Right side cabinets

I have the cabinet drawers roughed out. The top and middle drawers are repurposed from the old drawers, with the middle one being the one that's too narrow. I had envisioned the top drawer being shallow for stuff like pencils and etc, but that hasn't worked out to this point. I may put a divider in the top drawer to accomplish that. You can see for yourself where I'm going with what will go where.

I was considering making a drawer to sit just above the sander that is shallow. The issue with adding another drawer there is the spindle. I could make a shallow one, but would mean removing the drawer any time I want to use the sander. Not a huge deal considering how often I would use it.

This was a lost weekend, unfortunately. I'm hoping I can go out in the next couple of days and start seeing about making the tool platforms. Right now the miter saw can't be used and that's an issue. Post on that process coming up.

A look ahead

I was planning on doing some general cleanup this weekend, and possibly a few small projects. However, I've had something come up and I'm really not sure if I'll be able to get any shop time in at all.

So, with today's posts I'd like to do a general shop update about what's complete and what's still left to be done. The last few weeks has seen me get a good little jump on some overdue projects either due to time or finances. I was able to pretty much complete both sides of my cabinet wall project. I'm still deciding if, or how much closing in the backs or bracing I'm going to do. The large unsupported section that sits over the router table definitely needs something, as the right side of that is only attached with a couple of screws. I may secure it to the back wall, that would be an economical solution and still allow me to easily pull it out or make changes and still leave enough clearance for the router table. I need to shim up the entire surface and try and get both sides as level and equal as possible in preparation to put a T-track in for the miter saw. The most important part of this is making it level around the miter saw, but having the whole thing as close as possible will make it easier to work with long pieces.

Also involved in making it as level as possible is the idea that I could shift the miter saw over to in-between both cabinets, where the planer cart resides. Throughout almost this entire process has been the idea that I would have tool modules that could be exchanged as needed, with the planer cart and the miter saw being the primary tenants of their respective spaces. But with the planer cart mobile, and able to move into a couple of spots, it doesn't make any sense not to match that spot and the miter saw spot and have two areas where I can put these tools at. Being able to move the miter saw to the middle will greatly increase the capability of it in regards to 'middle' cuts. Won't need to employ the circular saw to cut a board in half.

In addition to making the miter saw a component of the modular system, I'm looking to also have a few other tools share this portability. I'd like to have a dovetail station, where I can mount my cheapo dovetail jig. If I make it raised I could combine this with the Kreg jig possibly. Would save space in the cabinet, obviously. With the jig being raised, boards would be able to clear the Kreg in back. The dovetail jig wouldn't interfere with the Kreg at all. I wouldn't mind having a platform for the biscuit joiner, and a corner clamp would be a good move too.

I've posted several times about non-structural upgrades that I need to do to the walls, doors and window, so I won't rehash those until they are in the near-term pipeline. For example, something might be in the works for the next few weeks on one of those fronts, but I'll give it it's own progress thread. The shingles on the roof have never leaked, so we're good there. I may recover the exterior walls, but that's quite a long-shot prospect. The ramp is fine for now, but eventually I'd like to put a deck on when the shop gets leveled out. I'd like to explore the possibility of raising the ceiling. Otherwise, it gets replaced the same as the walls.

I wrote this over the course of several days a bit at a time, so my apologies if it comes across disjointed. I wanted to share that officially the next shop project is the Holtzapffel bench, which I will share details on in a couple of weeks. I want to get the drawer fronts done, the cabinets level, and the modular tool holders started on first. There will be minor little projects interspersed as well.

Weekend Wrap

After not spending any time in the shop for four days, I spent a little bit of time for three straight out there this weekend. It was a mixed bag, unfortunately. Along with getting the left side drawers pretty much completely done (need to adjust the depth to put the faces on), I tried to get the right side up to speed. The results turned out less than stellar.

The large drawer I did on the bottom, the bottom of the drawer is about 1/4" too narrow, and has fallen out of the groove. With holding a lot of heavy items, I'm resigned to the fact that this entire drawer will have to be redone. Also, I attempted to convert one of the older drawers to the new width by turning it sideways. It worked, except I shorted myself by about 1/2" and had to add 1/4" ply on both sides of the drawer to get the hardware to work correctly. And then I compounded the experience by installing it about 1/8" too low, and it catches on the 16ga nailer. Otherwise, there's not a thing wrong with it. Since I shorted the width, I'm going to redo this one as well. Oh well, missed it by that much. As you can see, it is mostly functional, as long as I don't need anything in the bottom drawer. It will hold my multifunction tool and Dremel, along with accessories for both.



Functional, yes. Staying that way? No. If this were the old temporary cabinet, I probably wouldn't bother. I'd drill out the mount for the nailer to let it sit lower and go about my business. But since this is going to be a long-term solution, I want to do it right. So I'll sacrifice an hour or so and probably the rest of the 1/2" ply and do it right. I should be able to do the conversion on the remaining drawer, provided I adjust my cuts accordingly. Not sure what will go in that drawer, or the other drawer above it (assuming I can only fit two more). Most likely small junky stuff.

Leaning toward a sheet of ply for the drawer fronts. I wouldn't mind doing a glued up panel for them, but I think the ply is going to be easier, cheaper and faster. I'll be sure to pick out a good specimen for them so it looks nice.

I created what I like to call a dado key, it's a short board with different dados that I've used and explains what blades and spacers were used to make them. Should make setup times a lot shorter as I get more examples onto it. This will be hung somewhere I think, big enough hole to go over a screw head.

May or may not get out to the shop today, it's rather windy and chilly. Not ideal conditions. Perhaps a few minutes in the afternoon to do some spot cleaning.

A well organized shop

I got a reminder of why I'm doing this today. This, as in why I spend so much time, energy and money fixing up this place and getting everything squared away where it needs to be. After I got my new drawer sorted out, I brought up a bike that had been giving us trouble with the chain. I set it down on the bench and checked the chain out before I decided that the axle just needed to be tightened up. A minute later and it was good as new. I also hooked the compressor up and aired up the tires in a couple of them. All with little effort. I also got the opportunity to chase down some air leaks in the system, so it was a complete win in that regard. I love being able to easily and quickly get what I need, and I'll love the day where I won't have to move anything out of the way to get started on a project.

Once the cabinets are done I'll be starting on my great endeavor - the Holtzapffel. Once my bench is done I can finally tackle some real woodworking projects with aplomb.

Small steps with big gaps

It's been nearly a week since I last posted, and the activity in the workshop has been just as dull. I didn't set foot in there from Monday to Thursday at all. With other things going on, I either didn't have the time or the energy to really do anything.

I did find some time and motivation on Friday to get back out there and make further progress. I left Sunday having completed the major drawer on the right side cabinet. Friday I started on the middle drawer on the left side. I had previously cut the sides to height last week, so it was a matter of sizing the sides up and making a bottom. Since I had limited time, I decided to forgo power and try some hand tool work. I cut the sides to the proper length using the saw I picked up from Lowe's awhile ago for under $2. This thing cuts fantastic. I messed up the size of the bottom on the first drawer, but I thought it might work for this one. Owing to size of the messed up piece, I sized the drawer to be a 'fake full extension.' That means with my 3/4 extension, the sides are longer than the drawer proper.

With the sides cut, I used the same saw to size up the bottom. That went fairly well, although it was hard for me to follow the cut line. The table saw would have been a better choice. I then looked in horror at the cut, realizing that I would have to try to put a rabbet on it with hand tools. And no rabbet plane. I hacked it out using a combination of saws, a plane and a chisel. I won't be attempting that again without a rabbet plane.

Not being impressed with the fit and finish of the previous drawer construction (not a drawer lock as I stated previously), I went with simple butt construction and did the first side glue up yesterday. I came back today and finished it up. I installed two screws each on either side of the front of the drawer for strength. Otherwise, there are no mechanical fasteners. I installed the drawer late today and had to decide what to put in it, since I had to build the drawer to suit the space versus the storage. Since I had my counters pretty much clear by now, I looked in the upper cabinet for ideas. I decided my drill bit sets and my Kreg box would fit perfectly. Or rather, nothing much else would fit well. I thought about some sanding supplies, and that's a future consideration. But for now this frees up a good bit of room up top.

I ended today with an idea to save myself some time: reuse one or two of the remaining drawers. It's too thin to go straight back in, but if I trim about 5/8" off of the side, it can go in sideways. I started disassembling the drawer to cut to size before I called it a day. I may go out tomorrow if the mosquitos don't outnumber the air molecules. They were bad today, and I'm going to have to come up with a solution. I obviously can't go with a candle.

That's what I've got for today. I might have that additional drawer done tomorrow, or it may be a lawn maintenance day. We'll see.

Sunday Funday

Today consisted of trying to put a drawer or two in my new cabinets. I hate making drawers.

I did a traditional drawer lock joint all the way around 1/2" ply on the sides and bottom. It went together fine, but it's sloppy. I much preferred using the pocket screws, and think I'll go back to that for the remainder. The extra effort really isn't worth it without some sort of jig to dial it in accurately. I was only able to get the one deep drawer done, but it does hold a lot.

Tomorrow I would like to get the left side drawer done so I can start thinking about fronts for that side. I have about a half sheet of 1/2" remaining, which would make several drawers if I used some 1/4" bottoms. I used the 1/2" on the deep drawer due to all the weight it's going to hold.

Shop is slightly less of a mess today. No pictures.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

What a mess, part II

I left off Friday with the shop a disaster, in the midst of making the right side cabinet. I was able to make some really good progress on that project and getting the shop back in order.

I had the remaining vertical section of the cabinet cut and ready, but I needed to cut the upper surface and the bottom shelf of the cabinet to get it assembled. I swapped the 40T back in the Craftsman and got those cut to size. I cut out a couple of notches for the countertop stringers. It took some work getting all this together, because these dadoes are tight. Perhaps too tight. But it came together great. Put a 1/4" ply back, and it took its rightful place on the back wall. I need to place some shims later to get the counter perfect, but I'm waiting until I put a top surface on. With the new counter built, the planer was able to park in its assigned spot, and the scrap bin took the spot in the right front corner for now.

I did some minor cleanup, not enough to get me back to where I was Thursday, but it's good enough considering what I just accomplished the last two days.

I used my 'track saw' and cut some of the 1/2" ply up for drawers - enough to replace the large 9" deep drawer for air tools, and one that will fit between the sockets and the sander on the left side. The rest of the drawers (two-three in the right side, perhaps up to one more under the miter saw) will wait until I determine what I actually need in the drawers versus other storage. Right now I have various crap in the smaller drawer I had, and biscuits, the joiner, Dremel and etc in the middle drawer. Still deciding here, but I think I may make some room for the MFN tool and the Dremel. Still no idea what is going in the left side drawer, but more important was the room I had to work with than what needed to go in there. It will adapt.

After we get some of this stuff taken care of we have some accuracy things to deal with. The table saw, specifically the extension table, and the levelness of the counter top. I'll also pick up another sheet of 1/2" or 3/4" for the boards for the modular tool stations.

Really good day (two, actually) in the shop, and a very tiring one. Not sure what I'll get done tomorrow, but my ideal scenario would be to get both precut drawers done and items in them.

What a mess

Had some spare time today, so I went and grabbed a sheet each of 3/4" and 1/2" plywood from the yard.

That's right, the right side of the cabinet is in progress. The cleanliness lasted a whole day.

But the cleanliness sure helped. I was able to get work done efficiently and effortlessly, even though I didn't get all of it done. I did all my crosscuts with my clamp and my corded circular saw and that part went really fast. I did these right outside the shop on sawhorses. I did the last crosscut on the tablesaw, and finished the rest of the cuts there as well. Having the extended table really helps out, especially the final cuts to get the cabinet sides to length at 35". I couldn't do that before.

I swapped the 40T blade for my dado set and ran those before I assembled the section that the miter saw and other tools will have a station at.

I was able to clear the old cabinet and disassemble it, then put the new section in place before I had to adjourn. The sheet of 1/2" should be enough to make all the drawers for the pure drawer cabinet, plus some for a tool station or two. I'm hoping the cabinet proper will be done tomorrow, but I don't have the ETA for the drawers.

I'm recycling as much ply as I can from the old cabinet for various parts.

Here's the miter base ready to go.

TGIF

It's Friday, which usually means another weekend of relaxation is almost upon us.

I did get in just a little bit of shop time yesterday, enough to sweep a little and discover a problem with my jointer. Not so much the jointer as the HTC base. A while back I had swapped the direction on which it traveled, from side to front. With the wider table saw, I can't negotiate the tight spaces because the turns were now made with the wide side. So off came the base to change it back.

When I did this before, I brought the base inside the house because it was friggin cold and at night. I accidentally lengthened one side, so it wasn't a perfect fit anymore. Taking the base off the jointer, I realized that the right dimensions were 20 holes square, so that I shouldn't have had to make any modifications to begin with - just turn it. I simply shortened the two longer sides to where they needed to be and put it back on the jointer.

I share this not because of what I did, but where I did it. With my temporary seat and a clear workbench, this was effortless. The socket drawer worked just like I planned and I had room to take the base apart, even though that turned out to not be necessary. The shop is coming along just as I planned, and it's wonderful. Even the change of putting the socket drawer over on the left side worked out brilliantly - I can open it up and leave it open and not have it interfere with either the bench or almost any of the cabinet. Awesome. Can't tell you how thrilled I am something like this is working out.

It's a good day - live thread

...whenever you can spend some time in the shop. And I anticipate that's exactly what I'll be doing later today when it warms up to some very comfortable temperatures. I'm hoping today I can sort out a few nibbles over where things will be ultimately going, and perhaps put a couple of drawers together on the left side.

First thing I need to do is sort out what's going to go there for size purposes. I'm pretty sure my socket set is going at the very top, so making that will be very easy. It's just going to be a platform drawer like I did for the OSS, with stops fore and aft so I can pull the drawer out and in by using the handle on the case. The case won't be secured to the drawer for portability.

Beyond that, I don't know what will be in that cabinet. I'm thinking perhaps sanding stuff, but do I have enough to justify the space?

This is a live thread. I'll be updating it periodically this afternoon while I'm in the shop with updates and perhaps pictures.

2:30 - ok after an unexpected delay I'm finally in the shop. Until the right side of my cabinet gets done, this has to sit here.

Not a big deal really but I can't wait for it to get its home.


3:30 - Here's the drawer for the sockets. Nothing fancy, but it's what I need. Not sure what I'm going to do with the cabinet as it pertains to drawer fronts or a door, but I'll figure it out.

I only have a few inches between the spindle and the socket drawer, do my options here are limited. Something flat, like a shallow drawer for pliers, or similar.

7:30 - Here we reach the conclusion of the live thread today. I've been out of the shop two hours, and there were some technical issues updating the thread when I wanted to. My mobile app isn't that stellar, and when I tried to add new pictures at 4:30, it threatened to erase the entire post.

To summarize, after the sockets drawer was done I disassembled the old dust separator and sorted through my huge pile of scrap MDF and plywood and tossed what I'll never use. The corner was greatly cleaned up and enough room was made to temporarily stow the planer cart.





I also discovered the old temporary sander cart makes a great seat up on it's side. I'll get something comfier here in a bit, but this will do for now. I'm waiting for something the right height to go on a good sale.





I was in the process of getting ready to make a saw till when it was time for me to retire for the day. I was just going to use what I had, so perhaps that's for the best and I'll come up with some better materials to make a nicer one. That and I can spend some more time looking at all the lovely pictures on Google. I also attempted to make a shallow drawer for the left cabinet and finish that particular portion of the build, but the 1/2" stock I had was too shallow. I'll be picking up a sheet of 3/4" and 1/2" to finish the right half of the build soon (next week most likely) and I'll have plenty of drawer material.

I might get some more shop time on Thursday, but Friday seems more likely.

Review - Ryobi One+ String Trimmer

(Unless otherwise noted, I have not received any compensation or consideration for any of the reviews listed. These have been purchased with my own funds at regular or sale prices publicly available.)

Continuing on the Ryobi review train is the 12" cordless string trimmer. I'm not entirely sure why it's designated 12", but I suppose that's the cutting diameter. Like the leaf blower I reviewed yesterday, it's the lime green hue of the Li-ion line, but this doesn't suck.

The String Trimmer comes with a charger and a full-size Li-ion battery. It was actually my first foray into the Ryobi lithium line, and I've been hooked on the better juice since. What separates the large and small batteries besides physical size and longevity is a push-button sensor that tells you how much power is left. It's really nice, and I wish all the batteries had this. Otherwise, I have to reach for my separate battery checker which is only slightly more inconvenient. The charger is dual chemistry, meaning you can charge either NiCd or Li-ion batteries in it.

For operation, the trimmer has an extendable shaft which also pivots around to use as an edger. The handle is adjustable, and so apparently is the battery dock, which I've never tried. The string is advertised as no bump and auto feed, which until today I never knew how to get it to feed. You click the power switch several times until it reaches the desired length. Funny how the manual said that the entire time...

I have to say, with the included larger capacity battery this does anything I need it to in my yard and has juice to spare. It edges decently, it cuts anything smaller than a half-inch or so diameter weed without effort, and is reasonably light to carry around.

I did realize after writing these last two reviews they aren't really woodworking related. As I go through the One+ system and make my thoughts known about them, however, you may decide to buy into the system. If you do, I hope the trimmer and blower reviews help you see that while not always perfect, the system is pretty inclusive for the average homeowner situation. With lots of tools and batteries otherwise, I'd be looking at these yard tools as well and would appreciate the info. I hope you do too. Since those are the only two non-woodworking One+ tools I own, it's back to woodworking on this front as well.

Ryobi has now come out with a 24v cordless trimmer, but the reviews on it are not promising. This one, however, gets five stars from me.

Ryobi One+ 18v Trimmer w/ battery
Trimmer (refurb), bare tool
Trimmer and Blower combo (Blower review HERE)

Pics coming Tuesday

Review - Ryobi One+ Leaf Blower

(Unless otherwise noted, I have not received any compensation or consideration for any of the reviews listed. These have been purchased with my own funds at regular or sale prices publicly available.)

I have a ton of the Ryobi One+ tools, and generally love them all. That's why it pains me that this leaf blower is the one that is going to kick it off. I purchased this refurbished at a store I like to visit, Direct Tools Factory Outlet. I just wish that the store wasn't an hour drive from me, as I wouldn't hesitate to pick up additional refurb tools from them as the quality has been very good. The quality of this leaf blower is very good, unfortunately the performance doesn't match.

Among the positive attributes of the unit is the weight - this can easily be used by an adult, and even awkwardly operated by a toddler. The design of it is made for the larger Li-ion batteries, the smaller ones really help with the weight.

Unfortunately, that's where the positives trail off. If it ever reached 120MPH as stated, I'd owe someone a beer. It works decently on loose, dry leaves, but anything wet and you might as well grab the rake. It's not powerful at all, which I suppose should be expected for a battery-powered unit. However, the battery use is atrocious. Five to ten minutes of use is all you get with the smaller Li-ion batteries, and don't even think about using the old Ni-Cds.

It was an obvious addition to the line, but I wonder if it would have been ppossible to make a better product, or at least make it for less than the asking cost. I purchased my refurb unit bare (no battery or charger) for under $20. List price with the battery and charger is a whopping $109. For comparison, the tool by itself and the battery and charger kit are sold online through Home Depot for $59 and $40 respectively. Which doesn't make sense being $11 less than the packaged product. Go figure.

Ryobi makes some pretty good homeowner/weekender level tools (more than they get credit for), but unless you're picking this up refurb or getting it as a pack-in with the hedge trimmer or edger, go with a corded or gas unit. You'll be much happier. Certainly don't buy this if you don't have a few other One+ tools.

For those who still want to buy it or read other reviews, I've included the links below. 2 out of 5 stars

Home Depot - Blower and Battery
Home Depot - Blower only
Home Depot - Edger w/ Blower pack-in

Pics coming Tuesday.

Weekend update - 4/9/12

As promised, we're back to the workshop now. Since yesterday was Easter, today's recap will be about Friday and Saturday.

Friday was a cleaning/putting around day, trying out a couple of ideas for storage. I put up a spare ladder hanger in the wall next to the door to put my headphones on. Turns out that one of the actual ladder hangers will serve decent double-duty as the glasses holder. Both are right inside the door, so they're easy to grab as soon as I walk in or am getting ready to use the table saw or jointer. I wish I could say I did more than that, but it was just a kind of sit-in-the-shop day and think. Lovely weather, it was nice to be out there for an hour or so.

Saturday I got my batteries topped off (the little leaf blower really drains the little batteries) and spent some time building HD Kids Workshop projects with the kids. Since I had spent Friday cleaning, I had room for them to work. Only one at a time, just because I don't want them hammering on the countertops right now. Since the youngest wanted to take his sailboat in the bath, I grabbed some Shellac and gave it a once-over. I don't know if it will keep it protected or not, but it's a free project and not really important.

I also made a small advancement in shop layout. I took the other set of 100lb full extension slides I had sitting around and made a pull out 'drawer' for the Ridgid OSS. I intended to make the hardwood trim go on three sides, but the sander was too wide for that, so I had to settle for just the one on the side. If I make a platform for it to go in one of my tool stations (I talked about that in the design post), I'll make a handle for the rear. The table front makes a nice grip, but your natural reaction is to grab at the dust port at the rear. Being plastic, I'm worried about it breaking if I do that repeatedly. A better way to wrap the cord would be a side benefit.

I discovered I have a bit of 1/2" ply in stock, so I could build some drawers in that far left cabinet if I know what I want to put there. Problem is, I'm not sure right now. I'll be spending the rest of today and possibly the rest of the week deciding exactly what I need to store in drawers and where. To complete the cabinets I figure I'll need one or two more sheets of 3/4", and one or two sheets of 1/2" for drawers. After that, it's whatever I want to dress the front of the doors with, bracing for the router table cubby, and redoing the planer cart, partially. The process is slow, but it moves forward.

After the cabinets are done, I still have several walls that still need to be demoed and replaced with OSB. I'd like to replace the window, and obviously I need to replace the doors. I'm hoping to build my workbench in the fall, perhaps earlier. And then other than minor storage requirements, my workshop will be pretty much complete. It will be at that point that I'll start looking into storage ideas for a riding mower, something I hope to get in about two years or so. I wonder if code would allow a lean-to attached to the back of the workshop...

Yard stuff - 4/6 update

I finally got to try out the Scott's Snap spreader today, as I put down insect control and Weed n Feed. It was very easy to switch out bags and put the product down. In essence, it's a fancy fixed rate spreader. The bags could certainly be reused for any product you deem, provided the product is a similar size. Plain fertilizer could certainly go in the empty insect control bag I now have, as I cut it open partially to make sure there weren't any fancy membranes. There weren't.

I have to say that this system wouldn't be at all beneficial to someone with a large yard. The product, expensive already, would be astronomical for a large yard if you didn't buy cheaper product in bulk. However I had my yard done with both bags of product in under 15 minutes. That's convenience I enjoy.

I'll update in May with how well it controlled insects and weeds. Seed planting will be in the fall. Otherwise, it's back to woodworking.

Yard stuff - 4/5 update

This is a woodworking blog, but most of us also have stuff we have to do around the house. Handyman stuff, and sometimes, turf management. So it is in this post, which you won't see me venture too far into. I picked up a Scott's Snap spreader and a couple of bags of product, as Home Depot was having a special that ends today (4/4). Buy two bags, get the spreader free. This could make it as cheap as $26 if you buy two bags of insect control, or $56 if you buy two fertilizer or seed bags. I went middle, bought a insect control and weed n feed for just under $40 out the door.

I've never done anything to my grass except mow it up until now, so I'll have to revisit this topic a few times over the course of the summer and see how the system works. I'll keep the titles similar so that those who don't care about it can skip them. I promise it won't be a lot, and won't take the place of any planned on-topic posts.

Edit - I got an even better deal later in the day, three bags of seed for $32. Didn't set out to spend $70 on yard products yesterday, it just kinda happened. I'll be putting down either the insect stuff or the weed n feed on Thursday, so I'll let you know how easy it is to do.

New and updated reviews

Going to be a slow week in the shop, so I'm doing my best to give you more reviews of the things I use. Two new reviews so far this week, and I've updated all of them with pictures. Going forward, they will all have pictures to accompany them as they are posted.

If you are a reader and would like to see something reviewed, send me a link or write about it in any of the comment sections. If the budget allows, and it fits the needs of the shop, then consider it done. Otherwise, I may have to take a pass.

If you are a business that would like a product reviewed, please email me. I will happily do product reviews on any woodworking product that can be used in the shop (I don't have a lathe, so a turning set would just look nice on my wall). I review products fairly and equally, and give no preference to ones that come to me freely.

As always, you can find the entirety of the products that have been reviewed under the 'Reviews' tab at the top of the blog. Thanks again for reading.

Review - Rockler silicone glue brush

(Unless otherwise noted, I have not received any compensation or consideration for any of the reviews listed. These have been purchased with my own funds at regular or sale prices publicly available.)

It's hard to reinvent the wheel when it comes to woodworking. Most tools and techniques are tried and true with mere evolution, not revolution.
With this new glue brush from Rockler, I'd argue it's both evolutionary and revolutionary.

Gluing is something I've not liked to do to this point. It often required buying a large bag of disposable brushes or plastic paddles to spread the glue. I preferred the latter because I could simply set the paddle down and come back and peel the dried glue away and use again. With the brushes, you could attempt to clean them or toss them. If you were lucky, there might only be one or two hairs to pick out of the glue you just applied.

With the silicone brush, it takes the concept of a silicone baster brush and combines it with the paddle in one instrument promising very easy cleanup. Either rinse the glue away or allow to air dry and remove the glue in a clump (as shown on their website).

I used the opportunity of my left-side cabinet build to test this product out. While I might have to disassemble portions of it later, the cabinet box itself would be permanently joined. After using the brush and letting sit for a couple of days (the soonest I got back out there), I picked the brush up and attempted to remove the glue like you see on their site. With the pictures below you see how successful that was. It wasn't exactly like advertised, but was close enough to be impressed. Perhaps if I had it really loaded up with glue it would have come out in one piece. As it was, it only took a few seconds to completely remove all the glue and be ready to work again. The paddle end wasn't tested, as it's a fairly standard tool these days. The whole head of the brush comes off, but secures itself back on well enough that I trust it wouldn't come off again unless I wanted it to.

A couple of things I would have improved upon if I had the idea:
- its heavily unbalanced, especially loaded with glue, toward the bristle side. I tend to set it down with the bristles overhanging an edge, and it feels like its going to fall to the floor. Will have to get out of that habit, perhaps by introducing a wax paper resting spot.
- the natural tendency in using this product, at least for me, is to use the wide portion. The bristles are tapered in a way that reinforces this assumption.

Unfortunately it does not fit in a 3/4" dado in this manner, but sideways. Perhaps they will introduce a smaller version, as I doubt this would be useful for small gaps. 1/4" dado users will have to either use the paddle or stick with alternate methods.

In all, I probably would have paid $10 or so for this tool, and I'm surprised it only clocks in at $3.99. For the consumer and the store, I'm not sure if this is a product you would buy in multiples unless you needed to work with multiple glues at once. For those that aren't in love with their hair brushes, this seems like a no-brained to invest about the same amount of money into a pack of disposable brushes into a reusable and, IMHO, better product. This might also have a market in a school setting, for use with the white glues. Hey, I see a donation opportunity here.

In summary, I give this product 4.5 out of 5 stars, subtracting only for the immediate lack of a smaller size. Perhaps that is in the pipeline.





Direct Rockler link - Silicone Glue Brush
Amazon Affiliate link - Rockler Silicone Glue Brush
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Review - Craftsman Sabre Saw

(Unless otherwise noted, I have not received any compensation or consideration for any of the reviews listed. These have been purchased with my own funds at regular or sale prices publicly available.)

I had two jigsaws I wasn't particularly fond of: an older corded Black & Decker that required set screws to change the blade (and one screw was missing) and a Ryobi One+ 18v model that couldn't cut the mustard when it came to big jobs (it literally vibrated itself apart). So I started shopping for new jigsaw to replace the B&D. My initial thoughts were to find one with a barrel handle for more control.

I researched for a few months and narrowed my choices down to one of the venerable Bosch barrel grips, the Ridgid and a top handle Bosch. The Bosch models were nice, and got great reviews, but were a bit more than I wanted to pay. The top handle Bosch was in my preferred price range, but I still wanted a barrel grip. I was leaning toward the Ridgid when some negative reviews and missing features steered me away. Single speed was a concern, as were some complaints about vibration.

A model at Sears caught my eye that seemed like a unique feature - a top handle jigsaw whose handle removed for barrel use. I was intrigued. It was also a pretty nice price, being on the order of around $75 on sale. When I got home I realized that not only was it a dual handle jigsaw, but it also has a knob at the top to free scroll. Pretty nice feature, I'm sure I'll make use of it someday as I have no plans on acquiring a scroll saw. It has multiple speed settings, which is nice, along with a switch on the side to select materials. I didn't rule out the Ridgid just because of the lack of multiple speeds, because I'm not sure if I need them. But as they say, it's a nice option to have. It has a blower switch that inverts to allow use of the vacuum port. I've only tried it on the blower setting, I'll try out the vac setting next time I use it and amend this review. Because I usually have to sweep up from my other tools, I didn't consider it a major aspect of it's usability.

The switch between handles (and I say that for lack of a better term. There's one handle, and it's removable to hold the body/barrel instead) is very easy. Use in top handle mode is as you would expect. The power switch for barrel mode isn't great. It's hard to turn on with just your grip hand, and can switch off easily, without intent. That said, it works. If I could switch it on and off with my thumb, it would be great. The saw base can store a blade or two, but I use a Bosch set that has it's own case so that's of little use to me. I suppose if I were switching back and forth between speed and clean cut blades, I could put them there for easy access. Like most of the Craftsman corded tools lately, it has a light that is green when the tool is plugged in. Nice feature when you have kids in and out of your shop. The switchable laser light seems accurate, although my cuts so far have not exactly reflected that. More likely a user error than the tool, as the laser shines right down where you expect the blade to follow. The scroll feature is neat, although I will have to do some research and see if there are blades available to make those tight cuts you'd normally get with a dedicated scroll. The base angle has been perpendicular so far, no testing was done on any bevels as I've not had the need thus far. The saw has a slot for a guide, the power cord has a nice strap and a hex key is stored at the rear of the saw.

This saw has at least met my expectations, and we'll see if it provides long-term justification of the purchase. I have to list the pros as easy blade change, laser, cord management, conversion between the handle and barrel grip, the scroll feature and the blower. For cons, I'd have to put the barrel grip power switch as the major gripe. As I said it's not a deal breaker, but something that if it was done as it should have been, could have made this a real contender to the Bosch. As is, it has to be rated as a good-very good saw, but not a fantastic one.

I sat on this review for a few weeks as my first few experiences with this saw weren't any better than my B&D. I got lots of vibration and chatter. However with subsequent uses I found the saw to be smooth, and give a decent finish on the cut and be fairly accurate. I had to chalk up my first impressions to not having the workpiece properly secured and using the wrong speeds on the saw. The saw comes with a canvas zippered bag.

4 out of 5 stars. Tested with Bosch T101B blades.






Direct link - Craftsman Sabre (Jig) Saw 28223

Four grand

4000 views! Thanks so much for reading.

To celebrate, a small update ahead of schedule. The Jet parallel clamps I ordered came in early, and I swung by Rockler to purchase a new rack just for them. Got that installed on Friday, and boy do they look nice. Haven't had an opportunity to use them yet, but I will.

Also on Friday I was able to get further along on the left side cabinet install. Got the cabinet proper braced at the top and the counter top installed along with the outrigger vertical. Will have to do some sort of bracing to this area, but that will have to wait until I redo the router table. It's hard to see, but it just barely fit. It's very nice finally having a solid surface over in this corner. Now this can be the 'set stuff down' surface instead of the workbench or the miter cabinet.

Not a lot to speak of otherwise, just did a touch of cleaning with the vac as it's probably going to be a quiet period for awhile. Spent time and money recently taking care of some yard work, and there's yet more needed. I can see a scenario where the two will mesh soon though, as the first replacement door to my crawlspace is already falling apart and wasn't that well done to begin with. I'm talking crappy. My approach and execution were horrible. I tried to do it as fast as possible and didn't prepare or plan properly.

This will give me a some practice for the shop doors as the construction will resemble them in part. I was going to use T111 siding as the field, and dimensional lumber as the frame. Construction will be completely different than the first door, which was simply 2x4s made into a frame and cheap plywood connected to it via screws. The frame has already separated from the plywood, and it's not sized correctly for the entrance anyway. I tried to do it very cheaply and I'm ending up having to do it again. I wish I didn't have to spend the money to buy a full sheet of T111 for this small door, one that I won't be able to then use for the shop door project. It's going to be wasteful, as I have nothing else that I can think of to use it on. 5'x3' (approximately) is a bad size to have to make something for. If they sold the T111 like baltic birch (5'x5'), I could be cool with that. Once I'm satisfied with how the door turned out, I'll hit it with primer and paint to either match or contrast with the house.

I do have two potential projects that would be financed externally, but will have to see if time, resources and sense dictate whether I do them or not. I think one, a picnic table, will have to be turned down because it's simply cheaper just to buy one right now. The other, bookcase doors, will be a nice challenge as will trying to duplicate chair rail.

A couple of quick pictures to show the progress.

Mega Dreaming

It's a slow day on the forums, so I thought I would do a little daydreaming about what I would do with this enormous Mega Millions jackpot drawing tonight. This would be, of course, taking care of family and friends and charities, so we've covered all of those bases. This would be, you have a basically unlimited budget now go build your shop and outfit it.

Challenge accepted.

Since I'm more of a mountain than beach person, my estate would be on a large expanse of land in the foothills of some mountains. My shop would be integrated into what is in effect a three story building. There would be a garage on the middle floor, with drive-in access from the front. Five or six bays, with one wash bay. Plenty of room to engage in my other major love, cars. And since we're in the foothills, there's definitely going to be a Jeep. Above the garage is an expansive living area that people can hang out in or possibly stay in. Pool table, Foosball, arcade cabinets, etc. Have to see if there's enough room for it to be an in-law suite.

But enough about that, this is a woodworking blog. The shop would have 10' ceilings, with recessed lighting and duct work embedded inside the ceiling for clearance. Since the garage is above, the back wall of the shop is where all the storage will be. Huge air compressor (plumbed for use with the shop and the garage), dust collection, etc will be along this wall along with some scrap storage. This will be a separate room, and in the shop proper along this wall will be wall storage. Cabinets, french cleats, etc. Along the opposite wall, the one with walk-out access, will be an expanse of windows and french doors in order to enjoy expansive natural light and the nice weather when available. This will lead out onto a large patio with seating for relaxing or entertainment. Perhaps this is where a pool and hot tub could go?

Back inside, we have 4" or 6" duct going to each machine. As much as I don't like the inventor/lawyer, I'd own a 5HP SawStop with massive outfeed/assembly table behind it. If I'm going to be 'retired' and out in the country, I need to be as safe as possible. I'd have an array of spare brakes and blades so I can get back up and running. I may splurge and have another table saw set up for dados only.

Because the garage is up above, I'll have to deal with support columns. As such, I'll use them to my advantage by running some duct and air lines down them and positioning tools accordingly. My bandsaw, probably an 18" Powermatic, would abut a column. In fact, I think most of my tools would be Powermatic, but I don't have a real reason for that aside from their reputation. Full sized lathe, shaper, mortiser, 18" drill press, 20" planer, drum sander, RAS, miter saw, router table, etc would all adorn the shop floor. Since I'd have the money, I'd also splurge on some of the very expensive Festool products, such as the tracksaw, MFT and Domino. I'd have a reading area, complete with a mini-kitchen and kegerator.

Sounds wonderful, doesn't it? Anything I forget?

Happy Monday

It's a Monday, so it's back to the computer for me. This also means time to update weekend events in The 144. I posted about upgrading my bandsaw in the shop tour series. I needed to get that project out of the way so I could get down and dirty on my table saw extension. I purchased two 2x4x10' boards late last week, and spent Thursday and Friday turning them into a mini cart to support the saw extension. I previously placed a scrap piece of MDF to serve as the table, but ultimately wasn't happy with the look or the function, as it was sagging in the middle inexplicably.

I cut the 2x4s down into the sizes I wanted, and fashioned four of them into the base. I then attached the two swivel 4" casters I had, and the 2 3" (not a typo, the bracket is longer) straight casters I purchased on Thursday. Since this wasn't a glamorous project, I put the entire thing together with pocket screws to decrease time. I cut down a large piece of scrap pre-finished ply into the longest section I could make, and used that as the new extension top. I had to guess at the height of the legs of the cart, and will have to eventually redo them. However, it works for now. I was going to make a floor for the cart, but the vacuum sits so perfectly in it now I probably won't. The cart is attached to the saw via brackets screwed into the underside of the cart and attaches to the rails at four points.

I'm very happy with it overall, but at some point when there's nothing better to do and finances are good I may upgrade it or make some adjustments. By that time, though, I may be ready for a hybrid saw. Who knows. The only things that nibble about me about this setup is that one of the brackets rubs on the rip fence, but it still works. The other is a lack of 'right now' measurement. I shifted the stock rails to the left, so the measurement on the front of the fence is worthless. I'd really like to remove it and put it my own, but I'd want another one on hand in case I sold it. Unfortunately, it looks like it's not available for purchase. Shame. We'll see what I can do, because it really does effect the usefulness of the saw that I loved so much.

Place is a bit of a mess right now, as I have a couple pieces of ply cut for the left side of the cabinet wall, but unfortunately can't put them in right now due to the fact that the old portion of the right side is wider than the new part. Still haven't addressed the hardware containers yet either. Unfortunately the solution might have to be it gets rebuilt a 1/4" wider. So wasteful, so we'll see. Not high on the priority list.
What is high is the following:

1) get rid of some of my out of control scrap collection, beginning with all the MDF.
2) get the cabinet wall further along
3) work on the rearranging task - more on this coming up
Here are some pics of the saw extension. Not the best pictures, but then again I did say to mind the mess.

Series - Around the Workshop: The Bandsaw

I've been wanting to share info about some of my tools and things in my shop, and with the major upgrade to the bandsaw complete I thought I would start this series here.

My bandsaw is a Central Machinery (Harbor Freight) model 65795. I purchased it mid-January 2011. I had searched for several months on Craigslist for a decent used saw, but either prices were too high or the saws were a disaster. I looked at one Delta that was so rusted, the guy cut the rusted blade off so I could take a look at the rusted table. No thanks. Thanks to their generous coupons, I was able to get the saw at near what I was going to pay for a used saw.

Assembly was fairly straightforward, and accomplished in a couple hours. The hardest part was attaching the motor and getting it lined up. I assembled it by myself, and anyone in decent shape or with a hoist could easily do it. Those with back problems would be advised to ask for help. I used a link belt (also from HF) to ease vibration. Shortly after assembly, I added cool blocks, a guide pin and zero clearance insert. I was thinking about a wheel brush, but they thoughtfully included one with the saw.

It stayed like this for a year, even with the included HF blade. It was no great shakes, but it did what I asked it to do, which was mostly errata and playing around. I had decided a good 6-8 months ago to add a riser block to the saw, but had been putting off ordering it from HF. For those that don't know, a 14" bandsaw has 14" of cutting capacity between the blade and the post, it doesn't refer to how thick of stock you can cut. Those are limited to 6" for these saws. Adding a 6" riser block therefore doubles the height capacity and lets the saw be better able to resaw (split thickness) boards. For example, a 8/4 (~2") board could be resawn to two boards each just under 1" each. A couple of months ago I made a fence for the saw from plans found in a magazine. It's not fantastic, but it will serve my purposes for now until I modify it, or purchase something.

At the Atlanta Woodworking show, a unique opportunity presented itself to purchase a riser kit for a Powermatic saw. Powermatic is a well-respected tool brand, and the PM 14" bandsaws are quite nice. The Powermatic kit was only $50, which was much cheaper than even buying the HF kit, the cheapest I knew of. I knew that it would be a risk, because of the potential it might not fit correctly, but I could have potentially resold it. After a few days, I was able to acquire the tools (socket and wrench sizes I didn't have) and attempted the assembly. To my shock, the kit was an exact fit. In fact, the only way you can tell it didn't come from HF is the the Powermatic gold contrasting with the Central Machinery green. Guess it's a Green Bay saw. It went together in a matter of minutes, and now I have a saw with 12" resaw capacity, and a 105" Powermatic blade. I can't say if the blade is any good. I'll be purchasing an assortment of good blades in a few months when the budget allows. I'll want to get a good resawing blade, plus a couple of general purpose ones.

SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY!

SUPER VALUE TICKETS ARE JUST $10!

I kinda feel like it's that kinda exciting in the shop right now. So much anticipation over changes, both tangible and just out of reach. It's been an incredible couple of weeks it seems like.

YOU GET THE WHOLE SEAT BUT YOU'LL ONLY NEED THE EDGE

Can't get that voice out of my head, sorry.

What's so exciting? Well, I know I've stated that I've felt the transition to a real shop before, but this seems like a second coming in a way.

I went to the Atlanta Woodworking Show on Sunday. The show was okay, even though it was my first time going I felt a bit disappointed leaving. Most of the vendor space was Peachtree (a local company) or about turning. But I met up with someone from the table saw forum and purchased a full set of rails for my saw. In doing this, I can attach them to my existing rails and finally have a wide table saw. It'll be somewhere on order of about 44 inches or so (I hope) to the right of the blade. I'd like 52, but I don't believe I have the room for that - the saw would stick too far out into the walkway. I'm still thinking about it though, so no definitive plans as of yet. I spent yesterday afternoon rearranging stuff into the shop to see how it would all work. The additional width of the saw also will give me additional assembly room. I'm planning on cutting the hollow core door I have down to the length of my future bench to have a level surface and protect the bench itself.

While at the show I picked up a J-roller, something I have been wanting for awhile to install laminate. This is one of those 'have around the shop' kind of tools. Not needed often, but there's no real substitute for. The real big deal happened as I was about ready to walk out though. A local (later learned) vendor was selling Powermatic riser blocks for $50, cheaper than I could get any others for, including a Harbor Freight version. After some thinking and researching to see if it would work, I took the chance on it and brought it home. Unfortunately it requires a 15/16" socket and a big combo wrench, two tools that I don't currently have. I'm planning to see if I can borrow those possibly tomorrow and see if this thing will work for me. The bolt looks like it's a direct replacement, the only issue will be if I have to cut a couple of locating pins off. Hesitant to do that, but my research shows it's a fairly common procedure for the Powermatics themselves. It comes with longer blade guards, the block, the bolt and a new 105" blade - which just has to be better than the HF one. Even if it isn't, I can finally start buying good blades now that the riser will be installed. The Powermatic Gold will clash slightly with the Central Machinery green, but function over form, right?

Another big addition came in the form of an Amazon sale yesterday. Ordered four 40" Jet parallel clamps, and they should be here in about a month, plenty of time to build back up the coffers.

Perhaps some pictures will help, I'll see what I can do.

Build thread - planer cart

Today I'll be building a planer cart, and if it goes well, the left side of my cabinet wall. I've got two hours to try and get all my cuts and construction done, so I can't guarantee how well this will work. But follow along and check in now and again to see the progress.
3:55pm - I purchased two sheets of Shop VC Birch and I just printed out my cutting diagram. Outside we go.
5:16p - all pieces cut for both projects. Now to change to the dado, run those and see about some assembly.


11:52 - well, it was a good effort. I'm just too pressed for time usually to do stuff like this.

The pieces are all cut for the planer cart and the left side of the cabinet. The dado stack was installed and the dados complete for the cart. I was in the process of drilling the holes to assemble the cart when I was called away for family business.

The nice thing is I will be able to have it assembled in very short order. I may have to run dados on the top and bottom pieces of the cart, but that's a quick process.

Have something else to share, but I'll wait until at least the cart is done.

As time goes by

I've only visited the shop a couple times in the last two weeks, so there's not much to report on. Purchased a new blade for my cordless saw, hoping to see if that improves the performance any. The 100T plywood blade I've had on it absolutely sucks. A foot into whatever, and it stalls. If this doesn't improve it, I may have to junk it. Being 18V doesn't help, but it should be able to make it through plywood. It used to before, before this blade was on it. I'm hoping that it was the cause.

Cabinet project is still waiting for all the stars to align. I've been making some smaller purchases, needed purchases. I bought a new set of HSS drill bits on clearance from Lowe's, and a countersink/taper bit set from Rockler (link at bottom). I'm also in need of a first aid kit and a fire extinguisher, but I'm hoping I won't need either of those ever, but at least until the third paycheck hits in May. As for the cabinet project, I'd like to have enough spare funds to purchase all the plywood at once so I can make repetitive cuts so everything comes out equal, and line up a day or two of nice weather to take off of work and bang it out.

There are two other projects I'd really like to tackle this year concerning the shop. One is a Holzapffel bench so I can start doing a bit more handwork. The bench I made for rough carpentry work is fine, but I need something that's heavy enough to put a hole in the world. Longer, as well. The other project that will most likely take precedence is new entry doors for the shop. I'll discuss that in the next blog entry, as it's in-depth and requires lots of thought.

Review - dust separator lid

(Unless otherwise noted, I have not received any compensation or consideration for any of the reviews listed. These have been purchased with my own funds at regular or sale prices publicly available.)

I first reviewed this on Router Forums in May of 2010. I'll republish portions of my original post and update it with what I've experienced over almost two years of owning it.


Republished in part from routerforums.com:

Now, let me tell you about my current setup and why it's relevant to the review. I do all my router table activities in my shed - henceforth known as the shop. It's a 12'x12' enclosed building in my backyard, and it also houses other assorted stuff like old baby clothes, the lawnmower, garden tools...the usual stuff. So, keeping dust at bay is a pretty big priority. So much so that any sawing I have to do, of whatever sort, gets done outside.

To gather the dust and bits from my router table, I'm using a Rockler fence and D/C port, hooked up to a 6g/3HP Shop-Vac. Nothing too fancy about that.

I had been doing a pretty decent amount of projects lately, and it has been working well. But the discussion about D/C recently brought my attention to various store and DIY solutions to help extend the life of the vacuum. One of these was the Rockler unit, which can be found here. Since this is on my way home (sort of), I decided to go pick it up. I bought it with one of the shop vac adapters as well. A 5g Homer bucket was purchased from the BORG, although I had a 5g bucket from Pep Boys that would have worked as well. NOTE= 5g buckets are not equal.

I emptied out the vacuum before I started, and noticed a copious amount of dust covering the filter and in the canister. It was good that I was doing this now, or I may have ended up burning the motor at some point. I had an entire duplicate Shop-Vac still in the box from a sale, so I borrowed the hose from it to complete assembly. The Rockler unit just sits on top of the bucket, and you can use the bucket handle to lock down the top. The whole thing isn't a huge space waster, I have it under my clamp table at the moment. If I had considered it beforehand, I could have incorporated it's inclusion in my router table. Perhaps next time.

Results
Now, I'm not a everyday woodworker. I also didn't do a ton of testing to reach this conclusion, but I think it's representative of what I do, so I included it. I'll do a small project, if I'm lucky, once a week. This week's project was to experiment with making biscuits and to make the face for my new bench clamp (small chamfer, 3/4" indent for the mechanism).

I experienced no discernible loss in suction from the hose. The vacuum was on during routing, and after when I cleaned up any dust and bits on the table and in the tracks. Sucked everything up fine. When I went to check on the results, I saw absolutely nothing in the vacuum. Nada. Now, it's entirely possible (and probable) that dust is still finding it's way into the vacuum and filter, but it's severely reduced compared to what was still in the bucket. I have to recommend this, so far, as an absolute buy. I'd recommend this to anyone in a similar position, and I'm interested in doing a bit heavier workload to see if the results still hold, but I see no reason to why it shouldn't.

Initial conclusion: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Final conclusion: TBD

End copy.


Up until a few months ago, I was using the Shop Vac 3HP model with 1.25" diameter hoses. I have since upgraded to a Ridgid 6HP model with 2.25" hoses. I had to upgrade in order to clear the chips from my planer. It works, but not quite as well as a true DC would. However, for small shops it works just fine. When hooked up to my table saw a while back, I could see a vortex inside the bucket after I recently emptied it. The performance of this unit has convinced me to hold off building another lid for it. I would be interested in seeing the results with a larger separator, and I may order one if the diameter will fit my shorty 20-gallon trash can. I give this five stars, as it has been a stalwart in my cleanliness initiative, and I haven't had any regrets about purchasing it. The bucket's handle helps hold down the lid securely - I do recommend the 'Homer' bucket from HD, it's what I use.

Rockler has stopped selling this, but luckily Amazon still does. You can find a link below (with my referral). If you are thinking of trying it out, please consider going through the link below in order to help fund the shop. It does not add to your purchase price.

Older pictures:





Woodstock W2049 Mini 2-Stage Cyclone Separator

Whole lot of nothin'

Two days and no shop time. Not that I've really minded, I badly needed to clean my car out yesterday and today is a very dreary day. With no projects on deck there's not much reason to head out there except for some measuring, which I might do in a bit.

I've been looking for ideas to store my power tools on the wall and I've not had much luck. It seems it's not a project that's discussed too often. Or one that pictures aren't taken too routinely of. It seems like I'm going to be left to my own devices on this project, and to truly do what's the most efficient storage for the tools instead of any particular design. Some stuff like the air tools, multifunction tool and Dremel will most likely live in drawers. It's the saws, drills and etc that will be up on the wall.

I keep thinking I may swap the drill press to the opposite wall next to the table saw. I'm still trying to figure out the most efficient use of that corner, of all the possibilities I have: drill press, air compressor, or jointer. What I may have to do is remove all the scrap wood on a nice day and simply move things and see if they work. Sketchup isn't going to help me much here, because most of my models aren't to scale.

Another project that's in the research phase is a new set of doors. The T&G plywood that's pretty much the entire exterior of the shop has seen better days, with the doors taking the worst of it. Not meant for exterior use, they've bowed out and aren't suitable for storing anything. That's not to mention the complete lack of protection from animals or cold air. I've been looking at different styles of doors and am not close to deciding anything yet. I'd love a single, sliding door, but that's going to be cost prohibitive. Barn-style doors and hinges are the most likely outcome.

I was able to hit up a refurb tool store about an hour from home and browsed their selection. I was tempted by a few things, but ended up only coming home with a 4v wall stud sensor and an 18v leaf blower. The stud sensor works well enough, and is of the Ryobi Tek series. I have their screwdriver and love it. I also have a electronic lock that I couldn't care either way for, but buying it netted me a spare battery and charger for less than just a battery. Now I have three chargers, three batteries and three tools for under $70. The leaf blower isn't at all powerful, at least on wet leaves. I think it will come in handy in the fall when they start falling though, and it's super light and fairly quiet.

The only thing I did shop-wise in the last few days was I built the beginnings of my air compressor garage. I took some spare 2x4s and cut them to size to make the side support of the garage. The other side will be a wall and a cleat. I didn't feel like changing out my saw to do dados, so I experimented with my bandsaw to make half-laps. The result was rather good, in that I wasn't looking for precision. If I was, I would rather have the table saw. But it worked, even with the blade drifting. My shop-made band saw fence is nice, but I think I'll be buying something at some point for accuracy. Not really worried about it until the riser and a good blade gets purchased.

I am going to go out tomorrow and make a mess, as I want to put my new jigsaw through its paces and make sure it works for me.

Stuck in neutral

I attempted to purchase the plywood for the cabinet build yesterday, but I couldn't get things to come together. I decided I was pressing and should let the experience 'come to me' as it were. I've found when I try to rush things and not let them play out naturally I get disappointed. Prime example - the drill bit holders I tried to make yesterday. They aren't a failure, but I would have been happier with them had I taken more time with them and not taken shortcuts. The cabinets will come, in time. This weekend would be a good time to do it, but I'd rather pad the coffers if you catch my drift. Best time again would be in a couple weeks, but perhaps I can work something out a little earlier. The plywood will cost $30 a sheet, and I'll need three sheets it looks like, plus about $14 for the hardboard that will protect the surface. I'd also like to trim it out, but that may have to wait awhile.

The only thing to do right now is to research more storage options for tools, bits, and other knickknacks. If I find anything interesting, I'll report.

Peace in our time

To take from Disraeli and Chamberlain, this is how I feel right now: the design for the south wall cabinets is done. I'm finally at peace with my decision, and feel confident going forward. I had been so unsettled by multiple options with my planer and my miter saw that it turned into paralysis by analysis.

Monologues included...Should I put the miter saw in the middle or the right side? Flip cart for the miter saw and planer? Planer below miter saw? Expansion room for a bigger miter saw? Where should the router table go? Should I integrate the router table in the cabinet top? Flat or tiered top?

And it went on and on. Whenever I settled on a for sure, slam dunk design I had second thoughts a day later. I was so set on one design a week ago that I was picking out my plywood before I decided to hold off and then changed my mind on the design. I'm pretty confident in this one, and I'm planning to walk away from the design phase and start gearing towards getting it built. The tool storage above it (or on another wall) will still be debated and run through until I'm happy with it.

A short virtual tour:



There are six 'spaces,' and I'll refer to them in left to right order.

Space #1 will be for storage, most likely in drawers of my least used tools. The large cabinet may relocate right at this wall, and I don't want to hit my head often.

Space #2 is an open floor for the rolling router cabinet, and should be wide enough to fit the current one.

Space #3 is an open floor for a rolling planer cart. The planer will line up with the cabinet top, and when I get the Dewalt I could thickness plane right where it is. With the Ryobi, I will have to pull it out. My hardware containers will fill the cart, and I'll have a false floor for weight to counterbalance the planer.

Space #4 is the same as Space #1, but for more used tools I'm thinking.

Space #5 is where the miter saw will live, for the most part. Under this is storage...


...for a modular tool system.

What I planned out was that the Space #3 and Space #5 is exactly the same, so that tools mounted on a 22"x24" piece of plywood can be mounted in either space and be used at any time. There will be plywood tabs just under the surface of the cabinet so that the bases can sit flush. I know of three modules already: dovetail jig, Kreg station and downdraft sanding box. I'll also have regular blanks to fill in the surface for using the planer or assembling a long piece. Each module blank will be ganged and drilled for inserts so it all lines up.

As to when this project will get underway? Perhaps today...

Planer stand update

Yesterday I did my measuring and found that the DC separator measured in at 28"x24". Fairly large, no wonder I felt like it was a behemoth. What I did find interesting, either by design of the plans or by accident, was that the planer bed was exactly (and I mean exactly) 36" high. I think that may have been a sign to at least try what I'm attempting.

(A couple days pass)

What I did was to cut down the long side to 20". I didn't try to make this particularly neat, just for illustrative purposes. Surprisingly, it looks like it might work. I could make a spot for it to live in the bench, but it could go anywhere. In particular, it could hide next to my table saw.

The problem I'm on now isn't what to do with the planer, but what to do with the miter saw. I'm pretty happy with my 10" Hitachi, but I could see the need in the future to upgrade to a standard 12" or a 12" SCMS. Unfortunately, those generally run at least 24" wide - quite the leap from the 17" wide my Hitachi takes up. And this isn't including 45 degree travel. They're also especially deep. As much as I want to make room for a bigger saw, I don't see how its possible. It's something I'm going to sleep on, and I'm going to have to be sure about it before construction can begin.

Idle hands are the devil's workshop

Or so the saying goes. More apt to describe me would be 'Idle hands make the mind work overtime.'

I'm waiting for all the stars to line up, so to speak, to get started on my cabinet project. With the weather (cold this weekend), money (more is always better) and time (never enough) thwarting my plans for the next little bit, and the shop in one of it's cleanest phases, I'm left to my own devices until I can start building.

I started going through all the scenarios if the planer shouldn't go on top of the cabinet. Again. The thought was I would only have 52" or so of infeed length - I couldn't even put the boards for the workbench through there. And it seemed to be a reasonable point. It would also mean I would have to dump the tables to my current planer and I wouldn't be able to add any to any future ones.

I think before I make any design changes I'm going to try something - the DC box I made that I no longer need, and that my planer sits on now, is too big for the shop. I'm going to measure it, and see how it would compare to the DW735 in regards to size. I wonder if I could reduce the size enough for it to still be useful but not be so big. It will cost me nothing but a little bit of time (and with what I said above, I have some to spare) and I might get a better idea if I can have a mobile stand for it at a comfortable height, or I have to continue on with my original plans.

3000+ views

Wow. I was going to post about hitting 3000 views and I procrastinated and we're well over 3100 now. That's amazing, and I'm very thankful for the visits this blog is getting.

Later today - current pictures of the shop and some more musings.

Ryobi forum

There used to be a Ryobi tool forum a few years back, but it sadly died away. Apparently, a new one is on its way and you can pre-register for it at the link below.

Being a card-carrying member of the Ryobi Nation, I've already signed up. Now to take the tablet out to the shop and start registering some tools.

Ryobi Nation

The cabinet

What to do with this? I made this last year (at least, would have to check exactly when) before I had moved the lower cabinet to this wall, before I had made a master plan. It's solidly built, if a little inaccurate and hastily assembled. It does an admirable job holding a bunch of stuff I'd otherwise not have a spot for. I have room for it where it is in the master plan, but I'd rather have the ability to make that entire top half of the wall a tool repository. It's a want, but not a need. I realize that this is a rather big cabinet and it can't go too many other places, whereas individual tools can fill a lot of smaller holes.

However, this is where the work will be done.

As for alternative locations, there isn't many. I could turn it 90 degrees and have it above the jointer. I may have to shorten it by a couple inches and make some shelves, but it wouldn't be too hard of a process. I'd get rid of the frame and do something different. It's possible it could go on that same wall, either vertically or horizontally, on the other side of the bandsaw. I had planned on having a hand tool cabinet that opening would interfere with that location, but the hand tool cabinet could move more toward the center of the south wall.

The only other spot would be if I swapped the wall rack to the opposite wall, and moved the cabinet and drill press here. This would probably not work as I'd hit my head on it constantly.

The cabinet top

One of the best elements of the cabinet design is the top. I was never satisfied with the prospect of having two levels - one for the miter saw and planer and a terrace above the miter fence. It made things too complicated and it eliminated valuable work space. After consulting an extensive Google Image search on miter benches, I came up with the following:



It's a length of T-track embedded into the surface, allowing uninterrupted use of the planer without having to move it. The T-track should not affect the planer's use at all, and the only consideration for the miter saw will be the spot where the planer is. I'll be using a stop block and a length of adhesive measuring tape along the length of the track. This will give me the repeatable results I desire with the miter saw. The lack of a fence will ensure that I use the saw's fence, where the blade is squared up and not have to worry about getting the auxiliary fence spot-on. I am considering having the planer slightly below the surface, and bring up the planing surface with a sheet of MDF or plywood. I can either continue the miter track in this insert, or the planer can be level with the cabinet and I can use an auxiliary, longer stop block that will give me the measurement I need. And since the Ryobi and Dewalt have the exact same deck height, whichever way I choose will work long term.

The Ryobi will certainly fit in the center section, and I can even reduce the width a bit because the Dewalt is only 20.5" wide in the planing direction (the Ryobi is 14" without the tables). Doing this, I could increase the width of the miter saw section and improve the clearance when it goes to 50 degrees. I would ideally like to get this section to at least 25" wide, for future-proofing, but I'm not sure I'll squeeze that much out. I may have to move the sander to a different spot, but I'm not worried: if I swap it to a different box, the storage I had planned for there will easily move to where the sander is projected now.

I have a full 4' section of T-track waiting in reserve, and I'll purchase another one and that should be plenty for the cabinet surface. Once I get the lower cabinets sorted out I can work on making the upper portion of the wall usable.

Speaking of the upper wall...well, next time.

Calm before the storm

I was considering jumping into the cabinet project with both feet today, but I've decided to wait a week or three until funds come back up and I can buy all my materials in one shot. This will help make sure the top of the cabinet is nice and level by making the same cuts at once.

The other reason is that I'd be making a huge mess if I attempted to do this right now. I still have stuff scattered everywhere, especially from the two wall sections that were replaced. Notably, the saw blade caddies, the light holder and a few other things needed to find a home to start the project, at least temporarily. I temporarily mounted the saw blade holders near the miter saw to get them out of the way. I put the light holder up behind the bandsaw, which seems like a really great spot. When that wall section gets replaced, it will stay there.

I also disassembled the battery/charger station, as the addition of the Ryobi Supercharger really eliminated the need to store all those batteries. The waste was disposed of, and the battery charger may still have a use in the shop. The Supercharger can store six batteries, but can only charge one at a time. Having a spare charger or two (I have four total right now) can really speed up getting everything charged back up.

Otherwise, there's not much to talk about right now. I've got the plan mapped out for the cabinets, and two sheets will do the entire right-hand portion of it (from the planer to the miter saw), and I think just one more sheet would take care of the rest. Once the cabinet bodies get sorted out, then it's time to start saving up for a few sheets of 1/2" plywood for the drawers, any shelves I might make and the tool cubbies that will go somewhere on that wall. I'd really like to work on the air compressor garage, but I'm currently stymied by too much scrap and a slight uncertainty about if my wall scrap storage will switch walls.

Finality

What you see above is it. The end. No do-overs, no whoopsies, no take-backs. I'm done trying to design the perfect bench, this will have to work.

I'll go through the design from left to right. The left box is sized to hold hardware bins, possibly up to 10. Next to that is a cubby for the standalone router table to slide in for storage. In the middle is a lowered platform that is sized to fit a Dewalt 735, but will also fit my Ryobi. The Ridgid sander should fit under just fine, with perhaps the socket set just under the planer.

Next to that is a single box for drawers. I had intended for a lot more storage, but when it came down to it, this was the best solution. There will be some storage in the next box under the miter saw, but I'm going to use this area for modular storage. I'll expound on that as the build gets closer and some photographic cues can accompany. The far right space is for four sawhorses. The boxes above the miter saw are not final, just an indication of tool storage to be further fleshed out.

It's too late and I'm too tired to flesh out more details, such as the lack of a miter saw fence. But I'm excited to start and that could come very, very shortly.

Design oops

In touting my final design for the miter saw cabinet, I forgot to take into account I was trying to make it future-proof. The Hitachi's deck is rather narrow compared to the 12" sliding models out there. I can't say I'd ever upgrade to a SCMS, but I think if I don't have a way to make that an option, I know it won't happen. So I'm looking at the design to see if I could squeeze out another ten inches of room for one to fit. If not, then I know it wasn't meant to be.

Also, I'm having a fleeting thought of making the entire top of the cabinet flat, and have the miter saw slide out instead of the planer. Might not be the worst idea, honestly. If I planned the drawers right, I might could use them as the infeed supports. We might be getting a bit above my skill level to get it all to work though.

Review - Safety Glasses

This is first in a series of tool and equipment reviews I'll be having to fill some of the down time I expect in the shop.

(Unless otherwise noted, I have not received any compensation or consideration for any of the reviews listed. These have been purchased with my own funds at regular or sale prices publicly available.)

Something I use almost every single time I head out to the shop is my safety glasses. I can be demoing the walls like I was last week, working on my car like I was yesterday, or doing nearly everything else in the shop - I have to protect my eyes. Just as much if not more than my hands and fingers, my eyes pay the bills in my day job. While I'm not the best at getting them checked, I do try to avoid things flying into them if at all possible. Enter in my favorite pair of safety glasses ever, the Milwaukee MK2400.

It's not just that I bought a (read: five) pair for $3.99 each during a (couple) sale(s) on Amazon, it's that their so damn comfortable. I can't count the number of times I get done in the shop, and get inside the house and realize I have them on. And the next time I need them, remember that they're in the house.

Unfortunately, it appears that Milwaukee has discontinued this product. I hate it when I find a product I love and then it stops getting made. I have three pair currently (one active, two in the box), and I'll have to be careful about where I set them down. The current pair got twisted slightly, but I was able to bend them back in place and they still work fine.

I will be exploring outdoor options, seeing if I can find a similar style and fit with a UV rating for working outside. I never saw an exact version of these with a tint.

Below is a link to the glasses. It is an Amazon Associates link. If you want to try what I review, I'll be listing a direct link to the product that you can purchase and also help out the site monetarily. This is purely optional, but if you're thinking about trying them out please consider purchasing it through this link. Future products I review will also contain a link like this and there will be a button on the main page that if you buy on Amazon anyway, click through the link and help out the site and the shop.

I will also take requests for reviews if possible monetarily. Your cooperation with the Amazon links will help fund these reviews.

If you are a manufacturer who would like to get a product reviewed, please contact me. All reviews will be done fairly without consideration for any products gifted or loaned. Full disclosure will be provided as well.




Milwaukee 49-17-2400 MK2400 Safety Glasses Clear Hard Coat