Good Evening - New Guy Here

**Jim-W** · 11th August 2023, 01:04 PM

My name is really James, but everyone calls me Jim. I live in S.E. Wisconsin and I enjoy woodworking, golf and bowling. My woodworking consists mostly of repairing things for friends and family, but I also do a fair amount of repairs for others. I have rebuilt several outdoor benches, the kind with metal ends and cedar boards connecting them. I have also repaired a LOT of kid's dressers with broken drawers and drawer bottoms. Seems that kids like to climb and they use the dresser drawers like a ladder. Since the dressers are not very well made it wrecks the bottoms of the drawers and sometimes the whole drawer needs to be repaired, or I make a new drawer if the broken one is too far gone.

I have a lot of woodworking tools and power woodworking equipment, but I would like to buy a CNC router so I can make signs. I have been asked numerous times to make a sign for someone, but most times I decline the job. Occasionally I will do my best to freehand a sign for someone and I have had some limited success in doing that. But I am not real happy with the outcome and the truth is, I could most likely do a very professional job if I had a CNC router.

I am retired and have been since 2010. My wife is retired as well. We have two daughters and five grandchildren, all living in the same city as the wife and I. This is both good and bad, we enjoy seeing the daughters and grandchildren just not all the time. One grandson lives with the wife and I, and has been living with us since he was 4 years old. His older sister was always picking on him, she was more of a bully than a sister, and he got tired of us. One day he showed up on the front porch, rang the doorbell, and said he was moving in. That was 23 years ago, he is now 27 tears old and still living with us. It is kind of nice having him here in the Winter months, shoveling snow at my age is not something I enjoy. In the Summer months having some help with the yard is also nice, so all in all it works out OK for all of us.

That is about all I can think of to tell you, if you specific questions just ask. I will answer them to the best of my ability.

**old1955** · 12th August 2023, 05:55 PM

Welcome to the forum.

**crowie** · 13th August 2023, 08:43 AM

G'Day & Welcome to the Great Southern Land and to a top forum "Jim"......
There are quite a few members from across the USA and the rest of the world.....
You'll find a heap of helpful & knowledgeable blokes & ladies on the forum and for most very willing to assist.
Make sure you show off your handiwork as everyone loves a photo, especially WIP [Work In Progress] photos with build notes.
Enjoy the forum.
Enjoy your woodwork.....
Cheers from On Top DownUnder, crowie

**orraloon** · 13th August 2023, 09:29 PM

Welcome to the forum James.
There is a wealth of woodwork know how in the heads of the members here and usually most questions get answers. I've been here quite a few years and it's lifted my woodwork a fair bit.
Regards
John

**Jim-W** · 14th August 2023, 06:30 AM

Thanks for the replies, it does make me feel welcome. I have done a few projects, not just woodworking, but other "inventions" as well. Over the next few days I will try to take a few pictures and post them so you can see just what kind of crazy ideas I get at times.

**Jim-W** · 14th August 2023, 11:45 AM

I have a couple videos I would like to show you, one is of the lift I have in my "two story" garage and the other is of a can crusher I made. I am not sure if I am allowed to post videos, and if I am allowed to post them I am not sure where to post them. Could someone please let me know if I am allowed to post videos, how to post a video, and also where to post them. One is my daughter showing how the lift works, the other shows how the can crusher works. They are not very long videos, but they do give you the idea of how they work and if I do say so myself, I think they are kind of slick ideas. But I think you guys/gals would be a better judge of that.