I blame Mike Henderson

[Richard Dooling]

Ever since Mike put up his plane hammer post I've been meaning to make one for myself. Then I got David Fink's book, then a mini metal lathe that I stupidly gave away came back to me and on and on. So here is my first start-to-finish made tool. Nothing like the Gurus here produce and I sure will do things different next time but isn't that the way of things?

I made the handle to fit my hand with a combination of lathe, spoke shave and sander work.

128330

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[Mike Henderson]

Always glad to be able to tempt people - care for an apple??:)

Good looking hammer!

Mike

[Brian Kent]

Very nice, Richard. How did you attach the wood ace to the brass head?

[Richard Dooling]

Mike, I try to be careful in this area and remember that I'm trying to be a woodworker in my limited shop time. Still some tool projects are hard to turn away from. Next up I think is a Krenov style plane. Also a dedicated shooting plane and . . .and . . .and

Hey Mike, when did you turn into a Cat?

Brian, I turned the brass with a step-down to a 3/8" diameter post about 3/8" long. The wood face is drilled to match. I just used heavy bodied super glue to attach it. I found it was simpler to drill the wood blank and attach it to the brass and then trim/turn the wood to fit the brass body.

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[Mike Henderson]

Hey Mike, when did you turn into a Cat?.
That's Bernie, who adopted us. He was a stray in the neighborhood that my wife let into the house. We put out signs but no one claimed him.

I remind him all the time that he fell into the honey pot but he rejoins that we're the lucky ones and not to forget it.

Just looking for some variety in my avatar. I'll probably change to a current picture of me later.

Mike

[Mike Henderson]

Oh, if anyone wants to see that tutorial on making a brass hammer, you can find it here (http://www.mikes-woodwork.com/BrassHammer.htm).

Mike

[Peter Bell]

That's Bernie, who adopted us. He was a stray in the neighborhood that my wife let into the house. We put out signs but no one claimed him.

I remind him all the time that he fell into the honey pot but he rejoins that we're the lucky ones and not to forget it.

Just looking for some variety in my avatar. I'll probably change to a current picture of me later.

Mike



Mike. You and that cat are a long way from where I am but are you sure Bernie is not Bernice.

Regards

Peter

[Richard Dooling]

I remind him all the time that he fell into the honey pot but he rejoins that we're the lucky ones and not to forget it.



Yup! That's just a cat being a cat.

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[Mike Henderson]

Mike. You and that cat are a long way from where I am but are you sure Bernie is not Bernice.

Regards

Peter
Yes, very sure. Also, Bernie adopted us in about August 2004 so he's been with us for a while.

I assume you lost "Bernice" - my condolences if that's correct.

Mike

[george wilson]

Richard,keep working,look at good examples of design and function,and try to extrapolate your own ideas from them. Trouble is knowing which things you see ARE good designs,and which are not.

When I was young,and had few tools,I used to trace drawings of things like ships of the line. While it was not creative,it did help train my eye for looking at shapes and artistic details,I am sure. Being drawings of 17th. and 18th.C ships,made back when real good design was more the norm than the exception,I was looking at good work.

I see so much work being done today by people who have real skill,but totally lack taste. I think developing taste is as much,or more important as developing skill.

The elements of good design have not changed over the centuries. I am not being myopic in recommending looking at old tools,ships,and other objects made long ago. Things made back then were made by craftsmen who were competing with each other in a time when the arts flourished much more greatly than they do now.

An example I can give of good design in the present day,harking back to earlier established work is the Fender Stratocaster. It does not resemble earlier work at first glance,but the curves present in its shape are very much correctly drawn. I can see those types of curves in early carvings ,ship's beakheads,and other early pieces.

We live in too much of an "anything goes" era. And the trouble is,anything does NOT go.

I hope I'm making some sense here.