Teri Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Complete beginner, first project mistakes. Ok so there were a number of things I did wrong when I started my project the other day. Mostly being that I was trying to get it done quickly and.. well as you can imagine it just went downhill from there. Now I'm trying to figure out if there's a way to undo what I did or if I just start over (I really don't want to start over). So I'm making a beer caddy for my husband - not the awesome one I was going to the last time I posted as I just didn't have the right tools for that one, I decided to go with this one https://www.ryobitools.com/nation/projects/3304. You can probably tell by looking at the pictures what my problem is. Never mind the fact that I obviously am in desperate need of a square to help me get my lines straight. So the top part (that the handle will eventually go in... is totally off center.. which means that the beer bottles won't sit properly on one side, thus making it impossibly to add the side rails on that side. And... as you can see in the 2nd picture... after gluing it.... I nailed it in you would think that I would have looked beforehand.. alas. This is is turning out to be a really good learning experience (don't get me started on making the cuts with a jigsaw without having any clamps). So.. my question is... can I recover from this? Is there a way to fix that middle piece without destroying everything else or did I put the nails in my own coffin (so to speak). I thought about adding more wood on the bottom and the side (I know it would look pretty bad)... or maybe sawing off part of the handle... but maybe the fix would take longer than just buying some new wood and starting over. Thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Woodworking can be very frustrating without a good quality basic set of tools. I can feel your frustration.Can you let us know what tools you have?I also know you don't really want to start over, but without disassembling your entire project, i dont see how it can be fixed. I would suggest calling it practice and give it another try. If you have the time, we can help you with each step if you wish to post pictures and ask questions.Parts from your practice build can become other parts of your new build.I know its hard, but try not to rush!One thing you could try, however, is to remove one side piece and use the backside as the inside to see if it would line up better. The pieces should not be too hard to remove even if glued, as the end grain glue bond will be weak. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Cancelleri Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Layout is king here, before you cut your angles, lay everything out, where you're gonna nail, where everything fits. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teri Posted September 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 I have a borrowed jigsaw, a stanley handsaw, a drill and a hand sander. That's about it. Although if I start over I will definitely be getting some clamps and a square... The problem I'm running into with removing an end is those darn nails Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodger. Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 I have a borrowed jigsaw, a stanley handsaw, a drill and a hand sander. That's about it. Although if I start over I will definitely be getting some clamps and a square... Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalkyes, clamps and an accurate combo square would really help with your project. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Indy Cindy Posted September 4, 2015 Popular Post Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Teri - Good for you for attempting this! It shows a lot of love. I would keep going and in my opinion sandpaper is your friend. You can do a lot with sandpaper wrapped around a block of wood. Start with 100 grit and sand the rough 'flat' edges so they are more uniform. Don't dig into the lower portions, rather keep the block flat and sand the higher rough portions down to the lower. After that go up to 120 and 180 grit, maybe 220 but as this is a rustic piece 180 is probably fine. I haven't looked at the design, is there a piece that goes on the front to keep the bottles from falling out? Also, you will want to soften all of the edges by rounding them with the block of wood to make them easier on the hands. To be clear these are just the edges that a person might touch, not the edges making up a joint, i.e. bottom to the side. Also, don't feel bad about non-straight cuts with a jigsaw. I find a jigsaw to be a very rough cutting tool and best used for cutting out basic forms to be followed up with some other more precise tool, or lots of sanding. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Teri, Instead of trying to remove the nails, use a nail set and drive them thru the side panels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Cancelleri Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 The advice Cindy offers is good stuff. I would cut into the waste portion, and sand back to the layout lines 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Wright Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Before you start over with new wood, you should try to disassemble the project. No promises, since this is an end-grain butt joint it is not super strong. The sides may pop apart with a few hard hits from a hammer. Just be sure to use some scrap wood to protect your project from the hammer blows.Worst case scenario is that the wood splinters and is unusable - best case scenario is that you can fix everything and reassemble Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
collinb Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 A project like this does not need high-end tools.I would consider disassembling it first. Then lay out the ends to see of they can be made to match. If so, one can do that with a simple hand circular saw. Just clamp a board to it as a fence to give a straight cut. It will take several clampings but you'll get it.Then reassemble.I built my first bookcase that way. Took a good while to do, a lot longer than would today, but eventually a decent product came through. My favorite planning tool is that square graph paper pad. Like this:http://www.ebay.com/itm/AMPAD-EFFICIENCY-Quadrille-Pad-50-Sheet-8-50-X-11-4-Squares-per-inch-/201417131818?hash=item2ee565872aMakes design and measurements clear if not even easy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RPCV_Woodworker Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Before you start over with new wood, you should try to disassemble the project. No promises, since this is an end-grain butt joint it is not super strong. The sides may pop apart with a few hard hits from a hammer. Just be sure to use some scrap wood to protect your project from the hammer blows.Worst case scenario is that the wood splinters and is unusable - best case scenario is that you can fix everything and reassemble might be a wonky to swing a hammer at. Maybe reverse a set of clamps into spreaders... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strasberry Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 I commend you for doing this project. Whether you remake this one or start again, the biggest thing is to learn from your missteps. Think things through and determine what gave you problems the first time and take steps to correct. We all are still learning, it goes with woodworking. Keep it up and good luck! Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 I have a borrowed jigsaw, a stanley handsaw, a drill and a hand sander. That's about it. Although if I start over I will definitely be getting some clamps and a square... The problem I'm running into with removing an end is those darn nailsFind something around the house that has a square corner, and you can use that as your square. You can improvise clamps using heavy things as weights and rubber bands, but a few real clamps will definitely help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banderson Posted September 4, 2015 Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Great job on starting this project. There has been a lot of good advice given in this thread. I was going to suggest using a dowel for the handle until I saw the design you are using. I do agree with Beechwood, there are are a lot of things around the house that will help you layout, mark lines and do the things that can be purchased. Layout is going to be the first step the second is cutting straight. A standard steel rule is best for layout lines. I would use a guide (ie straight piece of wood) clamped to the piece to help cut a straight line with either a jigsaw or hand saw. You may find it easier to cut straight with a handsaw. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post h3nry Posted September 4, 2015 Popular Post Report Share Posted September 4, 2015 Teri,As I understand - the plan should look like the brown area in the diagram below, but what you have is closer to the red lines.Assuming you can get it apart!If you can't get the nails out from the outside - you can just do-over the handle by sawing the handle in half and pulling it off from the inside (don't saw through the nails though if you want to remain friends with whomever you borrowed the saw from)What I would do, is using a ruler and sharp pencil, lay out the blue lines so that the handle is in the middle, then maybe using the saw, but if it's not too big a change probably just coarse sandpaper by hand, shape one end to the new lines. Then layout and shape the other end using your first end as a template to match it. All you have to do is make sure that the layout lines for the handle are exactly in the middle. You will lose about half an inch of height like this, but that's probably acceptable. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4square Posted September 5, 2015 Report Share Posted September 5, 2015 If you have one true edge you can square your wood using the 3-4-5 method along with a 12 inch ruler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teri Posted September 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2015 Thanks everyone. .. it's a surprise for my husband, so I won't be able to work on it until next week, but thank you all so much for your input!!! Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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