Firstly please let me apologise for the lack of posts recently. I have been having a bit of a melt down over the summer. There are days when life gets just too much to handle. Having turned my hobby into an all consuming business, these days I have to resort to motorcycling in order to save my sanity. Thank God for a beautiful summer. So, what’s this Put an Old Knob to Good Use all about?
Before you start, NO it’s not me, I know I’m old but i’m not a knob…..most of the time. I have said many times that I have a passion for not wasting stuff. If there’s a way to make something old and useless good again or turn it to a practical use I’m all over it. Around here we even reuse empty cereal packets and junk mail, nothing gets wasted.
Recently I was sorting out my workshop where I have a big plastic tray full of the tools I use in my bonsai work. Everything is just tipped in together along with bits of wire, plastic mesh, old soil and a good collection of dead insects. I was having real problems finding what I needed so decided to have a clear out. Net result was I had a builders bucket full of tools I no longer use. This contained knives worn down to a nub, bent and broken chisels, worn out root hooks and rakes, bent and broken scissors, branch cutters and not a few totally worn out knob cutters.
I reconditioned what I could, put those beyond help in the scrap bin but just could not part with the knob cutters even though they were ostensibly useless. However after a little application and careful thought I came up with this solution.
If you are handy with an angle grinder and a flap wheel there’s a useful tool (or two) in there. Given that hand creation of deadwood is back in fashion at the moment and, assuming you to have a knackered tool laying around here’s a little half hour project for the weekend.
Put an Old Knob to Good Use and have a little fun with it 😉
G.
Put an Old Knob to Good Use. Drill out the pivot.
Put an Old Knob to Good Use. Grind down the sides to create the desired width of cut.
Put an Old Knob to Good Use. Remove any thickness, refine the profile and round off the edges.
Put an Old Knob to Good Use. A good polish and careful sharpening and it’s good to go.