Field notes cover reinforcement

The different field notebooks covers do not hold up same in the back pocket.

(i need to note that my job is active and being in my back pocket is no treat for a notebook)

for example the linen cover of the "county fair" series is very durable

but

the red blooded straight paper cover fails fast. 

i prefer to leave it natural however once the tears happen on these covers then it will start to tear up the paper innards and then the notebooks potential to hold facts and ideas.

the "county fair" cover held up very well after one tour of duty in my back pocket.

 after two weeks the cover binding was beginning to come apart.

i wanted a way to have a QUICK way to make a bullet proof repair that also had some style to it.

easy answer is double sided carpenters tape. 

the tack on this tape is extreme. 

by having it double sided one can then add any other material on the outside of it for looks.

i roughly cut the tape, remove one side of the protective paper and apply.

the red blooded series cover is failing after 2 week in the back pocket.
needs reinforcing.

next i trim to size and remove the second side.

here we can see how protective this tape is. the synthetic binding material will keep it flexible while preventing future ripping.

i will stress here again, this tape is extremely sticky.

reinforcing field notebook with double sided carpet tape.

this is where anything goes.

this piece of fabric is red and was next to the desk.

in the past i have found that fabric works the best over paper covers when relegated to my back pocket.

reinforcing field notebook cover with double sided carpet tape and a swatch of fabric from an old shirt.

the entire project took 2 minutes

and 

then back to work.

Croquet from saturday

Continuing the summer extreme croquet competition: 

nobles vs mattsons

wifey admiring my croquet shot

keeping the beer out of the line of fire while i take a shot.

where to put the beer when shooting is always the question.

Thought rocket ship pencil holder

Lately i thought it would be entertaining to come up with a new tangent of my thought rockets. i decided to combine this thought with my want to build a model and to have a unique pencil holder for my desk.

originally i thought that i would make layered wood versions of 1950's scifi movie rocket ships that would hold my writing utensils that were in rotation.
i quickly put together a very rough sketch and then went to working on a model of it. this model is a non-working version strictly to decide if the two dimensional proportions would work in the third.
this would also be a good time to work on some slimmed down versions of aesthetics and construction combinations. this model is just to work out some of the initial ideas and is by no means meant to be a working piece. it may seem like a lot of work, but it really is the only way for me to competently develop my ideas.

very rough sketch of a general rocket ship

i am pleased with the first model. i liked the dimensions and there are many ideas i can now start to elaborate on. this piece is clunky, but was never meant to be refined.

after finishing the first model i have decided to keep some of my original thoughts:

1. to keep the option of making the middle pencil holder free moving from the rocket. 

maybe even set up a wooden gear system that can rotate it.

i have been wanting to make wooden gears and would be good practice.

rocket ship pencil holder first model to test dimensions done.

2. need to keep it free standing with a smaller base. the footprint will be contained to a minimum on the desk.

may also start playing with a wall mount and a ceiling mount option. 

how it is positioned could be relative to the ships shape or its role in the movie or its position in the movie's poster or the needs of the room's space it will be kept. quite a few options are there.

rocket ship pencil holder with a smaller foot print to take up less room on desk.

3. i liked being able to see the inner layers of construction. 

there will be plenty of ways to make it elaborate & interesting. 

rocket ship pencil holder first model. there will be plenty of potential to making the inner layers elaborate.

the nose cone here is paper, but in the working models it will be wood or metal.

i will also repeat the metal that i use in different areas  of the ship. 

4. i am definitely set on keeping it wood but will also work with copper, brass and waxed string.

may even move to a more steampunked look. 

the next question i have is when will i make the second version, one closer to the final product.

will i ever continue on with this project?

Pencil shavings

Sharpening a pencil with a brass sharpener can be as rewarding as creating those long thin shavings from a woodworking hand plane. one always focuses on the wood to be removed for functions sake, but there is no denying the challenge of getting the shavings as long as possible

with my competitive nature i find myself wanting to beat my best.

then, i have to remind myself to stop before i end up with a nub of a pencil.

Schramm park fishery

Schramm state park is focused around the states first fishery conservation attempt from the late 1800's.

last day of school for the boys and then off to schramm state park.

took a long hike to wear out the young ones and then relaxed at the old fishery pools. 

our minds melted next to the pools give off that relaxing running water sound. 

Van dyke eberhard faber lead issues and broken momentum

A ridiculous moment at the work bench the other day.

when something so seemingly inconsequential breaks the momentum of a project.

i dropped my dull "van dyke" USA eberhart faber on the cement floor (lead first), fast sharpening so i could keep marking and then when i went to write about 2" of lead just plopped out.

when i looked up close i saw a hairline crack, pulled slightly and it just sort of ripped open.

next if find myself not woodworking but messing around with a broken pencil trying to test my skill at masterfully remove all of the lead without opening the rip anymore. 

the back of the pencil reads:

"hi-density" microtomic graphite.

and 

on yet another facet reads "woodclinched"

Wasp clipper fountain pen re-sac: easy

W.A. Shaeffer Pen Company

w.a.s.p.

clipper fountain pen with a #4 nib.

this pen was my great grandfather's and the sac had petrified.

before i begin, i must express how easy it is to re-sac a lever fountain pen that is already in a respectable condition. i strongly recommend any owner of a fountain pen with a petrified sac to re-sac their pen and get it back in order. after all tools need to be used.

this is a simple outline of the steps i took:

1. never try to work the lever if the sac is petrified. to test how the nib worked, i first took the pen and dipped in ink for a few seconds.

2. the nib seemed to be in good visual and functional order so i went on cleaning. i separated the parts of the pen: removed the hardened sac that was stuck to the walls of the barrel then soaked in water. i was patient with soaking, flushing with water. 

3. when all traces of ink and the old sac were gone from inside the barrel, i let dry and then prepared for the new bladder.

clipper fountain pen with the last remaining petrified sac still on the section.

 4. after the pen parts were dry i removed the final traces of old sac that was adhered to the 

section's sac coupler. after removing the old sac i took a soft core nail buffer to the coupler.

clipper fountain pen with all the petrified sac removed

 5. i have a number of pens to re-sac, so i purchased a couple sizes of sacs and shellac from Richards pens.  Richards pens also has some very good how to's on re-sacing fountain pens. 

there are a few other good options for online stores too. i purchased from Richard's out of appreciation for their tutorials and other generous website information.

the sacs come long so i fitted in the barrel, subtracted jut over another 1/8" and cut it straight.

the bladders are quite flexible and easy to stretch over the section's sac coupler. 

i applied shellac to the coupler, fitted the sac and then put one more fine bead around the outer seam.

clipper fountain pen with a new bladder. above the re-sac section is the amount i had to cut off.

 6. it is recommended to let the shellac cure for 30 minutes, i had to go to work so i let it sit for much longer.

7. before reassembly i used the talc from one of the boys old bicycle tires and powdered the outside of the bladder.

clipper fountain pen assembled and ready for writing.

8. the pen drank the ink very easily and after a few hours of using there are no signs of leakage.

this was a very very simple process.