"AH-HA moment" Tips for beginning woodworkers

[wouldwurker]

I thought this would be a really neat and helpful forum thread. Particularly for beginners and people stumbling upon the forum.

Essentially it's the woodworking tip or trick that you were probably taught or read about a year or so after you've been practicing the craft that made you smack your head and say AH-HA! Why didn't someone tell me that sooner!?! And you've been using it ever since.

Whether it's a trick or method that will save you time for the rest of your hobby/career, or a safety tip that might just save your fingers, it might be neat to have a nice collection of them all in one thread.

I'll go first as I read this in a magazine yesterday and subsequently smacked my head and said AH-HA!, why didn't someone tell me this sooner!?!

[wouldwurker]

Finding the center of a board.

Place a ruler diagonally across your board, lining up the end with an even number, 0" and 8" for example

Divide the number in half and there's your Centerpoint (in this case 4")

Dial it in with your square, if you have one

(raise palm to forehead and smack)

[Trip]

http://www.startwoodworking.com/

[wouldwurker]

Yep you nailed it. A link to another website was exactly what I was looking for.

[Raefco]

Yep you nailed it. A link to another website was exactly what I was looking for.

LOL, nailed it...

[Mzdadoc]

Using only one tape measure or measuring devise for the whole project. They are not all equal!

[tim0625]

1-I always work from rough sketches that I made. Could be why but projects rarely go off without a hitch. There's always some adjustment to make to my original design to make it come out and often that is the thing that stands out in a project (in a good way)

 

2- Fixing boo boos are part of about every project. The most seasoned woodworkers have them.  Your skills will be developed as you goof and learn how to fix what you've messed up.

 

3- always look at a tool with a cord or a blade as a rattlesnake that you're going to pick up. Carefully, no distractions, focused on the moment because complacency means that you'll get bit ("bitten" if you're an English major)

 

4-always, always, always dry fit the pieces together first before applying glue

 

5-that measure twice cut once thing is really true and if you're scatter headed, measure three or 4 times.

 

6-You can never have too many clamps, measuring instruments, or routers.  Incidentally, you don't have to attend classes until you have 27 routers.

 

7- Never make critical cuts at the end of the day..."just one more cut and I'll quit".  That's when #2 increases.

 

8-safety equipment is not nerdy...it is cool. You can never have too many pairs of safety glasses or hearing protectors in the shop and they don't do a stitch of good if they're laying on the bench. One carbide tooth that flies off of a table saw blade under power can change your entire life.  Don't be that guy!

 

9- never position things in your shop in a permanent way.  Shops - no matter the size - evolve, rearrange, and grow. Mobile bases, lots of outlets, and a panel box large enough to power a steel mill isn't too much because you can not see the future.

 

10-be organized....and I'm not.....at the end of your life, you will have worked one year longer than most of us because that is about the amount of time we've spent looking for things.  You'll also be much richer because you haven't bought two or three of them along the way.  I did some organizing and cleaning the other day and now on a pegboard hook, I have 10 rolls of plumbing thread tape. I think I'm set with thread tape if I don't squirrel it somewhere else.

 

These are off the top of my head & now I have to go to the day job that pays for Thanksgiving.....hold my sippy cup, I'm going in

[collinb]

Since I'm pretty new to this, these are some of the things I've learned since Spring:

 

1.  If in doubt, cut long.  You can always remove more but you cannot add it back.

 

2. Think of your shop like a kitchen.  Make the stations convenient and the distances short.

2.1 Sometimes rearrange per job.  Sometimes it's cut, route, or cut, sand, or maybe its it's cut, mitre, route, sand.

 

3. Ergonomics is not often talked about.  Set your heights for both safety and comfort. No sense in making things any harder than they need to be.

 

4. I may not need or can afford the best equipment but getting something less than the job requires is often a waste of money. 

Get the right tool for the job. Sometimes more when considering the future but lesser tools ... na.

 

5. Put it on paper.  If you cannot put it on paper it likely will never come into existence.  Once it's on paper, then you have a plan.

 

My guiding principle: The equipment is there to serve you, not the other way around.

[dwacker]

I know this is odd but I mill to my joinery rather than mill then do the joinery when possible. Makes tool set up a non issue mostly just an eyeball it thing. 

[davewyo]

Use the random orbit sander judicially.

Use a hand plane if possible.

Card scrapers and/or a No. 80 scraper plane can speed up the sanding.

Where possible, use a sanding block; not a sponge.

 

Can you tell I've been sanding?

 

Dave

[ChetlovesMer]

Here's one that really helped me.

TIP = "Find a finishing technique that you can fall back on."

 

If you start looking into finishing techniques you are likely to find a million of them... maybe more. But find one that you can fall back on when ever you need to get that project done. In my woodworking life there have been a lot of times I can experiment with new finishing techniques, but there are times you have to get a project done and you don't have the luxury of experimenting. That's when you fall back on your old standby.

[ResidentEvil]

 

9- never position things in your shop in a permanent way.  Shops - no matter the size - evolve, rearrange, and grow. Mobile bases, lots of outlets, and a panel box large enough to power a steel mill isn't too much because you can not see the future.

 

 

My wife is forever giving me a hard time because I tend to reposition/reorganize often.  Glad to hear I'm not the only one.

[wouldwurker]

 

 

8-safety equipment is not nerdy...it is cool.............. One carbide tooth that flies off of a table saw blade under power can change your entire life. 

I did NOT know that was possible.  You've officially made me a bit safer and respectful of my TS.  And a little terrified. 

[collinb]

Here's one that really helped me.

TIP = "Find a finishing technique that you can fall back on."

 

If you start looking into finishing techniques you are likely to find a million of them... maybe more. But find one that you can fall back on when ever you need to get that project done. In my woodworking life there have been a lot of times I can experiment with new finishing techniques, but there are times you have to get a project done and you don't have the luxury of experimenting. That's when you fall back on your old standby.

Sounds like my darkroom work.

I would just *love* to spend some time doing platinum/paladium printing.  But then again just getting a nice print at times takes priority. 

[nginear]

Being a newbie, this is a GREAT topic.  Unfortunately, I haven't learned anything that hasn't been covered, so I can't add anything myself.  However, I can cretainly learn from the many great people here, and ultimately, that's what forums like this are all about.

 

Thanks vinnyjojo for starting this.

[wtnhighlander]

I know this is odd but I mill to my joinery rather than mill then do the joinery when possible. Makes tool set up a non issue mostly just an eyeball it thing.

I'd like to hear more about this. Joinery on rough lumber???

[Janello]

Watching a buddy of mine build a trinket box one time. He took a wider flat board to the miter saw, then brought the spinning bade down and "scored" the board. Without moving that board, he put his smaller project board on top and lined up his pencil mark with the "score" beneath. I thought it was a cool trick to see precisely where the blade will be contacting the project piece. This works even better with a sliding miter saw with a blade height flip stop.

[chefmagnus@grics.net]

Mine was that you could use a combination square to draw straight lines on things by putting the pen in the groove and pull it along the edge.

[Andrew Pritchard]

I did NOT know that was possible.  You've officially made me a bit safer and respectful of my TS.  And a little terrified. 

 

This is a good reason to keep a guard around the blade if you can, and never stand directly behind the blade if you can possibly help it.

 

Respect and a little bit of fear of your power tools is a good thing. When you don't, that's when you'll get hurt. They are designed to cut stuff, and unless you have a SawStop, it can't tell the difference between flesh and wood.

[keith.d.mullins]

Thanks for the tips and links. This a great topic.

I'm only on project #2 but have already learned that I must think through each and every step and cut. I ended up cutting too deep on a dado just because of a stupid mistake. Now I must decide to replace or repair.

[..Kev]

Thanks for the tips and links. This a great topic.

I'm only on project #2 but have already learned that I must think through each and every step and cut. I ended up cutting too deep on a dado just because of a stupid mistake. Now I must decide to replace or repair.

 

If it's not going to show, repair.  If it will be seen, replace.

[keith.d.mullins]

If it's not going to show, repair.  If it will be seen, replace.

Good advice. Just looked closely at the plans, looks like a repair is in order

Thanks! Definitely an ah-ha moment. LOL

[Tom Crawford]

Buy a tape measure and a box of pencils for every horizontal surface in your shop.  You will be surprised how much time you save not wondering around looking for one.

[wouldwurker]

Going to piggyback on toms note re: tape measure and pencils.

Once I made a habit of wearing a shop apron, I never lost a pencil, eraser, cell phone, molded earplugs, tape measure, or 6" and 4" square again (clearly, the permanent contents of my apron).

[Rvlewis]

Been building solid body electric guitars for about 10 years now, but admittedly don't have an otherwise very diverse woodworking background, unless framing walls counts too...

That said, I have four AH-HA's to pass along:

1. Respect your power tools from a safety standpoint, but none more than your router. Always put enough of the bit's shank in the collet and tighten well. I once tried to just get that extra 1/4" depth in a cavity so I pulled the bit too far out of the collet to make the deeper cut. Bit caught on a bit of end grain and launched out of the router and flew right past my face, denting the drywall about 15 feet away. Was wearing my safety glasses, but don't think it would have helped much if the bit hit me in the face...

2. If you are just starting out, don't go for the best tools money can buy, but do buy good quality tools nonetheless. Anything less and you won't be pleased with the experience and you'll be more likely to give it al up as a result. I went cheap on a few key tools and was fortunate I was able to afford replacing them when I realized how badly they sucked.

3. Get a couple of those big "erasers" for cleaning sanding belts. You'll be shocked when you see how much more life you get out of sandpaper when you clean the buildup. The erasers work just as well on sandpaper sheets too.

4. If you make a mistake on a project, try to fix, but if all else fails, make it look like it was intentional...