All, et al, ad nauseum, Hey...several months ago I also promised a bio
to the galootari. So without further ado (since Wayne took a break and I
only have one list to watch) here is me at a glance.

I was born in 1974 in Lebanon, Ohio. I worked at my parents service
station from age 8 to 17 during nights and weekends. At about 13 I
started working for my Dad's Construction Business on Saturdays and
during Summer holidays. I have seen and been involved in many houses
being custom built and rebuilt from the ground up. This is one reason
why I'll buy an already built house! I enjoyed most of it and have done
plenty of all of it from digging the foundations right on through finish
carpentry. I graduated college in 1996 and saw the last of my
construction work that summer (the callouses are just fading). I am now
a Captain in the U.S. Air Force stationed in Dayton, Ohio. The benefits
are great here, even though I find my current job a little lacking.
SWMBO was met in 1994 and made honest in '99. Our little boy (16 months)
is great to be around and is one of many reasons I haven't gotten
serious about woodworking.

I don't have a shop yet, just a small assortment of user tools: Stanley
type 11 #3 & 5, a new #4, and a #6 & 7 not typed yet, 4 set of Marples
"Blue Chip", a Lee-Valley Dovetail saw (with an Adria Dovetail and
matched set of small carcass saws on the way, thanks Eddie) but the
highlight is a beautiful NIB Stanley #5 from Patrick Leach (better be
for the $$$). I have many odds and ends, including portable #lectricary
but I'm currently reading a lot because I'm interested in just about
everything to to do with making fine wooden creations. We are currently
moving into our new house, so I'm saving every last dime to create the
best, most portable workshop I can (in the Air Force and we move about
every three years with few exceptions). And, as with everyone, my
project list is growing even without a shop! I am currently sitting on
plans for 4 Hope Chests, a shoe cabinet, a small breakfast nook table w/
chairs, an heirloom ball drop maze, and a humidor. I'm so far behind
I'll pr! obably just become a @ollect@r... Also, I hate Todd Hughes.
Everytime I see a post from him I just get sick to my stomach from all
the drive-by and stealth gloats, not to mention the flagrant ones...wish
I could find deals like that! ;^) Thanks for reading.

Jay Kilpatrick 22 May 2002

This reminded me of a question I had. Perhaps some of
the midwest Galoots could enlighten me. Some years ago
(5-10?) some divers found a load of old-growth wood
deep in the waters of Lake Superior off, I think,
Wisconsin. The wood had been submurged in the clear,
cold water for almost a hundred years, something like
that. The last I heard some company was trying to get
salvage rights to bring up these huge, old-growth
hardwood logs. Anyone ever hear what happened?

As for wooden pens, this may be heresy on this list,
but frankly, it's not the body that makes the pen,
it's the nib and feed mechanism. Today's nibs that are
available for the pen kits are pretty lousy stuff,
kind of like the quality of a complete set of wood
turning chisels from China for $9.99. If any of you
out there are looking to make a fountain pen by
turning wood I would suggest trying to make a replica
of an early Sheaffer that uses a lever-fill mechanism.
This is a relatively simple filling mechanism and it
would be an interesting challenge to cut out that
small opening for the lever. Hmmm. If anyone's
interested I can direct them to much more information
about the "technology" involved.

Andrew

--- zhenya  wrote:
> Nice to met you, Andrew.
> You have written on pens:
> This from the other new guy here in Maine.
> As you wrote of pens, just to mention that two
> fellas here in Maine
> have made a business of making pens by hand from the
> wood salvaged from
> shipwrecks. I don't know any more except that they
> say it is going very
> well. I don't know their routine of getting the
> wood, or the legalities
> there, and I don't know what their shop is like;
> so, forgive me for not knowing more, just that it
> seemed interesting to
> mention that.
> 
> jim
> 
> 
> 
> Archive:
> http://www.frontier.iarc.uaf.edu/~cswingle/archive/
> To unsubscribe or change options, use the web
> interface:
>    
>
http://galoots.law.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=oldtools
>  

__________________________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Web Hosting - establish your business online
http://webhosting.yahoo.com

Nice to met you, Andrew.
You have written on pens:
This from the other new guy here in Maine.
As you wrote of pens, just to mention that two fellas here in Maine
have made a business of making pens by hand from the wood salvaged from
shipwrecks. I don't know any more except that they say it is going very
well. I don't know their routine of getting the wood, or the legalities
there, and I don't know what their shop is like;
so, forgive me for not knowing more, just that it seemed interesting to
mention that.

jim

Andrew Midkiff said:
> This reminded me of a question I had. Perhaps some of
> the midwest Galoots could enlighten me. Some years ago
> (5-10?) some divers found a load of old-growth wood
> deep in the waters of Lake Superior off, I think,
> Wisconsin. The wood had been submurged in the clear,
> cold water for almost a hundred years, something like
> that. The last I heard some company was trying to get
> salvage rights to bring up these huge, old-growth
> hardwood logs. Anyone ever hear what happened?

Check these sites:
http://www.american.edu/TED/SUNKWOOD.HTM
http://www.timelesstimber.com/default.asp

and, similarly:
http://www.fwds.com/ETL/index.html (may be out of date)

Steve - another Kokomo galoot

In his bio, Phil E. said:
>
> So hello to all and I'm just as opinionated as the rest of you, as
you'll
> probably find out.

Phil,

What ever gave you the idea that anyone on this list was opinionated?
I've been sitting on the porch (and sometimes under it) since 1997 and
don't remember ever hearing from anyone who sounded the least bit
opinionated.  Maybe one of the old timers who got here long before me
can remember such a person.   

Frank (Fort Worth Armadillo Works)

Oops.  I forgot about Paddy and his Jacks.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Frank Sronce" 
To: "oldtools" 
Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2003 8:11 PM
Subject: [oldtools] Re: bio

> In his bio, Phil E. said:
> >
> > So hello to all and I'm just as opinionated as the rest of you, as
> you'll
> > probably find out.
>
> Phil,
>
> What ever gave you the idea that anyone on this list was opinionated?
> I've been sitting on the porch (and sometimes under it) since 1997 and
> don't remember ever hearing from anyone who sounded the least bit
> opinionated.  Maybe one of the old timers who got here long before me
> can remember such a person.   
>
> Frank (Fort Worth Armadillo Works)
>
>
>
>
> Archive: http://www.frontier.iarc.uaf.edu/~cswingle/archive/
> To unsubscribe or change options, use the web interface:
>     http://galoots.law.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=oldtools

Greetings, gentlemen and ladies (?),

I am a lurker coming out from under the porch. Too many dogs under there.
I'm a carpenter and woodworker who discovered that finish work using
galoot methods is very nice. I knock off the big pieces with electrons
and then, ahhhhh, silence, less sawdust, and now I can listen to music!
Don't have to go to the spa either. Anyone else noticed what a lot of
planing  and hand sharpening does to the upper body musculature? And it's
VERY aerobic.

I also have a bunch of planes and I rescue old rustballs and sell them on
Ebay. (Don't say it. It won't faze me.) I've built some of my own tools
and really like to do that.

So hello to all and I'm just as opinionated as the rest of you, as you'll
probably find out. 

Phil E.

On 9 Apr 2003 at 20:53, pedger66@j... wrote:

> Greetings, gentlemen and ladies (?),

There's certainly some ladies around, although it's been awful quiet 
without listmom emerita Esther around - hope she returns soon.

> 
> I am a lurker coming out from under the porch. Too many dogs under there.
> I'm a carpenter and woodworker who discovered that finish work using
> galoot methods is very nice. I knock off the big pieces with electrons
> and then, ahhhhh, silence, less sawdust, and now I can listen to music!
> Don't have to go to the spa either. Anyone else noticed what a lot of
> planing  and hand sharpening does to the upper body musculature? And it's
> VERY aerobic.

Phil is also another box-maker. Can't have too many of those 
around. Good to see you here, Phil - welcome. 

-Ken

Ken Greenberg (ken@c...)
400 Los Gatos Blvd., Los Gatos, CA 95032
woodworking page: http://www.calast.com/personal/ken/wood.htm
books page: http://www.calast.com/personal/ken/booksfor.htm

Greetings, Phil, and welcome. Sounds like you'll fit right in except for
the "opinionated" part. I don't care what you think, nobody on the Porch
is opinionated. Nobody. Forget it. Dumb idea

Steve - another Kokomo galoot

welcome Mike!

        Jason
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael Lietzow" 
To: "oldtools" 
Sent: Thursday, May 08, 2003 8:13 PM
Subject: [oldtools] bio

> Greetings esteemed and gentle Galoots,
>
> I've procrastinated posting my bio long enough so here it is.  Since
> talking about me is one of my favorite topics, I suspect this post will be
> ridiculously long and a potent cure for insomnia before it's finished.
>
> My desire to make things from wood started a long time before I ever even
> considered the term woodworker.  Growing up on a small farm, my brother
> and I spent many hours in the local woods building forts and tree houses
> from whatever pieces of wood we could gather from the forest floor or chop
> down with a hatchet.  The first project I set out to build from real
> lumber was a simple set of stairs for the side door of my Mom's garage.
> Nothing complicated, just three steps to replace the cinderblock we used
> to get in and out of the garage.  I soon learned that building things
> takes patience and planning and, although I didn't realize it at the time,
> I now appreciate the utility of the geometry and trigonometry classes that
> I gave about 10% effort in when I took them in high school.  The stairs
> ended up being kind of ugly and required some shimming under the base to
> make them level but, all-in-all, it proved to be a huge improvement from
> the cinderblock step it replaced and gave me some sense of accomplishment.
>
> For the next 20 or so years, every project I took on was sort of based on
> this utilitarian aspect; mostly shelves for this or that.  During that
> time, I slowly developed an appreciation for fine craftsmanship and
> somewhere in the back of my mind I always new that someday I'd set up a
> shop for all kinds of projects.  My original vision of a dream shop came
> from Roy Underhill's Woodwrights Shop program on PBS.  I absolutely loved
> that show from the first time I saw it, especially the beginning of the
> show when he walked out to his rustic shop and slid that big door open.  A
> lot of time has passed since those initial ideas for a shop and there's a
> world of difference between the rural area of Ohio where I first started
> dreaming and the Southern California planned community I find myself in
> now.  So, my dream shop has been modified slightly but the goal is still
> the same; to have an area suitable for projects but also a place where I
> can simply escape and ponder life's mysteries while accomplishing nothing
> of measure.
>
> My start down the slope started like many others'.  At first I wanted a
> shop full of the biggest and bestest wood-shredding machines available,
> but I had neither the space nor the funds for that.  I don't remember what
> the impetus was, but for some reason I decided to hit some garage sales
> one Saturday to look for used tools.  I guess you could call it beginner's
> luck as I did pretty well that day bringing home an 8" sweep Millers Falls
> bit brace and a Type 15 Bailey #4 (iron smooth plane, Jeff)).  That
> afternoon, I sat in my gar..err...shop admiring the tools and
> contemplating where they'd been and what they'd built.  There was no doubt
> about it; I was hooked.  That was a little over a year ago and, thanks to
> TSGFH, ;^> I've managed to accumulate a nice assortment of tools of all
> manner and even use some of them.  I've made a lot of progress builing a
> reasonble facsimile of a real woodworking bench and hope to be dazzling
> LOML in the not-to-distant future with fine, hand-crafted trinkets.
>
> I spend my weekdays as a biochemist working on esoteric problems that
> don't have a whole lot to do with biochemistry, per se.  In my spare time
> (what spare time?), I accumulate old tools (surprise!), spend lots of time
> doing yard work/landscaping, occasionally dabble in old tool usage, and
> surf as much as possible (preferably in the ocean rather than on the net).
>  I love to hike and camp and climb rocks and trees and all of that Huck
> Finn kinda stuff but don't seem to get 'round to it anymore.  But my shop
> is coming along and there is a peace found there that is a rare treasure
> nowadays.
>
> Finally, I am grateful that I stumbled onto the Porch that fateful day
> about a year or so ago.  I didn't know diddly about old tools, or
> woodworking for that matter, but was welcomed nonetheless.  I don't
> suppose I need to go on about this since you all know what I'm talking
> about but I want to say "thank you all" for providing such a warm and
> thought-provoking place to put down my rocking chair and sit a spell.
> It's been a pleasure.
>
> Best regards,
> Mike Lietzow, Carlsbad, CA
>
> Archive: http://www.frontier.iarc.uaf.edu/~cswingle/archive/
> To unsubscribe or change options, use the web interface:
>     http://galoots.law.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=oldtools
>