OldTools Archive

Recent Bios FAQ

165942 "John & Carol Maki" <JNCL2@c...> 2006‑12‑22 Bio (with improved photo link)
Greetings to all,

As a new Galoot, I am submitting my bio...

I am a 66 year old Galoot, retired 11 years ago from 3M Company in St.
Paul, Minnesota.  Although my education is in electrical engineering,
most of my career was in the management of design engineering or product
development functions.  Very soon after retiring SWMBO and I moved to
the Olympic Peninsula of Washington, which has since been our happy
home!

I have always been a "hands-on" kind of Galoot, with two afflictions.
First (like many on this board) I am an admitted tool-aholic!  If it has
a sharp edge or a motor, I have to have one!  Second, I love detailed,
miniature things. beginning with scale model planes, later to the
collection of miniature cameras, with a short stop at scale steam
engines, and then onto scale models of classic wood working tools.

When I retired I wanted to learn how to operate a metal lathe and a mill
("Hi, my name is John and I'm a Tool-aholic").  I planned to build steam
engines but soon found that they required lots of time to complete,
which began to stretch my attention span.  I also found that completing
an engine was not enough, because then you then needed to build a
boiler, and then some kind of model which would be powered by the
engine.  It was beginning to look like an arctic winter night.

Somewhere back then I ran across an article on Paul Hamler, and his
miniature tools.  The light came on!  I didn't have enough space to hold
a collection of large tools and, further, I didn't have the cash to buy
the exotic tools that I found fascinating in the first place.
Therefore, I decided to build my own antique classic tools, but in a
small and manageable scale.  I set my target at 1/3 scale, with the
materials of choice being ebony, cocobolo, brass, nickel/silver and
soft-steel (all items that machine nicely).

It was all soooo right!  I could own a collection of "miniature"
woodworking "tools" which were made using a small "lathe and mill" (so 
I'm
a Normie!) with a material cost was almost "nothing"!  Further, I could
produce a finished miniature in usually less than 40 hours (which has
proven to be my personal attention span).

During the past six years I have created about 40 different tools, all
for my own enjoyment.  In the process I have met some great
people.including an opportunity to spend face-to-face time with the man
who started me down the road, Paul Hamler.

Although I am not and will never be a fine machinist, learning to use a
mill and a metal lathe has also forced me to develop a whole new thought
process.  I have learned how important it is to carefully design the
tool and plan the entire machining operation before making the very
first cut!

I have concluded my bio with an address to my photo file which displays
most of my miniatures.  About 1/3 of the tools were copied exactly from
their full-size fathers.  I have found I can now "justify" buying a good
original example of a tool which will provide dimensions and
construction details.  When I'm through with the copy, I have been able
to re-sell the original with little or no lose of money.  The rest of my
tools are based upon photographs from books, auctions, or museums.  This
approach is much more difficult since the photos are often taken at some
odd angle which defies accurate scaling.  Further, I have not yet found
a way to get inside a photo to see how the darned thing went together!

I have enjoyed exchanges with Scott Grandstaff for several years, and
look forward to meeting other Galoots in the future.

Happy Holidays to All!

John Maki

Port Ludlow, WA

"Minitool"

Photos at:    http://www.flickr.com/gp/13976390@N.../9kC6S3

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