You can do it...

The wonderful thing about being semi-retired is the opportunity to spend the free time doing things at a leisurely pace. No time constraints, no pressure and for sure, no high expectations. Doing things just because you want to try and that it doesn't matter if it doesn't work out.

I consider myself a DIY enthusiast. Not really a skilled craftsman but an amateur handyman who can tackle the minor repairs that often need to be taken care of at home. Basic stuff such as plumbing works, install light fittings, replace faulty locksets and the like. The extent of what I am able to do is limited by the tools that I have, which, while not much, is more than sufficient to cover the routine maintenance work. Until recently, the only power tools that I own are a used corded drill and a jigsaw. The drill was given to me by my late brother many years ago. Also included were a few of the most common and necessary drill bits. I've used it many times for drilling into brickwork walls or timber posts. Works fine and there have been no problems so far.

But such a tool is not suitable for screw fixing work such as in the assembly of flat-packed furniture. Not really a necessity because a manual screwdriver does the job just fine but then, where's the fun? Any serious DIYer worth his salt should have a few power tools in his arsenal. The first tool that most skilled woodworkers or handymen suggest getting is the cordless drill driver. I had been longing to buy such a tool for quite some time. There are so many in the market and the cheap no-brand ones from China can be got for less than RM200. Many times I have been tempted to buy such an unbranded drill, the reason being that I'm only to use it occasionally, hence an inexpensive one would do just fine. However, after watching some Youtube videos by seasoned DIYers, I followed their advice and opted for the established makes. 

And so, two weeks ago I took the plunge and placed an order for a Black + Decker 18V cordless drill driver from a dealer on Shopee. I chose the most basic package available; single battery plus charger (don't see the need for spare batteries as I won't be doing continuous drill driving work), no drill bits (I already have some) and without dedicated casing (an old toolbox I have would do fine for now). I went for the B+D brand because the corded drill that I have is a B+D and that has been very reliable so far. Black + Decker is an American brand but like most other manufacturers nowadays, assemble their products in China.

Delivery from the dealer was quite fast. The package arrived within 5 days of ordering.

The first task I put the drill to use was in the repair work to an old folding banquet table that I bought in 2011. I use the table for my bonsai gardening hobby (pruning and re-potting). The original tabletop made out of fibreboard has rotted and I replaced it with 12mm thick plywood which was also bought online. The plywood board is sold pre-cut to the dimensions of 600mm wide by 1200mm long (or 2ft x 4ft in old-school terms) and this is exactly the size of the existing tabletop. No further cutting is required except that I rounded off the four corners for a neater look. For this, my jigsaw came in handy.

Other additional works that I did was to cover the plywood top with wallpaper (which was already on hand from a botched attempt to re-coat an old refrigerator) and to spray paint the table legs (also from cans already on hand). All in all, I like the look of the finished product. Not sure how long this plywood top will last but hey, I now have the tools and experience to make another one if so required. No satisfaction like do-it-yourself.

Have gun, will DIY

Old banquet table set to be given a new life

The blue table legs because that's the leftover paint
my son used to spray his bicycle