Want to See Your Project Featured on CR4?

I'll chronicle my kitchen remodel.....................maybe.

I've been dragging my feet a little, because the next thing I have to do, is cut a big hole in an exterior load bearing wall, and hope the upstairs doesn't come down on me.

If you get some video of that we can add it to the blog entry via our YouTube channel.

Should the worst happen, the entry could always go into the Oh CR4P! (disasters) blog instead. Kidding!! Best of luck with the project.

Mark, I hope you have very good house insurance in-place before you cut that hole in the wall! :-)

I've got plenty of insurance. I'm not sure if it covers stupid though.

It'll be fine. A few 2x4 braces will do it.

The last time I removed an interior section of load bearing wall, I used a floor jack and a piece of 4x4 to hold the upstairs in place while I installed columns. Some of the things I do would drive you completely nuts.

My latest...

So, did you rebuild it?

Refinish it?

Just buy it?

Restring it?

What?

I bought the parts from all over, and built it myself including setup...This was my second, the black(below) was my first... I built these as a warmup to routing my own body and building my own neck but have yet to get that far....I do have the wood now...but seem to have lost interest....The black is my favorite...I really just wanted the quilted maple body, but found the one above for sale from warmoth for a few hundred and went for it...The older I get the smaller my projects seem to become....

This is the piece of quilted maple I found on line for a couple hundred...

Nice piece of wood!

I have a large collection of exotic woods...I've been into woodworking for the last few years, just finished veneering a nice vintage maple set of bedroom furniture...here's a couple pics...

Wow! That's nice.

You do good work.

Thanks, these pics are from my phone, they don't really do the wood justice...But if you've seen highly figured curly maple up close, then you get the idea..I did four pieces all together, they had wood sliders which I replaced with modern medal drawer slides, two for each drawer so they slide with little effort and no sag...My parents bought this set back in the 50's, nice set, solid sugar maple and dovetail drawers....

Hi Solar,

You are great artist. Nice jobs done with woods.

Thank you...

My woodwork accidentally turns into a mirror of people's souls. Some see beauty, some are disgusted. All have been broken. And all will burn before I go.

Interesting, what kind of wood are you using? I've only done a couple of what you might call creative works... This tv stand, which took shape as I built it..by far the best one...My first attempt at scroll work...

I'm walking my way into an Oh CR4P!

Nothing creepy. I just feel as if it's necessary to release myself from material things before I move on. I have a strong emotional attachment to these pieces of wood. Letting them go will feel good. And that doesn't mean selling them.

I think it would be a shame to destroy these art works...

This is my second scroll work attempt a Japanese tea table...not quite finished

Beautiful work SolarEagle! My work is not for public consumption, nor do I consider it art. Strange as it sounds................it's more emotional discharge.

I'm setting myself up for endless jokes, but for some reason I feel a connection to wood. The first one was rescued from a burn pile...............the tall one.

I'm not an artist. What that piece of wood wanted to be was already there. I just exposed it. The end result was as much a surprise to me as anyone.

I may not destroy them, but the person that gets them must be real. Probably my wife..............................but she can't sell them. Once they are assigned a monetary value, they become worthless.

Nice sculpture... gotta love wood.
Del

Thanks. I don't have to shoot arrows with mine, so perfection isn't critical.

I also had to relinquish much of my emotional attachment to them when one of my wife's brothers, while inebriated, accidentally fell on them and busted every one of them to some extent. Releasing that attachment actually felt better than creating them.

Nice . Own design/template ?

Do you mill the cavities or use a router?

Hey, kramarat and SolarEagle - I'd love to hear more. Might be a bit after-the-event for SolarEagle (?), but kramarats wall-bashing holds a certain appeal to me . "RS what ?" Have sledge, will travel .

I need to place the window in the wall, and the hole will overlap the existing window hole. I probably won't be using a sledgehammer though.

Although, if I don't get moving on it, I can submit an Oh CR4P feature, of my wife using a sledgehammer on me. People here would probably pay to see that one.

Once I finish the kitchen I get to go back to work on my giant man-cave, which is behind the truck!

I jest ye not, sledge is the way to go. Depends on aperture size, but smash and chock it. It's a gamble in that you will have 'unsupported' time minimize this. Various ways to minimize risk. Without full construction detail I can't comment further. RSJ is bloody heavy, so make sure you have it ready to swing into place. Couple of pit props would not go amiss. Prep your site is the golden rule.

Give us some pics (if possible) - I'm not clear on what you are dealing with. Have dealt with several similar projects, but each one is different. Hoping your helmet is hard,

k

Hey Kram, how much are you enlarging this window opening by? Don't forget any contributing loads from the roof trusses or roof joists & ceiling joists....you may have to "bump-up" the size of your 2-2x6 header beam to a 2-2x8 header beam with 1/2-inch plywood sandwich in between the lumber (so that the overall width of the header matches the 2x4 wall stud width of 3.5-inches). I say this because allowable shear stresses and Live load Deflection Limit (L/480) may govern more than anything else (vs. Bending stress). You don't want the implied load cracking the new expensive window planes due to long-term deflection + settlement issues.

Also, you may want to consider triple 2x4 wall stud columns at each end....with each end of the header beam fixed into place with a Simpson Strong-Tie post cap. Just don't toe-nail the end of the header to the top of the columns (ie, posts).

Just a friendly recommendation!!!!

That's pretty much the plan. Fortunately, the upstairs floor joists run parallel to the back wall and tie into a beam in the center of the house, which involves much less weight than if they stubbed into it.

I'm going to have my header built before I start, as well as having every piece of wood precut and marked, so that once the hole is cut, I should be able to have the window opening in place in about an hour..................all braced and ready to go.

Kris, I used a sledgehammer to remove the existing cabinets, which were stick built in place with 2x4s................................nasty job. I'll use one of these to cut my hole, but I'll give you a shout the next time the sledgehammer comes out.

I used a sledgehammer

You know it makes sense

Gotta love a reciprocating saw! My favorite demo too!

I may consider posting my Kitchen rebuild here as well, IF I can find the time to do so.

We suffered from a lot of water damage last February due to a huge build-up of ice dams on the northern roof eaves....roughly $50K of damages! I have lots and lots of pics that I took (for insurance & mortgage holder submissions) that can paste into the entry. Lots of DIY work done by yours truly, including the installation of nearly 800 linear feet of roof de-icing/heating cables on the roof eaves + 4 auto-controllers + electrical work.

Also I ripped up the entire existing ceramic tile floor and cement board underlayment in both the Kitchen and Dining Room and replaced with new ceramic time floor (what a b*tch of a job!). Additionally, replaced a lot of granite tile & underlayment on portions of the kitchen countertops. Also, added a new bar sink & plumbing on the kitchen island (though not quite finished with enclosing everything off).....

I may have to do this with multiple postings as there's a lot pics involved throughout the entire 8 month process.

Also, I can take some new pics to include them in a seperate posting of the completed 7.56 kW Solar PV system (now 2 years old) on the roof (36 panels), the inverters, metering, and other electrical work.

Anyone interested in seeing this work?

I'm not sure about the 150 word minimum. Many projects can be covered with pictures alone with a few descriptive words added.

I'm not sure that any of my projects include 150 PRINTABLE words.

You've probably written that much in your comments on this thread. Your plans and special considerations are great things to include in the blog entry.

That's true. I've never actually counted my words. Probably much more than I realize, since I tend to get diarrhia of the keyboard. We'll see..................if it's not blog material, I'll just start a thread.

Incredible works of art in wood guys! I wish I had that sort of talent!!!

Here's a little of what I do for relaxation....building scale military aircraft models, mainly in 1/32 scale. Sorry for the poor photo quality, but the pics were shot with an older digital camera. I wish somehow that I could enlarge them somewhat more.

This particular model started out as a 1/32 Revell F-4E Phantom II, but I heavily converted it into a F-4G "Wild Weasel" featuring a lot of scratch building, as well as incorporating a whole bunch of aftermarket resin and PhotoEtch brass aftermarket pieces. Even the decals are homemade with a graphics design software package on my PC. Even the weapons load (Anti-radiation missiles) are scratch built. It is approximately 30 inches long overall, and weights a ton! It placed 1st in the 1/32 scale Multi-engine Modern Jets Division at the International Plastic Modeling Society (IPMS) - USA a decade ago in Virginia Beach VA. BTW, the entire model is put together with SuperGlue, not the old fashion model glue!

Wow 30", that's huge! I wish you could get more detail, I would like to see it up close...The brass parts, do you manufacture these yourself or design and order them, how does that work?

I wish I could get you more detailed pics, but those (as posted) are all that I have currently. The model is down in the basement in several pieces due to an unfortunate accident by a Contractor working down there a few years ago. BTW, the model weights around 5 pounds!

All of the tiny photo-etch pieces were bought aftermarket....mainly in the cockpit (placards and Martin Baker ejection seats) or a multitude of vents, grills and what not throughout the fuselage, wheel wells, and landing gear. I can make my own brass photoetch pieces, but in the case of this model I saved a lot of time and effort buying the aftermarket ones. I do a lot of my own master templates and silicon rubber molds to cast homemade resin parts. 2-part Loctite epoxy works great for making these resin pieces!

Maybe tomorrow I'll take some pics of my busted up 1/72 Monogram B-52D in Viet Nam War camoflage. Now that's a huge model!!!!

Another model from 8 years ago. This started out as a 1/32 scale Revell F-4J Phantom II that I converted into a Royal Air Force (RAF) FRG.2 Phantom II that the Brits flew in the 70's and 80's. No manufactured kit exists in this scale anywhere, so I was forced to bash kit the thing. The build involved a lot of research and scratch building to widen and deepen the engine intakes and the remainder of the engine trunks. A mega amount of body putty was used on this babe. The engine afterburner cans are scratch-built too, as are the various antenna on the vertical tail, the entire cockpit, the underwing weapons pylons and the weapons/rocket pods. All aircraft markings are either painted or homemade decals done on my graphics platform. This model took over 100 man-hours to complete. It currently resides in the Empire State Aerospace Museum at the Schenectady County Airport outside Schenectady NY.

Again, sorry for the poor pic quality and the tiny size of the photos!

Anyone want to see pic of a US Navy F-4J "Black Bunny" Phantom model in 1/32 scale???

Wow museum piece, you must be very proud to have your work on display in a museum...sure show what ya got...

Yes, I'm very proud that many of my models have made their way into museums. I had around a dozen in the now defunct National Warplane Museum that was located in Elmira NY....I was a member of that museum for 22 years. When the museum closed the models disappeared and nobody knows what happened to them.

The last model that I built was a 1/48 scale Revell-Monogram USAF (SAC) B-1B Lancer Strategic bomber. It featured many scratch-built pieces, resin pieces, and Brass PE pieces, and took over a year to built. Painted in Euro I camouflage scheme and had Dyess AFB markings and nose art. That puppy was over 39 inches long and weighed nearly 10 pounds. The swing wings (with operable slats, ailerons, and flaps too), horizontal elevators, the rudder, and all 3 bomb bay doors were fully functional.

It placed first in the IMPS-USA Region I model contest a few years back in the 1/48 scale Modern Multi-engine Bomber division. I sold it on ebay shortly afterwards for $1,250 to a group of B-1B bomber pilots & crew members from Dyess to present to their retiring Wing Commander. Unfortunately all of the digital pics that I took of it no longer exist. Bummer!

Of all of the models that I have built since I was 6 years old, that is the one model that I regret ever letting go!

Here's a 1/32 scale Revell F-4J Phantom II "Black Bunny" done about 10 years ago. The US Navy (VX-6) actually had one of these aircraft painted like this in the 1970's. Again, sorry for the crummy pic quality and tiny size. I lost many of my digital pics of my models when my last PC harddrive crashed and burned. :-(

I went back and wandered around our IPMS chapter website and I found some pics of my models. They're from a few years back.

My 1/32 scale Revell USAAF P-38J as it appeared during the Italian Campaign:

A 1/32 scale Revell West German Luftwaffe F-4F Phantom and a 1/32 Scale Hasagawa F-16A Fighting Falcon (138 TFS/174 TFW NYANG The Boys From Syracuse.....Wing Commander BG Mike Hall's aircraft as it was armed the first night of Desert Storm).

To the right and rear of the F-16A is the only known pic that exists of my massive 1/48 scale B-1B Lancer bomber......I only wish that I had more pics of this monster!

My 1/32 scale Trumpeter A-10A Thunderbolt II (ie, Warthog) of the 104th TFW Mass. ANG based at Barnes IAP, Westfield, MA. These pics were taken at the IPMS Nationals a few years back...

My 1/32 scale Tamiya USAFE F-4D Phantom II from Texas!!!! Again, at the IPMS Nats!

My 1/32 scale Tamiya USAF F-15E Strike Eagle from Mountain Home AFB....again taken at the IPMS Nats:

my 1/32 scale Tamiya Grumman F-14A Tomcat (in early USN camo & markings). Pics taken at the IPMS Nats....

And finally, a 1/32 scale Hasagawa McDonnell-Douglas USN F-18A Prototype:

A 1/48 scale Monogram F-102A Delta Dagger of the NYANG, 1960's & 1970's:

A 1/32 scale Revell-Monogram Panavia RAF F.1 Tornado (this is a very rare kit):

Amazing detail, can you fly any of these beasts?

Sorry no, they are strictly static plastic models with no engines and servos.

Uh no I mean the real life versions, sorry...I was just wondering if you flew...

Oh no, I'm not a pilot, though my kid brother was......he is a Retired Lt. Col, USAF and NJANG pilot. Other then flying T-38 trainers he's flow the F-4D and F-4E Phantoms, the F-15A & C Eagle, the Convair F-106A/B Delta Dart, and the General Dynamics F-16A & C Fighting Falcon.

My first cousin, a Retired Brig General after 28 years service, flew Phantoms, Eagles and later the Fighting Falcons while in the USAF and and and as the Wing Commander of 178th TFW Ohio ANG (Springfield OH). I was lucky enough to get a ride in a F-16B Falcon with him back in '97....a ride of a lifetime!

My late uncle flew F-105D and F-105G "Wild Weasels" in 'Nam. He and his "Bear" were lost over Route Pak 6B in the Hanoi area during LineBacker II (his 2nd Tour of Duty & 89th combat sortie).

I have been fortunate enough to get hops in: P-51D Mustangs, B-17G, A-26, and a B-25J Mitchell medium bomber. I was a member of the now defunct National Warplane Museum for 22 years and did a lot of volunteer work, so hence my ability to grab these hops....

OK,

I DID NOT have anything to do with creating this. My wife commissioned an artist here in Arizona to do it some years ago. She had a couple of his small pieces already. But, since we're on the subject of wood (and airplanes) all the wood used in this piece is it's natural color. No stains or paint on the piece. It's 4 feet across, and heavy. This is as close as I get to creativity.

Wow that's an amazing piece....I have thought of doing one of these several times, but always get distracted on to something else...This technique, know as intarsia, is an artform all it's own...They sell kits with the wood precut, for the less inspired..

http://www.intarsia.com/Judy.G.Reg.Intarsia6.html

Didn't know what it was called.

Intarsia's not for me. I have no talent and less patience.

Well you must have done something, at some time....I took a year restoring a 30' vintage S2 sailboat, a few years back, what a project that was, worked on it day and night for what seemed forever.....Finally finished and sold it, and good riddance...what a money pit that thing was...I do have a photographic record of the work someplace, but would have to search for it...That project could fill a book....

Yes, I started restoring a '72 Vette 10 years ago. Right about the time we got two small children to raise. That's been on the back burner now since then. We've got 3 now 6,7 and 12 all boys. That's a project in itself.

The car's across the street, in pieces, waiting for me to finish the engine so the guys over there can put it back together.

If I ever start on it in earnest, I'll post some pix.

I confess: My get-up-and-go has got-up-and-gone.

Kids at our age is about as tough as it gets...You have my sympathy...My advice is to get help....One would be more than I could handle, three would finish me off...Speaking of vette's though, I had a '66 ragtop that I dearly loved, and an '82 that I thought mechanically was a nightmare, got rid of it after 1 year...Never have restored a vehicle from the ground up, but always wanted to....I guess I never had everything come together at once, you know money, a place to do it, and the time to do it, as well as a car that would inspire me....are you restoring to original condition or more of a restomod?

This car came with a big block, and I'm putting the second small block in it.

I'll keep it stock just like the everyday driver it was. Except I did buy the biggest aluminum big block racing radiator I could find. And Mallory solid state ignition.

New motor, rebuilt auto tranny, rear end, all new suspension and brakes.

This is my wife's car, although she had not driven it for some time.

Interior and exterior will require lots more work to look good up close.

Welcome to the candy store...Just finished some slight mods on my '08 Mustang GT, the '72 vette left upper, '66 right upper over the '82...Shelby short shifter, mud flaps. Roush vent covers, BMR lower control arms, mirror covers...

Drool Drool!

After a ton of searching our modeling club photo archives I finally found a pic of my massive 1/48 scale B-1B Lancer + another pic of my W. German F-4F Phantom! Happy happy!!!!

Apparently, someone (maybe a Judge?) shifted back one of the wings to make room for other models nearby!

Another search finding! This is a series of pics of my yet-to-be completed 1/32 scale Trumpeter USAF Thunderbird F-105B. The T-Birds only flew this aircraft for 8 shows in 1966 (?), before they went back to the North American F-100C Super Sabre. This build involved back-building from a F-105D Thud kit with a ton of aftermarket resin and brass PE parts. Note the masking tape all over the cockpit. This shows only the first coating of Aluminum Metallizer paint which has not been buffed out yet, nor subsequent metallizer paint colors for the burner cans, etc.. The build still awaits me and is sitting in the box on my workshop counter after 4 years. Still a long way to go finishing this model, as well as laying down the Red/White/Blue Thunderbird markings, etc.....quite a challenge!

Another new found pic of my West German F-4F while it was under construction.....notice all of the masking tape on the canopies and horizontal elevators, and the "weathering" of the panel lines and rivets. lots of detail!

Another new found pic of my Lockheed P-38J lightning:

Well, that's it for the model pics, unless one of my modeling buddies find some more pics of my models on their PCs!

The Kyran Car

My Grandson was here the other day. I asked him if he wanted to build a car. After a clear yes he decided on the specifications. We only started with a block of 2be4 and added things as we went along.

He wanted and placed: _{with a little advice}

1. Big wheels in the back small in front (hole cutting left overs)

2. Fold back wind screen (PET bottle)

3. Engine (Old sensor part)

4. Steering wheel ((sink drain)

5. air bags (tap washers)

6. Seat (Cap from WD40)

7. Turbine (Old part from satellite dish)

8. Color (Various tapes)

9. Side wings for once it gets air born. (Beer can)

10. Missing front teeth which he wanted for Christmas: Priceless

That was 3 hours well spent. I called him the other day and wanted to know if it floats. He confirmed but was worried about the tape letting go. He thinks of maintenance as a 6 year old. He should run a coal fired power plant one day with such talent . ^{which reminds me}

Besides this little fun I have a few projects on the burner. All in late prototype stage. Proprietary information I think it is called. So will many others here, I think. As long as it doesn't turn into a new products ^(spam) thread we could have a great time. Is this not in the mission statement of CR4?

CR4P this is a fun place to be, Ky.

I have a design for an adjustable height workbench that I'm working on. I've estimated the cost to build to be around $200. The design is now complete, but I still have to build it to see how it works. There are some parts that require lathe and milling machine use, so it may not be suitable for everyone, but who knows; if it works like I think it will, I may get into making some of the parts to sell. There are plans available for an adjustable height bench, but mine is an original new design. As you can see from the following sketches, the scissors jacks, connected in tandem, are used to raise/lower the bench top. A cordless drill will be used to turn the jacks. A locking device secures the top at whatever height you wish. The height adjustment will be 12", or from about 30" to 42". The top is supported on 4 square columns and glide vertically inside the base. PVC rollers will guide the columns and keep it from rocking. Casters will be attached to the bottom of each column. Raising the top will automatically retract the casters off the floor. You can put any top you like. A torsion box would be ideal. If you like, you may use these sketches to create your own bench.