I was reminded a few days ago that "not every woodworking tip needs to be earth-shattering", and that was a good reminder because for some people what seems like a simple, almost nothing kind of tip, is in fact a huge element in their workshop they are trying to solve, and someone else's new idea could be a big time saver for them.
Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/hF2S27OyIQ0
Of course the other value of "tips" is that it very often will trigger new ideas and new upgrades to the existing idea and I hear that all-the-time from my subscribers ... thank you to all of you that contribute and comment.
First up was a tip from Stanley who suggested using shaving from one of your bench planes to make "shim" slices to shore up the sides of your tenons that are a tiny bit loose. This is a fairly common practice for seasoned woodworkers but lesser know among new woodworkers. The only caution with this method is to GO THIN, that is, your slices should be thin, and the amount of glue you use to attach them to the tenon should be minimal, because of the wood swelling effect that can happen. You make the shims too thick and with too much glue, you end up with tenons that are quite a bit too thick, and now, with hardened glue on them, you need to sand or shave them back again, which can be quite a chore and something as simple as joint tenon can turn out to be a major amount of work, so go carefully and make your work count.
Next was a "Tim Tip", another simple but super useful tip where Tim uses glass jars, which you can see through, but how many of us take a moment to mount the contents on the OUTSIDE of the jar so we can see it better ... then I added the l-1/2" to the label so you can identify it too. Tim wraps his jar and labels in packing tape which is smart because that way label lasts a long time. This was a great tip, Tim, thanks.
Next, we are on to the Packing Tape tip from Jason, and many of us have learned the high value of packing tape in the workshop. Jason notes that packing tape, being plastic, does not easily tear unless it is assisted with some sort of a sharp instrument, like a knife or scissors, often making it a 2 handed operation, or 3 if you count holding the roll of packing tape. Jason's idea about using a "Zip Tie" (releasable zip ties are now available too) to anchor the roll to a nail or other similar hook, then holding the roll with one hand and sniping the piece you want to take off with the other, makes for a much easier and quicker way of using packing tape. I added something I found in one of the hardware stores called "Beadle Wraps" which come in white, black, and yellow, and in a few different lengths. You can see them here.
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Next, we come to Tom's suggestion of having replaceable "catches" on the heel of your table saw push stick. As you can see in the picture below, my push sticks are too narrow to do this, but it looks like Tom's push sticks are 3/4" which is a nice size for a push stick, it gives you a good grip and you could easily use replaceable plastic catches on the end.
Now we come to Lee's suggestion of using "Dowel Finders" in the collet of your wood router to help you find the center of a new base plate you may be making. I have made several base plates for my router over the years, and yes, finding the center of these is a bit of a challenge (yes you can purchase a special tool for this, but I don't do enough of this work to justify the cost) Lee's idea is great because it gives us yet another use for a dowel center finder, a quick and easy way of marking a new base plate.
If you have an idea or a modification, I would love to hear about it and if I haven't already used it, I will try to use it in an upcoming video episode.
Copyright Colin Knecht
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