Ray’s first projects were out of necessity. If the family home needed work, he did it himself to save money.
After a few successful repairs, Ray gained confidence in his handyman skills and started looking for ways to improve his home rather than just fix it. Now, almost thirty years later, Ray is something of a self-made expert in home improvement. And as an expert, he’s convinced that a house is never really “finished.” There’s always that one more project that needs doing.
Of course, should Ray ever run out of things to do around his own home, there’s always his son’s place. And all of Ray’s neighbors have come to know him as someone they can count on to have the tools, the techniques, and the know-how to guide them through their own projects. And that suits Ray just fine.
Display Tray in Distress
Not long ago, my sister-in-law Sharon showed up on my doorstep with a shoebox filled with strange artifacts. She explained that this odd little collection was all that remained of her great-grandparents' general store, which had been boarded up and razed more than three decades ago. There were photos, coins, keys, and a small hodgepodge of utensils that Sharon said came from the sandwich counter that was a mainstay of the store.
The Science of Successful Sanding
I could almost hear the collective groan as I wrote the title for this article.
"Sanding…ugh!"
But the truth is, with the proper attitude, the right tools, and the correct techniques, sanding doesn’t have to be a grind. I've got a few ideas on each of those topics that should help your sanding time sail by.
Power Wrench 101
Find 101 uses for the new Skil Power Wrench. That challenge arrived in the mail recently, along with a sample of the new tool.
I'll admit that at first I doubted I could find that many uses for any wrench, even one powered by a 7.2-volt lithium ion battery. And in light of the large array (too large, my wife would say) of conventional, non-powered wrenches and ratchets that I already own, what did this new gadget really have to offer?
Well, my skepticism began to wane as soon as I unpacked the power wrench. Although this is a brand-new tool, the first of its kind really, it looked immediately familiar to me. Auto mechanics have been using something very similar for as long as they've been working on cars. The Power Wrench, it seems, is a kissing cousin to the air ratchet.
All-Sports Locker
There are many qualities that sports instill in youngsters – teamwork, perseverance, and sportsmanship just to name a few. However, neatness and organization are not included in that list. In fact, it seems the more active a young person is, the more likely they are to leave their sports gear strewn throughout the house, car, and garage. It’s hard to blame them, really. They scarcely have enough time between games to put everything back in its place.
One way to help them out is to provide a place that's all their own, and seems very familiar, for them to store and organize their equipment. Here is my take on the classic sports locker. The biggest difference is that I made this one a little larger and added some storage and organization features that typical lockers don't have.
Tile-Top Cedar Cart
When I grill, I grill big. I like to have plenty of friends over and then treat them to big burgers, jumbo brats, and plenty of fresh grilled onions to top them off. It’s quite a production and it demands a lot of space.So with grilling season nearing its peak, I was anxious to build a custom grill cart that I’d been promising myself for quite sometime. Skil had asked me to preview their upcoming X-Bench Portable Workstation so when that arrived, I knew this was the year I’d make good on that promise.
Skil Salutes the Armed Forces
Of all my Skil power tools, and they are many, my hands-down favorite is a HD77 worm-drive saw that I’ve owned for nearly five years and not used even once. Nor do I believe I will ever use it. You see, this is no ordinary Skil 77. Not that any of these saws is really ordinary, but mine is something special.
The Spring Grind
Chirping birds, blooming flowers, and longer days are the first signs of spring. But in the Travers’ house, spring is officially sprung when I break out my angle grinder to hone the edges and knock the rust off of tools that I’ve ignored since the previous fall. And once my angle grinder is out, it isn’t likely to get put away for quite some time. That’s because it’s one of the most capable and powerful tools I have for the annual spring spruce all around my home.
Ladder Shelf
A few months ago, I helped my neighbor assemble a set of “ladder shelves.” I had seen these shelves in stores and thought they looked nice, so I jumped at the chance to see how they went together. In a word, I’d say “poorly.”We followed the instructions to the word, but the assembly was quite wobbly when we finished. Since that unfortunate first impression, I’ve searched for a reasonably priced ladder shelf that wasn’t so rickety. I never did find one that I liked. So I decided to design one...
Circular Saw Success
It has always struck me as ironic that when I need to cut a straight line, I reach for a circular saw. But, irony aside, there’s no arguing that a circular saw is the right tool for most straight-line cutting jobs.