Winter Projects ?

[sporty]

Well what is your winter project ? Do you have one ?


Recently i bought plans for a canvas kayak off of e-bay and found a few sites of the same canvas kayak.

It was featured in the 85th boys life.

My oldest is in boy scouts and I thought this would be a fun father and son project to do.

I have started the project, no pictures yet. got most of the wood and made the ribs and started on the keel.

here is a link to the canvas kayak, one like We are building.

http://www.thewoodshop.20m.com/kayak1.htm

Sporty

[ohiofitter]

Now that does sound like fun.......Did you get a complete BOM with the plans....I know both my boys are wrestling right now our projects usually involves building something for a Christmas present to someone in the family

[sporty]

Just got the blueprints to go buy and found others who had built it. like the web site I linked.

no cd-rom or anything. Just something for us to work on over winter.

Sporty

[gpraceman]

I get too busy in winter with derby season, so my projects come in the spring and summer. I got two big projects done this spring/summer.

The first was a kitchen remodel. We stripped the wallpaper off of the walls, textured and painted them. Our microwave was dead and dishwasher was on recall, so we replaced them. Well, we couldn't stop there, so we changed out the electric cooktop for a gas one and our oven unit as well. I tore into the backsplash area to re-route some wiring and add some wiring for new under cabinet lighting. I patched that all up and then put up a nice stone tile backsplash.

The second project was my workshop. I have two garages, one to park in and one that I use as a workshop. I added a partition wall between the two, with a door between. Then I insulated the walls and dry walled the workshop side. I even put some foam insulation panels on the garage door. It has made a big difference, when compared to the uninsulated adjacent garage. So, hopefully even in the coldest months I can work out there using a space heater to keep everything cozy. It will also be nicer when I host derby workshops. One year we postponed a workshop, since it was just too cold to work out there.

The other thing I did in the garage was to add a retractable extension cord reel in the ceiling. It plugs into the outlet in the ceiling that the garage door opener runs off of. Now I can run my tools off of two different circuit breakers. During workshops we would sometimes trip the one breaker that I was using.

Now all I need to do in the garage is get rid of the tent trailer. I've run out of space for tools

[GravityRacer]

You're going to love the cost savings using gas instead of electric. I bought a gas dryer and stove, and got rid of the electrics. They paid for themselves in 12 months!

As for my winter projects, I'll probably do what gpraceman did- upgrade the kitchen. Just reface and put new doors on all the cupboards.

Other than that, I'll be doing some small woodworking and metalworking projects, like miniature boxes and a new lower grill for my car.

[gpraceman]

You're going to love the cost savings using gas instead of electric. I bought a gas dryer and stove, and got rid of the electrics. They paid for themselves in 12 months!

We hated the glass cooktop. It was a real pain to clean. Our last house had a gas stove and we had grown to like cooking with gas. The problem about making the transition was we had to have a plumber run a gas line from our utility room in the basement, through our crawlspace and up into the kitchen. That wasn't cheap. Then I had to run a 120V circuit to it (good thing I had already torn into the backsplash area). The electric cooktop was 240V, so I couldn't re-use that circuit.

When we moved into this house, we also had to run a gas line into the laundry room for our dryer.

Next spring/summer I need to tackle replacing our flagstone patio with a deck, since it is falling apart at the edges and I don't like weeding my patio. We will redo our dining room. Add some crown moulding, maybe some wainscotting, and re-paint. We also need to replace a section of sidewalk going up to our front door that has settled several inches. The wife also wants to do some painting.

With a house, the projects never end.

[derby doc]

Im in the same boat as gpraceman. I usually do my projects in the summer since Im busy with derby season each year.
This past summer I did a remodel of my workshop. I insulated,, and drywalled. Added about 40 ft of laminate countertops for workbenches. I bought a couple of the metal cabinets to store products, and petitioned off a shipping area where I keep the laptop, printer, etc so it stays clean.
I bought an older house a few years ago, and we've been remodeling it a little at a time.
I might need to get some tips from gpraceman for kitchen remodeling. My wife keeps hinting for that to be the next project.

[gpraceman]

I might need to get some tips from gpraceman for kitchen remodeling. My wife keeps hinting for that to be the next project.

You have to watch kitchen projects. They can really grow in scope. Ours all started because my wife hated the wallpaper and started peeling it off. Though, the stone backsplash was my idea, as well as making sure we had matching appliances, ... and the under cabinet lights. I guess I am more to blame on the scope creep. I never like doing something part way. Though, compared to our last house, this was a minor kitchen remodel. We gutted our 1959 era kitchen in that house.

[dstory]

My wife has a new project in mind for me: landscaping. So I guess that will be my focus this next year. We live on property (27 acres) so my first step was to take down enough trees to create a view. The view is now great so she wants to frame the view. So I will probably design and build a pergola during the snowy months. Then in the spring I will start pushing dirt.

My off-task project is to squeeze in as many Louis L'Amour books as I can. I love the old style books.

[sporty]

While my winter project is not as grand as some of yours.


Here is a photo os the current progress of the kayak.

sorry for so much edit, Thought I might pass on the mess basement.



Sporty

[derby doc]

While my winter project is not as grand as some of yours.


Here is a photo os the current progress of the kayak.

sorry for so much edit, Thought I might pass on the mess basement.



Sporty

That looks like a big job. Looks very good so far.

[dstory]

Congratulations on doing the kayak. I helped my dad build a woodstrip canoe a few years back and it was great. It is so great to have in the water too. People always have a positive comment and want to know where I "bought" it.