Woodworking for the Blind.

Member's Projects.

Bob the Builder Bear.

Teddybear's Table.

Bob the Builder Bear is a teddybear who lives with Max and Sue Robinson. He sat in the shop and watch me, Max, build this table. It is 5 inches long, 3 and 1/8 inches wide and 3 and 1/8 inches high. It has aprons and legs just like a full sized table. No stretchers. It was made from poplar and painted wood brown. Bob is now claiming that he built it. Who am I to argue with a teddybear.

Max Robinson.

One of Three Bookcases.

This bookcase is built from 3/4 inch red oak faced plywood which is edged with solid pieces of red oak. It is 79 and 3/4 inches tall and 16 inches wide outside dimension. The top is surrounded with simple square molding of the same wood. The whole thing is stained medium reddish brown.

There are 5 shelves and a top and bottom. I am not planning to use the bottom for books to avoid blocking the HVAC vent which can be seen in the photograph. The back of the case begins at the first shelf rather than the bottom to leave the vent clear.

Its companion which at this writing is already finished is 53 and 1/4 inches tall and sits to the right of this one. Its width and depth are the same as the one pictured. It is as short as it is to avoid blocking the electrical panel which can be seen to the right of the bookcase in this picture.

The third one, construction to begin tomorrow, is 89 and 3/4 inches tall and has seven shelves counting the bottom. Horizontal dimensions are the same as the first two. It stands against the opposite wall across from this one. I've only shown one because when you see one bookcase you've seen em all.

Mike Smith.

Two Prize Winning Bowls.

The first is a 10 inch segmented bowl made with cherry as the main color and ipe bands outlining diamonds made of paduk and ash background for the red diamonds.

The second one is a walnut and ash striped turned square candy dish on a walnut turned pedestal.

Ralph Haney.

Oak Desk Set.

This is a desk set that I made for a good friend of mine that lives in Florida. It's made from red Oak and is 5 1/16 inches wide, 19 inches long and the base plate is 3/4 of an inch thick. There are two staff pins in holders one on each side and the pens are retractable ballpoint's. Just inside of the pin holders are to pockets 2 inches in diameter and approximately 1/2 inch deep with a 3/8 radius at the bottom cut with a 1 1/4 inch top bearing bowl bit. I Inside of these and centered are 5, 1/4 inch thick stall separators 3 1/2 inches high with 1/2 inch radius rounded top ends intended to hold letters and other correspondence. The edges of the base are fancied up by a stepped Ogee profile. It is finished with Danish oil golden oak, two coats, and then three coats of wipe on polyurethane. Soft green felt has been glued to the bottom to provide a non-Marr surface. The unit is of my design and I have built several of these but this one turned out the best.

Outdoor Tool Cabinet.

I thought you might like to see some pictures of my latest large woodworking project so they are attached hereto. It's an outdoor storage cabinet for my wife's gardening tools and measures 6 feet wide by 6 feet tall by 2 feet deep and has two bays with individual doors as you can see. The left Bay is for large tools such as shovels, rakes and hoes. In the right bay is used for gardening products with three shelves and room for a pegboard at the top and large storage area at the bottom.

I completed it just before Christmas and it is installed on a concrete slab just back of our attached garage. It's bolted to the concrete with four 1/2" lag bolts so the Oklahoma win won't move it around. It is my own design and Mary is quite happy with it. There were many firsts on the project for me as a woodworker and I enjoyed building it very much. The biggest challenge was the inset panel doors which I made an installed with locking door hardware.

For those of us that can't see the pictures I offer the following description: as stated above the outside dimensions are 6 feet wide by 6 feet tall by 2 feet deep. There are two bays with doors that open to the right and left with a center petition separating the two bays. The left Bay is open for long tool storage and the right bay has three shelves 24 inches down from the top to the first shelf and approximately 10 inches between each shelf with a large storage area at the bottom for bulky items. The shelves are 1 foot wide or deep if you prefer leaving a large area in front open for storage on peg board on the door. The shelves are installed from the back in blind dadoes and a stepped round over was cut along the top edge of the facing boards which cover the plywood at the front. The cabinet top is fitted to the walls and center partition in glued dadoes with wood screws backing up the joints. The overall construction is of three quarter plywood except for the back which is ½inch plywood with a center lap joint covered by a clap board and secured to the center partition with wood screws.

The floor was to be a glue up of 2 by 8 boards but they were in such bad shape, they demonstrated every defect available in stick lumber, so I ripped them in two and made multiple glue ups and planed the two surfaces as flat as possible on both sides with a jack plane and it turned out quite well. This, of course, made the bottom a solid piece and I placed a sub base under the floor of 2 by 4's laid flat with lap joints and to cross pieces equal distance from the ends. The mounting holes were drilled through the floor and the sub base through the cross pieces for bolting down to the slab out back of the garage.

The doors were constructed of 2 by 6's with three cross pieces and mortis and tenon joints with an insert panel of 1/4" plywood. The hinges set in rounded corner mortises and the door closing hardware is lockable with both sides taking the same key.

The unit was sanded on all surfaces and my wife applied the finishes which consisted of an oil base primer covered by an oil based porch and deck paint with an overcoat of house paint to match the color of our house. The carcass is all one color and the doors are white on the rails and styles and the insert panels are the same color as the carcass.

The unit is quite heavy and I sealed around the base with silicone rubber so water won't get under the cabinet. It took some ingenuity to figure out an easy way to move it into place since the holes in the concrete were predrilled after I fabricated the base and drilled the mounting holes in it. Where it's mounted there is a concrete block wall on either side about 3 foot tall and the cabinet slips in between these walls with approximately 1/2" clearance on each side. A tight fit but it worked just fine. I had assistance from a friend in moving it to its permanent location and it actually went easier than I thought. This is a very heavy unit, very sturdy and very rigid with the mounting bolts and concrete anchors and should withstand the elements just fine. Hope you enjoy seeing it and have a good year. January 6, 2012.

Max Robinson.

Footstool.

The footstool was made as a 2011 Christmas present for Sue. It is 9 and a half inches high, 15 inches wide, and 11 and a half inches deep. I was lucky enough to find a red oak 1 by 12 that was 2 feet long at Lowe's. The top is all one piece instead of being a glue-up. The legs started out as 2 by 2s that I thickness planed down to 1 and a fourth. The growth rings are at 45 degrees to the surfaces, more luck at the home center. The corners were eased using a 1/8 round-over bit in the router table. The legs are angled outward at 5 degrees. The stretchers are 3/4 by 3/4 inches with a bevel cut on each corner. They are mortised into the legs. The legs are fastened to the top with dowels which I think may not have been the best way. I wasn't sure Sue would sit still for a through mortise. It is finished with a golden oak stain varnish combination. She is very happy with the foot-stool and has given me several hugs for building it for her.

Dave Morgan.

Corner Bench.

The bench is constructed of 2 by 10 inch pine. First step was to cut two pieces, 36 inches each in length and at one end of each board cut a 45 degree angle. I then used a 3/8 inch round over bit to round the edges of each of the 36 inch boards. Next step was to cut four pieces, 24 inches in length, out of the remaining 2 by 10 for the legs. Round over the long side of the legs with my 3/8 inch round over bit. I then used a Forstner bit to drill a hole approximately six and one half inches up from the bottom of each leg and then used a saber saw to cut a v shaped angle from the bottom of each leg to the center of each hole. I used two, one and one quarter inch wooden dowel rods as stretchers between the legs. Used one and one quarter Forstner bit to drill a hole on the inside of each leg to a depth of one half inch. I then countersunk a screw on each of the dowel rods to secure it in place between each leg. Filled the holes with a piece of dowel and sanded it flat to the leg. I stained the legs dark green and kept the bench seat in its natural color and used a marine varnish to seal it from the weather.

Darrel Vickers.

Water mill house.

The house is the style of a chalet Cuckoo clock with out the clock face. It is made of rough cedar except the water wheel. It is about 38 inches tall at roof peek. 24 inches wide with out the water wheel and 16 inches deep. The color is black cherry with forest green trim. Looking at it from the front, at the bottom is a door then there are 4 windows. Above the windows there is a balcony. This is where the dancers turn a round on a turn table driven by the water wheel. Above this is a door where the Cuckoo bird comes out and bobs also driven by the wheel. The water wheel and flume are on the right side. The wheel is made of cherry and is painted forest green except for the blades which are natural cherry. Above the wheel is the water flume and what I call a small water fall house. The roof line for this is just below the roof line of the main house. The water wheel is 15 inches in diameter and 6 inches wide. Below the wheel in the ground will be the main water reservoir with a pump that pumps the water up to the water fall house. I had a cheap right angle drill attachment I used to drive the vertical shaft for the dancer table and bird. I used a 3 eights threaded rod for the horizontal drive shaft from the water wheel and the vertical shaft up to the dancer platform. I got my little people , two small flower pots and small trees and bird from an on line craft store. The small trees are on each side of the balcony. The left side of the house has 4 windows. All the trim for the door, windows balcony and roof edges are painted forest green. There is no fancy joinery on this project. I used pocket hole screws, crown staples and finish nails. to assemble everything

Armando del Gobbo.

Doll Cradle.

The cradle is 10x10x18. The ends are 10x10. The bottom is arked to form the rockers, I did not want to attach actual rockers for fear that the child would step on the ends and go flying. The cradle when flipped over, serves as a stool to sit or stand on.

The top of the ends, are formed by making a cut straight down about one inch from the edge and down about 1-1/2 inches. These form the four posts, the bottom of the straight cut forms the start of a similar ark to the bottom which is 1/4 inch lower than the top of the four posts, so not to interfere with the balance when turned over.

The sides are made with four rails, two on each side. The rails are 1-1/4 wide, and 3/4 thick. A rabbit 1/4 by 1/2 is cut out of the bottom of the top rail and the top of the bottom rail. Slats 1/4 by 1 and four inches long and one inch apart are fastened in the rabbits, to form the sides. The ends of the sides, are formed by rabbiting a 3/4 piece with a rabbit 1/2 by 1/2 to make it flush with the slats on one side. The bottom is made from 1/2 material. The bottom is fastened to the bottom of the sides, and then the structure is fastened to the ends with screws through the ends into the rails. The whole cradle is made of silver maple.

Star Frame.

A frame shaped like a 5 pointed star surrounds a poster. The interior opening of the frame is a pentagon.

The star frame is made from 1x4 pine, the angle is 36 degrees, the sections are 10 inches long, a rabbet is cut in the inside edge, to form a star-shaped picture frame. I created the points of the star, with 1/2 x 5 maple for a little contrast. The points are fastened over the corners, overlapping each side of the corner. The inside of the point, is cut to follow flush with the inside of the corner, and the outside extends out the corner by six inches. I drew a line, starting at the point where the outside of the frame to the middle of the end of the point. Set up my miter saw to match the line. The outer part of the points on the inside touch each other. Used a 1/4 round over bit to round over all sharp edges.

Toy tractor with trailer.

This is a wooden toy tractor with a trailer attached. It has a seat suggesting it is a riding toy and a pull cord suggesting a pull toy. I suppose it's use depends on the size of the child playing with it.

Gift Table.

This is a project I just finished for a wedding present. The project is made from black walnut with a Danish oil finish. It is a two level coffee table. The top and bottom are connected by hearts, and on each side of the heart is a wedding bell. It is 21 inches high, 21 inches wide and 39 inches long, I used a Roman Oge bit to router the top and bottom levels. I hope that the pictures come through clear enough! I sometimes get out of focus when taking pictures!

Charlie Breese.

Segmented Bowl.

The segmented bowl is butter nut cherry and spalted maple. I cut the pieces for 2 bowls the same size put a bottom on 1 and a scrap piece of pine on the other . turned both to the same size. Them put them together separated the pine that was glued on with brown paper and trued it all up. This is my first attempt at this type bowl.

Inside Out Bowl.

The other is what they call inside out turning. I took 4 pieces of hard maple cut to the same size. Glued them together with brown paper about 1 inch from the ends. Put one end in the chuck centered up with the tail piece and taped the end with strapping tape for safety . turned a profile. Then knocked it apart turned the pieces 180 glued back together with a golf ball inside and turned the reverse profile. This was also my 1st attempt.

Darrel Vickers.

Five-Board Benches.

I finished my 2 5 board benches. I had some 2 inch cedar from some outside remodeling. The boards were on my house for 30 plus years. The benches are 48" by 11" and or 19 inches tall. I made them as per Charles Neil's video as so far as I could understand his description.

They have a Butternut finish with a darker stain to show age. The legs are 9 inches wide with a up side down V cut up from the bottom about 6 inches. Charles said to use a Forstner bit to drill a hole at the point of the V to prevent the wood from splitting later at the point. He did not say what size bit to use. After fooling around with some different sizes I used a 2 and one half inch bit. Then I blended the V into the circle with a rasp. Now they resemble a wooden clothespin.

As much as I dislike staining and finishing I had fun with the glazing and really like the way they turned out. A friend saw them just before I finished them and bought one for her shade garden.

Gil Johnson.

Cribbage Board made from Purple heart.

Back of the board with peg container.

Some time back there was discussion of purple heart wood, how it was to work with and whether it held its color. around that same time, there was a discussion of making cribbage boards. Several years ago I made a few cribbage boards for friends, two of them from purple heart wood. I finally was able to get pictures of them.

Here are two pictures--one of the front side of a two track board, and one of the back side with a pyramid shaped container I made to hold the brass pegs. I am told that the color of the wood has darkened from the purple color it was.

Darrel Vickers.

Ultimate Toy Box.

When I was designing this in my head I knew I wanted to use simple dado and rabbit construction. I had not used many of these types of joints in the past and wanted to improve my skills with them. I also wanted it to have more of a traditional look.

Like many of my projects there were many design changes and it kind of took on a life of it's own.

I left many of the woods natural defects show if they were not too deep.

This project is made of solid Cherry except for the bottom which is half inch Birch Plywood. The drawer fronts and the panel for the raised panel door are made of Walnut.

Darrel has provided a more detailed description. To read it, Click here.

Max Robinson.

They make a stand to go with it that costs four hundred bucks. I told my friend Ron "I can make one just as good out of scrap wood in my shop." So I did. I made two, one for me and one for him. I did have to buy one additional piece of lumber which cost all of nine dollars. Here is the stand. The camera holder is lined with felt which looks pink in the picture. It is actually brown. Digital cameras, specifically the one I took these pictures with, are sensitive well into the infrared. Some of the dies used in textiles can fool a camera into showing a color somewhat different from that seen by the human eye.

This shows the reader in the stand with a book under it to be photographed. The reader looks like a digital camera on steroids. The lens looks out of the bottom instead of the front. There is a strobe flash and a laser for auto focusing. There is also a screen which allows it to double as an electronic magnifier. The sighted will see the image of the book on the screen. After some processing the text is read in a clear female voice.

The base of the stand is a piece of oak faced 3/4 inch plywood 18 by 14 and a half inches. The corners have been rounded off with approximately a one and a half inch radius.

The vertical piece that supports the camera holder is made of two pieces of 3/4 oak that were ripped down to 2 and 3/4 inches and glued together. The bottom was cut off at an angle of 14 degrees to place the camera holder over the center of the sheet. The other end of the vertical piece was cut at an angle of 76 degrees to give it a vertical face to which to fasten the camera holder. The vertical piece was fastened to the plywood sheet with pocket hole screws, two on each side. The screw holes were covered with two pieces of 3/4 inch oak that were ripped down to 2 inches wide. They are approximately 6 inches long. Both ends were cut at 14 degrees so the top edge of these decorative pieces are parallel to the base.

The camera holder was made out of 1/2 inch oak which I had to buy. A groove was routed in the inside near the bottom of each piece to hold a 1/4 inch bottom piece. Much of this piece had to be drilled and chiseled away to allow the lens, laser, and flash, to see out of the bottom of the holder. There are also cooling vents, a USB plug for a thumb drive, a small USB for connection to a computer, and a place to plug in the charger. All edges, except the plywood, were eased using a round over bit in the router table. The plywood was edged with iron-on oak veneer. The wood in Ron's house is dark so I finished it with a varnish stain combination. Water born poly urethane and dark walnut stain.

Gil Johnson.

I built 3 sets of bunk beds for my grandsons about 10 or 12 years ago . At the time I built them, they were stacked but now they are separated (I mean the beds, not the kids). That flexibility is important, I think.

I made them out of 8 quarter rough cut red oak and milled the boards down to about 6 quarter. I think 3/4 quarter wood would not be substantial enough as the kids grow older. The distance between the bottom bunk mattress and the top is about 30 inches. I left enough space underneath for storage tubs for toys and stuff. It is important to measure the kind of mattress you might want to have and make the inside dimensions slightly larger so it is easier to tuck in sheets and blankets. The mattress rests on half inch plywood instead of the usual 4 or 5 boards supporting the mattress. This gives a bit more separation between the bottom and top bunk and there is a space along side the mattress where the kids can put a few small favorite toys, TV remotes, iPod's, flashlight, or whatever. The end of each bed was constructed with 1 1/2 inch by 2 1/2 inch, inch posts on either corner connected by three cross pieces that were mortised in to the corner posts. Each end of each bed was connected with a board 1 1/2 inches thick by about 5 1/2 inches wide. Metal rails connecting each end are good but I liked the look of the wood connecters. The ends are connected to the side pieces with two 6-inch L brackets on each corner which are not visible.

They can be taken apart pretty easily but are very sturdy when assembled. The bottom and top beds are approximately the same height. I designed them so that the top bunk can be lifted off of the bottom bed and yet when they are stacked, they don't wiggle much. I also installed 4 swivel casters since, especially when they are stacked, they are pretty hard to move out from the wall to change sheets and make up the bed. When I unstacked them, I put casters on what had been the top bunk as well.

Finally, I made a ladder so the person on top could climb up. The ladder can be used from the side as well as from the end. I made a side rail that can easily be taken out which is about half the length of the bed. This keeps kids from rolling out which is especially important for the top bunk.

Armando del Gobbo.

The rockers are made from 2x4, 33 inches long, and finished height about 3-3/4 with the ends curved at the ends to form like a knob, to keep the rockers from rocking over the ends. The rockers are dadoed on the top to accept the cross pieces to connect them together, the cross pieces are 2x3 12 inches long. On top of the cross pieces sits a structure which looks basically like a saw horse. The legs are 8 inches high, 7 inches wide at the bottom, and taper up to a 3 inch width at the top. I drill a 2 inch hole about two inches from the top, and then cut out a tapered piece out from the hole to the base of the legs. The legs are attached to the top of the cross pieces with bolts from underneath. There is a cross piece of 2x3 which goes to the inside of the top of the legs to connect the legs together from front to back. On top of this sits the seat which for lack of better words looks something like a guitar simplified. The head is attached to the narrow front part from underneath with bolts, then the head and seat assembly is then attached to the cross piece connecting the legs from underneath with bolts. The head is a side view of a horse's face, in the neck part there is a 3/4 dowel for the handle, the eyes are formed from a piece 5/8 inch dowel which is in a hole which is drilled through, the end of the dowel are rounded and painted to look like real horse eyes. The mouth, the nostrils and the mane are carved and highlighted with paint. The horse is made from solid maple. I don't attach any mops or anything like that for the tail and mane. Two reasons, first, I want the kids to use their imagination, and 2, I don't want anything that is going to come off! I just use a clear finish.

Artful small Box Challenge.

And the winner is…

Robert Sapp.

The winning entry was submitted by Robert Sapp who designed a unique walnut box with clever wooden hinges, a wooden cam-operated clasp that grips a leather closure strap, a wooden interior guide to restrain the top when opening it, peg dowel joinery for the overlapping front and back (three pegs for each of the four butt joints) and an extremely smooth clear finish. The box sits on 4 small blocks of wood with under edges rounded over. The dimensions are nine and three-quarter inches long, six inches wide and five and a quarter inches high. The top is inset slightly from the upper edges of the sides, front and back. Each portion of the box is well constructed with nice details. Congratulations to Robert Sapp on such an especially fine project!

The first photo above is a good overall view of Bob's box. The photo shows the strap and cam action clasp, the top portion of the wooden hinges and the three peg dowels on each end of the front face.

The second photo shows the back side of Bob's winning entry and gives a good view of the wooden hinges. There are three parts to each of the two hinges. The two top bars, each five-sixteenths inches square and four inches long, are mounted to the exterior face of the top and extend slightly over the back. The small extension fits between two similar bars mounted vertically on the back side of the box. A small dowel forms the axis of the hinge that joins the pieces. The strap is mounted into a recess on a small thin block that is glued to the back. The strap extends over the top of the box, runs through a similar small thin piece in the center of the top and bends down over the front side where it is held in place in a recess on the back of a convex shaped decorative block with a small handle attached to an even smaller cam-action axle that presses against the strap to hold it in place.

Honorable Mentions.

Darrell Vickers figured maple box is six and three-quarters inches wide by six and one-quarter inches long by four and three-quarters inches high. The top has a rabbet on the underside that fits snugly within the box opening and the edge has a mini classical molding. The four corner joints are Isolok joints in the shape of hearts, two at each corner and the four feet under the box are also made in the shape of hearts. The hearts that make up the Isolok joints are oriented sideways so the points are towards the center of the box. What would be the bottom of the heart doesn't come to a point but merges into the front and back of the box. The heart shape fits into fingers or pins on the adjoining sides of the box. Photo above.

Neville Davidson's tea box is painted black with a Japanese fretwork design on the four corners of the front panel with the words "TEA" centered on the panel. The box is a cube about three and one-quarter inches for each dimension made of MDF and painted black. The top is lifted by grasping a red colored knob. There is a rabbet on the underside of the top that fits into the box opening and the top has a small molded edge. The photo is above.

Jim Burton's two-drawer box is dyed or stained red-brown for the frame and lemon yellow for the drawers and knobs. The top drawer has two knobs and the bottom drawer has a single knob centered. The four leg posts raise the bottom of the box about an inch and a half above the table surface. The back edge of the top has a small lip or ledger at the back giving the box the look of a diminutive chest of drawers. Photo above.

Louis Scrivani's music box has a hinged top that overhangs the sides and front. The top has a double molded edge and the bottom of the box has applied classical molding strips surrounding the box. The wood appears to be maple and is finished clear. Inside the box is lined with red felt and the music mechanism sits to one side of the interior. The photo is above.

Larry Martin wore his sleep shade or mask to build his entry, a small, narrow box ten inches long, three inches wide and two and a half inches high. The box sides are birdseye maple and the top of Hawaiian koa fits into a rabbet cut along the inner edges of the four maple sides. The koa top has a maple half moon handle. The four corners are mitered and each miter is strengthened with two one-eighth-inch thick ebony keys or splines that extend about three-eighths inch into each side. The judges noted that one corner did not quite close and that the sanding to make it appear more square actually reduced the thickness of the outside edge of the rabbet to a mere wisp. The photo is above.

The judges commented on the quality of both the work and the design. I was very impressed by the entries.

My very special thanks to everyone who participated in this challenge and thanks as well to the rest of you who showed keen interest in the work. November 17, 2010.

Terry Klarich.

Terry's segmented vessel is roughly 12 inches tall and 10 inches in diameter. There is a lower bowl about 5 to 6 inches high, 10 inches in diameter, then a short neck about 3 inches tall on top of the bowl and finally a mouth opening that flares from the narrow neck to a diameter of 8 inches or so. The lower bulb-shaped bowl is about 3 inches in diameter at the very bottom, the bowls then gradually widens out to 10 inches diameter at the center of the lower bowl and then again narrows in towards the 3 inch diameter neck.

The vessel is segmented, that is, it is made up of small segments, each about 3/4 inches wide and about 1 1/2 inches long for the pieces in the bowl portion, generally about 1 inch long for the pieces in the neck portion and the lower area of the upper flared out portion and up to 1 1/2 inches in the upper area of the flared out portion. There is a solid dark ring of purple heart, about one-eighth inch thick, that runs around the center of the neck and a ring of yellow heart that runs around the center of the lower bowl shape. The rest of the segments are soft maple, primarily a tan or natural buff color with a few pieces of lighter colored maple and some pieces of grey colored spalted maple. Terry used all of the various maple pieces including the sapwood outer layer of the tree, the heartwood and the inner core as well. He included both straight grained and gnarly grained maple pieces to give the vessel added character.

The segments are made by laying small trapezoidal pieces in brick-laid fashion in concentric rings when Terry builds the basic form. The purple heart and the yellow heart rings divide the vessel into thirds. The bottom portion consists of 5 layers of maple under the yellow heart ring, then there are 5 layers of maple between the 2 colored rings and another 5 layers of maple in the flared out mouth of the vessel. Each concentric circle of maple has 12 segments and there are a total of 205 segments in the completed vessel.

The vessel is turned on the lathe to its exterior shape and then the interior is hollowed out so that the resulting thickness of the flared out portion is about one-eighth to three-sixteenths inch thick. The vessel is then sanded and finished with a high gloss finish.

Terry says, "This was a very rewarding project. It humbles me to know I've been in trusted with the gift to work wood. I'm extremely grateful I was given the ability to work with my hands. I think you all know what I mean."

Terry phrased the feeling extremely well. I think each of us feels similar satisfaction when we complete a project. And each of us gets to learn something new from each project we see. Hats off to Terry for his prize-winning vessel.

Larry Martin woodworkingfortheblind@comcast.net

Darrel Vickers.

The Rocking Horse was made from plans from © Family Tradition Woodworking. It is made entirely from 3 quarter oak except for the bridal and saddle strap inlays which are black walnut.

The dimensions are approximately 40 inches long 20 inches wide and 28 inches tall at the head. The horse is stained golden oak and the saddle is stained walnut with a polyurethane finish. The rocker it self is painted white.

It features leather ears cut from an old base ball glove and has over lays cut from 1 quarter inch thick oak for the main and tail for a 3 dimensional appearance. It has in lays 1 half inch wide made from 1 eighth inch walnut for the bridal and saddle straps.

A friend transferred the drawings to 1 quarter inch plywood and cut out the body, legs, saddle and the main and tail over lays for me. After sanding the templates I used double sided tape to hold them in place. Using a plunge router with a 5 sixteenth guide bushing and a 1 quarter inch down spiral straight bit traced the template with the router. The rockers were cut using a circle cutting jig with the router on a 20 inch radius. Three cuts produced both rockers. Mortises were cut in the sides of the rockers to attach the cross members that attached the horses legs to the rockers.

My brother cut the saddle half's using a band saw as well as the angle braces for the legs. The braces were cut by cutting a 3 quarter by 6 inch by 6inch block of oak diagonally across the edge.

The hardest part for me was mounting the legs at the proper height and angle.

Max Robinson.

Keith Melick.

This is a small keepsake box that is made from the same black walnut as the jewelry box with maple and walnut burl for the top. I make these type boxes and give them away to anyone who has a silent auction at any charitable event to help them raise money.

A keepsake box also made as a give-a-way for silent auctions at charitable events. I have also given some away to family. Those that can see may recognize the wood. It is quarter sawn fir Crown Molding.

Here are a couple small bowls that I have turned. I wish someone could tell me what the wood is in the larger one. I cannot find anyone that knows. The wood came from blown down trees from a Florida hurricane.

Hear are two night stands/chests that I have just completed. They are made from quarter sawn Laurel Oak. That is Florida's equivalent of White Oak, same Fleck effect when quarter sawn. The finish is Cabot Satin Polyurethane. We have a king size four poster bed with a big thick mattress so normal night stands are much to short. These are 42 inches high 24 inches wide and 18 inches deep. That is approximate as I am totally blind with light perception and I do not use manufactured measuring devices.

Jim Samanich.

This clock is a round slice of a log about an inch and a half thick sanded smooth then drilled to put a quarts clock movement into it. There are little flat moose figures at twelve, three, six, and nine, and little straight lines for the other numbers. I won a third place ribbon at the local town fair and the St. Louis county fair.

This doll case is one I made for my friends daughter who had this porcelain doll she loved very much. The top and bottom are made of solid pine that has been rounded over and then holes drilled to fit four dowel rods about 3/4 inches thick. There are slots for the Plexiglas window to slide down into. The top has dowel pins through it so you can take it off and replace the glass if need be. I won a ribbon at the local town fair for this one too.

Mike Osborn.

Jim Burton.

Vance Eller.

Duane Mattingly.

Ron Faulkner.

Ralph Haney.

Ralph Haney is 68 years old, totally blind with no light perception but in good health otherwise.

His design criteria was to create a workbench top large enough to accommodate moderate sized projects, sturdy enough to prevent movement when performing operations requiring lateral movement such as planing, sawing, sanding and to provide maximum storage capacity.

Dimensions: length, 72 inches, width, 32 1/2inchs, height 33 inches, weight, heavy plus 5 pounds. Measuring equipment: click rule, talking tape measure, 6 inch talking vernier caliper, audible torpedo level, combination square and framing square

Tools available at the time for construction: floor model Delta drill press, Delta combination disk and belt sander, circular saw, 3/8-inch electric drill, electric screwdriver, hand miter box and various hand tools. Materials: most of the materials used in the undercarriage and cabinetry was salvaged from an old home built shelf unit and utility grade 2 by 4's used as wall bracing during a floor replacement and rebuilding of our camping trailer. (Note: It was that camper trailer rebuilding project that got him started in woodworking.) The workbench top is a combination of 1 3/8inch Baltic Birch and 1 1/2 inch fir lumber. The load of Baltic Birch plywood was a gift from his wife to encourage his newfound hobby. All materials with the exception of the Baltic Birch top were either white pine or fir. The legs are made from 4 by 6's and the top rails are 2 by 6's. The bottom rails are salvaged 2 by 4's and the cabinet shelves and bottom including the end shelves are 3/4 inch plywood.

Construction: the bench was assembled using 3/8inch and 5/16inch carriage bolts and number 8 washer head Robertson Square Drive wood screws. No nails or glue was used in construction. Metal shelf braces were used to support the intermediate shelves. The lower shelf is supported by extensions of the lower rails.

Finish: the top was coded with polyurethane in a natural finish. The undercarriage was painted with latex interior wall paint since the wood was quite ugly and many pieces still had a dark brown paint on them from the original shelf unit. Ralph's wife, Mary, did the finishing.

Special construction notes: there was a thickness difference in the Baltic Birch slab and the 2 by 10 used to extend the table on the tool tray side. Shims cut with a circular saw were used to bring the two pieces co-planar. This was an interesting challenge using a circular saw since the dimension was nonstandard. The tool tray was cut in the center of the 2 by 10 with a wood chisel to form an inside rabbit then the center was cut out with the circular saw and a 1 by 8 inserted and fastened to the rabbit. Ralph was able to cut out the rabbet to within.020 of an inch overall. This turned out well and was an achievement. The molding around the edge of the tool tray was also cut with a circular saw and held in place with small wood screws. The shaping on the cabinet door edges was done by a friend with a router. All joinery was cut with a circular saw with multiple passes. The cabinets have a center partition and each side is a different depth to accommodate the articles to be stored therein. The height of the bottom rails from the floor was set to accommodate folding sawhorses to be stored underneath the bench.

Ralph's shop is small about a 1/4 of a two-car garage so storage area is at a premium. During the day Ralph uses the area where his wife parks their car as part of his work area but must have it open for her in the evening so there's a lot of setting up and tearing down during the workday-and that keeps him well organized.

Neville Davidson.

And he has streamlined the process. Here are the steps he developed to both speed up the process and to handle the small pieces.

Lenny McHugh.

Lenny's bathroom vanity. The vanity is made of red oak wood and features two overlaid doors under the sink and 3 drawers (one small and two larger) in a stepped back portion of the vanity. The top is covered with laminate.

Lenny also builds a number of outdoor holiday projects. The first photo shows 2 large candle holders in the outline shape of a carriage lamp and post. A red ribbon hangs from beneath the carriage lamp outline and a red electric candle is centered in each of the 2 carriage lamp outlines.

The second photo shows the front of an octagonal wishing well planter. The wishing well portion is made out of stacked and overlapping ¾ by 7-inch pieces stacked 12 high. There is a larger frame made of 1 by 3 surrounding the wishing well that includes the crank for pulling up the unseen wishing well bucket. A 2 foot Christmas tree is positioned in the wishing well and Christmas lights adorn the frame and well.

Lenny made this cherry TV and Stereo Component Stand 30 inches high, 28 inches wide and 19 inches deep. the stand has 3 adjustable shelves and a hidden drawer in the base to hold operating manuals. It is red cherry wood with a red mahogany stain, resulting in a deep rich color. The top slightly overhangs the sides and front, and has a beaded molded edge. The 3-inch wide base has 4 reeds molded into a center band that runs across the front along with a beaded top edge. The 3 adjustable shelves are held in place by pins inserted into shelf pin holes in the two sides.

Tom Huhn.

The rectangular base of the candle holder is about 6 inches wide by 13 inches long and I each corner sits on a cylindrical leg. Three individual candle holders are positioned on the base. Each is about 3 inches square with a large circular cut-out in the center of each square to hold a thick candle.

The candle holders and the legs are laminated. The legs have 3 thicknesses and the candle holders five thicknesses of alternating bands of blood wood and canary wood. You don't often see these woods in projects and they form sharply contrasting bands of red and cream color.

In the photo there are 3 thick light green candles positioned in the candleholders. The center one is about 6 inches tall and the two flanking candles are each about 3 inches tall.

Dennis Walker.

Dennis Walker's poker table.

Dennis Walker's post office box and lazy Susan.

Mickey Fixsen.

Mickey also built this mantle clock.

And to top it off, Mickey has been very active in building hot rods and restoring cars.

Bob Kennedy.

The natural maple cradle, has a mattress of 18 inches wide by 36 inches long. It is suspended from two Lyptus wood uprights. Lyptus is a hybrid wood grown by Weyerhauser. The cradle has a fixed frame of butt-joined, glued and screwed, 1 by 3's on edge at the bottom and has a plywood panel resting in rabbets cut along the top edges of the frame. The cradle mattress lies on the plywood base. The cradle has 14 turned spindles on each long side and 6 spindles on each end. Each 16 inch long spindle is spaced 3 inches on center. Each spindle is shaped to have 3 turned beads at either end, followed by a narrow section that flares wider towards the middle. The two wide flared sections are separated by 2 turned beads in the middle of each spindle's length. The spindles are doweled into the bottom frame and the top rail. The top rail is a flat piece 1 by 2 and a half inches with beveled edges and the long rails are joined to the end rails by a lap joint. A slightly tapered vertical arm (about 1 ½ inches by 4 inches at the bottom) is attached to the bottom frame at each end of the cradle and connects the cradle to the uprights. The connection has a brass rod penetrating both the tapered vertical arms and the large uprights, and are capped by shaker style knobs with a 10 by 32 threaded rod epoxied into a threaded insert in the knob and a drilled and tapped hole in the brass rod at each end of the rod.

The uprights from which the cradle is suspended are 2 by 3 in cross section and 51 inches tall. Each upright is joined to a trestle-like base with a cross-lap joint. The uprights are raised off the floor by a base 2 inches thick by 3 inches wide by about 24 inches long running at right angles to the uprights. The middle section of the base is cut away leaving feet on each end measuring 2 inches wide and 3 inches long. The two uprights are connected to each other by a wide, long stretcher 4 inches wide by 42 inches long and joined to the uprights by mortis and tenons.

Bob Kennedy with his Twin Nightstand Tables (2009):

Cherry wood, 23 inches wide, 29 inches tall, 16 inches deep. Drawers 10 1/2 inches wide. All legs tapered on 2 sides using a jointer.

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