One of the lines in every tablet weaving draft is thread direction, usually referred to as S or Z. Today I learned why this matters.
Continue reading “The difference between S & Z threading.”Author: rexplex
With a bachelors degree in history, I turn wrenches for a living. I’m most at peace when I hear the wind in the trees or the gurgle of a brook. I’m a believer in the Renaissance Man, as epitomized by DaVinci engineer, artist, soldier, statesman. As Heinlein said, “A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyse a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”
Tablet Weaving (the beginning)
In which your author begins to explore yet another rabbit hole to improve his Norse kit.
When I bought my tunic added some trim to the collar and cuffs that really improved the look, but that trim was pricey.
It Lives
New wiring & motor are installed on the lathe.
Repowering the lathe.
Removing the dodgy wiring from a 60-year-old wood lathe.
Last year a buddy asked me if I wanted his Grandad’s lathe. Without missing a beat, I said when can I pick it up?
When I got to his place the next weekend, I knew this was going to be another project.
Playing with the box stitch.
A friend has asked me to make a leash. Her color & design choices are a bit boring in my opinion , so I’m trying to find a way to jazz it up without going contrary to her desires.
She asked for a handle without a wrist loop, so I’m going back to basics, but as usual I’m going to get a little funky with it.
Every kid who has ever gone to a summer camp knows this knot. Tied with annoyingly slippery plastic lace to make a key fob, it’s sometimes called a gymp.
Handle wrap experiments
Or more messing about with Paracord.
The pink is a common whipping (ABOK 3442).
The yellow is a French whipping (ABOK 3450).
Both of these are much better whipping knots than tool handles. With the common whipping, the wrap isn’t round because the cords under the wrap make it oblong.
The half hitches in the French whipping make it uncomfortable to hold, in my opinion. If the whipping was tied on a line, the half hitches would lay better in the hollows between the yarns. Some folks like that ridge, but it never seems to fit my hand. It does look nice though.
The West County Whipping (ABOK 3548) makes a nicer handle (again, in my opinion) because it is symmetrical. The half knots on each side mean it isn’t round, but it is symmetrical.
Now here’s where I went a bit off the rails. Since the West County Whipping ends with a square knot, why not begin with a square knot and add some visual interest?
The West County Whipping is just a half a square knot on each side (left over right, flip 180 degrees, repeat)), so even if you struggle with the square knot, you should be able to handle this one.
Shiny!
Spent less than 10 minutes cleaning up the drill press table – shiny!
Spent a few minutes experimenting on the drill press today.
The drill press table isn’t crusty & rusty exactly, but it’s definitely seen better days.
Continue reading “Shiny!”8 Strand Herringbone Braid exploration.
I like the 8 strand herringbone braid because it’s unique in appearance, easy to produce, and easy to customize.
First off, it has a square cross section. Most things made from cordage are either flat like the Solomon Bar (cobra stitch) or round like the snake knot.
Secondly, because you are working with 8 strands, there are a lot of ways to play with your colors.
Continue reading “8 Strand Herringbone Braid exploration.”Embellishing the cobra stitch/ Solomon’s bar.
Transform the classic paracord cobra stitch into a vibrant accessory with creative color combinations and unique knotting variations.
All the cool paracord kids call it the cobra stitch. Ashley calls it the Solomon Bar (ABOK 2496). In any case, it’s simple & fast to tie and makes a great sized lanyard or bracelet.
But it’s boring AF. So I had to see about making it fancy.
Continue reading “Embellishing the cobra stitch/ Solomon’s bar.”Band saw cabinet build
I’m going to try to document this build a bit more thoroughly than I did with the drill press cabinet.
Step one is to cut the main pieces out. I may be crazy, but I’m not stupid enough to try to wrangle a sheet of 3/4” plywood onto my portable table saw.
I use a circular saw to cut the pieces slightly oversized out of the 4×8 sheet. Then over to the table saw to cut them to the exact size.
Make sure you keep track of which parts are which.
Continue reading “Band saw cabinet build”
Modern Anachronist 