If you find there is any copyright abuse, contact us as soon as possible, thanks.
??????????/ 'merchandising' crafts for exhibition
05/01/2008, 11:53 | Masashi's woodworking diary
????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????
???????????????????????
2008?5?1-6?
10-17?
??????
???????2-1
tel 0742-26-3476
Our annual exhibition is taking place in Nara from 1st to 6th May.
Craft and Furniture Exhibition of Gifu Academy of Forest Science and Culture
1-6 May, 2oo8
10:00-17:00
Nara-machi Monogatari Kan
2-1 Nakashin-ya Machi, Nara, Japan
????????????????????????????????????
?????????????????????????????????????????????
???????????????????????????????????
???????????????????????
Last week the second year students finished their works for the exhibition and presented them in front of the teachers.
They are requested to make their original products according to what they learned during their first year.
They need to produce them in a batch within a limited shedule, calculate the cost and assess their productivity.
This 'merchandising' lesson is a part of our curriculum.
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????????
???????????????????????????????
The venue, Nara-machi Monogatari Kan is in the city centre of the old capital Nara. Hundreds of people come and see our exhibition every day. Students show their works to the public for the first time and receive many comments from them.
Please come and see our exhibition. Students are waiting for your compliments!
????????????????
Unique oval floor lamps by Ken-ichi Matsuoka
?????????????????
Plates by Hajime Hoshino. Designed for his grand child.
??????????????????????????????????????
Stools by Atsushi Yokoi. He was commissioned them from an adult education centre in Gifu.
???????????????????????
Stools for backache patients by Yosuke Ueda. Easy to stand up with handles.
???????????????????
Hand mirrors by Keiichi Fukushima. Inspired by details of architecture in Hida.
????????????????????
Hairpins by Mako Taniyama. An image of cherry blossom falling.
?????????????????
Parquetry butter knives by Hiroshi Okabe.
Busy, busy, busy??
04/24/2008, 22:21 | The Wood WhispererIts been a busy month. Too much to type so here is a quick video update. Topics include: Festool grand opening, visit to the offices of Popular Woodworking, The Woodwerks Store, our new DVD cover (designed by our friend Langly, the FesCool Giveaway, safety week, new project with Fine Woodworking, a Live WTO experiment, new coffee table project, the new Festool routers, and birthday wishes for Nicole.
Nicholson Bench
03/06/2008, 17:32 | Arts & Mysteries with Adam Cherubini - Blog The "Nicholson" or "English" bench is a simple workbench, possibly made using 2 by construction lumber, that features a characteristic deep front apron drilled to enable to the use of holdfasts or pegs to support work vertically. It lacks any penetration through its top save a single planing stop. A simple and ineffectual face vise adorns the front left side of the bench. No tail vise or additional means of support are shown.
The bench gets its name by its depiction in Peter Nicholson's early 19th c text "Mechanic's Companion...." (the real title is a paragraph long, typical of the period). Nicholson's text is much in the same form as Moxon's late 17th c text "Mechanic's Exercises..." and contains much of the same sort of information. Nicholson covered a variety of trades, and republished the manuscript over a period of years in various forms, very like Moxon. One of the biggest differences between the authors is that Nicholson was actually a workman whereas Joseph Moxon was a chronicler.
The image of Nicholson's bench should be familiar to woodworkers. It appeared in Landis' coffee table book "The Workbench Book" (Taunton Press) and Chris Schwarz included a reprint in his vastly superior text "Workbenches" (FW publications). This oft republished image also shows the surface plane trinity: fore, try, and smoother, as well as a plow, sash and moving fillester planes, all essential to the work of a house joiner.
The entire text of Nicholson is available on line, thanks to the good folks at Google Books. You are free to download a pdf copy to your hard drive (highly recommended). Google "Mechanic's Companion" and choose the 1845 edition, as its a better scan and the pdf includes hyper links. The image of the bench is on page ii in the opening pages of the book. Don't miss the description of the construction of this bench including its hidden "locker", which I've never seen reproduced.
In addition to the engraving in Nicholson, similar benches are shown in contemporaneous paintings of English woodshops (see Landis' or better yet, Gaynor's (see below) book for reprints of these paintings). Slightly earlier texts by Frenchmen Roubo and Diderot depict benches that are similar to each other, yet contrast starkly with the Nicholson bench. These, now called "French" benches, feature thick, monolithic tops mounted to stout legs with no evidence of aprons. Roubo also showed a variant of these benches with an elaborate face and tail vise, and identified it as a "German" bench. Perhaps due to Roubo's regionalized identification, combined with the corroborating English paintings and contrary French images, some have taken to referring to Nicholson's bench as an "English" bench.
One problem with the use of the term "English Bench" is that it suggests that regionalism was the cause of the form as opposed to typical use, materials, or available technology etc. Thus obscured is the fact that the Nicholson bench is always depicted in association with joineries, not cabinetshops. Interestingly, the lid of an English joiner's tool chest circa 1790 (he may have been a cabinetmaker) shown in Jay Gaynor's fine must-have text depicts a thick topped bench with no tail vise (so far similar to a "French" bench) with a twin screw vise applied to the front left. The Dominy bench is somewhat similar in form. What I like best about the tool chest lid (which I believe resides in Jane Rees' personal collection) is that it shows the workman holding a tankard of what must be beer, thereby engaging in an apparently ancient woodworking tradition that I hold dear and sacred.
The advantages of the Nicholson bench appear to be its simple and inexpensive construction, light yet stiff design, and easily achievable extreme length. These features, along with its apron, suggest a particular superiority for the work of a house joiner, responsible for long runs of moldings, and the fabrication of household doors and windows.
I don't personally consider the bench to be universally superior to any other style. It works for its intended use. But I appreciate the inexpensive materials required, simplicity of its joinery, and its light weight. All of which would certainly be attractive to joiners who required little else, may be called upon to transport or construct a bench on site, and who had access to wide, sawn, often softwood timbers.
I recall one woodcentral.com participant bemoaning the then fad quality of the Nicholson bench, suggesting we were a fickle bunch to switch from French bench devotees to English bench devotees and back again, possibly with a layover in Scandinavia in between. Though the thread died shortly thereafter, I think the poster had a good point. Workbenches do indeed seem to come in and out of style, seemingly for no good reason. In my opinion, the reason for bench fads is the lack of real and basic analysis. Schwarz has provided more and better analysis than anyone has to date. But he also left a fair bit up to the reader, and instead focused on more useful subjects like how to actually build the darn thing, what works and what doesn't.
I think if you have a question about what a Nicholson bench and whether its right for you, you should do the following:
1) Read Landis' book at the public library (or neighborhood Woodcraft!)
2) Read Nicholson on line
3) Buy a copy of Schwarz' book (if for no other reason than to encourage the only guy giving serious thought to such subjects)
4) Add Gaynor's book to your personal WW library
5) Consider that form probably more often reflects use than geography
6) But most importantly, consider what sort of work you do, intend or wish to do, whether you'll ever need to transport your bench, and honestly assess your woodworking skill, budget, and time available for bench construction. And while you're considering all of that, build a Nicholson bench next weekend using Schwarz' book as a guide so you can get some woodworking done in the meantime.
? Adam Cherubini
Spinning Wheels - no not the song
02/12/2008, 04:40 | Norse WoodsmithThough it does show a little of the environment I grew up in - these were the first thing I thought they were singing about the first time I heard that song...
No, I'm talking about the real thing, which are used for making yarn from raw materials such as wool or cotton:
This one is an antique, made sometime in the later half of the 1800's, and was built by the brother of this man - my great great grandfather:
Jon Vium (my great great grandfather) was well known for his handmade spinning wheels, and he made dozens - if not hundreds - of them that he sold to neighbors and at market. He was an avid turner, and used a treadle lathe. He lost his leg when using an adze to flatten some birch - he missed and hit his foot. This was far out in the sticks, so doctors were several days away at least. A member of the family was sent to retrieve the nearest doctor, but by the time he was able to get there gangrene had set in. The amputation took place on the kitchen table, and the sterilizing agent and anesthetic used was whiskey... There's more, but suffice to say not many can say they have it so tough today.
Even after losing his leg, he continued turning - with the treadle lathe - until his death. I used the above picture of a whell his brother made because while there may be some of his spinning wheels remaining, I don't know where they are... There was one that had sat outside for many years, and though it was heavily weathered and missing pieces, dad was able to create a reproduction of the wheels that granddad made using it as a reference along with the wheel pictured above - here's his version, made in maple:
Dad was very proud of his recreated spinning wheel. It's as close a copy as he could come up with given what he had to start with. Here's a different view:
Spinning wheels are literally spin fibers such as wool (and other materials) into yarn for use in knitting. I don't think I can remember my grandmother when she wasn't halfway through another knitted quilt - she was prolific. She made hundreds of them... I still have several myself that she hand knitted - but she usually bought her yarn at the store in the later half of her life... though I remember telling her showing my mother how she would use the spinning wheel when she was younger - it was on a wheel much like these.
Fibers first need to be "carded", where a pair of "carders (wooden handled planks with a series of metal combs are used to literally comb the fibers straight - here's grandmother's pair, with a "rolag" of wool started next to it:
I won't go too much into the process of spinning yarn, but if you are interested there are other sites more with more experienced information than my own... including http://www.joyofhandspinning.com/ and some videos on YouTube. Basically, the fiber is combed straight and rolled up into a "rolag" like above, then one end is mounted in the wheel. Once you start spinning the wheel, it pulls on the fibers as you feed it, and it twists them at the same time, like a rope at the same time spooling them onto a bobbin. Twisting makes the thread stronger by intertwining the individual fibers into one continuous thread that you can't pull apart without a good amount of effort.
My uncle was so impressed, that he took dad's wheel and made his own version - his in walnut:
These are built as closely as we know to the originals great granddad made, and both of them work - as they have been used. But - not much, I think... just enough to prove they work. Most people these days don't knit, much less spin their own yarn anymore - but as with anything, there are still a few out there who are continuing the craft.
Most of the parts for each are turned on the lathe... These wheels were made using a jig and a router, though originally it would also have been turned on the lathe using a face plate and jig. The string you see around the wheel is the drive belt... it rides in one of a series of grooves directly above the wheel - each sized differently so different speeds can be used. The higher the speed, the more twists per inch are produced on the yarn.
This particular style of wheel is known as a "castle" wheel, which was popular for those who want to travel with the wheel, or have just a small amount of room for it - the latter of which would have been the case for most of my ancestors. The houses were not large, so if something could be made to take up less space, the better.
These wheels are an exersize in functionality and design - they are beautifully designed wooden machines that are truly an art form. I've always been drawn to them, as they are the most aproachable tool - they look like some sort of fancy furniture, but were one of the basics of life not so many years ago, when people used them to make their own fabrics, sheets, blankets, and clothing. There wasn't a Walmart on the corner, and if there was they couldn't have afforded it anyway. Their only choice was to literelly make their own - well, everything, almost... One simply has to respect that sort of independence. There are modern makers who have updated the design to work better and use modern technology (ball bearings!) - but most of the modern incarnations seem soulless to me, lacking that part of them that I see as art.
When I was younger, I always wondered how such a cool song could have been about a spinning wheel...
| Blood Sweat, and Tears - Spinning Wheel |
| What goes up must come down You got no money, and you, you got no home Did you find a directing sign Someone is waiting just for you Someone is waiting just for you |
Of course - when I read the lyrics, I realize that the song is really about a homeless guy in a Mustang... 
Williamsburg Woodworking Conference Trip Report
01/27/2008, 23:06 | Arts & Mysteries with Adam Cherubini - Blog This year's conference was a delightful departure from the so far typical furniture fare of Colonial Williamsburg's "Working Wood in the 18th Century" woodworking conference. This year, Williamsburg's interpreters teamed up with tool historians on both sides of the Atlantic to share with us their notions on Tools, Tool Chests, and Workbenches of the 18th century.
I attended the first session joined by several current and former interpreters from Pennsbury Manor. For me, the quiet conversations between the conference attendees are as interesting and educational as the presentations themselves.
Each year, I bemoan that fact that no videos or transcripts will be made available. As I sat in the gorgeous, packed yet comfortable auditorium, I couldn't help but feel privileged. This sense was heightened by the forced absence of my friend Paul and those of you who emailed me and really would have loved to attend but couldn't. But instead of continuing to bang a drum that know one cares to listen to, I'll only say this in consolation: I think the "back of the class" conversations and fellowship are so great and so useful, that a video just wouldn't be the same experience.
The conference began with short lectures by Jay Gaynor and Jane Rees. Jay talked about tools. Jane talked about tool storage. The most memorable bit for me was Jane's mention of the "bass" joiner's tool bags present in several period paintings of shops. I've been carrying a similar woven grass bag of the sort ladies take to the beach to Pennsbury Manor for several years. And I think for all those years, my friend Dave has been whistling at me. Finally, I am vindicated. As it turns out, English woodworkers, including Jane's Grandfather, have been carrying their tools not in cleverly constructed wooden totes but in "bass" bags for at least 2 centuries.
Jane Rees, along with her late husband Mark, wrote the fantastic introduction to "British Planemakers from 1700", "Christopher Gabriel...", and contributed to "The Toolchest of Benjamin Seaton". She's a fantastic scholar and valuable resource, having a breadth and depth of knowledge matched by few or none. Perhaps because of this, I was left wanting more from Jane. She did a good job presenting the evidence of tool storage and workbench placement. But I was hoping for a summary that explained the rationale behind such issues. Maybe its obvious, but it seems to me that tool chests are not primarily used to transport tools, but rather to safeguard them in a commercial shop that you don't own or live in. Like modern day auto mechanics, I suspect period craftsmen abhored lending or borrowing tools. Like modern day auto mechanics, having the right tool for the job can be a matter of maintaining one's livelihood. Like modern day auto mechanics, the tool chest and its contents were easily worth 6 months to a year's wages. So we see rural and family shops characterized by tool storage consisting of open shelves and racks on walls, like the Dominy shop. Urban commercial shops, like those depicted by Roubo can probably be characterized by rows of benches, left ends facing the light source, and the use of tool chests to store individual craftsmen's tools.
Thursday's conference began with a lecture by Jane on Benjamin Seaton. It?s important to note that neither the Seaton chest nor its contents were present. Somehow, I misunderstood "we'll be looking at the Seaton chest". We looked at pictures of the Seaton chest and Kaare Loftheim's informative reproduction. The main carcass is fairly typical. It has a nailed or screwed up bottom. The till is a bit more interesting. We speculated that the secret drawers were nothing more than a way to fill space behind the drawers, very likely shortened to allow their removal without removal of the till. I'm fairly convinced and Jane confirmed my beliefs that tills like Seaton's were not designed to be removed daily. But throughout the discussions, I failed to hear the Seaton chest placed in its proper context: It has many features we would come to see as typical of 19th c chests including its tall proportions, multi leveled till with drawers, and veneered interior. I can't help but question the appropriateness of using this chest for a "working wood in the 18th century" despite the date of its manufacture. If we could look into a third quarter of the 18th c commercial shop, I suspect we'd see chests that look more like blanket chests, long and low, and few simple tills and tools with unmatched handles. In short, I suspect we'd see something more like the Nixon chest.
My notes are a little sketchy, but I think late Thursday morning, Marcus Hanson And Ed Wright demonstrated the hammer veneer work on the till. This was a fantastic demonstration that I think would make a great 2-hour video. When I began volunteering in Pennsbury, I saw my role as technical. I felt I was able to build things with period tools, in an unheated shop without electricity. Talking to visitors, especially non-woodworkers, was clearly not my forte. But Williamsburg's Hay shop craftsmen are different. These guys are terrific woodworkers AND professional interpreters who are just plain fun to watch and listen to. While none of them are Underhill caliber, you can see that St. Roy is one of many folks in CW who are good at presenting information and making it fun.
Thursday afternoon, Garret Hack discussed workbenches. I had never met Garret before and I found him delightfully charming and down to earth. I was disappointed he didn't discuss 18th c workbenches though. In my opinion, there's something weird going on with FWW's participation at the conference. The FWW speakers don't seem to feel compelled to limit their discussions to Working Wood in the 18th century, which is after all, the generic title of the conferences and the reason many of us attend. I know some of the attendees felt stronger about this than I did. I liked Hack's presentation and felt the need to jot down several comments:
"[The workbench] is the most important tool in your shop."
"[It] influences the work that you do."
"[My workbench] represents me as a craftsman."
Friday featured Roy Underhill's presentation (driven by his macbook pro!). The opening slide is shown below:
Roy's presentation was on screw threads and it was everything one would expect from The Woodwright; It was hilarious and informative. A heckler (no it wasn't me, really) mentioned that this was the first time he'd ever seen Roy work and not cut himself. I had a similar comment in a PW article on Building Saw horses some years ago, and later regretted it. Now I see that mentioning cuts to Roy is a little like singing Roxanne to Sting or asking Ricky Gervais "Are you having a laugh?". So I was curious to take Roy's reaction. Would he be peeved or annoyed? Surely he wouldn't laugh like this is the first time he's heard that one. He responded quickly: "The Director kept yelling "Cut!" and I didn't know what he was talking about".
The presentation ended with a very cleverly set up joke of the sort only someone with Roy's superior intellect could muster. And as I finished my belly laugh with everyone else, a wash of disappointment came over me that would later characterize my feelings about the entire conference. Its was fun, but missing something. I felt Roy missed the opportunity to discuss the advantage (in my opinion superiority) of wooden vise screws that he'd just explained in detail how to build. It seemed like every lecture was great but with a few notable exceptions, needed a 5-minute summary or conclusion.
The conference closed with an informal poll indicating that more than half the audience was there for the first time. This made me wish more than ever that some of the lectures had a bit more resolution to them.
All said, I wasn't and have never been disappointed by the conference in Williamsburg. It was a great experience, as much for the fellowship as the lectures. You're going to leave the conference a better, more informed woodworker. So I recommend going and going back even if the last conference didn't meet 100% of your expectations.
Adam
P.S.
The annual woodworking conference in Williamsburg is like a Star Trek convention for period woodworkers. People dress up in funny clothes. You meet wonderful people who are strange in the same ways you are strange. Its validating. No one asks where you get the time to use hand tools or offers their ill-informed opinions on rococo style.
But as period woodworking geeks go, I'm probably the nerdiest. I have been working on my Mack Headley impersonation and fantasizing about Williamsburg trading cards. A typical card would have a picture of say, Kaare Loftheim on the front, and on the back his favorite tools, pitch and rake of his saws, and other fun facts like where he keeps his cabinetscrapers (anybody know?) and maybe a note worthy catch phrase like "dummy marks".
Designer Craftsmen Show
01/16/2008, 18:02 | Arts & Mysteries with Adam Cherubini - Blog This is the busy season for period woodworking reproduction furniture makers (I think I may be the only one). We've been remiss in defining these terms. This has had serious repercussions as period woodworkers and reproduction furniture makers often don't themselves distinguish the important differences separating them. Wherever the two have met, I've seen friction and discord. Now, mere days away from one of the biggest and most prestigious shows featuring reproduction furniture makers, is a good time to offer a definition of these terms so we can better understand each other's work.
Period woodworkers focus chiefly on the process of using pre-industrial tools. Though Garret Hack makes contemporary furniture, his use of period tools and processes may qualify him as a period woodworker, only different from Roy Underhill by degrees. Some period woodworkers simply enjoy working with old tools. Others, me for example, feel strongly that the tools influence the work to such a degree that their use is essential to creating accurate reproductions of period work.
Reproduction furniture makers are by far the larger group. The reproduction furniture maker's chief interest is in producing an item that looks like an original. They typically care not at all whether the saw is man powered, electrically powered, or electronically powered. For the reproduction furniture maker, tools are merely means to an end, not the end itself. These folks are product, not process focused.
In reality, like the political poles of libertarian, and egalitarian (conservative and liberal are inaccurate terms for the groups they represent), all of us fall somewhere in between. I may well be one of the few exceptions, very likely the only such exhibitor at the Designer Craftsmen show. I am both a period woodworker and a reproduction furniture maker sharing a great desire to manage the authenticity of both product and process. Understanding that is key to understanding why I do what I do.
The Designer Craftsmen show at the Valley Forge Convention Center this coming weekend (Jan 18-20), offers the opportunity to drink in the different approaches and examine their inevitable results. If you are not sure which you are, go and see whose furniture you prefer. It also may be a fun activity to see if you can tell the difference. Here's a hint: you won't be able to tell from the prices. I've been going to the D-C show for many years and I highly recommend you go if you can. In my opinion, its as valuable as a trip to a museum.
Adam
Building the Woodshop: Part V - The Foundation
12/20/2007, 04:02 | Norse WoodsmithPart V
One of my favorite lines in a movie was in one of the Naked Gun movies (with Leslie Nielsen) where Ricardo Montalban was playing the villain. When asked by Priscilla Presley how he could be so evil his response was something like:
"You forget I spent two years as a building contractor!"
Of course that's in jest (?). You know - there are, of course, good and bad contractors, and I've dealt with my share of each - and the concrete contractor I used for this project was quite unfortunately of the latter persuasion. I was really disappointed in his work - and I even gave him a second chance the next year to pour the slab out front of the shop for me - but that's for a later entry... If you are looking for a general contractor, or even just a "sub" contractor, make sure you check references and investigate your choices with the local builders' association. Above all - you will need patience and perseverance to be successful. Don't expect perfection - but be ready to stand your ground when needed - and pick your battles well. Know what's important, and what's not. At the time, there was a shortage of available contractors for me to hire, and I was not patient...
But first, I should go over the design of the foundation in a bit more depth...
The Design
There were two different foundation systems I looked into using. My first consideration was to pour what's known as a "monolithic" slab - that's where the footings, stem wall (if there is one) and the finished floor are all poured at once, in one big pour... The section through such a system looks something like this:
There are several advantages to a system such as this.. It is the most efficient system, combining the footing, wall, and slab all into a single, large system. There is considerably less labor involved in the pour, but the earthwork needs to be done more precisely to save fill requirement. And finally if termites are an issue in your part of the country this type doesn't allow anyplace for the nasty little buggers to penetrate from underneath. It does have a couple of disadvantages as well... One is that the bottom of the wall is more prone to water damage, as the top of the concrete can be only slightly above grade level... and because of that, it also does not work as well on a sloped lot. Though it's hard to see in the photos below, my lot slopes down from right to left (east to west) about a foot in the width of the shop. It might not seem like much, but it is a lot of fill to bring in. I prefer to work with the slope of the land rather than fight it...
Another disadvantage - at least for me - is that I wanted to have the entire floor of the slope 1/8" per foot from the back end to the front - a drop of about 4", so it would drain and I wouldn't have water puddling up in the center of the floor if I parked a snow-bound car inside. That would make it difficult to frame up so it is level... This might not be an issue for you, but my experience has been to keep the space as flexible as possible - and that means uses other than woodworking. The next owner of my shop might want to work on cars, for example - and so will I, for that matter.
The final disadvantage is I wanted to be able to hose down the slab in the main section of the shop if for some reason it needed it... I can seal a rubber base down for some walls, but doing all would be too much. So - it meant I would opt for the more expensive version (of course) - a stem wall type foundation. Here's a typical section for that style of foundation:
You can see that now the foundation wall is independent of the floor slab, so with this system I can slope the floor and not worry about framing the exterior walls plumb and level. The slab at the far back of the shop would be about an inch below the top of the foundation wall - and about 5 inches below it at the front. This works out well for the driveway slab to be poured out front of the shop - it will work out to be about the right height so the foundation wall can be above finish grade level by about 8".
You can also see why more labor is required to make it... Instead of one pour for the entire foundation and slab, the work now has to be divided into three separate pours... First you must form up the strip footing so it is below frost depth and pour it - then you must form up the stem walls and pour them; and then, finally, you pour the floor slab. Three separate pours... It uses the same or more concrete, and your contractor must have the form work to be able to pour the stem walls. There are many concrete contractors out there that do only flat work - they don't want to invest the money into the forms required, and most often they can get away without investing in too much heavy machinery. If you do it yourself, you can easily make your own forms, and rent your own machinery... but it's an added expense, and not a small one. You could use the forms afterward as sheathing - but you need to coat the forms with a release agent (usually an oil) that can make it less than desirable for use as sheathing. My neighbor rented a backhoe to do his shop, and by the time he was done with it, he'd spent $1100 or so just for it.
What determines how deep you put your foundation is set by the local building department and is what's known as "Frost Depth" - the depth at which the ground does not regularly freeze. Freezing ground is bad for a foundation. Water expands when froze, and as a result lifts and stresses the foundation, and over time that stress can result in the foundation failing.
Frost depth in my area is about 2'-0" below finish grade. With an 8" deep strip footing at the bottom, that means we can use a 2' deep stem wall - which will give us two feet below grade if we keep the finish grade at a maximum of 8" below the top of the stem wall. Frost depth varies around the country... in warmer climates, there isn't one, just a requirement the footing be on inorganic undisturbed soil or compacted structural fill. Where I grew up in the Dakotas, it was a full 4' below finish grade. It's one reason you will see so many basements in the north vs. the south - you are required to go so deep anyway to get down to frost depth with your footing, there's no good reason not to make it just a couple feet deeper to make it a basement.
Optimally, I would have used the detail above, with a 6" wide stem wall. Structurally, it's plenty strong to hold up the building. it also keeps you from having problems with applying the finish material - when you install the drywall (or plywood, or whatever finish material you have) the inside of the wall will line up with the concrete. What I ended up with was more like this, however:
Note the foundation is 8" wide, not 6". One other difference that is shown on that detail that I don't have - insulation. I got none. Nada. It's a sordid tale - I'll let you know as I go through the photos of the construction below just how I arrived with that detail.
Strip Footings
The first job after you dig the trench for the footings is to form up for the strip footings. It's pretty simple, really - your biggest concern is setting them at the right height. You want the footings resting on undisturbed, inorganic soil (or compacted structural fill), just below frost level. Your building department will be able to tell you just how much your soil can support, and thusly how big your footing needs to be. You can check with them to find what frost level is in your part of the country. You then want to form so the top is level and gives the footing a minimum depth (in my case 8"). You can use the excavated soil for the sides of your forms at the very bottom - but it's best to have most of it formed with footer boards to make sure the edges are held in place correctly, which will allow you to estimate just how much concrete you need. It's always better to overdo the forms rather than under-do them, as nothing sucks more than a blowout during a pour.
The easiest way to set the level is if you have a builder's level or transit and a pole, which can be rented for fairly little money. You set stakes in the ground at strategic points and with the aid of a helper, shoot the top of the stake, then drive it down with a sledge until it's at the right height. Do this with each successive stake, then using a string line, a plumb bob, and batten boards, drive a pair of stakes in about every 24" or so (more or less depending how good your soil is) and nail the footer boards on the inside of the stakes - which you've placed just for that purpose, using one of the sides as a guide. Once in place, you can reinforce the footer boards by putting nailers across the top to help keep them from spreading apart while pouring, as this crew did:
For reinforcement, mine has two #4 rebar (#4 means 4/8" or 1/2" diameter) running the length of the tooting. An additional rebar can be added perpendicular to these every four feet or so, but I am fortunate enough to have soil with a great load carrying capacity, so it wasn't necessary. The next step is to pour them, obviously... but I wanted to show the photo below for another reason:
Look at that nice, green lawn. By the time the concrete was done - they had torn the living snot out of my yard. I tried to keep them from doing too much damage, and I even roped off the area where my drain field was located to keep them from driving their 574 ton trucks over it - which could easily crush the pipe. Or should I say did? For some reason, I'm telling you - it was like trying to keep flies of of s__t. I came home after bringing dad to a doctor's appointment to find they drove right over my little tape barrier like it wasn't even there. Not only did this happen once, but it happened several times over the time they were there. My drain field still works, but it's capacity has been cut about in half from what it was - no more "super" loads in the washer for us... and a healthy repair bill someday when I do half to replace it. The one guy I was most worried about - the kid with the skid hoe - was easily the most careful and professional and did by far the least damage of any of them.
Stem Walls
So after the footings were poured and allowed to dry for several day, the concrete guy's crew comes back and sets the forms for the stem walls:
It was at this point that I went out back and measured them only to find out they had set them for an 8" wall and not a 6" wall, like was in the drawings. The concrete guy wasn't to be found anywhere, this was entirely done by his crew... Ugh. Is it really that hard to do something I ask? It's not like I was being disagreeable, or hard to get along with, or anything. I bring it up to him, and he's like, well - we can tear it down and do it at 6", but then I'll have to schedule it for later because that crew's already on another job. Jeez, can't these guys come up with something more original? In the end, I said screw it, let it be 8". I'll just deal with it later, and let it remind me of why I should never hire bozos like this guy again (yet I don't even listen to myself - more on that in a later entry in this series).
Reinforcement was just as described in the detail above - a #4 rebar every 4'-0" vertically, and a #4 within 6" of both the top and bottom of the wall. Anchor bolts were placed every 6'-0" and within 12" of each end of each wall.
After they poured the stem walls, the kid with the skid hoe came back and backfilled around the stem walls, stripped the topsoil in the center, and no - I don't know why he did it that way, but it didn't take him all that long to get the sod out and down to good soil, so what the heck? As long as it got done right, I wasn't concerned. There wasn't enough good fill to use on the inside of the walls to support the slab, so I ordered structural fill brought in to bring the sub-base up to grade. They brought in a type of fill that doesn't require compaction, which I think is interesting - it's a product I was familiar with but had never seen it done before, a material called CLSM (Controlled Low-Strength Material). It looks mostly like really sloppy wet sand, and it is brought in in a concrete truck and poured out and leveled almost like concrete.
It's usually made up of a mixture of portland cement, fly ash, and aggregate mixed with water. Lots of labor saved in that you don't have to compact it, and it can be put in place so very quickly... I did need 2-1/2 truckloads of it, each costing $200 though (I ended up having to buy 3 truckloads full) I had the remainder put out so I could use it as fill for under the driveway slab that would eventually be placed out front of the shop.
So, I think in my case, I paid dearly for it. But at least it was ready for the floor. I did have one problem - there was a lot of soil left over in a big pile - sod, rocks, organic soil - pure garbage to me and I had nowhere to put it. The kid with the backhoe offered to take it - seems he was filling some ditch on his property out in the back woods, and could put it there. He loaded it and hauled it out himself, so there was some consolation. I rewarded him by getting him to put in a gravel driveway back to the shop and to redo the one out front. He did a particularly splendid job, for a fair price.
For more information on CSLM, visit the Portland Cement Association's web site.
The Floor Slab
So - another appointment for dad, and I knew they were going to pour the floor - when I got back, this was the scene:
It was a good thing I got back when I did... I noticed two things were completely wrong. First - there was no insulation laid down around the perimeter. Second - he hadn't dug out for the two pier footings I would need for the two columns I had designed for the structure. You know, I don't think he actually ever looked at the drawings... Guess there might have been too much information there for him to handle. Anyway, it was already too late for the insulation, but I did at least get him before the concrete had reached where the pier footings were to go - and stood there while he dug them out and made sure they were the right size, even as the concrete was flowing closer to the pit. Essentially, the pier footings can be poured as a part of the floor, like a monolithic slab would be - so it's fine if done that way. It would have sucked if he hadn't done them though - I wouldn't have known about it, and would have wondered why the floor slab cracked so badly around the columns later...
At long last - I had a foundation on which to build my shop. Woohoo! The rest would be all up to me and me alone.
Up next - walls!
Others (Accesories)
06/04/2007, 05:40 | Antique Knockdown Carved Wood HouseGebyok Center has specializing in the reproduction of the traditional house of Kudus with its part, but not shut the possibility to provide furniture and other antique decoration that match with the design interior of the traditional house of Kudus or for other purpose that suit with the buyer needs.
The providing of the other products are include antique furniture like table and chairs for living room, bed, divan as relaxing place, wooden carved box as a deposit box, etc. All is part of the commitment of
CarveWright CNC Wood Router at Highland Woodworking
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Highland Woodworking Blog
Highland Woodworking adds the CarveWright CNC Wood Router to our collection of woodworking tools. The CarveWright Woodworking System is winning awards for product innovation in woodworking, as it brings modern CNC technology and the power of the internet together with traditional woodworking. The CarveWright can be used to perform a variety of functions such as routing, cutting, carving and jointing and while considered a woodworking machine, it is also capable of creating detailed designs in other soft materials like HD foam and suitable plastics.
The CarveWright while compact, just slightly larger than a bench top planer, is a full-on, 3-dimensional CNC milling/carving machine. Use it to make signs, carve decorative reliefs or mill just about anything you can imagine in wood, HD foam and some plastics. The CarveWright can handle work up to 5” thick, 14.5” wide and almost any length. Its onboard computer and project design software makes it simple to use even for the novice. Just insert the memory card into the machine and an LCD screen walks you through the process. You don't need to bring your computer into the shop or even have it connected to the CarveWright. You can manipulate designs in almost anyway you like from their 3D pattern library, or create your own. For PC users the minimum system requirements are Windows 2000 or XP with 128MB RAM, 75MB of hard drive space and graphics card with OpenGL support. Mac users need OS 10.3 or later.
The CarveWright includes a carving bit, a cutting bit, two 1/4” bit adaptors, a bit removal tool, a vacuum bag, memory card w/programmer, design software and instructions.
Highland Woodworking is also pleased to announce an addition to our popular Saturday Mornings at Highland Free Demonstration Educational Series. On Saturday, June 28th, 2008 at 10:00am visit our retail store in Atlanta, Georgia where Ben Arthur will demonstrate the basic use of the CarveWright Machine.
Make an Impression with Your Flooring
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Wood Flooring
(ARA) – Most people think the first impression of their home is made by the color on the walls or furniture in a room; but in reality, it’s made by what’s under your feet – the flooring. If the carpet is dirty and worn, tiles are chipped, or the wood floor is warping, it’s time for a change.
So what’s holding you back? A lot of people are hesitant to jump into a home improvement project involving flooring because of all the work involved. First you have to remove and dispose of the old material, then invest the time and effort necessary to get the base surface ready for the new material before finally putting it in.
“Do-it-yourselfers are overwhelmed when they learn how much work is involved in redoing a floor. But it doesn’t have to be that way,” says Scott Day of Forbo Flooring. Forbo recently introduced a new product that’s turning a lot of heads in the remodeling industry.
Marmoleum Click is perhaps the easiest flooring surface there is to install. No adhesives or fasteners are necessary. The panels simply lock into place with a tongue and groove system. “If you have an existing resilient floor, no need to remove it. The planks and squares can be installed right on top of the old surface. If you have carpet or tile, you just need to remove and dispose of the old materials and start clicking the Marmoleum tiles together right over the subfloor,” says Day.
Marmoleum Click comes in 18 different colors and is available in two different sizes: panels that are 12 inches wide and 36 inches long, and 12-inch by 12-inch squares.
The panels and squares can be mixed and matched to create a wide variety of patterns and color combinations.
“It’s really cool. You can mix and match colors to create a space that is uniquely your own,” says Day.
In addition to being decorative and easy to install, Marmoleum Click is made from natural materials consisting of flaxseed oil, pine rosin, limestone and jute. It also has anti-static and bactericidal properties, meaning it’s easily kept dirt and dust free, and is resistant to such micro-organisms as Staphylococcus. These qualities make it especially popular in bathrooms and kitchens – and in places young children play.
“Marmoleum Click is the ideal do-it-yourselfer’s surface,” says Scott Day of Forbo. “We’ve received a lot of feedback from customers that it’s the easiest material they’ve ever worked with, and they’ve had a lot of fun with it.”
For design ideas, or to find a retailer near you, log on to www.themarmoleumstore.com.
Courtesy of ARA Content
Visit A1 Wood Flooring for more on wood flooring and laminate flooring.
Designer Wine Rack/Side Table with Wood Top in Scroll Style Structure
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furniture Craft
- Designer Wine Rack w/Wood Top in Scroll Style Structure
- Dining and Kitchen
- 0-2 Days for processing, and ships in 3 day(s) via Ground Shipping.
- Dining and Kitchen - Wine Racks
- v167d-2591
- BUY NOW
Fine Woodworking Book Review - Andy Rae
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsHere's a new twist to the offerings. We'll be reviewing a book published by the Taunton Press called Building Doors and Drawers: A Complete Guide to Design and Construction by Andy Rae.
Enjoy!!!
One more loose end to pick up, Carlo is just around the corner.
Ep15 Carlo Mollino 06 Part 2
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsHere is part 2 of furniture designer, architect, Carlo Mollino and our interpretation of his bent plywood coffee table.
It's machining and shaping and thinking that keeps this Mollino piece a fun challenge to go after.
Between parts 1 and 2, we take Carlo's Plum Pudding and catch it up to Carlo's Birds-eye and the next step.
Enjoy........ I'm sure Carlo would be pleased.
Essential Joinery Plane: The Moving Fillister
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Woodworking blog Woodworking Magazine
As woodworkers dive into handwork, they usually start with a block plane, then the
bench planes, the saws and the joinery planes.
Joinery planes – such as plow planes, router planes, shoulder planes and rabbeting
planes – are some of the easiest planes to set up and use. Their irons are straighforward
to sharpen (no curves needed), and because the tool doesn’t produce a show surface,
you don’t need to be a maniac about the keenness of your cutting edges.
One of the most essential joinery planes is the moving fillister. It cuts a rabbet
either across the grain or with the grain. And it can make a rabbet of almost any
size thanks to its adjustable fence.
Moving fillisters are different than other planes in the rabbeting family in that
its fence is adjustable (planes with a fixed fence are called standing fillisters),
plus it can work across the grain because it has retractable nickers (planes without
the nickers are just plain old rabbet planes).
The iron Stanley No. 78 is the most common vintage version of this tool, however I’m
not fond of the form. The fence wobbles because of the way it is attached to the body,
so the plane does a poor job in hard woods (in my experience). Record, by the way,
fixed this problem with its metal version of this plane, though it’s a tough tool
to find in North America.
This really is a case where the wooden versions of a plane are superior. Wooden-stock
moving fillisters are fairly common in the secondary market, though they usually require
some rehabbing to be usable. So what do you do?
You could ask Clark & Williams to make you
one – they showed me an excellent moving fillister they make a couple years ago. You
could buy an ECE
from toolsforworkingwood.com. Or you could buy a new traditional one from Philip
Edwards at Philly Planes in England.
Philip’s planes are excellent. I recently reviewed his miter plane plus a plane designed
for raising panels for drawer bottoms. They both work like a charm. So it’s very exciting
to me (and a good sign for hand work in general) that there is a new moving fillister
on the market from Philip’s shop.
We’ve ordered one for our shop here, and I will offer a full report once it arrives.
Until then, however, if you need a moving fillister, I can recommend Philip’s
planes highly. Â
— Christopher Schwarz
P.S. Want to learn more about joinery planes? Then definitely pick up a copy of “The
Wooden Plane” by John M. Whelan.
Figuring Out Finger Joints
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Woodworking blog Woodworking Magazine
For me, finger joints have always been the nerdy, square cousin to the dovetail.
Finger joints are immensely strong when glued properly. But they are usually used
by beginning woodworkers in places where a dovetail would be more appropriate, such
as on a piece of 18th-century casework.
Add to that the fact that finger joints are tricky or dangerous to make on wide boards
(without a commercial jig) plus the fact that gluing them with yellow glue is stressful,
and it's a wonder that anyone uses them at all.
And so we decided to tackle finger joints for the Summer 2008 issue of Woodworking
Magazine, which will be shipping to subscribers next month. It took us a few months
to really pin them down (pun intended), but I think we nailed it (and no, cut nails
are not involved).
Here's a small taste of some of the problems of the joint we solved after three months
of testing in our shop:
Appearance: Finger joints are a product of the machine age. Using them in styles
before circa 1900 is just wrong to the eye. So consider the joint for more contemporary
pieces only.
Cutting them Accurately: Right now there are basically two different ways to
cut the joint: A shop-made jig for the table saw for narrow boards, and using a router
jig that costs several hundred dollars for wide boards. We set out to develop a simple
and safe shop-made jig that could handle both wide and narrow boards. Senior Editor
Robert W. Lang had a stroke of genius on this and solved the problem forever (in my
opinion).
Gluing Them Easily: You can assemble small boxes with finger joints fairly
easily when using yellow glue. But at a certain point, you hit the wall because the
glue sets up before you can close all the joints. So the solution would seem to be
a slow-setting glue. Well, that's one way to go about it. But we found an easier and
faster way that is super-strong (see the photo of Managing Editor Megan Fitzpatrick's
boot on a sample joint). In the end, it took an anvil to bust up our sample joints.
Also in the Summer 2008 Issue
The finger joint is just one of the major themes running through the issue. Here are
some of the other stories you can look for in the coming issue:
Building a Better Chest: Most woodworkers build chests using the most convoluted
and fussy assembly imaginable. After reviewing hundreds of historical models, we settle
on a method for building a chest that looks more complex at first glance, but actually
saves an immense amount of shop time, requires less fussing around and allows more
design flexibility.
Crackle Finishing: Many woodworkers who try a crackle finish have inconsistent
results. Sometimes it works; sometimes it doesn't. And predicting how much it's going
to crackle is almost impossible. Senior Editor Glen D. Huey cracks the code of crackle
finish and finds out that the easiest and most predictable way to do it is also the
simplest.
Trimming End Grain: When you have to cut back some end grain so it's flush
with some face grain, it's always an opportunity to mess up the project. We show you
two (actually three) methods for doing it right every time with a block plane, sander
and pencil eraser.
And one more thing about the Summer 2008 issue: This issue is going to be mailed out
to subscribers in a protective plastic bag, which will reduce the chances that the
postal service will mangle it. If the plastic bag works for you, let us know so we
can encourage our manufacturing division to continue using it.
And if you're not a subscriber, you can easily remedy that here.
Ep14 Carlo Mollino 05
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsWell Carlo has us in amongst his work and it is wonderful. This episode the 5th in the building of a Carlo Mollino Coffe Table is loaded with different approachs to woodworking. It will open and fill-up your furniture designer's tool box.
I am hoping that as you watch you will see new options that you can use in your own work. An approach to clamping, using a router on curves more efficiently, and understanding that you must look for curviture.
It's been a while so enjoy and savor some new woodworking options!!!!!!!
Ep13 Carlo Mollino 03
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology Productions
Furniture design can take the form of many different shapes. In episode four of our Carlo Mollino inspired coffee table, we find....our...shape.
From a picture to full scale drawering, to the construction of our bending form, you'll see our bending ply take a shape Carlo Mollino would be proud of. One of Birds-eye maple the other of Plum Pudding Mahogany.
Enjoy and let me know what you think!!!!
Carlo would.
Ep 12 Carlo Mollino Design 03
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsIn this the third installment on a furniture design inspired by Carlo Mollino, we prep our bending ply, build our bending form, and construct a fixture for a machine operation, specific to the router.
This woodworking podcast presents alot of woodworking material, you'll witness how traditional woodworking meets contemporary materials.
The episode expressed an opinion on how a furniture design is mentally pushed forward by always having a prepared solution.
This Carlo Mollino video continues to encourage and push the Basement Garage woodworker to explore furniture design.
ENJOY!!!!
Ep 11 a Carlo Mollino Design 02
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsHere's our second episode on the Carlo Mollino inspired coffee table. Our homage to the charismatic Italian Architect and Designer from Turin Italy.
We start with a snap of furniture history and begin to develope the atmosphere that Carlo was trained in and worked arounded.
Construction engineering is dealt with in this Mollino furniture design and a present day solution is found. Our bending form template is completed and we press our 2-ply, the answer to our construction issue.
This Carlo Mollino form just gets more exciting.
Enjoy........Neil
Ep 10 Carlo Mollino 01
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsSo welcome to the world of Carlo. Carlo Mollino that is. This is the first Episode of interpretting a glass top coffee table, inspired by Italian Designer Carlo Mollino.
It's a bent plywood piece that we'll produce with a finished surface of Bird-eye Maple and maple trim.
Furniture design moves forward and stalls then forward again only to stall, Carlo Mollino was a Furniture Designer always in forward position.
Come along for the ride as we investigate the life and interprret one of his famous pieces. It's a complex build but Carlo wouldn't have it any other way.
So hop in the Bisiluro and lets go!!!!!
Ep 9 - Lingerie Finale
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsWell we've come to the end of the Contemporary Lingerie Cabinet.
In this Episode we evaluate the entire finished case, we revisit some of the important design elements, discuss how important they are in the final appearance of the Quarter Sawn Ash Lingerie Cabinet, and answer some e-mail questions.
This is a Modern piece of furniture done with a minimalist approach so there is nowhere to hide poor craftsmanship. The cabinet is a very, very good build.
Enjoy and look forward to our next project as we investigate Italian designer Carlo Mollino.
Neil
John Niero - ICFF
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsHere's an excellent interview with a young furniture designer showing at the 2007 International Contemporary Furniture Fair.
The interview presents a very creative designer who plans on using the process of Rotational molding, which exposes us to a second manufacturing process available to furniture designers.
Our Contemporary Lingerie Cabinet is complete and you'll get your first look at here. The build had an excellent end result and needs its own post.
I'm back from vacation, a nice bareboat cruise through the Pacific Northwest, summer is ending and it time for a new peoject.
Enjoy this interview and look for the Lingerie finale and the start of a new project.
Neil
WOOD Magazine Featured Project
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsThe cradle you see on the cover of the September 2007 issue of WOOD Magazine is my winning design from WOOD Magazine's Ă‚ Build-a-Gift Contest.
Kevin Boyle and the editors at WOOD did a fabulous job. The magazine write-up is excellent, complete with full scale templates.Ă‚ A slide show produced by the editors is also availble for viewing, at the WOOD web-site.
The video we've produced here, goes through the design progression that lead to being the featurer project. As you continue to build, you will find you have designs at the ready.
Enjoy and please share in my excitement.
Neil
ICFF - Aimee Less Interview02
00/00/0000, 00:00 | Furnitology ProductionsAimee less is a designer living in California. Her interview provides nuggets of information on design thought specific to her shell chair...The Derby.
Enjoy this interview on seating from the International Contemporary Furniture Fair.
Ă‚