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General Woodworking

Something in the air

Rivers Joinery - Sat, 02/01/2025 - 1:00am

It must be something in the air. Out looking for birthday presents, I found these books, a stone's throw from St. Mary's in Totnes.


Literally for a song. I would happily have paid, for each page, what I paid for each book. Some things are just meant to be.


The first was right next to the second. A fitting accompaniment, given that my interest in 17th century English furniture, was first piqued, by an exploration of American furniture of the same period.


Cantilevered cupboards.


 Hadley chests.


All the favourites. Nothing else to say.

aimless day......

Accidental Woodworker - Fri, 01/31/2025 - 3:39am

I got all discombobulated with the work plan I had today. I had checked the weather forecast and I thought today was going have rain all day. I was wrong and tomorrow (friday) is the rainy day. Because of that brain fart I took my time getting to the shop. Today was sunny but cold and I could have done the lunchbox planing on the cherry and maple. Sometimes it is good to take a break and stop to smell the saw dust.

 1/4-20 insert driver

This driver engages in the mating part in the head of the insert. It works well and I haven't had one hiccup using it. The downside - it will only drive inserts made specifically for this driver.

new driver - it is a 1/4-20 driver

I said yesterday this was a 5/16 driver but it isn't. This insert driver engages the internal threads of the insert. This one will work on any 1/4-20 threaded insert. Of the two I think this one is a better to have.

 I have two to choose from

The right one is beefier and I know it works. I haven't had the need to use a threaded insert for a while. I'll keep this one at the head of the line and I will keep an eye out for getting the same style for my other threaded inserts.


 from Lee Valley

I have #1, #2, and #3 square drivers for both of these Yankee screwdrivers. The right one also has a flat tip screwdriver. Two of these drivers are slightly magnetic. Does that mean that they aren't hardened? Just my MO but an unhardened drive is useless and will strip out almost immediately.

 a must

I sawed the aluminum tubing getting what I wanted from it. These glasses are shatter proof and seal around both eyes. Sawing aluminum throws a ton of little slivers of aluminum all over.

 had an oops

I can get two pieces out of this one 12" long stop. I realized after I had sawn off the unwanted pieces I could have gotten 4 of them out of it. Oh well I can order another one while I work on the first one.

 this should work

I ended up with a 'L' shape with one leg wider than the other. The back leg will butt up against the long leg. This is a 1/8" thick and it should be more the sufficient to act as a stop - the plan has it being 6" long and the rear leg will be about 4 3/4" to 5" long bearing against it.

 hmm......

I left a wee bit on both legs. I thought I would be able to easily file this soft aluminum without any problems. I tried 4 different files and I removed hardly anything with them. I was expecting the aluminum to file away to nothing and quickly. Neither of those happened. I'll have to drop back and punt on removing the proud.

 prepping the maple stock

I sawed all the boards to rough width leaving them a strong 16th over.

 back stretcher

This will keep the rear legs parallel and from spreading apart at the bottom. The top will be held in check due to the rear legs being bolted to the front legs.

 insurance

I am also going to put a 'X' brace on the back up close to the top of the rear legs. With the lower stretcher it should help keep the legs parallel and from spreading. The stock for this is 1/2" thick. I am also doing this because I like the look of a 'X' brace.

The thickness of the maple stock is 7/8" which surprised me. It looked to be 3/4" but I wasn't expecting 7/8". 

 time to fix this

I keep meaning to do this and today was the time to do it. The right outside end tends to drop below the surface of the benchtop. That can be annoying when I am chiseling stock there.

not going nutso

I was surprised to see that I had two biscuits already here. I added one more at each end and another to left of the right end one.

 almost done

I am happy with the fit and it being flush with the benchtop. I added a 5/16" spax screw lower down between the two bolts. I got lucky with having one (wanted two) in my collection of screws and things.

 a day of surprises

The cherry dowels came in and I found out something about these dowels. I thought the mini dowels were '1x'. I am going to have to find a new hole to keep the dowels in now. I don't have room in their current location for all of the dowels.

These are kind of expensive too I just realized. The 1x and 2x are about 65-70 cents apiece. The mini ones are cheaper but I don't know by how much. So far after using these for several years I predominately use the minis the most followed by the 1x. Can't recall ever using the 2x ones.

banding came in

As I was typing this and looking at the pic I saw that I have 3 different types of banding. The 1/8" wide inlays are two different designs. I may not have enough of it to do what I want again.

 close enough

These two are different but you have to eyeball the two closely to see it. I don't intend to 'inlay' either one of these. I plan to simply glue them to the box.

 where I got it

He has a lot of bandings/inlay for sale. I looked into how to make this - read and watched a lot of You Tube videos - decided it wasn't for me. I'll write a check and thank whoever I buy it from.

 gap

This has been bugging me every since made these drawers and filled them up. I've been meaning to make a small open box to fit in this hole. 

 gave me fits

The box has mitered corners and I'll strengthen it by gluing a 1/8" plywood bottom on it. The ends are 1 5/8" wide and I didn't have any hiccups shooting the miters. I thought due to the box size I would. 

The miters also drank up a gallon of glue. I sized the miters twice before applying glue for a third time and clamping it up. Because the ends were short I had to overlap the corner braces. That made squaring the box a bit of a PITA but I finally managed to get the diagonals within a 32nd.

no hiccups

My last memories of planing maple still give me nightmares. It was a horrible experience which led me to forsake using maple for anything. The #80 made some fluffy shavings but it didn't remove the planer ripple entirely. The #3 ate 'em up like a kid eating candy.

I started out slow advancing the iron until it just was barely making a shaving. Kept at that until I felt comfortable making shavings end to end with it. The #3 behaved and it removed all the planer ripple marks and left the board flat, smooth, and shiny looking. I am going to try and use planes to smooth all the stock and leave it as close to 7/8" thick as I can.

 rear leg top angle

Refining the angle and I was slowly creeping up on it. I want this angle to bear its entire length up against the stop on the front leg. I stopped doing that here and I'll pick it back up in the AM.

 bottom ones are done

These might need to be refined based on how well the top one fits against the stop. 

accidental woodworker

Spreadsheet for Determining Radius of a Curve

Woodworking in a Tiny Shop - Thu, 01/30/2025 - 6:15pm

This post will be considered by some as an intellectual exercise only.  Maybe it's for math geeks, like myself.  There are simpler methods to do what I write about.  I'm all for simplicity, but I like the math.

When I want to put a curve on the underside of a chair rail or a table apron, a simple method is to place a clamp at either end of the intended curvature and bend a stick (or ruler) to the desired "bulge" of the curve.  While this method will give attractive results, the resulting curve will not be exactly circular.  The stick bends more at it's center than at its ends.  And it may not bend equally both sides of center.

Marked lines 1" from ends, and placed clamps near those marks

Centerline marked and 1 inch "bulge" marked from lower edge

Bend a stick to the "bulge" mark, and draw the curve

Here's the resulting curve

There are times when I want to end up with a curve that is part of a circle.  And when this is the case, I'd like to know the radius of the circle that will give the desired curve so that I can lay it out on the workpiece.

Here's an example, same as in the above pics.  Suppose I have a 20" x 2 1/2" rail and I want to put a circular arc on the underside.  I want the arc to start 1" from each end of the rail and I want it to extend up into the rail's front face by 1".  So that's an arc 18" wide with a 1" bulge.

Using a little math, I can calculate that the radius of the circle that gives the appropriate arc is 41".  I can then use a stick (or piece of string) of that length and a pencil to lay out the curve.  I'll write more about the math below.

This stick will allow arcs up to approx. 48" radius

One end has a shallow slot to run a pencil in

You can put a screw anywhere on the stick for whatever radius you need.
The screw tip exits the bottom side, and it is used as a pivot point for drawing the arc.

Here, I'm using the radius jig to mark the arc on the workpiece.
Note that the screw has to be in line with the centerline of the workpiece.

The two methods give very similar results, so it really doesn't matter which you use.

You can see the slight difference in the two methods

But if you're doing a smaller piece, say an arc only 6" wide, then that bendy stick won't bend in that tight a space.  That's when it would be easier to use a radius stick.  For those smaller pieces, I can use my homemade trammel points to create the arc.  I'll show that below.

Another place where drawing a circular arc has come up is when laying out a camber on a scrub plane iron.  I recently made an iron that was 1 1/2" wide and I wanted a 1/16" bulge at the cutting edge.  For this iron, I simply filed a curve to get it close.  But if I wanted to be more precise, I could figure out what the radius of that curvature is and make a template.  Turns out it is about 4 1/2".

Cardboard template, 1 1/2" wide with centerline drawn

Homemade trammel points

Setting the distance to 4 1/2"


Drawing the appropriate arc on the template

Measuring the resulting bulge - it's about 1/16"

Comparing the template to the plane iron

OK, now here's the math part.  It has to do with right triangles and the Pythagorean theorem.  I'll start with the example of a table apron, which I want to put an arc on the bottom edge, starting some distance in from each end and rising up a certain amount.  In the picture below, points A and B are the ends of the arc, and C is a point centered between them.  The width of the arc I'll call "w", so the distance from C to B is 1/2 w.  The bulge of the arc is the distance from the lower edge of the board to the highest point on the arc.  I call it "b".

The workpiece with arc drawn.  The arc has width "w" and height "b".

Now I'm going to zoom out so you can see the rest of the picture.  The arc drawn on the workpiece is part of a large circle, whose center is at point O.  The radius of the circle, given by distance R, is the distance from point O to any point on the circle.  I'm using point B here.

Zoomed out pic shows the complete circle with radius drawn

Another radius is from the center, O, to the point at the top center of the arc, drawn straight up from the center.  That radius is made up of two distances, the distance from O to C, and the distance from C to the top of the arc.  The latter of those I've already called "b", the bulge.  So the distance from O to C is a radius minus the bulge, or R-b.  Triangle OCB is a right triangle, so from Pythagoras, the sum of the squares of the two legs (legs are the sides of the triangle making the right angle) equals the square of the hypotenuse.

R^2 = (R-b)^2 + (w/2)^2       (the symbol ^2 means squared)

R^2 = R^2 - 2Rb + b^2 + (w^2)/4

And simplifying, we get:

2Rb = b^2 + (w^2)/4, and then

R = (b^2 + (w^2)/4) / (2b)

So to draw an arc with a certain width and bulge, you can calculate the radius of the circle that describes the arc and use a stick to draw the arc.  I've put this formula into an Excel spreadsheet.  If you want to do the same, type the following in an Excel sheet:

=(C4^2 + (C3^2)/4)/(2*C4)

In this formula, C3 is the location in the spreadsheet where I entered the arc width (not half width, the whole width).  C4 is the location in the spreadsheet where I entered the bulge.

Here's a picture of what my Excel sheet looks like (replace the word "Iron" with "Arc")

The example shown above has an arc width of 18" and a bulge of 1".  The resulting radius is 41".

Here are the details for the other example of this - shaping a plane iron with camber to make a scrub plane.  It works exactly the same way.

The plane iron drawn in gray, with markings like the earlier example.

Here's the upper end shown closer up

Using the spreadsheet for an iron that is 1 1/2" wide and giving a 1/16" bulge, I get a radius of 4 1/2".

The cambered iron example

For anyone who is actually interested in this stuff, if you can't figure out how to get the formula I wrote above (shaded in yellow) to work in your own Excel spreadsheet, contact me using the "contact me" gadget somewhere on this blog page.  Specify that you want the radius spreadsheet, because I've got another spreadsheet for a different application and don't want to send the wrong one.

kitchen stool/ladder........

Accidental Woodworker - Thu, 01/30/2025 - 3:27am

 Made a road trip to Koszela lumber this AM. I found the cherry and while waiting my turn I found a pile of maple for a good price so I bought some. Decided then and there to make a maple prototype because I have never made anything out of maple before. I have tried using maple a couple of times many, many, many moons ago but they all ended with me having a pile of maple kindling. But I have a good feeling about giving maple a reprieve. I'll see what shakes out in the next couple of days.

 happy with this

I have two coats of shellac on this after sanding and scraping the shelf. There was a rather ugly looking patch above my finger but shellac is a wonderful finish. It has blended and smoothed it out and made it disappear.

Last night I went back to the shop and got another coat on the bottom. Before I left for Koszela lumber I put another coat on the entire bookshelf.

happy face on

All of the cherry is straight and flat still. None of them did any stupid wood tricks overnight. 

 $100.24

One 4/4 cherry board 7" wide by 4' long and three maple boards planed to 13/16" and averaging about 5 1/2" wide by 8' long. Had them cut off at 3' on each board so I could get them all inside the truck cab with me.

 calling it done

I'm nixing putting poly or oil on the shelf. I got four more coats of shellac on it and that is sufficient. I'll bring it upstairs and let it cure for a couple of days before I put the books back in it.

 disappointed in this

I am not a happy camper with the cherry dowels. I fussed over them for a while trying to get a match between the two for color and grain. The one on the left pops out with the right one being shy and unnoticeable. The walnut ones look good and the they should lighten as time goes on. Especially so the left side which gets the morning sun. The right side gets partial afternoon sun.

right side

This side isn't as bad as the left but still not ideal IMO. In hindsight maybe I should have used walnut 2x dowels instead cherry.

trying it

This was $7 at Koszela lumber and I bought one. I am not optimistic that I'll get to use the whole bottle. Usually the nozzle clogs shut on me or the contents harden into stone.

 $6 at Wally World(?)

This is what I usually buy in super glue. One of these has a clogged nozzle and the other has a ton of crusty, dried glue smothering it. Seemed a bargain to me to get a bazillion more ounces for a dollar more.

 from yesterday

These are two pieces I got from the board from hell yesterday. I checked both for twist and they still had some. The good news is they looked like they didn't grow more of it. Before I flattened the new cherry board, I removed the twist from these two.

 kicking my butt

Before this check I had removed the twist. The sticks were barely a frog hair off parallel from each other. However, the helicopter test failed. On the opposite diagonal, the stick laid flat. On this diagonal it is spinning - there is a hump but it also tells me that the board was still twisted. Went back to the twist sticks and planed the frog hair difference off and the diagonals agreed after that.

The second board was easier to do than the first one. It behaved and I got the twist sticks dead nuts parallel before passing the helicopter check.

front leg

Traversed the board at a slant R to L and L to R, then straight across followed up by planing it straight across end to end with the #6. After that I smoothed the board with the 5 1/2 and checked it for twist.

 did it in thirds

Boards over 30" in length I will check for twist in multiple positions. This board is 41" long and I checked and planed twist out every 14". There was twist at the first third and almost nothing at the other two spots.

I used to only check for twist between the two ends of the boards. That has bit me on the arse too many times. I also inevitably will have a hump in the middle of the board. I have mistaken planing that away with removing twist. Doing the twist check in multiple spots has gotten flatter and straight boards for me.

reference face done

The board is pristine and dead nuts flat. There are undulations still but for running it through the lunchbox it is more than adequate. I left the board wider than needed. After it is planed to thickness and the leg cut out the off cut will be used for a X brace on the back legs.

opposite face

I did this on all the boards. This one is cupped on this face and I knocked down the wing high points and then I went across the width end to end because I had the time to do it. I'll sticker this and let it get any stupid wood tricks out of its system.

 cherry kitchen stool/ladder stock

The top boards are the stretcher and X brace. From Left to Right, the front legs, treads, and rear legs. Still not used to how little wood this project is taking.

prepping the maple

Breaking the maple down into the parts needed was batting first.

 maple kitchen stool/ladder stock

This is already planed to thickness but I intend to run it all through the lunchbox to clean up the planer ripple marks in every single board. I planed one edge square to a reference face.

 stickered

Depending upon the weather but mostly how this behaves will determine when I run all the stock through the lunchbox planer. Today would have been a good day for it because the temp got up to 50F (10C). That almost felt a heat wave after the bitter cold of the past weeks. The weather sucks because there is nothing by cloudy skies and rain in the forecast for the next 10 days. If I have to wait that will at least give the stock a chance to acclimate to the shop.

 cherry

I will have to find a hole for the maple to sticker in the boneyard tomorrow. I can't leave it on the tablesaw.

 presents for me

The bottom one is from McMaster-Carr and that is the one I want the most.

aluminum tubing

This is 1/8" thick walled rectangular aluminum tubing. The other choices were brass, bronze, various steels, and cast iron. Aluminum was the cheapest and I can cut it on the tablesaw. The plan is to use this as a stop for the rear legs.

 Lee Valley haul

All I wanted from them was the two magnets for the 5/8" door catches. But in order to get free shipping I had to raise the order up $50. Bought a couple of heavy duty hinges and some square drive bits for my Yankee screwdriver.

 insert driver

If I remember this is for a 5/16" internal thread, threaded inset. This one works differently then my other insert drivers. 

 for chair making

On my bucket list is to make at least one chair. I have the patterns for a Chris Schwarz chair that is patiently waiting for me. Lee Valley says this is for drilling pilot holes for chair spindles/tenons. It came with imperial and metric bushings for drill bits.

I'll have to think of something to amuse myself with tomorrow because it is supposed rain all day long off and on. 

accidental woodworker

started the new project.....

Accidental Woodworker - Wed, 01/29/2025 - 3:14am

I didn't go on walk about after lunch today. After a couple of days of the foot feeling much better it was acting up. It doesn't hurt like it did at its peak but it is still uncomfortable walking. I wouldn't have made it out of the driveway before I had to turn around back to the barn. I'll give it another week and see how it shakes out then.

yikes

This looks like total crappola. I had brought it up to the kitchen yesterday after I had glued in the dowels to cook. Those looked ok and this should spruce up after a coat of shellac.

flushed the dowels

I sawed them first with the flush cut saw and that left only a frog hair or two for the chisel to attack.

thinking on this

I didn't like the lines in the finish from the books. I am considering one of these two for the shelf top. The rest of the bookshelf will be shellac.

considered and shit canned

I briefly entertained making a prototype out these 2x4s. I would lose too much on the width due to squaring up the rounded edges.

 going with cherry

Decided to make the kitchen ladder out of cherry because I didn't feel like going to Lowes to buy over priced poplar or red oak. I can get the treads from the two pieces on the shit can and the tall, thin board will give up one short and long leg.

 had to back track

I had two thin width cherry boards that I thought I get all four legs from. I was wrong. I can get two short and one long or two long ones. I tried stretching them but that was a bust. I'll have to make a road trip to Koszela Lumber in the AM.

double, triple checking myself

I laid the boards on the full scale drawing and it confirmed that I can't get all four legs from this. I thought about shortening the ladder but I like the height of this one. I had another cherry board that was 10" wide that I sawed out a piece for the last leg.

 the go, no go

If I didn't have to cut off splits at the end I would have had enough to get the four legs. The short ones would have been a 1/4" to 3/8" shorter than the drawing.

two long legs

I got lucky with the cherry I have to work with. It is flat sawn but the grain runs fairly straight and parallel to outside edges. It is rough sawn and I'm shooting to plane it out to 7/8" thick. In this rough state it is over an inch thick.

not much wood needed

The ladder needs only a few pieces of cherry. Four legs, two treads, one stretcher, and a dowel. I'm using a 1 1/8" diameter one because I have several of them on hand.

prep time

I will flatten one face, get it straight and twist free. I will thickness them with the lunchbox planer.

hiccup time
 

This board was throwing a hissy fit. There was hump around the middle - the straight edge was spinning like a helicopter rotor. Took a lot of calories to remove it. These are the legs and they not only have to be twist free, but straight end to end.

problem children

To make things easier for myself I sawed the 10" wide board in half. It will be quicker to flatten them as two thin boards vice a wide one.

 straight as a dog's hind leg

I put a 4 foot straight edge on the flat portion of the leg to gauge how much the far end is screwing me. I set this one aside and flattened the other one first. It dipped a wee bit but not as much as this one. 

problem board

I removed a lot of wood straightening out the dog leg end on this board. I don't think I will get my 7/8" finished thickness. Some of this tear out will be sawn off but not 100%. I may have to put a dutchman in here.

this is bad news

I was criss crossing here and it didn't matter because I still tore out chunks of cherry both ways. I was still trying to flatten this and I was thinking I could put this down at the bottom of the leg. Plus the lunchbox planer might remove some of it and I could fill it in with putty.

ten minute pit stop

Had to do this by hand. I only sharpen this iron on the 3 stones, no stropping.

camber guide

I made this to camber the iron based on a radius recommended by Paul Sellers. I think it is 7 1/2" but I'm not sure. I didn't know that I had saved it. This is the only cambered iron I have. It is for the #6 which I only use for flattening stock.

 what has to disappear

The other side looks to be about the same amount I had to plane. I did that and the ends were in line but in between them was a hollow. I dropped a ton of calories removing that but eventually I got it straight (according the 4' straight edge) end to end.

 dog leg gone

This was just the start of the nightmare of trying to flatten the 2nd board. The opposite is cupped upwards and all I was trying to do was to get this side flat-ish, flip it and straighten out the side with the hump. That never happened because I never got even reasonably close to getting this side anywhere near flat.

got fooled

Got this face flat-ish but not twist free. I see sawed back and forth trying to remove the twist. One end would twist but the opposite one didn't. I tried doing it in halves, thirds, and quarters and the twist was having a field day screwing with me.

 coffee break

I checked the board before the coffee break and I was one line off flat. When I came back down to the shop ten minutes later I was 3 lines off flat. Called No Mas here. There must be a lot of tension in this board and it is going to continue to go nutso on me.

 cut it in half

I stickered these two along with the other boards. I expect these two be pretzels in the AM. Fingers crossed the other boards don't do any stupid tricks on me.

 looking better

I got two coats on it and a lot of the ugliness is gone. There is still a hint of it here and there so I will definitely need to slather on more shellac.

 O1 annealed tool steel bar stock

I got this from McMaster-Carr. The plan is to cut off a piece, bend a foot, and I'll have a router plane iron. I haven't thought the plan through all the way yet. I'll use heat to bend it to form the foot. Not sure how I'll flatten the foot into a triangle shape for the cutting edge. I bought annealed stock so I can harden it after I make the iron (if I can).

I had ordered something for the kitchen ladder too but it didn't come in this order. That is coming tomorrow according to McMaster-Carr and UPS.

accidental woodworker

new project......

Accidental Woodworker - Tue, 01/28/2025 - 3:44am

The left foot is still hurting a wee bit. It is lingering and being a PITA. In spite of that I have gotten 4 days in the shop with AM and PM sessions. Feels good to be on my feet in the shop and not molding my A-cheeks to a chair cushion. I'm going to try walking tomorrow after lunch. I will see how long I can go before the foot starts acting up, if it does. Fingers and toes crossed that I can do my whole walk about without any pain or tripping.

 hmm....

I have had this inlay banding for a bazillion years and it occurred to me I could use it on this box. I was thinking of running one above the feet and another one flush with the top of the (bottom) box.

another option

I think this is a dyed veneer that I could cut into strips and place it between the legs or on top of it? Nixed it because I didn't think I could cut out the strips evenly.

 I like this look

However, it isn't going to work because I don't have enough of it. I don't have enough to go around the box just at the top and bottom neither. So I went back to where I bought this and there wasn't any to be had. So I bought a different set of inlays - one a 1/4" wide and another set of 1/8" wide. Both have the same pattern just different widths. Went this way because I bought all the 1/4" wide that was available. So I will put the 1/8" at the top and the 1/4" above the legs.

 sigh

This end is opened up a wee bit too - only about a 1/4" or so. This is a partial long grain to an end grain connection. I think that I didn't get a sufficient amount of glue on the long grain part of the shelf.

 closed up

I clamped the shelf at the front and back and the gap closed up easily and without any whimpering. I will use the Miller Dowels to 'nail' the shelf to the ends.

 sometimes you get lucky

I was just going to layout for the dowels in each end but I had some 2x cherry Miller dowels. 

 I didn't know I had them

I have four that I need to secure the shelf with a few left overs.

 checking myself

Making sure that I didn't drill the hole too deep for the dowel. I have done that before due to not paying attention. I did good on these four.

 ready to glue in

Before I glued in the dowels I clamped the ends fully seating the shelf in the dadoes in the ends.

 checking the other ones

This a walnut and maple bookshelf. I made this one after the cherry one. It is basically the same except I raised the shelf upwards on this one. That allowed me to utilize the space underneath it. I have 5 other of these (all pine), 3 that I use and  none of them had any gaps between the shelf and the ends.

 1x Miller dowel

The back slat on the bottom right one is loose - the glue bond broke. I will put two Miller Dowels into each end of both slats.

 flushing the 2x dowels

The paper raises the saw up just enough so that it doesn't scratch the finish.

 first use

Tried my new flush chisel to trim the proud 2x dowels.

 didn't work

The new chisel was sharp enough and was effortlessly trimming the proud. What killed it was it was flexing. Initially it was flushing trim but as I progressed through sweeping the chisel across the dowel it was riding up. I could feel the chisel flexing as I used it. Maybe a wider width chisel would work better at this than this 1/2" wide one.

 might as well

Decided to clean and smooth out the old finish. I am going to only do the surfaces that show after books are in it.

hmmm.....

I can see lines going across the shelf that the books made. Some of them span the entire width. Cleaning and smoothing them out proved to be a PITA. I had to use a card scraper to remove them.

had an oops here

There is a dutchman here but I don't remember why I did it. At least it is at the back where it isn't seen.

 second dutchman

This one I remember doing. There was a big pocket of pitch/gum here. 

not waiting

Rather then wait for the cherry dowels to come I will use walnut. I don't mind mixing the woods and I think the walnut will provide a nice contrast.

 ready for the dowels

I couldn't get the bottom right slat to fully seat and close the gap. I'm sure that has to do with the larger 2x dowels already cooked and fixing the shelf/ends in place.

 my nemesis

I'm sure it is laughing at me but once a book is here it will be muffled.

y

The back slats are angled and aren't parallel to the back edge. The bottom edge of each slat at is about 3/16" further away from the back edge then the top edge. It was little tricky to layout and I double, tripled checked myself three times. I didn't have any blowouts - the slats are only a 1/2" thick.

 new project

This is something I have only done once before. I am doing a full scale drawing of it. This is a folding, two step ladder. I have made a couple of kitchen step stools/ladders and this one is a little different. This one will collapse to a depth of about  4" and will have a grab bar at the top to hold on to. 

 done

The drawing is only a side view. I don't need a frontal or a back one to make this. The side view gives all the critical angles.

 

 small scale model

I made model legs because I wanted to check/confirm my angles and eyeball how the splay of the legs looked. The angles appear to be spot on and I like the amount of the splay. Seeing something 3D tells me more than a drawing can.

 potential hiccup?

The front leg will fold inside of the back leg. The top of the back leg will pivot and the heel of the angle might bind as it pivots down to close up.

 pivot point secured

It was easier to find the center of the two legs then I thought. Secured the two with a 8-32 screw and nut. With this setup the back leg pivoted without binding or rubbing the board on the stop on the front leg.

There will be a stop of some kind here. There won't be anything else to stop the back leg when opening up the ladder. The top front angle will bear against the stop and hold the back leg in place. More importantly it will keep the back leg from moving once it hits the stop. I have a few ideas for the stop but nothing concrete yet.

 rounded it a wee bit

In the above pic the 'problem' corner cleared the stop but barely. I knocked it down with a rasp removing the hard edge of it. Ready to build once I get the wood for it.

tung oil box

This is still not dry. With the lid closed, upon opening it, it sticks. The finish doesn't feel tacky anywhere though. I have the box 2 feet away from a radiator to help it cure but it has been a couple weeks. I'll keep an eye on it and keep checking it.

accidental woodworker

2025 Workshop Schedule

Big Sand Woodworking - Mon, 01/27/2025 - 2:14pm

Just a quick update to share some workshops I’ll be teaching this year. The first series of workshops will be in Kentucky, hosted by The Year of Mud, where once again I’ll be assisting Yamamoto-san of Somakosha. The Year of Mud workshops are as follows: Later in the year I’ll also be teaching a kumiko… Read More »2025 Workshop Schedule

The post 2025 Workshop Schedule appeared first on Big Sand Woodworking.

cherry cupboard is done........

Accidental Woodworker - Mon, 01/27/2025 - 3:32am

It was ooh and aah time this AM. The tile had set up overnight and it was secure and not moving. This is only the 3rd cherry project that I can remember making. The first was a cherry clock I made about 35 years ago. The second was a shelf that I finally put up on a wall in the bedroom. That only took about 4-5 years to get done. The 3rd cherry project is this cupboard.

I have mostly worked in pine through the years I think for two reasons. The first was pine is cheaper than hardwoods. The second one is my skill level. While it has improved I was of the opinion that it was not good enough to risk butchering a pile of nice hardwoods. That changed with the completion of this cupboard. I think I have now finally arrived at the point where my skill over rides my apprehension about messing up using hardwood. 

 this surprised me

This is a steep angle but the magnets are still holding the door shut. Tipped another 10° the magnets let go and the door opened. I have zero doubt about the magnets being able to keep the door closed with the cupboard hanging on a wall.

 first glamour pic

I am not a photographer, nor do I want to be one. I'm woodworker who snaps pics of things I make. I have read about how to photograph projects and reduce background distractions. I even tried it a couple of times and decided it wasn't worth the calorie count for me. I really like how the purple colors of the tile play against the cherry. 

 interior shot

Adjustable shelf with five positions. The entire cupboard is made from solid cherry except for the back. That is an MDF panel with cherry veneer on both faces.

 drawers

The drawers will hold a lot of stuff. Cherry fronts with pine sides and back and drawer slips. The bottom is 1/4" plywood with what looks to me like pine on the up face. If I make another one of these I will cut down the height of the drawers and increase the space behind the door.

 side pic

Most all the cherry I used is flat sawn. For the door stiles and rails I tried to use rift sawn or as close to it as I could.

the back

Left the back end of the drawer opening, open. I did that because of the size restriction I could buy for the cherry back panel. On the second one of these I'll enclose it with a cherry panel. Still haven't fixed the boo-boo caused by the nail in the lower left corner.

 as a comparison

This was the prototype cupboard I did first in pine. I changed a couple of the dimensions (width about the same/depth & height increased) and hinge/knob details. Other than that it is the sibling I used to learn some tricks for doing the cherry one.

interior shot

Adjustable shelves which I think are a must unless the cupboard is purposefully built for specific storage items. The back is the same as the cherry one - the drawer opening at the back is open too.

I might change the moldings if or when I make a 2nd one. My wife got confused with the moldings and couldn't see initially what was the top and what was the bottom (the drawers weren't in it then). She also loves it which is a rarity with her. She is actively looking for a spot to hang it.

 forgot a 4th one

Saw this while I was typing this blog post. I made a cherry table book shelf. I have made a bazillion of these mostly in pine. I also made one of walnut and maple but I think that one is in the boneyard somewhere.

 the other end

The windows are getting the full morning sun - they sit about 10 degrees off dead east to the north. I saw a problem with this end. The dado is opening up at the end. I could put a letter opener into it about an inch and a half. I'll have to bring it to the shop and reglue it. Or better than that, screws or miller dowels.

accidental woodworker

PS ordered 1x and 2x cherry miller dowels from Taylor Toolworks - both were on sale.

...and I wait again.....

Accidental Woodworker - Sun, 01/26/2025 - 3:43am

 I thought today I would be posting the glamour shots of the cherry cupboard. It didn't happen boys and girls. I think I'm done working on it but I have to wait (24hrs) for the tile on the door to cook. I got that done and I'm going to clean up and finish a few other projects I started and stopped. Haven't picked what is next in the queue to occupy my limited attention span.

 door magnet and cup

It felt solid this AM. I resisted the urge to check it before I hit the rack last night. I had to give the epoxy time to cook upstairs where it was warmer than the shop.

 it is pulling

The door closed and stayed that way. More importantly the door magnet and cup didn't get sucked out and pulled onto to the inside carcass magnet. The attraction between the two magnets is pulling the two together at about this point. It is a strong bond but not too bad to pull the door open against.

 nope

I titled the carcass forward and the door stayed closed. I wasn't sure if the two magnets would be strong enough to keep the door shut. Not sure if it will pass this same test with the tile glued on. I'll try that tomorrow.

happy with this

I like the low profile of this door catch. I thought of painting the magnet black but I'm leaving it as is. 

 yikes

This was the first nail I tried to drive home on the back. It didn't go well for me. The first two nails bent with the second one giving me fits trying to pull it out. I had to drill a pilot hole for this and all the other nails. I wasn't expecting the cherry to throw such a hissy fit with driving brads into it. I will touch up the area around the nail with shellac.

road trip upcoming

I thought I had some gorilla construction adhesive left but I must of tossed it in the shitcan. I almost went to Lowes to buy another one when I remembered ACE is a two minute drive away. Picked up a tube there to glue the tile to the panel.

 feet for the box

I had to spend a few calories evening out the feet - the angles were off. I didn't try to get all four to be within +/- two atoms, just the two front ones and the two back ones.

 not exciting me much

After gluing these on I wasn't getting a complete warm and fuzzy with them. They looked bland on the box although it didn't rock at all. I think they need something else to unify their placement on the box. I'll think about it over night.

I saw a pic of a kitchen step ladder that I got an itch to make. I spent over an hour trying to find some ladder hardware. What I found wasn't inspiring in the least. It also looked they like the two spreaders were the same. I think they should be mirror images of each other - a left and right hand version. I have the cheapest ones I could find in a basket while I decide whether or not to buy them.

accidental woodworker

Chickenopolis

Rivers Joinery - Sun, 01/26/2025 - 2:20am

When I'm not stopping buildings falling down, making furniture, carpentry, framing and joinery........I'm doing more carpentry! No, not really. Me and her outdoors, try to be self-sufficient in fruit and vegetables and eggs. She is more green-fingered than I, but it's quite handy that I can build all the infrastructure!


We used to have problems with rodents, until we built Chickenopolis. The raised houses give the chooks somewhere dry to dustbathe, their favourite activity, even in wet weather. It makes them easier to clean out and means the rodents have nowhere to get comfortable; wheelbarrow under the big door, open it and pull out the waste, then off to the compost heap. There is a covered way down the middle; for collecting eggs from the nest boxes, sorting feed out and storing tools. Having a dry space to do it all makes all the difference.

In other news, the new old van is on the road, with new livery.



Rolling Things Forward

The Apartment Woodworker - Sat, 01/25/2025 - 3:32pm
Hope everyone’s 2025 is off to a great start! I am actively ignoring the shitshow that is the United States federal government for the next 2-4 years, so that means more woodworking! I was recently up north where I have a basic set of hand tools and a pretty good workbench in a shed. My […]

cherry cupboard penultimate edition.......

Accidental Woodworker - Sat, 01/25/2025 - 3:30am

 It seems I'm not alone with bone chilling temps. Every blog I read I see that there are people worse off than I am. I have seen temps down into the minus single digits F. This weather is here to stay in my part of the universe for at least ten more days due to the extended forecast. It may be freezing cold but we haven't seen much in the way of the white stuff. We have at around 10 more weeks for a white blanket to be dropped.

 white as a sheet

I had to plane the chamfer and the front edge to remove a lot of dings, dents, and other causalities inflicted on it by Miles and Leo. Eventually it will mellow out and match the rest of the lid. In the interim I will leave it in the sun as much as I can.

still not done

I got the OS loaded yesterday and configured all the computer settings I wanted. I had play around pushing a lot of buttons because I had forgotten how to do a couple of them - like shutting off the time out. This AM I got Firefox, YouTube, and my mail set up. Of course I spent/wasted a lot of time hunting down where I hid the passwords for them.

 it is a Stanley #52

I'll be rehabbing this one now that I have the iron headache straightened out. I had already flattened the sole so all I have to do is strip and paint it.

 touched up

These are two Preston spokeshaves that I have in the grandson's toolchests. I checked the irons, touched them quickly, and road tested them.

no problems

The handles on the Preston spokeshaves weren't so awkward feeling today. They still are larger than the Stanley or Record ones but they didn't feel funny today. Made shavings easily with both of the them.  The bottom one has a flat sole and the top one a convex one.

 Stanley #2

This is in the grandson's toolchest. I gave it to them because of the size of it. I think is sized just right for young, smaller hands. Works just as well as its larger siblings.

 nope

In spite of now being able to set it up correctly I couldn't get it sharpen this iron. It kept slipping and shifting while using it. I cranked down on the screws and made promises to it but to no avail. As soon I bore down and applied even a little bit of pressure, the iron would slip. I had this same problem with the LV honing jig for chisels and plane irons. I sharpened this one by hand.

 working as it should

Rounded over the edge and also made some full width face shavings. After sharpening the irons it was like I never had any headaches at all with these.

 Preston chamfer spokeshave

Took a detour and starting playing around with the Preston chamfer spokeshave. No problems making chamfers, with or against the grain, and both pulling or pushing it.

 they aren't even

Did something wrong to get this to come out as is. I think it was because I didn't use the same guide fence as my reference when making the chamfer on both sides.

 even

The pic shows the chamfers to be a little skewed but they aren't. The ends are a bit wonky due to that is where the spokeshave first engages the wood. It will take some practice to eliminate that hiccup. I used the same fence as my reference when planing it on both sides. 

within a frog hair

I wasn't trying to do this - it came out this way based on how far apart I had set the two fences. There is a thin flat sliver where the two toes come together.

 smallest chamfer

This is the smallest chamfer I could make with it. I don't know how to adjust this for a specific chamfer - so far it has been me just moving the fences in/out from the center. I will keep playing with it because I want to be able to do asymmetrical chamfers, ie, where the two faces of the fences aren't equidistant on the edge. 

 done

I put 5 coats on it because 3 didn't look good to my eye. I rubbed it down with Howards feed 'n wax and 4-0 steel wool. This will live next to the boxes of shelf pins and cups.

 done

I lost two screws but I have plenty of extras. I brought this upstairs and put it in a corner in the bedroom - it will get the afternoon sun everyday it shines.

 cup or a plate

Decided to use the smaller catch. The larger 5/8" is way too big. It would be like squirrel hunting with a bazooka. The magnetic attraction of a 5/8" is way too strong. With the smaller one I have a choice of using the cup with a second magnet or the plate and one magnet.

the winner

I am going with a magnet in the catch and one in the cup. That should be sufficient to attract and hold the door shut.

wee bit awkward

I am slapping myself on the back for leaving the back of this off. It was a borderline postal PITA starting this screw.

 I was due for a fuzzy pic

Gimlets to the rescue again. This is the smallest gimlet I have and it is the perfect size for pilot holes for a #4 screw.

 2nd attempt

I screwed up the first attempt - I didn't set it back from the edge to account for the door. Instead I set it flush with the edge. Set it back and drilled another pilot hole and this one wasn't far enough from the edge (no I didn't measure, I eyeballed it). I tried to file it because I needed to push it back about a 16th. That didn't work.

 3 times was the charm

Had to drill a 3rd pilot hole and that one worked. The catch has about a 1/8" wiggle room to shift it in/out. I got lucky that the 3rd hole covered the 2nd hole. The first hole is not covered and is left for everyone to see.

 hmm.....

The cup is a 1/2" OD and the plate is a 3/8" OD. The 1/2" one is too close to the edge.

 barely

There is a sliver of wood missing on the edge right where this hole would be. If it wasn't missing I would attempt to drill the hole. Instead I'm going to move the center downward a wee bit.

flush

It took a while to do this. I would drill some and check. I used a fortsner bit and I didn't have a drill stop to help me out. 

 another broken screw

I tried it out and it worked and didn't work. The magnet sits in the cup proud of the door so I had to drill the depth for the cup down a few more frog hairs. Of course the ^*@%)*@_)#%(&@*$_@)%*@Q*)_#@*_ screw broke off.  I couldn't get it out but I was able to push it out of the way with a nail punch.

 fingers crossed

I might have made it a few frog hairs too deep (maybe). I'm hoping that the two magnets will still be close enough to be able to attract each other.

it worked

Well it kind of worked. The door did close and the attraction and pull was sufficient. However, the magnet in the cup got sucked out and stuck to the magnet in catch. I would super glue the cup and magnet but I nixed that. I have used superglue with these magnets and plates/cups before and it didn't work. Initially it works and secures the magnets/cups/plates but eventually the bond fails. I used 5 minute marine epoxy because that is the only 5min stuff I had.

failed

I waited 15 minutes and tried to shut the door. The magnets attracted and pulled the door shut. When I opened it the cup and magnet from door were stuck to door catch magnet. I put the magnet and cup back in its hole and brought it upstairs to cook where it is warm. I'll wait until the AM before I check it again.

accidental woodworker

warmed up some.......

Accidental Woodworker - Fri, 01/24/2025 - 3:46am

 The temp was a balmy 16F (-9C) this AM. When I went grocery shopping this AM it wasn't that bad. The wind wasn't blowing which made it seem like it was warmer than what it was. The next 10 days at night will have average temps in the low 20's. 

it's toast again

This version of Linux Mint I got is buggy. Problems with the audio and funny business with updates along with occasional freezes. Yesterday it went off into Linux La La Land and this AM it was still there. Didn't want to do it but I blew in a clean, buggy Linux OS again.

tight

After one coat the lid opening/closing is tight. I wasn't expecting it to be this snug after just one application. 

 came yesterday

Bought a set of 4 for $8. One was selling for $15.

 fixing the lid

Sanded the top and outside edges of the rabbets. Kept at until the lid slid in/out with ease.

fixed (?)

Sanded the rabbets until the lid fell off when the box went almost vertical. Not only do I have to account for the shellac but the expansion of the lid come summer.

 not worth it

Another cheaply made chinese product. It is goat hair (supposedly) but it is poorly made. A lot of the hairs got deposited on the box and the toy box lid. It isn't as full (thick) as the 1" brush I have used for over 5-6 years.

 so far so good

I had one minor glitch with the first install and I had to start again. I forgot to pick erase and format the hard drive before loading the OS.

 acting up too

It is looking like the Windows laptop is jealous of the attention I'm giving to the Linux computer. The mouse isn't working like it should. When I click on something, nothing happens. The computer froze on me and I couldn't even shut it down. After 3 fits and starts it was working but I was still experiencing a lot of wait time after a mouse click.

while Linux loads

This is a Paul Sellers jig for sharpening spokeshave irons. I had 5 spokeshaves to sharpen.

sharp cures all

Got a burr on the back, a shiny bevel, stropped it, and did a road test. It was like I had never had any problems with a spokeshave before. I was able to make shavings pushing and pulling it. Problem solved? Time will tell.

 first time

Doing a round over was hiccup free and spokeshaving a whole width face was a first for me. No problems making shavings pushing or pulling. I tried it on both faces and got shavings equally so on both.

 2nd on

I don't know the number of this Stanley spokeshave. This one doesn't have an adjustable iron. I set the iron with a hammer. Rounded over the end hiccup free. 2 for 2 so far.

 3rd spokeshave

#3 making shavings and it seems that I didn't sharpen the irons properly. I don't remember how or when I did them the first time. Got a burr and that is probably what I didn't get on the first go around. 

 round bottom sole

I didn't feel any difference in this one over the ones I used before it. The only thing I had to do with it was tip it backwards more so then them.

ditto

This is a round bottom soled Record. Other than that it is identical to the one above. No problems making shavings with this one.

 Preston spokeshave iron

This one wasn't working for me. It was clogging after taking 1-2 shavings. The iron is sharp because it is easily chamfering this pine.

 it was a senior moment

I had the iron in backwards which explains why it was clogging. This Preston spokeshave has the tightest mouth of all of my spokeshaves. This felt a little awkward to use - the handles are larger than the other spokeshaves. I'm sure that I will get use it with time.

 Preston spokeshave sole

This is a flat soled spokeshave and you can see how tight the mouth is. The iron in this can't be adjusted laterally neither. The adjusting nut advances the iron straight down. The Preston iron is also unique and there aren't any to be had in the wild. I searched for months and never even got the slightest hint of one.

 came after lunch

These are the only two sizes that Lee Valley offers. I think the 5/8" one is too big for the cherry cupboard door. The smaller one isn't giving a warm and fuzzy it is up to the task.

 wrong cups

I have a boatload of these super strong magnets and cups. I had ordered the wrong size cups for the small one but I had plenty of them.

 don't have any

I ordered the wrong size magnets for this and I don't have any in my stash. However, I did get lucky and I was able to add them to an order I had placed with Lee Valley just before lunch. Should have the magnets for this next week?

 the smaller one

The magnet in this is only 3/8" diameter. The attraction is stronger if you use the cup. I still don't think this is strong enough to keep the cherry door closed. I might feel better about that if the cherry was 3/4" vice 7/8" thick and there wasn't a 8x8 tile glued to the panel. Looks like another delay upcoming.

 new tool

There have been more than a few instances where I could have used a chisel like this. Finally bit the bullet and bought the 1/2" one - couldn't afford to buy the set. It is with regret I'm buying this too because I had 3 dog leg japanese chisels that I sold about 12 years ago. I didn't know how to sharpen then and I couldn't sharpen them so I sold them.  This 1/2" chisel is PM-V11 which I didn't know as I thought I had bought the O1 version.

  foot long

I got this so I can flush tenons and mortises and anything else of interest. This will satisfy my curiosity about PM-V11 tool steel too. It supposedly holds an edge for a long time?

 when I found out

If I need another one of these I'll just have to buy the chisel end. The handle unscrews and can be used for all the chisels in the set.

 big difference

The one on the left is thicker and fuller than the chinese one on the right. It is floppy and it doesn't drink up as much shellac as the left one can. I think I'll be buying the $15 dollar one now. The right doesn't leave brush marks but it doesn't feel right using it to lay down shellac.

 hmmm........

The iron was shifting in the Paul Sellers jig when I remembered I had this. I tried using it before on a spokeshave but it didn't work out for me.

 read the instructions this time

The shiny spots are from the first and only time I tried using this. After reading the instructions I realized what I had done wrong. I'll be trying it out tomorrow on the last two spokeshaves I have left to sharpen.

accidental woodworker

New Iron for a Scrub Plane

Woodworking in a Tiny Shop - Thu, 01/23/2025 - 10:14pm
A few years ago I made this scrub plane.  See here and here for details.  For the iron, I used what appeared to be a homemade plane blade I had found at a garage sale.  

Scrub plane from 2022

Body, wedge and blade

The iron, as found

I had no idea what type of steel that iron was made from, and really didn't know if it was any good at all. It was thick - about 7/32" thick. When I made the plane, I hardened and tempered the iron.  I've used it a bit, though not a huge amount, and it seemed to be cutting well for a short time, but needed sharpening quickly.  Last year after using it a while I noticed some chips in the cutting edge.  Apparently the steel wasn't a type one should use for edge tools.  Either that or I messed up the heat treatment.

If you look closely, you can see the chips in the edge

Another view from bevel side

The plane has been sitting on the "rehab shelf" for several months now and finally I'm getting the chance to do something about it.  I tried reheat-treating the iron and got it to cherry red and nonmagnetic, but after quenching in oil, a file still was able to bite into it, so the heat treatment clearly didn't do the job I intended.  Time to punt on that iron.  I had a chunk of 1/8" thick O-1 steel of the same width as the old iron, and I shaped it, hardened it and tempered it.

Old iron and new one ready to be shaped

I drew a 1/16" bulge on the end and filed the shape

Then mounted it in a vise at about 25 deg and filed the bevel.
I followed that with the hand-cranked grinder.

Shaped the back end similar to some other irons I've got

Here's my heat-treating setup

The iron warped a little from heat treating.  The front 1" of the back side was hollow and it took a long time to get it flat.  The bevel side had a belly at the front 1".  The rest (not hardened) stayed flat.

The old iron had a more severe camber on the blade - about 1/8" bulge over the 1 1/2" width.  In practice, I never used the entire width of that iron because it was just too much wood removal.  The new iron I shaped to about 1/16" bulge over the 1 1/2" width.  That's about a 4 1/2" radius for anyone counting.

But because the new iron is thinner, I needed a thicker wedge.  Instead of making a new wedge, I glued a piece of wood to the underside of the existing wedge and planed it down so that the wedge would sit in the throat at the right location.  I thought I used the same wood, but apparently it's not because it looks much different.

Gluing a piece of wood onto the underside of the wedge

It looks a little funky, but it'll be functional

Here's the thing about the wedge.  It needs to be fairly precisely shaped to provide a good fit of the wedge/iron to the plane body.  But almost as important as that (and probably equally as important for other types of planes) is the fit and final location of the wedge's fingers.

Here's a pic of the unfinished wedge from a few years ago.
Note the angled shape of the end of the fingers (left).

Inside the plane's throat, at the bottom of the wedge abutments, the abutments angle toward the plane's sides.  This provides a ramp for the shavings coming off the iron.  It's very tough to get a good photograph of the wedge fingers and the plane body's lower abutments, but hopefully you'll see what I'm getting at.

Looking through the mouth, you can see the wedge and lower abutment.
A close-up image is next.

The red arrow points to the lower abutment that angles toward the plane's side.
The yellow arrow points to the wedge finger (note it is two-tone - both light
and dark colors are the finger).  The finger's angle should line up with the abutment's angle.

I took a couple shavings off the underside of the wedge until the fit was just right.

Well, that's it.  The new iron fits great and the wedge holds it securely.  I put a little BLO on the wedge's added-on bottom and the scrub plane is back in business.  I'll report back if this new iron is not performing as I expect it to.

Openings in a Carved Box class

Peter Follansbee, joiner's notes - Thu, 01/23/2025 - 5:41am

May at Galbert’s shop, Berwick ME

Carved box, oak & pine

I posted this yesterday on Substack, here it is for those who might only see my posts here…

here’s your notice – there’s some openings in my 2nd carved box class at Pete Galbert’s shop in Berwick, ME. May 25-30, 2025.

We won’t get to painting, but that box is the sort of thing we produce in the class. They’re about 7” high, 14” x 24”. Each student chooses their own pattern(s) after a couple of days of practice. The wood is quartersawn red oak for the box parts – white pine lids & bottoms. Handmade iron nails secure the bottom and the lid’s cleats that form the hinge.

Each time I teach this, I’m astounded at the students’ work. It’ll be a blast. This is the link, disregard that its title is about making a chair…

https://www.petergalbert.com/schedule/2020/7/13/make-a-chair-from-a-tree-with-peter-follansbee-8brcj-7b62n-xafjp-mglkm-lrd5m-swyzh-zr7nn

student work – Karen C.

Small class size, lots of details…and this time we’ll be in Pete’s new shop – can’t wait. See you there?

wee bit chilly.......

Accidental Woodworker - Thu, 01/23/2025 - 4:09am

 This AM I was greeted with a temp of 9F (-13C) but the shop was still a toasty 55F (11C). However, it was uncomfortable in the shop. Gone are the days where it had to be below zero, with me wearing a Tee shirt, before I felt cold. The PM session was better then the AM one - I didn't feel like a popsicle. Overnight temps are going to be low going into the 2nd week of feb. Jan and feb are usually the coldest months here in New England.

 changed my mind

I flushed the pins/tails last night sitting at my desk with a chisel. In the AM decided to use a solid wood bottom rather then 1/8" plywood. I am not sure how well the solid pine wood bottom will hold up. If it goes south I'll plane it off and glue on 1/8" plywood.

mahogany is out too

Nixed the mahogany lid and I'm going with a pine one. That will make the entire box made out of the same wood.

won't flow out

According to Titebond it says not to use the glue or the material if the temp is below 50F. I tipped the bottle and the glue barely moved. The white glue flowed, slowly, but it did come out. I brought both bottles of glue upstairs to keep warm. 

 glued and cooking

Brought this upstairs and set it on a radiator. There isn't anyplace in the shop now that emanates any heat. The new boiler barely feels warm to the touch.

 hmmm.....

It was tapered slightly. I planed equally stepping across the board and I was making equal shavings but I wasn't flat across the width. I used the #3 to plane it flat and parallel by eye. 

experiment

This is the spot I chop tails and pins. I butt one end of the board up against the sliding stop on the left. I want to be able to do that standing in front of the vise. The end cap floats so it isn't always flush with the benchtop. It is something I have been meaning to fix but I haven't after a bazillion years. This is a board with a 3 stops - one on the left, one at the top, and one to clamp on with the vise.

 I think this will work

I have a stop on the left to butt against with the tails on the right. I like the chopping the tails with them running vertically so I can clearly see if I am chopping them at 90°. The top stop I'm thinking will be used for half blind dovetailing. Not 100% sure on that but this is all scrap and I can make another if using it dictates that.

 need two rabbets

For small work rabbets I prefer to use this LN blockplane.  

 beads and chamfer work

I planed the rabbets with a slight angle tilting downward into the shoulders. Thankfully I had left the pencil lines and I squared up the angles to 90 with the small record shoulder plane. I purposefully left it long because I still had to plane the beads - that allowed for any tear out from that to be sawn off.

took some fussing

The side to side was tight. I could slide in/out but not without exerting a little oomph to pull it out or push it in. It is incredibly easy to go from snug fitting to one that rattles and has excessive side to side play. I did one wispy shaving at time checking the fit after each one until it slid in/out easier.

didn't forget
I did the layout for the thumb catch thing. I usually miss it doing it now and end up doing it after everything else is done. It easier and more accurate to mark at this stage.

 sanding the end grain

I sand the end grain (both front and rear) up to 220. Off the saw the ends look and feel rough and stay that way when you apply the finish. Here I'm doing the rear and overall the lid is proud but I'll eat it up sanding the end to be almost flush when I'm done.

 just right

I got a good fit. It isn't crammed all together and there is a little extra to add to it down the line.

 sliding lid groove gaps

I didn't plan on this but the gaps came out pretty small. Rather than fill them with wood I used wood putty. Also used it to fill the gaps on a couple of the tails/pins.

 always forget something

I don't like the squared ends on the grooves. I used to plane a 45° angle there but I switched to rounding them over. Caught while pulling the lid off to do the final sanding before the shellac went on.

 first coat

I am only going to put on 3 coats. I'm not sure if I'll be able to resist the urge to do more though. Paul Sellers said that 3 coats are sufficient protection for a shop project.

toy lid

The dark area on the end is from sunlight (?). I didn't know that pine reacted this way. I should have been done it while I was doing the cherry cupboard. Not a big deal as it will be another couple of months before it wings it way back to North Carolina. I'll do the back first, flip it, and then do the top.

accidental woodworker

Do a Favor for Your Non-woodworking Friends - Sharpen Their Kitchen Knives

Tools For Working Wood - Wed, 01/22/2025 - 4:00am
Do a Favor for Your Non-woodworking Friends - Sharpen Their Kitchen Knives 1
An occupational / avocational hazard many of us have faced as woodworkers: a request to make a piece of furniture. It might be for a significant birthday present; it might be for payment (or not). Its just a stool (or picture frame, or jewelry box, or bench - to be fair, it typically isnt a Queen Anne Highboy. In other words, its a reasonable ask - except its sometimes hard to make the time and space and effort to make it.

There are many factors driving the interest in spoon carving, but surely the relative speed, space demands, material demands, skill demands, etc. of making a spoon versus making a piece of furniture helps promote spoon-making. The joys of creation and the joys of gifting meet the joy of (relatively) immediate gratification!

But if you dont want to make a spoon, or if your intended recipient doesnt need or want your spoon, you can give another gift that uses your hard-won skills: knife sharpening.

A friend who took a cooking class brought her newly-sharpened chefs knife (her knife; my gift of sharpening) to class. She immediately got a gold star from her teacher. A woodworker did this! They really know what sharp means! The teacher then devoted 10 unscripted minutes of the class to talk about sharpening and its importance in making culinary prep easier.

If you have chisels and plane blades, I hope you have learned to sharpen them. What about your kitchen knives? They work best when sharp too!

It's beyond the scope of this blog entry to go through all the lessons and things you need to know to specifically sharpen knives. But basically it's exactly the same skill you would use in sharpening your other blades. But - even better - kitchen knives are typically cutting softer material than wood and therefore they don't need to be as sharp as woodworking tools.

In woodworking we aim for that glass smooth edge. The smoother the edge, the fewer scratches, the longer the edge will last. That's because wood offers a fair amount of resistance to cutting, which stresses the blades. With cutting food, on the other hand, you can actually get away with a fairly coarse edge. A sawtooth can slice away at a piece of meat even when it isnt super sharp. You can get a lot of use out of a second- rate serrated knife. You even see serrated knives recommended for delicate cutting tasks such as cutting a tomato because a dull serrated knife will do a much better job getting past the tomatos skin than a dull chefs knife does. But on a delicate piece of fish the sawtooth will grab and tear. Kitchen knives also can quickly get dull because they get pushed against cutting boards, which is bad for the edge. (BTW plastic cutting boards are just deadly against a sharp edge.)

As is true with saws, even poorly sharpened knives will cut better than dull knives.

In the pictures I am sharpening several kitchen knives. The series of stones I am using are 400 grit (to bring up a wire edge); 1200 grit (to start chasing the edge); and 5000 grit (to finish and polish the edge). I then strop with newspaper. Why do I use that sequence of stones? In the shop I would use diamond stones; here I am using some older waterstones that I dont use for woodworking anymore - so I might as well use them in the kitchen. Although diamond stones are faster, everything works. When I am feeling lazy I skip the 5000 grit, but I find I get a better result at 5K. I used to add a 10K grit stone, but that seemed like overkill - an impressive edge, but it didnt last.

Sharp tools, whether sharp kitchen knives or sharp chisels, not only make the work easier, it opens new possibilities in doing the work. Imagine the difference using a sharp knife that doesnt slip and cuts where you intend to cut. Such a tool makes any cook appear more skillful and inspires more complex and potentially rewarding work.

I began this blog entry describing sharpening as a skill that you could offer to others because most of the users of kitchen knives have no idea how to sharpen them. Most of the advice I have seen on-line on newspaper cooking sections or mass market cooking sites is actively bad. But to be fair, the writers of these articles seem to not know what "sharp" actually means, or in the alternative, they do not regard sharpening skills in the same way they regard cooking skills: while they will spend decades learning to cook an omelet in a reliably excellent way, they think mastering a basic mechanical non-cooking skill is either beyond them or not worth learning how to do consistently. The standard advice seems to center on using honing steel or some gadget that shaves metal off, or something electric that holds the blade at a special angle. The main problem with honing steels is that they dont remove metal so much as push it around. Over time the bevel will become steeper and therefore less able to do its work. Hand gadgets that shave metal off work, but not without effort and care. Electric knife sharpeners, at least the good ones, work better, but they do take off more metal and do not get to nearly the same level of polish you can get to by hand. Depending on the machine, the knife may also end up with a more fragile edge.

But the most satisfying aspect of knife sharpening by hand may not be the end result, but rather the wonder of using your unusual skills to do something nice for someone else. Even if you cant present someone with a custom bookshelf, you can still use your talents as a woodworker to give them a useful and appreciated gift.

Do a Favor for Your Non-woodworking Friends - Sharpen Their Kitchen Knives 2

and now I wait......

Accidental Woodworker - Wed, 01/22/2025 - 3:22am

 I don't know if the snow storm yesterday is going to hold up the Lee Valley order from getting here on thursday. When I checked it this AM it said it got to Shrewsbury Massachusetts on the 18th. Shrewsbury is about an hour north of me. Seems they must be hand carrying and walking it to Warwick. Anyways the back is still off and will be until I get the magnetic catch installed. Which hopefully will happen on the 23rd.

 yikes

It was 11F (-12C) when I rolled out of the rack. Three hours later and it had zoomed up 3 whole degrees. The temp for today topped out at 25F (-4C).

 wee bit chilly

I have yet to see the temp in the shop dip below 50F (10C). The temp did rise back up to 57F which has been what the shop has been hovering around for a couple of weeks now.

thinking ahead

I won this router off eBay a few years back. Never got around to making it functional. What appealed me was the large base and the two positions to put the iron in. Sort of like a wanna be Preston router.

 sloppy fit

The iron is thinner than the diameter of the hole. There also isn't a flat on it to tighten the thumb screw against. The sole is flat but I didn't go into OCD mode checking that.

 5/16" drill bit

I measured the current iron diameter and the holes to get an idea of what I have to deal with. I checked the holes for square using a square on the sole against the 5/16" drill bit. Both holes are square to the sole. The drill bit is slip fit - teeny bit of looseness but nothing like what the current iron has.

as is

The iron will cut and make shavings but only for the first 1/2" inward and then nothing. The iron didn't slip or twist in the hole. I was surprised that the thumbscrew could exert sufficient force against it. 

T
from the other side

I checked the board and it had a hump right where I was using the router. Planed it flat-ish and I was able to make shavings going in for an inch. I still couldn't make a complete pass from one side to the other.

The plan is to buy some 5/16" O1 tool bar stock and try to make an iron. Another option is to broach the two holes to take a Stanley router iron. This option will entail me finding a machinist which I haven't had much success with previously. The one thing I don't like about the 5/16" bar stock is the cutting edge of the iron can't be any bigger then 5/16". 

rejuvenated

Done and it only got one ooh and aah. Looks better to me with the finish touched up.

need a box

I checked my stash of boxes and I didn't have any that would work. All of them were way too big just for this. I am at anchor with the cherry cupboard so I'll knock out this while a wait.

 prepped

I got the box sized - 1/2" stock I thinned down to 3/8". The lid is going to bemahogany. I had to fill in a groove in so this will be the down side of the sliding lid.

used the dozuki

Tails were done and the pins were in the batters box. The front and back ends are only 3 1/4" and I thought the small size would be awkward to do but it wasn't.

always a good feeling

I had to trim one half pin for the front. I should have trimmed the vertical wall rather then the slant. Got a gap due to that mind fart.

 flushing

Ran the #4 around the top and bottom flushing and evening them out.

checking the top

I had a bit of twist that I had to plane. The top has to be twist free because that is the reference edge when I plow the grooves. 

 plowing the grooves

This clamping position works. I have tried it a couple of times without any headaches. The quibble I have with it is clamping it in the vise. If the heads aren't far apart the vise will only tighten on one head. I tried using it this way without any problems. If I clamped the bar 180 out it would only close on one head. Which wasn't stable and the clamp moved as I used the plane.

less than a 16th off

Brought it upstairs and put it on a radiator to cook for a few hours.

 prepped

Bottom and top ready to be fitted. The bottom is dead on the width and I might make another one. There is zero wiggle room and I'm concerned about it shifting when I glue it on. I'll deal with that tomorrow.

Got two days of AM and PM sessions. The foot is kinda better but will throw me a twinge of pain now and then. It hurt walking this morning when I went to Wally World. The rest of the day was bearable. I want this to go away so I can get back to my post lunch strolls.

accidental woodworker

Project Phoenix: VI........Completed!

A Luthiers Blog - Tue, 01/21/2025 - 7:28am

 

Project Phoenix, the remaking of an archtop acoustic guitar that I made in 1977 into a semi-acoustic bass, is now complete. It’s been quite a journey but I’m extremely happy with the outcome. Have a look for yourself and many thanks for your support.

 


2 to 3 inches.......

Accidental Woodworker - Tue, 01/21/2025 - 3:42am

We got the first big snow fall of winter in my part of the universe overnight. It would have been nice if it had fallen on the 25th of December. On the flip side of the coin it was a fluffy, light, powdery snow. It took me about 40 minutes to clear off the truck and shovel the driveway. My wife clears the snow off her car by herself - I'm not allowed to do it. There is no more of the white stuff in the forecast through the rest of January. Only two more months before spring is upon us.

 2 1/2" on the wall

I didn't see any animal tracks when I shoveled this AM. I usually see cat tracks and occasionally rabbit ones but not today.

 ta-da

Sneak peek of what is to come. I got one screw in each of the hinges so I could check the swing of the door.

 3rd screw

I could feel this one starting to twist off. I tried to back it off but it gave up the ship and snapped off.

  I got lucky

I didn't hold out that this would work because there wasn't a lot sticking out to grab on to. If this hadn't worked I would have used my screw extractor and filled it in with a dowel.

 fitting the door stop

This isn't needed because of the door stop/magnetic catch I have coming. I didn't like the idea of filling in the notch in the door. That would be visible every time the door is opened. 

 yikes!

The door stop worked good at stopping the door. However, I brain farted and didn't account for the setback in the notch.

 didn't get lucky

I was hoping that I would have been able to hide the screw holes with the stop. I have to fill these in because they are unavoidable with being seen.

 cherry putty

I didn't think this was going to be a good choice. Initially the putty didn't look anything like the cherry cupboard. I still used it and an hour later I was surprised by how well it blended in.

done

There was much joy and rejoicing in the streets of Mudville. The door is within a frog hair of being flush top to bottom on the knob side. The bottom is dead flush and the top is proud by a frog hair.

inside peek
This view will not be visible when the cupboard is done. The stop is slightly recessed in the notch. Got my happy face on because I usually don't get good results like this. I screwed the stop in place rather the gluing it.

 center punch

This is a Starrett center punch and it works like a dream. I get much better results using it over using an awl.

perfectly marked

This punch is made for metal but it makes a good hole in wood and I have yet to have a drill bit wander from one.

knob screw

I was worried that this screw was going to end up in the notch for the door stop. I got plenty of real estate between the head and the notch.

 another sneak peek

I centered the door knob top/bottom and on the width of the stile. Usually I will put the door knob off center top/bottom favoring moving it upwards slightly.

 attaching the top/bottom moldings

I used black oxide, oval head screws to attach the moldings. 3 at the front and one each at the back. The back ones have elongated holes to allow for expansion and contraction.

 the original

I don't use a battery operated drill to install slot head screws. I find it impossible to drive the screws without the drill falling off the screw and ruining the wood as it dances across it. I left the heads of the screws proud. I've had good luck using the yankee driver. I have 3 of them and this is the one that gets the most love from me.

 more sneak peeks

I entertained the thought of not using the moldings. I liked the look of the cupboard without them. There wasn't any other use for them so I stuck with the original plan.

 hmm.....

This let go while I was installing the shelf pin cups. At first I didn't know what it was or where it had come from. It is the center drawer guide and I had glued it with super glue. I have zero luck with anything I glue together with super glue lasting long term. Glad it gave up the ship now so I can reglue it.

 sigh

Got two problems with the shelf. The first one is that it is too long, R to L. The second headache is this shelf pin is off from the notch in the shelf.

 glad I left it long

The shelf pin cups stick out a strong 32nd (a 16th adding both sides). The shelf did fit but it was a wee bit too snug trying to slide it by the shelf pin cups.

 shaved a few

I barely skim cut a frog hair off of both ends of the shelf.

 fixed

The shelf easily fits between the shelf pin cups at all five positions. The shelf now fits and the notches align (all four) on each shelf position too. I found that the shelf pins weren't fully seating on 6 cups. I checked and set the pins flush in all 20 of the shelf pin cups.

 fixed

I used a hammer to set the proud pins fully into the shelf pin cups. That cured the back shelf pin that didn't align with the notch.

 more shellac

I got a few smudges and the such that I needed to touch up. I'll eyeball the cupboard again in the AM and see if I need to do more shellac work. If I have no more shellac to do, all that is left to do is the magnetic door catch (coming thursday) and getting the back on. Still thinking on how I'll do that - 3 options - 1st one is to glue it, 2nd is to nail it, and the 3rd and final one is to screw it. As of this typing the 2nd option is in the lead.

 this killed the lights

I spent 15 minutes searching for this only to find it in my shirt pocket. Immediately shut the lights off and headed upstairs. BTW this is a tool for setting the shelf pin cups in the holes.

accidental woodworker

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