Life, Liberty and DIY

BOW Products Feather Board Probably Your Best Choice

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Have you ever cut your finger on a table saw? I have, it isn’t the funnest of activities.

If you want to hear more about me putting a finger in the table-saw listen here: My tablesaw sent me to the emergency room

With that in mind the I think the Bow Products Featherboard is one of the best on the market, and the one you should buy. Here is why.

How The Feather Board Prevents Cut Fingers

One of the problems that comes up with cutting on the table saw is if you get distracted, you can lose track of where your hands are. You don’t have to always be distracted, you can also just be super new and trying to think of everything at one time. (points at self)

Giving a physical barrier for your fingers to touch is a great way to help you keep track of where those fingers are.

As an example as you are feeding long boards through the saw. Your left hand is generally holding on to the board to keep it steady while on the table. The question is how far forward do you move that hand before taking it away?

Do you know how far you have pushed that hand forward?

Some people hook a thumb at the edge of the table to so they keep it there.

Well the feather board can allow you to touch something with your fingers giving you feedback to stop moving your hand. That alone makes a feather board super important in my opinion.

Helps Prevent Kickback

Most feather boards just help to keep wood pressure against the fence. However, the bow products board has a rigid foam with teeth. These teeth will help to grip on to the wood if the saw tries to kickback on you.

It does this by being slightly flexible, then when the board moves backwards it causes the teeth to protrude more than normal putting extra pressure against the fence.

Multi-tool

I think one of the final, great, things about this feather board is you can use it on multiple types of tools. So it isn’t just limited to the table saw.

If you get the double stack option you can use take them apart and use them as 2 separate ones. If you stack them together you can use it with taller stock on various tools.

There is also a t-track option if you have t-tracks on your router table, or assembly table.

Cons

I have talked pretty extensively about the pros, and by far there are a lot of pros. Enough to make this an easy buy.

However, you should know about the cons.

  1. I think the biggest frustration is since the foam board is so big you can’t use too wide of a board so it really only works for smaller cut offs on the side opposite the fence. Now most of the time this is not a big deal at all, but on occasion it can be annoying.
  2. The parts that go into the miter slot can be tough to actually push into the slots, sometimes. I don’t really understand why. At times they just slide right in at others I have to coerce them. (that said the new version has a bit of a different way so this cold be fixed)

That is really about it.

Conclusion

If you don’t have a feather board totally buy the Bow products featherboard. It is well worth the money. If it is possible to use it, then I do. I am also going to make sure when I build a router table, I can definitely use these feather boards with it.

Finally they have a product for the bandsaw to re-saw wood. I like this one so much I am going to buy it to test out and use.

Carhartt Quilt Lined Duck Shell Coat

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This quilt lined Carhartt coat single handedly changed my views on winter clothing.

I used to think there was no hope staying warm in the winter with clothing alone. I have done a lot of winter camping, and just stuff outside in the winter. However, I was always cold unless I was working, or hiking, or just constantly moving.

I would be warm, sometimes, in a low degree rated sleeping bag. I just never could stay warm.

Why I Got the Coat

To be honest I never really did a lot of research into winter clothing because I had never successfully been warm in winter, and for some reason I just accepted it would never happen.

A couple of years ago we got chickens and I was going to have to go out everyday no matter the weather and do chores. I decided I needed to figure out how to stay warm. Realistically, I wasn’t going to do the chores if I couldn’t be mildly comfortable. That would not be fair to the chickens.

The Coat

I started looking around at fellow farmers, and homesteaders in my area. Also those same people in colder climates. Most of them wore a Carhartt coat, so I figured they have to know something I don’t.

So I set out to buy a Carhartt coat with absolutely no knowledge of what I was doing, and I bought the wrong one.

The company I worked for offered branded Carhartt coats at a discount if you bought 5, it was mostly meant for sales staff.

I rounded up the people, and we bought 5. Only these were jackets not actual coats. I almost swore off Carhartt coats then and there.

However, my wife convinced me to try one last time. We went to atwoods, and I tried on coats. They were much different than the jacket I owned. They were thick, heavy duty, tough, and super warm. I even started sweating in the store.

It was glorious, but I didn’t buy just yet.

The Purchase

I actually, out of curiosity while my wife was looking at the clearance rack, scanned the coat with the amazon app. On amazon for that day I could buy that coat for $30 off, so… I did. Maybe I shouldn’t have, but it was $30 off.

The Coat is Amazing

For the last two years I have used this coat extensively in all kinds of weather. Here are my favorite reasons I like it

Pros

  1. It actually blocks wind, never experienced that in clothing even when they claim it.
  2. Sheds water for a long time before it starts to soak in. Usually plenty of time to finish the task I am on.
  3. Super warm just standing around down into the 30’s, and down into the 10’s if I am working. With a t-shirt or long sleeve t.
  4. Resistant to tears, I don’t know how many times I have nicked this thing against branches, wood, and other things. No tears.

Cons

  1. The hood. The only con I have is the hood, and it really isn’t one. I don’t like hoods as I wear full brim hats, a lot, so the fact it is there I don’t like. However, the coats without them I didn’t like as much so…

If you are on the fence about buying one, definitely do it. It is totally worth the money. I am so on-board with this coat I will buy one full price if I need to once this one wears out. That said I don’t know when/if it will wear out. It still feels, almost, new and is a couple years old.

After this purchase I have put more time an energy into finding good winter clothes instead of assuming they will all be bad. So, if you are in the same boat I was. Don’t give up.

Maglite 3-Cell D Battery is The Only Homestead Flashlight You Need

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LED plus Maglite is an instant win because you know it means quality. That is why I recommend the Maglite LED 3-Cell D Battery.

I have been around Maglites for years, and owned and used several different types. Maglite is, if not the best, one of the best flashlight companies around, period.

LEDs have also been the best lights, pretty much, since they were invented by GE. I have loved LEDs as general lights since before the compact fluorescent craze set them back several years. LED lights are stronger, lighter, produces less heat, lasts longer, and are safer for you and the environment than any other type of light.

So when I saw there were LED Maglites, I put away my old ones and immediately ordered them. I heard at one point these were not great, but have been fixed in recent years. I only learned about them a couple of years ago, I was still happily using the old incandescent lights.

Which Maglite should I buy?

I think the answer is easily the D-Cell sized Maglites. Preferably the 3 D-Cell.

My reasoning is kind of simplistic. It is a great form factor for most hands to hold on to. It is has a little heft to it so you aren’t swinging it around everywhere as your hands twitch so it forces you to be specific about what you do.

The D-Cell sized lights are also super durable, and with the amount of power they store lasts a LONG time. Also if you need to use that durability for other things, they will do that too.

Plus one of the most important things is the lights are super bright. I can shine it on my neighbors house 300 feet away and see what is happening in their yard. This is great when checking for predators at night.

I just wish they made a 6-Cell version of these.

How many flashlights to buy?

At least 1.

I also try to have one at each exit in my house, and I have these D-Cell Maglite Mounting Brackets for quick access to a lite on the door I am heading out.

I also recommend one for each vehicle, but I haven’t found a good way I like to secure it inside the car. So I keep removing them, and they don’t make it back for a long time.

Conclusion

To be honest it is crazy how often you use a flashlight, especially in the winter, that once I started having one on hand most of the time I wondered what I ever did before.

So to wrap it up I recommend the Maglite LED 3-Cell D Battery for the light, and to mount the light. I recommend D-Cell Maglite Mounting Brackets