I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get that
project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a lot
- I'm retired from that, now)


--
I will find a way or make one.

On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:20:05 -0600, tom koehler wrote
(in message . net):

I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get that
project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a lot
- I'm retired from that, now)




I know there are flaws in my work, but there is nothing wrong with other
folks saying what is on their minds, about my stuff, if they feel like it.
I'm a big boy and can handle it.
tom koehler

--
I will find a way or make one.

tom koehler wrote:
On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:20:05 -0600, tom koehler wrote
(in message . net):

I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get that
project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a lot
- I'm retired from that, now)




I know there are flaws in my work, but there is nothing wrong with other
folks saying what is on their minds, about my stuff, if they feel like it.
I'm a big boy and can handle it.
tom koehler

I like the 100 yr old bathroom cabinet. You must have been very young
when you made it. ;)

--
Gerald Ross
Cochran, GA

Social Security: World's biggest Ponzi Scheme.

On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 18:39:46 -0600, Gerald Ross wrote
(in message ):

tom koehler wrote:
On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:20:05 -0600, tom koehler wrote
(in message . net):

I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I
have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get
that
project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand
and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a
lot
- I'm retired from that, now)




I know there are flaws in my work, but there is nothing wrong with other
folks saying what is on their minds, about my stuff, if they feel like it.
I'm a big boy and can handle it.
tom koehler

I like the 100 yr old bathroom cabinet. You must have been very young
when you made it. ;)



oh, jeepers! I meant the house was 100 yrs old - I tried to do the woodwork
like the rest of the house. uffda. got to fix that.
tom k.


--
I will find a way or make one.

On Jan 8, 5:20 pm, tom koehler
wrote:
I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I will find a way or make one.

You aren't kidding about that sig! You have quite a collection of
skills on display there. I hope the stuff I make is still useful and
looking good in 25 years.

On Fri, 9 Jan 2009 11:28:10 -0600, wrote
(in message
):

On Jan 8, 5:20 pm, tom koehler
wrote:
I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I will find a way or make one.

You aren't kidding about that sig! You have quite a collection of
skills on display there. I hope the stuff I make is still useful and
looking good in 25 years.


Thank you, very much. I have tried a lot of different stuff. Sometimes just
to see what it is about, and sometimes in pursuit of a specific goal. I'm
kinda concentrating on wood, now, to try to improve my skills... see if I can
make two of something, and have them look alike.
tom koehler


--
I will find a way or make one.

On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:20:05 -0600, tom koehler
wrote:

I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get that
project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a lot
- I'm retired from that, now)

Nice stuff there Tom, thanks for sharing.

Lenny

On Fri, 9 Jan 2009 16:33:48 -0600, wrote
(in message ):

On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:20:05 -0600, tom koehler
wrote:

I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get
that
project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a
lot
- I'm retired from that, now)

Nice stuff there Tom, thanks for sharing.

Lenny

Thank you.

FWIW, I have found that my method of reproducing the old molding works, but
not the way I'd wanted. The cutter rides up and down, according to the harder
and softer areas in the woodgrain, so the molding has a very uneven surface.
Will have to rethink this specific project and come up with a better molding
plane. It'll happen, just not sure when, now.
tom k.

--
I will find a way or make one.

tom koehler wrote:

I have 15 pictures at flickr. Much of it is turning projects, some it old
stuff. I am not a great turner, but I have enjoyed every thing that I have
ever kept out of the fireplace. Some of it is turning. Some of it is not.

I included the current molding project, because I promised SWMBO to get
that project done, before doing much more playing. She did say that I can
certainly continue making a mess with my lathe, as long as the bathroom
project gets done kinda soonish.

here it is

www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.

tom koehler

(a gandy is a railroad track laborer - they still pound spikes by hand and
dig lots of holes by hand and eat their lunches in the dirt, and swear a
lot - I'm retired from that, now)



Good stuff and nice to see.I like the Oval Box.

On Sat, 10 Jan 2009 20:26:22 -0600, Boru wrote
(in message ):



Good stuff and nice to see.I like the Oval Box.


Thanks! It was a fun project, and I have made a few others as gifts. There is
a folk art school in Grand Marais, MN, where they teach all kinds of folk art
techniques and methods. This box was one of those classes. Also learned how
to make stave containers like buckets and basins, with wooden hoops.
tom k.

--
I will find a way or make one.

Hey Tom... if you are still out there...

Liked you pics! Looks like you are doing a lot of different projects
- a man after my own heart. I was really impressed with three things,
in no particular order.

The shop-built molding cutter. Wow. That my friend is taking the
project pretty damn serious. No one I know would do that, and I do
this stuff for a living!

Like the butter mold. I haven't ever seen one, but I like all the
features including the carvings, etc., that would give the butter
relief when cooled.

I thought the round boxes were pretty neat, too. I like the design,
but I have to say, when I saw them all I could think was dice cups.
At 3" in diameter, how perfect could they be? I liked the profiles -
I am tired looking at the plain, straight edged stuff.

A question though on the boxes. When I enlarged the the pics, it
looked like there was a white substance in the pores of the walnut.
Was that lighting? Was there something in there from finishing or
polishing?

I like the fact that your work is practical as well as quite nice to
look at. While I appreciate the effort from the woodturning
community, I am tired of looking at pieces of wood "art". I like
things that serve a purpose.

Thanks for the post.

Robert

On Mon, 12 Jan 2009 22:57:10 -0600, wrote
(in message
):

Hey Tom... if you are still out there...

oh, yeah... I'm here... lots of lurking

Liked you pics! Looks like you are doing a lot of different projects
- a man after my own heart. I was really impressed with three things,
in no particular order.

The shop-built molding cutter. Wow. That my friend is taking the
project pretty damn serious. No one I know would do that, and I do
this stuff for a living!

well, this is a kind of tool I have made and used before, but never this
wide. It turns out that a cutter nearly 3 inches wide takes a lot of weight
on top of it, to keep it cutting right. I will have to also re-make the
cutter itself, as I used mild steel (only thing I had at the time) instead of
some nice carbon tool steel. Sharpness issues. The varying degrees of
hardness in the wood grain resulted in a wavy surface. (see weight and
sharpness issues) I will try again, a little later.

Like the butter mold. I haven't ever seen one, but I like all the
features including the carvings, etc., that would give the butter
relief when cooled.

yeah. It is a traditional Scandinavian thing, and the molds can come in lots
of sizes, from single pat stamps, to about a pound of butter or more. The
butter looks pretty nice on a big smorgasbord table.

I thought the round boxes were pretty neat, too. I like the design,
but I have to say, when I saw them all I could think was dice cups.
At 3" in diameter, how perfect could they be? I liked the profiles -
I am tired looking at the plain, straight edged stuff.

my design sense is kinda stuck about a century behind times. A wooden dice
cup w2ould be awfully noisy, though. Dice cups sometimes get slammed down on
the bar pretty hard, too. More noise plus denting the bar top and maybe
busting the cup. Leather is best. I can do those, too.

A question though on the boxes. When I enlarged the the pics, it
looked like there was a white substance in the pores of the walnut.
Was that lighting? Was there something in there from finishing or
polishing?

yeah, I see it too. I think it is wax. I do not yet use a powered buffing
wheel, and that is one of my next things to get. This wood is really porous,
and not something I have been accustomed to working with. I generally work
with birch or pine or maple from the local forest.

I like the fact that your work is practical as well as quite nice to
look at. While I appreciate the effort from the woodturning
community, I am tired of looking at pieces of wood "art". I like
things that serve a purpose.

I do not have the skill or the muse to create art, so my thing is to try to
make something that is useful in some way. If a thing can be useful, it will
have appeal to the folks I hang out with. The design elements or themes I use
are my interpretations of what is familiar and pleasing to me.

Thank you for your commentary and your compliments. I appreciate both.

Thanks for the post.

You're welcome. I enjoy show and tell. More will be posted as the stuff is
made.

Robert

tom koehler





--
I will find a way or make one.

"tom koehler" wrote in
message net.net...
On Mon, 12 Jan 2009 22:57:10 -0600, wrote
(in message
):

Hey Tom... if you are still out there...

oh, yeah... I'm here... lots of lurking


A question though on the boxes. When I enlarged the the pics, it
looked like there was a white substance in the pores of the walnut.
Was that lighting? Was there something in there from finishing or
polishing?

yeah, I see it too. I think it is wax. I do not yet use a powered buffing
wheel, and that is one of my next things to get. This wood is really
porous,
and not something I have been accustomed to working with. I generally work
with birch or pine or maple from the local forest.



a hint - when working with walnut - if you want a high shine, use lacquer,
build up layers, sanding inbetween (I wet sand with 320 paper and water)
until the pores are leveled out, then polish with the white automotive
polishing compound, then buff, then wax - you will get a mirror like shine
that will dazzle the sox off of a viewer at 100 yards

On Wed, 14 Jan 2009 1:11:33 -0600, Bill Noble wrote
(in message ):


"tom koehler" wrote in
message net.net...
On Mon, 12 Jan 2009 22:57:10 -0600, wrote
(in message
):

Hey Tom... if you are still out there...

oh, yeah... I'm here... lots of lurking


A question though on the boxes. When I enlarged the the pics, it
looked like there was a white substance in the pores of the walnut.
Was that lighting? Was there something in there from finishing or
polishing?

yeah, I see it too. I think it is wax. I do not yet use a powered buffing
wheel, and that is one of my next things to get. This wood is really
porous,
and not something I have been accustomed to working with. I generally work
with birch or pine or maple from the local forest.



a hint - when working with walnut - if you want a high shine, use lacquer,
build up layers, sanding inbetween (I wet sand with 320 paper and water)
until the pores are leveled out, then polish with the white automotive
polishing compound, then buff, then wax - you will get a mirror like shine
that will dazzle the sox off of a viewer at 100 yards



Thanks for the tip, I appreciate it.

Y'know, folks, I am savin' all this stuff I get here, for a kinda home made
reference manual.

tom k.


--
I will find a way or make one.

On Thu, 8 Jan 2009 16:20:05 -0600, tom koehler wrote
(in message . net):



www.flickr.com/photos/55616gandy/

In theory, it is set up so anyone can see it.



I did a couple of bowls in hickory, from my stash of old wood. Seems like
some of this old wood gets a little brittle when it is so dry. I am pleased
with my new chuck, and this could be the start of a nice and a long
relationship.
tm koehler


--
I will find a way or make one.