Wood 'n' Soul

"Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off."
— General Colin Powell

I like Colin Powell - he's a smart man.

I'm working on an antique chair to repair the back. It is one of the toughest pieces I've ever worked on.

The wood is brittled and suffused with super glue from earlier repair attempts and age.


Here I'm working to very carefully carve away the old glue. It takes a long time, because I don't want to remove any wood and not have the pieces fit properly.




Later, I drilled out the pins and replaced them with solid wood pins.

The chair has been broken before - the rails are of a different material and there are many pieces that are cracked and broken. You might be able to fool some folks, but you can't fool your chariwright ;-). I wonder what happened to the chair that caused it to be broken this way. My client hasn't had the set for very long and she has not idea how it came to be that way.

I really enjoy working on pieces like these and often wonder at the stories they could tell...maybe I should write a book about them.

A couple of days ago, I visited a very nice lady who had some bubinga for sale. In the course of the conversation, she asked if I used hand tools, which I do and replied accordingly. She asked if I wanted a Record joiner plane - free. It had belonged to her best friend and she couldn't use it. As I stuttered and stammered a yes, she looked around and found the plane.

It is still in the original box [see image].


A #7 Joiner plane from England - just a touch under 22 inches long.


It had a smidge of rusty film, which quickly gave way to a little oil and emory paper [gently applied]. The sole is true and fine.

So I had to test it out. I couldn't even wait to sharpen it. Well you know - it works just fine!



Thank you much kind lady!!! I will use it and my boys will use it, ever thinking =of how it came to be ours...