Tricks that old racers get up to after retirement

[jackiewilson]

Couple more shots of the beech burr and the four cubes of logs still to stack.

[jackiewilson]

I never have worked a "Burr" before! As I uncovered the beech burr I found myself wanting to hurry so I could see the sheer beauty of the piece free from the thick bark that entombed it.
Then I had to decide whether or not to carve, shape, varnish, Polish, or simply leave as is
Decided to scrub hard with a brass bristled wire brush, then I gave it just a singe coat of beeswax, then, I took a shoe brush and simply polished until my arm dropped off.
There is everything in that piece -----just let your eyes take in--------then let your mind roam freely and you can see the wonders of the world in a single piece of wood.
Sun did not make an appearance today so I had no chance to post any close up detailed shots.
tomorrow it's a nice day so I will try to show you what I mean.
Next up is the ASH burr, this should be even better than the beech. If I get stuck in early and the bark shifts easier I'll post some more piccies.

Should have been hard and fast asleep by now, but what the hell, this is ramble time! MYGGWY.J.

[jackiewilson]

Now is that ever an ugly chunk of timber, that was a carbuncle on the side of a very old Ash tree until a woodman took a chain saw and sliced it from the main trunk. Let's see what I can make of it in the next couple of days !

May get back to you lunch time, just before my nap, give you a progress report!

[jackiewilson]

Thats is the last time I will ever stack timber again-------I got leg ache, back ache and an arse ache to die for!

[jackiewilson]

Awesome or What? Mother Nature in the raw, no artist on earth could create such a masterpiece! You could look into this for a thousand days and still see something different.
the bark almost fell off in front of the chisel. It took less than six hours in total to expose this piece.
me myself did nothing towards creating this marvel, I just cleaned and polished one of natures masterpieces.

[jackiewilson]

Twould appear unless it's got a motor strapped to its bum, not a lot of folk are interested in wood!

Time to dismantle and ship some of the stuff stateside bound! Some of it needs a final touch up, but it's all mostly finished.
Not starting anything else until every last piece I have is ready and complete and the shop bears some resemblance to a workplace, at the moment it's all snot and feathers, needs drastic action and sanitisation!
Buggered if it's not Thursday again tomorrow -----foraging at Ford day, why, I can't in all honesty answer that------obsession-----habit-----get out for an hour----I certainly don't need the junk I find there!
time for big zuzzes ----- sleep well my friends, MYGGWY. J.

[jackiewilson]

Well, that was Thursday here and gone, bought a pair of coffin like cases that used to store movie film reels! They will make great trophy carrying cases to ship over to the colonial counties.

Made a half hearted attempt at clearing up the shop-----it was all a bit too much so I started finishing one of the sailboats! Just let the mind wander and fitted triple sails on the bowsprit----pretty sure they'll sanitariumise me for sheer lunacy if I'm not careful.

Decided to finish all the golf trophies for Tavares and ship them over. Just in case I don't manage to make the Off meeting for whatever reason. Shed loads of sh-t about to hit the fan in my little world so I am putting some "contingency " plans in place.

Have a bunch of my side of the family coming for a "Pool and Barbie" party on Sunday, forecast is for sun and soaring temperatures-----need oodles of fun and grandkids around this weekend!

Not a lot to talk about today, think it's time just to say goodnight folks, MYGGWY.J.

[seeroy]

Jackie - regardless what "shed load of sh-t hits the fan", all of us out here will always love you - Steve & Iris

[robert j garner]

Hi Jackie

that burr is a nice piece of timber I like the creases , I always thought they were very sought after
By the wood turning fraternity .

Rob

[jackiewilson]

Jackie - regardless what "shed load of sh-t hits the fan", all of us out here will always love you - Steve & Iris

Hi Stavros,, just come back from the quacks place with a clean bill of health in all departments!
You remember last year in Tavares we got the bad news that Jills youngest boy Matt had been rushed to hospital with a brain tumour? The operation to remove it has not proved successful,
time scale is 2/3 months!
This is on top of her eldest boy Ivan who has signet ring cancer and is fighting like a gladiator, but has been on borrowed time for the last three years. Both are in their mid forties with five grandkids aged between four and fourteen.
We tried to keep the news private and to ourselves for a while but someone used Facebook to tell the world so no point hiding anymore.
Nothing wrong with me Stavros !, looks like I could do the five score with my hands tied behind my back and my mouth zipped wide shut.
Every day since my first born child died from that bastard disease I have asked myself where is the sense, or the justice, the pain becomes a dull ache that even twenty years later still catches me unawares, and the senselessness and total injustice of it all just reduces me to tears.
How the hell after 83+ years of hard living, 30 years top line boat racing, triple by pass ---burning the candle both ends ----five kids, eleven grandkids, nine great grandkids then today I get a perfect bill of health. It's a cockeyed world!
Thats the reason I had to make contingency plans, pots due to boil over, possibly around Tavares time Steve. Family comes before friends!
Lets wait and see how the boys manage to play the sh-ttty hand they've been dealt. It's all got bugger all to do with boat racing, but it's got everything to do with me and mine!

[jackiewilson]

[QUOTE=robert j garner;2778424]Hi Jackie

that burr is a nice piece of timber I like the creases , I always thought they were very sought after
By the wood turning fraternity .

Rob[/QUOTE

You're right Rob, most wood turners would give their granny for a nice burr. Then they would turn a useless bowl out of it! Long ago when furniture making was an art, ( before Ikea), burrs would be sliced into veneers and used for decoration, but that was a very long time ago!
,

[jackiewilson]

Finallyl got a whole day to ourselves, better make the most of it, tomorrow my screaminghoarders come screaming in!
Just can't get into shop cleaning mode.

That represents a weeks work. , the two burrs and a Four masted south sea islands schooner of doubtful pedigree. I wouldn't employ me either!

[jackiewilson]

You know it's funny how popular sailboats are on S&F---Not a single comment, one way or another, not even a stick 'em up your arse !
Cranked the pool up to 82, my lot don't go in below 80 and Sunday is invasion day.

Premier league posers started their season today, , Man U won, due to an own goal by Spurs back!
When you have a Billion dollar team being paid fifty million per week it must have been like watching paint dry for sheer spectacle and excitement !
Have to clean the shop up tomorrow morning, that has become an accident waiting to happen zone.

If nothing exciting happens tomorrow, I'll have to revert back to a couple of jokes. MYGGWY.J.

[jackiewilson]

Nary a one of you out there picked up on the fact it was a THREE masted schooner. par for the course though, this IS a powerboat site and not rag and stick territory.
We have one of those perfect summer mornings, sea mist rising, still as the last seconds before the gun! Birds Singing their hearts out, a great to be alive morning, family visiting day, Bar-B-Que day with me in charge of cooking, what more can a man ask for?

[Rotary John]

Like the schooner. Maybe a rotary for auxiliary power would be nice.