I own this cheap dial indicator set, and while it is indeed cheap it works fine for calibrating my table saw. My only complaint is that its versatile base and arm system just doesn’t work that well for this purpose, especially for setting up the fence where sliding the indicator causes the small base to… Continue reading Dial Indicator Sled for Calibrating Table Saw
I’m writing this short post not to brag about my toaster oven repair skills but to hopefully help out someone else looking to fix their appliance. I have had this stupid toaster oven since college (18 years as of this writing), and still use it every day. I even built a custom under-counter mount for… Continue reading Black & Decker Easy Clean Toaster Oven Repair
After having done four batches on my SS Brewtech mash tun I can give it a fair review. I had been using the same 10 gallon orange cooler for a hell of a long time, over ten years! I had the bulkhead super solid and leak free, and a hard-piped false bottom to avoid suction collapse,… Continue reading SS Brewtech 10 Gallon InfuSsion Mash Tun Review
Who doesn’t enjoy simple geometry and spreadsheets? I made my own segment calculation spreadsheet just to get a better understanding of segmented turning. I’m not doing anything particularly complex so it was a fun little undertaking. Here’s a link to the spreadsheet with some inner and outer radii already filled in. Feel free to make… Continue reading Segment Calculation Google Sheet Document
Jerry Bennett’s Wedgie Sled is a wonderfully simple and elegant solution to the problem of cranking out trapezoids for segmented turning. If you’re not familiar with his idea, visit his site and watch his video series. The only hard part is what to do about setting the angle between the two fences; here are a few… Continue reading Angle Setup Blocks for Making Wedgie Setup Templates
This roaster has been superseded by my latest drum roaster! Inspired by my friend Dominick’s attempt at a Turbo Oven-powered Drum Roaster I thought I’d build my own. While I appreciate the simplicity of my Stir Crazy base I’ve never been happy with the consistency of roasts; by its very nature it just can’t stir the… Continue reading Prototype Turbo Oven Coffee Drum Roaster
I’ve had my battery-powered 40V Ryobi mower (model #40108) for a year now and have been pretty happy with it. However the last time I used it the damn thing would randomly shut off while mowing. At the time there didn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to the problem such as heavy grass… Continue reading Ryobi 40V Mower Cutout Fix
Gouges on the left, scrapers on the right, with skews, parting tools, and a drill on back. It’s nice being able to put my grinder and tools right where I want them while turning and then tuck them away when doing something else. However the lower shelves are only moderately useful because they’re short and… Continue reading Lathe Sharpening and Tool Cart
The thin profile of Veritas’ Striking Knife makes it pretty versatile but at the same time hard to sharpen. It’s very small so there’s little bevel to “feel” for and the blade material is bendy so it’s hard to keep in the exact same orientation while sharpening. Consequently over time mine will loose its nice pointed… Continue reading Veritas Strking Knife Sharpening Jig
Using a cheap USB microscope I took some closeup shots of the scratch pattern and burr on a HSS bowl gouge through three sharpening methods. Here’s the full album of images For the purpose of woodturning it seems like the fineness of the edge doesn’t matter a whole lot. While the burr looks very nasty, and… Continue reading Gouge Sharpening Through a Microscope