Band saw extension table

We rarely buy wood this large, but the legs on the kitchen table we're building required a good-sized piece of 12/4 cherry.  Before running it through the table saw, it needed to be cut into manageable pieces, and the band saw was the best tool for the job.

To ensure stability while ripping, we constructed a simple outfeed table.  When used with our heavy-duty roller stand and a cabinet that was almost the right height, the wood fed easily and safely.  I stood on the outfeed side to help control the wood and adjust for the blade drift.

The rest of the trimming will be done at the table saw, then we'll give it some passes through the drum sander (which handles wood up to 4" thick) to make sure the thickness is uniform.  Then Joe will taper the legs and cut the mortises.  Still need to figure out what to do for the top--something attractive but practical.

New sanding video is up and running

I just posted another sanding video on YouTube to cover some tips that I thought would be useful.  They are at the opposite ends of the spectrum with regard to cost, but both are worth considering.

Valentine's gift, part 1

We assembled the new dust collector yesterday--the first part of my Valentine's Day present.  It was just a bit larger than we expected, but the footprint is fairly small, and it should not be difficult for me to move around.  We're planning to use it for the belt-disc combo sander, the band saw, and the new drum sander.  Later today, we hope to get the stand for the drum sander assembled, and see what kind of help we'll need to get the sander itself (Valentine's Day present, part 2) on the stand--it is very, very heavy!

Shop is up and running!

Finally got a chance to start a new project, at long last.  It's one of the "next generation" bowls that I had started working on before the box book took me off into a different direction.  I intend to get instructions out, one way or another, for those looking for some new ideas for scrolled bowls.

The new setup, at this point, is just like the old shop.  However, we ordered a drum sander and dust collector, which should be here in a week or so.  The drum sander is truly essential for my glue-ups, and the dust collector is truly essential for the drum sander.  The sander I had used in the community shop was a disaster--abused, mistreated, and barely usable.

Hopefully, the coldest days of winter will be past, and I can spend more shop time with my new toys and projects.  I look forward to an exciting spring and summer!

The shop is on its way!

We finally decided to keep the shop in the garage, and to put the table saw (when we get it) in the basement. The cost of erecting walls in the basement, and having good dust collection would have broken the bank on materials cost alone, so we had to scrap the idea of a more elaborate basement shop.

We'll be using one bay of the two-car garage, as well as some space at the very end. Since there is no insulation in the garage, that's the first thing on the list, and is scheduled for tomorrow. That will be followed by bringing up power from the basement, to be surface mounted, and installing a ceiling heater. At that point, we'll be operational.

Yet to be decided is storage, curtain partitions if needed to contain heat, and some additional tools like a drum sander and dust collector to supplement our shop vacs. We're still not sure about an air cleaner.

I'll post progress pictures as we go, and hopefully will be able to get some new projects going. Can't wait!!!

Wish I had room for one of these

Despite our best efforts at maximizing space, we simply can't find room for a drum sander in our garage, even one slightly smaller than this one. It's the one tool for which I still use the community woodshop, and hope that no one has just tried to sand off paint, or used resinous wood and ruined the sandpaper. I use the drum sander primarily to level glued up blanks made from various types of colorful wood--it's the best way I've found so far to get a smooth blank that is evenly thick.

However, I have discovered that even though the blank appears flat, it usually needs further work, and that's where I use the SandFlee. The flatter the blank, especially for bowls, the easier it is to glue up the rings without spaces. I also use the SandFlee as a jointer to get my strips ready to glue up. Next step is to get a flex shaft extension for the SandFlee so I can sand places that I can't reach using the drill press. And that will be my Mother's Day present. Not as pretty as flowers, but a lot more useful.

Closing in on the gaps

I discovered that when a board comes off the drum sander, it may look flat without really being completely flat. This may be the heart of the problem I've been having gluing up some of my bowls.

I discovered this when I ran a freshly sanded board over the SandFlee, and noticed that the sound it made wasn't the same throughout the length of the board. When I put the board on a completely level surface, I could get a very small rocking, about 1/64" inch, barely noticeable. I gave the board a number of passes through the SandFlee, and when it sounded flat, I checked it again, and there was a tremendous improvement.

I've finished gluing up and sanding the new bowl, and had very little problem getting the rings to lie completely flat against each other. In addition, the wood I had glued together to get the pattern I wanted was so well sanded that I could not even feel where the strips were located. I guess when you're working with such close tolerances, these small differences matter.

I'll post a picture of the bowl that I made with that blank as soon as it's finished, probably by the end of the week. It was an ambitious project, using laminated swags that spanned three rings and the base. Came out quite well, and the more I understand all these nuances, the better equipped I am to help others make better bowls.