calblacksmith Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 There are some great things here, everyone congrats! This is my Christmas kit. I pre ordered Marks book but did not open until Christmas, man that took willpower The stuff speaks for it's self, I did my owns shopping as the wife does not have a clue, I guess I can't complain about what I got huh? LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 There are some great things here, everyone congrats! This is my Christmas kit. I pre ordered Marks book but did not open until Christmas, man that took willpower The stuff speaks for it's self, I did my owns shopping as the wife does not have a clue, I guess I can't complain about what I got huh? LOL Understanding Wood is one of my favorite reference books. Its one of those books where you can just pick 3 or 4 random pages to read and learn something useful. If you haven't used those straight edge clamps before, don't make my mistake and over-tighten them. If you do the sliding part will dig into the chrome bars that they slide on and make it very difficult to adjust going forward. You need a little slack in there before you push the lever down to engage the clamp. That of course assume your clamps are of the same design as mine, looks very similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 Woodsap, What is catalpa wood. We have a tree here in Texas that is pronounced like I would pronounce catalala but not sure if it's one in the same and we certainly can't buy the wood. These trees here have long beans on them and are known for the worms that are attracted to them. Great for fishing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 Cooper, one and the same. They are planted in great windbreak type rows here alongside the rail lines because they have oily rot and bug resistance. The rail companies grew them because the ties could be renewed faster than with white oak. IIRC the trees are male and female and flower in early to mid summer. The leaves are heart shaped and wilt brown almost like hairy lettuce. The bean pods like any tree contain the fruit/seeds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 What does the wood look like. I've never seen it on e-bay or at any of our hardwood suppliers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 http://www.wood-database.com/lumber-identification/hardwoods/catalpa/ Ties and fence posts are all I have worked with myself and these tend to weather dark. I looked up the link above because I was curious myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calblacksmith Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 Understanding Wood is one of my favorite reference books. Its one of those books where you can just pick 3 or 4 random pages to read and learn something useful. If you haven't used those straight edge clamps before, don't make my mistake and over-tighten them. If you do the sliding part will dig into the chrome bars that they slide on and make it very difficult to adjust going forward. You need a little slack in there before you push the lever down to engage the clamp. That of course assume your clamps are of the same design as mine, looks very similar. Thanks for the heads up on the clamps. I have not used this brand before but I do have some others that do not have that issue (forget the name at the moment) I can see how the steel wedges could mar the draw rod though, and I will be careful. On yours, a careful use of a fine file could take off the burr from the rod, it would not remove the divot in the rod but the burr could be removed to allow the clamp to slide easier. I love both of the books but I agree with you about understanding wood, it is one of the only hard back books to reside, uh, in the throne room Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmack77 Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 I finally got a TS 55. Only made some test cuts with it. Can't wait to put it to use in a week or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 3, 2014 Report Share Posted January 3, 2014 What does the wood look like. I've never seen it on e-bay or at any of our hardwood suppliers. These pictures should give you an idea. It is medium brown, typical grain patterns. It has a lot going for it, the stuff grows like weeds and you often see trees with big trunks. Of domestic species it is one of the most dimensionally stable and is very light. Unfortunately it is also very soft, like a soft pine you can ding it with a fingernail. But it machines real easy and you can cut tight curves with no problem. People use it for carving and decorative items. It is not really a commercial species so you are more likely to find it at a small sawmill. This will be a wine rack when I am done shaping. I am going to laminate two or three of these together and it will stand up on its own and hold 5 bottles of wine. I chose catalpa because it is light (if I did this in maple or cherry it would be a bear to lug around) and it is stable so I don't have to worry as much about the laminated layers fighting each other. It won't see a lot of abuse so the fact that it is so soft is not really a concern. Something like this looks good with some dings anyhow. Plus it is super cheap. 8/4 stock was $3.00 a bd/ft, the boards I bought were about 10 inches wide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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