Craftsman vice cork trimming

Update on the vice maintenance. 

removed the wax paper and trimmed the cork. 

i recommend trimming the cork inward at a 60-45 degree angle.

when you are making your cut apply the pressure on the pull and not the push.

cut on the pull, not the push, beveled in about 45-60 degrees

Church key

A pet friendly house: dogs, birds, three children and one gold rabbit.

fairly substantial,  3/8ths of a pound steel

i believe that this was another tokkyu hands acquisition.

Carrom board maintenance

Attention!!  Attention!!
Carrom season is at hand!!!

Actually there is no such season but here at the fort we tend to play this game the most from fall through early spring (more of the indoor months).

Each year it is important to give the board, coins and striker(s) some maintenance. Consistent use will roughen up smooth playing surfaces and the ambient moisture in the air will gum up powders.

One can probably get away with just a quick wipe of the board and start playing but a more finely tuned playing surface will make for a better playing experience.using 

This is a 4 year old board that the entire family uses, sees lots of use.
the more use the greater the friction.

before maintenance

 This detail shows the carrom powder embedded into the wood grain and that is good. it also exemplifies the reasoning for applying a base layer of silicon before the carrom powder. the grain increases the boards surface area therefore the increased potential for friction.

before maintenance, the white is the carrom powder embedded in the wood grain

 After a wipe down with a lightly moist cloth to remove all of the old powder, the silicon is sprayed and then wiped in small circular motions to make sure it gets into the grain and is evenly distributed.
it doesn't take much silicon to do this.

Something to note is that any over spray will turn whatever it lands on very slick. 

caution to over spray on the floor! 

cleaned and siliconed

 After the board is treated the wood coins will do well to be treated too.

i spray while the coins are sitting on a cloth to contain the mess.
then i can also use that same rag to rub into the grain.

the coins need to be cleaned and siliconed too

 the board is ready to go.
i never apply carrom powder immediately after silicon treatment. give it awhile to settle.

board and coins ready for action

for anyone interested in the game, instead of purchasing online try your local indian grocery store.
aim for $50.

Finally i am home

Wednesday is friday and no where near a banker's saturday.

i am just glad to be home.

Vice pads

Adding new corked wood pads to the vice.

i would compare this to getting new tires. you just know there will be a smoother ride.

the new blocks compared to the old.

it is always the axe and hatchet heads that tear up the blocks the most. i keep using this vice because it is the easiest on the heads. the metal working vice doesn't cut it.

the wood flooring plank is left over from wood flooring i laid in the kitchen.

using the whole buffalo.

decided to increase the width so the block will hang over just about 3/8" on each side.

old cork mangled to hell mostly from the axe/hatchet maintenance.

the oak wood is prefinished so it needed some rough sanding and rasp scratches before i would be adding the glue.

there are two things to note here. one is that i glued both the wood and the cork before clamping together and the second is that i put a little strip of wax paper on the bottom to catch any drips. 

glue to both the cork and the wood blocks

the final step before clamping is placing some wax paper between the cork. last thing i need is to glue my cork together. 

it does not get any easier than the clamping procedure for glueing cork to the wood pads in a vice.

after i took this photo i wiped off the excess glue and then i will let it cure for 24 hours. 

after that the vice will get a new handle.

Addressing the workbench tabletop

A distraction from my original task.

In the decision to do some maintenance on the vice, i could no longer ignore the maple workbench top surface.  

 this bench sees lots of different work (from the utilitarian to the finer work
((may i add no fine work, just finer than utilitarian))
and therefore some of the remains of a job well done is not the best for the next job, or materials used on that next job. 

i first took the very top layer off, removing glues/ greases/ paints ect. after that i added new bumpers on the long sides. I had some left over oak flooring that i cut down and screw fixed to the side. screws make for an easy changeout. 

first layer removed and oak side bumpers added

after adding the new bumpers i rubbed in linseed oil.

showing the difference the oil makes.
apparently i am also showing the maple wood chips from a spoon i made the other day

soaked in, the wood was pleased with the oil.

after the oil soaked in

now i can get back to the vice work.

Salvaged craftsman vice

I wanted to make the boys some short posts on simple vice maintenance.

to start though, i wanted to give some familiarity to the test subject and a thank you to the fellow that scored me my craftsman 5204.

some of the best tools are those that have been saved from salvage. often it only takes a quick cordial, tell the original/current owner your intentions and maybe a few dollars.

even if discarded there is a procedure for saving the tool. one never knows the history between that tool and the current owner. for anyone that uses tools they should know that behind each one there is often actual blood and sweat shared between the steel and the worker. that exchange creates a bond that needs to be properly respected before it can pass off to the next.

1. one must ask permission to have the tool. let them know that you want to actually use it as a tool. to show intent use words like "revive", "repair" or "let it live again".  

2. let them know that you are not taking it to resell but to use and appreciate in your own workshop.  owners are always more likely to pass it on if they know you are going to appreciate the tool and interact with its original purpose.

3. depending on the tool it doesn't hurt to offer some dollars for it. ask yourself, if someone came to you for it would you want them to offer some money. how much is fair.

my craftsman 5204

about 15 years ago a friend of mine, Dave, was at a site and saw this old vice laying outside in a scap pile. he knew i needed one, asked permission and now i have had it on this work table for over twelve years.

thanks again Dave!

craftsman 6 1/2" wood vice model 5204

axe heads have chipped away the cork lining my wood blocks

simple spacer to make the vice level with the table top

the next posts on this vice will be replacing the handle and the cork on the pad blocks.