Boomerang Dave's Boomerang Journal

It was a dark and stormy night....... no, that's not it........
 

I just couldn't take being cooped up inside and not making boomerangs. Sunday I tried to do something about that. I headed to the shop despite the temperatures hovering just above freezing. I really wanted to check out the bandsaw blades I recently purchased on ebay. If you have been reading my journal, then you know of my troubles with bandsaw blades. Well, I had found some Olsen blades on ebay at around $10 per blade. That is much less than the $20 Woodcraft charges. I was pretty sure these blades would fit, but wanted to make sure.
 

I took one of the 1/8 inch 14 TPI blade on the saw and grabbed a piece of 3/16 inch polycarbonate that I traced out some shapes on. I cut out 8 before I got too cold to work. Recently some kids in the neighborhood broke some windows in the garage. It's been too cold to do anything about them, and they are at a tough place to get too. Yesterdays winds (up to 40mph) were blowing through the windows and out the door, which I cannot close from the inside. I must say that I was quite cold and very quickly. I gave up and headed inside to thaw.

After sufficiently warming up, I decided to give it another try. I looked out the windows and see it is now snowing and blowing like crazy. I held off a bit and it stopped snowing so I donned my coat and headed to the garage. This time I was going to sand some booms. I knew I had to change the belt on the sander but thought maybe I could get a few more booms out of the old one. I flipped the switch on the sanded and the motor hummed, but nothing happened. Hmm, maybe old belt is too tight? I loosen the belt and same thing happens. Next I take the belt off and also start to take apart the sander. I notice some stuff building up inside the disk sander cover so clean that all out. I still can't get it to run. The motor hums but doesn't turn. If I leave it on too long, then it trips the breaker. I don't know what is wrong, but now I am too cold to play with it anymore so give up. This is a pretty hard blow to take because my belt sander is the workhorse and without it I am dead in the water.
 
I went back in the house to warm up. I had a few boomerangs ready to paint so started working on two. I put the base color on a reversible boomerang and two colors on another boomerang I plan to do sponge and dot artwork on. That I about all I can do with the sander broke, and the temperatures below freezing. Today the temperature is at 9F and the wind chill is -10F. If I don't have to go outside, I won't.
 

Dave
 
Photo: A Snake, shape by Alberto Sabal, painted in sponge and dot art by me. Boomerang is 22 inches across.