Monday, September 5, 2022

Opa Fix - lathe work


  Opa fix.  All of the Grandchildren's lives I and my workshop have saved the day when life or unforeseen circumstances have impacted any of their stuff.  I have repaired dozens of toys for them and the tradition continues. Clara's book fell apart and her turtle suffered an accident.  In the shop are a selection of glues for all materials and they all get used.  Super/Crazy glues is good stuff but not always the solution.  Every shop needs rubber cement, two part epoxy, wood glue and super glue, not to mention a hot glue gun.  Adhesive technology has advanced quite a bit since I began wood working, it advanced and improved.  

  This weekend's other project was a wood turning project.  Our Granddaughter is totally immersed in the "Warrior Cats" series of books and has developed an interest in the medicine cats and the herbs that are used by them.  

  To process the herbs Clara needed a mortar and pestle, so yesterday we turned them on the lathe.


  Clara still stands on a box to be at a good working height, she is careful and very attentive while working in the shop.  The result is good quality basic work. She also wears a face shield and dust mask while working.  She did 90 % of the work, when she wasn't totally comfortable I did some of the details and the inside of the bowl for her.  FYI Clara is going into grade six next week. The bowl is white oak that was sanded to 600 grit and then finished in paste wax.  It will serve for the learning stages of her herb study, if she stays interested we'll make another from harder closer grained wood later.



  The pestle was turned from poplar which makes it fairly hard and the mortar is white oak.  They were made from wood at hand, should we want to make another set I'll opt for maple. 

  This was a good project since we turned the bowl on a face plate and the pestle between centers.  It was fairly quick but with good results so a good beginner project. There is scope for more interesting design development too. 

  It is great working for and with Grand Children in the shop.

cheers, ianw



 

 

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