savethebeer

Even though I haven't been posting lately, I look in from time to time. Due to being at this hobby for about 15 years and knowing my walls and my friends walls were full I needed to renew my interest in making things. This year I decided to make gifts for charities, so last Feb and March I made all the Christmas pressies for my friends for 2024. Then I made a huge range of Christmas items, all stack cut, and divided them in 2. One half I gave to the cat rescue that gave me my 2 kittens in Jan, and the rest I gave to a Downs Syndrome centre in the locality. Both lots were delivered to the charities last week and they are now arranging fund raising raffles for themselves. Last week I gift wrapped my own pressies, On Monday I'm off to walk the Camino in Spain with my Daughter, (5th time doing different stretches on my own, with Daughter, or with friends) I have a friend cat sitting my two, and I shall return after the hols knowing full well that Ember and Ash will fully appreciate how good they have it now, and change their ways. Next year I intend to make about 5 good items for each charity, rather than the large smorgasbord of items i did this year.

Thanks. The front has to be read as it is. 2023 is at 1 O'clock in the photo which gives Mon at 6 O çlock and its the 25th today. It has more years marked up on the rear disc than the current villagers will ever live till. 2109 is the last year marked up. I got it where I get all my clock inserts, it is a nice brass look and I know it would look well if mounted. However there is no point if I can't rotate the the rear disc. I'll just teach the Grandkids how to use it in a few years.

I have had this brass calendar for ages. Its two discs, and the rear one rotates to find the correct year and month. Both discs are the same size and the front one has a little tab to rotate the front disc. I think it is meant to be a hand held calendar. I have not been able to figure out a workable mount to make. Has anyone any ideas if it could be put in a wooden mount.

Rattle snake rattle Native to North and South America, rattlesnakes are large venomous snakes, that are experts at hissing as well as their bone-chilling rattle. The rattle itself is hollow and is made of keratin (just like human's fingernails) that is located at the end of the serpent's tail. When the rattlesnake erects its tail and vibrates its muscles, these segments collide with each other, thus producing the rattling sound. 'Mark Twain Tree' sequoia section with historical notations from year 550 to 1891 The first documented sighting of the giant sequoia took place in the spring of 1852, when a hunter named Augustus T. Dowd, entered North Grove woods while chasing down a bear. The trees gained a lot of popularity and a lot of people came forward who wanted to make money out of these wonders of nature. In 1891 the giant "Mark Twain Tree" was cut down. A slice of its trunk was sent to the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and another slice to the British Museum of Natural History in Kensington, London. Tortoise skeleton Tortoises as well as turtles are in fact the only reptiles with hard and bony shells. To no surprise, the shell works as a protective armor from the harm of the environment. The outer layer - carapace - is the shell that we see on the animal and beneath it hides the inner bony layer, then followed (looking down) by the rib bones. The lower shell of the tortoise is called plastron. If you ever were wondering why these lovely animals walk so slow - try imagining walking around yourself with a heavy protective armor, as it most certainly weighs the animal down. Military tank Most us are familiar with the concept of the military tank - however, it is not widely known that the polite Brits were the ones who introduced it during the World War I. By the early 1916 the prototype of the future tank was introduced. The heavy armoured vehicle was used in combat for the first time in the Battle of Flers-Courcelette on 15 September 1916 A 1930s Mickey Mouse Costume Mickey Mouse is a cartoon character that was created by Walt Disney in 1928. Mickey, created as a replacement for another Disney character called Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, has since become one of the world’s most beloved fictional characters and has long been a popular fixture at Disney theme parks. The Mickey Mouse costume has gone through several design changes over the years. Earlier versions, like the ones from the 1930s, have often been described as “creepy” or “unsettling,” a far cry from the friendlier-looking costumes that we see now. The Texaco Doodlebug In the 1930s, Texaco introduced the Texaco Doodlebug, a futuristic-looking tanker truck. While the Doodlebugs did what they were supposed to do – carry gasoline to and from gas stations – they were also a publicity stunt to modernize Texaco’s brand look. The exact number of Doodlebugs produced is unknown, though some sources claim that only six units were ever made. Due to its shape, some people at the time said that the Doodlebug reminded them of either a pill or a loaf of bread.

Very very nice. Thanks Alex

Thanks to Jim and all the pattern makers out there.

This is a pattern by Jim Blume. My sister wants a French Bulldog to go with her 4 Chihuahua dogs. Except she had a fall recently and smashed hip and femur so no new dog for at least 12 months. I decided to do Jim's pattern to cheer her up for Christmas. I did the right one in quarter inch ordinary ply that I had lying around but I didn't like the way it looked due to the inner surface of each cut showing, and also the way I could not stain most of these inner surfaces. When looked at from an angle it was hard to tell what it was. It took about 5 hours over 3 days to do this one. Decided to do it again in 4mm BBP. I just happened to print the pattern in a smaller size so I went with that. Much happier with this result. This one took about 2 hours. I used a Pegas #3 spiral on both but I used a Pegas # 3 super skip on the eyes of the smaller one before I started doing all the rest of the cuts, just in case I messed up the eyes, in which case the patterns would go into the fire wood bin. I'm going to frame the smaller one for her and I think she'll be happy, that is until I give her her next pressie. I'll wrap an old wooden brush handle along with a Swiss army knife and a booklet on Whittling, with a suggestion she whittles her own walking stick

When you've put off mowing, painting, changing the oil, going outside, eating food whilst its at least warm, getting your hair cut, Even after all that you'll still feel that you need 'some much needed practice' so thats perfectly normal. Those cuttings look fine to the rest of us but you'll always know the one corner on a piece where you could have done better. Just remember, once the pattern is removed then no one else will ever be able to see anything wrong. Bob

well done on the experimenting with your own ideas. Lovely job

John, just seen your other post about adding colour, it may be my turning point. Thanks

absolutely nothing wrong with being silly. I love doing 'silly'things for the Grandkids, although my daughter is running out of shelf and wall space. Gary Larson and his Far Side books are my kind of silly. What I've always lacked is the skill to finish things in coloured paint, so I like your cow a lot.

in Ireland its known as Russian Birch Ply. I went to my supplier today to spend a gift voucher I got for Christmas. I got two sheets of 4mm plywood just to use the voucher cause I knew that stocks are running low. This time 6 months ago most of the Birch forests on the Steppes were ablaze which meant a worldwide shortage anyway, but now with Ukraine being invaded we will not be using BBP for much longer. He did say he knows of a supplier in Poland who is experimenting with various types of wood laminates to try and come up with thin wood that will have a decent finish similar to what we have in BBP. However he cant see any solution in the short term and it'll be many months before we have a reliable supply coming into the shops.

And its only when its gone that you realise how much those symptoms affect you. Welcome back Travis

Hello Rob from Bob, You don't say where you are from. In Ireland we have 1 place that I use all the time for my Baltic Birch Ply, although its called Russian Birch Ply here. I use Duct tape to cover my wood and stick the pattern to that. I find that if I lift the tape and paper off the wood the same day I stuck it on then I am left with sticky patches of residue on the wood, even though I would have given the pattern 2 or more minutes to get tacky. If I take several days to do a piece then the tape lifts off the wood without leaving any sticky patches. Because Of limited wood suppliers in Ireland I have used other types of wood as well as BBP. This includes MDF, Chipboard, floorboards, fence pieces, driftwood, furniture panels, to name a few. You can get decent results on a variety of woods if you use the correct type of blade for that wood, but that requires practice to find that correct blade. You need to vary your blade types with each type of wood just to see for yourself which blade gives the best result rather than reading a list off a website, then write down the result of which blade gave the best result of particular wood. If you only had a limited supply of wood then stick the pattern onto the wood and do some test cuts off the pattern. That way when you discover the best one you can just switch to cutting the actual pattern. regards Bob

Thanks Joe. The problem is size, of dots in the pattern and of micro drill bit. Both are the same size so I could just get away with drilling some holes, so I'm thinking of embellishing each hole with some Dremmel bits to try and get the fuzzy look that Dan got in the pattern.

I've rediscovered The Marx Brothers recently and then found the pattern under People. Its 4mm BBP and the backing will be the same. To be stained and framed. I didn't even attempt the polka dots or stripes on Chico or Harpo with the scroll saw. I'm thinking of adding them in with different Dremmel bits. I will post again when they're done.

Hello Eric. I have to admit that I like reading paper books, and I've never been tempted to try a kindle. Thats for thrillers or history etc. For scrolling I don't think you can get much better than Travis and his university from right here in the village. Steve Good at scrollsawworkshop.blogspot.com is also excellent. Youtube is also a good source. If you did want to go down the road of getting books then shop for anything by Patrick Spielman to start with. Bob

Nice to be mentioned by others on the WWW. So that's only 16 years for you to be an overnight success. Keep it up Travis. Bob

Thanks Frank. I misread what you wrote about sticking the backer to the piece, I was reading it as a continuation of your first section to do with sawing. My table saw is small and does not have those guide grooves but I will look at a finer blade. Bob

Hi Frank. I love the photos and the way you've tried to explain it all. As one who has used a mitre saw only a few times for cutting sheets down to size but my blade tears the back side of my ply. The youtube video blade has huge teeth whereas the saw in your photo has very similar teeth to mine. Couple of questions; To Frank; Top 2 photos; - Do you have anything attached to your jig that fits in those grooves to keep it all straight as you saw? Bottom 3 photos;- I can see how you're clamping that sheet between the two 3/4in sheets of ply but how are you accessing that sheet when its held between the two outer sheets. Are you working from underneath? To everybody; My saw does not tear 'real' wood or lumbar but it is not great cutting BBP. What is the best blade for BBP? thanks Bob

Very nice work with those bird houses. I've two plain old bird houses on the front of my house and I've had 2 broods of Coal Tits a year {about 7 to 9 eggs each time} for many years. Coal Tits will not use a nest box with a perch on the front, other breeds wont use a nest box unless there is a perch so adjust the box to try and attract the audience your interested in. My second bird house does not get a resident each year because the Coal Tits get territorial after they move in and chase off anyone who looks like they might move into the neighborhood, and its ten times worse if that new interloper is another Coal Tit. Its only used by occasional visitors who need an escape from bad weather for the night.

After nearly 10 years at scrolling I had a sudden revelation about glue. If I leave a pattern stuck to the various pieces for a while [days and days] then I can peel off the pattern without leaving residue on the wood, whereas if I peel the paper off within a few minutes then I usually end up with residue on the wood. I use masking tape to line the wood, then spray glue onto the pattern and place on the wood. If I'm in the mode I can start cutting that piece after about 10 minutes. If I peel that pattern after cutting all the pieces then I will have lots of residue but if I've left the pattern stuck to the wood over a weekend there will be very little if any residue on the wood. I discovered all this during the week when I cut 16 Alex Fox layered patterns in 4 sessions of stack cutting. These are Christmas patterns which I'm cutting for next Christmas. I've thought a lot about why and I reckon its a lot to do with the lockdown and the isolation as much as its the fact that I enjoy this particular pattern. Anyway after the first session I cleaned up the wood right after finishing the pattern, and was disappointed to find residue, Then with the next three sessions I left the paper removal till I had finished all of them and no residue. I had thought that I was using a too light masking tape but now I don't think so.

very nice job cutting and finish Ken. Anything that keeps someone else smiling is a nice payday. Bob

Hello Jeremie, welcome to the village. Antartica is probably the only place we don't have a member so you are now part of a diverse group of sawdust makers. Schwibbogen is a big part of my enjoyment too. Bob