Latest news and features
The Shed is now the sponsor of The Auckland Blade Show
This knife show in Auckland on October 6 and 7 is not one to be missed for those who appreciate the great craft of knifemaking. They will be plenty of stands with all sorts of knives and knifemaking paraphernalia to enjoy, discuss and purchase.
Arduino 101: Part 2
So far we have begun to get acquainted with the Arduino and IDE, the “sketches” or programs that make it work, and we have got it working blinking an LED on and off. In this article we will delve a little deeper preparatory to diving right in with a fully edged project with some real- world applications in the next issue.
There is now an RSS feed on The Shed website
If you prefer The Shed’s new uploads to its website to come to you rather than you to come and keep checking what’s new, then good news.
The Shed Useless Machine competition by Mark Beckett
Enter The Shed’s build a useless machine competition and win prizes galore. Its easy.
Arduino 101: Getting Started
This is the first in a series of articles to introduce the versatile and extraordinary Arduino system to people with no prior knowledge of programming or electronics. We will take you step-by-step through how to set up, program and use the Arduino and provide a series of projects that will help you gain the knowledge you need to free your imagination and work with this revolutionary device.
The Good Wood: Macrocarpa
Macrocarpa (Cupressus macrocarpa or Monterey cypress) is a native of Southern California that like another Californian species from the same Monterey area (Pinus radiata) found New Zealand to be a more comfortable environment and thrived here. It grows faster and larger here than in its native environment, possibly due to the lack of pathogens that beset it in its home environment.
Sean Briggs, Oamaru Stone carver from Shed Issue 75, Nov/Dec 2017. Photographed by Juliet Nichols
Spend a few minutes with Sean in his mobile carving shed
Bright Spark: Making model engines and spark plugs
When I left school I took on an apprenticeship at William Cable in Wellington. Unknown to me at the time, this opportunity would lead to a life-long interest in model engineering.
It lives!
Back in early March of 2018 a Sheddie was challenged to rebuild a Johnson 25 HP outboard motor that has been stored as a box of parts for 44 years. A few weeks later…
Shed Issue 77 subscription prize winner announced
Issue 77 subscription prize winner announced, is it you?
Enjoy a train ride alongside the Oamaru harbour – photography, Derek Golding
We featured the Oamaru Steam and Rail Workshop in The Shed Issue 77, Jan/Feb 2018. Here’s a short video of one of their trains in action
Reach for the Shelves: Stylish Stepladder
Why use an aluminium stepladder when you can build one out of timber in your shed. Bob Browning gets to it and shows us how.
The Shed Issue 78, May/June 2018
In The Shed issue 78, May/June 2018 we meet two Sheddies who are restoring, preserving and upgrading valve radios. We head to Whanganui to meet Graham and Val Hawtree who are avid vintage radio buffs then to Retro Radios in Dannevirke who restore valve radios bringing most into the 21st century with Bluetooth and USB upgrades.
Upping the Ante: How to make a hall table — By Stuart Lees
If you were an avid watcher of “reality” TV shows, your opinion of what was possible with timber would be limited to basic, chunky pieces of furniture, consisting of not much more than some slabs of timber quickly joined, sanded and finished.
Golden Bay, Living Wood Fair, Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd April 2018
What is the Living Wood Fair?
The Living Wood Fair is an enjoyable, engaging, educational community event for all ages taking place in Golden Bay this April.
Getting Real: Taxidermist
As a six year-old John Ward of Taranaki saw a pheasant mounted on display in a Stratford sports shop window and he desperately wanted it or one like it. “I would have done anything to get that pheasant,” he said.
Cutting Edge: How to make a Damascus steel knife
Matt James’ early passion for knives began when his father Alan handed him a book titled Step-by-Step Knife Making: You Can Do It! by David Boye. Now Matt shows you how you can do it too, how to make a Damascus Knife.
Restoring a 1971 Johnson outboard motor
A couple of Shed readers start a rebuild project for the Shed Magazine
Shed Magazine prize-winning subscribers
Two lucky subscibers to The Shed Magazine win outdoor fires
Oamaru Steam and Train Society – unpublished photos from The Shed Issue 77
We couldn’t squeeze all these great photos into the printed March/April 2018 magazine so here are the shots that missed out, enjoy.
Ramping it Up: Make a pair of ramps for home car maintenance
This story comes about because of a mishap with my trusty car ramps which I had for more than 20 years. They were a clever pressed-steel design, a product of Spedding Ltd, one of the country’s original importers and wholesalers who took on manufacturing as a response to the import restrictions and import licensing laws of the time.
The Shed issue 77, March/April 2018
In the March/April 18 issue (#77) Jude revisits some good practices re harvesting rainwater. He gives some solid advice on how to set up your own system to collect rainwater, keep it clean and talks about some innovative products to help you get the best results.
Lister Start-O-Matic electric generator on Great Barrier Island
The Shed on its travels came across this wonderful old generator on Great Barrier Island over the summer. It’s a lighting plant generator called a “Lister Start-O-Matic”.
Home Brewing: Two Recipes
For his 21st birthday, Allister van Mil asked his parents for a business suit and a business opportunity. His mother chose him a nice suit and then the chance of a home brew shop came up.
Building an Acoustic Guitar
Building an acoustic guitar is a very satisfying project that is within reach of most people with a modicum of woodworking experience. I have speed-built a guitar within a week, but for a more considered approach it is more usual to take three to four weeks.
Hot stuff – Gas bottle stoves
You can’t do that! You’ll kill yourself!” said the hippy to the gypsy as he began slicing into into an LPG gas bottle with a four-inch grinder. Sixteen years ago, self-styled “hipsy” Stuart Guy found himself spending his first South Island winter in an un-insulated house truck.
Classic Reborn: A Kiwi recreates classic 1930s Alfa Romeos, by Roger Lacey
The Alfa Romeo 8C Monza has a place in many people’s dream garage. The 8C dominated motor racing in the early 1930s and was the epitome of the pre-war era of automotive design.
Alistair Allan’s Kiwiana sheds in Oamaru
The Shed magazine visits a huge collection of Kiwiana in some old chicken sheds in Oamaru; as featured in Issue 76, January–February 2018.
The Shed, January–February 2018, Issue 76
In the January/February Issue 76 of The Shed, we decide the best way to enjoy summer is to create some outdoor fires that Sheddies can happily build themselves. Jude builds one for a measly $200 out of Corten steel and we follow the build of a block kitset fireplace that takes less than two days to set up. David Blackwell visits the Melbourne Working with wood show and we meet Des Thomson of Christchurch who endless skill-set sees him build a unique pod for his small campervan. His skills will astound you.
Wurth Flexidrive Shed 76 Jan–Feb 2018
As part of our article on sockets, spanners, and bolt sizes in The Shed Issue 76, enjoy this video of the Wurth Flexidrive standard in action.
The Shed, November–December issue out now!
In the November–December 2017 issue of The Shed we get ready for all that summer fun outside the shed and get building a Cold Smoker Barbeque out of a couple of metal drums. Evan Wade and Jude Woodside show us how.
New tools: drill press revolution
The drill press is one of those tools that we all take for granted. Its design hasn’t changed in a hundred years: a chuck on a spindle that is spun by a sequence of belts and pulleys. Now a New Zealand company, Teknatool, has thrown that out with the launch of a revolutionary new concept that has implications for machine-tool technology across the board.
Catalina Dreaming
Anyone flying into New Plymouth airport may look twice at a hangar on the western end of the airfield with an unusual tail of a large aircraft poking out. Few would realise what’s within: ZK-PBY, a 1944 Catalina flying boat, the only airworthy one in New Zealand and a remarkable aircraft with a remarkable history.
Free Wheeling
New Zealand has been slow to adopt the electric bike revolution that is sweeping the globe but a couple of keen Kiwis (and a Canadian) are using their ingenuity to create e-bikes with a difference.
Simple Solution
Hydroponics is all about growing without soil. In many ways this simplifies the lot of the gardener, but it gives them added responsibility for providing plants with the right level of nutrients. As water with nutrients tastes, feels and looks much the same as plain water, a testing instrument called an “EC meter” or “CF meter” is used.
Bend it
How often do we need to bend sheet metal, but are put off because of the drama involved? We may turn to a couple of bits of angle iron fitted into the jaws of a bench vice and try to exert even pressure as we fold the metal. I’ve done this and felt less than satisfied with the results.
Rub-a-Dub-Dub
Chris decided the solution was build an outdoor bathroom featuring two baths so he and Meg could both enjoy a long soak together.
