Ever have one of those days where you just can't seem to get out of your own way?

[Chris Bruno]

Last night I went down to the shop to continue work on my NYW router table and had just one of those nights. Things started off badly when I forgot to extend the pilot hole in one of the screw holes while I was assembling the MDF fence. Started in with the screw and oops! the MDF starts to split open. Filled it with glue, clamped it up and continued on.

Then, I adjusted the dado to cut the miter slot in the table top..Fire up the dust collector, start the saw and then pickup the table top and start sliding it through.... DAMN!.. I just cut the dado in the REAR of the table. Crap.. so I basically set that dado width so that I could put in some extra t-slot stock I have and pretend it was there on purpose.:(

Now, I move on to the dados for the T-slots in the back of the sliding fences. Notice I said back of the fences? Well, I had just finished cutting the dado in the router table TOP which meant that the laminate was face down into the blade, so what do I do? I started feeding the sliding fence into the dado face down. CRAP! Now I've got to make a new one.
:(

After that I just decided to clean up the shop and stop woodworking for the night. Honestly, I was lucky that my mistakes weren't safety related, but if they were... I'm sure I would have cutoff the wrong finger.:eek:

DOH!

-Chris

[Jason Scott]

Been there, you did the best thing by just cleaning up and leaving...Walking away is still the hardest part for me after making a mistake b/c I just keep thinking about it down there in the shop :rolleyes:

[Augusto Orosco]

It seems to me sometimes that those are the only type of days I have :rolleyes:!

I was building my NYW workbench and had to cut dados at a 4 degree angle on two pieces of 2x4 that were to be faced glued later in order to form the receiving holes for the dogs.

Of course, I ended up cutting the dadoes at 4 degrees without changing the miter gauge orientation (i.e. from 4 to 86), so, when I tried to glue them together, the dadoes were crossing each other. Good thing they were only cheap 2x4s, but my ego was bruised for making such a stupid mistake:o!

I think that for us who don't have much time to dedicate to the hobbie, everytime we have the chance, we try to do too much, since we don't know when we will be the next time we have time to work on our project again. Live and learn :)

[Chris Padilla]

Without mistakes, we don't truly learn!

Cheers!

[Lori Kleinberg]

All I can say is "Been There, Done That" :eek:.

[Jim Shipman]

Been there, done that. Was trying to get Christmas gifts finished, everything I touched went wrong for about a week. I finally gave up and gave sketches or pictures of the gifts. Finally getting most of them done now.

[David Giles]

You mean like the day I cut up the cabinet back into drawer bottoms?
Or the day I glued up the drawers without installing the bottoms?
Or the day I realized that the door rails were an 1" short..after I had applied the glue to the ends?

Learning to laugh at myself one day at a time.

[Greg Ware]

Yep... me to.
My wife always says "smile things could be worse" so I smile and sure enough things get worse. LOL. Cesar hit it on the head for me, always in a hurry with to much to do and to little time I think it's compounded by the fact that my "shop" is also my garage, so in order to do any work in the "shop" it takes a while to pull my tools from their "hidding" place and get set up to work. Plus having to take more time to clean up and put everything back. I have got to the point where if the next step on a project is going to take more than 2 hours, I wait until saturday. Then....as most saturdays go, I was just getting everthing set up when my wife hollered at me to fix the master bath faucet(drip). Ok, I thought. A new washer, dress the seat, I should have it done in 30 - 45 min tops. After pulling the faucet apart I found I did not have the correct size washer. So to the borg I went. Got back with the washer, put it all back together and...the drip is now much worse. Crap. Took it back apart and found a crack that went through the seat. The faucet (cheap contactor grade) needed to be replaced. Back to the borg. To make a long story short while I was thusly engaged in replacing the faucet, my wife who had left to run a couple of errands called to tell me the car had quite in the middle of a major intersection and she could not get it started. Crap. After checking everything I could check on the car I diagnosed it as the fuel pump. Crap. Double Crap. Pulled the car back home. Put everything back away in the garage and pulled the car in. Finally got the faucet replaced and started on the car. The fuel pump is in the gas tank, an almost full gas tank. Double Crap again. Anyway I was not able to locate a fuel pump anywhere. The dealer ordered one out of Denver, would not be here until Monday afternoon. OK...I will try to get some more done on a shelf and two tables I am building for our just completed family room. Except the car is in the garage, up on jacks and the gas tank out on the floor. So much for Saturday. Now, the faucet is working fine, the car has the new fuel pump installed and running fine. Last night my wife asked me when I am planning to get the tables and shelf done for the family room. At this rate about 3 months. Yep... me to.

Greg

[NICK BARBOZA]

yea, i HATE those... it will happen every once in a while. its like 3 strikes and your out! i just put everything down and walk away from the shop, with my head hung low.

[Troy Donson]

Without mistakes, we don't truly learn!

Chris, if what you say is true, then I happen to be the smartest man on the face of the planet!! An example follows:

Saturday - Got permission from The Princess to buy $1100 worth of lumber for furniture. Go to Exotic Lumber store where The Princess admires 3 or 4 bowl blanks while I am paying for lumber. The Princess brings over said bowl blanks she wants as I am fumbling in my wallet. Due to a mis-spent youth, I don't hear so well, so as I try to listen to the clerk and try to listen to the Princess, I just kinda nod at both. Since they are delivering the lumber to my house and my last name is not all that common, my address is unusual and there is a line, I just hand over a driver's license and they copy the information.

Wensday Evening - I get home - no wood. :eek:

Thursday Morning - Call Exotic Lumber store. "Yes sir, we delivered it at 11:45am, to -" MY OLD ADDRESS!!!!!! I gave the clerk my old license that I kept telling myself to cut up and throw away...:eek::eek::eek::eek:

Called the nice lady who bought my old house and arranged to rent a truck, take a 1/2 day off work and "re-deliver" my wood, which (lucky for me) had not been touched for 48 hrs...:o

Yessireebob!!! I is a geenyus


Troy Donson, Prince of Stupidity

[Jim Mims]

I need to get a sign commissioned for my shop.
It'll say:

T N C F S

Which stands for "There's No Cure For Stupid". <g>
- Jim

[J. Z. Guest]

I think we've all had those nights. When it happens to me, I close up shop, go upstairs and have a beer. (or three) Watch some TV or listen to some music or play Metroid. Something that won't make me why I invested so much into this hobby.

If it is really bad, I'll take a week off, but I come back with a fresh perspective.

[Dan Barr]

me too, but my most memorable set of bad luck days all resulted in stitches.

my chisels just seemed to be out to get me. and they did.

-day one: 1" chisel skipped off of a piece and slid through my left hand index finger...8 stitches (dull chisels are more dangerous lesson)

- day two: 1" chisel bounces on my workbench and slices through webbing on my right hand... 5 stitches (fluke)

- day three: poorly crafted gerber pocket knife folds up on my right hand pinky finger... 6 stitches (i shouldnt have been prying)

I was just about ready to put it all on craigslist. but i didnt.

I just waited a few days, went back with deliberation and told myself to pay more attention and stop doing stupid things.

Now, when ever im using a chisel, the focus is on the chisel up until the moment that i start to use it.

Im paying attention to where that edge is at all times. i hold it in such a way so that if i suddenly trip and fall, its away from me and i can toss it even further if need be.

as for the pocket knife, the blade lock (one-hand knife design) failed and the blade folded due to me putting pressure on the joint. i shouldnt have been prying with a knife. thats all there is to it. I should have used a screwdriver.

ciao,

dan

[glenn bradley]

Absolutely been there. Just shut 'er down. Pick up after your sorry self and go in and read a book. Tomorrow's another day.

[Brent Ring]

I seem to have those days more than I would like - Thats why my shop is such a mess. Or Vice versa??????