Project Delivery

Toy box delivered to the customer.
Toy box delivered to the customer.

At the beginning of the summer, Susanna asked me to make three outdoor toy boxes for the her preschool (her classroom shares the three playgrounds). The school paid for 9-sheets of plywood and some wood varnish. I donated my time, some additional lumber, hinges, and screws as needed to finish the project. This is my first commission project – even though I’m not getting paid, there is a customer involved.

The plan was to finish all three and deliver them at one time.  However, the summer was busy, and I don’t have that much space in the workshop, so I am working on one at a time. I finished the first one last week and delivered it today.

I learned some lessons on the delivery:

  • Next time make sure to bring some tools to tighten up any fasteners that loosen up on the drive.
  • I should have removed the doors for the drive, the doors are heavy and it is a pretty bouncy drive down to New London.
  • The magnets are too weak.  I’ve ordered new magnets to hold the door shut.
  • I should bring some equipment (rakes, etc.) to level the area where the boxes are to be placed.

I’ll have to head back next week and tighten fasteners and change out the magnet holding the door shut with a stronger magnet. Despite all that, it feels good to get a project out the door.

The boxes are 5-feet wide, 3-feet deep and almost 3-feet tall and are constructed from hardwood plywood (from the box store) with a mix of red and white oak for edging. The hinges allow the doors to swing all the way open and are held open by magnets on the sides of the boxes – hopefully having the doors out-of-the-way will keep the kids from hanging on them. I think these boxes would hold up longer if they were constructed from MDO – but the materials could cost twice as much, and I think I would have to paint the MDO.

Now onto the next box.  Maybe I’ll change it up a bit and use maple for the edging. Or sapele. No wait that I’m saving that for the boat.  I’ll be pretty tired of building boxes when I’m finished… but heck, Susanna wants one for up on the patio.  Anyone else interested in outdoor boxes? Considering a sheet of good (i.e. non-box store) plywood costs over $100, it would certainly be much cheaper to get plastic boxes from the box store, but the wood boxes look much nicer.

Yet another sailing post!

Maybe a month ago I complained that we had hardly used the sailboat this season. It wasn’t any one person’s fault in particular. We just had a busy summer. However we have been out each of the past three weekends, with two overnight trips. Not a bad way to finish off the season. Hopefully next weekend I’ll get one more final sail in – the trip from Niantic River to the Thames where I will pull the boat out of the water.  Maybe I’ll even raise a sail (or two) if the winds are favorable.

Ben enjoying his backpacking dinner (freeze dried chicken and mashed potatoes).
Ben enjoying his backpacking dinner (freeze-dried chicken and mashed potatoes).

This weekend we did a quick overnight on Friday (after work and school). We had originally planned to go to Giants Neck again, but we got a late start, so we camped maybe a 1/4-mile south of the mooring on the Niantic River.

We had the boys and the dogs this time around. It was a little crowded. Okay, very crowded. We did get all six of us below for a period in the middle of the night, but Targa gave up and he slept in the cockpit most of the night. I got up about every hour because either one of the boys was up and about (going to the bathroom, or just hot) or the dogs were restless (because they are dogs and at times annoying).

I think next year if we all go camping again we will have to make some modifications to the boat. We need a little better storage, and it would be very nice to leave more supplies on the boat (such as plates and silverware).

Susanna taking the dinghy ashore in the late evening.
Susanna taking the dinghy ashore in the late evening.
Will and Targa sharing a bed. It wound up being too tight for Targa to spend the night on the settee berth.
Will and Targa sharing a bed. It wound up being too tight for Targa to spend the night on the settee berth.
Will walking Tucker on Saturday morning after sleeping on the sailboat.
Will walking Tucker on Saturday morning after sleeping on the sailboat.

Tomorrow is a ‘hang around the house and take it easy’ day!  I can’t wait.