More Tools!

(June 23, 2012)

I know I'm backing up in my time line but I had to go back and talk about my new tools. I had passed by this building hundreds of times. I guess it used to be part of the County Highway Garage or something. So I never paid attention to it. It looked plain enough. 

Doesn't look like much does it? Well... I guess one day I finally read a sign and saw that it said "ReStore". I had no idea what that meant and moved on. But as I was scanning the world of blogs about pallets and reclaimed wood there was also this whole "upcycle" community. And I kept seeing posts where someone picked something up real cheap at some place called the ReStore. 

Finally one day I passed it again and when I saw it something finally clicked. So I turned back around and pulled in. Of course... it was closed. :( But there was the sign. 

                                

Now it all made sense. So I checked the times and made a mental note to come back. I stopped in another day and wondered around. It's a small place and I really liked it but I guess I expected more. On this trip I had went with two of my step daughters, Bailey and Jenna, and of course James was with us.  

On the next trip it was just me and my daughter Brianna. We walked in the door and the guy at the counter said "the back is open today too". I probably looked like it was time to open the presents at Christmas. I was like... "the back? there's a back?". Of course we took off and went straight to the back. 

Now if you go back and look at the picture... the entrance to the ReStore is on the other side of that big pine tree. See the big grey building in the back? That's "the back". It was one of those HOT days that we had here that was like 100 degrees. There's a gate and we had to walk to the back. That's not normally an issue. It's not that far. But when it's 100 out, it's miserable. Was it worth it? YES! I felt like a kid in a candy store. They had all sorts of stuff. This was the big warehouse where they take donations and sort everything out. And even better... they had some teen/college age volunteers working it. Some of the stuff was not marked. Brianna found half a can of paint in her favorite color... blue. The guy looked at her like... why would you want that?. He told her $1. She jumped on it. 

They have mostly stuff like kitchen cabinets, sinks, tubs, trim, appliances, furniture. All sorts of things. It was miserable hot so I had decided that it would just have to wait for the next time. Brianna started complaining that it was time to leave. So... I gave up. I rounded the corner to leave the warehouse and I saw this little grey box. Looked like a box for a tool so I grabbed it.... Brianna protesting the whole time that it was time to go. Inside I found this.....

I was like... ewwweeee... awwweee (imagine a kid at the fireworks). A router! I had wanted one. Thought about them, but wasn't really looking to buy one. So I asked the young guy... "how much?" He looked at me and said.... "I don't really know. I think he said I could sell it for $25".

LOL!!!

So... in the next aisle over is this man. Probably in his late 40's early 50's. He hears "$25" and runs over and stares with a look on his face that said "are you gonna buy that?". I asked if I could turn it on and try it out. I looked at the older guy and said "I think I'm going to buy it". He was kinda drooling even more than me. So the young kid turned it on and it worked. The other man was quite disappointed that I took it. Of course he rebounded quickly and started talking to me about. It was obvious he has a love for woodworking. He talked to me about all kinds of things. He even explained the bits to me. It came with 7. 

I know that there are 2- veining bits, 2 - 1/8" straight bits, 1- V-groove... and I don't remember what the other two are. So for $25 I snagged the router. The whole time Brianna is begging me to leave.

As you can tell from the pic. It's a Skil, 2 HP Variable Speed Plunge Router

So as I'm leaving, right next to the router I see this....

 So I ask the guy how much.... again I got the shoulder shrugging that he didn't know. Then he said "$20". I wasn't sure about it and actually left. But I ended up calling my friend Matt and he said for that price I might as well pick it up. So I went back to the store. Brianna is 12, almost 13.... so the eyes were rolling. LOL... Anyways... I love my new tools. This little Skilsaw has actually came in pretty handy. And the blade on it looks brand new. The young kid that checked me out said that a guy had just dropped those tools off.

(June 30, 2012) 

So... another trip to Matt's. This trip was to visit with my sister. My brother and his family also went up and all SEVEN of my kids. Luckily a couple rode with my brother. They live on a lake so the day was spent swimming, cooking out and enjoying each others company. Of course... the trip could not be complete without a visit to the work shop. He didn't have my table saw and band saw ready but he had the scroll saw ready. Here it is. It's an older saw. It's a Craftsman. It has a 3" blade. Which... they don't sell at the stores. Only on eBay. But I got home... plugged it in and cut away. I don't intend to do a lot of scroll work so it will serve my purpose. And another tool to add to my collection :)

It's ran by a foot peddle like a sewing machine. 

I don't know how old this is... but it looks like it's seen a few years. 

All in all it was a good day! Here is a pic of 5 of the kids. The oldest, Kyle (16) and the youngest, James (3) are the only ones not in this pic. This was their last jump in the lake of the day. They all decided to hold hands and jump in at the same time. James is not brave enough to jump yet (thank goodness), and Kyle is too old to join in. It was a great day.