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The Shed magazine April/May 2024 issue 114 on sale now

24 March 2024

When Athanasius (Athow) Santamaria made an “impulse decision”, to buy a pile of old Austin parts in 2015, he didn’t really have a project in mind.
But this young kiwi sheddie, with no car building experience at all, figured he would have a crack at building a car from this pile of parts. Now, he is well down the track to completing an authentic reproduction Austin Seven Ulster; a scratch-built, boat-tail, two-seater sports car.
Athow south guidance and advice from Austin and vehicle restorers far and wide and the result is really quite remarkable. There is still some way to go but the skills he has acquired on his journey is apparent for all to see.
“The Ulster body is shaped from 5005 aluminium, which is a little harder than industry standard 3003.

The Shed February/March 2024 issue 113 on sale now

28 January 2024

This February/March 2024 issue 113, we visit a whole bunch of sheds around NZ and in fact all around the world. We start with a profile of the talented Auckland sheddie Chris Elliot.
Chris has a small shed in Central Auckland from where he restores Italian scooters and cars, well, cars that don’t take up a lot of space such as Fiat Bambinas. With a background in movies and TV set design, Chris is never idle and not only restores all the Italian autos he can but gets his creative side going with household artefacts as well. One talented sheddie.
Jason Burgess writes “A cinematic late-afternoon light pours through the corner window of Chris Elliott’s vest-pocket shed. The miscellany of collected artefacts, fabric, and vehicular memorabilia conjures up a neat yet cluttered bazaar in some exotic foreign land rather than an active workshop on the fringe of Auckland City. This concrete single garage is a celebration of creativity and productivity. Swinging a cat – or, for that matter, a hammer – might seem problematic in such confines but, when it comes to fulfilling a wide array of job briefs and cross-disciplinary commissions, Chris somehow makes things come together.”

The Shed magazine December/January 2024 issue 112, on sale now

27 November 2023

The cover story in our 2023 year ending issue is on the jaw dropping memorabilia collection of Terry Dalton. This is not simply a small room filled with a few bits and pieces, this is an enormous cathedral-like shed, crammed with memories. The collection is truly varied but includes a huge chunk of 1950s American Graffiti Americana including the cars and diners from that decade. Our own Kiwana has not been overlooked and there is an enormous swag of that as well. You really need to see it to appreciate it. Terry’s shed probably houses the most significant private collection of memorabilia in NZ.
“Terry likes collectibles. He has several extensive collections of different sorts of memorabilia, much of which he has bought online. He collects, for instance, oil bottles and tins, 1957 Chevrolet memorabilia, F1 stuff, musicians’ autographs, and the picks of well-known guitarists.
One corner of the shed, furnished with plush theatre seats, is devoted to the display of his treasures. He likes the collectibles not only for their own sake but also because they have a known value and are readily saleable; there is a market for them. He says that most will be sold as he gets older.“

The Shed magazine October/November issue 111, on sale now

25 September 2023

Headwinds in the foundry
The end of an era for Austins of Timaru
Our cover feature this issue is the story of a family firm that has provided a good living for at least two generations, building up an impressive skills base while manufacturing essential farm machinery for more than 90 years. The Austin family has run a foundry in Timaru for 93 years. Ken Austin, grandson of the founder, says the business has faced increasing headwinds since the Covid-19 pandemic, so he has tested the winds of change and decided to close down. The Shed visits to celebrate their technical foundry skills, the likes of which we may never see again in NZ.

The Shed magazine August/September issue 110, on sale now

24 July 2023

You never know where an interest will take you and for Mark Bedford that interest in fridges has led him to a business where he is the go-to guy for repairing, restoring, modifying and preserving vintage fridges. For our cover story in this issue, we visited Mark in his Auckland workshop where he describes his engineering approach to the preservation of these rare and collectible kitchen essentials.
“Mark’s stand-alone ’60s cinder block workshop sits at the far end of a long driveway skirted by large-scale factories. For this appliance engineer, musician, and general tinkerer, the industrial setting offers the right kind of seclusion.
Mark’s place is equal parts workshop, man cave, and band rehearsal room. His business, hobbies, and work life merge as one. By the roller door, a primer-grey 1980 Bedford CF camper-van conversion sits up on blocks awaiting the installation of a new power-steering system. Next to it, a free-standing 1950s commercial fridge restoration project is in the mock-up stage.”

The Shed June/July 2023 issue 109, on sale now

29 May 2023

Our cover story this issue is on one man’s paradise. Gary Norton’s shed is crammed with vehicles in various stages of restoration. Classic Fords sit alongside a bevy of trucks and a unique build of a mini Kenworth. Jason Burgess visits a passionate Westie’s mega-sized shed.
“As shed sizes go, Gary Norton’s is a megastore. It needs to be, because, despite the square footage, space is at a premium, crammed as it is with “a bit of everything” and no end of enterprises in various states of progress.
There is a saying about the more you have, the more you are occupied. Luckily, Gary and wife Raewyn are as industrious as they come. They run their rural property as close to organic as possible. Even when they both worked full time away from their land, they still managed to raise 22 different breeds of chickens, rear calves, fatten sheep, and breed goats.”

The Shed April/May 2023 issue 108, on sale now

27 March 2023

Our cover story this April/May 2023 issue 108 proves that it’s never too late to take up a new interest.
Whanganui sheddie Peter Loidl is a home renovator from way back and when he met some members of The Whanganui Woodturner’s Club at an exhibition, they encouraged him to join their club and have a go at woodturning. The results of Peter’s efforts on the lathe are really quite outstanding.
“In Peter Loidl’s living room, a 1:2 scaled-down Model T Ford made from various timbers does duty as a liquor cabinet. The bonnet and tank lift up to reveal a stash of spirit and wine bottles that have accumulated for years — they are mostly unopened, Peter tells us. He has wired up the headlights, back lights, and dashboard. He has also installed concealed colour-changing lighting where the bottles sit. There’s no drink-drive message intended; the car bar serves a functional purpose and is also an unusual decorative feature.”

The Shed March/April 2023 issue 107, on sale now

30 January 2023

In New Zealand, knife-making is increasing in popularity year by year. If the recent Auckland Blade Show was anything to go by, this pastime is now a full-time career for a large number of sheddies and of enormous interest to the general public. The hundreds who came through the doors over the two-day event are evidence of knife-making’s huge growth over these past few years.
Who are these knife-makers; what separates and what inspires them? Where are they, and what knives and blades do they create?
We’ll soon know more because in this issue of The Shed we profile 36 of NZ’s finest. Read our Who’s Who and Where’s Where in this issue in an extensive rundown of our 36 best Kiwi knife-makers.

The Shed January/February 2023 issue 106, on sale now

15 December 2022

For this summer issue of the magazine, we thought it would be an idea to keep our readers busy and enjoying themselves in their sheds on rainy summer days.
Our main article this issue “Six Summer Sheddie Projects” is about combining the fun of the summer daze and the annual wind-down with family and friends with the spirit of DIY that drove many of us to a self-sufficiency based around our garage workshops and sheds, and more recently extended into MenzSheds.
Our Kiwi No. 8 wire mentality gave us pioneers such as Sir William Hamilton of HamiltonJet and Peter Witehira of Power Beat with his never-go-flat battery.
Now it’s your turn. We’ve come up with six projects of varying levels of skill, and invite you to have a go at them, or — better yet — put your ‘I can do that’ hat on and improve on them.

The Shed November/December 2022 issue 105 on sale now

3 October 2022

Legendary panel maker
The unassuming Steve Roberts has been called everything from artist and magician to guru of alloy; he himself is more comfortable with the handle ‘tin basher’
Our cover story this issue is on a legend of metal shaping and motorbikes, Steve Roberts. Steve is one of this country’s most respected and admired craftsmen in these fields, and we made the journey to Whanganui to catch up with him.
His output has been prodigious; his innovations groundbreaking; his production values and eye for detail next level. Incredibly, most of his work has been conjured, beaten, and bent with ‘basic tools’ — an indispensable 1920s lathe, a homebuilt press, and an ancient wheeling machine — from a modest shed he once shared with his family’s horses

The Shed September/October 2022 issue 104 on sale now

8 August 2022

The September/October 2022 issue of The Shed, No. 104, has something in it for every sheddie.
Our cover story this issue is on a couple of blokes who are collectors and restorers of stationary engines of all different types and sizes. Tom Gregory and Gary Norton have got the bug bad and both find it hard to go past a stationary engine of any era and any fuel type. Spending time with Tom and Gary as they describe their addiction to these soldiers of past years will surely convert many readers to the joys of stationary engine ownership.
“There is something endearing, almost comical, about the chugging, spinning, and belching machinations of vintage stationary engines.

The Shed July/August 2022 issue 103 on sale now

20 June 2022

Our cover article for this issue is on how to do lost wax casting. Lost wax casting is one of those workshop processes that are so very useful for replicating parts or just being creative. In this issue #103 of The Shed, we begin a three-part series showing how to do your own lost wax casting to cast bronze. Our teacher is David Reid and it is his own technique that he has perfected over 50 years of casting and teaching: the David Reid Technique. With only the absolute minimum of tools and products, everyone will be able to cast like a pro after following his step-by-step process.
Also in this issue; Making Japanese panels, make a classic wooden workbench, metal garden structures, model railways and much more.

The Shed May/June 2022 issue 102 on sale now

11 April 2022

Forging ahead
There are great sheds, amazing sheds, and incredible sheds, but there are also sheds that you could call the ‘king of sheds’.
One such shed is the workshop of West Auckland’s Rudi Buchanan Strewe. In his shed, Rudi turns his hand to blacksmithing, engineering, tool restoration, building hot rods, sculpturing, and so much more. We had such a great time when we visited Rudi and watched him at work.
“The corrugated-iron shed is a deliberate nod to the past. Stepping inside is like entering an early 1900s blacksmith’s forge: clay floors and open beams, antique technology, vintage hand tools, and the faint smell of burnt coal. It is brand new but feels as if it has always been here. Thirty-eight-year-old Rudi embodies a pioneering spirit of discovery and Number-eight wire ingenuity. Whether it is restoring or repurposing old machinery, maintaining his hot rod and his neighbour’s motorbikes, or creating his one-off art pieces, Rudi is always tinkering.”

The Shed March/April 2022 Issue 101, on sale now

14 February 2022

Entrepreneurial opportunities?
With all the changes to our lives we have been experiencing with the Covid virus, is there a new cottage industry movement underway? Many have lost jobs, started new ventures, or are just keen to work in smaller groups in a safe environment, and the bonus is that with the way technology is advancing at such a great rate these days, new affordable tools are available.
The kitset CNC router we are showcasing in this issue is just such a beast. A hi-tech tool that was once only the domain of large engineering workshops is now available for your shed for a very affordable price.

The Shed January/February 2022 Issue 100 on sale now

13 December 2021

It’s celebration time.
The Shed reaches its 100th issue this month so we have a special edition of the magazine for you as well as our 2022 The Shed Calendar included with this December/January 2022 issue. We have a few trips down memory lane, and our usual mix of advice, projects, and amazing sheddies. There’s even a follow-up to one of our most popular articles ever.

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