# Question Of The Week... ( 2017 Week 29)



## ripjack13

*What is your “inspiration story” ? In other words, Where did your interest in woodworking all begin?





*

**Rules**
There is no minimum post requirement,
primates, woodticks and leprechauns are welcome to post an answer.
And of course the  and the wood bartering babbler too...


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## Brink

Ten years ago, Moma wanted a spice rack...

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## woodtickgreg

My wood working journey all began in junior high school wood shop. I think my first project was this simple little wood spice rack out of pine, 2 pieces for the ends connected with wood dowels. It taught me the basics, drilling, scroll sawing, and sanding. It was stained with a water based clear finish. It wasn't the project that got me hooked, it was the reaction from my mother when I gave it to her. Then there was high school wood shop, it was my teacher that really influenced me. Mr. Bishop was his name, he had polio as a child so he walked with a limp, and his hands where not right, and he was missing parts of his fingers. But he had a sparkle in his eye and always had a smile for you. he would always encourage us to try new things. It was in his shop that I discovered the lathe, even though I was still a flat worker. School shop was in the 70's in San Diego California, back the the school had money, our shop was amazing and well equipped, we had everything. Then I moved to Michigan, suburb of Detroit, no money for the shop and it barely had anything, it was then that I realized how fortunate I was in Cali. But I still did wood shop, took building trades and we built a house, and I continued to do wood work after high school, when my friends where buying cars I bought a table saw and continued to ride my 10 speed to work until it snowed. Then I got married and had a family, for some reason I stopped wood working, I really don't understand why to this day, it just happened. Then I got divorced, bought a house, and started to tinker with small wood projects again, then set up a small corner of the basement as a shop, built a 2x6 pine work bench and started buying tools again, still had my table saw. Then I remarried and built a new shop in the basement when I moved, bigger, better, and more tools, made furniture for the house, started scroll sawing more, then bought a used lathe and started to turn again, and I started to chainsaw mill wood and lumber. Then got divorced again! and had to up and move the whole shop, lumber, wood, etc. Still here and still trying to get the shops done after what 4 years? But the shop is bigger again, better lighting, now has dust collection, a toilet, and I'm thinking of upgrading my table saw after almost 40 years of use with the old after high school craftsman contractor saw. So that explains a little about my wood working journey, I'm still on it and enjoying it to the fullest now. I still chainsaw lumber and wood, bought my second lathe and a 3rd which is still in the box! I can work in my shop now whenever I want, if I get the urge at 2 o'clock in the morning then down I go. So I guess the simple answer would be that it all started with a junior high school pine spice rack that I made for my mother.

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## Mike1950

Mid 50's started spending my summers with Gramps in no where Curly creek Idaho. He was a small Gypo logger. Self homemade self loader on an old 1948 ford 2 ton with a flat head 6. Just hauled stud logs and cedar posts and picket bolts. Had a horse named beauty to pull the logs. Gramps and the horse taught me a lot of new words. A couple years down the road he bought a John deere linderman- John deere's first track machine. Had to spin flywheel to start. Funny -same new words worked on tractor. Gramps had worked in the mines in Butte but got hurt. he moved to N. Idaho in 1942. He was a big rangy guy that could swing a mall all day. Had very little aspiration for more, He loved the peace of the woods. Smells of red cedar, skunk cabbage, mother nature and the dirt. Taught me to look at a tree to find the ones that would split easy, to skip the ones with the knarly figured grain- they were hard to work with. Funny how life is, 7 yrs. old sitting on a log having lunch- smelling his pipe as he banged it on his knee to empty ashes and reload with velvet tobacco. Mention that name and the sweet smell comes back. Him pointing out a shrew stalking a field mouse. Positioning himself for ambush- I learned patience there and to be quiet there. The reward was 5- 10 minutes later the battle took place- shrew vs mouse 4-5 times it size- it was quick-shrews are vicious little critters. Yep that is where my inspiration comes from- the woods... I can hear his words- Spalt?- Mike That wood is rotten!!!

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## DKMD

I started up about 12 years ago when my wife was pregnant with our first child. We were out shopping for cribs, and I was disgusted at the high prices for crap furniture. I boasted that I could make something better if I only had a table saw... she called my bluff!

With some reclaimed walnut flooring material and a healthy dose of profanity, I managed to follow the plans that came with the crib hardware kit. It is now disassembled and hidden among the Christmas decor in the basement awaiting grandchildren in the distant future).


 


That led to a request for a matching side table after number one child was born. It's still in service in the kids play area. Same wood, different lighting.





A sofa table followed. Used lyptus this time with a dark walnut stain.


 

At that time, I was working out of a detached garage with no heat and no insulation. I bought a mini lathe one winter when it was too damn cold to go outside. I made a bunch of pens and little bowls, and I fell in love with the speed of making all things round. 

I eventually upgraded the lathe and insulated the garage space. Traded the tablesaw for custom built-in cabinets for the shop, and I've been making one hell of a mess ever since!

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## Mike1950

DKMD said:


> I started up about 12 years ago when my wife was pregnant with our first child. We were out shopping for cribs, and I was disgusted at the high prices for crap furniture. I boasted that I could make something better if I only had a table saw... she called my bluff!
> 
> With some reclaimed walnut flooring material and a healthy dose of profanity, I managed to follow the plans that came with the crib hardware kit. It is now disassembled and hidden among the Christmas decor in the basement awaiting grandchildren in the distant future).
> View attachment 131113
> 
> 
> That led to a request for a matching side table after number one child was born. It's still in service in the kids play area. Same wood, different lighting.
> View attachment 131114
> 
> 
> A sofa table followed. Used lyptus this time with a dark walnut stain.
> View attachment 131115
> 
> At that time, I was working out of a detached garage with no heat and no insulation. I bought a mini lathe one winter when it was too damn cold to go outside. I made a bunch of pens and little bowls, and I fell in love with the speed of making all things round.
> 
> I eventually upgraded the lathe and insulated the garage space. Traded the tablesaw for custom built-in cabinets for the shop, and I've been making one hell of a mess ever since!




Too bad- that bad winter forced you to the dark side- Nice work.

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## Tony

When i was little, we didn't have hardly any money. My parents were VERY young when they got pregnant so I had to entertain myself with what was around, not a lot of money for toys. I played with hammers, saws, old nails I found so I built things to play with. Our house was next door to my paternal Grandmother, she is who raised me and who I considered my Mother. My Dad has 9 brothers and sisters and they all grew up "tinkering" and working on whatever broke so I learned the basics of tools and home repairs. I joined 4H when I was 7; it's like FRA but not as centered around agriculture. The first thing I remember building was a set of bookends that had a 4 on one side and a H on the other I cut out with an old coping saw. It's been a great ride so far! Tony

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## CWS

I started in shop class that was part of FFA class. Built a tool carrying tote and a bulletin board. (1967). Spent next 40 years working at a factory, raising cattle, crops and kids. Then in 2007 retired, stopped farming, and kids gone. Never forgot the satisfaction of making something useful from wood. Bought a lathe and joined a woodturners group and here I am. Going to spend the rest of my life hoarding wood.

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## Schroedc

I started out as a kid in a family that had the attitude that if you could figure out how to do it yourself, you didn't pay someone to do it. Library books, trial and error, etc. (This was back before youtube of course) Got to be a decent plumber, electrician, worked on cars, could do basic carpentry. then mom wanted to spruce up the kitchen, 14 years old, redid all the cabinets and drawers, new floor, new counters and sink, etc. From there it got to be if I wanted something for my room, I built it. first table saw was a beat up old 50's craftsman saw with separate motor bolted to some 2x12's. as I got older started wanting things that looked nicer, figured out how to use a router and hide the screws. after I got married I was getting money knocked off the rent by doing maintenance for the landlord. finally in 2003 bought our first house, not a lot of money and started doing remodel and update work on it myself, smart salesman talked me into my first lathe in 2009 and from there I was able to express an artistic side, found WB and started seeing some of the stuff others were doing and started pushing myself in turning and flatwork to try new things and keep going bigger and better.

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## Ray D

My love of wood and woodworking started in the seventh grade. Seen a fellow student with a set of pine bookends and I knew I had to have a set. The only real thing we did was sand and stain them...teacher did all the "dangerous" stuff for us. The downside to taking this shop class was having to pair it up with a sewing class. Lol. It was a way to get male and female students to diversify I guess. Made some pretty nice wood things and ....well a pillow. Lol

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## Schroedc

Ray D said:


> My love of wood and woodworking started in the seventh grade. Seen a fellow student with a set of pine bookends and I knew I had to have a set. The only real thing we did was sand and stain them...teacher did all the "dangerous" stuff for us. The downside to taking this shop class was having to pair it up with a sewing class. Lol. It was a way to get male and female students to diversify I guess. Made some pretty nice wood things and ....well a pillow. Lol



By the time I hit Junior high you could take shop or Home Ec or both. I took them both and to this day still sew quite a bit.

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## Ray D

Schroedc said:


> By the time I hit Junior high you could take shop or Home Ec or both. I took them both and to this day still sew quite a bit.


I can't say I sew often but I could do it if I had to. Agriculture..FFA, was paired up with cooking so I can cook a little also.

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## Mike1950

I have no clue what this FFA is- went 1-8 in one school and 4-12 in high school

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## Sprung

It all started out in dad's garage. If something needed fixed or built, dad would do it because we certainly couldn't afford to pay someone else to do it. He's by and large self taught and is definitely one of those jack of all trades - and quite good at most of them - type of guys. And having four younger sisters (and no brother), I was always looking for an excuse to get out of the house and away from them so I spent a lot of time in the garage with dad. From early on I would run and get tools for him, especially if he was under a vehicle fixing it. And if I didn't know what it was, he'd get it, show it to me, explain and how how it worked so I knew.

Then, when I was 10, dad endeavored to do something he hadn't done since he was about 16 - build a wooden boat. He was building it for a friend of his who had asked dad if he could build him one. I was part of every step of the process, including ripping the 1/4" boards of white cedar into strips with the radial arm saw. My job was to catch it as it came out, send the board back to dad for another pass, and then put the strip on the pile. Went on to help dad with quite a few other wooden boat builds. And, when I was 13, I even endeavored to build a boat on my own.

Through college and grad school I didn't do much in the workshop because I was away from home and from a shop to use, but I could usually be found in the garage with dad if I was home and I wasn't working. Then, after school and on my own, I started building a few pieces of furniture for my home - couldn't afford good furniture and didn't want to buy particle board junk that would fall apart in 6 months.

Have been hooked on building/tinkering/fixing/playing with tools since before I could read and write. And now my older boy - 4 1/2 - is taking after me and is like I was in my dad's shop as a kid. One of my next projects is a small workbench for him. And I'm sure our other boy will be the same way when he's old enough to be in the shop too.

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## Tony

Ray D said:


> My love of wood and woodworking started in the seventh grade. Seen a fellow student with a set of pine bookends and I knew I had to have a set. The only real thing we did was sand and stain them...teacher did all the "dangerous" stuff for us.  The downside to taking this shop class was having to pair it up with a sewing class. Lol. It was a way to get male and female students to diversify I guess. Made some pretty nice wood things and ....well a pillow. Lol



My paternal grandfather was a tailor by trade. He died when my Dad was 13 so I never knew him, but I learned to sew on his treadle Singer machine. I can cook as well. Good things to know for when my wife wizens up and leaves me! Tony

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## Tony

Mike1950 said:


> I have no clue what this FFA is- went 1-8 in one school and 4-12 in high school



FFA didn't come along until 1843, after you were out of school.

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## Mike1950

Tony said:


> FFA didn't come along until 1843, after he were out of school.



GRRRRR

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## rocky1

Ray D said:


> My love of wood and woodworking started in the seventh grade. Seen a fellow student with a set of pine bookends and I knew I had to have a set. The only real thing we did was sand and stain them...teacher did all the "dangerous" stuff for us. The downside to taking this shop class was having to pair it up with a sewing class. Lol. It was a way to get male and female students to diversify I guess. Made some pretty nice wood things and ....well a pillow. Lol




When I was in the 8th grade I took Food Service; taught you how to cook (_I liked to eat_) and wash dishes (_necessary to the cause_), had to toss the occasional load of dish towels in the washer too. (_Already had that and dish washing down, so it was mostly just cook and eat._) No sewing or any of that other Home Economics B_S_. 2 hour class, it was an elective and your science hour since you boiled water, measured ingredients, and such. My father had a friggin cow! Oh My God!!! Thought I should have taken shop or something... Could not for the life of him understand why his son wanted to play in the kitchen. (Uhmmm... _They didn't offer shop class to 7th and 8th graders, you didn't get to use power tools until 9th grade._) He was complaining to his sister about it on the phone one night, and found out both my cousins were required to take Home Ec down in Merritt Island, and that all the girls were required a shop class. Then he didn't know what the school system was coming to, but the more he thought about it, the more he thought it was maybe OK.

Then I started cooking at home, taught my mother several things in the kitchen, pretty soon this was certainly an OK deal. Was all good and proper to know how to take care of yourself in life, and mom's scrambled eggs were much improved.

Little brother and little sister came along, they wanted to take Art and Band. Old man had a damn fit!!! He figured they needed to take food service.

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## Karl_99

My Dad made wooden toys for as long as I can remember. His shop took up both sides of a 2 car garage. As a kid, I had my own workbench and a nice set of tools. It was real easy to get Dad's ear if you wanted to talk about wood or work on something in the shop.

After he passed away, I inherited all of his woodworking tools and from there launched a wonderful journey into turning pens!

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## Tony

I went to a small Catholic school, less than 250 kids in the High School. Didn't have Shop class. Took Home Ec, Art several times because we didn't have a lot of elective choices. Tony

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## rocky1

Really don't know where I got inspired. Been pounding nails into boards for as long as I can remember. Got older and started actually building things (_besides beehives_) occasionally. Bookshelves, entertainment centers, gun case, pretty good sized aquarium, kitchen cabinets, few other odds and ends, shop cabinets, mostly practical things out of necessity. Spent a few years carpentering. 

Then I had a couple coyotes take up residence here behind the house and decide to rear their young back there. I joined a predator hunting forum to learn how to call them, bought a custom call or two, and was amazed at the woods being offered. Couldn't stand it, bought more, and more, and more... presently there is about 300 of them in the cabinet, on the wall, on my lanyard, etc. 

But, the work of the custom call makers and beautiful woods they used, pushed me over the edge. Bought a lathe, tools, all the accessories, bandsaw, second lathe, belt sander, vacuum pot, pressure pot... piles and piles of wood, resins, glues, finishes, etc. etc. It's a fun way to express yourself.

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## David Hill

Started with my Dad- being his helper. He really didnn't do all that much, mostly utility building for stuff around the place-- not a real patient guy, could tell by what words he started with when it was safe to stay around....
Nonetheless my curiousty was stimulated with tools. As far as my parents were concerned, shop class was not an option for me-- since they expected more of me--back then they regarded it as a "leveling" for the kids not college bound. Learnt enough anyway to make things as needed later after getting married--like others, had to put up or shutup when swmbo calls the bluff.
Since then have built whatever I set my mind to--learning all along--especially from "redesign" opportunities.
She really supports my woodworking "habit"

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## Lou Currier

I would say my inspiration definitely came from my dad...he was a tinkerer. Took a shop class in 7th grade and we built one of them corner of a house thingys. Since then I haven't done much up until I moved to Florida. Was too busy with life, work, raising three kids etc...still tinkered but nothing major. When I got here I had some time on my hands so I got interested in fixing and building fishing poles. Bought a used craftsman lathe With the idea of making my own custom cork handles but just never got around to setting it up. One day while cleaning the garage I unburied the lathe and said why not...set it up and just started turning sticks...the hook was set and I haven't turned back...bought a mini and replaced the craftsman with a HF VS. Happy for now.

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## woodtickgreg

Ray D said:


> My love of wood and woodworking started in the seventh grade. Seen a fellow student with a set of pine bookends and I knew I had to have a set. The only real thing we did was sand and stain them...teacher did all the "dangerous" stuff for us. The downside to taking this shop class was having to pair it up with a sewing class. Lol. It was a way to get male and female students to diversify I guess. Made some pretty nice wood things and ....well a pillow. Lol


When I was a kid, 7 or 8 my mother taught me many things, how to cook and how to sew, I'm grateful to her for that. Everything else in my life was self taught. And recently I purchased a very old white sewing machine that is just too cool, a mechanical marvel that just fascinates me. I'm keeping it and plan to learn how to use it. Mom taught me how to take care of myself, I taught myself how to take care of things.........

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## kweinert

Had a shop class in junior high (or maybe it was high school, I don't properly recall since both schools were on the same grounds and classes went back and forth between them) but not much came of it. After I was married and out here in Colorado I picked up an old table saw and did a few things, nothing major. After the divorce I was in a small apartment and I wanted to do some woodworking but not a lot of room. I bought a lathe and put it on a mobile stand, did work out on the patio in back. Landlady was nice come wintertime and let me enclose that as long as I put it back to a patio when I moved out. Found a new lady friend and restored the patio (better than new) when I moved in with her. Picked up a few more tools and had half of a 3 car garage. Got my 'step son' involved with turning doing duck calls. We've now moved into a new house with a 3 car garage and I have the two car part of it (which is still working on becoming a shop) and almost too many tools to fit in there. I do some flat work, turning, scrolling (very, very little of that so far), that sort of thing.

Unfortunately I have to work for a living still (the ex is greedy) so I don't get as much time out there as I'd like, but I thoroughly enjoy my time in the shavings.

Oh, and to stick with the theme: I do cook and do counted cross stitch. :)

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## DKMD

@ripjack13 Shouldn't you answer your own questions?!

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## ripjack13

DKMD said:


> @ripjack13 Shouldn't you answer your own questions?!





Ok...fine.....lemme think of a good story..

.

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## woodtickgreg

ripjack13 said:


> Ok...fine.....lemme think of a good story..
> 
> .

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## Lou Currier



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## Mike1950

ripjack13 said:


> Ok...fine.....lemme think of a good story..
> 
> .




 He can't think of one- he was a framer- should explain it all...........................................

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## Mike Hill

Maternal side was a family of people who made things. Granddad (papa) was a millworker, cabinetmaker all this life, and had the most awesome cast iron (meaning weighing tons) power tools. Papa probably didn’t even finish elementary school, but could play dominoes with the best. Now Papa wasn’t much on maintenance of the house. 

His shop was kinda rickety, and the house was in portions was sorta like walking through one of those crazy houses in the amusement parks. One son was adept at woodworking, but also drawing and leather working – I probably got most of my inspiration from Uncle Bill - he taught me how to tool leather. Other son eventually became a woodworker, even to the point of building a small cruiser for fishing the Intracoastal. Unfortunately this was before I was born.

As early as I can remember Dad had a “shop of sorts” in the garage and tinkered a lot, mainly fixing things. He made the work bench from 2x’s except for the drawers – they were reused dynamite boxes. I learned to put things in a vise and swing a hammer and man a saw during those years. Looking back, I probably went out there to get away from my sisters and having them want me to play dolls, tea party, and wanting to put makeup on me! 

The first thing I truly remember “making” was a knife. I use the word rather loosely. Fancy, it had a hidden tang, an end cap and a fingerguard of sorts. More of a dagger with a blade about 6” – but overall it was kind of a sissy knife. Woulda worked better if the blade hadn’t been aluminum. It was selected because it was easy to work – hey I was only in 2nd grade. First lathe work was in junior high. Had a shop class and first thing I made was a bbq fork for Dad – we were in Texas! Shop had this HUGE lathe – scared the beejeebies outta me, but did mount up some pine and turned some finger grips in it. Crude but effective.

Then came sports – Friday Night Lights, fishing, hunting, eating, dancing 2-step, a dune buggy, and girls for 10 years, except for that one semester at college. My degree is in Building Construction and we were required to take one semester of shop. As it were, my semester was the first in a spanking new shop in a spanking new Architecture Building. Every tool known to man. I needed a cutting board for the bbq’s I’d do at the dorm, so first made a cutting board of walnut and cherry. Still have and still use. 

Next thing was some hanging trophy cases for school with sliding glass doors, glass shelves and lighting. Also out of cherry. Thought I was hooked but walked over to the metal side and found the mig’s and tig’s, went crazy and started making racks for pickups, brush guards for pickups and all sorts of things metal for all my friends and family. 

Got married a year out of school and thought it would be cool to make a gas grill (this was before gas grills were cool and stainless steel). I was assigned to a huge jobsite and I used the Mechanical Contractor's welder, power saw, and torches. Guess momma was duly impressed, because when we bought the house a short time later – she allowed me to buy some tools (all Craftsman as my Dad and Uncle had both worked for Sears) – a table saw, band saw, skil saw, 3/8 and ½” drills, router, vibrating pad sander, belt sander, jig saw and a cheap scroll saw. First thing I made was a baby changing table that fit over an antique cherry blanket chest that we had at the end of the rope bed we were using. Did I mention we had all antiques?

After that starting making repro antique furniture for sale – even perfecting my way of making paint look old, graining, vinegar graining and the like. After a while, the demand for that waned and I thought it would be neat to have a lathe. Don’t do much flatwork now (don’t have the space), but turning, carving, and making little things are my bag. BTW – love to cook and am good at it (proof is all the diets I have to be on) especially smoking meat – that’s sorta woodworking ain’t it? 

Grandmom taught me to crochet, my daughter has tried to teach me to knit, and my MIL taught me how to tat. I’d bet I’m the only one on WB that tats – errrr – has tatted – wouldn’t know how to even start now except I remember it was essentially a whole bunch o half hitches. The offseason classes I had to take after football were typewriting. I got real good – 112 words per minute with 3 mistakes on those big ole manuals. Stick a dress on me and you never know what I’d turn out to be!

One of the bigger thrills in my mundane life is that moment when finish touches your sanded wood and that grain pops. I get all jiggly! And I'm not ashamed to admit it!

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## kweinert

Mike Hill said:


> The offseason classes I had to take after football were typewriting. I got real good – 112 words per minute with 3 mistakes on those big ole manuals. Stick a dress on me and you never know what I’d turn out to be!



I took typing in high school on the manual typewriters. Was near the top of the class so I got to try out those newfangled electric ones. Couldn't type on it worth a damn - my reflexes were all oriented towards the manual and the electric was just too fast. Then I got into computers. And I still can't type on an electric because they're too slow. (That may no longer be true with how they will buffer up a line and then type it but it was true at one point in time.)



Mike Hill said:


> One of the bigger thrills in my mundane life is that moment when finish touches your sanded wood and that grain pops. I get all jiggly! And I'm not ashamed to admit it!



You'll find here a fellow admitter. It's just so cool to watch the patterns appear when the finish is applied.

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## Tony

I guess we're all showing our age, I took typing on a manual typewriter as well. Never have tried an electric one though. Tony


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## ripjack13

I've been into collecting wood since elementary school. Although it was just oak, pine and some walnut. I still have some of them. Anything cool looking or something about it that caught my eye, I kept. I started with an old cut up door made from pine. It was from an old farm in Maine, dating at least 1800. So it's some realllllly old stuff. I have two small blocks left of it. the grain is so tight and it's rock hard! It has nice golden color to it. Just saving it for something. 

I took carpentry in high school. It was a technical school, so we had 3 weeks in class, then 3 weeks in shop. I did average there. But I loved going to school so I could use the power tools and machines they had. The class side, not so much...
I made my own saw horses and a nice pine tool box, that I still have, although the top and bottom have been replaced from being used and moved so much. It's retired now and sits on my shelf in the cellar.
Graduated in 87 and went into concrete construction. Then worked my way up to framer. ( @Mike1950 ) 
Got tired of living in Connecticut, so I moved to Cali in 92 and found work at a set house/prop house...making a bunch of faux stuff. I went to see the secretary every friday to see if they had an opening. 
For almost 6 months. 
She finally said to come back on the next Monday. I asked why, she said so I can work the week and pick up a check on the next friday. 

Persistence pays off...
I worked there for about 2 years then moved onto doing movies and tv shows. I found a gig working at NBC on a show called Profiler. There I got to be crafty. Making lots of custom stuff for the show, and then, One job called for using some maple burl.
whoa....that was awesome. 
I had never seen any burl let alone knew what it was. I saved all the scraps. Still have em too. I used some for some pens and some for some 1911 grips. I found out about a place in N Hollywood that had the burls and the exotics and I would go down there weekly just looking around. I bought a bunch and the owner gave me scraps for free. Since I was in Cali, and the best _stuff _was around, I would make some beautiful, ummm, "utensils" for people out of some of it. 
I must have made 100's of em...Sold em all. 

Then in 2002 I had to downsize so I could fit it all into a small U-Haul trailer. I gave away a bunch to my buddy. So I knew it would be in good hands. But it was hard to leave it behind. And moved back home to Connecticut. 
We do have some good places to get exotics here, so I've been stocking up. Woodcraft is 20 minutes away! Michele says we have no more room for wood. So if I buy some, I sneak it in the house.
shhhhh...
Or if she sees a box she's opens it up and grabs the best stuff and sets it on the shelf and calls it her wood art.
So there's some really, really nice chunks of my stuff on display.
and then I found this place......

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## ripjack13



Reactions: Like 1


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## Ray D

Very cool Marc. Out of curiosity, what did you make for the show out of maple burl?

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## ripjack13

Ray D said:


> Very cool Marc. Out of curiosity, what did you make for the show out of maple burl?



A fancy chair...

Reactions: Way Cool 1 | +Karma 1


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## Lou Currier

ripjack13 said:


> A fancy chair...



If there are  then it didn't happen

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## woodtickgreg

Marc and Mike, great replies!!!

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Agree 1


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## Mike1950

Great story @ripjack13 . I did my stint in concrete work. We plastered the set for benni and toon in a big warehouse. It was fun, best part was they paid their bill on time. Great question. Sure brought out great answers

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Agree 3


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## Clay3063

I've been pounding nails and cutting wood for as long as I can remember. Started off as a toddler with a Fisher Price wooden bench and wooden mallet. Didn't take me long to pound that bench to pieces so I started pounding on other things around the house. My dad is one of those jack of all trades kind of guys as were both my grandfathers and several of my uncles. So I guess you could say I was born to it. I have two brothers and a sister. My sister is pretty crafty but neither of my two brothers picked it up. Not sure why. Just didn't. I think they were adopted and I remind them of that often. 

I was always dismantling things, electrical, wooden, metallic, didn't matter. If it had screws, nails or was otherwise fastened with something, I learned to take it apart. Usually just to see how it worked. In the early years I was much better at dismantling things that reassembling things. I got my first bicycle when I was 6 and was soon working on and repairing my own flats, etc and making the usual homemade upgrades. Sissy bars. Ape hanger handlebars. Chopper extensions on the front. Etc. etc etc. 

I took woodshop in 8-10 grades and also a drafting class in the 9th grade and an electronics repair class in the 10th and 11th grades. I always had my nose stuck in a book and or my hands on a hammer, a wrench, or a saw. More times than not anyways. I learned to cook from my mother and grandmother and then from reading recipe books and trying things in the kitchen. Used to infuriate my mom. She loved that I wanted to cook. She hated the messes I usually made. I married a woman who can cook but doesn't like too much but doesn't mind cleaning up. So I figure I do about half the cooking and have since we've been married (36 yrs this November 6th). She loves to work in the shop as well and has some serious talent when it comes to building things either out of wood or metal. (She wanted to learn how to weld so ater I taught myself I taught her. Now we both have bad habits.)

Soon after we got married I started acquiring power tools. Skil saws, drills, sanders etc. I always wanted a table saw but could never afford it in the early years. It was only about 1997 that I finally was able to get a delta 10" contractor saw, 10" delta chop saw and various air nailers, etc and an air compressor as partial payment for a remodel job for a couple we went to church with in Nocona, TX. We completely gutted and rebuilt a kitchen and dining area including building all new cabinets and laying oak tongue and groove floors and a bay window in the dining room. It was a huge job for us back then. But we got it done. 

After I became a minister I did small odd and end jobs on the side. We had three little girls and little girls ain''t cheap to raise. Then we got a job completely remodeling an entire 1400 sq ft house. When we gutted it the only thing left original was the exterior walls. We made it wheelchair accesseable which meant every door in the house including the closet doors had to be removed and three oh doors installed. All new wiring, plumbing, tile work, cabinet work was done by us. All of the sheet rock was replaced. I hate sheetrock and mudding and taping almost as bad as I hate painting. But it paid good money so we did it. We also pulled up about half the flooring and replaced it because the previous owner has a dog that would rather pee inside than out. It rotted the carpet and the wood floors underneath. We even had to replace half a dozen floor joists. Fun. 

I almost forgot, back in the late eighties, I got involved in Radio Control Model airplanes. We built them all from scratch. Plans. Blank balsa. Razor knives. It was with this hobby that I learned fine details are extremely important. An ounce of weight meant a lot on those things. And it was there I had my first experience with CA glues. Neat stuff. I got my private pilot's license in 1991. Since then I have hankered to build my own plane. Now days if I want to fly that's the only way I will be able to do it and as soon as we get a house built I am going to start working on that. I'm gonna fly again boys. One way or the other.

Sometime around 2004 or 5 or 3 or 6 I fell in with a retired shop teacher and together with another fella from church, the three of us went in and bought an old building in Iraan, Tx and converted it to a wood / metal shop. I was beginning to do a lot of welding on the side in the oilfield as I got tired of home repairs for people who wanted to fix junk with more junk and then gripe about the cost. The wiffe and I joined the Texas Mesquite Association about then and even attended a weekend seminar in Pipe Creek, TX and after that I bought my delta midi lathe and started turning pens. Other than a small lidded box I turned for my mother in 9th grade shop class I had never done much work on a lathe. I love it. But I like flat stuff too. 

I have what I need for now... with the exception of the saw mill and that is soon to be finished and then I will have an ample supply of wood to build the things we need and maybe even sell a little too. Of the three girls, the oldest one has taken more after us than the other two. She used my woodshop tools for years while we were on the road and has made many nice things to sell and also for their house. She made the bed for my grandson and also the bed for their room (Kingsize even.) Since I started working in wood again I had to get my tools back from her one piece at a time. I helped her buy some of her own stuff and she continues to this day making and building things. 

I could write a book about my life. Almost did here. It's been full of interesting things and somethings I 'd rather not mention. I've been blessed for sure and working with wood is one of the greatest of all those blessings. Joining this group has been another. Thanks for sharing your stories with the rest of us. And thank you all for being the kind of men another fella likes to hang out with. Even Brink. Even though he seems a little different. Haven't figured him out yet. Different bird altogether there. And that Old guy. (Grrrr.) I think he may be constipated. I'd growl all the time too if I was stopped up.

Reactions: Great Post 4 | Funny 2


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## Brink

Mike1950 said:


> He can't think of one- he was a framer- should explain it all...........................................



That's pretty intricate work.

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## ripjack13

Lou Currier said:


> If there are  then it didn't happen



Sadly I don't have any. I moved 9 times while I was out there. So I lost a bunch of good ones....

Reactions: Sincere 1


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