Techno Monk Experience the world as a techno monk

Techno Monk
Homestead
Foot Pump Sink
Foot Pump Sink

This is a post I have been thinking about off and on for a while.  I just finished up the foot pedal part of it tonight and thought this would be a great time to document the whole project.  I certainly did not invent this design.  I referenced some that friends of mine have built, […]

What have I been up to.
What have I been up to.

Well I realized, that I have been lazy with blog updates, I have been posting most of the little projects on Facebook.  I suppose that happens when they are not big projects.  Those are pretty much done for the year.  So here is what has happened in the last month or so. Tons of sushi.

DIY Cabinets, Pocket Holes, Holzmiete Construction.
DIY Cabinets, Pocket Holes, Holzmiete Construction.

This weekend was cabinet weekend.  I have built 10 cabinets this past week.  I really enjoyed the project, the total cost was about $200 in materials.  All of the cabinets were built out of 12″ wide pine boards.  These were also my project using pocket screw joinery.  A popular name brand for this tool is […]

Winter is Coming
Winter is Coming

To quote the Starks of Winterfell, “Winter is coming.”  That is for sure, a few small snowfalls have us preparing for the inevitable large snow occurrence that will happen in the near future. We really finished cleaning the yard this time, I put on the last 6 shingles on the shed, and we putzed about […]

Easiest firewood splitting method or how to reuse a junk tire.
Easiest firewood splitting method or how to reuse a junk tire.

I have no idea who invented this thing, but it is seriously the best way to split wood ever.  No more chasing pieces, no more bending over, just insanely fast wood splitting.  I am way faster than a hydraulic splitter.  It is not even close. Granted, I get tired eventually but I am easily splitting […]

Work day, Fun Day.
Work day, Fun Day.

Finally got in a good work day around the house.  Finally nice weather and not having any immediate plans allowed us to get a bunch of stuff done today. I started constructing the A-Frame temporary shed out of Aspen poles.  It took about 2 hours to get the frame up.  I have a bit of […]

The last months in photos.
The last months in photos.

I have been pretty bad about updates lately.  The past month has been crazy for me so here is the month in photos.  And some nice captions. We built a wood shed.     We Installed the woodstove, with a lot of help from Clancy.  Thanks Clancy!   The bobcat found its way to the […]

The Best Part of Building a Wood Shed.
The Best Part of Building a Wood Shed.

Is filling the wood shed.  I really do enjoy splitting wood.  I know that sounds silly but it causes me to completely relax my mind.

Finished the wood shed
Finished the wood shed

Had a couple hours of down time this afternoon.  Took advantage of that and put up some metal roofing.

Started on the woodshed this weekend.
Started on the woodshed this weekend.

We kept busy this weekend despite having some time for some serious recreation.  The Emergency Pig Out BBQ in Iron River, Fishing with Frank, and getting tough work done around the homestead. We cleared a bunch of trees and scrub, picked up some lumber and started building a woodshed.  Should be done sometime this week.  […]

Playing Catch-Up
Playing Catch-Up

I have been negligent with updates as I get ready for the traditional ways gathering.  So here is a catch up post of pictures of what we have been up to.  Lots of little projects getting finished up.

Hey we moved.
Hey we moved.

So much has happened in the past couple days that I have not really had time to type out an update. We moved.  If you would like my new address send me a facebook message.  I will seriously correspond with anyone who enjoys writing letters.  Send me some postal mail and I will surely send […]

Hey guess what I did tonight? Worked on the cabin.
Hey guess what I did tonight?  Worked on the cabin.
Cabinets almost done, curtains, and safety devices.
Cabinets almost done, curtains, and safety devices.

Putting a bunch of the finishing touches on now.  Finished up the plumbing with the foot pump sink.  I still need to make a pedal to make it look nicer. Started installing the CO/Smoke detectors. Found out we do have a light over the sink.  I thought it was a really odd place for a […]

I can build shelves.
I can build shelves.

Today was another busy day.  I made the drawer fronts and routed them.  I then made adjustments to the drawers.  I was not happy with how they were sliding.  I planed some of the drawers with my grandpa’s hand plane.  I just got it super sharp this morning. The wife stained all the door and […]

Shaving poles, New Tools, and Fancy Drawers.
Shaving poles, New Tools, and Fancy Drawers.

Busy day at the homestead.  I finished up the pull out cabinet and mounted the drawer front on it.  It turned out pretty nice for being made out of plywood.  I am glad that I saved this one for last, since my drawer making skills have gotten much better.  The joints are tighter and the […]

Identify this Bird. And another drawer got made.
Identify this Bird.  And another drawer got made.

Just before pulling into the cabin I saw this bird in the road.  I stopped the truck, and got out.  I figured that would scare him off.  Nope. It stood its ground and fluffed up like it was going to give me the business.  So I shut off the truck and went and got some […]

Fiber run and cabinet drawers.
Fiber run and cabinet drawers.

Over the past two days I built and installed the cabinet doors for the kitchen cabinets.  The other drawers are going to either be false fronts or small tilt open containers. This was the most technical thing I have done carpentry wise.  It worked out ok.  There is room for improvement but not bad for […]

Cabinet Doors Hung and Shelves made.
Cabinet Doors Hung and Shelves made.

Today was one of those days I like to call bonus days.  I go to work and get one thing done, today that was finishing the door hinges.  It goes so well that I get a whole other project done too.  The doors took me less than an hour so I started cutting up some […]

The Doors are being hung.
The Doors are being hung.

I have been nervous about this stage of the project for a while now.  I spent a lot of time making the cabinet doors and I was worried that they were not going to fit or I would make a mistake in the sizing or installing the hinges.  That was not the case.  I got […]

Did you lock up your Rabbets?
Did you lock up your Rabbets?

Continuing my foray into more refined carpentry skills.  I watched some youtube videos on using a dado set and drawer joinery.  The best mix of strength and ease of use was the lock rabbet.  It is essentially a normal rabbet except there is a small tenon that goes on the front and back of the […]

Door panels cut and installed.
Door panels cut and installed.

I cut the beadboard and dry fit all the pieces.  With a little fiddling and some sanding everything fits together quite nicely.  Not so good on estimating how much I needed.  I used less than half of a 4×8 foot sheet and I bought two.  Not sure what the heck I was thinking. The doors […]

Cabinet Door Frames Complete
Cabinet Door Frames Complete

I might say these are looking pretty plain, but I am happy with the look and how they fit together.  I am going to cut the panels and glue them up soon.

Started on the cabinet doors.
Started on the cabinet doors.

I started making the frames for the cabinet doors tonight and got 3 of 6 done in about 2 hours.  I started to get a lot faster toward the end once I had guides made up for the table saw.