Chris Christenberry

Ah and in my favorite style...........Mackintosh. (or very close to Greene and Greene) Nicely designed and done. I've made a lot of furniture in both those styles.

"Buss Bars"!!!!! I didn't think of that. Just found out McMaster-Carr closed their place in Oklahoma City, so I'll check out the electrical supplies. Thanks for the tip, guys.

Thanks guys. We've got a McMaster Carr in Oklahoma City....................(no shipping) I looked through their catalog, but didn't find that offering, Alex. I'll give them a call tomorrow. Don't mind buying a 6" piece, but just couldn't see spending all that money on a 12" piece. Thanks a million.

Yup, I know. Thanks. I'm just needing enough to make a bolster. Smallest piece I can buy from On-line will cost over $50. I'd rather look for a small piece at a scrap yard. Was just wondering if someone had an idea other than a scrap yard since I'm striking out.

I'm needing some 3/8" thick copper about 1 1/4" wide, in bar form. I've been to every scrap recycling business in my area and am having no luck. No luck at all. Anyone have any ideas where to search for Copper? (other than the hills of Arizona)

Sure answers the question: "What the heck am I gonna do with that old log?"

Continue to love your work.

Serpentine drawer fronts are hard to make, Alveprins. Done "classically", the drawers on Chippendale furniture are cut from one piece of wood and then have a veneer applied to the front. Craftsmen of today are more likely to stack thinner pieces together and glue them in a fixture with clamps..........and then veneered. In the modern factory, they are steam bent in a heavy press and then veneered. Classical furniture in that style is typically made from Mahogany wood.

"I had a look at your work Chris, and I must say I am quite impressed! That is some top notch furniture! Would fit right in at the White House. " Thanks for the "flowers" Alprins.

Alveprins, I say it every time you post a picture of a knife you've made, but I love it. It's absolutely fabulous. I love everything about your knives and have a copy picture kept in a folder of every one I see. Thanks for showing your work.

Yup, I mentioned using inserts (cutouts) in my first post.

Funny. No tweed in my closet. Don't even have any sweaters with thin elbows. No, I'm thinking in terms of sheaths, but thanks for the suggestion.

Really like that handle, Gary. I've tried doing that a couple of times and it just never seems to turn out right. That's going to be a sweet rapier when you get it finished.

Ultra-suede is not leather.........it's a man-made material. Okay, so it might be good to line wood sheaths or scabbards. Not to line leather sheaths?

I'm probably the last person in the world who purchased an Ultra-suede sports coat. I'm also probably the last to toss one! But it's nice material and I'm wondering if there is ANY use for Ultra-suede in the sheath making part of our craft? (lining a sheath, insert in top layer, etc., etc.) Any thoughts on the subject?

Alex is spot on. Fire it up and if it sucks it's working. Simple, actually.

Cut the copper tubing and cut the wires. Oh yea, ya have to unbolt it from the fridge. I used to salvage them from every refrigerator I saw laying by the road. Had 10 of 'em at one point, but tossed them when I was cleaning out a bunch of junk one time.

Okay.................I'm sure everyone has been waiting on pins and needles to find out what happened with my pump. So I tore it all the way down, cleaned all the rust out of it and had to make a new gasket for the oil reservoir. Buttoned it all up and it's working like a champ. Pretty proud of myself because I've never been inside a vacuum pump before.................or at least one this small. (The one at my manufacturing company had a 36" cast iron flywheel and two cylinder pistons that were about 5" in diameter. The storage tank on it was 250 gallon.) Anyway, my little one is up and running and sucking the air out of the blank like crazy. I'm back in business! You can go back to your regular programing now.

I used 129 1/8" cocktail straws and get a mighty nice flame..............or, actually, no flame at all, but a white hot interior if I need it. https://chris623.zenfolio.com/img/s/v-11/o1066304653/c1/p3866474508-200.mp4 This was my first firing and I didn't take it up as high a heat as it would go.

I got home from church today and tore the pump down to the last piece. Even though the motor "smoked", I turned it off fast enough that it doesn't seem to be affected. Shaft turns easily by hand and when switched on it runs like a champ. WHEW! The vanes were rusted into their slots. Have no idea how moisture got into the pump oil, but rust proves it was there. I tore up a gasket getting it apart, so that's another thing I'll have to address before I get it back together. Also, there's a spring that holds a seal on the shaft that's broken. Not sure I'll be able to replace that. This is an old pump and when I took it in a couple of years ago, no-one would work on it. One thing that bothers me..........................Bolts are supposed to be tightened............at least that's my take on them. When I tighten all the bolts down on the pump body, the shaft won't turn. Can't figure out why that is. If I loosen the bolts just a bit I can turn the shaft. Have tried moving the body of the pump around to see if the shaft is in a bind, but can't seem to find the key to the problem. This is a nice double-vane pump...........actually 4 vanes, 2 on each side of the shaft. Hate to not be able to use it. But I'll keep my eyes open for a refrigerator pump.

Thanks, guys.

It's been almost a year since I tried to stabilize anything in Cactus Juice. Started a new knife recently and dried my handle material for 48 hours. Put it in the Cactus Juice after it cooled and turned on my vacuum pump............which immediately smoked!!!!! I'm tearing it down to see what happened, but I think the shaft of the pump is frozen. Rusted tight, I think. When I started taking it apart, the oil had a lot of water in it..............which shouldn't be there, obviously. Here I am with wood in stabilizer and no pump! Any suggestions? Is there such a thing as an inexpensive vacuum pump? I know older refrigerators had pumps in them but I couldn't find one when I first started this journey. I inherited this pump when my Dad died. (used in his jewelry business) A vacuum pump is obviously not going to get a lot of use in my shop so I don't need a $500 one. I doubt I'll be making more than 10 knives a year, at most. Can anyone recommend an inexpensive pump that will stabilize these knife blanks.

Really enjoyed watching that video, Maciek. Beautiful spear-head. It was fascinating watching you work.

That's a beautiful blade, Alex. Can't wait to see the finished piece.

Now that's an interesting trick, BillyO. I'll keep it in mind. Which is what I think I did...........but I've been known to screw things up before.