Tooltique is a small family business, selling refurbished traditional hand tools.
Their advantage over eBay, is that their wares are sold fully refurbished and sharpened – ready for use by those who appreciate fine tools for quality work. I regularly recommend them to fellow students.

Today, I received the following message from Tooltique:

Self Isolation And How Hobbies Can Help

March 18, 2020 by Tooltique

Those who already have hobbies will undoubtedly have more to keep their minds occupied and bodies active through what looks to be a torrid time ahead with the COVID-19 outbreak. I know that we are grateful to have a large workshop and plenty to do during this time. 

After the initial preparations are made, there are going to be a considerable amount of people out there that will refrain from their usual activities, due to social distancing or self isolation.

 All active people are going to need something meaningful to do with their time which can be done alone, creating space around the family.      

Many are active online but it’s very easy to become overwhelmed with negative information which causes anxiety and will undoubtedly cause considerable affects on people’s mental health. It doesn’t have to be like this, if you use the internet to learn new skills, people like Paul Sellers amongst others are a really good start. Expand your searches via YouTube and you will be amazed how encouraging others are with sharing their knowledge. If you lack space explore things like leather working, woodcarving, model making, etc. 

There have many been people who have started their woodworking hobbies in few past years and believe me they will all be glad they took these first steps. It’s probably a time to practice things like saw sharpening, you only need a junk saw and it can engross you for days, especially with working on the set up, making a saw vice and understanding how the tooth geometry helps with different woods, etc.   

In this busy world many will have never considered home based hobbies such as woodworking , but it’s certainly has additional benefits as your confidence grows, especially around the home. Over the next couple of weeks we will try to keep the blog updated as much as possible with interesting ideas and tips to help keep everyone’s spirits up.

We wish all our customers well and hope they can keep on creating nice things. 

I have highlighted in bold, the section that caught my eye. I am certainly not belittling the situation, or the concerns and fears that abound. However, there is too much hysteria and melodramatic pronouncements that can all too readily sap the morale of readers/recipients.

A sense of perspective is needed here: sure, there will be many sad premature deaths, but the majority of us will survive this crisis. And, there is a lot we can do to mitigate the risk to ourselves and our loved ones.

What is most important is that we all do what we can to support each other – practically, emotionally and spiritually. Humour, positivity, kind conversation, good wishes, and expressions of love will do a great deal to help those that are concerned/fearful – far more than negativity and talk of doom and misery.

We are going to see the worst of human nature, not least stock-piling and flouting of public health advice. But, we may also see the best: encouragement, practical support, phone calls to family and friends, and help for vulnerable neighbours.

Yes indeed, “… it’s very easy to become overwhelmed with negative information which causes anxiety and will undoubtedly cause considerable affects on people’s mental health. It doesn’t have to be like this… “

Keep safe and let’s look forward to getting to the other side of this crisis.

After another week at Boathouse 4, we have fitted a few more planks – a total of seven fully fitted now, and the eighth almost ready for roving.

At close of play on Friday, she looked like this:

I have learnt such a lot: tips on how to get good results, and on how to fix problems and mistakes!

The current Corona virus pandemic has led to the attractions and historic dockyard itself being closed to the public. It has been quiet in the College as a result. Indeed, the College is set to close after next week, due to the public health advice.

Chatting to one of the security guards, on Friday, I was warned that the Portsmouth Base Commander could shut the base to non-MoD staff without notice. I decided to bring my tools home, just in case that happened before Monday.

Reflecting on the situation yesterday, I made the decision to stop going in to the College until the situation changes. The need for us all to exercise ‘social distancing’ is being made very clear, and for the benefit of the family, and everyone else, I will stay at home except for essential outings.

My bench is nearly finished, and I hope to start to fit the vice today. There’s a lot to get ready for my boat building project, and lots of jobs to do at home … the gardening is never-ending!!

I would like to finish planking the dinghy with Bob, when the College re-opens. Maybe we can fit the last three sets of planks with another week together … wishful thinking, I know!

To all my followers/blog readers, I give my very best wishes and hopes that you remain well and avoid Covid 19.

I returned to Boathouse 4 on 5th of March, slightly earlier than planned, and have been working with Bob Forsyth to plank up the Paul Gartside dinghy which I am planning to build this year.

Progress has been slower than hoped, for a few reasons. Firstly, because we spent a lot of time and effort to get our first set of planks fully symmetrical. This is in order to “book match” successive planks.

Book Matching is the process of spiling a plank for one side of the boat and then splitting the resulting plank in two, creating a plank for each side. It requires that the sides remain the same, so that the planks are a perfect match.

Another reason for our slower-than-expected progress is the planks splitting at their hood (forward) ends. The unkindest cut of all was when one of the planks that had been fitted by BB15’s students split when our first set of planks was being fitted. Thank goodness for PU Glue!

As a result of this tendency to split, we have decided to give the hood ends a bit of heat to create a bit of “give.” We had not expected to need to steam them, but if steaming reduces splits it will be worth the extra effort.

Finally, I have never been known for speedy working!

Anyway, after seven days, we have fitted only four planks, rather than the two per day we were aiming for. That said, I am sure I/we will get “in the groove” and speed up – our aim is now to finish the remaining 10 planks in the coming week. It has been great to be working with Bob, who has over 50 years’ experience of boatbuilding and a love of clinker builds. I’m getting a real Master Class with lots of tips and suggestions for my own upcoming build.

Fingers crossed that we can catch up with our goal of two planks a day. In the meantime I am now officially a Boathouse 4 Volunteer, and for the next week (at least!!) I can be found there, learning from Bob and getting valuable practice and experience.

Meanwhile, back in my workshop at home – ‘Docs Den’ – I have been making a new workbench for my upcoming joinery projects. Made of three sheets of 18mm birch plywood, this Paul Sellers design is really solid and very heavy. Today, I fixed the aprons to the the leg frames and glued the laminated bench-top to the front apron. I am looking forward to getting the tool well and vice fitted. Then, there are some other extras to add, including a drawer and castors.