So, it is early March, and reflecting back on the winter we had, it was COLD! I do have a kerosene heater that I can warm the garage, but it is only effective if the outside temp is over freezing. Most any day I can get it tolerable to be in the shop with a sweater or jacket on, but if I can’t get it into the mid-50s it isn’t worth it. First, I don’t like working in the shop with long sleeves on, for various safety reasons, as well as I feel like I can move more freely when working with hand tools. Next, and yes on this one I am being a wuss, but cast iron and tool steel is COLD and uncomfortable to work with!
That said, I am starting to think ahead as to what I will be working on this spring. First off, I want to finish the box for the box challenge. It is nearly done, but I have an idea of a detail I want to put inside the lid first. I will post here how that works out. Once that is done, I will mortise out for the hinges and once the outside temp is steady enough, put some finish on it.
Next, I want to finish my hand tool cabinet. I made a lot of progress on it last fall, and it has been sitting on saw horses waiting for me to get back to working on it. One thing I have been thinking on is the drawers. First, I want to do hand cut dovetails with them again. One thing I am tempted to try is making them half blind. I will have to do some more research on it. The other thing is, I want the drawers to be unique. I have been thinking about getting a small amount of some sort of figured exotic for the fronts.
As for other projects, I have a few ideas in the works, as does my wife. 🙂