when planing material at a dimension other than the factory stops I get cross eyed trying to read the factory scale So to register the thickness I put masking tape along the scale and mark the indicator

 

One tip I shared that made Bob laugh was that I used Bondo to repair router templates that were damaged, or to fill screw holes on MDF speaker cabinets I made. It dries rock hard, doesn't shrink, and sands perfectly.

only $15 for the big gallon can...

 

One tip I shared that made Bob laugh was that I used Bondo to repair templates that were damaged

If any of mine need repairing, I usually just cut a small section out, then glue a piece of wood in, and sand to shape. Works great. Cheap too.

And, sometimes when I'm making my routing masters, I just make on layer as usual, then instead of using a solid piece on it and routing to shape, I glue on small pieces, and rout them. Gives a nice solid master, saves wood, and uses up pieces I'd normally just have to toss.

 

Rubbing alcohol removes pencil marks from wood. Just dampen a shop rag and apply it. A couple swipes is all it takes.

 

I use toothpicks or slivers cut with a chisel or knife to repair screw holes. Put a dab of glue on them and jamb them in the hole. When the glue dries I shave them flush. It's also a good way to move to the screw over slightly to straighten up a hinge or anything like that that sometimes needs a small adjustment.

 

I've used the method Charles described for years and have had great success with it and no known failures.

 

Wow. I see a whole new forum category opening up here.

 

Have a small dent to remove from a wood surface, try laying a damp cloth over it and running a hot iron (preferably not your wife's current one) over it to steam the wood a bit. Works better on softer wood of course but I have used the approach on oak. The key is to not get the wood totally soaked, just a tad damp.

 

Instead of using drawer slides I've used strips of counter top laminate instead a few times. One strip in the carcass and one on the bottom of the drawer runners. If they get sticky just rub some parafin wax on the drawer runners. I've also used this to fix the drawers on an old antique sideboard where the runners had worn into the carcass (wood on wood) causing the drawer front to drag when closing. The strips of laminate lifted the drawer back into position and made it slide easier and stopped the wear from getting worse.

 

Great idea, Charles. I put that in my memory chip (notebook). Thanks.

 

A picture says more than one thousand words

 

Alexis
I have always admired your ingenuity this is just another example

 

A thin kerf 10 inch blade is not always the best choice. These tend to deflect if you apply too much angular pressure. It is hard, for example to get a really flat surface on a miter cut, so two ends join perfectly. Switch to a full kerf blade to all but eliminate the deflection. This is particularly important if you are cutting more than a couple of inch thick stock.

 

Some great ideas, "hacks", tips and tricks.

Most, new to me...

A wonderful tribute to BJ and his immense contribution to the forum....

 

Here's a couple of sanding aids. One photo is small pieces of counter top laminate with various grits of sandpaper glued on. These are unbelievably handy for sanding small or narrow detail such as the fillets of a profiled edge. I keep them at my workbench so they are always close. I like attaching them with Lee Valley's fish glue. It stays water soluble forever so when the paper wears out I just wet them and in a couple of minutes they peel off so I can put a new one on. Regular glue works too but they are throwaway when the paper wears out. I dress the edges up with a file before gluing the paper on.

The other is a sanding jig for sanding things like wood edge banding added onto something like the melamine piece shown. Quite often when you trim these to size the edges have tool marks that need to be sanded off. Tis jig allows you to sand them without worrying about scratching the melamine or veneer up. Cut the sandpaper the same width as the wood banding. The right angle stop prevents you from going any wider than the banding is.

 

I use drawer liner Husky 18 in. x 100 in. Premium Solid Drawer Liner, Black-DTC130001 - The Home Depot for several shop tasks. It comes 18 in wide X 96 in. I cut it 3 ft and use it as a work surface cushion when finishing. It comes in handy when using an RT or TS as a work surface When done roll it up and put it away. It is also useful for pads on push tools. Its 1/8" thick and can be easily sliced into strips for spacers in raised panel doors.

 

I save the mailers that I get that are on the heavy cardstock. (get a lot of these right now from political candidates) I like to use them to make patterns with. The cardstock is heavy enough to make good, accurate patterns which I use to make heavier templates.

 

Cut the legs off old track pants & slip your good handsaws in them,(held in place with rubber bands) before storing them away in the tool chest. Keeps rust off especially when living near the sea. Also,old bed sheets thrown over machinery when not in use helps with rust prevention.

 

I use old canvas painters tarps to cover all power tools when there not in use but bed sheets would be a good choice as well. The latter could add a splash of color to the shop. :grin:

 

I had this idea yesterday and gave it a try and it works, just not as well or easily as I had hoped. I was looking for a way to extend the reach of pipe clamp jaws. Pipe clamps are great for spanning long distances, I've had mine out to 12' once, but the 2" wide jaw sometimes leaves a bit to be desired. So I laminated 3 pieces of plywood together x 2 and drilled holes in them the size of my pipes (I had to file them to the right size, I didn't have a bit exactly the right size). I was hoping that by keeping the holes tight around the pipes that I could keep from skewing the extra jaws apart but that didn't work out. So I tried adding a bridge between the extended jaws that was the same thickness as what I was clamping. This is shown in the photo. That worked. To go out much longer a 2 x 4 could be used as a bridge.

It clamped very tightly but it is awkward to use, for anything long it would take 2 people to do it but it is an option where a long reach is needed.

 

Perhaps cutting the faces of the laminated pieces at a slight angle would result in them being closer to parallel, when clamped.

 

A friend forwarded this from you tube An interesting way to tighten/loosen a bolt if you don't have the correct wrench size. Not exactly woodworking but it could come in handy.

http://www.hefty.com/without-wrench

 

Jon; something wrong with that link, comes up as a '404' error

 

I think the link was missing the "m" in the "com", which I added. Still couldn't find anything concerning a wrench on the site.

 

@DaninVan @BrianS

Sorry about that. Try this link.

 

Very clever Jon.

 

@Cherryville Chuck

Thanks, just a good find from a friend I can't claim any originality.

 

Thanks for following up with that Jon. I've seen that before, but forgot about it. That's a good trick to file away just in case.

 

Another shop hack



I saw this on the Stumpy Nubs youtube channel.
Keep a tube of chapstick handy to lubricate screw threads before driving into wood. Especially hard wood. It's basically paraffin, and is easy to keep in your pocket. Twist it out, use it, twist it closed. The Dollar Store brand works fine.