Happy Holidays! As my day job as a bike mechanic slows down for winter, I have more time for making business plans, setting up the guitar studio, going on bike rides, practicing my flatpicking, making jigs for building L-OOs, repairing some guitars, and eating lots of delicious oatmeal. I love having the time for sharpening all of my chisels, knives, scrapers, and plane irons, setting up my new (old!) Rockwell Model 14 Bandsaw, practicing varnish and lacquer matching and touchup techniques, painting my name on the wall (wee!), and getting prepared to build some guitars.

Most interesting, I’ve enrolled in a small business startup program at Mercy Corps NW, and have been awarded an IDA grant which will mature in six months time. This should allow me to have a much more complete shop setup this time next year. Some hopeful investments include: a thickness sander, jointer, materials for a proper cabinetmakers bench, fret slotting and side bending systems, and a new website. Stay tuned for more detials! Check out Mercy Corps NW at: http://www.mercycorpsnw.org/

The old Kay gets its first layer of repair veneer to permanently fix the headstock.