When I got the news that I was going to be a father of a baby girl I thought that maybe I could get out of redecorating the baby’s room if I embarked on a special project under the house.
The idea of building a cradle boat was inspired by photos in an old magazine so I went bought a copy of The Expectant Father’s Cradle Boat Book. But the boats were either very basic or so intricate I’d be lucky to finish it in time for her 21st birthday.
In The Shed magazine Issue 92, we featured master knifemaker Brent Sandow and learned a lot about his knifemaking skills. While we were there, Brent also gave us a guided tour of his well-equipped knifemaking workshop. Be prepared for workshop envy.
Whatever your workshop passion, from woodworking to welding, from electronics to outdoor projects, there are some great ideas here. If you are a newbie, give them a go — you have to start somewhere in your journey to be a creative sheddie. We have 16 more great projects in this second edition of Best of The Shed. All have clear instructions that demonstrate the build process and include diagrams and parts lists.
Sheddies on both sides of the Tasman have been inspired by the projects and informative features we run in the magazine, and this is a selection of some of our most popular articles from the first 15 years of The Shed.
Whatever your workshop passion, from woodworking to welding, from electronics to outdoor projects, there are some great ideas here. If you are a newbie, give them a go — you have to start somewhere in your journey to be a creative sheddie. We have 16 more great projects in this second edition of Best of The Shed. All have clear instructions that demonstrate the build process and include diagrams and parts lists.
Sheddies on both sides of the Tasman have been inspired by the projects and informative features we run in the magazine, and this is a selection of some of our most popular articles from the first 15 years of The Shed.
French doors give a house much readier indoor-outdoor flow, especially when they open onto a deck. The old villa being renovated for this project had existing French doors leading from the back of the house to the outside.
However, the owner wanted a wider, more user-friendly opening and the answer was a bigger set of doors. The doors in this project are unusual
Making Damascus steel is a true skill and the patterned finish really adds style to any knife. These knives are rightly famous for the keen edge they can be sharpened to and the length of time they retain that edge.
But how do you get those distinctive patterns the same each time and do that consistently? Well, we have found a knife maker who can do just that. Matt James has been making Damascus steel since the late 1990s and now does so from his well-equipped and spacious workshop.
If you haven’t heard these Tusk Silent Timber blades in operation you can’t fully appreciate what a difference they make. They are not silent but they are significantly quieter, and probably never squeal. These ultra-thin, deep-cutting, premium-quality saw blades are made especially for use on electric or cordless circular saws. They feature a patented sound
Earl’s Wood Hardener penetrates into soft and rotted wood fibres, restoring them to near original strength. It makes repairs possible to even the most fragile wood, ready for full restoration. Forget digging out rot. Earl’s Wood Hardener will penetrate wood fibres, and once dry, you can patch and paint, if necessary.
In a sash-windowed meeting room in the upper reaches of the historic Thistle Inn in Wellington, an unusual band of people is preparing for their monthly meeting. Master lockpicker and meeting organiser Derek Robson, aka D.Roc, is assembling an array of locks; dozens of them—mortise locks, pin tumbler locks, tubular locks, various padlocks, combination locks, wafer locks, even a selection of handcuffs, to challenge tonight’s group.
Gary still lives in the house where he was raised in rural Taranaki and he spends a lot of time repairing bikes to give to kids so that they can have the freedom he enjoyed in his childhood.
Gary is known locally as “The Bike Dude” and he’s been doing this for a while. There are second and third generations of kids out there riding bikes Gary has renewed.
The magazine is now on sale at your favourite newsagent and subscribers’ copies are with Australia Post so will be with customers in the coming days.
Here is where to find your nearest local The Shed stockist and check out the fully-illustrated rundown of what’s in this issue.
To purchase a copy of this issue or subscribe in Australia, from only NZ$49, head to our online shop.
I purchased all the brass sheet and rounds required, plus a main-spring, brass bolts, and screws of the various sizes needed.
Now where to start on the clock?
I carefully read and followed the order and instructions of the book. If the instructions are not adhered to, many anxious moments and frustrations will follow.
Vertigo CNC routers are proudly New Zealand–designed-and-developed, and they’re locally manufactured too, in Christchurch. The mid-size desktop Vertigo MX2-N, which has a working area of 1200 x 600 x 120mm, delivers accuracy, utilizing lead screws and stepper motor control, at an affordable price.
It offers flexibility in part size and material choice, working with plywood, wood, plastics, aluminium, and other non-ferrous metals, and there’s a Facebook community of more than 600 users for this desktop router. The Vertigo MX2-N CNC has an RRP of $6995, incl. GST. or $47.00 per week on finance. For more information, visit vertigocnc.com, or see Vertigo’s YouTube channel, or visit Facebook.com/vertigocnc.
Merry Christmas to all our Shed magazine readers and website fans. The Shed is taking a few weeks’ break from posting content but we are hard at it prepping the next issue of the magazine whilst we grab a bit of summer R&R.
Have a great summer holiday and enjoy that extra time now available to you for your special projects. However, before you get stuck into any home maintenance projects, have a quick read of this poem by one of our Shed favourite writers, Rod Kane. You may just decide to have a beer instead.
This is the nail
..that sparked all my fears
Of maintenance imperative, painting, repairs
The portico leaked, just a rusty old nail
But it wasn’t just one, the whole roof was a fail
So up there I goes and a…
Autosol Rust Ex is a powerful, industrial-strength corrosion and stain remover that is quick and easy to use — it’s as simple as wiping on and rubbing off for standout results. It quickly removes rust, tarnishing, discolouration, oxidation, and even bluing, and will give metal surfaces a new lease of life. See hobeca.co.nz for more information.
The Shed magazine is eclectic, informed, and always fascinating. Aimed at those with a few tools and perhaps a few clues: this is the magazine for real sheddies.
Packed with ideas, projects, advice, and peeks into other people’s sheds providing inspiration, ideas, and techniques, or just for the sheer enjoyment of the sheddie’s endless inventiveness, The Shed is the project enthusiast’s bible.
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