Custom Walnut Trout Cribbage Board

This custom trout cribbage board is on its way to Colorado as a Christmas gift for a client....

Roughtly 24 inches long and 9 inches wide.... created out of walnut...

Finished

Cutout completed... out side left to cut the slot on back.

CNC run is completed

Design laid out on computer and ready to run.

Out of clamps and cleaned up for CNC

Selected Walnut in glueup.

Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-) ****************************************************************

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to: http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Custom Wooden Crochet Hooks

 This request came from several different clients. Wanting to use my lathe more I was intrigued to try my hand at making these.  The first one has produced rave reviews with slight suggestions to improve them. I am learning each one should be made for the individual persons likes or dislikes.  First comment was can you make something like this, only make a bigger bubble up from the point.

 It is roughly 6 inches long with the point and throat around a number 5....Once it was turned on lathe, the tip is shaped by hand using files and knifes. Then finish sanding and coating with a hand rubbed finish.

The biggest comment I have heard so far is the standard crochet hooks make your hand tired after using them for a while. Therefore the bubble turned into my hooks allow the user to cradle it in your fingers.

First project in progress with this hook.

Lathe work and hand shaping done with a hand rubbed finish applied

Basic shape in progress of being turned.

Starting out with the rough piece of wood on the lathe.

Standard sizing template I found on line.

Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-) ****************************************************************

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to: http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Custom Oak and Walnut Cabinet Cutting Board

 Created a replacement cutting board to slide in slot in counter top. The main board was made out of Oak and it is 18 inches wide and around 20 inches long. The walnut finger board was added to the front of board to match their cabinets and to keep the board from sliding into the cabinet to far.

The finished board was coated with a food grade mineral oil to preserve the wood.

Finished board

Walnut finger pull on front

Rout the finger groove

Out of glue up

Glue up of face board

Glue up of side pieces

Glue up of main board

Photo of old board

Photo of front plate of cutting board.

Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-) ****************************************************************

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to: http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Custom Walnut Travel Cribbage Board

This Custom Walnut Travel Cribbage Board was requested through my Custommade.com page.
The card and peg storage was created inside.  Lasered personal photo and lettering were added using an Epilog laser.

This custom travel board measures in at 3 1/2 inches wide and 14 inches lone when open. When closed it comes in at 7 inches long.  Just right for storing in your backpack or suitcase when traveling.

Finished board.

Lasered lettering and photo

Inside storage for cards and pegs

cut and drilled

prototype sent to client

Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-) ****************************************************************

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to: http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Custom Maple with a strip of walnut Cribbage board....

Hello Dave

  We LOVE the cribbage board – my husband was very pleased and surprised – and we’ve had many good games in the last two weeks!

The board will be a lovely heirloom for our family – we thank you for your artistic talents in creating it!
Best wishes for continued success with your business!

Again, thank you so much for getting it made in time for our anniversary! 

Blessings to you and your family, Roberta (and Scott!) - Colorado

" Lucky at cards and Lucky in Love!"   is the motto which has been engraved on this board and is now on its way to its new home in Colorado.

It is made out of hard maple with an inlayed strip of walnut.


It is 8 inches wide and 15 inches long.  The lettering was done using an epilog laser machine.


Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-) ****************************************************************

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to: http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Custom Walnut with a strip of bloodwood cribbage board

Here is another custom Cribbage Board that is on its way to Texas. 
It is 6 inches wide and 18 inches long. Created out of Walnut with a bloodwood strip inlayed in the top.

The first photo shows the strip being glued in.

Here is the finished board top

This board was created with a box style and storage for the decks of cards and the custom metal pegs.
Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-) ****************************************************************

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to: http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Large Custom Four Person Walnut Cribbage Board......UPDATED March 16, 2010

I got my board today ! I luv it, it is more than what I was expecting..

Thank you for the cards, I will be using them for a long time till I can't play with them any more. I will be ordering more boards from you in the future ! Thank you again, I appreciate all of your help, I have been waiting years to have a board like my mothers and you have helped me more than you know !

Thanks so much
Wanita - Wyoming, MI

In any down times I have had while working on the Custom Walnut rocking chair I have been working on smaller projects also to help pay the bills.  Here is the cribbage board after layout and drilling is done.

Final sanding is being done and today I hope to rout the edges, and put the storage box on the back.

Once that is completed I will apply several coats of  hand rubbed poly finish.

 Finish is being applied and drying. 

The lines between the tracks and the lettering are darkened a bit by applying some gel stain to them after the beginning coats of poly.

Once that drys a final coat of poly will seal it all together.


This large board is sure to generate many games of cribbage and years of joy to this Wisconsin family

This Custom Cribbage Board will be made out of dark walnut and is being made for a specific request of a client in Wisconsin.  It is a re-creation of a board that has been played on in their family for years.

The board will be 26 inches long and 11 inches wide. It is a four person board and will have a slot on the back to hold the custom metal pegs when not in play.

This photo is the layout I created based on the input from my client.  Using CorelDraw to lay this drawing out and design gives me great freedom to basically create any board design I want to create or re-create.

Once it is formatted  a ShopBot CNC router will be used  to drill the holes, router the guidelines and do the lettering on the board. The edging and the slot on the back for pegs will be done with a basic router.  I will apply a hand rubbed polyurethane finish once the final sanding has been completed.

This board is different and actually is something I have heard a lot of comments about at shows,  markets and from web inquiries. Folks have trouble following their track around the board. This design will have engraved lines between each track and with the groups of five also separated.  In the future I will include this style as both a regular or custom item.  I think it would really add class to inlay a different color wood in as the guidelines.

In addition, the client has requested that triple S's be placed between holes 30 and 35 for triple skunk, double S's be placed between holes 60 and 65 for double skunk, and one S be placed between 90 and 95 for a standard skunk.  Start has been added after the home pegholes and Game at the pegout hole.

Final photos will be posted as this project nears and reaches completion.

Stay tuned for more updates soon......:-)
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For more information about ordering your own custom board go to:
http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Scott Morrison inspired Custom Rocker ......Part 2

I will briefly try and recreate this post, which got deleted somehow as I was creating another post. : -(

One of the first steps is to transfer all the paper templates to pieces of MDF so they can be used to cut out all the parts needed to build this rocker.
This is a layout of what I have to make.

This seat template will allow me to layout the area I need to carve out and the outside shape.

Arm Templates









Rear legs

I know this is missing part  of the original post, but can't figure out exactly what is missing. So I will stop here and get on with the next steps....

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For more information about ordering your own custom board go to:
http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

“Annual Crawford Cribbage Championship”.......UPDATE

Just opened it, great work it looks awesome. The only minor flaw is that the slide on the back is really difficult to pull out and the metal is a little rough. I might have put a wood lip on the metal bar that followed the router edge so that you could pull on something without the sharp edge. Other than that I really like your work, the dark trim turned out wonderfully. The tournament starts tonight. You should definitely put this on your website.

Merry Christmas, Adam - Seattle, Wa

From Seattle, Washington comes this request to create a family heirloom. They wanted to start a tradition that could be carried on for years.

This is the sample layout they gave me to start out with, along with several other guidelines.
(select photos for enlarged size)

After considering all of their requests this is the layout that we ended up with.

It will be a three person board with their family crest in the center.
The dates will be lasered into the wood. and the names are placeholders for where engraved plates will be added each year with the name of that years winner.
There will be a slot routered on the back to hold the custom metal pegs, as well as a keyhole slot so it can be hung on the wall while not in use.
This family tradition will be a focal point of  family get togethers for many years to come.

The actual physical creation begins.. here is the board being glued up. The piece will be 14 inches wide and 20 inches long out of hard maple. Along each edge I have glued a 1 inch strip accent of dark walnut to add some class to it.

Here is how the boards looked coming out of glue up. The dark walnut stripes set off the maple board quite well.

The tracks have now been drilled using a Shopbot CNC routing system.and the lasering of the family crest and the tournament years are next.

Here is the board as it is being lasered. This Epilog lasering machine is amazing, turning blanks pieces of wood into stunning displays.....
 

Here is the board after lasering has been completed using the Epilog lasering maching.
The spaces below the years there will be a brass plate installed for each years winner.

This project is nearing the end.
The edges have been rounded over.
The key hole slot in the back to hang it on the wall for display has been routed, and the slot has been routered in the back to hold the custom metal pegs.
In the peg out hole I inserted a nice walnut circle to highlight the hole.

Now some hearty sanding and application of the finish.....

Poly coats has been applied....some fine sanding.....
then this nice board will be packed up and headed towards Portland, Oregon before December 22, 2009.
There it will become a part of this years family holiday tournament and others for years to come.

Best of luck to the players and the ultimate winners....I have greatly enjoyed working on this project.

For more information about ordering your own custom board go to:
http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

Custom Walnut Cutting Board

This custom cutting is made out of Dark Walnut and and is 12 inches wide  x 20 inches long and 1 inch thick.


Per clients request the edges were rounded on both side and as you can see really came out nice.

One of the top comments boards like this generate is:

"This board is too pretty to cut on"

I use a food grade mineral oil finish the well sanded surfaces. The beauty and the toughness of the wood, along with the proper care will allow this board to shine and be usable for years to come.

The following care instructions are provided with every board we make.

Recommended Care Instructions: We highly
recommend oiling your Cutting Board frequently. Over
time oiling will preserve and protect woodenware from
splitting and cracking. Wash your board with a mild detergent,
Do not allow it to soak. Dry your board and apply
an even amount of a food safe mineral oil with a soft
cloth. Remove any excess oil.

Warning:
Do not use any kind of vegetable or olive oil as they tend
to turn rancid. Your Cutting Board is not dishwasher compatible.

For more information about ordering your own custom cutting board go to:
http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/

"Rock a Bye Baby".............PART ONE

This will be a project of love in the creation of a family heirloom. However I am sure it will become a popular project once it is completed.

It all began a few weeks ago with a phone call from my youngest daughter, and it went something like this:

She said "Dad.....would you build me a rocking chair?"
I said "Ummmmmm......Ok.......but this is the person who has been supposed to make you a pepper grinder for the last four years and you still don't have it"
she then says "well I think you will have a bit more incentive with this request."
then I said "Hmmmm oh really! Is there something you are not telling me?"
she then says " Well.......yeah I am due in the spring so you have 9 months(now 5 months)"

then I said "cool, congratulations or something like that, after excitedly hollering in her ear and doing the happy dance"

After searching on the internet and asking around, a LumberJocks friend said to me, you need to check out my buddies website. He said this guy is great and if you need help with his plans, he will be more than happy to help.

Once I started going through his site I knew I was in the right spot. As luck would have it, as we were talking, he said he had just completed plans, DVD and a template set on the very chair I was asking about. He said however, they won't be ready for several weeks. This was alright with me because of an upcoming trip to the Midwest and a list of pending project orders once I returned. I told him my plans and asked how much wood I would need for this project. He gave me my answer and then said being we would be passing right by his place near I-90, to stop by and check out one of his works in progress. Unfortunately weather took over and we were unable to stop on the way home, but a visit is in my future.


During the trip scheduled to the Midwest to visit family and considering the cost of hardwood lumber here in Montana compared to the price where it is grown and harvested in the Midwest. I decided to check out what there was to choose from.

During a conversation with another woodworking buddy from LumberJocks who happens to live in the Midwest near where I was headed, made this comment. "You have to go check out these guys. They are great and I really like them and their setup". He provided me with directions, but was unfortunately unable to go with me because of previous plans.

With my brother driving (whom we were visiting) and my wife, we were off to find the sawmill. Not really knowing what to expect, but trusting my woodworking buddy, I was excited.


As we pulled into the drive the first thing we saw was this sign. I knew then everything was going to be great.

Simpson & Son is a small family run business in Northwest Missouri and as soon as we started talking with the folks there I knew we were in the right spot.  They took the time on this cool crispy morning to chat with us and hear our stories, and tell us a few of their own. They obviously were very knowledgeable about the wood they worked with and were very patient with me as I went about selecting just the right pieces of wood for this project. 



Eyeing all the lumber stacked in sheds, and this was just one of them, I knew it would be a tough job, but one I was willing to take on.


Now the fun began, trying to pick the right pieces of walnut, which is the wood chose by my daughter and I.

I had been told I needed to get 8/4 lumber (2 inch thick) and that I would need about 50 bdft. Hopefully I picked up enough extra pieces just in case the saws make some miscuts.

My next problem was to not try and load up all the wood that I had to chose from. Putting me in this place was like putting a kid in a candy store. Oh my!!!!



I did behave for the most part and only got the wood that I needed along with a few other pieces of various other types of wood.

Well....they were using them as fuel for their burn barrel to keep warm while working outside. How could I possibly let those nice pieces of Oak, Maple, Sycamore, Cherry, Elm, etc etc etc.....end up as ashes..when I could picture the nice cribbage boards and other unknown projects they would make..

This is the pile of Walnut that I chose for this project. It is now acclimating to the inside of my shop and waiting for the project to begin.

I am trying to catch up on pending project orders and stock for up coming shows, while I wait for the plans and templates for this project.

Once I begin the building of this project, I plan on doing a blog as to this whole process and the trials and tests I go through. Scott the designer of these plans said, "no problem, you should be able to get it done in 1-2 weeks"

I just smiled to myself and thought....hmmm  ...... Yeah Right...... OK, we will see!

Stay tuned!!!

For more information about ordering your own custom project go to:
http://www.splinterswoodworks.com/