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Showing results for tags 'diy'.
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I'm just getting started in this hobby, but one of the things I know I'll need for the projects* I want to build is a router and router table. My funds are modest, but I'd rather save my pennies for another month or two and get something which will be good for the long haul than just get whatever's on sale at the local big box. I do want quality, but I'm not big into bells and whistles. I generally prefer used and US-made to Cheap Chinese Crap, but good older equipment may be hard to find at a reasonable price and it's possible that I'll want or need some features that the older models may not have. Can anyone make recommendations about what has worked for them and what they might advise for me? * (Immediate projects: General home repair carpentry and cabinet making. Longer term, want to build some custom furnishings. There's a plan for a DIY grandfather clock up on the Shopsmith website that I'm salivating over, but that will be a couple of years down the road.)- 16 replies
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In an odd moment or two, I though there would be a better way to make a jig for box joints rather than the jump over a spacer version that you can use on a router table or table saw with dado blade. I figured if I made a jig with a bunch of guides of the same width and just ran a zero-clearance router bearing router bit down each side, I'd get well-matching finger joints. With that in mind, I cobbled the jig below. Ripped a piece of maple and glued it together, offsetting each side. Stop block at the end and just a piece in the middle to hold it down. You can do two adjacent sides in one clamping. It worked OK, nothing fabulous, nothing failure. I'd rate it a B+ Like most box joint jigs, it's got a fixed spacing, but that's OK, I can make more if/when needed.
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This need very little explanation. Here's my version.
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A few years back I semi-retired from building custom commercial and residential cabinets. To keep my hand in(our out) I started to build log furniture. Going from custom cabinets to log furniture has been a learning experience indeed. Turning tenons on a log is much different than turning dimension lumber spindles. I have a Record 48" woodworking lathe that is almost useless for spinning an unbalanced log.(to get 200-400 rpm's on an unbalanced log sets up so much vibration that it will yank a chisel right out of your hand, plus you are limited to 48" length. I looked at the pencil sharpener type tenon cutters that you mount on a drill. They are limited to a narrow range of diameters, and there is no provision for the tenon at one end to be parallel with the other end. With not much else on the market in the way of log furniture making tools other than ridiculously expensive metal cutting machine lathes, I decided I needed to build an inexpensive homemade lathe that would cut a round, parallel tenon of any size on either end of a 10" dia. x 8' log.(for bed frames, handrail, ect. I would use live tooling(router) instead of a chisel for the cutter. That would allow me to use a much slower rpm(40-60 rpm) than with a traditional woodworking lathe. It would also allow a much deeper cut and provide more accuracy than with a handheld chisel. I experimented with some wooden mockups of a benchtop lathe. I used 3-D solid modeling software to build virtual mockups and designs. I decided to build out of steel rather than wood. I used "off the shelf" bearings, shafts and gears, and standard size steel tubing and angles to simplify construction. While designing the lathe I realized that by combining a drill I could also have a giant drill press. I further realized that I could use the router as a giant mortise machine. To top it off I added a chainsaw so I could use it as a sawmill also. Sound like a tall order for a cabinetmaker? Maybe so, but I was going to give it a shot. I spent a year of Sundays drawing, building mockups, measuring tool lengths and strokes necessary for the different functions before I cut a piece of metal one. I used the old SHOPSMITH as inspiration for the design. It took several more months of Sundays to build. I am really pleased with the results and would like to hear your comments and opinions on how I did. Go to attached dropbox links for more detailed pics and info on how you can build your own from my prints. machine: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nr4yw91iv2hgdl0/AACv5-Unq_KSGyYK-2YHwWIBa?dl=0 furniture it can build: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/pq9hfk8rqr7l416/AADQZxeku_HGeIBLpz4MeasIa?dl=0
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I started milling with an "Alaska" type chainsaw mill that I built out of steel.(the store bought units seemed somewhat flimsy). With a Sthil 084 and a 60" bar it weighed about 150 lbs. It would wear a man smooth out. I decided to build a platform to mount it on that worked more like a sawmill. While designing the rails and action I realized that I could make a more useful machine by mounting different tools to the tool post. It functions as a sawmill with plunge cutting capabilities, a large capacity lathe(10" dia x 108" length), a large capacity mortise machine(24" x 96" bed, 14" vertical stroke), and a large capacity drill press(24" x 96" bed, 14" vertical stroke). I'm very pleased with the results and would love to hear your comments and opinions(even the negative ones). I offer a lease of my blueprints for prospective builders. Go to dropbox link below for more detailed pics and info. machine: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/nr4yw91iv2hgdl0/AACv5-Unq_KSGyYK-2YHwWIBa?dl=0 furniture it can make: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/pq9hfk8rqr7l416/AADQZxeku_HGeIBLpz4MeasIa?dl=0
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Guys, I have a Delta shoe box planer like this and was wondering has anyone added a top roller assembly to pass the wood back and forth? It only has the one center roller now and the wood doesn't stay in place. I would like to wind up with something like this??
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We have a patio off the rear of our home, that is a-joined to our home. We have a sliding glass door that access the patio out to the backyard. My wife and I were sitting around today, and thinking, hmmmm, we could enclose the patio, make it a heat-able space, and add to the square footage of our home through the permitting process and accessor's office. I have had a shop since we moved here in 2001. Something I have had a guilt complex about the entire time, is my wife has never had a space to call her's, an art room if you will, she loves art. The patio enclosure would be her space. We are not looking for a sun room kit, nor a screen room kit, and I don't have the money nor the time to stick build an addition. Does anyone know of a kit manufacture that produces kits for permanent installation, as heat-able space? Thanks for any help.
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