Monday, March 26, 2018

Turning Wood Deck Spindles


I watch videos and read blogs all the time of other woodworkers turning bowls, spindles, and big tree trunks into everything. I've seen the tree trunks turned into unique speakers, and small maple limbs turned into drumsticks. I love watching these videos. I learn so much from watching. Lately I have been researching tool care. Sharpening lathe knives and care for the motor and bearings on the lathe is essential for proper turning. Learning about the different knives is also very important.

Last summer I was asked by my ex-wife’s grandfather if I would be interested in making replacement porch railing spindles. There were about 6-8 that had rotted out and fell off. Of course I said yes and got to work on the timeframe and dimensions of each. He needed about 8 spindles and gave me one in fairly good condition for me to use as a stencil for the new ones. When I got home I searched through my wood rack and pulled out a few pine 2x6’s and 2x4’s and ripped them down to 1.5”x1.5”x32”. Then they sat for about 6 months because he said he didn’t actually need them yet. In the meantime I got my lathe cleaned up and running smooth again.


I had a 1938 Craftsman 8”x36” cast iron lathe that I bought from a guy I knew who had an amazing workshop but was moving and wanted to sell all of his tools because he just never used them and needed the money more than the tools. We basically bartered for it. I did some work for him and in exchange he gave me the lathe, a motor, and all the knives and a center finder. I used the lathe for a couple other small projects and it ran pretty well. Then I started the spindles and noticed some significant vibration while it was on. I figured out it was the bearing sleeves in the head stock. I went to Granger and bought new ones, fixed them up and it worked 100x better than before. There was still vibration but not noticeable unless your hand was on the head stock feeling for it. Check out the video here:

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Of course there will be hiccups and mistakes made on the work pieces and each piece is unique so none were an exact match to the original, but they were all 99% exact. I didn’t have a stencil attachment to use so it was all done freehand. To me, freehanding gives each piece its own unique characteristics. In that, it makes each piece one of a kind. Antiques are perfect examples of this. 100 years ago there weren’t very many stenciles to make multiple pieces of furniture or spindles from and they all match 100% to the rest. Each piece was made individually and had its own characteristics. Yes, each was one in a group but still unique due to its own flaws in the wood or cut or chisel mark. To know that someone 100 years ago touched this piece in my hand right now is mind blowing. Someone in a workshop made this piece that is still solid and still holds up to anything manufactured now is astounding. That is real quality workmanship. That maker put his heart and sould into making things and I’m holding one of many pieces in my hand. It’s amazing.

Starting a New Business



Starting a new business is hard. It’s even harder when you have no experience. And depending on your niche, it can be even harder. My niche is woodworking and handyman work. My business is called Bear Woodworking. I set up a new Facebook page and Instagram is my portfolio. I have a YouTube channel, which I have written about I previous blogs. I am in the process of building a website, but its a slow go. But my biggest hurtle is a business model and a plan. Short of going to school for business, research is the best way to get my business planned out on paper. This is mainly a hobby for me but I know I’m good enough, as do many other people, to make quality projects and give professional service to customers. I don’t expect to make loads of money. In this business that is a pipe dream. But I can definitely make a nice bit of cash on the side.

This is my logo. My brother, who is a graphic designer, made it. It represents my passion for woodworking and building and his passion for graphic design. The bear is me. My last name is Bear. The log, wood, crafting and making something from a pice of wood. The saw blade, my workshop and passion. My happy place. The axes, working with my hands, callas’d and dry, worn. And the name. Everything in this logo catches your eye. It’s a great work of art.

In my passion blog I talked about what the definition of passion is and how it applies to me. My passion is building. Making things is an addiction. I love it more than words can say. Again, for quite a while I’ve had the thought that because this is my passion why am I not making money from it? Excellent question, I thought to myself... why not make money? What would I focus on making and how much would I charge? More over, how would I advertise myself and how would I price these projects? But, because I am a handyman as well, I can’t charge woodworking projects by the hour, or maybe I could? I only work in the shop a couple hours a night, a few nights a week and weekends. But if I charged hourly the cost would be outrageous by the end. So, I figure the best way to do an estimate is to price the materials then multiply that by 1.5 or 2 equaling my total cost which includes both materials and labor.

Above all, making things for people or myself makes me happy. Making money is a bonus. My mission stament will say something to the effect of

“Bear Woodworking is a family company. We exist for the sole purpose of providing fine furniture and decor with heart and soul. Happy customers are our No. 1 aspiration resulting from acceptional customer service and quality work and achieving our goal to become a household name as we grow as a company and personally.”

There will be several revisions as the company grows and I figure out what direction I want to take it. But for now, it’s a good start. Right now things are slow and there isn’t much money coming in from outside customers besides family and friends. But as with any new company you have to pay your dues before you “hit it big” so to speak.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Pallet Swing Build

I love to build, to use my hands, to make things. I've always loved to build and fix things. It is a passion. While I don't always have the money to buy materials, I use what I have. Recently I built a pallet swing. I have had extras in my garage for more than a year with nothing to use them for. My wife saw on hanging on someone's porch and said she wanted one. Her thought is as the kids play outside she can be lounging in the swing watching them. So, wanting to make her happy, I built one. It is double wide and has a back rest to it.


For it being old pallets, I think it turned out pretty good and will hold up as long as 8 people aren't laying on it at the same time. I need to get eye-hooks and chains for it and make sure the trusses in the carport will hold it. Not to mention, it's still winter, so it's cold....and I don't want to be outside longer than I need to be. Come warmer weather, I will be pulling down plywood from my carport ceiling to see what kind of trusses are up there and if I need to beef them up a bit in order to hold this swing. To add to the environment of the swing, my wife wants to paint murals on each panel. I think that is a cool idea, but I need to get the darn things off the ceiling without breaking them in half. They are held in with 3 inch long framing nails.... little bit of overkill. But, they will never come loose.

Check out the video here:
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Building has always been a passion for me, as I stated above. It is a stress relief, my happy place. This totally relates to my last post about Passion. As I drive around in my work truck, I see people cutting down trees and I think "what could I make out of those??" I love it. You name it, I can probably build it. It's like common sense to me, the way things go together and how they work. I am also working on another pallet project; crates. I don't know how many I will be able to get out of one pallet but we'll see how it goes. 


What is Passion....??


What is passion...?? How can it be defined? Some relate it to the Crucifixion, others to emotion. As the saying goes "do what you love and love what you do." Passion. That is it, to do what you love and love what you do.
Most people have passion for certain things they do whether it be hobbies or their job or their friends and family. If you don't then you're probably just a cold hearted Scrooge. Me, I have a lot of passion for all of these things. I have felt it grow tremendously over the years. I'm 32 now and am starting to become set in my ways. That's not a bad thing. My passions range from hobbies such as woodworking to music to my friends and family. Whatever makes my heart happy, especially through rough times. Lately there have been some rough times for me. But, I force myself to look on the bright side. Some things that help me do that are immersing myself in music, being a drummer, building and woodworking, gardening, cooking, drawing and art, etc.

You know you have passion for something when it makes you smile just by thinking about it and getting excited. This is what woodworking does for me. I love to make things, no matter what it is. I'm not the best but I can make some pretty cool things. My latest projects were turning wood spindles for a porch and making a pallet swing. I have a few other ideas, such as making my own drum set from maple and/or oak, and designing my own wrap or burning for the outer shell. I'm still doing the research and trying to find materials for that one but I'm still pretty excited about it. Video to come with that one. 

Another big passion of mine is holiday food. I love to cook and bake comfort food, which explains why Autumn and Winter are my two favorite seasons.... Well, until January 1. At that point the temperature can go back up to 70 degrees and sunny until October. I love chocolate chip cookies. I bake lots of these, and chocolate covered pretzels, bread, pumpkin pie/bread/muffins, from Thanksgiving until Christmas. I may do some videos of these when the holidays come back around. Gardening is my escape from life during the spring and summer. I grow enough veggies to make lots of things like pickles, tomato sauce, hot sauce, dehydrated peppers, so on and so forth. I say that if I can grow it then I'm not buying it. I give a lot to my friends and family too though. I'll share.

My point, it makes me happy to make others happy. I'm a nice guy. That is my passion, making others happy in the things that I do and I like to share these instances so that more people can share in the happiness. Let me know what you think of my videos here, YouTube.com. Until next time....