Pallet Wood, How much to you actually get.

  I have made several things from skid lumber. (several = more that six and less than 12) and a couple of the projects turned out looking pretty good. Other projects were definitely on the rugged side of things.  Aside from the morality of re-using/ up cycling the wood is it worth the trouble?

  I decided this time to actually get a sense of the time and effort it took and what the real result was for my efforts.  I always knew that a percentage of the wood ended up in the fireplace, but how much.

  Last week I went to my Mother's house and with my brother help cut up three skids that had spent the winter on her back deck.  Finally the weather had improved to were things were drying out and working outside wasn't a burden.

  My brother and I cut the skids apart with his cordless recip saw.  It sure is nice not to trip over a cord while you are working.  After dealing with skids on several occasions I've decided it is best to cut the cross pieces free of the middle support, it means fewer nails to worry about.

  So... what did I end up with.

the fire wood pile

   Five of the 2 x 4 pieces didn't come home with me, so they are on my brother's fire place pile.  Some of the wood was quite punk and a couple of pieces were too broken to be useful.

  What is left....

  For the time and effort:

  Five bundles of planks around 16 inches buy 4 to 6 inches and 3/8 think and one bundle of 2 x 4  by 36 inches.  In the end some of the 3/8 boards will be too warped to be useful and others of the boards will be to nasty to be seen, but some of the wood is oak.  The tray of nails will end up in the correct recycling bin now too. 

  The 2 x 4's weighted a tonne so I cut a piece off one board, cleared out the nails and milled it on the jointer.  It is close grained oak, it will be strong and attractive when re-sawn. 

  If you figure this in dollars and cents, it is cheaper to make one trip to a lumber yard but I find satisfaction in re-claiming the wood.  I am also figuring out what to do with the oak it is thick and heavy when I am done with it should look good.

  You will notice the bundles of boards are tied together with green chord.  The green chord is soda bottle cut into long thin strips, tied and then warmed with my paint stripper heat gun so that it shrinks. It means I get at least a second use from a large PEP soda bottle.  

  Happy Easter everyone, I hope you have a quiet and pleasant time with your friends and family.

cheers, ianw

Easter in Norway,

 now I know where the eggs come from.

  

The Reciprocating Saw.

  The reciprocating saw, or Sawzall is a versatile  tool for rough cutting.  Rough cutting wood, nails, mild steel and pipe, as well as trees and branches.

The Reciprocating Saw in the Woods. 

  I do not need 'bug out' tools but I did think the video shows just how useful a recip saw is for trimming and limbing.

  Recently I used my reciprocating to cut the nails holding a skid together  and I have used a long specialised blade to trim trees at my Mother's house. 

  

  I think that a reciprocation saw is another of those tools that are used a couple of times and year but for which there is no real substitute. 

cheers, ianw 

Recycle a Pallet, Get a Reciprocating Saw

  It is all the rage to collect and reuse shipping pallets.  I am a strong supporter of reusing and recycling anything if possible.  Today I spent some of the first real nice days cutting a pallet apart with my reciprocating saw.  Technology has advanced significantly since I bought my saw, the saws are smoother and available in cordless models.  When I bought my saw a decade ago battery technology wasn't up to powering a reciprocation saw.  

  As with jig saws there are many specialised blades for recip saws. I have a reciprocating saw to prune small trees and cut up green wood too. Every major tool company and blade maker has developed all sorts of blades.  Cutting the pallet apart I used a blade that sliced through the nails. This way there is less damage to the boards.  Using this system the next most important tool is a nail set to drive the nails out of the boards. 

  Now that I have some pallet wood I thought I'd look at some pallet projects on Instructables 

Looks nice.

   After I bashed the pallet apart I sent quality time with fine wood working tools.  I  have three small repairs from 10,000 Villages and finally affixed a handle to the paint box. I like making repairs to wooden objects for 10,000 Villages, repairs always involve sharp knives, planes, rasps and files.   I find  relaxation and comfort in fussy and fine wood working. After the tools are done the next stage is finishing with shellac or wax.

  I am hoping the weather will be good tomorrow.  I want to ride my motorcycle, and then I will take out the rest of the nails and move onto a project.

cheers, ianw

  

K is a good helper

  I confess to having project envy sometimes.  I see photos and videos of other woodworkers making heirloom projects with heirloom hand tools and I admire their workmanship and am stunned by the beauty and cunning of their projects. Most of my wood working is more basic than theirs but it does have its own special rewards.

  Our kid's house is to be heavily renovated shortly and to get their building permit the city had protective fencing built around the big trees in their yard. Since the job was ordered by bureaucrats and completed by drones the fencing blocked access to the back gate,the garden shed and the garden. So last Monday Kieran and I got busy and cut a couple of gates into the government fence so that the rest of the yard would be useful.

 I cut the sheet stock with my reciprocating (or noisy) saw and K held the shaking fence for me. He was a big help because without him the fence would have shaken to the point where I wouldn't have been able to complete the second cut.

 My recip saw is another of those tools that sit in their cases for months but when the time comes there really isn't a better tool for this job. 

  Kieran is wearing the hard hat, gloves and tool belt given to him by my old university chum Clive. A big shout out to Clive, K loves his work gear. We cut a section out of the fence in front and on the other side of the big tree. 

 After cutting the section out we added wood around the edges to create a frame that stiffened the piece and gave use something to drive screws into when adding the hinges. I started the screws and then K used his 4 volt screwdriver to finish them off. He worked steadily and drove dozens of screws, he is a six year old with real focus on his tasks. 

  Yes, I still have project envy, this project was not very fancy but the heirloom part is the proud little boy with his tool belt, work gloves and hard hat. And he was a real help, that extra pair of hands was invaluable when cutting the sheet stock and hanging the gates.

cheers Ian and Kieran

Victoria Day 2014

  

  Her Imperial Majesty Queen Victoria, by the Grace of God, Empress of India, Sovereign Ruler of the British Isles, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Empress of India etc, etc, etc.  

  Bids you Greetings,

   My loyal and simple subjects We bestow upon you a day to celebrate your good fortune to have been born of the Empire. We give permission for celebratory displays of fireworks, feasting and other festive activities as suitable forms with which you can show your affection and love for Us.

   Those were the days, weren't they.  Now 'tis the May Two Four Weekend, and mostly old Vicki, is forgotten.

   My weekend was work heavy.  Yesterday I spend several hard hours cutting a tree down at my Mother's house. My brother and I sawed away at the tree four about four hours.  We used a reciprocating saw and and a brush trimming blade.  It is pretty amazing how much work you can do with a reciprocating saw, it also shows why you cough up the extra dough to buy a more expensive model.  A lower cost saw does not run as smoothly as the more expensive models.  This is a tool were it is an especially good  idea to buy as much as you can afford.  When I was finished yesterday I could hardly hold my beer. 

   Don't take my word for it, there are other folks have have discovered the advantages of the recip saw vs. chain saw.

    Today is officially the holiday, but since I am retired, everyday is a holiday.....sort of.

    The shop work today was much less obvious.  We worked on our back yard, Eva is designing and building a water feature that will show off our terraced garden.

  In under the landscape fabric are bits of wood frame work as well as framing made from limbs cut off of yesterday's trees.   That sort of wood working uses my new bow saw, long screws and a hatchet to put it all together.

  There remains the need for a bunch of stones to cover some of the framing, and a general clean up around the construction site, but, the water runs and the pond doesn't leak. We began work on this back yard feature nearly a year ago.  Shortly after we finished the pond, my back gave out totally and Eva, broke her foot.  

  A busy holiday weekend.
  God Save the Queen.