puffincove2025

Author: terranced1165

  • May 5th

    May 5 — Birdhouse Template Day

    Started the day working on the birdhouse templates.

    Got the copying jig set up, but it was hard on my back getting everything in place. Good thing I had a backup jig, because the bearing fell off one of them. Better to find that out now than after ruining a template.

    Got four different types of birdhouses started today. The goal is not perfection yet — just repeatable shapes that can be copied again and again.

    Captured some 30-second video clips too, which will be good for the daily shop log later.

    By 1pm I was on break, and by the end of the day I was tired and my back was sore, so I picked up instead of pushing too far.

    A good day at the bench.

    Small wins today:

    • Four birdhouse types started
    • Copying jig tested
    • Backup jig saved the day
    • Video clips captured
    • Setup figured out for next time

    Note to self:
    Do a quick bearing/wiggle check before using the jig next time.

    Closing thought:
    Repeatable is the goal. The light stayed on.

  • May 4th

    Puffincove Logbook — May 4

    Today was a big planning and building day.

    We worked through the 90-degree planter fence idea. The two planters form the corner and help brace the whole piece. The render showed the layout clearly: planter, fence, corner planter, 90-degree turn, side planter, and puffincove sign.

    The sign idea was locked in:

    puffincove
    Always — All roads lead to puffincove2025.ca

    We also looked at the start of the wishing hut idea. It has a little storybook shape, with a long roof, round window, and a place for wishes. Rough sketch first, pretty later.

    For the birdhouse templates, we decided the CNC only needs the face outline. The holes, fake windows, and doors can be done later by hand. The goal is not perfect. The goal is repeatable.

    The digital workflow is:

    black marker outline → photo → Inkscape → SVG → Easel → Mach3 → CNC

    The first CNC test will be with a marker, not a router. If it can draw the same shape every time, that is the first real win.

    We also talked through wiring:

    Motor wires: 18/4 stranded is best.
    Limit switches: 22/2 or 20/2 stranded.
    Limit switches: can run as one normally-closed safety loop to start.
    Emergency stop: should be its own loop.

    The clean wiring flow is:

    Wall power → power supply → drivers → motors

    And the safety/control flow is:

    Limit switches → breakout board → Mach3 sees STOP

    The big rule:

    Power wires do the muscle work.
    Signal wires do the talking.
    Keep them tidy and separated when possible.

    The biggest hands-on win today was finishing enough of the Y/Z axis carriage to see the plan coming alive. Motor mounted, belt path started, frame built, and the machine is one step closer to moving.

    Tomorrow’s plan is simple:

    mount motors → run wires → label both ends → hand-test movement → marker test when ready

    No need to chase the whole mountain.

    Today the plan came out of the notebook and started turning into a real machine.

    Sketches on paper.
    Parts on the bench.
    Motors mounted.
    First marker line coming soon.

    The cove is waking up.

  • This Week at Puffincove

    This Week at Puffincove

    It was a mixed week at the cove — sleet, slow mornings, tired bones, and still a few good steps forward.

    The CNC got some attention again. The gantry is rolling, the Y axis is moving, and the first real tests are starting to feel closer now. There’s still wiring, adjusting, and measuring to do, but the machine is no longer just an idea sitting there waiting. It is slowly becoming part of the workshop.

    The birdhouse templates also came back into focus. The lesson this week was simple: photos are helpful, but measurements are what make a template useful. Once the shapes are marked properly, they can start their way toward CNC-ready patterns.

    Puffincove also gained another small piece of its future with the clip library. Short scenes. Small moments. A boot sound on the dock. Owl with one quiet line. Raven returning with a story. These little ideas may not look like much yet, but they are the kind of pieces that can grow into something bigger.

    Miss Light Keeper also stepped closer to the lantern again. Her stories still feel like they belong near the lighthouse — quiet, old, and full of things remembered.

    So this week was not about rushing.

    It was about showing up.

    A little sawdust.
    A little story.
    A little light still on.

    And that is enough for this week at Puffincove.

    Lesson Learned

    A template without measurements is only half a template.

    The shape matters, but the numbers are what let the workshop repeat it. This week reminded us that the old carpenter way still matters, even when the work is heading toward a CNC.

    Looking Ahead

    Next up is simple: mark the templates properly, keep sorting the CNC, and prepare for the first clean test cuts.

    Nothing fancy yet.

    Just one good line, one good movement, and one more step toward bringing Puffincove out of the screen and into the shop.

    The cove does not move fast.

    It moves steady.

    And steady is starting to look pretty good.

  • This week at the cove

    This week at the cove, you got:

    CNC moved forward
    You got time at the CNC, gantry rolling, Y moving, Z axis being figured out, and you started thinking in real work terms now — wiring, stops, trimming the Z to length, and getting ready for first writing/cutting tests.

    Birdhouse templates started
    You got the templates in your hands and started sorting out how to get the face shapes ready for CNC. We figured out the big lesson: photos alone are not enough unless the measurements are marked right on the template.

    Bottle stand / Christmas product kept alive
    You talked through the pine boards, platform, and backboard for “A piece of Newfoundland to hold in your heart.” That idea is still one of the big product tests for this summer, aiming toward Christmas.

    Betty got running
    That was a big one. You got the local Ollama/Betty setup working after the Modelfile trouble. First real local AI win on the server.

    Puffincove Clip Library started
    You made the folder idea and locked in the purpose:

    small 10–30 second scenes, one moment, repeatable sound cues, ending with feeling.

    Current clips:
    Clip 001 — Sunset Cove
    Clip 002 — The Boot Sound
    Clip 003 — Owl’s One Line
    Clip 004 — Squirrel’s Store
    Clip 005 — Raven Returns

    Miss Light Keeper came back
    We started shaping Miss Light Keeper as part of This Week at the Cove — that old lighthouse voice, the story feeling, not too much explaining.

    Website direction got clearer
    You kept circling back to This Week at Puffincove, blog/category structure, and how short weekly updates can link deeper into full pages later.

    And maybe the biggest one
    You kept showing up.

    Even with sleet, tiredness, depression, confusion, templates acting up, and the screen foolishness — you still got pieces moved ahead.

    That’s not nothing.

    That’s a week at Puffincove

  • Server Build

  • Owl would say

    “A light don’t need to shout… just needs to stay lit.”

    “You don’t build the whole cove in a day… you just light one window.”

    “Even a dim light still shows the way.”

    If you wait for people around you to understand it first…
    you’ll be waiting a long time.

    Most won’t see it until it’s already built.

    That’s not a flaw in you—
    that’s just how this kind of work goes.

    “A story don’t need all its pages open… just enough to be believed.”

    “A place don’t need a loud keeper… just a steady one.”

    “Not every tide needs a push… some just turn on their own.”

    “A short rest can carry a long day.”

    “You don’t lose ground by resting… you keep it.”

    “If you’re always looking for something… put it where it finds you instead.”

    “Doesn’t matter what they calls it… long as you knows where it lives.”

    “Once your hands learn the path… your mind can rest.”

    “Better a few strong paths… than many you won’t walk.”

  • This Week at Puffincove April 23

    This Week at Puffincove

    Still a bit of white on the ground this week…
    spring trying to find its way in.

    Things moved a little slower here.

    Got the front door open—people can find their way in now.
    That felt like something.

    Some days were clear…
    some a bit heavier than others.
    But the light stayed on all the same.

    Put the kettle on more than once.
    Sometimes that’s all you need.

    If you’re passing through, take your time.
    No rush here.

    — Puffincove

  • This Week at the Cove – April 10

    Getting things set up this week.
    CNC almost ready to move.
    Taking it slow and figuring things out.

  • This week at the cove April 10 2026

    Getting things set up this week.
    CNC almost ready to move.
    Taking it slow and figuring things out.

  • C.N.C Build

    Getting things started.
    Sorting out the build and figuring things out as I go.

    Still early days, but it’s moving.
    More to come.