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Thread: Post-project Downtime?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
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    twomiles from the "peak of Ohio
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    12,120

    Question Post-project Downtime?

    Well, that LARGE project is completed, and out of the shop.....now what? Maybe a week or so vacay from sawdust making?

    Almost feels like I have been "laid off".....I suppose I could sharpen a few things up...put some of the toys..er..tools away....maybe look for a few ideas as to what to build next?

    How does everyone else handle those times between projects?

  2. #2
    I usually do a "shop improvement" project between large projects. Part of that is to prevent myself from getting caught up in doing nothing but shop improvements; I force myself to space then out between real projects. Adding a door to a cabinet, making a jig, someday actually putting finish on my Frid bench, restoring a garage sale plane, that is the sort of thing. The tools are always put away at end of each day, but I probably should do some sharpening. That I seem to always put off until I actually need the tool.
    Last edited by Andrew Seemann; 10-16-2018 at 1:23 PM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Charlotte, MI
    Posts
    1,523
    I like to keep my shop as clean as possible, so I almost always go into shop deep clean mode when I've finished a piece. I'm pretty good about maintaining order, putting tools away, and keeping the floor swept while in progress, but I like to pull the benches out, give everything a good sweep, knock down any dust or cobwebs, properly sharpen the tools that I've used, etc. Very often, while working on something, I write down notes of little ideas for the shop, a more efficient way to do a task, a better way to organize, little jokes, philosophy, etc.. Sometimes these notes make sense and are actionable when I have down time, other times the context is lost and they are pretty much meaningless. Sometimes I derive articles or books from those notes.

    Having just finished a clock project for publication, I immediately went into deep clean mode and am in the process of organizing and upgrading my much-ignored shop loft space. It will become my turning studio once the insulation is finished, with my lathes, tools, etc. up there and out of the way of my main bench area but still easily accessible.
    Your endgrain is like your bellybutton. Yes, I know you have it. No, I don't want to see it.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Location
    twomiles from the "peak of Ohio
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    12,120
    Well...downtime will be short-lived....going to see about a load of Oak boards tomorrow.....Boss has seen a picture of what she wants....
    IMG_6235.jpg
    But done in Oak.....and NO PAINT.
    So...I need a couple sheets of paper, a straightedge, and a pencil.....and see about drawing up a "Plan" of some sort...

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2016
    Location
    Itapevi, SP - Brazil
    Posts
    672
    When I just finished a series of the biggest project in my life 25 years ago (ceilings, flooring, staircases, lots and lots of cabinets, large library, beds, tables, garden furniture, and lots of other smaller stuff for our then new home) I simply gave me a break... three or four years!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2015
    Location
    Los Angeles
    Posts
    51
    All of the above! After a major project, a thorough shop cleaning is usually necessary. Also, I find at least 2 or 3 "shop improvement" projects I can do to make my life easier next time around. A few nights of drinking a beer and basking in the glory of my recent successful endeavors tends to help get the gears properly lubricated for the next project.

    But I tend to have 3 or 4 projects going at once, usually 1 major, and 2 minor, so getting one done does not necessarily mean its time to relax!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    SoCal
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    22,494
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    I do clean-up, sharpening, clean cutters, re-org and build that shop fixture that has been waiting for me to have time to get to it. Oh! How about cull the shorts bin? Empty the dust collection bins, clean filters, wax machine surfaces and do general PM.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Perth, Australia
    Posts
    9,469
    I am currently cleaning up the shop. I have too many hand tools and it is time to let the ones go that do not get used. Cleaned up and sold a bunch, including a Stanley #45 and Stanley #112. Time to sharpen bandsaw blades and backsaws, and to flatten the bench.

    Time to plan and design the next few projects: Coffee table wedding present for a nephew, sewing table for my wife.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
    Location
    South West Ontario
    Posts
    1,502
    I always have several things going so real down time never seems to exist and that’s just in the shop! The rest of my life takes a huge toll on shop time!
    Getting out the shop vac and cleaning up is therapeutic, looking at my maple board pile 3 ft high and 12 ft long or 7 tons of rough cut poplar stimulate the mind.
    I’m running out of cherry which instills a sense of panic, a visit to my local saw mill to watch hundreds of board feet milled did not help as every foot was sold already!
    So there you have it, between projects I think about wood, plan my designs, and try not to buy more tools.

    A local yacht club wanted me to build a wood mantle for the club house large brick fireplace. A local barn being taken down had great timbers so I had one huge timber delivered for a great rustic fireplace. Then they found a huge mantle at the ‘Re-Store’ and had someone install it with 20 construction screws at 45 degrees into the brick! So now have to design a new ‘thing’ with this timber that needs 4 guys to move it! Ideas please! In England it was common to use ships timbers to build houses.
    ​You can do a lot with very little! You can do a little more with a lot!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    Pueblo, CO
    Posts
    328
    Downtime is for cleanup and a round of sharpening. I usually find another shop project in the process.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Perth, Australia
    Posts
    9,469
    I brought out my 36" Dreadnought today to re-surface my bench. I built this plane a few years ago with a 3" wide Berg blade. It is a monster plane which, although technically a cooper's plane, I added handles so that it may be pushed. It is big and heavy, and the momentum carries it through everything.



    Here it is with a 24" long Veritas #7.



    The top is now flat in all directions ...



    The leg vise has been cleaned up as well (the top was getting chewed up) ...



    .. and there were several holes and torn surfaces that needed to be filled ...



    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Austin Texas
    Posts
    1,957
    The Dreadnaught looks to be a wood monster Derek. What do you recon it weighs?
    David

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Perth, Australia
    Posts
    9,469
    Hi David

    It weighs 5 Kg, which is 11 lbs.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
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    27,347
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    Most recently my after project time was spent making a handle for a chisel, cleaning up scrap pieces of wood to see which should be firewood. Filled up the tank of the shop vac. The bench was cleared for the next project. A bit more clean up and rearranging the shop, then the next project can begin.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Derek Cohen View Post
    Hi David

    It weighs 5 Kg, which is 11 lbs.

    Regards from Perth

    Derek

    Derek is the main reason why I think all Aussie's are giant, muscled up, fire breathing Macguyver's.
    That, and foster's commercials.

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