Projects

The Shed March/April 2020, Issue 89, in shops now

Issue 89 of The Shed has a great mix of projects and sheddie talents to enjoy.
Nigel Young records the build of a mega-sized spit roast BBQ. Built by the team at the Halswell Menzshed as a fundraising project, this big trailer-mounted gas-burning beast of a cooker can take a full-sized pig for those big gatherings or fund-raising projects.

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Flying high

A video of Harry aboard his flying fox went viral and the story was viewed more than 164,000 times on the New Zealand Herald’s Facebook page, prompting hundreds of comments full of admiration for the “real Kiwi man”. Reporters trudged to his door and the phone rang red hot with people wanting his opinions on everything from sanity to the secret to happiness.

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Distilling at home

One step up from home brewing your own beer is distilling your own spirits, whether whisky, vodka or a liqueur.
It’s okay to do this by law in New Zealand at home and for personal use although there are restrictions in Australia and many other countries

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Its hammer time

Making a hammer head is a project not really worth doing financially, given the cost of a handle alone vs. a new hammer and how easy it is to get an existing hammer and re-forge it to suit your special needs.
Having said that, mere project economics never stopped a true Sheddie.

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A set of easily made drawers

This easily made set of drawers may be just the answer in your home workshop and it can be made in a day. I have seen many versions of this set over the years and, because of its simplicity, it is easy to make the size and number of drawers to suit your particular requirements.

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Get on yer (electric) bike!

The thought of having an electric bike is very tempting and makes the idea of reaching that café far more appealing but the cost of replacing your bike has you thinking twice about making the jump.
Besides being a bit dusty you have a good bike that cost a few dollars in its day and it seems a shame to banish it to the corner of the shed forever. What if you could turn your bike into an electric bike without breaking the bank?

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Size matters, but so do good looks

Philip Solomon has years of experience putting up large sheds and his top tip is that shed aesthetics are important.“A lot of people just focus on what they want to put in the shed until it goes up and then they say, ‘Oh, I don’t like that’,” he says.

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Make your own Kontiki for fishing

There are several New Zealand-designed and created fishing kontikis on the market but when I thought about having one, I wasn’t going to buy it.
I had the ability, so I did what any good Kiwi would do, I decided I would make one myself.

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Refurbishing my bench plane

The metal-based hand plane must be one of the most enduring and useful tools in the kit of any aspiring woodworker.
Those of us who take the hobby a little more seriously will have several of them and we will probably argue that we use them all. I have six or seven but have never bought one.

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Build a tipping trailer

When I first looked at building a tipping trailer, I wondered whether I would be building a trailer with a hydraulic cylinder under it, or fitting a hydraulic cylinder under a trailer. After due consideration, I realised that a trailer is a trailer, regardless of the frills.

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Climate control

As a project, a weather station is a great one for beginners and advanced woodworkers alike. It can be as simple as taking a really attractive piece of timber, sanding and finishing it to a high degree (even leaving the edges natural) and attaching one or more brass instruments to the surface.

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