Information for the dysfunctional DIYer

Happy New Year 2023.

KEN — Sat, 07 Jan 2023 13:29:52 +0000

The past year has been busy for the the channel. Last January I made it my goal to get this hobby channel to 1000 subscribers so I could monetize and put the money to work improving the content. One of the improvements was this new website on Squarespace to help support the channel.

Monetization doesn't amount to much for a small channel like mine, but I was hoping to offset the cost of things like memory cards, project materials, editing software subscriptions, etc. Thanks to the support of the community we crushed that goal reaching 3618 subscribers by the end of the year. In 2022 SWBAH received over 450K views, was watched for 18K hours and increased subscribers by 2,900. We monetized in June and, and now the channel generates enough money to cover some of video production costs and hosting for the new website at www.swbah.com. Make sure you check it out if you haven't already and let me know what kind of supporting content you'd like to see there.

We even had a video go viral by my standards reaching nearly 300K views.

I'm looking forward to 2023 and sharing new content with the crew. My goal for this year is to continue to grow the subscriber base with a goal of 10K by year end and to continue to invest in better content for the community. I've been rolling out some improvements based on everyone's feedback over the last couple of months and will continue to do that with the quick fix series, the educational series on FreeCAD and of course finishing up the bathroom vanity series.

I also hope to get out at least two new videos on month which will be a challenge with the kids and a full-time day job, but goals should be a challenge right :) I also hope to add a few new tools to the arsenal this year to expand on the variety of projects I can do. I might even go Gri-reen this year :) From our family to yours have a happy, healthy and productive New Year!

If there is content you’d like to see this year or just need help on one of your own projects, send us a shout!

The best tool you can get might be free.

KEN — Mon, 05 Dec 2022 11:57:00 +0000

FreeCAD is great for DIYers, Woodworkers and other Makers

We all spend a lot of money on tools to make our projects better. The best tools make great cuts, awesome joints, fantastic finishes and solve numerous problems except one. They can’t tell you how and what to build. One biggest contributors to making a project successful is a good design and a well thought out building strategy. Pen and paper work just fine, but it can be hard to manipulate and change your projects and nearly impossible to iterate and view the effects of these changes in multiple dimensions at once.

This is where a computer and computer aided design (CAD) software accel and can bring your woodworking, DIY projects and general making to the next level.

You might have some questions before jumping all in on the CAD train, so let me answer them for you here.

Should I integrate CAD into my shop?
- Absolutely, do it immediately, don’t pass go.
Is CAD hard to learn?
- Absolutely, most instruction manuals suck, and it seems every tutorial is geared towards something you have no interest or bearing on what you want to do.
I’m a DIYer that is just too cheap to hire someone else and have no technical background like you - Can I do this?
- If I can - you can.
Is it expensive?
- Yes and no. I will show you what I think is the best free option. There are commercial packages and some specialized packages out there that have yearly or monthly fees.
Will you help me get started?
- No, I’m writing this post and spending countless hours creating the video so series to go with it just to mess with you. (just kidding - I really want to help)
How long will it take to get up and running? How long will I have to listen to drone on about this and that and best practices and blah blah blah, I’m falling asleep just thinking about it?
- This may vary a little bit as I continue to create the series. My goal is to have you proficient enough to be able to start tackling projects on your own after about 60 minutes and start building some basic parts after Lesson one. The plan for this series is 6 videos, all less than 10 minutes in length.
Are you going to charge me anything?
- Not financially, just a piece of your soul - in the form of good Karma you pass along when you share your new skills with all your maker friends. Of course, video likes, constructive comments, and checking out affiliate links are always nice.
Will there be any kind of ongoing support.
- You can always send a comment or email me and I’m happy to answer questions. If this series gets enough attention and demand, I may open a forum on the site for everyone to help and support each other. Let me know what you think.

With all that said here is the link to the series. (Lesson One is currently uploading at the time of this post.)

Introduction tutorial to FreeCAD, designed or makers.

Permalink

What to do with a Dismembered Carcass.

KEN — Wed, 23 Nov 2022 10:32:49 +0000

Welcome to part two of the video series on making your own custom vanity. In this video we will cut out all the parts and assemble the carcass to go along with the base we made in video 2.

Make sure you download the plans I used to follow along and leave any questions you might have in the comments.

Download the plans and play along!

If you’d like to support the site, consider checking out the tools I used on Amazon.

1 - 1/4" Wood screws GRK R4 ProPak Multipurpose Screws, 8 by 1-1/4-Inch, 1,300-Count https://amzn.to/3EQJaOJ

DeWalt DWNS18PP 18GA Narrow Crown Staple Project pack https://amzn.to/3WvfP3c Titebond II glue. https://amzn.to/3t2CtTc

Titebond II is water resistant making it a good choice for a bathroom vanity glue-up.

DEWALT Miter Saw, Double-Bevel, Compound, 12-Inch, 15-Amp (DWS716) https://amzn.to/3fz4EWF

DEWALT Miter Saw Stand, Heavy Duty (DWX723) https://amzn.to/3E3jZbk

DEWALT 20V MAX Cordless Drill / Driver Kit, Brushless, 1/2-Inch (DCD791D2) https://amzn.to/3Uu8PC5

DEWALT Table Saw for Jobsite, Compact, 8-1/4-Inch (DWE7485) https://amzn.to/3UvObkZ

DEWALT Table Saw Stand, Mobile/Rolling (DW7440RS) https://amzn.to/3Ww3xYn

Gluebot Wood Glue Dispenser, 16 Oz Btl, Drip less https://amzn.to/3tiSaG1

DEWALT Pancake Air Compressor, 6 Gallon, 165 PSI (DWFP55126) https://amzn.to/3WBkFfd

DEWALT DWFP1838 18 Gauge Finish Stapler https://amzn.to/3t2CtTc

DICATTE 90 Degree Positioning Square Right Angle Clamp 7.1" x 7.1" Aluminum Alloy Woodworking Carpenter Tool,4 Pcs Right Angle Clamps With 8 Clamp https://amzn.to/3tOmNTX

Hibson Marking Tools https://amzn.to/3i7U4Xl

ACEgoes Woodworking Scriber T-Square Ruler 12in, Architect Ruler for Carpenter Work, Layout and Measuring Tools Buy on Amazon Yonico Router Bits Set Dado Straight Bit Undersize Plywood 3 Bit 1/4-Inch Shank 14323q Buy on Amazon

Kitchen and Bath Ideas

You’ll kick yourself for not doing this sooner.

KEN — Sun, 13 Nov 2022 10:36:15 +0000

Quick 60 second fix to add an auxiliary fence and stop.

Being able to make consistent and repeatable cuts on any saw can be the difference between a great professional looking final project and so so results. The ability to make the same length cut more than one time is even more important than being perfectly accurate to the plan size in the first place in a lot of cases.

For example if you undercut by a 1/8 of an inch on the height of a wall on a cabinet, most likely no one will notice that small amount a single cabinet. But if you are over and under 1/8 across a string of cabinets the variance becomes obvious. Hence being able to do the same exact cut over and over should be at the the top of the things you absolutely need to be able to do.

The best way to create this repeatability is with a stop block system. There are lots of custom and off the shelf products to do this, but they cost some cha-ching and can take a long time to implement on your miter saw.

In this video, I will show you how to make a quick, accurate system using scrap wood, wood screws and a clamp. This is a no frills solution, but it works and will have you cutign like a pro in no time.

As always, if you have any questions on this project, leave a comment and I’d be happy to share my experience with you and answer anything you throw at me.

I’m also thinking about doing an update to this video where I add some bling to it. Right now I’m thinking t-track, flip stops and maybe a ruler. Let me know what you think and if there is anything else I should consider.

Bathroom Vanity Build Part I - Building the Base

KEN — Sat, 05 Nov 2022 16:40:53 +0000

Welcome to Part I of my series on how to build a custom bathroom vanity. In this part I will show you how I built the detached external base for the project. This post contains a little background to the project as well links to the plans I made ,and sort of followed, and to the entire video showing the build from start to finish. I’ll also add links at the end to the tools and some of the supplies that I used in the video.

The finished base.

When we first moved into the house the upstairs guest bathroom looked ok but was dated. Upon closer inspection, we found out that the vanity had a leak from a pipe where for some unknown reason they decided to tap off of the cold water line and then cut it and squeeze the copper feeder to seal it. (It didn’t hold) This leak destroyed the base of the vanity that was made out of a masonite type of press board material. It had swollen up and begun to fall apart from soaking up the water The big problem was that it was growing mold. So with an infant already in the house, I tore it out, trashed it and cleaned up the mess. That was was almost three years ago . . .

The missing vanity conundrum

Life happens and you fall behind on things, but after three years, even I was was getting angry at myself that i hadn’t replaced it. I repaired other pieces of the bathroom, like the door and the toilet and the molding, but just never got to the vanity.

Now the vanity issue was not entirely my fault. The original one was sort of custom to fit between the two walls between the shower/bath and the hallway. I say “sort of” custom because the reality was the vanity was too big and the installer just cut into the wall to force it into place and the wall itself wasn’t perfectly straight . . . on well any of the sides. The area for the vanity was also pretty large at 64 inches, but was only plumbed for a single sink.

The hole where a vanity once was.

Because it was such a large space, I found it really hard to find a vanity that would fit the opening off the shelf at the box stores that was also plumbed for a single sink. I could only find double sink options and to be honest I wasn’t very impressed with the quality of any of the options and they all seemed to cost a fortune. This is a kids bath, I wasn’t doing a full remodel and I wasn’t about to spend between two and three thousand dollars for something. Tied up with hundreds of other projects, this project just sat .. until now.

I’m finally going to give it a try and build my own vanity. I quickly taught myself some CAD, and after about 500 hours or so I came up with these plans . . . for the base. Small steps! I’m working on the rest :)

Plans - for a base - the best base ever! It is bigly impressive. (click the picture to download the PDF)

And finally, here is video showing the steps start to finish on how I completed this stage of the project.

Materials needed:

4x8 sheet of 3/4 plywood.
DeWalt DWNS18PP 18GA Narrow Crown Staple Project pack
Titebond II glue. Titebond II is water resistant making it a good choice for a bathroom vanity glue-up.

Tools I used in this video.

These are affiliate links, so if you see something you like and buy it you can support the site. No pressure :)

If you ever need any help with this project or any other ... just ask by leaving a comment, sending a tweet or hitting us up on email.

Adventures in Sleep Deprived DIYing

KEN — Sat, 05 Nov 2022 12:25:02 +0000

Sleeping on the job.

The site has been growing, winter is coming and the kids are being kids, All of these things have added up to a lot of long days and restless nights. Not to fret though, lots of progress is being made!

There are a few big projects in the works including a new video series on how to build your own custom bathroom vanity. I will begin posting this series as soon as I . . . teach myself how to build a a custom bathroom vanity. For anyone who is new to this site, I am not an expert in any of the things I show videos of on this website. I’m just a dad with three kids, two boys and a wife . . . and a house that needs constant repair and upgrades.

I create my videos after lots of trial and error, to share with the you - my loyal viewers who found my site in the cracks of the intraweb, so that you can learn from my mistakes and also share some of your tips with me! (I could really use some of those!)

Now onto the the main reason of this post which is to announce the new website transfer and design. The old SWBAH website was a WordPress Site which to be honest worked well for a while, but then I began forgetting things like the password and not really updating it. It was also limited in some of the things I wanted to do like adding download files of plans and maybe even a forum in the future. So after several weeks of work, I’ve finally managed to migrate the old site along with most of its content over to SquareSpace.

So far so good - but if you experience any issue be sure to leave a comment and let me know!