RPCV_Woodworker Posted November 19, 2014 Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 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. Never realized that worked on sheets... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rapid Roger Posted November 19, 2014 Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 Never realized that worked on sheets... I use wine bottle corks. Yes, it really works. Maybe not as well as the erasers but it is quick, easy and cheap. (I don't drink wine but I have friends that do. Except for the ones that buy wine in boxes or with screw-on caps. ) Rog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted November 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 I use wine bottle corks. Yes, it really works. Maybe not as well as the erasers but it is quick, easy and cheap. (I don't drink wine but I have friends that do. Except for the ones that buy wine in boxes or with screw-on caps. ) Rog 3 seconds on the bottom of your rubber tennis shoe also works great for unclogging a random orbital sander. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Bailey Posted November 19, 2014 Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 I use my vac or a blast of compressed air to unclog sandpaper, seems to work fine, or am I missing something here? Also, I have to second the "don't try to stain until you know what you're doing" comment, there is a definite skill to staining that I simply do not have yet, so for now I don't do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bgreenb Posted November 19, 2014 Report Share Posted November 19, 2014 If you are a power tool guy, buy a decent planer and a good jointer as soon as you can afford to. My enjoyment went up 1000% after I stopped trying to joint boards on the table saw or with a router and spent the money on a good jointer. Flat and square is where it is at. Save round and curvy for other parts of your life.... I second this. My enjoyment went WAY up. Not only that but I was spending much less overall because I could buy lumber in the rough. Bite the bullet and buy milling machines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prov163 Posted November 21, 2014 Report Share Posted November 21, 2014 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. PB, please elaborate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcarswell Posted November 24, 2014 Report Share Posted November 24, 2014 Yep you nailed it. A link to another website was exactly what I was looking for.in his defense that site was (and sometimes still is ) an awesome resource for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcarswell Posted November 24, 2014 Report Share Posted November 24, 2014 instead of writing on the project with a pencil i will apply masking tape and then i can draw mortises part numbers all that without additional sanding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlgWoodWork Posted November 26, 2014 Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 Buy only what you need. Just because another woodworker has a tool that you don't does not mean you have to buy it too. Also, buy the best tool you can afford. Better to cry once, then to buy the same tool twice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted November 26, 2014 Report Share Posted November 26, 2014 PB, please elaborate. I just run things backwards when I can rather then trying to get a tool set up perfectly. For example cutting a bunch of mortises. I'll just face and edge joint one edge. Eyeball the the the bit close enough to center. Cut the mortises then plane the face eyeball the distance from the edge then plane off the back to final thickness. The joint will never be exactly centered but the stock will always be the same thickness and the mortise will be the same distance from the edge. With loose tenons that no one will ever see it doesn't matter if they are perfectly centered. If I screw one up cutting mortises or miss a crack or knot I don't have to start over with a completely milled board and have to get the thickness or width just perfect before moving back to mortising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradpotts Posted November 27, 2014 Report Share Posted November 27, 2014 Once you buy a couple bottles of glue keep the tops. Once you are done with a glue up, put the top in a container of water and get a new one that has been in the water. No more plugged up glue bottles. Buy nice router bits not cheap ones and cut in small passes. Make the last pass a very small trim pass to prevent burning. Use feather boards to help with long boards. They can be like extra hands. Get a nice flush trim bit. Make templates. Use the template for the bearing to ride on to get exact matches. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted November 27, 2014 Report Share Posted November 27, 2014 One I have learned recently, buying a buddy a 6pack to use xyz expensive tool is way cheaper than buying the tool if you most likely won't use it again. Jumping from 80 grit to 220 looks like crap unless you spend a long time on the 220. Climbing through the step ups in grits saves you time, not wastes it The 10% overage rule is for laying tile and wood floors. Buy more lumber than you need. If you need it for that project, you have it from the same batch and maybe the same tree. If you don't use it now, you will have it for scrap, a small project, or a wood stash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phinds Posted November 30, 2014 Report Share Posted November 30, 2014 Dremel tool bits can be very hard to get out if you try to pull them straight out but if you tap them INWARDS just a bit first, they'll slip right out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wouldwurker Posted December 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Adding another head slap moment. When duplicating a rip measurement on the TS from an existing cut piece, instead of measuring and striking a line, or trying to adjust the fence to your measurement, just fit the master piece between the fence and the blade to get your a perfect setup (obviously with the saw off, removing the precut board first). Not a bad idea to err on the side of a smidge wider, and sneak up on it if need be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyrolan Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Does anyone have a tip for setting the TS fence to accurately size the cutoff left of the blade? Like if I have a 28" piece that I want to make 24" and I don't have 24" rip capacity, how do I get it right? Trying to eyeball 3-29/32"is cumbersome and sloppy as hell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Get a bigger tablesaw ! Or get a magnifying headset , Mark the 24 and line it up by eye to the blade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Measure from inside the kerf.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick A McQuay Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Does anyone have a tip for setting the TS fence to accurately size the cutoff left of the blade? Like if I have a 28" piece that I want to make 24" and I don't have 24" rip capacity, how do I get it right? Trying to eyeball 3-29/32"is cumbersome and sloppy as hell. If I understand your question, don't do it that way. Always measure the piece you are keeping, not the off cut. Measure 24" and strike a line, cut to that line. If it really bugs you, clamp a board off the end of your saw for a stop block. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyrolan Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Mark the 24 and line it up by eye to the blade. I just hate having to do it by eye...hard to get it right. If I understand your question, don't do it that way. Always measure the piece you are keeping, not the off cut. Measure 24" and strike a line, cut to that line. If it really bugs you, clamp a board off the end of your saw for a stop block. That's the same as just lining it up by eye. Trying to adjust the fence by eye to cut a line with the left side of the blade is pretty sloppy. I guess I could just get a full kerf blade so it's 1/8...helluva lot easier to set my fence to 3-7/8 than to 3-29/32. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Get a piece of scrap the same length as your board is wide. Mark your 24 inches on that. Clamp the scrap to your crosscut sled so that the 24" mark is lined up to the left of the saw kerf on your sled then set your fence to the end of your scrap. This will only work if both sides of the board are parallel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyrolan Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 DaveT, setting the pencil line to a spot in the sled by eye is no different than setting it to the blade. I think the best way may be to make and refine a kerf-width shim to clamp to my fence. Then I could just set the fence and let the shim slide the work piece "1 kerf" so the fence setting is correct for left side instead of right. I just need to figure out how to make the shim with my limited tools... ...or get a bigger table saw as Steve suggests. =p Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Call me daft if need be....is setting the fence not lining marks up by eye? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyrolan Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Call me daft if need be....is setting the fence not lining marks up by eye? A good point and I should have explained earlier. With the fence, it's a hairline cursor over a rule and the fence is a rack and pinion system so pretty smooth and consistent. I feel like I can be fairly consistent with it. If I want something say 6", I can hit that well enough. Trying to eye the blade and account for the set of the teeth and everything I tend to do poorly..like if I do multiple pieces I can end up different by 1/16 or more. I think Dave's idea of using a cut kerf or groove is a good one because that let's me line up against a smooth line rather trying to sight the blade. I'd probably be more consistent with that approach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Not sure I understand the question. Are you asking how to make repeatable cuts with the left or right miter slots without using a rip fence as a stop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vyrolan Posted December 4, 2014 Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Not sure I understand the question. Are you asking how to make repeatable cuts with the left or right miter slots without using a rip fence as a stop. I guess my thing is I can set the rip fence accurately and consistently (for some loose definitions of "accurate" and "consistent") far better than just eyeballing the blade, and I have no problems as long as I'm inside the rip capacity of hte saw. For something bigger than the rip capacity, how do I deal with it? The specific problem was trimming a 19" x 28" piece of plywood to be 19" x 24". I can't do 24" to the right of my blade, so I was hoping to set the fence to rip off the excess. If it were just a board, I would use my miter gauge like your picture obviously. I don't know how to replicate that for the panel. I knew if I set the fence to 3-29/32, the 3/32 blade would make up the rest so that 4" was removed...but it's hard to set it that accurately so multiple of the panels matched. What I ended up doing was just doing my best on the first (it came out like 23-31/32" long so close enough)...then I cut the second one intentionally long and sanded away at it until they were "close enough". (Vinny, sorry to hijack your thread. =/) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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