Plans ideas

Phil (on the mountaintop) from Western NC, an excellent and respected woodturner, sent me some of his cutoffs. Included in this was a piece of what he called "Ambrosia Maple." I think others refer to this look as "spalted."

The Ambrosia Maple will be good for a few pens. Here is the first one. It is intended to be for the wife of my neighbor. I made HIM a walnut pen earlier in the afternoon and did this one in the evening.

These are 3 pictures of the same pen.

You can squish it underneath the veneer with your finger,

Good Evening Everyone,

There are a number of books on the market about wood lathes and one of the very best books for beginners is Lathe Fundamentals: The Complete Guide by Popular Mechanics/Rick Peters ( New York: Hearst Books, 2006. ISBN: 978-1-58816-447-6. 192 pages). Many of the books published about wood lathes tend to be written by experts for people who have been turning for a long time or their coverage of all the aspects of wood turning tend to be rather uneven. Lathe Fundamentals covers every aspect of wood turning-from selecting a lathe, the basic types of chisels, and basic techniques. It also goes into more advanced techniques, has a very clearly written section on chisel sharpening and grinding, and an excellent section on lathe maintenance and repair. At the very end of the book are several projects that will help the beginning turner achieve a simple but well made project-it even has a section on pen turning. The book is also is well illustrated with numerous photographs that show step by step how to achieve a given activity. Its very clearly written with a noticeable absence of technical jargon, which I think at times can be a little confusing for the beginning turner.

If you are planning to purchase a lathe and get started as a wood turner, this book is the book you should read before making a purchase. If you plan on purchasing a lathe for someone as a gift, then you should definitely purchase this book.

VW

Wood working is one of the most rewarding hobbies that a person can be
involved in. The reason most people fail or give up on woodworking
projects is that they get frustrated.

The two golden rules for wood working are:

Measure Twice, Cut Once
Obviously you don’t want to waste the time and money making incorrect
cuts or running back and forth to the hardware store twenty times!
This is actually an easy step once you get in the mindset and take
your time before putting the saw to the wood!

Have A Plan
Without some woodworking projects plans your project will to go
on..and on..and on. If you actually even “finish” the project you end
up with a wobbly table or a crooked shelf.

Obviously not all of us have the skill or background to draw up plans
on our own. So this usually meant the frustrating process of going to
bookstores and hardware stores in search of the prefect plan for your
project.

The good news is now with the internet this has changed! With a few
mouse clicks you can have thousands of wood working project plans for
everything imaginable. Of course this doesn’t solve all your
problems. Too often an internet search for woodworking plans leads
you to a site that charges you $10 or more for one plan… a plan they
often advertise as free!

So I was excited to come across a huge database of over 14,000 wood
working project plans! The plans are extensive and include projects
for beginners and for experienced wood workers. Step by Step plans
ranging from sheds and chairs to bird houses and planters.

This has worked out so well for me (a very inexperienced wood worker
just a year ago)
that I am now contemplating my first big project. I’ve used the plans
for small projects like shelf’s and making some containers for my wife.
Now I’m looking at making a desk. Which I never would have attempted
just a few months ago, but now that I have a suitable plan I’m headed
to the hardware store to get the supplies I need.

Check back soon and I will show pictures of my progress on my new
computer desk. If all goes well this summer I might build the shed
out back that I have alchoices wanted but never got due to the high cost
of buying one from Lowes or Home Depot.

I was getting ready to order the lumber for my coat closet organizer but I started having second thoughts about my previous design. The previous design provided a lot of storage for this multi-functional closet but it had some drawbacks. Even though there is plenty of room to store shoes on the shelves I have a feeling they wont be used. There is no place to sit and take your shoes off in very close proximity to the closet which means its going to be easier to kick of your shoes and just leave them on the floor.

My coat closet is located in front of my stairs which makes it deeper than a typical reach-in closet which makes it a little difficult to plan an efficient layout. I decided to use some of that extra depth to include a bench in the coat closet. It will turn the front coat closet into a small mudroom type closet. It wont be like the other closet to mudroom conversions that are open, this closet will still have a door that can close but still provide the necessary functionality.


The current amount of hanging space is sufficient so the new design will have about the same amount of hanging space for coats with both double hang and single hang poles for larger coats. Shoe storage will be greatly increased by adding 5 18"shoe shelves which should be able to hold 2 pairs of mens shoes or 3 pairs of womens shoes each. Additionally, taller shoe storage is provided under the bench and shelves for boots and other items. The shoe shelves are only 12" deep (instead of the full 16" depth of the shelving unit) to provide a little extra elbow room when seated.

The 2 12" shelves that were installed above the closet rod will be replaced with the 16" deep top shelf, which runs along the entire back wall, and 3 18x16" shelves. This will provide enough storage for the miscellaneous items that wind up in the coat closet because they cant seem to fit in other places. The deeper top shelf will make it easier to store some of the large Rubbermaid totes that are a little too deep for the current closet shelf.

I would have liked to make the shelves adjustable but that would have meant buying a second full sheet of plywood and losing about 3/4" of space for either shelving or hanging which would have been a problem for me.

An upright vacuum cleaner can be stored in the long hanging section or possibly in the corner in front of the double hang section.

The most important change however is the inclusion of a small padded bench. Its a little narrow but big enough to provide a space to sit and take off or put on your shoes.

What Youll Need

Materials

Tools

Cut List

Cut Plan

3/4" Plywood

1/2" Plywood

1x4 Boards

1x2 Boards

Step 1:  Cut and Finish

Step 2:  Assemble Double Hang Cabinet 

Step 3: Install Double Hang Cabinet

Step 4: Mark Guide Lines

Step 5: Attach 1x4 Supports

Step 6: Complete Bench Frame

Step 7: Attach Shelf Bottom To Shelf Side

Step 8: Install the Shelving Unit

Step 9: Install Shelves

Step 10: Mount Rod Hardware