The Shed, November/December 2019 issue no 87, in shops now

The November/December 2019 Issue 87 of The Shed, has a real electronics feel about it but there is also a lot here to keep all sheddies informed, entertained and well-skilled up.
Our cover story is about the goal of a Christchurch boat builder, architect, designer, sailor, Quentin Roake, to find a way to build waka in large numbers. He wants to recreate the appearance and characteristics of traditional craft in a modern version that is portable, durable, and economical to manufacture. Quentin has made it his mission to put Maori waka back on the water by marrying traditional knowledge with today’s technology

The November/December 2019 Issue 87 of The Shed, has a real electronics feel about it but there is also a lot here to keep all sheddies informed and well-skilled up.

Our cover story is about the goal of a Christchurch boat builder, architect, designer, sailor, Quentin Roake, to find a way to build waka in large numbers. He wants to recreate the appearance and characteristics of traditional craft in a modern version that is portable, durable, and economical to manufacture. Quentin has made it his mission to put Maori waka back on the water by marrying traditional knowledge with today’s technology. His journey is a very uplifting tale.



Staying in Christchurch, two sheddies combine to build an electric skateboard that can hit speeds of 45k plus! Gavin Bath and Mark Beckett walk us through the step by step build of this pavement rocket ship.
We have Part Three in our How to weld series, this issue it’s how to TIG weld before we head off to the shed of a record breaking electric motorcycle builders, Eva Hakansson and Bill Dube. This couples’ need for speed has seen them build the record breaking KillaCycle which reached a speed of nearly 390 kph and now a new and faster beast is being constructed, the Green Envy.

This issue sees the commencement of a new series of brewing tips from Bryan Livingston of Brewers Coop fame, Part One is getting to know your hops and some great brewing tips to enhance your own brewing skills.



Coen Smit shows us how to make the humble coffee table something of a talking piece in your home and Enrico Miglino starts out on his new adventures by upcycling vintage tech items. He first completely restores them then changes or adds to their range of functions. Part One is upcycling a mid 20th century Milliampere Meter.

Ritchie Wilson reviews the excellent book EXACTLY How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World by Simon Winchester before heading to the local workshop of electronic collector and engineer, Tim Pattrick.

Murray Grimwood shares his glasshouse building knowledge in this issue’s Off the grid column and then Ian Parkes heads out to the industrial area of Penrose in Auckland to meet Grant and David Lindsay the owners of Kiwi tool making company Linbide. Many of us will have used their great wee tungsten scraper but they also make saw blades and more.
Mark Beckett has been very busy this issue and gets making some Christmas gifts on his trusty CNC router, Hugh McCulloch uses 3D printing to repair his trusty mobile landline phone and Bob Hulme gets making some fireworks just  cos… it’s that time of year.

We begin to close this issue with a visit to a very talented multi-tasker, Anna Bates. Anna lives out in the West Auckland bush where she creates unique pieces in her newly restored railway-hut shed in her back garden. Prepare here for shed envy.
As usual, Jude Woodside closes the magazine and shares with us his success and the limitations of his newly installed solar power panels that generate 3-phase power, on a good day, for his workshop shed.
To purchase a copy or to subscribe head to https://magstore.nz/

Share:

More Posts

Westland Industrial Heritage Park: From trash to treasure

The West Coast has a history as rich as it is rugged, with a past steeped in mining, logging, and dairy farming on a forest-clad strip between the mountains and the sea. Up by Hokitika airport is a sheddies’ paradise where relics from this past are being resurrected by an enthusiastic and capable band of volunteers.
“It all started back in 1981. Everything was going by train out to scrap, so we formed a club to stop it,” says Mort Cruickshank. The “we” were four young men – Spike Jones, Jim Straton, Mike Rooney and Mort. They formed the Westland Farm and Vintage Machinery Club and started salvaging old machinery that had been destined for the dump. With no premises, they kept it in their backyard sheds and met sporadically to plan the future.
Four decades on, and the Westland Industrial Heritage Park, spread over several acres up by Hokitika airport, is packed with machinery, sheds and enthusiasts. It is a hub of community activities, has a Menzshed on site and is increasingly a drawcard for tourists.

Making a gate – the blacksmith way

Joe Parkes is a blacksmith and as a youngster learned his trade the hard way. In 1958, aged 12, he was apprenticed to his grandfather and he quickly learned not to make mistakes. His giant Scots grandfather, Jack James, was a smithy of the old school. If young Joe got something wrong he had his head dunked in the half barrel of water used for cooling steel from the forge. He learned quickly.
“My grandfather, I called him Pop, was a big bugger, standing 6 ft 11 inches (1.8 metres) tall and weighing in at 20 stone (127 kg). He was a hard bastard, but he was my mentor. I once saw him pull a man through a high hedge and throw him over the top. You didn’t mess with him. If the blacksmiths got into a scrap you kept well clear.

Hot stuff in Taranaki

Hot rods – we see them rumbling round the highways and byways, big V8s burbling, immaculate finished body and paintwork and obviously someone’s pride and joy. Many people don’t realise the work that goes into customising one of these gleaming machines. Some are old cars reshaped and rebuilt, and some are made from scratch, often using the classic designs and lines of cars built in the 1920s, 30s and 40s.
In the little town of Normanby in South Taranaki there’s a workshop set up to create these beasts. We caught up with guys from three businesses in a row having smoko together. An upholstery business, a custom fabrication shop and an engineering shop. All mates who work in together in a way that can only happen in a small town.