Puttering in the Study

Model workshop table finished

  It's not exactly a secret that my study has a secret door - the shelves for science fiction open into my model workshop.  For most of the time we've been in the house the first thing you saw when you opened the door was a stack of sawdust-covered wood and cardboard scraps. 

But after I cleaned it up last fall I realized that this was the perfect place for a narrow wall table - a place to put a phone or iPad when I am working in there.  I couldn't find a table with exactly the dimensions I wanted, so I after I got the new workbench for the wood workshop at the lake I built one from new lumber, with shelves underneath for storage.

The design was based on the shelves Daddy and I made for my paperbacks (the same ones on the shelves in the photos above).  Since I didn't have the ability to rabbet the shelves into the sides, and biscuits wouldn't provide enough support for a 48" long table, I used poplar cleats to hold the shelves in place.  

When I put it in I realized that it was the perfect place to store the model kits from my stash that I actually intend to built.  I have many more than those shown here, but aside from the large ones that wouldn't fit here, they're older kits that I have already decided aren't going to be built because there are better kits available now. 

The table also lent itself to a lamp, and although the photos don't show it, I have moved the Alexa and wireless speakers there as well.  And it provides a great place to display my framed naval aviation and NASA artwork, which I expect will get moved around from time to time.

I decided the paint the shelves themselves to match the room's "Divine White" trim, but built a top from old pine boards from the Hub Shoe Store.  The boards that made up the top weren't edged or planed, and were just held together with biscuits and glue.  The finish was Minwax Colonial Oak with several coats of hand-rubbed satin polyurethane.  It provides a rustic touch - and matches the wood-tone formica top of the model workbench.

Hub furniture project update

After several weeks at the office, Phil the prototype
went back to the workshop for an extensive update.  The new version at left has a number of improvements over what Phil looked like Friday (see right), although he still only got three of the five changes as a result of use at the office checked off- the rest deal with the upper "easel" portion of the piece.

New base

First, the base was completely rebuilt, this time using Hub lumber.  It is larger and has an enclosed back, and the base is trimmed with a half inch piece of molding (I need to add a few more strips to cover some screws). It is significantly more stable with the extra depth and weight, and no longer minds rolling on and off carpets. 

Picking the right pieces from the old shoe store shelves was a bit of a challenge, since the shelves max out at 11 1/2" wide, and I really needed the depth to be 12".  Long story.  But I finally set the right dimensions, started cutting pieces for this and subsequent units, and got the first set cut, rabbetted as needed (a new skill I learned over the weekend), clamped and screwed together.  (Don't worry about the paint still on the shelves - where it needs to be removed I'll do that before final staining - I did do initial sanding before the parts were assembled, but staining and finishing is still a ways off).

The existing (temporary) wood post and easel was removed from the old base, as were the wheels and gun safe, and transferred to their new permanent base after their location was recorded on templates to make drilling the necessary countersunk holes quicker on the next couple of units.

I didn't get the briefcase shelf "deck" built - just the plywood base that the final decking will be screwed to, but I did cut a couple of the boards that will eventually make up the deck. I can't really build the deck until I get the final aluminum posts fabricated and know what those dimensions will be.  And I'm still playing around with some different idea about what it should look like.

Easel

The temporary easel got a few modifications to try out before it's replaced in a few weeks with a Hub lumber version, which I can already tell will have slightly larger dimensions, principally to accommodate the larger iPad I got over the holidays.  First, it got two additional cord holes, so that devices on the sides can sit upright while charging, and leave the center clear.

Then the center got the traditional Hub "card holder" - and while I had the table saw and chop saw set up I cut the pieces for about five more.

The card holder detail comes from the shoe store's old shoe repair bench, which is made up of three of the original 1897 storage bins (see below with Mose Weisman).    The paper cards with a listing of the contents of the drawer are held in place by three strips of wood chiseled out on the back.  

This is a detail I used on the first three pieces of furniture I made from Hub lumber - two book racks and a small set of bookshelves.  I resized the holder for a business card, and am in fact using the same template I made for the racks and bookshelf (shown in use below).  Here it has pride of place on the easel, with the charging outlets to either side, and has the office wifi and wireless printer info.  I will likely resize it for 3x5 cards on the final version. 

As the attached drawing from the '337 patent shows, the unit has always been intended to have some  sort of central information display with the charging locations to the side - this just provides it with a Hub-appropriate one.

Model workshop table with unfinished top from old lumber

I built a 12" x 48" side table for the model workshop over the last three  weekends.  The intention was to have a place to drop bag, keys, and other stuff when I got in the workshop, but as soon as I put the unfinished shelving in place I realized it was a great place to put the model kits that I actually intend to build, as well as reference books that are in the workshop temporarily from the study  next door.

Design

The basic design of the table is the same as the shelves made from 1x6s that Daddy and I made for my paperbacks years ago - which I still use for BluRay disks in the movie room - which means solid shelves and sides with a recessed toe kick at the bottom, but the dimensions are far larger - twice as deep and twice as long, with an overhanging top screwed on.

Since I was not sure whether I would be staining or painting it I didn't want exposed screws, so I used a technique which I learned building my large Bartley shelves - cleats.  As the photo shows, I use 3/4 x 3/4# poplar strips as cleats to hold the shelves and top to the toe kick and the top cross-pieces.  I chose the poplar because it is harder than pine. The cleats were pre-drilled with countersunk holes for the screws, then glued and screwed into place.  One dried the the shelves were attached, which was easier than I thought now that I had a workbench I could securely clamp the pieces to.

But I wasn't happy with the 12" x 48" craft board that I used for the table top (at right), and decided to build a new to-be-stained top from multiple smaller boards (final at left).  After realizing that I had enough boards of the right size from the old Hub Shoe Store already set aside in the garage, I decided to use those, since the wood - which is at least 50 years old, and potentially 90 , is far better than new stock.

Determining the age of the old boards is interesting.  Each of the 1x4's were actually 3 5/8" wide, which means they predated the 1961 standarization which reduced the width of 1 x 4s to 3 1/2.  Their standardization means they weren't likely from the original store, which would have made them 120 years old, but since the store hadn't been modified since the 1950's, they likely date from the 1940's-1950's - possibly as early as the 1930's.  In any event, very good old wood, although still nothing compared to the old shelving, which dates from 1897, making it old-growth East Texas lumber.

I started by choosing boards with no major defects and cut them to the required lengths, then used my plate joiner to cut holes for biscuits in the sides and ends of the boards. Next it was time to glue them together and clamp them securely while they dried.  

I was going to add a second thickness around the edges in the form of a "lip" that would make the final product look ticker, but decided against it.  

My plan is still to paint the base the trim color of the room - a cream color - but I don't think I'll sand or stain the top - just oil it and enjoy the natural wood color.  But as it isn't attached I can always go back and plane or sand it down if I want. 

Shabbat at the Hub

Every so often we get to do new things at the Hub.  Tonight was one of those nights.  I have been wanting to put of a mezuzeh out front to recognize the Weisman and Kariel families that occupied the Hub for so many years, but the one I brought back from Israel last year was too new-looking.

Fortunately, some lawyer friends who are in town for a trial next week decided to help out, and brought me a couple of older ones.  They then decided we needed to install it with the proper prayers this evening, and invite Audrey & Louis Kariel.  And you know, it being Friday evening and all, let's have Shabbat. 

So we went out front and I read (phonetically, of course - a Catholic education only goes so far) the Hebrew prayer for the mezuzeh and screwed it into place, and then we went into the conference room and had Shabbat, complete with "Hub Shabbat" prayer sheets.  Jamie brought Jim, Marie and the boys and we had a nice visit with the lawyers, the Kariels and our family.

 

Hub marker and renovation featured in Texas Jewish Historical Society magazine

The Hub marker dedication was recognized in this month's Texas Jewish Historical Society magazine, which can be downloaded at Download TJHS - Hub article.

More work at the Hub

Did a lot of work this weekend both at home and at the Hub.  At the Hub, I added three more sections of track lighting, one in my office and two in the hallway.

The hallway lighting was toextend light all the way down the hall so that we can light up three or four more pieces of art.  As the attached before and after shows, the end of the hall was dark originally - now it's light (the post-its in the two news pictures show the locations for the three new pieces, which should be in tomorrow). It may not sound like a lot, but it really brightens up the office.

The third track, which is controlled from just over my stand-up desk, sits on top of the wall and provides light for reading on my stand in the morning or late in the afternoon and evening.  I can't accurately represent the change in light level with the cell camera, but this is pretty close.

Finally, and of course most importantly, today we got the old door chime from the Hub installed in its location at the entrance to the 111 side, as this video reflects.  Probably forty years of store customers heard that chime.  

 

Wall art changes at the Hub

Couple of new things at the Hub last week.

First, we got in plaques with copies of the Hub renovation's three front page appearances in the Marshall News Messenger, so we put those and our our awards for the renovation on a "renovation wall" in the reception area on the 111 side.

Second, I got around to framing six more prints from the 1939 Florsheim catalog that Louis and Audrey gave me (I scan the catalog originals and then print copies in frame-friendly sizes) and put them on the Louis, Jr. wall in the guest attorneys' office (because they're shoes, see?  It's sort of a theme we have around here).  That fit well with the track lighting and let us add Carol Pace's 2011 Christmas card watercolor to the room, where it benefits from a couple of tracks lights as well.  That wall (and that room) has always nagged at me, and I think it looks much, much better now.  It doesn't look quite as dramatic as the camera's light sensor thinks, but it still looks pretty cool.

New flag at the Hub for Flag Day - courtesy of the Smith boys

To celebrate Flag Day tomorrow, our three Scouts (one Second Class and two Wolf) took down the old flag at the Hub this evening and put up a new one, then took the old one down to Grayson's troop for the next flag retirement ceremony.

It really makes a difference - I had not realize how faded the old flag was until we got it down.

1981 Boys State envelope ... from the Hub

Ran across an interesting piece of history over the weekend.  In my folder from Boys State in 1981 (file #1116, archive box 2 - will actually be document box 4 once the renumbering is complete.  Why are you laughing?) was the envelope that had my bus schedule and money for the trip.  I remember that Mr. Kariel was the contact with my sponsoring group, the Marshall Lions Club, but I thought it was interesting seeing that the envelope that had the directions came from the Hub!

(Yes, apparently I keep everything).

Original Hub cash drawer put on display

One of the things I have tried to do on each side of the office is display photos and items from that side's history.  On the 113 side that means 1897-1928 as the Hub Shoe Store and on the 111 side the shoe store's 1928-2001 incarnation.  I put blowups of the photos we have on a wall at the front of each side, along with whatever memorabilia can be hung on the wall (antique shoe sizers, signs, framed ads, etc.)

We got a big find Saturday when another search at the Jefferson antique store which bought the store's contents in 2009 yielded what I believe is the store's original cash drawer (now hanging on the 111 side's wall at upper right).  The drawer, which was located back in Mr. Kariel's office on the 111 side when it was removed in 2009, predates the 1928 location of the store.

It is what is known as a Tucker Alarm Till, Model No. 1, and was manufactured by Tucker & Dorsey Mfg. Co. in Indianapolis sometime after 1875 and as best I can tell before 1918 - probably between 1885 and 1905, although that's just a guess.  The drawer would have originally been part of a box (like the one shown here) the upper board of which would have been (and was) screwed to the underside of a counter.  The mechanism inside rings the bell whenever the drawer is pulled out (and let me tell you - with a metal ceiling it is loud in here - was a little creepy the first time I tested it in the office today and realized it spent three decades ringing almost daily in the same space).  But here's the cool part - the underside of the drawer have five wires attached to tips that are ergonomically shaped to accommodate fingertips, and I found out why online.  If you pull the right one (or combination of ones) it disables the alarm, so that the till can be pulled out silently by the shopkeeper. 

I can't locate enough information on the Tucker alarm tills or the Tuck & Dorsey firm to precisely date it, but given the finish and the appropximate age, I think it is highly likely it was in use on the 1897 side before the store moved next door, so that's where it is currently being displayed.

Eventually I may put the drawer under a glass-topped table with some period bills and coins, but for the moment