Before...........

On Tools - Straight from Kevin

Tools, Tools, Tools, Tools,

Power tools are such a scam.  You buy a name brand like Craftsman, you think you are buying a tool that will last a long time.   A friend brought me a Craftsman chain saw and asked me get it running. After breaking it down I bought Primary and secondary fuel lines, carb rebuild kit and clutch cover.

Upon further examination I discovered broken fuel lines inside the carburetor compartment and to save time I decided to contact Sears about the fuel system plumbing.

Sears told me that since the saw was not under warranty that they could not answer my question.  I was told I would have to take it to service center.

The way I see it these tools are made with given short comings that are known to fail.  A service center pays a fee to the manufacture to repair these items and is given support as needed.  So, if you want to fix you own tools don’t look for support from Sears for any tools you might have purchased

Ok I will go back to shop and figure out the plumbing without their help; it is not that difficult I was just trying to save a little time.

I bought a Stihl saw 1997 and have NO problem with it. They have an online manuals with exploded views of the products so if it does need some repair the answers are right there.

Be aware of where you shop and what you buy.

~ Kevin

Thanksgiving Morn on the Sub-Floor

LOL! If I am going to blog about building a house I need to get my jargon straight. True that the rafters are a future step; but they are not what I was standing beneath in my last post. Sub-floor boards over the basement/crawl space were what I was looking up at.

rafter raf·ter1 noun

any of the sloping supporting timbers, beams, or boards that run from the ridge beam of a roof to its edge (((Encarta® World English)))

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Onward! It was Thanksgiving morning when I came into write at 8.30. And the music I was writing to was the buzz of Arthur on the chop saw and Kevin on the skill saw with a few interludes on the compressor punctuated by the nail gun. Yes, the title of the tune was Sub-Floors.

I ran out to take a few pictures and as usual, am delighted with the progress.

~Cheryl

To the Rafters!

Now that the beams are in, Kevin immediately got busy. It took the better part of a day for he and a friend load the rafters stored at the shop into the dump truck and getting them to the foundation.

The next day the dump truck was half empty and he had these rafters set into place.

Underneath the rafters, I stand back to get a full view. A living space is coming together and I begin imagining what it will be like to live inside. Smiles and Goosebumps.

~Cheryl

1st beam conquered!

Behind the scenes boards continued to be cut and stacked for our house.

On stage now are the major crossbeams. Two 500 pound pieces of wood cut on the sawmill from discarded local trees.

I wanted to show the work in progress of how these beams were set because the progress truly was a test of patience and ingenuity.  The collage below gives you some highlights.....

This three-day moving process involved NO power tools, just Kevin, ladders, scaffolding and an overhead homemade ridge crane with straps holding the beam in place.

A tedious but fulfilling event. I must admit the precarious positions involved in Kevin’s maneuvering these huge chunks of wood kept me at bay. However, when the 2^nd one slipped into place and I realized how much closer we are to having our house and moving out of the trailer, proud excitement rushed through me.

Now on to the rafters and sub-floor joists!

~Cheryl 

Adirondack Chairs ~ More Playing with Sticks

Using Kevin’s shop yard as a backdrop obviously isn’t as appealing as our still green yard, unless you’re a fellow carpenter builder welder etc, but until he finds time to build the staging area I want this will do. But I was iPod armed and can’t wait to share these lovely new Adirondack chairs he’s been working on.

A couple who had hoped to win the raffled off set of these chairs at the charity auction a few weeks ago requested these.

Simple armchairs and bench of wide pine slats of slanted backs and seats easily conjure up early fall suppers on the deck. It makes me think of Indian summers, tired scarecrows, late pumpkins and the leaves changing color.

They also bring me back memories of summer grilling, sunshine, cold beer and lemonade, water fights and lightening bugs.

Either way, they call us out of doors.

And of course, the pine, as always, is courtesy fall off from the Sawmill.

An unfinished set runs $175.00 

Single stained Finish – additional $20.00 charge

Blended Stain Finish – additional $50.00 charge

Pieces sold separately - $75.00 each

Dimensions:

Chair – 20 inches wide, front seat height 12 inches, 21 inch arm rest height, 20 inch seat depth

Bench – 48 inches wide – all other dimensions same as chairs

~ Cheryl

Available through Etsy:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/85182946/adirondack-chair-and-bench-set

Victorian Rustic Lantern

The Rustic look applies to metal as much as it does wood. And in describing this lantern I am inclined to move away from the Cowboy genre towards what my poet’s sense calls ‘Victorian Rustic’.

I imagine this garden beacon hanging just outside a crocheted lace-curtained window. And this window hangs on an antebellum house designed by collaboration between Woody Allen (circa Annie Hall) and Tim Burton (circa Edward Scissorhands).

And what title do we hang on the craftsman? Sculptor / welder / artist? It matters not. When Kevin works the creative process, or any of us for that matter, we transfer energy into a set of components set by choice and release a new form.

Sculpture is any 3 dimensional work of art. Art is a thought-provoking piece produced through creative activity. Work is a composition of one’s creativity and time.

Discarded but not forgotten in the realms of StickStoneSteel ~ Kevin Reclaimes ~ ~ ~

Housing the candle is a fire damaged propane tank. Balancing like a jagged halo a used ban saw blade teeters. Welded sturdy chain reach upwards reminiscent of both dungeons and ships tethers. Securing that equilibrium is a simple saw blade.

~ Cheryl
Available on Etsy.com  :
http://www.etsy.com/listing/85180864/victorian-rustic-lantern?ref=pr_shop