My Father got me interested in woodworking many years ago. Coming from a Scandinavian background I enjoy making Viking age inspired items. But I also do a little chainsaw carving, working with horn and antler and a lot of wood turning. I choose my projects by finding something that I think I would enjoy making or that some else would enjoy having.
OUCH!
No one ever said Rock and Roll was an easy gig.
I picked up this classical guitar from one of my three friends.
Hey it’s not a million dollar guitar (That’s why he brought it to me.), but it is a sentimental instrument. So I have to take it serious. Which is a very hard thing for me to do.
Apparently some crazy cat got a little to wild on the acoustic and knocked the head right off. It looks like it broke parallel to the original seam. I may be able to fix it.
Here are a few pictures to see what we are starting with.
I will keep you updated. AV
After working on it I took it back into the house, the guitar has been in the AC and not acclimated to the garage. Also the AC will minimize the humidity and help the glue to dry.
Now I to add strings and do a setup and we will be done.
Bluz Traveler
I took a Micro Cube amp that has only a couple of playing hours on it. Removed it from its body and built it into a 1930’s -1940’s tweed suitcase.
The suitcase has a lot of character. Well used and even has the initials of one of its old owners. I look at it and it makes me think of an old Mississippi blues player traveling on road. I put rubber feet on the side of the suitcase so when you turn it on its side to play the amp it is stable. I built a wood frame to hold the speaker, controls and power board in place. With a wood walnut stained front and a built in drawer with a lid to keep your cords and picks while traveling. And when you set up on a street corner to play you can pull the drawer all the way out and set it out for tips.
The amp comes with the original power supply so you can plug it in to play or it runs on batteries if you can’t find power on your street corner.
Just like a Norwegian. I have nothing to say.
Just an update that I put a few more little items on Etsy.
And as a Viking I find that the older you get the more time you spend sharpening your tools and less time sharpening your sword.
Angry Viking is not Alone
For those of you that may not know, the picture on the main page is not me. The bearded, ink laden Viking is my younger brother. Oh, I know what you are thinking, yes I got the looks in the family.
For the last 7 new moons he has come to the shop and removed shavings from the wood to reveal what is within.
He seeks Odin the god of war as I watch for Thor the protector of the common man, the farmer. This in itself makes the shop angry. But somehow through our anger we find a commonality. We both smile when called a heathen. You know the smile, not a funny Ha Ha smile. But one that says those may be the last words you every speak. We may speak poorly of each other but if someone else does the Viking steel will be removed from the leather.
We praise each others work yet dislike our own. Laugh when the other gets hurt yet set each others bones to mend. We are fast to swear at each others ignorance yet even faster to defend against to word of others. We advise and support each others artistic ideas and feel jealousy when one has a better vision.
If I was next in line to be King I would expect him to take action to own my crown yet would be surprised not to find him standing next to me in the shield wall.
As we take what was handed down to us by our parents and add our own chapters to our lineage. I am proud to call him brother and partner.
Small Addendum to my F.O.G. Wood post
At this time you all know that I have a lot of nice pieces of wood to work with. That is if anyone is reading my rants. I was able to get a truck load of wood from a big red oak tree that was being cut down. Now my shed is full of wood and I have a 7 foot tall stack of the tree trunk standing in the garage.
Don’t let yourself be fooled. The thirst for free wood is never quenched. As I drive around town I am still looking for any easy grab of wood. Maybe it will be a different type of tree, or maybe it will have nice grain pattern? And I know it is feast or famine. I have turned wood that was to rotten or small branches because they were the only wood I could find. Well, that and I tend to squeeze a penny until Abe screams.
Now that spring is on the way I see trees being trimmed and piles of branches everywhere. But now that the coffers are full I find myself only looking for a big score. Even while driving I don’t have to slow down to take a good look. Everything I see is to small compared to bounty I have at home. Oh, I still think twice. Maybe I should grab that branch? The wood I have won’t last forever. Was the wood I just passed a type I have never worked before? But I am a man and we don’t turn around. To late, already passed it.
So for now I am just a Viking sailing my long boat across the asphalt seas. Looking for the big raid and waiting for the famine.
New Items on Etsy
I have put some new items on Etsy today. Stop by and check them out.
Projects from the Past
Here is one of the guitars I refurbished and donated to my son’s High School to be auctioned off.
I believe this is a Les Paul Jr.. I need a photo studio, these pictures don’t show the sparkle I put in the paint
Food Safe Finishes
Check out this article from Wood Magazine. com
https://www.woodmagazine.com/materials-guide/finishes/is-your-finish-food-safe
Opened my Etsy store today.
I finally did it. Got the old Etsy store open for business. It’s called AngryVikingArtisan . Don’t forget the caps and no spaces.
Well I just have one item in it right now. But it’s a start.
F.O.G. Wood
Today was a good day. I saw a company cutting down an old Red Oak tree from under the power lines. So I jumped in my truck, drove right up to where they were working and asked if I could have the tree they were cutting up.
Well after calling and talking to their supervisor I got the okay. I picked up about 25 feet of a straight tree that was close to 80 years old. They cut it to the sizes I wanted (Which was the size I could pick up and put in my truck.) put it in my truck and off I went.
Now if you are a wood turner or know someone who is then you know that we are always searching for wood. Specifically FREE wood. We keep an eye out for wood piles on the curb or asking someone with land if they need any old trees cut down or stop traffic to pick up a log on the side of the road.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with this strange obsession let me explain a couple of things. First wood for turning is expensive and you end up turning about 90 percent of it into wood chips. Second I am cheap, no more explanation needed there. So with these things in mind we obsessively search for F.O.G. wood.
Found On the Ground wood.
