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Thursday, March 31, 2005

cutting expensive wood or plywood

One way to reduce the fraying on the cut, when using a table saw, is to make sure the rip fence is perfectly in line with the saw blade. if it is off line a little bit you will see evidence of fraying on the back side of the cut.
A good quality Rip Fence is very important.

You can try masking tape over the cut line to help keep the fibers on the edge from pulling up.

Or Use a Router, fitted with a straight bit will cut a clean line. A pilot bit and straight edge will help provide a clean line.

88x31 Free Shipping over $60

Saturday, March 26, 2005

cutting plywood

When using a Circular Saw, put the best face of the wood down, this will give you a clean cut.

Using Table Saw, it is just the opposite, turn the best side up.


NorthernTool.com

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Another machine for your woodworking shop

Belt Sander

Belt sanders are great for heavy sanding of lumber, and shaping woodworking projects.

There are many other uses for the belt sanders.

They are excelent for rapid sanding of rough pieces but care should be taken when you are close to completion of your project.

You should sand with the grain.

Sanding across the grain may leave sanding marks, which will be hard to take out.




todays tool

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Drill Press

Drill presses are realy good for drilling consistent holes in wood.

They can (depending on the size) drill holes, about 3" deep. This depth is good for most wood working projects, which you use your drill press on.

They are suited best for drilling through metal.
Care should be taken when doing this, make sure the stock is well held down to reduce the risk of injury if the piece comes loose.

This machine like most of the power tools you use work the best if you do not feed them to fast.

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Biscuit Joiner

If you are working with narrow stock and you want to glue them together to make larger flat surface like workbenches, table tops or drawer front, ect.

A biscuit joiner is an excellent tool for joining together pieces of wood.

This tool cuts a small slot in each side of a joint, you insert a biscuit in the slot with glue. This makes the joint much stronger and keeps the pieces being glued, lined up.

A biscuit joiner can really ruduce the time of assembly for a project.

Monday, March 21, 2005

wood working lathe

canadiantire.ca

A number of years ago our first child was on the way and I wanted to build a crib for the baby.
I did not have a lathe to turn the spindles for the sides and end of the crib.
I worked at a manufacturing plant, they had a machine shop. I worked nearby and had the machinist teach me how to operate the big lathes.
We made a small lathe for turning wood, it worked well but the turning tools we made did not work very well.


The quality of the turning tools you use makes a big difference, so don't skimp on the quality of turning tools you buy.

Sunday, March 20, 2005

Band saw

Band Saw You can use a band saw for a number of projects. It’s extremely useful for cutting shapes and curves.

You can also use a bandsaw for re-sawing lumber and cutting boards from logs but this takes a large band saw with some specilized accesories to hold the log while cutting the lumber.

Friday, March 18, 2005

Routers

Routers come in two different styles, a fixed one and a plunge style.
The fixed style, (the one I have) works well and can be mounted under the table, of my table saw. This setup is very useful, as I can use the rip fence which is on the table saw.

My router is a 1/4 inch model which is good for most of my projects, on bigger and heavier work, the 1/2 " may be the one you prefer.
Before you buy one, shop around, (there are some real good deals around), visit some of the forums which deal with woodworking.
Talk to the salesperson, ask for a brochure and warrantee, before you purchase. Most good Hardware stores have a very good return and repair/replacement program.
Make sure it will handle the work you will want to do today and tomorrow.

As time goes by, we become more expierenced at wood working,we tend to take on more complicated work.
Be sure to purchase top quality carbide tipped bits, (you will be glad you did).

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Another tool you need

Jig Saw

A jig saw is great for cutting curves and rough outlines, and a multitude of other uses.

The small size make it a very important tool for your shop. Pick a model with variable speed and a rotating head.

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

The next tool for your homeworkshop

Finishing Sander

It’s great for smoothing out a surface for painting or finishing.

You can also use it to round over edges on some of your projects.

This type of sander generally uses a ¼ piece of sandpaper and is used for finish sanding.

Sunday, March 13, 2005

generators on sale

check out this line of lighting plants on at great prices

Standard Logo - 120 x 60

Tools for around the home

The first tools you need to do most of the jobs around the homeand yard.
A good drill and a circular saw.


One of the most versitile tools you can have around the workshop is a good cordless drill. They are more convenient but are also quite a bit more expensive. A regular drill (1/2") for the heavier jobs.
there is a veriety for every budget and every need.


You can use a circular saw to trim down plywood and perform basic cuts on 2"x4"s. There are a number of woodworking plans out there that only require these two tools.

Friday, March 11, 2005

Basic Equipment for your Workshop

Table saw.

Often the first choice of shop owners, table saws range in power and size.

Motors range from one to three horsepower. 1-1/2 hp is often powerful enough for home workshops. Most table saws sold are belt-drive models.

There are some direct drive models as well.

Thursday, March 10, 2005

lighting plants

looked at lot of light plants, (Generator) there is one for every need, from one that will only run a few light bulbs to those that will run a household and more.
depending what your budget, you will find one, which will fit into it.

A word of advice, if you buy one that fits your budget today, sure as the sun comes up you will need a bigger one as time goes by.
Bite the bullet and spend the extra money, it will be money well spent.


Coleman 5,000W Electric Generator
Coleman 5,000W Electric Generator


Control panel with two 120V outlets, one 120/240V twistlock, and circuit breaker protection
Full perimeter, one inch steel, wrap around carrier protects generator from damage
5,000 rated watts with 6,250 surge watts of power
Large 5-gallon fuel tank for 6 hours of run time at 50% load
10-hp Tecumseh engine with low oil shutdown
Features a low oil red light alert indicator
Assembly required
Weight: 147 lbs (66.7kg)
Model No. PC0525302.03



Monday, March 07, 2005

rockler specials on hardware

specials from rockler

check out these hot specials

rockler catalogue

catalogue

drill bit sets

15-piece Spade Bit Set
15-piece Spade Bit Set


Ideal set for anyone who enjoys woodworking
Unique stand-up case makes it easy to see and reach the right spade
Set includes two 1/2" bits, two 1" bits, 1/4", 5/16", 3/8", 9/16", 5/8", 3/4", 1½", 1-3/8", 1¼", 1-1/8" & 7/8" bits


Jobmate 26-piece Drill Bit Set
Jobmate 26-piece Drill Bit Set


Includes 13 high-speeds-steel drill bits, 6 spade bits, 6 screwdrivers bits, and a magnetic bit holer



Carpentry Tools


Carpentry Tools

back up power

I have a portable generator which I purchaced a number of years ago. It is a 3000 watt Coleman with a 8 hp Brigg & Stratton motor.
It has been a fair backup system, although It is quite noisy and the tank is on the small size.

I have found that there is a large swing in the output from 95-130 volts.
There is not a noticable change in the rpm of the motor when running, with nothing plugged into it.

When running power tools off the gererator, You can here it working hard with the bigger tools, with bigger noise problems that the nieghors do not enjoy, even with a new muffler.

Over the next while I will be looking to replace my current generator and the new one, it will have to be quite, with a little more output, about 4-5000 watts.

I intend to use it at camp and has to be very portable so I can use it on some of my hobbies which are done away from home.

Thursday, March 03, 2005

new lighting from led's

I have been watching the progress of the developement of led's, (light emitting diodes). I would like to be able to use them, to reduce my lighting costs, around my home and shop.
The prices are still on the high side.
As the led light bulbs come down in price, they would make a good fit for your lighting needs.

Look at the price of led christmas lights this past christmas, they came out at a reasonable price, and are just about indestructable.
I bought some and they are rated for 200,000 hrs. (22 years if I left them on all year long).
There were some boasting 50,000 hr. life span, at about half the cost and not as bright.

At the same time I have been looking at the prices of solar panels. They have come down in price significantly in the last few years and are now becoming a excelent, cost efficient backup for normal Hydro electric power.

With the rising cost of Hydro, and the threat of brown-outs, or worse yet, hydro failures, like the ones we have been seeing more of, over the last few years.

Installing a small Solar system, (45-50 watts) can handle at least some of your lighting, and small appliance use.
Depending where you live, it may be worth further look at.