The box arrived from Vietnam today. Vietnam! I love the internets. 
I’ve got green abalone, and the mother-of-pearl that arrived Monday. Turns out, the abalone pieces are too small for the design I want to do–I’ll have to cut 2 pieces instead of one for each of those pieces, although the MOP is just the right size for the sections I want to use it for. But it’s here! And it’s soooooo pretty. I’m going to start cutting over the long holiday weekend. Stay tuned.
We have MOP. I say again, we have MOP. And apparently, the green abalone is sitting at the post office, because it came registered mail. I dropped by the post office this morning before work to just drop off some big boxes that I’d already put postage on. Of course, the drop-box was jammed, and so I popped up to the window and mentioned it to the first gal at the desk and she said to put the stuff over at one of the empty stations. So I did, and I could feel the hate of those in line roasting my back. I avoided eye contact on the way out, not because I was in the wrong, but because I didn’t want to incite a riot. Chances I’m going to go back to the P.O. the week before Christmas after what I saw today? Slim and none. I’ll sign the form and the mailman will get it to me eventually.
And also arriving today was a new book on wood finishing so I can do something with the naked wood so that it looks nice and is protected. I picked up a stool for sitting at my workbench yesterday, along with a few other things: corkboard so I have someplace handy to stick instructions; spray adhesive for mounting the pattern to the wood I want to rout; springy-clippy clamps (that would be a technical term). It’s all coming together. I’m excited. And excited is good. It’s rather nice to feel a positive emotion for a change.
So yesterday was the day. I made my very first sawdust, and I’m so proud. I bought this Black & Decker multitool setup well over a year ago, so long ago I cannot remember when I actually bought it. I had big plans regarding redoing the bench in the back yard that has become warped and is basically a wreck. Ultimately, though, I’ve used the sander and screwdriver attachments, and I think Scott has used the drill. As you can see, the circular saw blade, and other stuff, are still in the original plastic.
Saturday, I decided to chop up some pieces of what I think is MDF to practice with my Dremel router. It’s got a white outside, and is marked up with pencil marks, but I don’t care. I’m just starting there to get used to using the tool itself since I’ve never routed anything before. Neither had I used a circular saw before. I spent the morning RTFM, and by the time I’d finished, I was properly scared. While it is the men in my family who seem to be cursed by self-inflicted power tool injuries, my general klutziness makes me wary and careful. I’m rather fond of my hands and fingers, for many reasons. I decided I’d take it slow, make no sudden moves, and I’d probably be safe. Respect the power tools, and no one will get hurt.
While I was digging around in Scott’s (unused) toolbox, in which he keeps a few tools that were his grandfather’s, I found an old 12" carpenter’s square, which was more handy than my big 24" framing square I bought for adjusting my guitar necks, which was very cool. It’s pretty beat up, rusted all to hell, and hard to read unless my nose is pressed against it, but I’m going to try to make it work. If I decide not being able to read the measurements is a real problem, I’ll get a new one, but I was pleased to be able to put a tool that hasn’t seen daylight in years to work. Tools are magic, in that they have been held, and used, and that matters to me. That’s why I don’t mind letting people play my guitars; all their energy and mojo leaves its mark on my guitar, and that can only be a good thing. If I had known I was going to do this, I would’ve asked for some of Antiguo’s hand tools that were donated to the local high school. Ah well.
Anyway, I used that carpenter’s square and marked my line. Get me! Measuring! I have disenrolled from the "measure once, cut twice, and use a lot of putty to hide the evidence" school of thought.
I quickly realized that my makeshift sawtable was going to flip up with any pressure put on one end, so I braced the other end under the workbench with other pieces of lumber. Safety first!
I even clamped the wood down so it wouldn’t get away from me while I was cutting, just like I’m supposed to. I’m too old to be half-assing shit anymore.
I lined it up, started the tool up, and started cutting, slowly. It shook a little in my hand while it did, and I wasn’t expecting that, but I was able to control it and make a reasonably straight cut. You will notice, however, that the piece I’m cutting off is still attached to the board. Oops.
I ended up breaking it off, and it left a chunk behind. Bad cut.
The second attempt was much the same, so I took a look at the saw itself. It’s not a big blade, and the cutting depth is not adjustable, but it seems the right size for most of the stock I have collected, and that’s all bigger than anything I would ever use for actual projects, which I won’t be cutting anyway. They will be existing guitars or hardwood boxes or some such. If I ever get to the point where this is a going concern, I’ll give my brother a ring and see if he wants to collaborate. He turns salad tongs and spoons and stuff for craft shows on the side of his contracting work already. He could make the boxes, I’d do the inlay, and we’ll see what happens from there, but that is well down the road.
So I tried a third cut, this time continuing to run the saw past when I thought it was done and see if that helped anything. I was rewarded when the piece actually fell this time. Clean cut–third time was the charm.
Of course, I had to drag Scott out to see my handiwork, and assure him that I finished the cutting with the same 10 fingers I started with. We talked about the workbench, and he volunteered his half of the bench, which was more crap-collector than workbench, so I could have a bench I could actually put my legs under once I started working on the pearl.
So I started cleaning. Below are the before and after shots. I’ll need to get more lights if I want to make the most of the space.
I cleaned up my sawdust (I cannot abide a messy workspace), and went in to make the annual batch of Christmas peanut butter balls. I’m an Enjoli commercial.
So I’ve picked out some designs from a clip art book I bought for the purpose. I think this is going to be the one I try first.
It’s only got 7 pieces, and I think it will probably easier to start with straight lines only. My plan is to use some of the white MOP on the crossbars, and abalone (not sure which yet) on the square. I haven’t decided what to put it into yet; I still need to make some sawdust. I think for the first outing, once I get the shell pieces I’m going to pick through and look for the least lovely pieces for the first try. No point in wasting the good stuff on a rough draft.
I picked out some other designs, too, for starter projects, and I’ve got the multiple copies of them made. According to my sources, I need to get some spray adhesive to stick each piece of the design directly the shell, then I’ll just sand it off after.
I’ve got an e-mail out to the supplier of the green abalone and the MOP, who is in Australia, asking for an ETA on my stuff. No answer yet.
