Pallet Wood Knife Handle

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As you may already know, I enjoy using pallet wood on my projects. So when a friend gave me a few kitchen knives with broken handles, I figured that I’d try making a handle out of pallet wood.

The handles were made out of very inferior plastic, which had splintered and broken off. These knives were likely offered for sale on an American television commercial – “Order these Ginsu carving knives now, and receive a bamboo steamer as a free gift.” I wonder if she has the bamboo steamer?

Anyway, I was able to salvage one handle as a pattern. I traced the plastic handle onto the pallet wood.

Some pallets are made of hard woods, probably walnut or oak. I chose a piece that seemed fairly hard. I cut out two handles and then cut each one down the middle.

Here you can see one of the original black plastic handles.

I drilled holes to attach the handles to the blade, then lightly sanded each piece and coated with Varathane,

I attached the handles using small screws. Unfortunately, when drilling a hole to countersink the nut, I chipped the wood.

No worries, this was my first attempt and is now a resident in my fishing tackle box.

A fun project reusing two items that would likely have found their way into a landfill.

Recycle and Reuse!

Garden Tank Set Up

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Spring is really just around the corner, so it’s time to get your garden prepared. Last year I set up this garden tank for veggies. I’ll show you what I did.

I purchased a large stock tank. They were on sale for $99.00.

I positioned and leveled six left over blocks to place the tank on.

I had to place the tank on the blocks a couple of times to ensure I really did get it level.

I drilled 1″ holes throughout the bottom of the tank to ensure that there would be proper drainage. I purchased the metal drill bit at the same time as the stock tank.

I placed a 2″ layer of gravel on the bottom, followed by the soil. I selected a soil mix specifically for veggie gardens. It took less than a 1/4 yard of soil. Keep the soil about 2″ below the top of the tank.

Here I have butter lettuce planted and added flexible tubing. This enables you to easily cover the garden on frosty nights or on those hot summer days. Looks a little like a covered wagon. I can hear John Wayne now, “Get the garden tanks in a circle, the deer are commin’.”

Here’s the garden in late summer. I grew peppers and tomatoes after the butter lettuce harvest. Depending on the season, you can really grow any type of veggie in the tank that you’d like.

A simple set up for “good eats” all year long!