Pouring liquids into small openings
I finish my pieces with an oil and wax finish mostly. I usually pour the oil product into a bowl or coffee can, it makes it easier to get to. I always end up with extra remaining in the bowl. Trying to pour the leftover back into the small opening of the container can be difficult and messy.

Here's a trick I read about years ago. Use a scratch awl or a screwdriver. Hold the awl or screwdriver against the can or bowl, and pour the liquid onto the tool as it is held over the hole of the container. The leftover oil will cling to the tool and flow into the small opening of the container. Steady hands and a little practice will enable you to return any oil to its container without a mess.
Simply wipe the tool dry and you're done.

If you have a tip or technique you'd like to share then I want to hear from you. Pleas send it along so I can share it. The shows contact info is on the website.

As always - Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

The Shakers

I built a couple of shaker benches lately. I really enjoy the clean lines of shaker furniture. The shaker style fits into any décor or aesthetic. I'm a big fan of modern and Danish modern furniture. The shaker style blends into these aesthetic nicely and the shakers influenced these other styles.

Attached is a vide from a Sunday morning news show that quickly tells the story of the shaker and their furniture. IT's not even five minutes long. I really suggest watching it. I think you'll enjoy it.

As always - thanks for  following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roO0h7vJXTA

I want to thank Kharli Tylor of Milwaukee Tools for the generous donation of a fantastic 20V cordless driver/drill. This tool is awesome
Thanks Kharli

We have a new edition around our place
This is 'BIGS"  He's a great big friendly cat.  At only 8 months old he's a big fella.  The dog and he get along very well.  In fact, he chases the dog.  Now we have Rocco and Bigs, sounds like the cast from Goodfellows or The God father

The word must have got out that I needed a new miter saw.  I want to thank Chris Keffer at Dewalt tools for his very generous donation of a , new to the market, 20 volt cordless miter saw.  This miter saw is small in comparison to others, it's only 7 1/2 inch but it gets a greater cut because it's a sliding , compound miter saw.
Thanks so much Chris
This saw is a whole lotta fun to use.
As always - Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

Bernat
Yesterday we took a quick peruse through Bernat antiques.
I have yet to be let down or disappointed. I always find some cool stuff there. Check the images of the men's valet chair. This is the ultimate functional piece. What happened? Why don't we have furniture like this now? Hats have made a come back over the past few years and I've seen a few vests on people but gone are the days when folks would wear their best to a sporting game or a movie or event. Look a...t old footage of a hockey game from the fifties or sixties and most of the folks in the stands are in suits or dresses. Each industry influences another and this chair is a great example

I have to build my own version of this chair for the show, it's fantastic. You have a drawer below the seat that stores trinkets like rings, watches and other jewelry. You have a built in clothes hanger for the suit jacket with an attached metal hanger for the pants. There's even a trough for cuff links, etc. This is beautiful'
I can't afford it right now but if it's still available in a couple of weeks I have full intentions of buying this piece and making one as a project for the show. This chair definitely has a purpose. In it's own way it makes us slow down and think about the day, what we'll wear and where we are going. Life is too fast now. We throw clothes on, rush out the door, grab our cell phone and go on our way. What a shame' We need too slow down and think about things more. I love this chair'
I can imagine sitting in the chair after a day at work, pondering the day, taking my shoes off and placing them under the chair ready for service in the morning. Then loosening a tie and hanging it with my hat, suit jacket on the hanger, all ready again for the next tour of duty.
I have few more images of things I saw at Bernat but I've said enough for now. I'll save them for another day. In fact - go visit if you're in the area. You can't help but slow down, walk at a comfortable pace, maybe reminisce of a special time, and see some awesome stuff. You might even get inspired.
As always - Thanks for
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

following

Thursdays tip
This isn't really a tip but more of a reminder. The other day I had a few boards to clean up. They had been glued together and had some dried glued that had squeezed out onto the faces of the boards. Sanding doesn't really remove the glue, it only squeezes into the wood fibers making it a mess when it comes time to apply a finish.
I reached for the most valuable yet underutilized tool in the tool box, a card scraper. This six inch long piece of steel, when... sharpened correctly works miracles. Think of it as a very fine hand plane,. It doesn't cut the wood but, as the name applies, scraps it, producing fine shavings.

I hadn't used mine in a while so it needed a little sharpening. I put it in my vice, ran a small mil-bastard file over it. What you do then is normally run a burnisher over that same edge at a slight angle, this rolls the metal over slightly creating a small hook. I couldn't find my burnisher so I used a metal punch. It's made of hard steel so it worked.
Grab the scraper, hold it askew at a slight angle downward and scrap away. You'll be amazed at the results. The glue, and any small dents are removed quite easily. You'll have to re-sharpen it now and then but it's well worth it. The card scraper is perfect for removing glue and dents on veneer, when you need to remove a small amount.
You can normally purchase a scraper for around $10 at most mail order woodworking stores, a great deal for such an invaluable tool. You can also grind them into a certain shape you need.
As always - Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

Christmas in August

Christmas in August
I'd like to thank Milwaukee Tools for their very generous donation of a much needed miter saw and a router.
Milwaukee donated a 12 inch sliding dual bevel miter saw and a fantastic 1 1/4 horse D' handle router.
The 12 inch miter saw can certainly handle the big jobs. I can't wait to try it out....
My old craftsman is still working but is in need of a well deserved rest, it is well over 30 years old'
Visit Milwaukee's website at www.milwaukeetool.com to see a full line of their products.
Thanks again to Milwaukee tool. This donation certainly helps the budget and is greatly appreciated'

As always - Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

Whoosh''
Well- The large shaker bench is done, And if I don't say so myself I love how it turned out. This bench, as simplistic as it looks is solid and sturdy. I had a lot of fun making this and can't wait to shoot this episode and make another.

 

Another day in the garage.
Yesterday I had a special helper in the garage. My son Quinn help out while I cut a couple of pieces of pine. Sometimes it's easier to draw a line, grab a hand saw and make a cut instead of setting up a table saw or a circular saw. Quinn held the boards in place while I made the cut. It's fun to have him hang out in the shop. He's a great help and works for Jelly Beans.
We are moving right along on the shaker bench project....
Yesterday I and sanded all of the side parts and attached the seat brackets. I also glued the seat boards together. I simply run a bead of glue down the board, close to the top edge so that when I lay the board flat the glue runs down covering the rest of the surface. I then slide the boards together and back and forth, spreading the glue and then clamp them up.

I know some folks use a brush or a card or their finger to spread the glue evenly, covering the entire surface. My method has worked for me without ever having a glue joint fail.
try different methods and use what works best for you. There's many methods to do so.
Once the glue had dried I cut the seat to size and cut a 9 degree bevel along one edge where the seat will meet the side rest.
As always- Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

A busy day in the garage
Yesterday was a busy day in the garage. I glued up stock to make pieces large enough for the bench side panels. You could cut all of the joinery after the side panels are made but I find it easier to do beforehand, then I glue them together, scrap the excess glue off and sand the panels: Done'
I cut the side back taper on the band saw and then trued it up with a hand plane

I used a stacked dado set on the table saw to cut the half lap notches in the side panels and the brackets. They are the same size so it's only one set up.
I'm back at it today so I'll have more images soon.
By the way - the original bench from Hancock shaker village was made using 7/8 inch pine. I'm using 3/4 inch pine. This way you can buy the material at any home center, pre milled and dimensioned which makes it accessible to most and build the bench'
Not all of us have a jointer or a planer. If you would prefer to use thicker material, nothing changes. The joinery is exactly the same.
As always - Thanks forfollowing
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

Templates

Making templates can seem tedious at best but it's well worth the effort. Taking your time to make accurate templates is like having a book of plans at your disposal. I finally finished making the templates for both shaker benches. All of the information I need to build these benches are on the templates, even the dimensions for the tops, sides, etc., everything.
I write all of the information I need to make the projects on the templates in sharpie and then I sp...ray the templates with a coat of lacquer so the information doesn't wear off. I drill a hole in each template and then hang up in the shop. They are there whenever the urge to build another strikes.

I also spent some time gluing up panels for the sides of the large shaker bench. I take my time to orient the boards to get the best grain match. I then draw a cabinet makers triangle on the boards to help match them up when it comes time for gluing up. These boards are dimensioned but have a little bow in them, meaning they've warped on their edges. Instead of running them through my jointer over and over I just attached them to a simple jig I made and run them through the table saw. One pass and they're straight and ready to be edge glued together.
As always - Thanks for following.
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

The lumber yard

The lumber yard
To a budding woodworker this is a lumber yard'
My son has been collecting his popsicle sticks, just waiting for the right inspiration.
There's some new projects developing in the garage. I'll be posting more soon.

As always - Thanks for  following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

Scrap wood

After a hard day of work in the wood shop there's no better way to unwind then to sit around a fire pit roasting marshmallows with your son.
And - it's a great way to use up all of those small pieces of scrap wood you've been hanging on to.
Yes, those are fake cactus in the background'
...

I decide to leave the small bench as it is. I sanded it with 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper and then burnished it with some steel wool and wax, giving it an aged looked. Now to build the larger bench.
As always- Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 

Shaker

I finished the small shaker bench I was working on. I haven't applied a finish yet. I made a few jigs and templates.  Now I'm on to the larger bench with a back. These benches are the projects for the next episode.

Whole lotta shakin goin on'
I couldn't help myself. Hold on- here's a better one
" I like my furniture shaker, not stirred" Ah. I know I know
...

Anyways- We are gearing up to shoot another episode of the show. I originally had planned to make a step stool for the project but I decided that I'd like to build a couple of shaker benches.
One of them is similar to the bench in the image below only the one for the show will be six feet, not eight and the other will be a smaller three foot bench with no back. I love shaker furniture. It's simple and elegant lines fit into any décor. The shaker furniture makers were known for their craftsmanship.
I've been busy working on the templates for the benches. I'll start building the benches today. I'll post images as I go along.
The metro museum of art in NY has a great collection of shaker furniture. To learn more about the shakers and their furniture visit the website below where you'll find some terrific essays.
As always- Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/66.10.2


 

 

Thursday Tip

I make a lot of shaker side tables that are the same size.
I have a very simple method for getting equal overhang when attaching the base to the top. You can use this method for any size table base and top also.

Measure your table top and subtract the base from it. Then divide the dimensions by two. The sum equals the overhang.
For example:
Imagine your table top is 72 inches x 48 inches and your base is 56 inches x 36 inches.
Subtract the length of both 72 - 56 = 16
Subtract the width 48 - 36 = 12
Divide both by two = 8 and 6
This is your overhang amount. 8 inches on both ends and 6 inches on both sides.
Now rip a piece of scrap plywood or a board to 8 inches wide. ( the overhang amount ) Cut it as long as the width of the top. In this case to 48 inches. Draw a line 6 inches from one end. ( overhang amount ).
Flip your top over. Clamp your board flush to the edge and set your base on the top at the line. Secure the base to the top.
That's it. No measuring after or fussing.
I drilled a hole in mine and have it hanging up in the shop.
As always - thanks for following .
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 



Coffee anyone?

We just finished editing the latest episode and we don't start shooting another until next Wednesday. So what do you do when it's a slow day in the garage?
Well- you make a charcoal chimney out of a coffee can of course' ...
We have a kettle style charcoal grill. I love it', but the charcoal chimney has seen better days. I don't like to spend money on something if I can make my own. So today, between doing computer work, I decided to make a chimney out of a coffee can.

The first thing I did was to peel the paper label off and then cut the bottom of the can off. I took a church key ( can opener ) and used it to cut triangle openings every inch or so, approximately an inch up from the bottom. This lets some air in and stokes the coal.
I then drilled some air holes into the bottom and nestled the bottom against the triangular pieces that curled in from the can opener. They support the bottom in place.
I used a couple of pieces of a metal coat hanger and wove it through the bottom and through the sides of the can. This helps secure the bottom so that when you dump the coal out it doesn't come with it.
I took a six inch piece of 3/4 inch dowel rod and drilled a 1/4 inch hole in the center of it. I drilled a mating hole into the side of the coffee can.
I then used a three inch bolt to attach the dowel to the can. I used nuts and washers to secure it in place.
Now all that is needed is to fill it with charcoal and fire up the grill'
I like slow days in the garage'
As always- Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve

 



Micro Jig

I want to thank Bruce Wang, the owner of Micro Jig for his generous donation of table saw push sticks and accessories.
Micro Jig products keep your hands away from blades, making woodworking a lot safer.

Thank you again Bruce
You can check out the full line of Micro Jig products at www.microjig.com
As always- Thanks for following
Be safe and be creative
Best
Steve