Hand Tools

I have an office job (M&A attorney) and my principal place of employment is in town. I like being at the office; I go 4-5 times a week. But I do work from home from time to time (especially evenings and on weekends), so it’s important that my home office is both functional and cozy. […]

Things are getting closer to wrap-up with the greenhouse project, as I built the steps on the bank from the yard up to the terrace.  I will probably build a second set of steps at the other end, but we are really getting close to the point where we can say we have a first-class functioning greenhouse.  This was an “in process” image, the steps are now all done and a great addition to the endeavor.  We no longer have to trek diagonally across a steep bank that is frequently slick with dew.

A couple weeks ago I followed Mrs. Barn’s protocol and covered the entire floor with cardboard once she had settled on a configuration for the space.  This step really cuts down on weed encroachment once it is covered with a layer of mulch.

I also placed four black painted drums in the space, one in each corner.  Once I install the spigot kits near the bottom of each drum they will serve two functions.  First is to provide water to the plants since there is no hard plumbed water line, so these will have to be refilled by hose on occasion.  Second, though, is to serve as heat sinks in the winter when the black paint and water inside the drum is heated in the winter time to keep the overnight temps moderated.  At least that’s the plan.  I also may wind up putting more thermal mass in the space, such as sand-filled concrete blocks painted black to absorb solar warming.

With that all done I hauled up a truckload of mulch to cover the carboard on the floor.  It transforms the space visually and functionally as sometimes walking over layers of cardboard is a slippery proposition.

I will shortly add some benches to the covered-but-not-enclosed end of the structure where many plants will be kept as a intermediary space.

Our noodling between now and winter will be to get a handle on temperature controls for both heat and cold.  Even though the enclosed space has a shade cloth over it the temperatures on a sunny day can get pretty extreme inside, much more than our one little 12-inch fan can handle.  I’ve got another fan on order, and hope that two will do the trick.  I am not pleased and cannot recommend the one we bought, but it is here and installed and works, some of the time.

The next update from the greenhouse will focus on Mrs. Barn’s experimentation with self-irrigating planters.

Stay tuned.

 I am so thankful for those that take the time to read my keyboard diarrhea. Sylvester emailed me and attached a PDF with Toshio Odate's japanese toolbox. The one I've been searching for and gave up trying to find again. Thanx so much.

I searched for this same plan on my 4 computers and nada. Each computer brought up a different first page but none with the toolbox. I don't understand why all 4 don't or didn't all come up with the same first page.

ta da

I still plan to make this toolbox. I have only followed one plan from start to finish, a cherry wall clock I made 40 years ago. Making Toshio's toolbox will be my 2nd one.

last night

I came back to the shop after dinner and glued on the two top battens. 

nailing the bottom on

I went back and forth on this about gluing and nailing it and decided to do both. The bottom is 3/4" thick pine and I don't think just nails will be sufficient to hold it on against any weight.

sigh

This corner split when I nailed. I didn't think it would be hiccup being over an inch from the edge. I was wrong.

shoulda, woulda, didn't

I only had two more corners to predrill but I also predrilled all the others.

top

Glued and cooking. I decided on a solid wood top rather than plywood. If this top goes south, I will use plywood on round 2.

fingers crossed

I forced as much glue as I could in the split, installed the nail, and clamped it. I'm optimistic that this will stand the test of time.

two or three?

This is the bottom and I'm putting battens on it to save the bottom from getting the snot beat out of it. Went with two battens.

bottom done

I had sized the bottom so the length was dead on and the width a strong 16th proud. Flushed it up 360 with a blockplane. Nailed on the battens with nails only, no glue.

sans the top

I like this toolbox and I'm thinking about keeping it. It is a lot heavier than I initially thought it would be. It is also bigger (height wise) too. Neither one is a deal killer though as I'm sure the box will be adapted to its use somehow.

sizing the top

Worked on the width first and then I squared the ends.

dead nuts

Neither end of the top has to be dead nuts square but I made them so anyways.

hmm......

The top fits a frog hair off snug. Since it is summer and the top shouldn't expand anymore(?), I'm going to leave this as is for now and think on it. I'll decided what I want to do with it in the AM.

accidental woodworker

 When I rolled out of the rack this AM it was gray and overcast. No rain and the radar showed a line of rain clouds to the west slowly coming east. I almost decided to go to Gurney's but nixed it. It sprinkled rain briefly around 0900  and stopped after a half hour or so. I coulda, shoulda, woulda, but didn't risk it. Next saturday is still looking to be rain free in the AM.

gotta make something

I was getting the heebie jeebies because I wasn't making anything. I looked at the pine I had in the shop and figured there was enough there to make 4 of the six sides needed for a japanese toolbox. 

I got this pine from Lowes and it is still flat and barely cupped. Forgot about the ugly looking divot right on the edge though. I have the short ends and this longer length will give up the 2 long sides. I'll be doing a dutchman to fill in the divot - rot pocket or dead branch?

not fond of butt joinery

This toolbox is going to be on the larger size and I don't have a warm fuzzy with just nailing it together with butt joints. Instead I'm going with a housing dado. Overall I want it to be a simple joinery project though.

15 3/4"

I don't like the size of this. The ends (IMO) are too long compared to the long sides. The OD based on this would make that dimension a few frog hairs over 17". Decided to surgically removed a few inches from each end.

12 1/8"

I think the ends now balance the box. The OD now is 13 5/8" and the ID width is 12 1/8". Pondering my choices for the lid - I'm vacillating between a two board pine lid or one of 1/2" plywood. The big unknown is how much will the pine expand/contract and effect the fit of the lid?

$73

At Lowes I bought four 1"x10"x4' boards and two six foot 1x3's for the battens. It was a bit of shock to see the cost of this toolbox. Adding in the other pine boards it is a wee bit north of a C note.

divot dutchman

Initially I was going to put in a rabbeted dutchman but nixed it. I was getting a headache trying to figure out the negative and positive spaces. I went with making the notch to the depth of the divot and glued in the dutchman. Knocked down most of the proud with the scrub and flushed it with the woodie.

2nd dutchman

This edge is the bottom and I thought I could contain and hide the divot with the first dutchman. This spot had a void caused by the divot. It would have been hidden by the bottom eventually but I decided on a 2nd dutchman. This will fill in the divot void and give the bottom a continuous edge to glued/nailed to.

finished look

I thought I had snapped a pic of this after the first dutchman showing the divot void but I didn't. One dutchman will be visible on the outside which I was hoping to avoid. It will still fit with this being a toolbox.

dry fit

I'm happy with the fit of ends - I thought they would have been a PITA because they were cupped slightly. There are a couple of short stretches were there are gaps but 80% or so of the dado joints are tight.

glued and nailed

Used four 1 1/2" cut nails at each corner to secure the sides to the ends. The bottom and the end battens will further secure and strengthen the box.

bottom

I will let this cook until tomorrow. This is the reason why I picked 1x10's for the bottom rather 1x12's. I don't like gluing thin widths to a larger width board. 

handles

I really like this detail on this toolbox. I have the battens I need for the top/bottom and lid but before I can attach the top ones I have to get the handles installed.

cooking away

I glued the handles on and I let them cook for a while. After dinner I will go back to the shop and put a couple of screws into the handles from the inside. This toolbox will be capable of holding a lot of weight and I don't want to rely solely on a glue joint on the handles.

accidental woodworker 

 Another nice day in the neighborhood. Cooler with the temp topping out at 80F (27C) with a nice slow, cooling breeze blowing. I walked to Johnny's Chalet for fish 'n chips and took a few extra laps on the way home. I'm hoping that in spite of the big lunch today that I'll drop a couple of pounds come sunday's weigh in. The other hope I'm harboring is that I'll be able to go to Gurney's Saw Mill tomorrow. Wish me luck because the forecast hasn't changed.

done

These went to Maria at the Frame It Shop in the PM. Conservation glass and mats for all four. It will probably be 3-4 weeks before they will be done. That isn't a problem because I have no where to hang them in the house - downstairs or upstairs.

hmm.......

Nope. I thought I had 3 coats on these but if I do I don't like how they look. I put on my big boy pants and put on the 3rd coat.

3 on

They look as good as the first 4 now. Last three are done (when they are dry). I applied the last shellac this AM. Decided to bring these 3 to Maria tomorrow. No sense keeping them in the shop while I wait for the other 4 to be done.

what's left

Last year an ash tree on this spot was cut down. Yesterday the tree service came in with a stump grinder and in 15 minutes it was gone. It was 42" across at the widest point and roughly 6" above ground level.

Norway maple

Ditto for this tree. This one had some gnarly root offshoots and this stump was higher than the ash but only 27 inches across. This one took less than 15 minutes to disappear. 

maple?

I don't remember what type of maple tree this one was. It was roughly the same as the Norway maple dimensions and took about 15 minutes. In less than a 45 minutes 3 ugly looking stumps were gone for a cost of $500.

don't like this

I hadn't realized that the stump guys had laid some of the chips along the whole fence line. I kind of liked the look but I was not happy with it being under the bottom of the pickets. The wood chips would keep moisture there which could lead to the pickets rotting prematurely.

turning green

This is encouraging seeing that what was plain dirt is now turing green. Not grass but whatever it is, it is better than dirt.

pulled away

I'm leaving a strip of the wood chips here by the fence. The bottom of the fence is clear of chips and I'm hoping that the chips will keep the ivy from coming back. I have no illusions that will happen but I can hope, can't I?

looks better than dirt

My wife liked this and so do I. This was all dirt, rocks, paving, and bits of concrete. I had poured urine in this area for a couple of months. Before I covered the dirt patch it was absent of ivy. I plan to continue pouring urine under the bottom of the pickets because the other side is knee deep to an 8 foot tall indian in ivy.

dirty but swept clean

Swept out the truck bed for the first time in a bazillion years. Doing it as good luck for tomorrow being rain free. Pics and updates on the 11 o'clock news.

accidental woodworker 

So sorry about the video aspect ratio. I uploaded it from my phone thinking I’m uploading 16:9 but it uploaded what it wanted. So you have two option watch it as is or tilt your head, sorry option three is not available.

Two days in a row that were sunny and warm - might be a record. Today's temp topped out at 92F (33C) but a small, steady breeze blowing made my stroll easy to do. Saturday is forecasted to be partly sunny with AM showers. I looked on 4 local weather sites and none of them gave a time for the AM showers. That sucks because if there is a window I could go to Gurney's on I would take it.

almost done

I didn't get much done in the shop beyond applying shellac to the frames. I got one coat on the back and 3 on the front. I like the black color from the paint and the shine the shellac imparts. I'll check them again after dinner for the final quality check. If they pass I'll bring 4 of them to the Frame It Shop tomorrow.

partial

I wanted to start on making a large japanese tool box. The plan was to make Toshio Odate's toolbox but I couldn't find the plans anywhere. I do remember the bottom was 13" and change and the sides and ends were 11/1/2". 1x12 stock is 11 1/4" or less so I was going to glue up what I could with this pine. 

That didn't happen because I want to make this toolbox using his plans. Spent a frustrating 30 minutes looking for the plans in the shop and upstairs with no joy. I searched the internet for over an hour without any luck trying to find them again. I want the plans mostly for the measurements for the top lid and the top battens. I'll keep searching because I don't have enough wood either way.

accidental woodworker 

It took about an hour to create this amount of shavings, no more. Swept up from the whole floor, they’d fill a 100 litre bin bag. I planed wood for five continuous hours, and it felt really invigorating. I’d compare it to a marathon’s worth of being good to my health. My blood pressure yesterday...

Source

I forgot to mention that I hit the 2,000 milestone for blog posts last week.  Not as many as many, more than many more.

My first post was on the 6th of June, 2013.  What a long, strange trip it’s been.

I do wonder how long I’ll keep it up, but there are no plans to pull the plug anytime soon.

Dust Collection on Festool sanders is a game changer. Here is the new cordless 5"

Festool has just released new models of cordless ETS sanders (5" and 6"), which will be available for purchase today, June 12th. We were able to demo these sanders at our Festool Fest back in April, and they attracted a lot of interest. They have some significant improvements over the previous incarnation of cordless sanders, which required the purchase of a finger- shaped 18V battery that could be used only with other cordless sanders. The new models utilize the regular 18V batteries used throughout the Festool cordless line, which is of course much more convenient. The sanders also have a built-in LED light that enables you to spot trouble spots and imperfections while you work, which strikes me as a feature that folks may start demanding from their regular sanders too. And while of course you can connect the sanders with a vacuum (aka dust extractor), these sanders also have dust collection bags and built-in fans to keep the dust at bay.

The cordless option might not be meaningful to you. In a workshop, a regular corded sander connected to a dust vac will give you excellent service without the need to worry about keeping batteries charged. A corded sander is also lighter and less expensive. But if you're sanding a lot on site, cordlessness can be very appealing.

The introduction of these sanders also gives me a chance to muse about power sanders. When I was a kid, admittedly quite some time ago (early 70s), my father had a Black & Decker orbital sander. Dont misread that sentence to give us an upgrade to random orbital sander. It was a cheap consumer grade orbital sander that did a pretty good job. It had no dust collection whatsoever. It used clamped-on pieces of sandpaper, and whoa, it was loud. You had to keep a tool like that moving because otherwise you would get little swirls on the work, and the sandpaper would clog because there was no way for dust to escape.

In that era, if you were serious about sanding, you really wanted a belt sander. The portable belt sander (invented by Porter Cable about 100 years ago) is a big ungainly machine, full of massive motors and aluminum housings. Belt sanders remove a lot of material fast. If you weren't careful, they would gouge out your work like nobodys business. There were frames and jigs to adjust the depth of sanding but I never owned one and I heard they were finicky. There was no dust collection, but because the belt wasn't in constant contact with the work, it didnt face the challenge of clogging.

The first generation of sanders were of course addressed to professionals. But hobbyists also found orbital sanders to be game changers. Hand sanding efficiently is time consuming and often no fun. Modern finishes, especially brush-on poly, really require appropriate surface sanding.

Dust collection also changed the game. I am old enough to remember a time prior to routine, efficient dust collection. The sanding bags used weren't particularly effective. No one wore masks. Sanding meant that you (or your dad, in my case) would fill up the room with a cloud of sawdust. You would constantly worry about settling dust damaging your next coat of finish. Compare that to the contemporary understanding of dust collection: its a health and safety issue; it saves a lot of clean-up time; and it helps your finished project look its best.

Hobbies by definition are leisuretime activities. The introduction of the 40-hour work week in 1940 helped create the space for hobbies during the post war consumer boom. Sales for consumer grade power tools exploded. I personally find cutting wood and planning wood by hand very satisfying. But in order to find this work enjoyable, you would need instruction, practice, and sharp, ready tools. Naturally this list could be a bit of a barrier to getting anything done. The 1950s saw the rise of all sorts of power tools for hobbyists. Most were similar to professional grade tools but smaller and more cheaply made. When I worked for the professional tool division of Black & Decker, I learned that we designed and built for longevity, and we snickered at the quality of the consumer grade tools. Every tool company got away with consumer tools because the average hobbyist only used their drills (for example) for a few minutes a year. Little did we know that the consumer divisions all over the world would soon render professional tools obsolete. Black and Decker is now a division of Stanley. And for many companies, power tools became a race to the bottom. However, others, like Festool and Mafell, to name a few, continued to offer tools with real bearings, accurate guides, and durable quality. The real amateur attraction to premium power tools such as Festool is for the fun. Fighting your equipment, whether its a struggle to get a smooth surface, or a square line, without making a mess, is just no fun.

Speaking of air quality, Festool also recently released the SYS-AIR, a portable air filter system that comes in a Systainer. It connects easily to other Systainers, Festool racks, Festool carts and Festool vacuums, making it simple to transport, store and integrate. It can get rid of the particles that your dust collector just can't crap because your tools aren't 100% perfect. We've actually had an air cleaner in our shop for 15 years and it makes a difference.

P.S. The pictures in this blog are stock Festool images of the new sanders. I have a cold and wasn't in the store to take pictures of the tools in person. But if you come by, we will be happy to put one in your hands.

The Festool Cordless 5" ETSC2125 in the most boring, yet illustrative picture possible

 After thinking about I decided to let Home Depot install the storm door for the back door. That went south and sideways, did a U-turn, headed north and then back south on the express. Two hiccups with the first being special pre steps were required before the door could be installed. Special moldings for the door due to the size of the opening being only 32" wide. This little change sucked over $80 out of my wallet. The second hiccup and the one that truly sucks pond scum, the storm door is a special order. My opening requires a 79 1/2" high door whereas standard, in stock doors are between 80-81 inches.

The exact same in stock, standard door at HD was $249. The special order door was $646.WTF is going on for a measly 1/2" difference? Of course this egregious change in dimension will take 4-6 weeks to make before I get it. The storm door installation is less than $30 what the back door install cost was.

looks better

The coverage of this first coat of paint is much better than it looked yesterday. I have a good feeling now that 2 coats will do on the back.

front face

This is very encouraging a day later. There are some streaks of light under the black but I'm confident that the 2nd coat will cover it all.

2nd coat coming

I didn't apply any poly to the interior of the box. I am only putting poly on the top edges of the bottom of the box and the bottom edges of the lid. 

done

I checked these four and they looked good. The plan is to get 3 coats of shellac on the front faces of them.

sigh.....

Noticed blobs of paint in three of the four corners. I thought I had checked and caught all the hiccups with the paint yesterday. I used the chisel to remove them and I had to paint them again.

nope.....

I tried the easy way hoping that the paint would fill this in. News flash boys and girls, it didn't. This might be visible because it will be on the side and not the top or bottom. I filled it in with some wood putty. I would have used sheet rock mud but the small container I had was rock hard.

hmm......

I had painted the frames and this box with poly before I went to Home Depot to have my wallet emptied. Over 3 hours later and it is still tacky. Yesterday the first coat had dried to the touch in less than 2. The temp today topped out at 87F (31C) so I expected this to be ready to recoat but it ain't. I'll check out it again after I fill the pie hole at dinner.

I didn't get much done due to spending a couple of hours taking care of the storm door BS. I was hoping to get the picture frames shellaced so I could bring 4 of them to the Frame It Shop but that will have to be postponed - depends on whether or not I can get 2 more coats of shellac on it today.

accidental woodworker 

While cleaning up/out the big shed in Maryland I came across this big stout bedroom dresser (pic looks odd because it is standing up on one end).   I vaguely remember someone gave it to me to empty out an old house and the piece is a beast.

Combined with the inspiration from BobR’s recent video on making himself a new workbench, my “I wonder if…” brain got to thinking.  Can a massive but useless bedroom dresser be turned into a premium workbench?  I guess I’ll find out.

I’ll be pursuing this project once I get some other workbench projects out of the way.  In the meantime, I’ve got a Japanese planing beam and my Ultimate Portable Workbench to finish up.

Stay tuned.

 I peeked at the upcoming weather forecast and tomorrow is supposed to be sunny. Although it is going to cloudy everyday for the next two weeks, most days are cloudy/partly sunny. I only saw one day that was cloudy only. It is an improvement over the crappy forecast I saw two days ago. However, this coming saturday is forecasted for rain at a 47% chance but the next saturday says partly sunny. This is now week 7 I've been waiting to go to Gurney's Saw mill.

3rd coat

I painted the corners where the hanger held the frames last night after dinner. This AM I wasn't happy with how the face side of the frames looked. The coverage looked good but there were 'streaks' on the front faces between the chamfers. Put on a 3rd and final coat. Tomorrow I'll put on the shellac that I had planned on doing this AM.

hmmm.....

Got a comment from Sylvain about putting a battery charger in this. I wasn't going to but after reading it made me think about it. If I take this away from the shop I won't have a charger or a spare battery.

The two small batteries are 1.5AH and the two larger ones are 3AH and 4AH ones. Moot point because only the smaller ones will fit in the lid and allow it to close on the saw. IMO the 1.5AH ones are useless for this tool. Amazon had good prices on Dewalt 20V batteries when I checked yesterday. I'll buy a one more 4AH battery next month.

nope

This spot and to the right are the only two available ones for the battery. It might fit in the right one but it would be tricky to set in precisely. Thinking now of sawing off the bottom like I did for the lid. I'll look it that after I'm done applying the poly.

hate this stuff

On the flip side it does saw incredibly easy. The downside is I'll be picking little white pebbles of it off me for a year. Static electricity made sweeping it up an expletive laden exercise. This is from the new printer my wife bought - the old one wasn't printing color to her satisfaction.

after lunch

The to do for after lunch. Looking forward to seeing how well raising the grain will work on this for the 2nd time.

first coat of poly

When I painted the frames last night after dinner I also put the 2nd coat on the bottom of this box. This AM I put on the 3rd and final coat. First one on the rest of it in the PM.

first coat on the last 3

 There were some places that the paint just didn't want to cover. I went back and forth over them and nada. I'll have to wait until tomorrow to see how well coverage looks and how the 2nd coat lays down over it.

accidental woodworker 

I explain why I raised my bench and how I did it

Last post I asked for help in rehabbing this Wm. Banks snipes bill plane.  I also posted something similar on the Facebook "Unplugged Woodworkers" group and from the comments I developed a plan.

At first I thought I would need to remove the boxing from the plane and someone suggested using vinegar to loosen up the hide glue.  I tried that with no success.  I thought about steaming the whole plane body in a pan over the stove, but was dissuaded by a comment or two.  Eventually I decided to use an iron to heat the boxing side of the plane.

Used an iron and a wet rag to get heat and steam into the plane body

I then clamped the plane tightly to a flat spot on my workbench and waited overnight.  Surprisingly, this flattened the plane and straightened the boxing significantly.  But the gap between the boxing and the sole opened up a little more than it had already been.

I was able to fit a 0.005" feeler gauge about 1/2" deep into the boxing slot, but only on the sole-side of the boxing - the other side was firmly glued.

So I used that same feeler gauge to force some hot hide glue down into the gap and then clamped it up overnight

This tightened up the boxing very well and the gap is gone.  The plane body still needed a little flattening, so I took a couple shavings off each side.  I also took a few shavings off the point of the boxing (the quirk) to get it all on the same level.

Right side

Left side

And look how straight the boxing quirk is!

I did a little sanding of the sole to smooth out the profile.  Then I worked on the iron to get it to better match the sole's profile.  It took a LOT of iterations to get that right.  Work on the iron also included filing the side a little bit, as it was sticking out a little too much.  It's supposed to be proud of the side of the boxing by a couple thousandths, but this one was out too much.

I'm happy now with how it is.  After taking the pic below, I put some oil on it for protection and to blend the colors a bit.

Here it is, work completed

I don't know if I'll ever need this plane - I don't currently use a lot of moldings in my work.  But if and when I do, it'll be ready to go.  Regardless, I feel good about bringing a piece of history back into working order.  For $3 and a little time, that's OK by me.

The weather has turned crappy again. I don't recall seeing a sunny day in the forecast for a month now. The rest of this week (out to sunday) is cloudy or rain. Not a single day of even one partly sunny day. This is past being depressing. Fingers and toes still double crossed that I'll finally get out to Gurney's Saw mill this saturday.

the choice

I considered doing this on the tablesaw but stopped. 3 corners were a few frog hair off square with the last one being a wavy 16th. Using the LN 140 will make a more consistent rabbet.

not a problem

Tons of fluffy shavings without a single whimper.

level

I've been using a level when I make rabbets with the LN 140. I find that it helps with keeping it level and even.

nope

I have two pieces of this pine but I don't like it. This blends in perfectly with the pine box. I wanted what I filled in the rabbets with to be a contrast to the pine box. I checked my extra 'bandings' in the boneyard and found some mahogany that I used. I had some walnut I really wanted to use but it wasn't wide enough. Couldn't use walnut veneer because the rabbets were too deep.

1/8" planing jig

The rabbets are less than a 1/8" deep. I didn't try to plane them +/- an atom thickness of each other.

proud of the rabbets

I used super glue (3 dabs) and yellow glue to secure the bandings. I did the short ends first and let them cook for half an hour before flushing the tops of the bandings.

long ones cooking

I glued the long ones just before I left for my post lunch stroll. I flushed the tops after that and then the sides next.

done

The woodworking is finished and the final step is the finish. I don't like leaving boxes unfinished and for this box I actually considered painting it as a choice.

12" away

I can make out the plywood piles from this distance but anything further away and it blurs into the pine box. It might pop a wee bit more when the finish goes on. Upadates and pics on the 11 o'clock news.

decorations

The plywood is glued on and since I'm not attaching a handle to it, the screws aren't needed. They are only for show.

poly finish

First choice was shellac but I didn't have enough for the box. Since I had the poly, I'm using that instead. The first step is getting 2-3 coats on the bottom. Then I'll apply it to the rest of the box.

out of sight, out of mind

Still haven't touched up the spot where the hanger was. I will make a return trip after dinner to touch them up.

accidental woodworker 

The plan was to stop at Wally World before I went grocery shopping this AM. I was going to buy two pairs of jeans (full length) and have them cut down to shorts. On a lark I looked through the jeans shorts that were hanging on the wall - a wee bit out of reach high up on the wall. I was surprised to find the same shorts I had bought on the Wrangler Jeans site for $3 less. I had my smiley face on as I paid for them and headed out. 

They didn't have size 35 waist jeans (like the website) so I settled for size 36 - 34's didn't fit, I tried. On the walk back from breakfast tomorrow I'll stop in again and buy another pair. That way I can wear one, have one in the wash, and one ready to wear.

sigh....

I wasn't paying attention when I hinged the box. I wanted the saw to be flipped 180. It is a bit awkward taking this out/in with my left hand. Not a deal killer but is is a definite 'aw sh.....'.

wooden handles

I couldn't find anything in a size/style I wanted in a single handle for the top. Decided to make two wooden ones - one on each side. Rounded over the top outside edge. I didn't want a sharp edge biting into my palms.

one more step

I got this idea from plans for japanese tool boxes. It certainly makes it much easier to lift with this feature.

done

I glued and screwed the handles on. I went and back and forth on whether or not to glue them too. In the end I wanted the warm and fuzzy of glue and screws.

I thought the next and last step was going to be a finish. The piles of the exposed plywood edges is bugging me big time. Tomorrow I'll start brain storming ideas on how to best hide them. The bottom 1/4" plywood blends in seamlessly with the pine.

accidental woodworker 

A lot of people think you need a chart or expert advice to figure out the right size pilot hole for a screw, but honestly, you can figure it out yourself with a bit of common sense and some test pieces.

I’m currently building a clamp rack and needed to sort out the right pilot hole size. In this article, I’ll walk you through how I go about it.

To understand pilot holes, it helps to know how a screw actually works. I’m using a mix of hardwood and softwood for this project, just whatever I’ve got lying around the workshop, since I don’t have enough of one type to do the whole thing.

Here’s the key idea when screwing two pieces of wood together:

1. The screw threads should bite into the bottom piece in my case, that’s the softwood.
2. The screw should slide freely through the top piece which is the hardwood so it can pull everything together nice and tight.

If the threads grab the top piece too, you won’t get as much clamping force, and it can leave a gap between the parts. That’s why I need to drill a clearance hole through the hardwood, it should be just big enough so the threads don’t catch.

The screw I’m using is 4mm (5/32″) in diameter, so I’ll drill a 4mm hole through the hardwood. That’s my clearance hole.

For the pilot hole in the softwood, it needs to match the core or root diameter of the screw, that’s the part of the screw without the threads.

With a couple of test holes and a close look at how the screw fits, you can dial it in pretty easily. No charts needed.

This picture provided by rmgtech.in provides a wealth of information of what each part is called.

For a 4mm diameter screw the core is typically around 2.5mm therefore the pilot hole size should be 2.5mm (3/32). This is a good size for softwoods as softwoods compress however, hardwoods don’t compress as easily and therefore a larger pilot hole would be needed such as 3mm (1/8).

You can find charts on the internet which tells you what the right size pilot hole should be, but there are ways that you can work out yourselves without relying on charts.

Here’s how: Just to refresh your memories we need to take a close look at the screw and identify two key measurements:

1. Outer Diameter – this is the widest part, measured across the threads (in your case, 4 mm).
2. Core (or Root) Diameter – this is the narrow shaft in the middle, between the threads. You can eyeball this or measure it with calipers.

So here I am measuring the Outer Diameter and the reading I have is 0.167 or 4.24mm.

Next I measure the Core or Root Diameter

The reading comes out to 0.119, which is just under 1/8″, but it’s actually closer to 3mm, more precisely, 3.02mm. Here’s a little secret: I still haven’t come across a truly metric screw. They all seem to be made in imperial sizes and just labelled metric. As you can see, calipers don’t lie.

But what if you don’t have calipers? No stress, you can eyeball it. Just hold a drill bit up to the screw and compare. Works surprisingly well!

If the bit hides the shaft but leaves the threads visible on either side you are in the ballpark.

For the top piece you want the screw to slide freely through so it can pull everything tight. That means the hole in the top piece should be the same size as the full width of the screw.

Important point to remember. If you go too small the wood could split or the screw might get stuck halfway in. If you go too large the screw might spin and not hold anything. That is why it helps to drill a test hole in a scrap piece of the same wood before committing to your actual workpiece.

If you ever forget the sizes or do not have access to a chart just use this simple method. Look at the screw match it up with a bit that hides the shaft and shows the threads and test it on some offcuts. You do not need to measure anything down to the decimal. Just trust your eyes and your hands. This is how it was done long before anyone had technical references. It is still the best way to get a feel for the right size when the materials and screw types change.

No charts required just a bit of common sense and some trial and error.

The box I made for the cordless skil saw is almost done. The steps left are figuring out how to handle it and what finish to use, if any. Not too bad of a days work. Other than it being a wee bit bigger than I would like, I'm happy with how it turned out. The potential headache upcoming with it is where will it live?

fully cooked

The box relaxed a little when I took the clamps off which I didn't like seeing. However, the box was still square when I checked it on the top and bottom.

dead space

There really isn't a lot of unwasted real estate above the platform. But there is dead space below it. I thought about how to utilize it and gave up. Too many hiccups trying to figure out to access it.

road test

25 years ago I used this extensively to sand whatever project I was doing. I mostly used it to flatten and flush glue ups. Today I wasn't sure about how it would work. I had accidentally spilled poly on it last month. It turned on and the sand belt stayed on but I had to adjust the belt tracking - it chewed off about a 1/4" before I fixed it.

The sander worked with out any hiccups. The grit was 120 and it sanded the proud tails without any whimpering. The old muscle memory kicked in and I didn't round down on any of the corners. The key to working a 4x24 belt sander is to keep it moving and never, ever, let it go stationary for more than half a second.

lid separated

I purposely made the lid height bigger. I didn't separate it on the first full tail but the second one. I wanted the space to hold saw blades etc etc. Should be adequate for that purpose.

crappy hinges

I like the latches but I don't have a warm and fuzzy with the hinges. I like that they are 90° stop hinges and also that they are flush mounted.

an hour later

I went through every hinge that I had and I finally decided on this set. Two latches for the front and smaller hinges. I had looked on line for solid flush mounted hinges but the only ones I found where well north of $40. If these don't work out I'll use the brass ones in the above pic.

top & bottom

The bottom will be 1/4" and 1/2" for the top. 1/2" for the top for attaching a handle to it. The inside will be used to store saw blades etc. The top being 1/2" will provide strength and rigidity vice using 1/4" plywood.

too much room?

I can fit two 6 1/2" saw blades side by side. I had thought of putting wrenches on the sides but blade changes on this saw are made with an allen wrench. Oops.

top & bottom cooked

Looked for a handle like on the smaller box but I didn't have any. I'll look on Lee Valley tonight for handles.

hmm....

These hinges look too tiny for this. I still went with them because the screws were almost 3/4" long. 

two steps left

Looking at it here I'm thinking that maybe I should use two side handles. Initially I was going to put a handle on the top.

lid stop

The hinges aren't 90° stop hinges. This block of wood will be a stop for the lid when it is opened. Without it the first time the lid would get away from me the hinges would be ripped off.

accidental woodworker