The Woodshop Shed

Lost a Month

Furnished content.
(from WoodNet.net)


On July 1st I had a total knee replacement. For anyone who's had one, you know the drill. For everyone else, let's just say the first week or two aren't much fun. The pain wasn't that bad, really, but the lack of mobility because of swelling and limited flexibility madegetting around a real challenge. You spend most of the day with an ice machine hooked up to a pad around your knee, go to rehab, and otherwise don't do much of anything. For me, that's torture.Two weeks with a walker, a week with a cane, and then I was back to walking on my own.My surgeon's PA says I'm ahead of schedule, but there's still a long way to go so I keep at it doing exercises and walking.

I didn't go down into my shop for 3 weeks but started doing light stuff on my CNC after that. If you remember the clock I designed and built, I finally figured out a completely silent motor drive to lift the weight back up. It's pretty spooky to watch the weight rise up with absolutely no sound. I learned a lot about stepper motors, stepper drivers, and Arduino controllers to do that. It's week 5 now and I'm starting on a new clock, this one:


This one was designed by an English guy who I bought the drawings from. I love how the twin pendulums rock back and forth. Like my clock, it uses a grasshopper escapement, too, so it will be quiet while running which my wife will appreciate. I'm making veneer and gluing it into the plywood panels I'll need to build it.

It feels good to be back in the shop. It feels really good to have a pain free knee. I hope you're all having a good summer. Mine's looking a lot better now.

John

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