Ben's Workshop » Making mistakes so you don't have to

Jun 18 2012

Turning Some More Glue-Ups

Categories:

Cherry, Lathe, Maple, Padauk, Purple Heartwood, Tops

June 18, 2012

I decided it was either time to either throw away part of my growing pile of scrap wood or make something with it. Since I have a hard time parting with toothpicks, my only option was to make something. I’ve had good luck contrasting purple heartwood with maple, so laminating a turning …

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Jun 12 2012

If At First You Do Suceed, Fail, Fail Again

Categories:

Bloodwood, Drill Press, Jewelry, Lathe, Padauk, Peruvian Walnut, Table Saw

by benjamen

June 12, 2012

I thought making bracelets was easy, I guess I just got lucky the first time. I made my first bracelet out of Peruvian walnut. I started from a 1/2″ thick square blank, cut out the hole in the middle with a 2-1/2″ hole saw, and cut off the corners to make …

1 comment

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Jun 07 2012

Wooden Bookmark With Pressed Clover

Categories:

Bookmarks, Defthane, Posts by Finish, Table Saw, Urethane, Walnut

by benjamen

June 7, 2012

Either my daughter and I are very lucky, or we discovered a patch of mutated clover. While waiting for the school bus, we’ve found about 10 four-leaf clovers and 2 five-leaf clovers in a 2 foot square patch. I’ve pressed every one of them and the question has been: “what should …

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May 08 2012

(Mis)Adventures In Dyeing

Categories:

Ash, Dye, Maple, Red Oak, Rockler

by benjamen

May 8, 2012

After watching this video about staining vs dyeing over at WoodWorkWeb, I decided to give dyeing wood a chance. After making a Peruvian walnut bracelet for my daughter, she wanted me to make her a pink one. I was dammed if I was going to paint something I turned …

2 comments

Permanent link to this article: http://workshop.electronsmith.com/content/misadventures-in-dyeing/

May 01 2012

Making My Own Riving Knife

Categories:

Bench Grinder, Jig Saw, Oscillating Sander, Paste Wax, Safety Week, Table Saw, Table Saw Tuneup

by benjamen

May 1, 2012

In February Tom Hintz of NewWoodworker.com posted an article with a video about kickback that got the woodworking community talking. In the video he pushed a board through his table saw without a riving knife and twisted it at the end of the cut. The board and push block …

7 comments

Permanent link to this article: http://workshop.electronsmith.com/content/making-my-own-riving-knife/

Apr 25 2012

Toy Car 3: Sports Theme

Categories:

Drill Press, Purple Heartwood, Router Table, Scroll Saw, Table Saw, Toy Cars, Urethane, Yellow Heartwood

by benjamen

April 25, 2012

I planned on making another toy car for my nephew and I wanted it to be different. My brother-in-law loves the Vikings, so by default his children do too, and the Vikings colors are purple and gold. I figured I’d make a car out of yellow and purple heartwood. Purple heartwood is a favorite contrast …

2 comments

Permanent link to this article: http://workshop.electronsmith.com/content/toy-car-3-sports-theme/

Apr 20 2012

Lathe Tool Handle

Categories:

Ash, Lathe, Tool Handles

by benjamen

April 20, 2012

Before I bought my lathe, I made a deal with a friend that if he made me some insert turning tool shafts, I’d give him the free bed extension that came with the lathe. He had access to tool steel and a metal shop and I really didn’t see myself turning anything …

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Apr 19 2012

Table Saw Fence Update

Categories:

Table Saw Tuneup

by benjamen

April 19, 2012

Yesterday I went to make some cuts with the new auxiliary fence on my table saw and noticed when I set the fence 1-1/2″ away from the blade the scale read 2-1/4″. Oops, I forgot to reset the scale. I was all prepared to drill some new holes for the scale indicator, …

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Apr 18 2012

Tops, Three Different Ones

Categories:

Ash, Lathe, Tops

by benjamen

April 18, 2012

I was watching a video by George Vondriska about using CA for turning and saw him turning a top on the lathe. I thought this would be a cool project to try. So the other day when I cut some blanks out of 8/4 ash for some handles, I …

2 comments

Permanent link to this article: http://workshop.electronsmith.com/content/tops-three-different-ones/

Apr 17 2012

Fixing The Bow In My Table Saw Fence

Categories:

MDF, Router Table, T-Slot Bit, Table Saw Tuneup

by benjamen

April 17, 2012

For a while I’ve noticed that when I rip a clean edge on my table saw and put it up against my fence, there’s a gap between the board and the fence. I’ll take a square to the edge and find out it’s perfectly square, shrug my shoulders, and continue what I …

Permanent link to this article: http://workshop.electronsmith.com/content/fixing-the-bow-in-my-table-saw-fence/