron trout should contain all the pieces

2:10 so that they don't come flying out at you I we talk about these two guys

2:17 ok talk about y'all

2:20 should be right here funny don't make it up and get run over

2:26 a way to turn off because you might be caught in the machine

2:29 life right here easily accessible always have the best

2:34 greater quiet down securely you don't wanna walking all over the place and you

2:38 and it starts to fall and you act that grab a hold the wheel that would make a

2:43 good bet

2:44 let's talk about how to use a great grinder

2:48 designed to cut I'm this surface only there are other guys we'll

2:53 but this kind of wheeler designed to grind on this surface all

2:56 never on the side the reason for that if you want to have this wheel

3:01 now and lose structural integrity it relies on the whole circus at the wheel

3:05 the whole this matter altogether

3:07 by greg did not in here and we can that will it be to that comes out

3:11 eight-inch French rider will travel to far sixty-mile-an-hour officer

3:15 was doing 34 yeah at all in fact I don't think I pick after rock

3:22 coming at my head from this quote it was released sixty-mile

3:26 movingly when you have to walk everything we grind out as we look when

3:33 I get off

3:34 he although red hot sparks coming off the wheel all that he is being

3:39 that made it into this part we don't want to burn ourselves on the park

3:43 and we don't want to take the paper I'll chisel

3:46 regret make sure that the grinders aw

3:51 when plugged yeah we don't have you get caught into it

3:55 because actually out plug in the dryer

3:58 make sure has

4:02 three prong plug at the outlet recall anything can become

4:07 energized background writers and/or work with our safety glasses we also want to

4:12 put on a

4:12 hearing protection prevents damage your ears

4:17 unfortunately when I first started out

4:20 here all here

4:24 damage already using what I am I

4:35 Co

4:41 I

4:45 Co

4:47 Co

4:50 I

4:59 I

5:10 or while writer embattled

5:13 and and and thought weird

I think the one I like best is at 3:11 "eight-inch French rider will travel to far sixty-mile-an-hour officer"

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Repairing The Black & Decker Half Inch Drill Motor - a video tutorial by...



When you've had a tool that has served you well for 48 years it's worth the effort to keep it going.
This isn't the first tool I've had to fix. I'm sure it won't be the last.

Friday, January 31, 2014

Goodbye to an old friend






Hubris
Believing that what was shall always remain.
Sometimes it's just not true.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Comes' The Revolution

In the Huffington Post Robert Reich asks "Why is there no outcry?"
He is wondering why there isn't an uprising of the people. A new Progressive Movement or New Deal.
If you want his reasons you can find them here.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-reich/why-theres-no-outcry_b_4666330.html

In the 60's on college campus's through out the US there was a battle cry. Comes The Revolution.
Chicago had a Democratic Convention and the SDS went wild. Bill Ayres bombed government buildings. Detroit burned. Watt's rioted. The kids of the middle class had a revolution. Mom and Dad were trying to make the payments and send the kids to college. In 1968 parents lived in fear that their kids would leave college and drop in/out to the counter culture.
I was one of those kids. Fortunately I lived through the experience. I was lucky. I didn't like being drunk or high because it wasn't something you could stop doing in the middle. Riding a motorcycle was cool. If you got tired or wanted to stop you hit the brakes and pulled over. Watching your friend light up something called a nose bomb that sent flames up his nose so you could see the glow in his sinuses wasn't cool. He couldn't stop and think "Bad Idea." I never got started down that road.
We ran the world. Everyone was sure that we would burn the whole place down and they ran scared. I graduated high school in 1969. There was a break in tradition. The school decided that the practice of having the senior class walk through town in mass would be to dangerous. For the town. So Senior Swingout ended.
As a group the children of the 60's became the adults of the 70's. Now we are the old farts of the 2010 decade. Our children and their children have gone through the same crap we did. The rules had changed though. Outrageous behavior was no longer isolated incidents. There was a thread of insanity that crept through society that said be nicer to the kids and they won't be bad. Don't tell them "No" you will stifle their free expression of their personality. When you don't correct bad behavior it is no longer bad, just different.
Why revolt when everything is handed to you?

As a superuser of the Huffington Post, Dennis Umphrey sums up the party line.

"Dennis Umphrey (den1953)  Super User·8,713 Fans
The only thing you can blame on the inequality of the middle class can be accounted for the decline of labor board and unions, from the time Republican Ronald Reagan attacked the air traffic controllers to the lack of restricting those middle class jobs from going overseas to the lowest bidders. Between the pollution deregulations to relaxed labor rules and regulations that started the decent of the American worker, and those plutocrats in Washington can take all the credit! This nation cannot produce it's own steel or clothing like it used to those jobs are told outsourced and will never come back, but the real question should be why did they ever have to leave the country in the first place?




Dennis what makes you think that pollution deregulation caused the decline of US industry?
I started working in the 60's. The EPA was just starting to gain momentum in the workplace. With the growth of their power in the 70's it became increasingly clear that they were at best inept. In 1981 I became the Environmental Coordinator for the United Technologies plant on Industrial Avenue in Coldwater, MI. I held the position for 9 years. During that time industry was fleeing offshore. Arbitrary rule changes and a distinctly antagonistic relationship between the EPA and business in the US made it far easier to build new plants in foreign countries than in the US.
Now the EPA's labors have borne fruit. The US is living the life of HG Well's Lotus Eaters and we are waiting for the Morlocks to drag us away.

Monday, January 13, 2014

Installing A Quick Adjust Bench Vise Part 4 of 4 - a video tutorial from...


The vise is installed and working quite well.
I've sanded off the top, filled in the screw heads, and painted the bench.

On to the next project. Repairing the Silver Mfg Co. hand cranked drill press will require some silver soldering to repair the broken flywheel.
Two and a half years ago, during the move, the drill press fell off the back of the truck in rush hour traffic. Quite exciting.
I'm going to try and use the blow torches to heat up the flywheel for silver soldering. It's been better than 40 years since I've used blow torches but they are the best for heating a large area. Lots of heat and a big flame. I'm going to set up the fire bricks in the blacksmith shop and see I can make an oven top to contain the heat.

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Ruining your own life for fun an profit. Or why I don't wish to be in business.

As I approached my planned retirement age I cast about for things to do that might provide a little pocket money. More to be able to lay claim to earning my keep in my own mind rather than need.
Saw sharpening hit the mark on a number of levels.
1. It is a useful skill and it fit in with my core training.
2. There is little investment in equipment.
3. The end result has a personal use component as well as a marketable component.
4. The rate of pay per hour of time spent will never bring me into a higher tax bracket.
5. The very first handsaw that I had tried to sharpen, 20 years ago, was such a failure, forget cows and calves, it was elephants and chipmunks, that there was nowhere to go but better.

I began by reading and studying multiple sources and watching an amazing amount of video with an equal number of methods, some better than others. 

My next step and the most satisfying, was gathering XX practice saws. (You really didn’t expect a number!)

With the raw materials available I set about the practice of sharpening. Being a geek/engineer I videotaped my first efforts and studied them like I would any time study. Holding the file at the proper angle with guides and fixtures seemed like a pain in the butt. It was. Having reference lines on the vice did more for holding the angle than having to adjust a jig each time. Muscle memory and proper stance brought that problem to heel.

I found that boredom was the chief culprit. I would get distracted and lose my place in all the teeth. Having found the problem I went back to the beginning and remarked the teeth after every pass with a black marker. No more lost place.

My second attempt at sharpening a hand saw, after the dreaded elephant/chipmunk fiasco, cut appreciably faster and smoother than it had before I sharpened it. The third attempt also improved but less markedly. After the first 10 saws the mechanics have become less of a problem. I have found that most people have little interest in a sharpened handsaw. I have tried to interest family in the idea of having a saw, the only taker so far has been my son. I cheated and gave it to him for Christmas this year.

I have sharpened enough saws for personal use that I don't think I’ll need to touch a saw file for at least a decade.

Saw sharpening will fall into the same category as my frantic efforts to improve at pool, welding,  tennis, golf, machine tools, softball, etc. As long as it was my business, with money on the line, or my friends were willing to be interested and play along, I wanted to be the best. When it became a solitary quest for excellence my interest faded.

How much should it cost to sharpen a saw?

For me the first measurably sharp saw took 22 years of practice, 10 practice saws, at $2.00 each, a half dozen files, with handles, one nifty $10.00 antique saw jointing file holder that I didn't need but couldn’t resist 25 years ago. Divide that by 10 sharp saws and $35.00 for 2 hours actual work on sharpening a nice 8 point crosscut with the proper fleam angle, sloped gullets, even teeth, and sticky sharp points doesn’t seem so bad.

I’m still not ready to sharpen saws as a business. I’m happy with my work but I don't want to have the hassle of a person with an unrealistic expectation and a magnifying glass strapping themselves to my back for a $35.00 ride through hell.

Monday, January 6, 2014

Old Sneelock's Workbench Recycling at it's best - a video tutorial from...



The huge snowfall isn't really affecting Old Sneelock's workshop time. Since I'm trapped inside I'm using the time to improve the basement shop.