collinb Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 ... but piling it up instead. So far, after 2 years of on-and-off cutting and building I've created 4 "stacks" of wood. The first is the long strips and board pieces, 2-6 ft long, that come off the sides of ripped pieces, or perhaps halves of longer pieces. The second is square blocks that come off the ends of boards. The third is short strips, usually narrow, about 2 ft long. Finally there's a steel trash can that holds the normally usuable pieces -- damaged ends, triangles, and such. (I don't inventory any wood but instead purchase it as needed.) Next step, probably Saturday, is to parse out what really ought go in the trash. (Sawdust, of course, goes in the compost.) Just a little curious how others deal with their leftovers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 Once Christmas projects are complete, I thin the pile to just a few pieces. Those pieces have something special about them, are big enough to work into a project, or is 8/4 big enough to be turned into a handle. Everything else goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkrusen Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 I break mine down into a couple piles as well. Anything that's still a decent short board gets saved for small boxes and what not. Then there's the short thick stuff that gets saved for turning. The long narrow pieces eventually get processed into random pattern cutting boards, Matt Cremona style. Anything else goes into the fire or smoker. For exotics, I'll usually keep just about anything as long as I have the space for it because I'll use it for random accent pieces. Eventually even those are too small so into the trash they go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefischbowl Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 Hi Collin, I have a three part system for wood scraps. If it is greater than 2 board feet I will save it in a wood bin--but only if there is room in the bin for more wood. If my storage bin is full, or if it is under 2 board feet it is given either to my kids for them to hammer, glue, cut, and build "cool" things. (the kids range from 4 to 10); or it is cut up and used for kindling in the fireplace/firepit/smoker. Enjoy the sorting this weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minorhero Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 Things that can be turned, used in jigs or large enough to actually use in projects gets saved. This is a pretty small percentage. I am rather ruthless with my cut off storage as it can pretty quickly get out of hand. I tend to group things based on use first and wood species second. So all turning wood gets stored together and everything else grouped in piles based on species. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AceHoleInOne Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 While working on the project at hand. I keep all those scraps until the build is over. Then, I throw them away. Of course, bigger hunks get put in wood storage. -Ace- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 I'm frugal to the point of being problematic. I almost always find something to do wit the scraps they only get put in the burn pile if they are pine cutoffs or hardwood and measure under 3". I keep long strips to make hardwood runners for various drawer slides. I also use the strips to face up plywood edges. Small blocks i glue together to make random things, with how strong glue is if i need some hardwood for shop jigs or drawers webs. A lot of what i do is too time consuming that most people would turn their nose up at it but I'm not doing this to make money so being efficient doesn't matter. A well stacked pile of scraps takes up little space, so i just make sure to keep it organized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 The more expensive and rare the wood is the smaller the pieces are that get kept. I have a small bundle of 1/8 square sticks of Cocobolo, would any of you throw those away ? 3/4" X 2" X 8" piece of Pink Ivory with a huge crack diagonally will eventually be inlays & accents. Red Oak scraps under a foot long are tossed. Strips under 3/4" thick go quickly unless it's a really useful shape like 1/2" square or suitable for edgebanding. A quantity of strips the same size is kept but if it's only one or 2 pieces it's trash. When I was cleaning out the shop to move I was cutting scrap to fit in cardboard boxes and giving them to friends & neighbors as kindling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 I don't have a lot of space for too many scraps, so anything I keep needs to have a clear purpose. That being said, my definition of "clear" certainly seems to change quite a bit depending on several unknown factors. I say unknown because when I do end up going through my scraps, I often find myself thinking, "why the heck did I keep this". In general though, I keep anything 8/4 that I could use for a cutting board. Thinner stuff needs to be wide enough for something like a bandsaw box. I keep the thin, long stuff until my little barrel is filled up, then give them away for kindling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
collinb Posted March 25, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 3 hours ago, wdwerker said: The more expensive and rare the wood is the smaller the pieces are that get kept. I have a small bundle of 1/8 square sticks of Cocobolo, would any of you throw those away ? 3/4" X 2" X 8" piece of Pink Ivory with a huge crack diagonally will eventually be inlays & accents. Red Oak scraps under a foot long are tossed. Strips under 3/4" thick go quickly unless it's a really useful shape like 1/2" square or suitable for edgebanding. A quantity of strips the same size is kept but if it's only one or 2 pieces it's trash. When I was cleaning out the shop to move I was cutting scrap to fit in cardboard boxes and giving them to friends & neighbors as kindling. I trimmed a strip off the edge of a piece of hard maple the other day. Even though it's a common wood I anticipate part of it will become an accent in some later piece. Once I get a jointer, that is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronn W Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 I have been keeping my pieces of white oak that are at least 1" x 1" x any length. I have this idea that it might be fun to make a scale model of an appalachian log cabin. I find the TV series "Log Cabin Builders" very interesting. Is this weird? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted March 25, 2016 Report Share Posted March 25, 2016 1 hour ago, Ronn W said: I have been keeping my pieces of white oak that are at least 1" x 1" x any length. I have this idea that it might be fun to make a scale model of an appalachian log cabin. I find the TV series "Log Cabin Builders" very interesting. Is this weird? Nope not at all. I'd love to build a log cabin in the woods around the bemidji area some day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
collinb Posted March 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 28, 2016 I should have qualified my "trash" pile better. That hard wood is great to take camping. Makes for a nice hot campfire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.