Wood Projects Tools

PROJECT APPEARANCE

carpenter — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 04:03:10 +0000

FINISHING A WOOD PROJECT makes a durable material even more durable and gives it its final appearance at the same time. A rustic appearance can be produced by simply staining or painting or varnishing a freshly cut workpiece. This gives an interesting appearance to the work and provides a measure of protection for the wood. But usually, one wants a higher level of finish and that will involve planing and sanding to smooth the workpiece and then application of materials to improve appearance and durability of the wood. Each stage of the finishing process can involve various steps and the care taken by the worker will affect the final product.

CUTTING OUT PROJECT PIECES

The first part of finishing begins with cutting out the parts because using a cutting tool that is too coarse will leave marks that are hard to remove. A rustic appearance can be produced by a coarse cutting tool and that is fine if one desires that appearance in the finished product. Most of the time, projects are supposed to end up smooth and that is where a finer toothed saw is going to make sanding easier. Course cutting teeth usually make cutting faster and finer teeth slow down the cutting but produce a smoother cut and slower cutting often means faster sanding. A coarse rasp will remove wood quickly but leave a surface that is difficult to finish.

Another way to make the cut smoother is to slow down the feed of the part through a cutting tool. Move a router slower to produce smoother parts for instance. Push parts through a saw slower to reduce course tool marks. The best way to get a smooth cut is to use a fine toothed saw and feed the part through the saw slowly.

A sharp blade is always going to give better cuts than a dull one. This includes saws, planers, routers, drills and carving knives. Sharp tools can save a lot of work in finishing.

In cutting out the project: 1. Select the appropriate cutting tool 2. Feed the part through the cutting tool at an appropriate rate 3. Use sharp tools.

FUNCTION AND DECORATION HARDWARE

carpenter — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:55:14 +0000

This page will be used to discuss the wide variety of hardware available for wood projects. There will be instructions for installation and suggestions for selecting hardware.

Hinges
Pulls
Handles
Fasteners
slides
escutcheons
ferules
leg buttons
locks
shelf hook
hanger
casters
clips
pins
sources
modifying hardware
catches
hook and eye

THINGS TO TRY

carpenter — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 03:48:11 +0000

Wood projects can be combined with other arts and crafts to make special projects with striking appeal. A black lacquer finish with a painted design is one example. This page will be used to explore unusual and challenging projects designed to expand the art side of wood working. Special construction details will be presented and projects that explore new ideas.

WHAT IS WOOD?

carpenter — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:42:46 +0000

This page will be used to discuss:

Sources of different kinds of wood
Plywood
Composite materials
Properties of different materials
The species available
Used lumber
Re sawing
Types of cuts for lumber
Strength of species
Drying wood
Kiln drying
Building a small kiln
Color of different species
Grain patterns
Aligning grain in a project
Things to watch for in choosing a species
Unusual types of wood, grapevine, ornamental species, etc.
Traditional uses for each species
Additional subjects

TURNING IDEAS INTO A PROJECT

carpenter — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:16:13 +0000

The tangible project that you can hold in your hand started out as an idea. Someone wanted the appearance or the function that it could provide and they went through the steps required to turn an idea into something physical. Maybe they wanted a workbench and the first thing that they thought about was the work surface. That got expanded by a need to attach a vise and they needed sufficient room for the size of projects that they intended to work on. The work surface needed to be steady so a support system became important. Then they noticed all the space under the work surface that could be used for storage and the design kept growing.

One important aspect of designing a project is to sense the freedom to go ahead and let your ideas lead. It is just fine to come up with your own project but a person needs the confidence to go forward with a design. This confidence can be built up by starting out using ready made plans and following them carefully. That will get you used to the physical requirements of a project. You’ll get a feel for how joints are made and how wood is shaped and formed into the final product. Think about each step and learn as much as you can about why the designer chose the features of the project. Learn the basic skills of measuring and marking out parts for the project.

This page will be expanded to include articles on:
Art
Drafting
Layout
Measuring
Choice of materials
Envisioning the project
Modifying an existing design
Choose fasteners
Evaluate your level of skill
What is the purpose of the project
Design features that reduce problems

ABOUT TOOLS

carpenter — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:14:51 +0000

Tools can be a large expense and it is easy to go astray buying pretty, fun, exciting gadgets. If one is trying to exercise some control over their budget, there are two basic approaches to acquiring the tools for doing wood working. One approach is to work up a list of basic tools and purchase all them at once. The other is to purchase the tools that are required for the immediate project. The second approach means that the expenditures are spread over a longer period of time and that the tools are specific to the project. But, it also means that each project budget has to include tools as well as the usual supplies. Many people combine these two approaches by buying a smaller list of basic tools and then adding tools as they go along. Either way, one eventually has the tools on hand to do a wide variety of projects.

TOOL CATEGORIES

measuring tools
steel measuring tape
carpenters square
try square
calipers

hand tools
saw, hand saw, coping saw
drill, drill bits
chisel
plane
hammer
scrapers
rasp, file
screw driver
square ruler, measuring tape
clamps
brace and bits
draw knife, spoke shave
miter box

power tools
saws
drill presses
sanders
edgers
planers
hand drills
carving machine
jointer
biscuit cutter
router
jig saw
scroll saw
miter saw

special tools
dowel jig
glue gun
paint, varnish, stain brushes
work bench
bench vise
drill jig

Suggested list of basic tools for wood working

Decide whether you will work with hand tools or power tools. Hand tools are fine, remember that nearly all wood working was done with hand tools until modern times. Very fine quality projects can be made using hand tools and the work pace is slower which can emphasize the art side of wood working. On the other hand, power tools allow one to complete a project more quickly and sometimes with greater precision. One approach is to try the task and if the tools on hand don’t support your skills and goals, you’ll have a better understanding of the tools that you need to buy.

Tools everyone needs
claw hammer
steel tape measure
three sizes of straight bladed screw drivers
three sizes of phi lips head screw drivers
carpenters square
try square
spring clamps
c-clamps
furniture clamps
work bench

Hand tools for those doing wood working by hand
hand saw
keyhole saw
coping saw
wood chisel
hand drill, bits
plane
scraper

Power tools for those doing wood working with power tools
drill motor, bits
jig saw
table saw
hand held sander
belt sander, bench mounted
biscuit slot cutter

WHAT ARE THE STEPS IN A PROJECT?

carpenter — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 20:00:29 +0000

Preparation and planning for a project are a positive part of the project and are not to be avoided. They are the launch pad that begins to turn an idea into a tangible object. Small projects often can be finished quickly, compressing the steps, but larger projects are going to be more successful if each step is given careful attention.

Steps for a successful project
choose a project
select a design for the project
look for an existing set of plans
make your own plans
choose construction details
choose materials, wood, fasteners, etc.
acquire materials
gather tools esp. any that must be purchased
layout parts
cut out parts
clean up parts, preliminary sanding
make joint details, dowel holes, biscuit slots, etc.
test assembly
make corrections to parts, remember wood working is fun
assemble parts, gluing, biscuits, dowels, fasteners, etc.
finish sanding
apply finishes, paint, varnish, stain, etc.
deal with blemishes
show off the project

EXPAND YOUR ABILITIES

carpenter — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 19:29:53 +0000

Skills

This page will home in on the various skills rather than whole projects and the instructions will be useful for a wide range of projects. It will discuss, for instance, how to make various kinds of joints and when they should be employed. Sanding in its many forms will be covered. Skills will be added over time.

Special skills useful for woodworking

measuring
steel tape measure
carpenters square
calipers
ruler

marking out
pencil
cutting edge
scribe
special techniques

gluing
clamping
joints
drilling
sawing
planing
sanding
router
edger

BOOKSHELF/DISPLAY SHELF, WALL HUNG

carpenter — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:40:13 +0000

BOOKSHELF/DISPLAY SHELF, WALL HUNG

This bookshelf/display shelf is designed to be robust and give a confident appearance. It can be attached firmly to the wall studs to have enough strength to display even heavy items. At the same time, it has a delicate enough appearance to be very decorative. It lends itself to various finishes and materials so that it can be customized to a wide variety of tastes. Bookends are incorporated right into the design.

The basic shelf is 34-1/2” by 8-3/4” and it can be scaled to match the width of a desk. It’s narrow dimension can be scaled to match the types of books or articles to be displayed. Materials can be solid lumber, plywood or MDF.

The ends are 6-1/4” by 12” and are mounted to match the bottom edge of the backer. Rectangular ends are shown but use your imagination for other shapes. Remember that they need to hold the books in place and they need to give rigidity to the shelf.

The backer is 5-1/4” by 34-1/2” and mounts firmly to the ends and the shelf for strengh. It needs to be made of a material that will be able to carry the weight of the loaded shelf and the stresses of being mounted to the wall.

The bracket in the middle is 5” by 5-1/4” and is shaped to coordinate with the appearance of the rest of the project. Curves can be made by combining circles and cutting them such as using various sized of tin cans to trace around. Another way is to use a CAD system and play with various designs.

This is a fun and useful project that allows for a lot of inovation in the details. Have fun building and experimenting with it.

Projects

carpenter — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:41:05 +0000

This is where you will find detailed instructions for various kinds of projects to include chairs, desks, cabinets, benches, carving, chests, coffee tables, cupboards, furniture, media centers, night stands, occasional tables, picture frames, storage shelves, work benches and other small projects. There will be enough information to help you be successful in completing a project and alternative construction details will be covered so that you can match the project to your skill level.