hack cabinet maker

Alright.  With my funky workshop setup, I no longer have an excuse not to finish up the air re-circulation project that was started back.... when?

Well, I do have some more excuses actually.  It turns out the table saw that my brother lent me, and then after I used it for 3 years and he got another one he gave to me (thanks Pete!), is not going to be the machine I need for finish work.  This cheap little Delta has been a sufficient workhorse for most of the renovation, ripping and cross-cutting rough stock as needed and even playing a role in the finish work of the upstairs bath.  But after all that, I've discovered that the armature is bent slightly causing the blade to wobble.  Even with a new 40 tooth finishing blade, the cuts are looking pretty ugly.

On top of needing a new saw, the old orbital sander that I picked up at an auction a few years back finally crapped out for good.  This little number was an old Craftsman model that I took apart and put back together more than once to keep it alive.

The wallet won't handle two new tool purchases this month, so in order to keep the work moving I had to decide which was the more essential. I went with getting a new small belt sander.

The box I'm making to cover up the ductwork will be made from the same pine stock as the baseboard.  I'll have to glue pieces together to meet the necessary dimensions, and once those are glued together, they'll need to be planed smooth.

The saw will cut straight enough for prepping the boards for gluing.  The new sander will (hopefully) serve as the planer.

handyman