Planning for my new shop space, my new smaller shop space, continues apace. I’ve sold most of the equipment from my old shop. I’ve completed most of the work to get out of the old space.
The Hitachi CB75 has been moved to the queue, and has been shorn of it’s motor, switch, and blade guard:
I didn’t remove those parts from the CB75 because of issues surrounding the transport and relocation of the machine, but rather because I am converting the saw to 3-phase power. More on that in a separate post to come soon.
The Kennedy tools boxes are a breeze to move, just a RORO (roll-on, roll-off) situation on a small scale:
A view towards one side of the old space – look, that jointer is still there!:
The previous comment is directed with a wink and a nod to a would-be buyer from a few months back who got cold feet and started to wonder if the machine was going to be in my shop were he to come and pick it up.
The machine is supposed to be picked up, by MIT, but that process is unfolding at a glacial pace. The requisition to buy the machine has been approved by the finance department there as of a couple of weeks back, but getting from that point to ‘check in hand’ or ‘check in the mail’ stage seems to require a lot more time yet. Hopefully this will be sorted out in the next couple of weeks. In the meantime it certainly isn’t in my way, but at some point storage costs could become necessary.
The super surfacer is up on blocks and extension tables removed:
I did a little work on the wiring yesterday to temporarily remove the tethered foot pedal operation unit, and have placed the surfacer on blocks next to the mill for the time being. I am planning to put this machine down the basement.
A view down of the far wall shows that the wood storage rack has been taken down:
Dealing with the myriad small bits of wood remains an open question. I might end up having a fire. What do you do with small sticks of avodire, mahogany and cedar? It’s a perennial problem in my shop, and will become more of an issue in my basement given the tighter confines. Where are all the pen turners and small box makers when you need them?
Here’s a view the other direction, showing the area around the Zimmermann mill where items are being coalesced:
As the mill isn’t going anywhere soon, I will be paying to store it in the near term. Eventually it looks like it will be taken apart and scrapped.
Early next week a friend will help me schlep a bunch of stuff home, and sometime in the next few weeks I will deal with the Hofmann mortiser and bandsaw, which are on the lighter, sub-1000lb. side. They will serve as warm ups, as such, for the heavier items which need to go down the stairs.
At this point the heaviest item is the Wadkin PP450 Dimension saw. I removed the extension table a few days ago, and man that sucker is heavy! It’s got to be at least 250lbs. The kind of thing where limb crushing accidents, were it to fall, are easily visualized. They didn’t skimp on materials with these saws, though the factory also didn’t do the most outstanding machining work otherwise, and seems to have accepted complacency in their product line as opposed to continuous incremental improvement. That’s my take on Wadkin – good bones, but some of the details could have been better executed. I think the economics of producing these machines at a higher quality level must not have made sense to the company at the time (early 1970s)
I’ll have to remove the main table from the saw, about the same weight as the extension I expect, and then the sliding table and carrier beam. Then I will pull the motor and trunnion out. The motor will be replaced at some point with a 240v. 60hz. unit, and the trunnion surfaces scraped if they need it. The saw base will be turned on its side for transport, as that is the only orientation which will allow it to fit down the basement stairs. It promises to be entertaining to move if nothing else.
As to whether the saw will be the heaviest and most difficult item to move, well that remains an open question. I’ve been looking seriously at a machine recently which is a good deal heavier yet.
Thanks for coming by the Carpentry Way. I’ve got another 2 or 3 posts written and illustrated on a few related topics, and hope to have these up in the near future. Thanks for your patience in the meantime.