Ron Altier

My house was painted by professional painters 4 years ago. They did a fine job. Here in the Denver area we get hail many times each year. After a recent such storm, I saw some hail damage on the northwest side of my house. Not much, some of the larger bare areas were as big as a quarter. It was and is very puzzling to me. The damage only went up about 10 feet. There is another 2 story house about 10 feet away and it was not touched. I felt good about not having to go up high and only needed an 8 ft step ladder. That is when I discovered that the siding was not wood or aluminum. It was pressed fiber wood and has been there for more than 30 years. It wasn’t much of a task to paint the bare spots. When I got out the paint out that the painters had left, it was well marked. I made another discovery. The paint cans were NOT metal, but plastic. I remember thinking “This is cheap junk”. When I opened the cans I was surprised. The paint needed little stirring. There was very little on the bottom and I was ready to go in a few minutes. Those plastic containers made a big difference and the paint was still very much liquid. It used to take some time with an electric drill stir to get it thoroughly mixed. After I was finished I had to admit that I was wrong about cheap stuff being used. As for the fiber board………………There is NOT one good stick of wood in the whole house. It is all plywood and cheap pine. But that is how they make them now days. My old house in Ohio was all Oak and real wood. Times have changed, as I found out

When I was a child (70 years ago) my family went to Fl. I remember those huge trees with moss hanging down and “Stuckies” souvenir shops. Amoung the many local items were many wood items, many made of this wood. I asked my dad what it was and a local explained all about it. He may have been blowing smoke to a couple of “yankees” but we believed him.

I browse thrift stores for wood to turn. Most people have no idea about wood or type. I have picked up pieces of Walnut, Purple Heart, Yellow Heart, etc. I saw a large clock made of Cypress. The clock was junk, but the wood looked interesting. I paid a few bucks for it and turned it into another Christmas ornament. The wood was challenging, it was soft, hard and sometimes brittle. This my first try and I must say this wood is beautiful when all goes right.

My favorite type of project has taken many turns over the years due to workshop space and my age. I started with a big shop, wood stove heat and many large tools. I moved here to Colorado and now have half of my garage. I have made my shop machines as compact as possible and lumber storage space is very small. Most of my projects are made on my mini lathe or one of my fold away tools. As for my age, I am now content to make smaller projects and just enjoy wood working small lathe projects. I am presently making ear rings and small table saw projects. No matter what the project, even if it fails and I toss it, I still enjoy working with wood.

I’ve been thru some sickness (not covid) and it really drug me down. Not many projects. I’m back now feeling much better.

As many of you know, I make a lot of small things out of exotic wood, such as Christmas ornaments, with my mini lathe. I recently gathered some scraps and made some ear rings. My wife loves them and they aren’t hard to make. Sometimes my big fingers make it challenging, but I manage. All of the hooks and tiny metal pieces are avilaable at Hobby Lobby or Jo Anns. They make great gifts.

All of those ornaments were made from a dead Red Elm (I think) limb in my back yard. I was cleaning up branches that a nearby tornado blew out. After the initial cut, I looked at the inside of the cut and saw. a mixed up composition of rot, dark dead spots, etc. I had to turn it down and see what secrets it held. I finish with 2 part 30 minute epoxy, while the piece is very slowly turning. It cures into a glassy finish. The strength of the epoxy fortifies the piece and gives it a very beautiful finish. Epoxy is tricky, much depends on the temperature in which it cures and the rpm it turns while it is curing. It takes a delicate balance. Now that the weather is turning cold………so is my unheated garage…….which again effects the cure. These ornaments are Christmas gifts for my family.

As I was trimming some small dead limbs from a Red Maple, I noticed the end grain looked colorful. I turned down some small pieces and it was beautiful. The limb was 6 feet long and the largest diameter was about 2”. I let it dry and turned about 15 tree ornaments. They are pretty and will make great Christmas gifts. I did have problems with rot but I used 2 part epoxy as a finish to stabilize and enhance the beauty of these pieces

“Did you ever forget what you are doing" Not only yes but as I age (80 now) it becomes more prevalent. The one thing I try very hard to maintain is my safety. If in doubt don’t turn it on and if it is running……….turn it off. The part that really bugs me most, Is where that little Demond hid what I’m looking for. If I replace a bad screw diver with a red handle with one with a green handle………….I’ll look for the red handle for 5 minutes.

Another thing I like is a feature that looks like a flame in the upper right corner. It is in either black or orange. If you click on it, it will delete (or burn) all sites you have visited

I recently changed browsers and switched to DuckDuckgo. I was amazed at the trackers on nearly every site. Especially Rockler 104 trackers and Woodcraft 89. I know I"d be even more amazed if I knew how many Google has. Duck Duck identifies and blocks all of them. The Patriot Woodworker showed NO trackers. I am NOT promoting any web site, but I feel safter knowing I am not on a browser that doesen't tell the world my info.

I use dowels often when tuning small to tiny turnings. Many times these dowels crush or come apart. I turn my own dowels when using a colorful wood. I saw where I could get bamboo dowels in standard sizes and ordered a few to see how would turn. When I received them I was amazed at how light and strong they are. I turned one down into a sewing aid for my wife. Here is what I found out. 1. Even tho they are advertised as being in standard sizes, they are metric. Holes must be bored with metric bits. 2. Even tho it is very hard to see, many turning come off in tiny needles. Ask me how I know. ouch. 3. Even tho it is super hard, it absorbs finish like a soft wood. 4. I will use it, but only as support for small turnings and then turn the bamboo down to a point on the ends of the ornaments.

I’m still trying to solve issues. The epoxy must be mixed in equal parts and temperature plays a huge part in curing, as well as rpm. Im not ready to give info yet……I thought I was. Maybe soon if I can stick with it (pun intended)

I think I have a handle now on using epoxy on small turned pieces. These pieces came out good and look like a glass finish