A New Project in the New Shop

[BrokenolMarine]

I know it's been a while, but we packed up and moved. I haven't had a place to work for a while, and I haven't had a project, other than working on things for the new farmhouse, or things for Miss Tina's Studio or actually working ON the new shop. Projects for the shop don't count as projects in my book. I finally have a new project. This one is for an elderly gentleman in the new neighborhood, (If you can call where we live that...) We met him when Tina spotted him loading an old dying cabinet on a trailer to haul away, and asked if he would sell it, he allowed that he would. We bought it and restored it for storage for her studio. He was so impressed, he stayed in touch, and often stopped by to chat and watch the progress of the Studio. (At 70+, he didn't have much else to do.)

Here is a peek at the restored cabinet HE was hauling to the dump. We replaced the back, removed and discarded the drawers and cabinet doors, and replaced the bottom 4" due to severe water damage. Tina painted it when I finished with my repairs. The front was framed for cabinets and drawers, I removed that and reframed it to accommodate the shelving. She was really happy with the modifications.

Sewing Room Storage.jpg (85.93 KiB) Viewed 5114 times

I am going to show this new project as a build along for those that might be interested. I will be doing the woodworking side, and Tina will contribute as well. Our old friend recently located his little league uniform from 1960, and wanted my input on a display for it so he can give it to his grandson for Christmas. His grandson is a rabid baseball fan, and he says he will get a thrill to have such a personal collectable to display in his office.

I told him I'd be glad to help him, bring me to the wood and glass I need and I'll knock it out for him. He dropped off the glass and a length of oak. I worked on a couple sketches for a few days and we settled on a layout he liked. I got started a couple days ago. Here is where we are so far and how we got there.....

The first thing I did was set up the chop saw and shop vac and cut the oak to length, adding an inch over for insurance. I was going to cut dados in both pieces and in case of tearout on the ends, you want to cover yourself.

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Once the boards were cut to length, I used one for the layout, carefully working out the various measurements for the spacing of the dadoes.

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I would have a rabbit on the back of the board for the back panel, come in a bit for the mid panel where Miss T would quilt the padded background where the uniform shirt, pants, and socks would be displayed, and then off set from the front, would be the glass. I would use the Dado blade to cut the dados for the rabbit and the mid dado for the quarter inch luan back and mid panels, then the table saw 3/32" blade to cut the dado for the glass. I will cut these on both sides of the two boards I have cut to the 30 and 36 inch lengths, then rip them up the middle as it's safer to work with the wider boards.

I will make two passes for each pair of dados on each board, one pass at 1/4" depth and another at the final depth at 3/8 inch. That makes for a cleaner cut and it's easier to cut the dados in the harder woods this way. Oak counts as a harder wood. To set the depth for the pass I use the Kreg setup bars.

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These are really helpful tools in the shop and useful three ways. You can measure the height of the router bit, saw blades etc, the depth of a cut, or the distance off a fence by the thickness of the bar.

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I got the table saw setup for passes by setting the depth and the fence distance, then placing a featherboard against the workpiece to insure it stays tight against the fence as I feed it into the blade.

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Always safety first, as the table saw can hurt you. This push block has tabs that drop down to grab the back of the piece as you feed the oak across the dado blade. NO fingers or thumbs hanging behind the wood to touch the spinning blades.

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After a number of passes across the two blades, all the cuts were made. They turned out as planned.

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I measured VERY carefully, measured again. Then one last time and set the fence up and ripped them in half. HUGE sigh... I set them aside and cut the back and mid panels. Sweet.
I test fitted the panel to the dado, and it fit. Then it was a matter of marking the length and cutting the 45 degree angles. Whew! Wonders never cease.

I test fit the frame using band clamps. (Not Band Camp, that's another story...and a great movie.) A front view shows the mid panel in the shadow box.

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Rear view shows the rear panel in it's place.

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We are making progress, but there is still a lot to do. The mid panel goes to Tina to start on her quilted, and padded, insert. I will have some work with the planes to roll the front edges and then sanding and finishing the oak portions prior to assembly. The top of the frame will be removable so that changes can be made to the display at a later date if the owner so decides. Work Work Work (Blazing Saddles) I love it.

More to come.... if anyone wants to follow along to the finish.....

[MuddyWaters62]

I am loving that project. You are a great teacher! I am looking forward to see how you and Miss Tina bring this off.

Muddy Waters

[CT_Shooter]

More to come.... if anyone wants to follow along to the finish.....

I'm looking forward to it. Thanks for sharing it with us.

[BrokenolMarine]

Thanks guys. The best thing I was ever told was by an old woodworking mentor years ago. "It isn't a mistake until you can't fix it unless someone saw it happen. Until then it's an in progress modification of the plan."

He had a small sign tacked over one of his workbenches, that said, "In 95% of the cases, plans are just guidelines to a creative mind."

[BrokenolMarine]

The second best advice?
If you have to prep real wood for a project...
... ALWAYS prepare extra.

Saved my butt on more than one occasion.

[JEBar]

you may have a new shop with some new equipment but your commitment to old school quality still produces quality work .... nicely done and still doing

[BrokenolMarine]

Since yesterday was a long day in the shop, I rested today. Knees and back weren't up to shop work. I'll be back at it tomorrow. Disassembling the rough test fit and passing the mid panel to Miss T after I tap the top for the screw holes it will need for retention.

Then I can roll the inner edges with the molding plane and smooth the outside edges with the scraper and fine sandpaper. May even get to apply some finishes if the day goes well.

[Travlin]

Thanks for all of the clear photos of your good work. One suggestion, Looking at your tablesaw I see that you do not have a zero clearance insert around the blade. They are easy to make and make all operations on the saw a lot safer. I was in the carpentry trade for fifty years and both of my stationary saws have an insert that has a slot just the width of the blade kerf.

[BrokenolMarine]

I do have one for the standard blade, that wide clearance insert is for the dado blade. If I use a zero clearance with the volume of wood being removed, I have had it build up between the piece and the fence or under the work. In either case it ruins the pass. The buildup under lifts the work and the depth is off. Buildup between the workpiece and fence throws off the line and... You are starting over.

I learned this a long time ago, the hard way. It's wide enough for the stacked dado as well.

[GunnyGene]

I notice you're using a shop vac for dust collection. While better than nothing, have you considered a real dust collection system? I've had one in my shop that evacuates outside the shop for about 20 years. Set it up with a manifold and piping and gates running to all the major tools - TS, band saw, planner, bench sander, miter saw, etc. Makes a world of difference, and not that expensive to set up.

[BrokenolMarine]

Gunny,

Thanks for the input. I use the shop vac on the miter saw, but I have a very nice Jet canister dust collector that has served me well. Your advice IS excellent though. I also have the overhead air filter for the smaller airborne particles.

You can see the Jet Dust Collector in this old thread.

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=56&t=7529

I recently added a Shark Guard system to the table saw, which supplements the cabinent dust collection with overhead dust collection coming over the blade guard. I'm loving that, just can't run it using the dado blade.

[GunnyGene]

Gunny,

Thanks for the input. I use the shop vac on the miter saw, but I have a very nice Jet canister dust collector that has served me well. Your advice IS excellent though. I also have the overhead air filter for the smaller airborne particles.

You can see the Jet Dust Collector in this old thread.

http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=56&t=7529

I recently added a Shark Guard system to the table saw, which supplements the cabinent dust collection with overhead dust collection coming over the blade guard. I'm loving that, just can't run it using the dado blade.

Excellent! I thought you might have a full up system, but couldn't see it in the pics. I initially had a Penn State bagger, but hated it. It was noisy, takes up a lot of floor space, detracted from the blower efficiency as the bags filled up, and of course emptying the bags was a pain in the rear, so mounted the blower on an outside wall and ditched the bags. Not everyone can blow their dust outside of course, but out here in the woods it's not a concern.

Here's a pic of "Medusa" as I call her . The front comes off so I can clear any clogs at the blower intake, which happens a lot if I'm using the planer.



Anyway, for anyone else contemplating a woodshop, here's some info on how to set up a good system:

https://www.woodmagazine.com/workshop/d ... ion?page=1

[BrokenolMarine]

Thanks for the input gunny. We still arent settled in, but my long range plan involves placing both the compressor and the dust collector on the other side of the shared wall with my "boathouse/storage". They'll be out of the shop, but protected from the heat/cold/inclimate weather and theft. In addition, the insulated wall will insulate me from their noise. It might be a while, low on my list, but it's there.

[BrokenolMarine]

Got back out in the shop today, and back at it. The first step was to disassemble the temporary test fit. First I removed the two band clamps and recoiled them for storage. I like to keep all my tools neat, so they are ready for the next use.

01 band clamps.jpg (158.12 KiB) Viewed 4471 times

Next, they go back in their home in the Band Clamp drawer.... if I put things away, I know where they are the next time I need them. When I had that Tiny shop, 12x20 Amish wooden building, it was doubly important, or I spent great amounts of my shop time looking for items in the clutter.

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Once I had the clamps apart, I methodically disassembled the display case, and MARKED the individual parts in an area where the mark would NOT disappear during sanding or finishing. This is NOT always possible, and sometimes you have to use painters tape and move the marks then reaffix them. You'll see some pictures where the piece is laying on the bench with the tape square stuck beside it.

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During finishing, the area where these marks are will be covered with painters tape to keep the finish off as glue will not stick to the oiled surface. This will keep these marks safe and allow the proper fit when the frame is reassembled.

[BrokenolMarine]

The next thing to do is prepare to use the molding planes. I have a drawer with a dozen or so antique molding planes I got from Lee Valley. I love these things, and use them whenever I can instead of a router. Less noise, less mess, and pride in using the hand tools ... Plus I love the sound they make when properly set up.... a soft whisk.

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The first step is to sharpen the old iron in the plane you have chosen... I just sharpen the flat side. As long as you haven't dinged up the off side, that's all it takes. I don't have to use the waterstones like I would on the regular planes and chisels, the diamond stone and leather strop gets the job done.

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What? My Yeti Cup? A gift from my Wife and Daughter for the shop.... it says, "This is my Happy Face." My Grandkids call me "Grumpy."

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Once the plane was tuned, I make a few passes on a scrap of the same wood the frame is made from, made some adjustments, then made a few more passes. Stropped the iron, and we were ready to go.

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[BrokenolMarine]

I worked the edges of the four sides of the frame that were adjacent to the dado for the glass, rolling the edge to a pleasant shape. This is NOT done with a special bit in the router but by hand and eye. I will touch up any uneven spots with a sanding block, and really, only I will see the difference unless some other woodworker is critiquing my work hanging on the wall.

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I took my time, made light passes letting the sharp plane do the work. If you force it, or try to muscle the old planes they tend to dig in. The blade is barely protruding from the mouth of the plane. I start with the plane angled 45 degrees off the flat sides and make a couple shaving passes, then angle back one way or the other on each consecutive pass, until the shape is done.

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It may be a bit hard to see here, but I think they turned out well. Now I will have to sharpen the card scrapers and get busy smoothing the inside and outside faces. Final smoothing will be done with a sanding block, but if the card scraper does it's job, there will be very little to sand.

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Miss Tina has the center panel and has started her part, we are moving forward.

[BrokenolMarine]

Since we have some time, I thought you might like a tour of the new shop, sorta. I will turn to the right, making a complete turn. Feel free to ask questions.

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stepping thru the red door, puts you in the boathouse and storage area, and leads to outside. The big door in the woodshop has been sealed for the winter. I'll cut that door vertically and make a 3' and 6' door that opens like a hinged batwing door in the spring so it can be made to seal better and not leak. As the side rolling door it is now it was a sieve. Spray foam stopped that.

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The kayaks and trailer, mower, and things like the clamp rack and other large rarely used tools are stored in the boathouse. This side is unheated. I WILL sprayfoam this later as well....

[markiver54]

Very nice, that is, the project AND your new shop! Just wish I had that much space to work in.
Congratulations! You have come a long way in short order!

[MuddyWaters62]

RR;
Are you going to cover the walls with a hard panel or sheet rock? Great looking shop!
I'm green. Keep up the good work.

Muddy Waters 67

[BrokenolMarine]

I don't really have a way to attach it easily.
I may hang another peg board on the wall here or there, but not going to put funds into cosmetics, too many other places to put it.