I am 74 years old and a retired Data Scientist. I got started in working in the 1950's in Jr. High (Middle) School in Chula Vista, CA. In High School, I built an ocean-going kayak in the school woodshop, and won the Bank of America Award for Trades and Industries for 1960 (then, I fooled them and went into Science). I have been doing woodworking ever since Jr. High School. I build lawn furniture (e.g. A Titanic deck chair), footstools, and lots of bowls. Sometimes, I work in serpentine rock outside the shop on my Jet mini-lathe with carbide cutting tools.


My shop is installed in a 12' x 25' room addition with 3 large skylights built (up to code) onto the back of my garage. It is rather space-limited, so I have to put most of my large machinery on wheels.


You might be amazed at how much hardware I have accumulated during the last 40 years; seldom do I have to buy anything nowadays. As you will see, I am a big fan of vintage Craftsman woodworking machines.


My shop contains the following tools:

• 17" Grizzly band saw
• 14" Craftsman band saw
• Precision2000 diamond blade band saw for cutting glass inserts for wooden vases
• Full-sized Jet lathe with a swivel head
• Jet mini-lathe for rock work
• 6" vintage Craftsman belt sander
• 10" vintage Craftsman radial arm saw (installed in the middle of an 18 foot cabinet top)
• Craftsman floor mounted drill press
• Vintage Craftsman 8" table saw (I don't do much work on the table saw. Mostly, I use the radial arm saw and the band saw)
• 12" disk sander
• Sorby ProEdge lathe tool sharpener
• Delta vacuum system for dust control hooked up to the radial arm saw, the disk sander, the belt sander, and the band saws
• DeWalt 12" thickness planer
• DeWalt 12" cut-off saw
• Jet mortiser
• Numerous power hand tools

Located around the corner of the shop in the garage:

• Delta jig saw
• 6" Vintage Craftsman jointer
• Vintage Craftsman shaper
• At least one of almost every hand tool known to man (so my son thinks)

In addition to the tools you see on the pegboard on the walls of my shop, I store many of my tools and materials in a number of old IBM computer punch card cabinets. I use numerous drawer cabinets for storing many types of screws, nuts and bolts. For 40 years, I have followed the rule that if I need more than one of a particular fastener, I buy a box, and store them.

Below are several projects that I have made in my shop. My latest passion is segmented wood turnings. I have done several simple segmented bowls, and I am planning to do more, particularly in association with the Channel Islands Woodturners club in Ventura, CA.

Bob can be reached directly via email at bob2@rnisbet.com .