The Hardest Wood Known To Man?

September 17th, 2009 TBDKeith

The answer Lignum vitae:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia…http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lignum_vitae

It was used for the shaft bearings on the WWII submarine USS Pampanito (SS-383) were made of this wood.[2] The after main shaft strut bearings for USS Nautilus SSN-571; the world’s first nuclear powered submarine were composed of this wood.

It was also used for medical conditions:

“Lignum vitae” is Latin for “wood of life”, and derives from its medicinal uses; lignum vitae resin has been used to treat a variety of medical conditions from coughs to arthritis, and chips of the wood can also be used to brew a tea.

Keith

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Wood Expo 2009

September 9th, 2009 TBDKeith

I have been getting ready for the 2009 Wood Expo in Charlotte, mi. It’s a two day event that is hosted by L.L. Johnson’s Lumber.  www.theworkbench.com   This year it is being held on Sept. 11th and 12th.  It’s two days packed full of free demonstrations from tool manufactures to Scott Phillips of  The American Woodshop.  http://wbgu.org/americanwoodshop/

Again this year the Mid-Michigan Woodworkers Guild   www.mmwg.org  will be demonstrating various aspects of woodworking including lathe turning, scroll sawing and boat building, just to name a few. We will also be doing a fund raiser for Siren/Eaton shelter.   www.sireneatonshelter.org/   The mission of SIREN/Eaton Shelter is to promote the elimination of domestic violence and homelessness by providing temporary housing, support, advocacy, education, and information to the community.

MMWG’s  members build the car bodies and kids young and old, glue the wheels on to prepare their cars for the big race. After the big race all involved get to take their new cars home.

The following pictures are from the 2008 Wood Expo.

Keith

Ernie turning a Ambrosia Maple bowl

Ernie turning a Ambrosia Maple bowl

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Woodworking Clubs

September 1st, 2009 TBDKeith

With so many woodworking forums out there on the web, why should you join a local woodworking club?

First, let me say that I am not in any way against forums. On the contrary, I belong to several which I visit almost every day and try to make a contribution whenever I can. As I said in the “About” page ” We all learn through sharing”.

Well, to start with, there is no better way to spend a couple of hours than to be around people who share the same interest.  Woodworkers come from all walks of life and it is always fun to meet someone who’s profession is quite different from woodworking.

As you look deeper, you will find that many in the group are more than willing to share their woodworking experiences. Their willingness to share gives you a chance to learn from their successes and failures. Compared to online forums,  local clubs have a huge advantage.  When you have a question and you post it online, there is the challenge of getting your question presented clearly, which could mean a lot of typing  back and forth until all involved are on the same page.  When you are in a woodworking club and presented with a question face to face, then a dialog can be started and you can make sure that your question is stated correctly.  Also in a club, you can search out an individual that has experience in the particular area in  which you have a question. You wouldn’t want to ask a question about turning to someone that does not own a lathe.

A friend and fellow club member, John Wilson of the Home Shop, said it best,

” woodworking clubs are like magazine subscriptions,  each month you get plenty of information although not all of it will  be of interest to you….but you can always count on getting something out each meeting or magazine.”

Okay,  say you are someone that has been woodworking for years and years and years. What’s in it for you?  Look back to when you started and think about the person that taught you the finer points.  We all  learned from or were inspired by someone.  You can be that person that many look to for guidance and support. You can help them to be successful woodworkers by sharing your years of experience.

Do you belong to a woodworking Club? I would love to hear about your experiences. How long have you been a member? How many members in your club or what’s your favorite meeting subject?

Friends…. yes,  it won’t be long and you’ll have new friends. People who share your interest and enthusiasm toward woodworking. More on that in part 2.

Keith

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Soft Maple Cabinet Finish

August 17th, 2009 TBDKeith
Soft maple Cabinet measures 8" X 16" X 24" high

Soft maple Cabinet measures 8" X 16" X 24" high

I built this Soft Maple cabinet for a class that I am going to teach this fall.   The design is simple so the students can focus on  building the cabinet and not be distracted  by  a lot of design details.

This post is about the finish.   If you have ever worked with Soft Maple then you know that this wood does not take the stain evenly,  leaving some areas with more stain than others causing a blotchy mess.  You can also encounter this same problem with other woods like Cherry, Pine and Birch, to name a few.

The solution is simple but it does take a little practice.   As in any finishing that you do, always test the finishing technique on a piece of scrap wood before applying it to your project.

After the sanding is complete and all sawdust has been removed, I apply two coats of sealer,  sanding between coats.  The type of sealer that you would use depends on the top coat.  In this case I used lacquer,  so I used  lacquer sanding sealer for seal coat.

I used an oil soluble aniline dye to color this cabinet.  The dye comes in powder form and is dissolved into lacquer thinner.  Testing to get the right mix is a must. The combination of colors and concentrations is endless so take a little time and test a few samples to get the color that fits your needs.  I mix one quart of  lacquer thinner with one ounce of dye.   Starting with  four ounces of the top coat ( in this case lacquer) I add small amounts of  the lacquer thinner/dye to get the color I am looking for, adding  a quarter teaspoon of the dye mixture to the lacquer each time.  Each step is recorded so I can match the color again in the future.  After the color is added, I test it on a piece of scrap wood.  If the color is too light then I add another quarter teaspoon to the mix and do another test until I get the correct color. I do very small tests in each step because large tests will use too much finish and throw off the ratio of finish to dye.  Remember, I started with four ounces of lacquer and a quarter teaspoon of color and may have to do several tests until I get the right combination.  Once the desired color is mixed and applied to the cabinet I then put on the clear top coats as usual.

There is no shelf life for the lacquer thinner/dye mixture so it can be used in future projects. Check the manufacturer of the top coat material for the shelf life.

Keith

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Drying Rack

August 4th, 2009 TBDKeith

The challenge of storing your work while the finish dries has always been a big headache. Nothing is more aggravating than to apply a nice finish and then bump it or drag an air hose across your work, before the finish has had time to cure.   I have used  sawhorses and every flat surface in the shop to store stuff while finishing but I needed a better system.

Storage rack in the stored position

Storage rack in the stored position

Open postion ready to be loaded

Open postion ready to be loaded

A few peices on the rack

A few peices on the rack

Close up

Close up

The rack is made of 2″ x 4″s  and cabinet hinges. The supports are 3/4″ x 3/4″ x 16″ scrap wood that are set into square holes cut with a hollow chisel mortiser.  The square supports could be replaced with dowels and a drill used for the holes.  For this  rack I have used a little over 8 feet of wall space and I can  put an entire set of kitchen cabinet doors on it with room to spare.

Keith


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Just 15 More Minutes

August 1st, 2009 TBDKeith

A good friend called last night and suggested I write a blog about an article that I wrote in 1993 for the Mid-Michigan Woodworkers Guild.

When I was young I was taught how to tell time. I thought that this task was quite simple, but I find even today I have trouble telling time.  Actually it’s not telling time that’s the problem, but it’s telling the time that it takes to do something in the shop.

For some time now I have been engaged in the pastime known as woodworking. I have a small shop where I build custom cabinets and furniture in my spare time.  My shop time is precious; you see, I have a full  time job and a family to care for. Two boys who play sports and some special time with my wife makes for very little time in my shop.  I am not complaining; I would not have it any other way.

When I am working away, the time seems to fly by. A simple task that appears to take fifteen minutes is completed three hours later and it seems almost like a blink of an eye.  Now here is where I get into trouble, one of my sons sticks his head into the shop and over the hum of the table saw,” Mom says dinner is in fifteen minutes.”   Dinner? I could swear that we just finished lunch! Well,  fifteen minutes is quite a long time, I’ll just finish ripping these last few boards and set up for the next step. I remember to look at the clock after a few minutes have passed. I am not sure what  time it was so I guess.  Now, keeping a close eye on the clock, I finish the last few boards and set up for the next task. I brush off the sawdust , take off my shoes and rush to the dinner table where everyone is seated. When I sit down it occurs to me that I may be a little late. The dog rolling his eyes is a dead give away.

I start my explanation knowing that it is without hope.  My wife  smiles and asks if everything is going well in my shop. Trying not to look guilty I respond “It’s going real well”  I look up at the clock and see that I am only fifteen minutes late, but dinner is hot…hmmm….my first thought is how can dinner still be hot? As I look over the table I see that no one has started to eat, could it be that dinner is fifteen minutes late or could I actually be on time? (Little chance of that happening)

As we talk over dinner, getting the latest on school assignments or hearing of the snake caught after school, I forget the stack of lumber in the shop for the time being, and try to sort out the rest of the week’s schedule of basketball games and meetings or whatever is written on the calendar for that week.

Soon my thoughts turn to my shop and I have a little trouble concentrating on the topic at hand. It’s time to get back to my second love…I married my first.

The sander buzzing along; the clock picks up speed.  As I finish the sanding, I notice it’s getting late. There’s plenty of work left for another day. I stop and survey the  shop: the tools resting, the pile of sawdust on the floor and the partly finished projects…what the heck I think I’ll work for just fifteen minutes more.

This was written, as noted above, in 1993.  Lots has changed since then but thought I would honor my friend’s request and share this once again.

Keith


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Why Clean Your Shop?

July 25th, 2009 TBDKeith

Why should you take  away from your precious woodworking time to clean the shop? The obvious answer is safety. Woodworking is much safer without a lot of clutter and piles of saw dust everywhere.  There is another reason and in some ways it’s just as important as having a clean, safe place to work.

A few years ago, I was working in a cabinet shop building store fixtures for a large retailer.  Three  months had passed since I had been promoted to Journeyman Cabinetmaker.  Times were good, we were working 10 hour shifts, six days a week and there was no indication that the work  would be letting up any time soon. It was a Friday near the end of the shift when we were cleaning up as we did every day. The superintendent came strolling through the shop as he often did, chatting with the guys and checking out the work that had been accomplished that day. Warren was a pleasant guy whose laid back demeanor made  him easy to talk to and quite often he had a funny story to tell or a little tidbit of news about some upcoming work.

For quite some time I had been wanting to ask Warren why we had to spend so much time cleaning when we would just mess it up the next morning.  I had decided that this was the day that I was going to put on my new journeyman’s hat and quiz him as to why we needed to go through the cleaning chore each and everyday.  As I was cleaning around my bench, keeping an eye out for Warren and thinking about how I  was going to approach the subject,  I could feel the butterflies starting in my stomach. Cleaning the shop was a hard and fast rule and I was going to question it. Is this a good idea? Could I end up cleaning out the dust bin every day for the entire winter? As he approached my bench I could feel my face starting to flush and it must have showed because he started the conversation with “So Keith, what’s on your mind?”  Well, I said, pausing for a moment while trying to decide if I was going to question a shop rule,  I was wondering why we spend time cleaning the shop every night when we would just mess it up again the next morning? With a slight smile and a firm tone he offered a simple explanation.  When you start your day with a clean and organized work shop, it is much easier to get started.  It makes it too easy to put off getting started if you start your day by looking for tools or clearing off your work bench.  Then he stated that walking into a shop that is clean gives you a fresh start for the day.

Having to follow these rules for many years, the cleaning aspect has become habit for me and it’s true when I work late and don’t clean at the end of the day, I am slower to get going  the next morning.  From a business standpoint this is easy to understand but what about the hobbiest?  I think that it is just as important for the hobbiest because your woodworking time is limited.  If you start with a clean work area, you are able to get more enjoyment from your woodworking.

Try cleaning up when you are done for the day and I think you will agree that starting out with a clean shop is best and it entices you to get back at that project.

Keith

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Mission Style Framed Mirror

July 21st, 2009 TBDKeith

This framed mirror is made with pinned mortise and tenon. Measures 3/4" x 17" x 23"

This framed mirror is made with pinned mortise and tenon. Measures 3/4" x 17" x 23"

If  you like mission style furniture and accessories, this framed mirror may be a project for  you.

This framed mirror was built using the pinned mortise and tenon method. A solid joint that is strong  yet pleasant looking and having the rails slightly thinner than the stiles gives this frame a little more dimension.

Making the rails 1/16″ thinner than the stiles creates a challenge,  how do you make the mortise and tenon with a 1/16″  offset.

Here’s how I did it without using an offset  mortise and tenon.

Making a tenon that is centered is the easiest method. By removing the same amount of wood from each face of the board leaves  the tenon centered. But in this case the tenon would be offset 1/16″  because of the difference in the thickness of the rails and stiles.

To keep the back of the frame flush and avoid having to offset either the mortise or tenon, I cut the mortise and tenon on both pieces when they are 3/4″ thick. After I have them properly fitted ,I plane the rails down by 1/16″ on the face only. This gives me the offset on the front of the frame and leaves the back  flush. I do all of your sanding before assembly.

After the frame has been glued together and the back  rabbeted for the mirror, I cut the holes for the pins using a hollow chisel mortiser. A little glue on the pins before they are tapped into place and the frame is ready for finish.

The  finish is Watco Danish Oil, Black Walnut with a light coat of Lacquer.

Keith

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