Rein Board

A rein board is used to practice holding and operating the reins when driving a carriage or cart. This rein board is a modified duplicate of a rein board borrowed from Maple Crest Farms in Brecksville, OH. This is one of two that I built to the specs provided by the experts at Maple Crest, it is designed to accommodate singles, four in hand, and Tandem . The reign board is made of reclaimed oak fence Boards and feature old horse shoes as counter weights.

A New Top for an Old Piece

This was a project that was hanging out in the corner of my shop for about a year. I had it all ready to go I just needed the motivation and time to fit it all together. The oak used was left over from my brother's abondoned re-model at his old house. The base of the table is an old foot pedal Singer sewing machine base. The drawer featured dovetail joinery and the secondary wood is poplar.

Book Shelves

A break with convention.

My usual M.O. is to put a new twist on a timeless piece. About a year ago I was talking with a friend about a different kind of piece and this is a spin on those discussions and drawings. Although the shelf is finished it is still only primed. I'll determine a color at a later date.

Being a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to materials and tools, working with MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) and thinking about paint was a stretch for me.

I rescued a stack of MDF boards from going to the dumpster at a job that I was working in Cleveland 8 or 9 months ago. The boards were cut offs from the interior trim we were installing at a Condo Complex. Much thanks to my Foreman Mike for allowing me to take the boards home.

The four boxes measure 15 x 15 x 11 1/4" and the shelf stands 54" tall.

Topless Table Continued

The base of the coffee table is complete but I still have yet to find a suitable source of material for the top. Another project on hold. The oak timber milled up nicely and was a pleasure to work with. I went with hand cut dovetails to join the rails and legs instead of the traditional mortise and tenon. In retrospect it is not the ideal form of joinery for a table base. Sometimes breaking with convention for aesthetics does not produce the best structural design. The table base measures 32" x 32" and is 20" high.

If you click on the top photo you can see the joinery, it won't really pop till the finish is applied.