Woodworking Rant

[aduljr]

i find that you can never really make it perfect each time. And I am pretty damn meticulous about it. Though I am good enough now that I am rarely off more then a 1/16 or 1/32. Sometimes I will make certain parts slightly larger if I have room to go over with a trimming bit to make it perfectly flush.


jesus jon, that is going to be a pita . First sub I ever built for the home theatre was triangular shape one for my mom. Talk about difficult to make.

[JonMarsh]

It's coming along pretty well.... measure many times, cut carefully! Design it to be aligning as it goes together...

[Hank]

There are some very special "rooms" reserved for those of us who are so meticulous with bracing, cabinet non-resonant construction, resulting two-man carry cabinets, etc, etc.
Yes, one of the rooms in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest".
Nurse Ratched will be bringing us our meds any minute now...

[JonMarsh]

There are some very special "rooms" reserved for those of us who are so meticulous with bracing, cabinet non-resonant construction, resulting two-man carry cabinets, etc, etc.
Yes, one of the rooms in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest".
Nurse Ratched will be bringing us our meds any minute now...

Yeah, and I'm really getting tired of seeing that old crone!! And it seems the meds aren't keeping me from getting a bit cranky these days!

But boy, are these cabinets solid!! OCD all the way!! 1.21 jigawatts won't phase these babies!

[JonP]

Always use a nice caliper to measure your stocks thickness, much more accurate than a ruler. Do that and make sure you use those exact measurements in your plans and your work will turn out perfect.

Aaaahh, ya beat me to it... :W

I've had my mighty Harbor Freight $14 6" caliper for 5 years or so now, it's about the handiest single tool I own. Measuring stock thickness, determining the inter thread diameter of a screw to pick the right drill size, getting accurate dimensions of a driver for proper hole cutting and rabbeting... even using the points as a marking scribe, because hey... it's only $14! And that's just speakerbuilding usage. Only wish I got an 8" one to measure bigger drivers...

There is a lot to be said for the time honored method of oversizing some panels by a bit, and running that handy flush trim bit over to make them perfect. I know this won't solve all problems, but it simplifies a lot...

Sounds like time to drag out the salt tip again... Sprinkling just a few grains of salt on the joint surface provides traction that stops the slide when you tighten down on a wet glue joint. Kosher salt is recommended for it's larger and and more ragged grains... but plain will do, or even something like fine silica sand. Just a few grains, don't over do it, and it locks the joint without affecting the glue. I only have ever done plain butt joints, and wonder how people can build things WITHOUT a trick like this... (or the biscuit jointer)