More Product Reviews: Makita Finish Sander, Canadian Sandpaper

I have a Dewalt and a Makita finish sander. Why two? I don't know, but good thing I do have 2.

So, I thought the Makita was more compact and easier to work with which is why I used it all the time. Then the clip that holds the paper fails. More accurately the badly designed plastic hole that holds the clip that holds the sandpaper failed. Just busted out. No reason that should happen. Bad bad design. Stoopittt!

Otherwise, I obviously liked the Makita. Now I say, "Shame on you, Makita engineer, I suggest you fall on your sword out of shame."
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Now to sandpaper. I was mildly relieved and somewhat surprised to see that Norton job packs of the stuff are made in Canada. I expected China or Borneo.

I do have a bit of paper made in China, and it does come in through Norton Abrasives. It sucks. D. I am a liberal grader when it comes to the low marks. They deserve an F, but I reserve that for the Gator grit garbage that Ace sells. And it is made in the USA. Oh, the humiliation.

The stuff that Norton claims "lasts 3X longer, cuts 3X faster" is deserving of an A, I think.

Faster and longer than what, they do not say. It works 10X better than that garbage from Ace and China. Their paper tears and is generally not good for anything but flat straight line work.

Norton, MADE IN CANADA, (possibly from the ground up teeth of hockey payers, recovered after matches), Is by far the best I have dealt with yet.

Norton's wet and dry is good too. On that count the paper from Finland is not bad either. I give both an A, however I seek out Norton when possible--partly because it is North American, and Canadians are hot, and partly because it reminds me of Norton from the Honey Mooners, Jackie Gleason's sidekick.

Mostly you find Norton at Home Depot. Maybe some high end woodworking places have better, but for the average Joe, Norton's a name you can trust.

Thank you, Canada.

Tips for the Reluctant Craftsman: part 290-product review 331

Today's product being reviewed--Penofin oil finish for wood products

The review contains a few suggestions describing How I Do It (the title of one of my many books soon to be released)

First you need to strip the teak item to be finished. If it has some kind of varnish or the like, hit it with a quick going over using 80 to 120 grit sandpaper. Feel free to use a motorized sander where possible. Don't waste much time on this part.

OK. Penofin stripper. This is a useful substance. It works with water, which I like. You wet the piece to be stripped. Soak that baby. Then you brush on the stripper, which looks harmless, doesn't give off a whole lot of fumes, and seems like thinned out liquid soap. Don't be fooled. This stuff will eat a sponge--I know. That's why I use a brush now.

OK, you let it sit there, and mist with water if it starts to dry. If there is a lot of oil or whatnot deep in the wood, use a scrub brush on it. That works wonders. Then you hose it off. It does a better job than other things I've used with less annoyance and easier clean up.

Penofin stripper gets an A.

Penofin Marine Oil finish:
This stuff is somewhat tinted. Not a lot though. It has very good UV protection and penetrates the wood better than most.
After stripping, you used some brand of teak cleaner and cleaned the thing with that--brush it on and rinse it off. Penofin makes a cleaner but I had some other stuff so if there is a difference I can't say, but doubt the cleaner brand matters.

OK. Then you went over everything with 220 grit to get rid of fuzz and smooth things out. You now brush on the marine finish, let it sit for 20 minutes, then wipe off the excess thorughly. Rub that baby down. It will feel dry to the touch when you've done it right.

Before wiping it dry you can make it all better by going over it with 600 grit wet and dry sandpaper. 400 grit is ok but I like the 600 better. You can begin by rubbing in the oil with the wet and dry, but I like it the way described.

I like the way the things look after applying the Marine oil finish. I also like how it goes on and in. It is different than the Watco teak oil. Not sure how, but it is. More goes in than wipes off.

I have a feeling it will hold up better than most. Time will tell. For now I give Penofin Marine finish an A.

Penofin Verde Oil finish:
You can get it with a tint of varying shades but I used clear on a cedar bench. The process for preparing the cedar was the same as the teak, including using teak cleaner stuff to wash it out, and including the 220 grit final sanding and the 600 or 400 oil application step.

Verde is touted as all environmentally friendly etc. I don't care. It has the advantage of being relatively odorless. You are more likely to need more than one coat with this, but one is certainly adequate if you aren't being too particular. I'm often too particular. One coat did very well, but I want to go over the whole thing with 400 grit on a power sander, then rub in more Verde with 600 grit--all f which is not really a requirement for many situations.

OK. The verde is easy to work with. Brush on, wipe off and that's that. I just want to make the surface slicker and a bit more lustrous. Not to be confused with lusty. Verde also has high UV protection. A tinted oil always has a bit more, but not much in this case. It is good stuff.

Verde gets an A.

I'd give all these items A+ if it required no sanding or work to bring out the best. Of course I'd give a chain saw an A+ if it cut down the tree then milled it into perfectly smooth beams and boards with no effort on my part, too.

After doing all of the above, you can use denatured alcohol or vodka to clean your hands. Once you've put everything away, get naked, jump into the spa, heated to 102F, hope there is no one in the bushes filming for youtube, then relax and forget it.

Uh OH, I'm one of the New Right Malcontents

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Why they shoot ducks

So, it was five something, A.M.. IN THE Morning, to be clear, EARLY in the morning. I was sleeping at the place where I do important work, remotely related to national security, Michele's biceps, and the strings that orchestrate her husband's every action, or inaction. But other than that's where I was, all the rest is neither here nor there. Or is it? No, it is irrelevant I am sure. But I bet they are watching, so I use the spa in birthday attire at the end of the day, just to figuratively thumb my nose at them.

OK. I'm having bizarre other-worldly dreams, which is typical at that place because wife #1, almost a household name, put a hex on it. Some kind of voodoo hoodoo.

I wake up to rude squawking and splashing. The back door of the room I use opens onto the patio and pool. I thought it was a combination of crows and pool hoppers. I throw the door open and discover it was a gang of vandal ducks. They should be migrating, shouldn't they? Go north, harass Canada or, if you dare, Minnesota or one of those places.

The creeps just gave me a dirty look- until I charged, clapping my hands, describing how they were to be my breakfast. I was pulling the old, "Yea, I'm a carnivore like crazy" bluff. No need to tell ducks I don't eat duck. It worked, but my sleep situation was irreparably disrupted and bruised.

The creeps crapped in the pool, and I bet they peed, too. No manners.

So, next time you see a duck hunter, say "Thank you". That person is probably saving you a good night's sleep and protecting you from duck debris too horrid to describe.

On the other hand, what if they were really government ducks sent to spy on me? You really can't be too careful, and you certainly cannot trust your elected puppets and the rest of that mess (aka "public sector") not to violate your personal space. I bet the reason I am so tired is that they are somehow monitoring my brain waves, reading my thoughts and attempting to replace them with happy visions of being a slave of the state.

The fatigue I feel is due to the fact that I am constitutionally incapable of being molded in that way. The only people who can make me say and do things counter to my best judgement are women. And even they cannot cause me to follow the rules as laid out by these corrupt impostors who hate the free.

See, if i had been packing a shotgun, I could have shut up the ducks, sent a message to any others in the area, and, if they were spy drones, I'd have struck a blow against The Man, foiling his diabolical intrusion on my sleep and thoughts. I see no downside to shooting those ducks. However, this is California, and I doubt it is legal to shoot them, even in a private swimming pool.

Almost Communicado

I've been incommunicado for a couple of days now. In some respects even longer. It was my decision to avoid all until I had the stubborn garage doors at the British oil man's house worked down to the point where there is nothing more to do until Raul shows with the secret formula number 2, the paste wax of unknown substances. I suspect it is really show polish mixed with bee's wax and peyote. Perhaps there is a drop of virgin's blood or an entire virgin in the mix. One can only speculate and, perhaps, hope.

My goal was to finish with the sanding and sealing by this past Monday. It took longer than expected. Six to eight hours, sanding by hand, using my fingers to try to get little places here, there and everywhere is not something I generally do. Yesterday I put in 11 hours on the final push. My fingers were somewhat raw. Then I felt no pian but they seemed to have a strange tactile sense. I thought maybe I'd inadvertently sanded off my finger prints.

It turned out that they were merely sealed byt the sealer I'd been applying to the doors. Once I rubbed it off, I again felt the burn and normal sense of touch. No finger prints would have been cool.

The crazy thing is that I don't even know what I'm getting paid. I bid the job figuring an entirely different scenario. This has taken many hours more. More than I would want to admit. The goal of making it right appears to be close to being realized, though. That is the important part; Turning out the result to which I committed. I wanted to run away from this mess in the worst way. That was before I found out what I was dealing with and made some progress. Then it grew to an obsession. Now if Raul will hurry up with this top secret mix, maybe I can be done with it altogether.

I now know how to do something I didn't know existed. Wonder if that will ever pay off.

So, after days and days away from home, working the doors and doing some projects around the corner for the weel connected Democrat, I made it home. By the way, if you think the dems are not money people, and that their policies do not serve some segment of the monied elite, you are miles off the mark. That's OK. I get paid to do the work the illegals won't do.

Tomorrow, I have to go back. Then Sat. do work at a private house. Not one of the rich folk houses. I agreed long ago, but I've decided this sort of thing is not for me. Since this person runs the political house, and that is where my bread is buttered, best to bite the bullet and go through with this.

We have a strange gig Sunday at some Rotary club thing. I like to play so I will, but for various reasons I have a feeling I am not that much on the same page with this group of roto heads. It will be OK.

After that, I'm almost back to my normal slack self, and I'll be communicado.

Time is of the Essence

Or so they say. I was going to write about something but it is too late and I am determined to get out from under looming projects so time is almost up.

The disastrous garage door is well on its way to becoming a work of art, or short of that, at least an acceptable make over. Raul continues to disguise his formulas in containers which are labeled sour cream or kitty litter. Even I know that this sealer is not really kitty litter, but it does look like milk so maybe there is a connection. Reportedly cats like milk. I've been told it is not that good for them, so what's up with that?

My friends who are finally back in their renovated house, which is still in process but mostly done, showed me some of the make-work items they had to do to get through inspection. The insanity of what was required boggles the mind. These are items which neither add to quality, safety or structural integrity. Some are alleged to be for safety but if you were there to see, you'd agree these were irrelevant adjustments.

The real lesson is that San Diego and perhaps California in general punish those who own anything and attempt to better their lives. This is why no one on Ballistic Mountain gets permits to build or add on if they can avoid it. "Permit" is a dirty word up there. I was told just that at one of the fire meeting when I was joking with a guy about getting a permit to dam the seasonal creek that runs through his side yard.

Did you know that at this secret work location, this one where I am at this minute, you can skinny dip in the hot tub spa, or the pool, and no one is any the wiser? You could. The spa is a good thing for aching sanding shoulder syndrome.
And to think high school and even college teachers and counselors pegged me for someone who should have pursued a higher education as far as you can go in that world. Boy, if they could see me now they'd sure realize I didn't need no steenkeeng doctorate dee gree.

Even so, there is probably a reason and purpose to this odd life. I'm hoping I discover it while I'm still capable of remembering it. I figure if I hold good thoughts for others, resist negativity when it does no good, and avoid resentment, then most likely being here will net a positive effect in the grand scheme of things. Possibly I will dish out less pain than pleasure to others. That is pretty much the best I can do.

Forgive me, I am moping about some things. Mostly past rejections and disillusionments. The truth is, considering all things I am quite lucky to be alive and in one piece. A walking miracle.

Not a Virtuoso, Just an Anomaly

The Ballistic mountain band, who doesn't call themselves that, is proving to be a cornucopia of creativity. Is that a proper sentence in my use of such words? OK. I say it is a go, so it is.

It may be primarily an acoustic, vocal and harmony outfit, heavily folk influenced, but don't be too quick to judge. It was extremely challenging at first for me to quit putting too much of a blues spin on everything. After awhile I got more of the hang of the kind of precision and inventiveness needed to play decent country, or else, harmonica with these tunes.

The idea, in my book, is for the back up guys like me to add the icing on the cake. Don't try to overpower or be the cake. The style of play that is evolving here has begun to suit me, and it has definitely made me much better and more versatile. Every time we get together I feel like I am progressing a little more.

On top of that, the original music these guys are bringing out is stellar. I have become the biggest fan of both guitar players, as song writers. It has been a long time since I've played on original tunes I like so well.

They have continued to include the instrumental version of one of mine every practice. It is purely a cut loose how I want to play sort of tune. They act like I am some super skilled guy. I remind them that I am mediocre in most ways, but I have that anomaly thing going. Few if any other players go about it they way I do. I'm not really a harp player's harp player. That is not my goal anyway. I strive to be a guitar player's and a singer's harp player.

But this is the first time ever I am encouraged to do just one number entirely my way. They are good about moving somewhat out of their comfort zone, but then by now I guess it has become more easy. Not many people use a C minor Lee Oskar harmonica to cut loose with. A harp player's harp player would consider it no good because I don't get the minors by using overblows and such on a major key harp. Too bad, I like the minor tuning and I can bend and overblow that if need be.

No way to get the same thing on some other harp. It wouldn't have the same tone and sound. Maybe it would be better depending on who played it, but this lets me get lost and let go as much as I allow myself. It seems to be be getting better.

Who'd expect a couple of folk/country/bluegrass/gospel guys to encourage my acid rock/jazz tinge of latin jam?

The real point is that this group is open enough to encourage such things. Everyone is eager to hear everyone else's tunes, and no one is trying to be the big wahoo. Kevin is the natural for front man and anchor of the bunch, however we all know his wife is the final word. Often the focus is on her singing, then again there is Cliff who's considered the most seasoned and skilled musician.

We've progressed a lot in the last month or so. I think it coincides with the amount of original material we've added. They've been sitting on this material for awhile. Not sure what prompted them to bring it out.

This is one of the fortunate side effects of living out in the sticks high above the madding crowd.

Easy; That Hand Rubbed Look//and CA Highway Robbery

So I decided to use this Penofin Marine Oil Finish stuff. It is reputed to be good, and proclaims itself to be The Best. It also says, right there on the can, "for that hand rubbed look".

That implies that you just put the finish on as normal and that's all there is to the hand rubbed look. Well, on the back of the can there is much information. Included in all that fine print are the instructions on what one must do to achieve "that hand rubbed look".

Surprise! What you do if you want more of the hand rubbed look than normal is to apply however many coats it takes with 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper. You hand rub the stuff in. I'd never have guessed that to achieve that hand rubbed look you actually have to hand rub it.

They trust you, so they tell you the inside scoop. You just have to repeat the process until all the fibers are fully --something---penetrated, I think. And all the gaps filled. Wood work is sexy work.

It is like a product that promises that wind blown look, then on the back of the shampoo bottle it tells you to tie yourself to the Card Sound bridge in the Keys during a hurricane.

Even so, the Penofin Marine is good stuff. Oh, but did I mention you have a wait a long time between these 400 grit rub sessions? You do the deed, the rub off all the excess with "clean" cloths" (yea right), which actually leaves it dry to the touch, but it is a trick so you let it dry a few hours, or better yet over night. Rosewwod oil from trees chopped down by virgins is tricky stuff.

I've applied maybe five coats of hand rub to a couple of different pieces, and am just now getting toward that hand rubbed look. Am I patient, persistent, artistic, or just plain nuts?

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Holy smoke!! Talk about highway robbery!! I just received my official renew your registration notice from the greedy state of California. I've bought more than one car in the past for what they charge to renew a single license plate. Apparently they decide what your car is worth, then charge you accordingly. Another of those progressive taxes.

It is odd that in a state which doles out more welfare than any other, that they would institute taxes which hurt those with least money most of all. If you were to give a person of meager means a car, you'd be sending him to the poor house if California decided it was worth more than ten grand, or less I guess.

Everywhere else just charged a set renewal fee because they already nailed you when you registered it the first time. This was an unexpected couple of hundred plus. That's what you pay for good weather, seaside and nice country. Maybe since so little else is wrong people decided to bankrupt the place and make things a little more interesting. It's human nature. Just being free in a good place isn't enough. Have to find ways to complicate it and create drama.

Off The Subject, but ...

Until this last year I had not noticed it quite so much. Maybe this trend has been experiencing an upswing. People go berserk either pro or con regarding laws they haven't read.

Even the president makes comments which indicate he either hasn't read legislation, or he lies about it to serve his benefactors. Serve can be considered a broad enough term to include anger, agitate, and turn group against group. It happens a lot. Obama is not the only one guilty of such things.

The banking laws were so complicated most people have no idea exactly who got bailed out and how. Stimulus madness, and all the great "shovel ready" this and that proved not to be much good to most people. Of course in the middle of that, an official, whose name and title I do not recall, wanted to be sure jobs weren't going to skilled white labor. Always the need to create villains and animosity. Blame that guy, not all the other groups.

The politics of condition of birth is devoid of actual universal philosophy. It assumes we are not all equal under the law, not all similarly human, which implies we ought not all have the same basic rights. That's why rights has been redefined.

Maybe underlying all this madness is a shift from the American model to the Continental model. That is what it was called at some point in time, in some circles. The distinction is that under the continental model, you only have the rights granted by the state. They are privileges, and only the state can grant them. Under the American model, you have (had) any rights not explicitly forbidden. The state only had powers explicitly granted. All other power and right was reserved to states, localities and individuals.

It is an important distinction. In one case the government exercises power only through the permission of the people. In the other case people only exercise power under the permission of the government. We've moved toward the latter. But it is a tangled mess and lots of money is made with no regard to damage done to freedom of the individual.

The reason a senator would argue for a bill she hasn't read is because contained in the thousands of pages are provisions which serve interests who keep her in power. It is self serving and deal making.

In the case of the Arizona law, an alarming number of prominent figures have commented on it without looking at the the text of it or the reality of it. I find it much more dangerous for cities and states to more or less declare war on another state based on a law that state passes that displeases them. The worst part is that the arguments do not address the actual law, but wrong summaries of the law. If they want to take some position, they should get the facts straight.

This particular issue is the worst case of demagoguery I've seen in a long time. Groups are being frightened and angered purely to serve the power agenda of organizations which seek nothing but their own power. Now we have little clutches of people, and hate groups who claim to represent all Hispanics. And they try to pit them aginst some imaginary white conspiracy. It simply does not exist as they claim.

La Raza is right there at the forefront. They want to take part of America back because they say we stole it from Mexico. Where did Mexico get it? Let's see, Spain played a part, and France, too. And if they give it to the Azteca then the Azteca will have to give it back to a variety of ancient nations, most of which end in ec; toltec, olmec this ec that ec. And where they got it, I'm not sure. The point is, be consistent in how you want to work this out. And if you do get your raqcist state, will you loosen Mexico's immigration laws? They are far more strict than ours.

It is easier to play on emotion and tell people they will get accosted buying ice cream even though they are citizens whose ancestors have been here for over a hundred years. No, you will get rounded up for looking Mexican. Fortunately, that is simply a lie. Unfortunately when the president or attorney general say it, or a loud mouth la raza racist thug says it, people believe it without double checking. The attorney general admits he has made all his comments based on stories in the paper and such but hasn't bothered to read the actual bill. It may surprise him that it only reinforces the federal law already on the books.

If you take a bus ride from LA to Dallas, somewhere along the way the feds will board the bus and ask to see documentation regarding your legality for being in the US. They go all the way through Arizona and beyond before that happens. Because it is close to the border, and because people sneak in and there are some issues, like dead ranchers and disproportionate amount of crime committed by those who enter illegally. Not all of them, of course. Just a higher percentage than other groups.

Some of my good friends in the ast were here illegally from other countries. Eventually they found ways to work it out. They were not criminals. The law is not as bad as state income tax or a score of other such things.

Since when do states up north have a clue what it is like to run Arizona? In the case of California, it ought not waste time and money grandstanding about other states' affairs. It has its own issues.

The sadest thing is that many of the resolutions condemning what they do over there have been brought forth by people who never read the measure. Those who have and still act in such a way are merely fomenting hate and fear, then pandering to that in order to secure votes. It is nothing short of criminal. No way anyone would arouse such passion if they read the bill. No way, that is, unless they are willing to flat out lie.

Life at the Resort

Or, all the president's men. That's an inside reference. I'm actually an insider of no influence in the grand scheme of things.

Due to the obvious gas consumption and time involved in commuting 60 or 70 miles per day, it was suggested I just stay at the site while on this multi day push. OK. I can handle that, except I am suspect of hidden cameras, so I dance and do unusual things for Their entertainment. Not really. Most f the time. I think I know where the eyes in the walls live.

It would take no time for me to get used to this upscale life. Upscale relative to the usual, although I do like my view on Ballistic mountain. Last night I heard a bat flying around in the pool/spa area. Have to take advantage of the heated spa to cure aching muscles. I need more substantial muscles I think. Too bad I can't sleep here like I do in my secret home away from home.

Perhaps the term "ballistic" as it applies to my life, the Tour, and etc., should be clarified. It is not meant in the sense of going ballistic, as in angry maniacal hooplah. It is meant in the sense of my life being like the travel of one shot out of a giant cannon. There you go, but where you end up, who knows?

Anyway, this is an unusual life. I try like crazy to deserve the breaks I get. It is easy to find a down side to every positive thing. I think that is a mistake. It is not that easy to avoid it. Only seeing the downer thing tends to shut off the solution. It tends to amplify the attention on what you don't want rather than find ways around the obstacle. In my case, recognizing reality can bring about a negative outlook. Things never get all set just right and stay that way. There's maintenance on the car. You'd think it should just stay as it is without help. Then you have to eat more than just once in a lifetime. On and on.

It may be that all the little obstacles and disruptions of the perfect static balance are what makes life life. If that isn't a confusing trickster scheme I don't know what is. It will probably be alright