Well, the doctor finally cleared me for “light duty” about five weeks after my operation. I still should not be lifting heavy objects, or lifting anything over my head (i.e. can’t raise the right arm above the shoulder level). My rehab is going very well, and I am a full month ahead in terms of range of motion. I still plan on being careful and follow the rehab requirements exactly. I screwed up my back in the army back in my 20s and did not do the rehab. Took me five years to fully recover.
So my inventory on some key selling items is low, like my simple two-part phone holders. Even with only half an arm, I’m able to mill the wood down in size and begin the glue up of the laminated pieces to build a large number of them. So that is what I’ve been doing this weekend.
I’ve also taken the opportunity to build some jigs/fixtures for the shop. In this case, I’ve taken a bit of scrap ¾” plywood and built a new set of tablesaw pushers. These are used on the tablesaw to push wood through, while keeping your hand well away from the saw blade. Pretty simple and easy to cut out with a jigsaw or a bandsaw.
Finally, I saved up for several years and finally bought a new toy. The local Rockler woodworking store had a 15% off Jet power tools with free delivery, so I ended up saving over $1,000 by purchasing this 12” jointer/planer. The purpose of the machine is to “joint” a board by flattening one side, then flattening one edge to make a perfect 90-degree corner. With that done, you can run it through the planer to make the other face exactly parallel to the other side and a specific thickness.
This is the basic start of a woodworking project, and was the work that apprentices did back in the old day, before the master’s took over and started laying out the joinery and building the furniture. So I’ve now got a machine which will do the “apprentice” work for me, allowing me to spend more time on design and joinery.
I’m looking forward to the weeks ahead, both to heal and to do more woodworking. Still need to be careful, but I’m on my way.
Kevin