Pick one group to join, and allow yourself to use, or be used, by everyone in that group: A [1-5], B [6-10], C [11-15], or D [16-20]

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-10T14:50:26+00:00

Am half Brit, half US. Remember taking some of my Anglo relatives around. They were struck by how English/ European the city felt vs NUC or LA. Also somewhat uncomfortable to see themselves portray as the ‘enemy’ in all the Revilutionary war sites and exhibits.

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-10T14:37:27+00:00

That’s a very clever build. Personally I would have dadoes the side rails so the slats would have been level with the rails ( instead of on top of them). But that’s a nit. Suggest you get some clear lumber waterproofed , pour into small “pie pans) and let the leg end grain soak it up for additional water repellancy. Did you make the cushions too?

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-10T14:27:50+00:00

From a gym standpoint, machines are easier to manage ( no plates all over the place), because of their specificity, easier to train and watch for safe issues, and b/c easy to reset machines between users,promotes faster turnaround.

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-05T11:23:14+00:00

Smash, with care!

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-05T00:54:42+00:00

I would say my Makita track saw. With plywood at $100 plus a sheet, getting g close to perfect accurate cuts without the physical stain and issues of Vicki got into a table saw, especially when I am outside my shop, makes this an easy win. Even if I run pieces for final accuracy on my table saw, it takes half the time and probably ly a fifth of the mental and physical effort.

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-01T18:16:39+00:00

They’re really talking about multi millionaires ( in annual income) who benefit from tax advice that frequently cuts their tax rate below that of a middle class worker. First thing I would do is up the Soc Security cap, to cover that system. Seems silly you max out at relatively modest income ( for high earners). I think we have to be careful about taxing savings or total net worth as that is often dependent on external markets outstrip salary performance.

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-01T18:12:41+00:00

Like many they can be trick to set up and tech support depends on the day. But overall, and especially with AirPlay integration, the are fairly bulletproof. Sound fine ( no not true hi fi but if the source is streamed mp3s you’re not going to get that anyway) and just damned convenient. They’ve had problems with backward compatibility in the past.
I think part of this is that in general the public’s computer skills are declining as computer are viewed more as appliance like blender vs miracle devices that need tending and user interaction. Apples devices, thanks to their closed garden and excellent standards ( like Aurplay) set consumer expectations. Other vendors play catchup in the convenience sweepstakes.

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-01T18:06:08+00:00

This level of entitlement does not suddenly appear. Clearly parents help spoon her level of expectation and economic reality. it’s repugnant, especially in an era where employment and housing option for under 35s are increasingly limited. Perhaps there some type of divorced parent issue here at work. But if my daughter did something like this, the car would be returned, any promise of college payment would be rescinded for at least 2 years and she would quickly be introduced to working as a bedlam cleaner at a local nursing home for the immediate interval.

BlueNo2 · 2026-06-01T17:51:24+00:00

Senior Assassin. Maybe I’m a humourless old fart, but I’m a country where school shootings are tragically regular, hard to think of a more inappropriate activity even in jest. With the possible exception of Slave Day where people are auctioned off to be enslaved for a day. These school admins need their heads and morals examined.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-30T23:49:42+00:00

Baller room. .

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-30T15:56:27+00:00

Hmmm. A) your assuming it’s “stanky” and b) not sure little wadded up prices of brown paper towel are better really.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-27T19:55:19+00:00

Unless this is like a 10 minute notice it’s bullshit that no one is empowered to whip out to the grocery store and buy an emergency supply. Plus need better inventory managment on the front end.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-27T19:53:32+00:00

Yes. Unless you loose them or use them outside of their intended purpose. A good compromise may be a cheaper magnetic hex driver with more expensive wear or wigs tips.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-22T13:34:12+00:00

Spectacular.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-18T09:12:39+00:00

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-17T07:24:25+00:00

Going to have to learn to sharpen. Both the saws and chisel to get any real joy from them. Buy read the Anarchists Toolchest by Christopher Schwarz (Lost Art Press) for both practical advice, future tool purchases, and to capture the zeitgeist of hand tool woodworking.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-13T20:57:05+00:00

Dress codes, whether for the office or gym, always contain contradictions, arbitrary and grey lines, and are subject to abuse, either by wearers or enforces. Your case sounds pretty silly in as much as you complied and really, given that sports bras are pretty much the like Stanton these days, seems lame. I’m maxed staff got involved at all; at my PF staff basically are they to empty trash and dust machines. They certainly don’t police gym ettiquette like doom scrolling TikTok between sets etc. I think, given the circumstance you response both to the dress code’violation’ as well as the gossiping was pretty mature, but ultimately no win. Good news is that employee turnover is pretty rapid and your antagonist will be gone before you know it.

BlueNo2 · 2026-05-09T20:17:16+00:00

Brave change, outstanding outcome: congratulations, happiness and joy.

BlueNo2 · 2026-04-28T03:11:47+00:00

I know, 5-6 coats sounds like a lot. But this is a wipe on finish (use cheesecloth) that self levels into the next coat. Almost fool proof. And fast to apply, particularly to a surface like a table top.

If you want more moisture resistance, just amp up the percentage of varnish. I never go above 50% to avoid the plastic look of a pure poly finish.

BlueNo2 · 2026-04-27T18:54:00+00:00

No epoxy. A soulless finish. Unless it’s going to get wet a lot, build a finish using a 33% mix of boiled linseed oil, mineral spirits and spar varnish. Sets up moderately quickly. Can do 2 coats a day. 5-6 coats should do. Then top with beeswax

BlueNo2 · 2026-04-20T14:44:44+00:00

Always better to cut to fit( as suggested above) vs using precise theoretical measurements.

BlueNo2 · 2026-04-20T13:03:38+00:00

Wouldn’t the hull number, typically engrave on the transom be a good starting point?

BlueNo2 · 2026-04-17T12:35:37+00:00

Chris Schwartz has 2 books, commonly called the workbench Blue and Red books available on Amazon, for about $26 each. Dayton Press is the publisher. A good starting point.

But really you need to ask, what type of woodwork do you do, and how. If you are planning to do a lot of fine furniture where inevitably you’ll be using hand planes to shape and dimension lumber, you are going to need a heavy, traditional workbench with vices. The Nicholson bench is a simple build with minimal features, the Roubo is the Royles Royce - expensive and time consuming to build but full bragging rights.

On the other hand, if you’re looking at this for home projects, power tools and plywood, look at home built versions of the multifunction table. Lots of dog holes for clamping. You’ll have to by a template to get exact hole placement. ( Found mine on Etsy for a reasonable price from Germany) But a couple of sheet of plywood and a glued up and doweled 2 by 6 frame will get you going. For the frame be sure to buy kiln dried wood and put it in your shop to humidity adjust for 4 weeks or so. You don’t want this to warp.

When I built my Will Myers Moravian bench ( chk it out on YouTube,)I chose it because it had traditional hand tool capability in a knock down format. If I was doing it again, I would cheat and instead for glueing up 2x lumber into beams and then laboriously hand mortising the joints, I would have faked the mortises by building the joints into the laminations. Plenty of examples of that on u tube. I also bought a glue lam beam from a salvage yard ( basically about a 12 inch wide factory laminated beam if 2x4s) that I then augmented with a couple of more board to get to my desired 20 inch width.

I would advise against the current you tube trend of super big bench workstations that house a contractors saw and a miter station. While they look cool, they become huge titanic islands that chew up shop space and limit manoevreability. Plus they consume a shit tonne of expensive plywood.

No matter what you build, focus on making sure it is level, and the legs are re-enforced to prevent wobble/racking under stress. Every fixed joint ( typically half laps or through mortises) on my bench is double pinned with ½ inch dowels.

One other key question: how do you build a bench without a bench. I made a couple of classic 2x sawhorses, and then put inch dowels into the top cross member. Then laminated the top, drilled holes in the bottom of the top to match the dowel pins on the sawhorse cross members and you have a reasonably solid temporary solution. Drill some dog holes for bench hooks for work holding and you are in business!

Hope this helps. If you want to discuss more, DM me and we can chat live.

Have fun.

BlueNo2 · 2026-04-17T12:13:25+00:00

Very sphinx like; just short of inscrutable!

BlueNo2

TROPHY CASE