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I'm making two more votive candle holders. 16 hours, 1 hour ea. They are getting easier and easier. I might get good someday. And fast!

Once finished, we put a battery operated candle that turns on and off by itself and will glow for 4 hours. It looks neat.

made for the grandbaby and a copper horse for a friend

I swore I was not going to start a topic but it seems like there is not much going on right now so, I thought, what the heck. I was just wondering how folks go about a project once you have decided to make something. Do most of you keep a stock of wood on hand or do you go out and buy for each project? I know those of you who do a lot of work on Baltic Birch keep a supple of that on hand but for those who are like me and do most of our work in hardwoods, do you keep a stock of it on hand or what? I don't have a lot of space so I'm limited to what I can keep. I'd really like to hear how others do it. I'm hoping this doesn't turn into a controversial subject. Let's just share our ideas.

Hey, the stuff grows on trees around here.

This came up on my FB Memories this morning so I thought I'd show you the inside of my shop.. In the background of some of the pictures you can see my other shop too.. There is two things today that I have to say about this shop... Boy did it fill up fast.. and I should have built a bigger shop, LOL That lean too on the one side there is just a porch.. I've really been considering adding one to the other side to expand my wood shop over to there to free up that one bay.. I originally built this for wood shop only and using the other shop to work on cars etc.. But in putting up this shop they accidentally cut the power line to the old shop.. and the old shop is in rough shape.. so I wasn't going to hook the power back up since the complete electrical was not close to being up to code etc.. probably a good thing it got cut off because the wiring was really old and in rough shape.. probably would of burnt the place down anyway, LOL The dog in that one photo is making sure we was doing everything correctly and in the other photo he is guarding the contents.. ( sand floor ) LOL

It doesn't matter how fast you are as long as you are enjoying what you are doing. That's my motto anyway. Marg

Our 50th is in December. It's been quite a ride.

Workout room? Why would anybody want to intentionally make sweat? I do my workout getting out of bed 3 times a night to pee.

I saw a cute poster once that said "Buying craft supplies and using craft supplies are two different hobbies" I typically have between 10-20 pieces of 1/2 inch hardwoods that are 6-8" wide and 8-16" long. I cut bigger pieces down to smaller sizes that work for most of my projects, are easy to store and are ready to go. I also typically have 10-20 square feet of 1/8" baltic birch plywood cut in to pieces. I also have a lot of scraps and random pieces that "could be useful", but I am making a better effort to use or throw those. Sometimes I find that having to make a trip to the lumber store can derail my inspiration for a project, so I like to have some stuff on hand.

A couple of weeks ago I posted a video on YouTube showing my idea for an arm lift for the Excalibur. I've been using it all the while and am beginning to feel really comfortable with it. I tinkered around with the idea some more and redesigned it for the DeWalt scroll saw. It's more compact and does not rely upon hooking a pulley from the rafters. I do find the system very helpful if your arms are not as strong as they use to be (I'm getting there) and it makes changing the blade and inserting in patterns a lot more convenient. If you have time, take a look at my new video and see if maybe this is something you could use. Comments welcome. Al B.

Thermally modified. Does that mean they just left it out in the sun? Just kidding, looks like nice wood.

I work 100% with baltic birch. 99.9% of that is 1/8" super fortunate that here in san Diego there is a place called TH&H hardwood that sells a great selection fo whatever wood you could imagine. They sell mainly to people who make rich people custom cabinets and yachts and such so a simple 5 x 5 of bb is about $12. Almost the cheapest stuff in the place but thankfully, lots of guys use it for some sort of cladding in yachts or something like that so they always have a ready supply. Look for a specialty store in your town if you are in a decent sized city, Almost guarantee they have a place like this. Sorry got side tracked. I live in an apartment and just have the wood stacked up along a wall. I save pretty much all the scraps so I have a lot of boxes of them and find myself using those all the time. if you toss out your dining room furniture, you will find that you have all sorts of room for wood!!

I think I wish I was your neighbor.

Just finished cutting the outside, Still need to apply BLO. This ones going to decorate 'my' house (to test the finish in the weather).

I use CA glue when finishing pens, and boy it heats up fast! I hope you heal quickly and take good care of it.

Looks nasty! I rarely use CA glue, but sometines it's the only thing. I've drilled into my children that if they ever use it, the first thing to do is wear eye protection. I'll have to tell them to get the hobnail boots on too, now!

Ouch Brenda, hopefully, you aren't in much pain, CA glue does generate a lot of heat when setting up. Take care, and heal fast. Len

These are really nice. Look like a machine made them!!

Acetone dissolves MOST of those glues. Hopefully you heal very quickly.

I don't hang onto wood so I'm curious. Why hang onto hardwood, or softwood, for years when it could be made into a beautiful cabinet to look at every day? RJF

I have quite a bit of lumber on hand these days. From pallet wood, to sheets of birch, to a nice collection of hard and soft woods I'm still afraid of ruining if I attempt something with them LOL My pallet wood stock pile is more than enough for at least another 2-3 years worth of scrolling and/or projects.

very nice job

They are just Awesome!!!

This hobby has totally grabbed me. Best ever.

Two coats of Minwax "Early American" on the letters, two coats of "dark walnut" on the birds, used an xcato Knife to put a light score line where I wanted to stain to stop, worked pretty good.

I rarely buy wood on line except BB now that my supply has burned down. I do not use much of it so no big deal. Now I will buy a piece of real exotic to make a pen or something small because some of those true grade AAA exotics are expensive. But I get to hand pick my selections which I know what I am getting. I love woods in the Rosewood family. and any burls that are available but those are the ones that get pricey.

Me Too but you got me by a few years.. I've only been married 26 years well

I'm thinking about buying a cheapy press from HF or somewhere so I can still have one to use when I take mine apart..

Nice shop, looks like you have plenty of room until it's filled. I am glad my wife thought I needed a garage for a shop. I built mine about seven years ago as well. It's 30x33 and still not enough room for everything.

I've been looking at those portable saws for a few years now.. I don't do any work that really requires a high end saw.. in fact. the only thing I use my table saw for is splitting up my plywood to the size I need.. I just have a very cheap Tradesman table saw that I bought before I even got into woodworking.. I needed a power saw for a home remodel job I was doing.. the table saw was on sale for $59 and came with a stand.. I bought a dust bag thing from HF and added it.. Technically I probably could get by without the table saw and just dig out my handheld circular saw.. My table saw started smoking two years ago and I finally broke down and took it apart to find a bad bearing in the gearbox.. Parts were Obsolete for the gearbox but I pressed the old bearing out and went to the local bearing supply shop got a match and it's lasted me another couple years so far.. LOL It's nice to have the thing at times.. even though i could get by without it.. I've grown used to using it that when it was broke for a few weeks with that bearing I found it to be a pain in the behind to dig out the handheld saw.. Not to change the subject again but Ray.. did you ever take the drill press apart and give it a going over?

Thanks RJ, I have been really going slow on these because it's so easy to screw up. One tiny slip and you have to toss it in the bin. These two are going to be a lot better than my first one. I told my wife that but she said she wouldn't trade it for any of these. Oh well........I've learned a lot since then and learning a lot more on these.

Ray, they look great nice cutting, it would have taken me longer to cut them, RJ

There is no problem here Kevin. I've only been married once. 50 years ago. Her EX is long gone.

What's the wife say about you going back to the EX .. This is why I almost always spell out Excalibur or I put Ex-21 LOL Those are beautiful Ray.. Great job with them.. Your gonna catch up to me on saw hours soon...

That is impressive. It looks great!

Too much dinner and wine,,, oh did my wife fix a great dinner tonight....! but I wrote this response to your post before you added info.... guess I forgot to click on "Submit Reply".... I do that too often... Looking good Ray, I remember the other one you made... for those that don't remember:

I just gave my son's girlfriend a 8x13x8 box packed with craft supplies that were either leftovers or were stuff bought for "someday". I generally have some wood on hand in case something jumps out at me. I have already bought wood and got patterns glued for the 6 to 8 special Christmas gifts I do each year for siblings, etc. This year it is 6 of Steve Good's 6 layer Nativity. Scene will be 1/4" butternut and thr back and lid will be walnut. Start cutting Saturday morning.

They look great. Nice cutting but how do they hold a candle?

Looks good. Is that a DeWalt? I ask because of the color.

I look up votive candle holders and they are primarily glass.... Your are different, how do they work?

Normally, I do not use plywood. I do not do fretwork. I do inlays and make toys. I purchase cedar and maple from a local building supply house, as needed. The wood I use for inlay (walnut and hard maple) I purchase about a years supply at a time. Because I am the most active member in our local woodworking club, any wood donated to the club, I receive. Because of this, Most of my wood, used for making toys, is free to me. Mostly poplar.

"Diet" sodas do that to me. Its the aspartame in them that triggers my migraines. Coffee....I don't care for the taste, so I have to doctor mine up a bit. But I do enjoy the caffeine.

I likely have about 100 bf each of red oak, poplar, Sycamore and ash mostly 3/4-7/8" with some 1/4 _ 1/2". Also have some maple, walnut, cherry, hickory and Allen. Then I have a bunch of exotics that are generally 12-24" long. I am very fortunate to have the stock of wood. We are blessed in the Midwest to have lots of different hardwoods at reasonable prices. I typically go up to a small sawmill in Michigan to get hardwood when I need it. My wife likes to go as we go by several wineries nearby.

Hard to imagine this getting heated, but stranger things.... Anyway, I usually have wood on hand. My circumstances probably aren't typical. I have access to more than a thousand board feet of white oak, cherry and maple lumber that was cut from my father-in-law's farm several years ago. My BIL & I share it. If I want to use a different species, I buy it locally and usually buy some extra, so I have it for future projects. I keep some in my shop, but my space is limited. The bulk of the lumber is stored in the barn and wagon shed, which is on my in-laws property, just across the road from my house.

Boy, all those came out great. That's a lot of pilot holes and pretty small to.

For a 3" x 4" project it will be 11' of lines is all i can help you with.

I'm impressed with the pegs. Looks like lots of work for little money,maybe. Good quality work On your Dewalt. Keep your work coming friend.

Great cutting!

OK let me get this straight. Bake for 3 hours in a 250 degree oven. Do you brush on a sauce before you put it in or during baking? and what side of wood do you serve on the side? Have a recommendation of a wine that would go with this? RJF