Wally’s Workshop

Well, Superbowl’s over. Pretty good game if you ask me. Intense, physical, hard-hitting - until about 5 minutes left in the 4th quarter that is. Hmmm, I wonder if the Philly fans will spring for a couple time management workshops for Andy and his crew?

Back on the home front… the Harbor Freight Dust Collector and PVC pipe system I installed in my garage/shop seems to be working pretty well. Today I dropped by Home Depot and picked up a light socket tap so I could have the ambient air cleaner turn on automatically with the overhead lights. That way I won’t forget to turn off yet another appliance.

While I was there, I also picked up a dozen of those ladder hooks that screw into the ceiling. The idea is to use them for an overhead storage setup. I read about it on hammerzone.com, a pretty nifty little site I found quite by accident. Lots of very good - and cheap!- woodworking and easy do-it-yourself projects there.

Back to the dust collector for a moment. My primary concern now is to hook my Bosch 12″ compound miter saw up to the DC network. Last week I found a storage bin at HD for $8 that looks a lot like the unbelievably expensive Downdrafter unit. I set up a sliding “table” (just like the Downdrafter) on the back of the miter saw bench using a couple drawer slides and a piece of “cull” melamine, added the jointer hood I got with the Harbor Freight DC Accessory Kit to the storage bin, and now it’s just a matter of fine tuning the installation. I think I need to get the hood a little closer to the CMS, close off a couple places where dust still escapes, and perhaps reduce the size of the DC hose attached to the table saw hood I mounted under the saw. Once everything’s set up, I will post a few pics of the project.

Speaking of projects - the T&G paneling is up on the family room wall (the last boards on top - about 15 feet up - were a royal pain in the butt!). Now all I have left is some kind of rustic trim between the top boards and the ceiling, the remaining “post” slabs around the door frame, and some rope trim in the corners. Of course, there’s still a ton of sanding waiting to happen, but I can sneak that part in just about anytime. Again, pics are in the works.

Well, gotta sign off now.