Thread: Wood working

I was on the "chess" thread where i posted my hand made chess board.. It got me thinking of how much i enjoy wood working and crafting.
So i figured id see if anyone else out there shares this interest, and give people a chance to share some of what they have made.

Last year in highschool was the first time i have ever made anything out of wood.
I have been a metal worker for years, so thought it would be a piece of cake in comparison.. Boy was i wrong.
Wood is not quite as forgiving as metal.. but its so much better. Its clean and warm, and can really brighten up a room with a hand crafted center piece.

This was the first project i ever took on, a chess board.
It took me until mid January to complete at about 30 min a day 5 days a week.
A skilled wood worker could have done it in half the time, but im just glad i actualy finished.
I never took into consideration just how complicated one really is..
Its made of Wallnut and Maple squares (2"x2") trimmed in Red oak, and backed with Douglas fir




This is my 2nd project.
I was required to make something on the Skill saw ( kinda like a fixed jig saw )
Naturally i had no idea what to make, so my teacher mentioned doing the logo of my favorite car.
Most kids cut out the Ford or Chevy emblems, but i wanted to go a bit over that..
My favorite car ever since i was a child, has always been the 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner Superbird. So i went with that.



It was difficult to cut out without breaking anything.
I could have left the center empty, but thought an imposed roadrunner would make it far better.
I had to drill a hole everywhere there was a new cut. Meaning inside each and every letter, and a few times for the roadrunner himself.
It took me about 1 week to make, start to finish.
Its cut out of Alder, and backed in some random ultra smooth man made wood. The same stuff they use in skate parks for ramps.

Id like to spray it with glow in the dark paint, then sand it over. Leaving the paint only in the recesses of the lettering and the bird.

that's something i've always wanted to make..a chessboard. did you glue the squares down? any worries about expanding and contracting and splitting?

i didn't make this, the guy across the street did. he's a gifted architectural woodworker with three fingers on one hand. one would think that was a unisaw accident, but he maintains he blew them off with a pipe bomb when he was 18. his work is just amazing. this is part of a chandelier.

I've always been interested in doing things like this...

What would someone need to start?

I love woodworking, specifically 100% hand tool woodworking. I try to not work with machines at all. I do everything from dimensioning, thicknessing, joining and finishing with all hand tool methods. I really enjoys the process and the quiet. It leaves me feeling more connected to my pieces over when I make things by machine...

Here are the last few boxes I made. The last one is the smallest and simplest but it was cool as it was a board my daughter broke in martial arts and she was so proud so I made a little jewelry box for her out of it...