Malcolm Schweizer
07-25-2016, 8:49 PM
As you may know, I'm a pretty hard-core Neanderthal. I have built an entire kitchen with hand tools except I did use a circular saw. I'm NOT against power tools- I just enjoy the challenge and the exercise that hand tools offer. Also, in the case of the kitchen, I was broke at the time and made do with what I had.
Well finally I decided to use the Father's Day GC to get a Dewalt 12" compound miter saw. I wanted the sliding saw, but they didn't have it in stock, and I also decided that the more compact non-sliding saw fit my small shop better, and offered plenty of capacity for what I will be doing.
I have had this vision for quite some time for a downstairs nook that used to be a coal fired kitchen with a big brick chimney and hood. It had become a catch-all for my guitars and music gear and lots of other stuff that didn't have a home. I decided to turn it into a built-in seating area/single bed with storage below. I installed LED dimmable strip lighting concealed by a curtained ceiling that covers where I capped off the chimney. (Note- the hearth had long since been removed and only the chimney and hood remained.)
She came out quite nice. I still need to repaint the hood part. I found a sheet to almost perfectly match the walls. The storage below allows me to stack two guitar cases- one atop the other. I have six guitar cases, an amp, loads of gear, a huge Pelican camera case, and even the new chop saw stored below with room to spare.
Oh, by the way- since the walls are stone covered with stucco, and the back wall curves towards the back to (originally) draw smoke up the chimney, this took some creative work. Nothing was square. There is an air gap on the back wall so that it can breathe. (180 year old home- no vapor barriers in these walls and they need to breathe out moisture.) I used treated firring strips to offset the 3/4" ply from the wall. They are driven in with stainless tapcons. A trim piece mostly covers the 2" spacing but has a 1/4" air gap at the back of it.
The chop saw worked well, but took some getting used to as far as figuring out where the cut would fall. I ended up buying a nail gun after completing this, in order to do some crown moulding in another room. I wish I had that when I was doing this trim. I made a mistake on that bottom panel, which opens to get to the storage. I will fix that. It has a bit of a gap.
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Well finally I decided to use the Father's Day GC to get a Dewalt 12" compound miter saw. I wanted the sliding saw, but they didn't have it in stock, and I also decided that the more compact non-sliding saw fit my small shop better, and offered plenty of capacity for what I will be doing.
I have had this vision for quite some time for a downstairs nook that used to be a coal fired kitchen with a big brick chimney and hood. It had become a catch-all for my guitars and music gear and lots of other stuff that didn't have a home. I decided to turn it into a built-in seating area/single bed with storage below. I installed LED dimmable strip lighting concealed by a curtained ceiling that covers where I capped off the chimney. (Note- the hearth had long since been removed and only the chimney and hood remained.)
She came out quite nice. I still need to repaint the hood part. I found a sheet to almost perfectly match the walls. The storage below allows me to stack two guitar cases- one atop the other. I have six guitar cases, an amp, loads of gear, a huge Pelican camera case, and even the new chop saw stored below with room to spare.
Oh, by the way- since the walls are stone covered with stucco, and the back wall curves towards the back to (originally) draw smoke up the chimney, this took some creative work. Nothing was square. There is an air gap on the back wall so that it can breathe. (180 year old home- no vapor barriers in these walls and they need to breathe out moisture.) I used treated firring strips to offset the 3/4" ply from the wall. They are driven in with stainless tapcons. A trim piece mostly covers the 2" spacing but has a 1/4" air gap at the back of it.
The chop saw worked well, but took some getting used to as far as figuring out where the cut would fall. I ended up buying a nail gun after completing this, in order to do some crown moulding in another room. I wish I had that when I was doing this trim. I made a mistake on that bottom panel, which opens to get to the storage. I will fix that. It has a bit of a gap.
341433341435341436