Back in 2019 I made a small stool to use while woodworking, which has been with me through three different workshops so far. It’s seen better days and is now a little worse for wear, so time to give it a clean up and a re-finish!
My small shop stool has been an incredibly useful piece of shop furniture over the last few years, since I made it over six years ago. It was a basic build with minimal tools and is a pretty chunky thing, with a simple construction connecting the legs and centre brace to the top. And that has been perfect for my needs, be that using it as a step stool to reach things stored higher up in the workshop, for sitting on to make working on low projects more comfortable, or simply as a footrest while sitting on other furniture carving or hand sanding work pieces for long periods of time.
I gave the stool an all over sand with my random orbit sander to remove the built up mud, glue and paint from the past few years. I sanded up to 120 grit to leave a smooth finish and make the seat surface comfy to sit on and to touch to move around the workshop.
I rounded over the edges slightly to minimise any tear out and to make it more comfortable to grab in a hurry. I did the same on all edges, as I tend to use my work boots to move the stool around on the concrete floor of the workshop, which has caused small chip outs along the bottom edges of the legs.
Once sanding was completed, I applied some of the darker outdoor wood stain I had left over from previous projects (eg. my Anvil stand for metalworking), so as to give the surface some more protection for the many future uses.
A quick upgrade to a previously-completed project, which will hopefully give it a new lease of life and make sure it remains usable for many more years to come! 🔨
The Woodworking Scientist 