Picture Frame

 Working backward, the needle point finished and framed.

  The frame is about 20 inches by 14 inches and 2 inches wide, cedar with two coats of shellac and one of varnish. I cut the mitered corners and used my KREG Klamp Table to glue the frame together.  Once the glue set (over night) I drilled each corner and drove a 1/8 dowel two inches in to reinforce the joint.  The dowel is not invisible.  Once the wood is sanded and finished the tiny spot of contrasting wood is unobtrusive. 

  

  Making picture frames and small boxes sometimes requires the joining edges to be more refined then they come off the saw so a Shooting Board is the hand tool solution.  Traditionally a shooting board is used with a plane, mine also works as a sanding jig.  The block in the channel is dead square and has sand paper glued to its face.

  Making this frame of soft wood I needed to refine the 45 Degree faces. I didn't have a  fixture for this shooting/sanding board so I improvised, yesterday.

An example using an off cut.

  The head of my combination square gave me the support and angle that I needed to finish sand the angled faces. Today I made a fixture to have on hand next time.

I see I have to make a new board pretty soon,
 this one is getting well used.

there is a dado cut into the
 underside for stability.

  Now I can sand or plane both 90 Degree and 45 Degree ends on this shooting board.

  

  The jigs in my shop are red (or orange). I see I have to make a new board pretty soon, this one is get well used.

  cheers, ianw

The Three Steps in Making Anything - Step One

   At this moment I have two woodworking projects on the go and two D.I.Y. home owner projects on the go and I am planning some baking for tomorrow. Doing all five of these tasks requires the same basic steps/stages.  As I was working on a planter for the back deck and a canoe paddle for my Grand daughter I had the 3 Step Inspiration.

 This blog is about STEP ONE:

 Step one is the step where many projects/tasks go irretrievably wrong. 

Step One is: material preparation.  

  In the woodworking shop material preparation is were the lumber is dressed, squared and cut to size. If are not careful and accurate or you trust to the lumber yard's thicknesses you can find yourself in trouble later. The First Step/stage also is where you look for flaws in the wood, like cracks, loose knots or poor colour.

  When baking Step One is also material preparation. A baker gathers together flour, sugar, salt, oil, leavening agent and other ingredients like herbs, fruit or candy. These ingredients are measured out as dry or wet ingredients ready to be assembled in Stage Two. This is where a careful inventory is made to ensure that nothing gets left out.  

 To make my planter I needed cedar boards that were 8 inches wide. To get those boards involved edge gluing two boards together. Since I was using 5/8 fence boards I decided to cut matching rabbets on my boards and then edge glue them with waterproof glue. 

you can also see the dado I cut on each panel
so it wood fit the stopped dado in the leg.

  This project's preparation meant that I had to begin the project one day and wait for the glue to dry overnight.  I could have rushed,glue can dry pretty quickly but it is a good idea to give the glue time to set and fully cure. Once the glue was cured I jointed one edge and cut the cedar to length. 

 This planter has oak legs with dadoes into which the cedar panels slide.  The oak needed to be squared and the dadoes cut using a straight bit on my router table.

the oak is reclaimed, so old and hard a stone.
I cut the dadoes by making four passes to cut 3/8 inch deep

  To successfully complete Step One you need to have accurate measuring tools and sharp cutting tools. For me to get materials ready for the planter I used a table saw, a sliding mitre saw, a router table and a 3/8 dado bit, as well as a 1/2 straight bit. Not to mention rulers, pencils, squares, a centre finding jig and a depth setting jig

   I usually use a ruler instead of a tape when practical, I strongly suggest all shops need a good quality 28-24 inch ruler with easily read markings. Also of course you need a Try Square,or a good quality Combination Square. A Carpenter's Square is a must for larger projects using sheet goods. What ever you do, keep one square as you would the holy grail, you must have One Square to rule them all. (especially carpenter's squares, they can become untrue really easily)

  I use a marking knife, which I made while on a two day blacksmith workshop sometimes, but find that a sharp pencil is as accurate as my eyes most of the time. 

   Once I got the four cedar panels cut to size and the oak legs' stopped dadoes cut I did some initial sanding, to knock the sharp edges off and was ready to move onto Step Two.

  Tomorrow- Step Two

Finally the TOOL TOTE

   I have worked away on the workshop tool tote for a while and ended up using a pre-existing box for part it.  I am too cheap to throw out usable materials, recycling is part of my nature. I clamped the upper portion together from four separate pieces of pine and the glued it to the existing box. Cutting the slots in two pieces of wood then gluing the pieces together is quicker and easier than cutting mortises, in my opinion.

Clamped together

  The tool tote, loaded.

   

    I decided what I would put measuring/layout tools in this small tool box ( 5 1/2 by 11 foot print). I have already used this set up in my shop, I wish I had done this years ago.  Now as I work the squares, pencils, rulers etc. do not end up laying on my bench mixed in with the wood pieces.

  My design has space in the front that is open with a small rail along the edge.  This way as well as tools that are slotted in place there is room for a tape measure and loose pencils. 

  Sharing space with my layout tools is my go-to shop knife, chisel and Dua-Grit rasp. After considerable thought I decided that these were the tools that I reached for most often in the early stages of a project and so they were the ones that got lost amid the pieces of wood or knocked off the bench as I rough cut materials.  Once all the pieces of a project are cut to size this tote will move out of the way and stage two begin.  The only tools from this collection that will be needed at assembly time are the two squares.

on my work table in my shop

  In the Tote I have a Large Combination Square, a Small Adjustable Square and a Stop Rule.  I can now set three dimensions and leave them set during layout. Should I need a fourth set measurement I have a KREG Multi Mark  available though it lives beside my table saw most of the time.  I like to set repeated measurements once and then use that same setting every time, I feel that reduces the chances of small errors creeping into the layout.  It is the same reason that you should use one tape measure for the entire project.

  Another tool I have come to really like for layout are Compasses or Dividers.  They make repeated measurement like laying out lines for slots that need to be routed super easy. 

  Having made a tote for my bathroom gear, and now my layout tools I think it is time for me to make a tool box for my various glues and clamps.  Having the appropriate tools at hand does makes the task go smoothly with less time lost looking for things that have been mislaid.  As I read other blogs I get the impression that for some wood workers the tool belt serves the purpose of a tote.  I won't get involved in construction without a tool belt, but don't like wearing one around the shop, hence the mini tool boxes.

  cheers, ianw  

  

Seventh Day of Christmas

   

clearly fowl are a big part of the festive season,
 is there are line about One Turkey Roasting??

Last September I wrote about this little square and it comes around again for Christmas.  This is one of those that  every wood worker would love to have, and that many of us are too cheap top buy for ourselves.   We will make due, mostly because we have a whole bunch of other squares, all of which are too large for the jobs this tools does so very, very well.

4 inch Square by Starrett Co.

   The little square has really come into its own in the last couple of months.  I listed small Squares last August and talked briefly about their uses.

  I went on to say:

f: 4in. sliding square.  I saved this wee square from death by rust.  I found it in the basement of our old house and it was totally a rusted mess, being a sucker for the underdog I set about cleaning it up and found my effort well served.

   I cleaned this square up so long ago that I didn't know what L.S.S. Co. meant and so was not aware of just how good a tool this was.  Why was it a rusted mess?  Damp basement workshop. ( jump to the blog on wire brushes, steel and brass) 

   In the last blog I didn't  go into much detail about how I use it and so I thought I would provide a few more details. 

   Mine is a very old version of the Starrett 13 A Double Square, which only has one blade left and has remained very accurate.  

   Since it is very square I use it often when I make little boxes.  

the complete square

   I use this square for making sure that the drill press table is perfectly aligned. (Something that you should check every time you move the table about, I learned this the hard way).

  Another use for this wee square is checking the 90 degree angle on my jointer fence.  I slide the fence forth and back to try and use the entire blade and it is always a good idea to check that it has tighten down square again. 

  This square is also good as a depth stop when setting router bits and table saw blades.  I find that since it is only 4 inches long it does not tip over easily.  

   Last but not least, it is a tidy little lay out tool when working on small projects.  Matching the size of the tool to the job often makes for easier working conditions.

  At the risk of repeating myself, good tools, the right tools and proper planning can make work a joy.

Another Use for your Starrett Combination Square

  Read down to the bottom of Mr. Schwarz' latest blog entry.  Not only does he have a good idea for a bench light but....he also has another use for the Starrett square, one that I would have never imagined. 

L.S.S. Co. - Four Inch Combination Square

4 inch Square by Starrett Co.

   The little square has really come into its own in the last couple of months.  I listed small Squares last August and talked briefly about their uses.

  I went on to say:

f: 4in. sliding square.  I saved this wee square from death by rust.  I found it in the basement of our old house and it was totally a rusted mess, being a sucker for the underdog I set about cleaning it up and found my effort well served.

   I cleaned this square up so long ago that I didn't know what L.S.S. Co. meant and so was not aware of just how good a tool this was.  Why was it a rusted mess?  Damp basement workshop.

   In the last blog I didn't  go into much detail about how I use it and so I thought I would provide a few more details. 

   This is a very old version of the Starrett 13B Double Square, which only has one blade left and has remained very accurate.  

   Since it is very square I use it often when I make little boxes.  

   I use this square for making sure that the drill press table is perfectly aligned. (Something that you should check every time you move the table about, I learned this the hard way).

  Another use for this wee square is checking the 90 degree angle on my jointer fence.  I slide the fence forth and back to try and use the entire blade and it is always a good idea to check that it has tighten down square again. 

  This square is also good as a depth stop when setting router bits and table saw blades.  I find that since it is only 4 inches long it does not tip over easily.  

   Last but not least, it is a tidy little lay out tool when working on small projects.  Matching the size of the tool to the job often makes for easier working conditions.

  At the risk of repeating myself, good tools, the right tools and proper planning can make work a joy.

Combination Square

A Starrett Sponsored Video

Starrett Combination Square 2 Pc 6-inch Set C11H-6-4R

Sometimes I don't need to say anything, just don't get used to it.