I'm not the world's best knot tier, and the few knots that I learned and used many, many years ago take me too long to recall how to tie, so I usually end up making a couple of "granny knots" and hope for the best. Jim from Columbia had a good idea that I can really use, and that is to use
Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/bTxnFlEqs0s
a small amount of CA glue, just a drop or so, then spritz with some accelerator, and now that knot will never come loose ... but because you can use CA glue on it, which many of you know is a very brittle kind of glue ...
when you hammer or bang the knot and the glue, it easily breaks down and now you can untie the know normally. This is a great way to quickly secure any knot, and it works on most ropes too ...
What is woodworking without slivers? My biggest problem is sawing or jointing an edge, then for some reason, I always want to run my hand down the just-cut surface to see how smooth it is. This is where I get most of my slivers and fortunately, I am able to dig most of these self-inflicted slivers out, but sometimes I need to leave them to work out on their own (and hope I don't get an infection in the meantime), now I have another remedy thanks to Jan L. who suggests using baking soda sprinkled over the sliver, then held in place overnight with a band-aid which would tend to draw moisture around sliver and all going well, it will slide out easily the next day ... thanks, Jan.
Tommie A. is the one who suggested using a damp sponge and a Tupperware container with a lid and to use the sponge to clean up squeeze out from glue-ups. Now I know some people are far more disciplined than I am and they will let the glue sit for 20 minutes or so, then when it is just starting to cure, you can scrape away the excess easily ... the only problem is, for me, I am never around when that glue is ready to shave off, so for me, it's best to clean it off when it's still fresh. I have used this method off and on for years, and it works well for me. You can keep the sponge damp and rinse the glue out as needed and refresh the water as needed too, and in the meantime, keep your squeeze out the glue in check. Thanks, Tommie.
Jim from Columbia came up with a great idea on how to make thumb screws. I use these quite often in making jigs and where I live, finding thumb screws is hard, and they aren't cheap either so I was particularly interested in this one. What Jim says is cut off the head of the bolt you want to use, in my case I found that sharpening the end a bit on my grinder helped too, then using a electrical wire connector (a marrette) that is also slightly trimmed down, you can screw the bolt into the marrette, then add a bit of CA glue and now you have a shop made thumb screw that works well for lighter duty jobs. Another tip I can use in my workshop ... thanks, Jim.
Elling is the one who suggested using old trash cans for storing dust collection and vacuum hoses. I have a few of these trash cans kicking around, I pick them up from time to time at garage sales and use them mostly for my dust collector and when they are all full, I take them all to the landfill ... but using one for storing hoses is a great idea ... thanks, Elling.
Ray made a tote and used the french cleat idea for storing when not in use, which I thought was a great idea. There are many different ways of making this tote as I did, or with individual little holding containers for nuts and bolts, various screw types and sizes, nails and all sorts of fasteners ... and when not in use, hang it on the wall or side of cupboard, it's easy to find, easy to use and handy for all sorts of things. thanks, Ray, I liked this idea.
Thanks, everyone for your ideas that many can use, and that will also spawn new ideas around the workshop
Copyright Colin Knecht
woodworkweb.com
