By way of introduction.....

[Alan Mikkelsen]

I've lurked here for a couple months, and finally got registered. One of the things I love about this site is the use of real names. Anyway, I'm a semi-retired consultant, doing some highly specialized public policy work. Formerly a congressional chief of staff, before that most of my life in farming and ranching, and flying (as a natural resource pilot). My father was/is a tremendous craftsman and my wife was always after me to build things like him. I resisted for a long time, probably not wanting to hold myself to his standards. I finally gave into the urges though, and begin woodworking about 10 years ago. I make mostly furniture, craftsman inspired but with a lot of my own designs, from cherry, walnut, qs white oak and maple. I've also built/remodeled three houses for our children in the past two years, since this semi retirement begin. I'll try posting a few shop and project pictures.

[Jim O'Dell]

Alan, glad you decided to join in!! Good looking furniture, AND shop. Not sure what your dad's work looked like, but my guess is you'll leave your own legacy from the photos supplied.
Again, glad to have you here at the Creek. Jim

[Bob Winkler]

Hi Alan, glad you decided to wade in! This is a great place, with great people and information. Your work and shop are very impressive and I have no doubt you will be a frequent and knowledgeable contributor.

Bob

[Lou Morrissette]

Alan,

Welcome to the Creek. Lots of great folks here who are always willing to share. Your work and shop are impressive. Keep the pics comming.

Lou

[Bob Hovde]

VERYnice! - both the work and the shop.

Bob

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Alan....Welcome to the 'Creek! An interesting bunch of people here always willing to share information and ideas! Jump right in!

[Corey Hallagan]

Wow, great look furniture and shop. Nice table saw!! Thanks for the pics!
Corey
P.S. I am new here as well!

[Karl Laustrup]

Alan, I'd like to chime in with my greetings and salutations as well. This is good place and I think you'll come to really like it here.:cool:

While I have never seen any of your dad's work, I don't think you need to worry about living up to his standards. If you haven't already met them, I think you're really, really close. :) :D

I like your shop, but are you sure you make sawdust there?:confused: ;)
It seems awfully clean to me.;) :eek: :D Or did the maid just leave?

[Michael Ballent]

Welcome to the Creek and it looks like you have been lurking around for a spell because you have satisfied the pic police ;) Nice looking work and look forward to your input from 10 years of experience :D

[Jim Stastny]

Great looking work and beautiful shop. I love looking at clean shops, they motivate me to "think about" doing the same :rolleyes:

[Jeff Sudmeier]

Alan,

Welcome to the creek! You have joined a great forum. You have made some great pieces out of your shop. I am sure your father is proud.

[Jerry Ingraham]

Hi Alan,
Welcome aboard from a fellow Montanan currently residing in Washington. I'm originally from Thompson Falls where the rest of my family still live. Great pics of some really nice work. I like the flip top router table. Looking forward to seeing more of your work.

[Bill Arnold]

Alan,

Welcome aboard! Good to see you crossed the road and fell in the Creek!!! :)

Regards,

[John Bailey]

Welcome to the Creek. As another semi-retired person getting into woodworking, I can attest that you will get many good suggestions and comments here. Hope to hear from you quite a bit.

John

[John Renzetti]

Hi Alan, Welcome to SMC. Always glad to welcome a fellow pilot and woodworker. Shop looks great, but I didn't see any sawdust on the floor. :)
I hope to join the ranks of the semi retired in about 16 months when the full time flying and the part time woodworking gets to be part time flying and a lot more woodworking.
take care,
John

[Alan Mikkelsen]

Thanks for all the kind words. I'm a bit of a crank about a clean shop and usually spend about 10-15 min/day keeping it clean. I've got a terrific dust collection system on every machine and vacumn hose drops at 5 locations for simply vacumning up the mess.

[Mark Hulette]

Alan,

Nice to have you post your work and share your shop with us! Love the Craftsman style but another nice thing about this place all the different styles and influences that come into play with mulling designs.

I'm an aspiring pilot and would love to hear more about what type of flying you do/ratings you have.

Again, welcome and we look forward to seeing more of you and your work!

[Glenn Clabo]

Kaboom! That is one great first post...and some sweet work.

[Chuck Radgowski]

I really like that popup router table. I have been looking for neat Ideas before I cut the hole in my side table.
welcome
Chuck

[Bob Noles]

Alan,


Good to have yet another great woodworker come aboard.

That is a classey shop and first class work you have turned out. I love seeing you pros trickle in.... it makes the knowledge base even stonger when us newbies really get stuck and need help.
I think you will find this to be one of the best group of people around. They have all been so kind and so very helpful to me when I needed them. I am trying to learn so I can some day help others in the same manner.

[Ken Salisbury]

http://www.oldrebelworkshop.com/welcomeplane.gif

http://www.oldrebelworkshop.com/misc/moderator.gif

[Bob Marino]

Alan,

As other have said, welcome aboard! Very nice job on the furniture also.

Bob

[Rob Horton]

Alan,

Wow, you're first post and I'm in instant fan of your work :D Very nice job! I personally am very fond of the arts and crafts style of furniture. And you really do it justice.

You'll find this a very friendly and extremely knowledgeable place. I haven't been a member for an extremely long time but I truly enjoy the company here at the Creek.

Welcome!

[John P. Smith]

Dittos to all the welcomes posted above. I am a newbie here to learn and you seem to be a great addation to the faculty here.
I am intrigued by the PVC manifold under your outfeed table. Care to share info on it and the rest of your DC system?

[Alan Mikkelsen]

There is a 6" pipe buried in the floor. Two manifolds, one on each side of the saw feed 4" gates and hoses that feed into the 6" pipe. One side has the table saw gate, an empty gate, and a vacumn hose hookup. The other side collects the jointer, router table fence, router table base and a vacumn hose hookup.

I also have a 220 and 110 line run under the floor to the center. I used to hate climbing all over hoses and tripping on cords. Here's a couple of pictures.


The last photo is of my old saw and outfeed table. The new table is a torsion box, so it stays flat.

[Michael Ballent]

Wow your shop is VERY impressive!!! So what type of dust collector do you have to power all of that suction? Inquiring minds want to know. :D

[Jerry Olexa]

Alan Nice work AND nice shop! Wecome!

[Alan Mikkelsen]

OOPs, I meant to talk about the dust collector, too. It's a 3 hp Grizzly, with Penn State bags (the heavy felted ones). I got the dust collector for $150 from a cabinet shop that had outgrown it, and spent another $100 or so on bags. The only problem I've had in 3 years, is wearing out the first PSI Long Ranger Remote. I'm currently using one of the new Woodcraft remote switches on the DC. We'll see how long it lasts.

There is also 6" pipe going around the walls on three sides of the shop, with 4" drops to each machine. There is a 4" line running along the center ridge. It goes to a 4" drop over my work bench and I use it when hand sanding or running the biscuit joiner.

I was originally planning on a 2 hp collector, when I found the 3 hp. I love the suction! Cats, dogs and small children walk in my shop with fear and trepidation! (Jokes, I have a 3 year old grandson that loves the shop.)

[Jim Dunn]

Alan I like the pictures of your shop. But I do have a question about the motor I see sticking out from behind that cabinet saw. It is a cabinet type saw isn't it? If so is it a hybrid or have you modifyed it so the motor is hanging on a different type bracket? Just wondering.

[Alan Mikkelsen]

Jim, the picture you are looking at is my old saw. For years, my saw was a 1953 Craftsman. I hung a 2 hp, 220v motor on it, a Mulecab Accusquare fence, etc. I recently purchased a Grizzly 1023 (used) with a Biesemeyer fence and that's what you see in the first pictures. My son is getting my old saw, we hope to deliver it to him at Easter. I've given him some carpentry tools and a set of chisels. He built a bed for he and his new bride a year ago using a circular saw and hand chisels, and it looked pretty good! He did express a desire for a table saw, though. He gets the old Craftsman, with a sliding sled, tenon jig that rides on the fence, a spline jig, and several other accessories.

[John Scarpa]

Alan,

Welcome to the creek. Looks like you have a great shop there. Great looking projects too! Looks like you're a prolific projecter. Come on in and join the fun.

John