Fly Fishing on Suwanee Creek

Evenin' folks,
 I did a little fishing in Suwanee Creek on Sunday morning. It was a gorgeous morning to be in the stream. It's really starting to feel like autumn here in north Georgia, my favorite time of the year. I didn't catch anything this time out, probably a result of higher than usual water due to recent rain, but it certainly does my disposition some good just getting into the woods. It is fascinating the amount of wildlife to be seen when you consider that this stretch of Suwanee Creek runs between a subdivision and an industrial park.
  I decided to try my hand at filming myself fishing, the quality is not the best from the iPhone, but I thought it turned out reasonably well. I'd like to share the result of the experiment with you here. I'll try to get some better footage next time.
  Until then, Tight Lines and Happy Fishing!
          Nick

Finally back on YouTube

Evenin' Folks,
  I was finally able to make a new video for YouTube tonight. I just thought I'd take a few minutes to thank some folks, introduce some new projects I have going and give a brief explanation for my absence.
  I hope you're all doing well,
    Tight Lines and Happy Fishing,
      -Nick

How To: Kayak {aka: saw} Horses

 Evenin' Folks,

  If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+ or Pinterest you know that I posted a picture a couple weeks ago of my kayak up on sawhorses.  I mainly wanted to just keep the kayak up off the concrete floor when it's stored in the garage, but sawhorses are a really handy thing to have around the house.  I really enjoy projects around the house and I'm regaining an interest in woodworking for a creative outlet, so sawhorses seemed like an excellent all around project.  I searched the woodworking videos on YouTube and finally settled on a design by Steve Ramsey at Wood Working for Mere Mortals.  I changed his design slightly by moving the leg brace higher, thinking that the sawhorses would stack when not in use. 

  The one part of the project I had the most trouble wrapping my head around was how to determine a good height for the horses.  The whole "not too low, but not too high" cycle kept spinning through my head.  You can make the horses any height you choose.  I decided to go the way of economics, I wanted to get three legs out of each eight foot 2x4 and 96"/3=32" so that's what I cut the legs to.  The height just happened to work out perfectly.  

  I tried to hit the high points of the steps to making these sawhorses, once you figure out how the angles go together it all falls into place.  If you need more detail check out Steve Ramsey's video here. 

I used the hand-me-down miter saw my Dad gave me to make all my cuts.

 

Good shop help can be hard to find. Luckily I have the ever present and loyal Jelly Roll to help with my projects. Here she's demonstrating the origin of her nickname.

There are only two angles to cut, 22.5* for all the feet, the cross braces and half the tops, and 45* for the rest of the tops. 

I drilled pilot holes to prevent splits and to make running the screws in upside down and one handed a little bit easier.

 

Glue and screw the tops together. I used Titebond and 2" drywall screws. 

 

Four leg assemblies to make two sawhorses.  I can't wait to get the kayak off the floor!

The orientation for the cross brace. 

 

I measured up from a straight edge to locate and level the braces. I used glue and screws to attach, but I didn't drill pilot holes first.  No worry of splitting in the middle of the board.

My completed kayak horses. Great for projects around the house, too!

All the tools I used for this simple project. 

The kayak finally up off the floor. Now it seems a bit safer and its easier to work on and add accessories.  I might add a cross brace between the legs later, just to make sure it won't wrack.