Tool Tip #9: Securing an Old Favorite

Throughout college my only desk was a hollow core door slab placed over a pair of sawhorses, and I still haven't abandoned this convenient form of table.  Whenever I need an additional work surface open come a pair of Trojan ( http://www.trojantools.com) sawhorses and on goes a 3-0 door slab.  A good door slab typically provides a very flat surface which is useful in assembling face frames or checking the 3-dimensional squareness of a carcase, not to mention being very much lighter than any folding table.  However, having your slab seesaw a load onto the floor is not fun.  To provide greater security for this old favorite I've added a draw tight latch to the end of each 2x4 and bolted the Trojans on as well.  The draw tight latches make attachment quick and easy with no reaching underneath the table.

Home Library -- Room #3

Home Library -- Room #2

Home Library -- Room #1

See also our shop at:  www.flyingcircusstudios.etsy.com

Woodworking Tip # 12: "Presquare" Large Glue-ups

I've found that when it comes to large glue-ups such as wall systems, shelf systems, drawer web frames, even smaller cabinet carcases, it helps a great deal if two of the pieces are already set and firm at right angles.  Really, it doesn't matter which two pieces are "preglued" before the entire carcase is glued-up, for the fact is, having a built-in "framing square" makes the final assembly so much the easier.  Pictured here an actual framing square is clamped to the side of a shelf unit to the keep a shelf square in its dado joint, though the concept would work with biscuits, dowels, or most any other type of joinery.  The bench clamp holds a stiffening stick to prevent any inaccuracies due to measuring square off a concave or convex surface.  Once the glue is set, this pair of pieces will make the larger glue-up much less unwieldy.

Curved Glass Unit in Sectional Retail Display

Detail: Curved Glass Retail Display

Woodworking Tip #11: Curvaceous Corners

I have made a small modification to several recent library shelf systems that consisted of fixed plywood shelves within face frames.  The modification  adds both a touch of elegance and considerable visual interest to what is otherwise a simple design.  A small radius roundover is routed on the end of the shelf edging at the corner that meets the stile, as shown.  Also, making the edging slightly larger than the thickness of the shelf adds a look of solidness and a tiny bit of strength, here 1" edging on 3/4" shelving.

Finishing Tip #4: Soft and Easy Putty

Flagstaff's  preeminent outdoor chef, Lamar Haines, not to mention educator, coach and guide, used to say, "when serving pancakes, make sure to keep the butter soft and the syrup hot."  Who could not agree after trying to spread some half-frozen pat of restaurant butter over one's rapidly cooling pancakes?  When my work serves me up a bunch of nail holes to fill I take inspiration from Lamar and keep my putty soft and easy, not by rolling a little ball of it in my palms thereby making a mess of myself and any tools I'm using, but by warming the entire container of putty by whatever means is handy.  A warm container will keep the putty soft and pliable for any reasonable amount of nail hole fillings.  Most often I use a dedicated flat blade screwdriver, with it's square corners rounded, for pressing in the putty more precisely than a putty knife and with less excess.  For removing what excess is left I use a tack cloth which picks up putty well and polishes off the filling nicely with the wood's surface.

Decorative Door Chime Enclosure

Finishing Tip #3: Drying Rack

This simple drying rack made of 2x4's permits stained, oiled, varnished, painted, lacquered, cleaned, stripped, washed, etc. items to dry in a very compact amount of space with virtually nothing but a few knife-edge contact points between the item and the rack.  The parallel sets of notches are approximately 1/8" wider than the item is thick and 1" deep.  The rack is suitable for cabinet doors, panels, cabinet sides, face frames, door frames, drawer faces, and anything else flat, such as the bookshelves shown.  The width of the notch can, of course, be adjusted for thicker stock as was done in the back half of the rack shown, but then refilled for 3/4" stock with little masonite squares.  You want to produce a slight lean sufficient to prevent the item from falling back to vertical.  Even if you were refinishing just one set of kitchen cabinet doors this rack would both increase your efficiency and preclude any marks in your stain or surface coating.  The drying rack also supports my protocol of finishing all sections of piece prior to assembly, a good subject for a future woodworking tip.

"Woodworking" Tip #10: Traction for Plywood

Transporting hardwood plywood from Spellman Hardwoods to the shop in Flagstaff's wintry conditions is made safer with the help of my tube sand carriages.  Two homemade L-shaped carriages are screwed to the bed behind the wheel wells thus permitting the entire width of the bed to be utilized yet providing extra weight for traction.  The hook shown can receive a tiedown to secure a second tube, making a total of 240# of stable weight with no obstruction.  Of course, full tanks of gas, as every pilot should know, weigh in at 6# per gallon, not to mention prevent condensation.  Coupled with two studless Michelin Latitude tires my venerable 2WD F150 feel like a 4WD, but what transfer case can be dumped into the Flagstaff clay come spring to help loosen things up?

Desktop Book Rack (First Work, Circa 1963)

Lean Thinking Tip #7: The 100-Drawer Hutch

During the 1960's my father worked as a quality assurance rep for the federal government, which meant he was stationed at various plants.   A total brain (a.k.a. nerd) at the time I had little interest in his work stories, but this one stuck in my mind permanently, especially whenever I make drawers:  seems one of the fellows in the crating department at AT&T in Clifton, N.J. bet his coworkers that he could build a 100-drawer hutch in a day.  Remember, before the days of foam and wrap, products were often shipped in wooden crates.  A crating department was a full-blown, completely equipped woodworking shop.  The day was long, the effort Herculean, but a day it was, and the bet was won, so the story goes.

For the self-employed, extracting good value from a day's work is a tricky business, more psychological than logistical.  Often my only boss is a list of production goals.  Monday I gave myself a huge, unrealistic list, but surprised myself as the check marks gathered.  So come 3:00 PM a spot of tea as a little reward, maybe a snack to go with, check the emails perhaps, retrieve the snail mail...a half hour gone with a sizable task remaining, as even retrofit, built-in drawer boxes deserve a nice smooth roundover on their upper rims.  Determined not to undermine this fine day I accomplished the roundover operation at more than double my usual rate...ah, echoes of the 100 drawer hutch.

Flying Hint #5: Engine Failure Troubleshooting - Part 2

In the second part of engine failure troubleshooting (see previous post for Part 1) the right hand flies, and the left hand "fixes."  A little chant goes with the physical pattern in both parts, again to help automate the whole procedure.  In Part 1 say to yourself out loud:  "fuel, carb, throttle and mix."  Part 2 goes:  "mags, master, primer and boost."  First, verify that the ignition switch is set to BOTH, though in the case of a rough or misfiring engine, testing left (L) and right (R) magneto settings could solve the problem.  Second, turn the master off for a failure at takeoff or close to the ground, or, at altitude, confirm that it is on for emergency communications or to enable a restart in the case of a stopped prop.  Third, check that the primer is in and locked.  Fourth, turn the fuel boost pump on if so equipped.  This procedure works well for most Cessna light singles.  Customize it for the plane you fly using the three basic concepts:  use "one hand flies, one hand fixes," design a physical pattern from one control to another and reinforce that pattern with a phrase of one word per control.

Flying Hint #5: Engine Failure Troubleshooting - Part 1

This is the procedure I taught my flight and ground students, just the troubleshooting aspect of an engine failure, which must be done simultaneously with establishing glide speed and choosing an emergency landing site...thus, no peeking!  Do remember to fly the aircraft.  In Part 1 the left hand flies and the right hand fixes, and in Part 2 (next post) the right hand flies and the left hand fixes.  Create a pattern appropriate to the aircraft as the physical path helps cement memory.  In this Cessna check that the fuel selector is on both tanks, move up and apply full carburetor heat, move rightward and apply full throttle and last, adjust the mixture, though the flight manual recommendation for full rich may not be appropriate at high altitudes.  Pointy...square...smooth...bumpy.  Better than counting sheep, review the pattern with your eyes closed, practice cheaply in the cockpit while looking outside at the view of the ramp, and then do the real thing flying with an instructor.

Mahogany Vanity with Talavera Sink

Woodworking Tip #9: Wedges for Hungarian Shelves

Judging from traffic (see Dec. 13, 2009 post) there is a fair amount of interest in "Hungarian shelves," and though this system is very simple to construct, the required wedges deserve some consideration.  I cut these oversize, about 4" in length, to make insertion and removal a cinch and to provide easy thickening by merely shortening at the pointy end.  Use a precision cutoff blade, and set the miter saw at one degree.  Cut the block of wood with the grain, of course, so that the point has square corners, and then flip the block over to make the next cut.  The resulting wedges will thus be 2 degrees, an excellent angle for locking the shelves in place.  Stock shown is 8/4 to correspond with the width of the vertical standard.  Little practice is required to make nearly identical wedges, but if they vary slightly it matters little.  When the wedges will show, such as in upper shelving, they would probably look best finished to match.  Nonetheless, they possess an aesthetic of their own worth displaying.  See also: Slot Height for Hungarian Shelves

See also our shop at:  www.flyingcircusstudios.etsy.com

Artisan at the Holidays

Artisans and artists live on a precarious edge, crumbled even further by the economic events of the past couple of years, and they make an act of faith by continuing their work rather than retreat to more solid ground.  The end of the year is an appropriate time to reflect upon one's patrons who make that life on the edge possible, even exciting, the anticipation of the next rabbit jumping out from behind a bush.   And they do.  I feel a deep appreciation for all my patrons, past and present, with whom I have hammered out all the details of commissions, getting things just right and special, and who make the life of an artisan a privileged position.  Also, a big thank you to the gal who is always there to hold "the other end of the board."  The best of the holiday season to you all!

Lean Thinking Tip #6: Fast Sharpening

I read an author in Fine Woodworking who said something to the effect that he did not get paid for sharpening his tools.  I quite disagree, as sharpening directly adds value to a wood piece as much as plugging in a power tool. Notwithstanding, sharpening should not be time-consuming.  I aim to achieve not an Olympic edge but one which will nicely peel a shaving cross grain on hardwood plywood after about a minute's sharpening.  First, I hollow grind on a 60 grit aluminum oxide wheel by passing the chisel right to left four times resting on a tool guide fixed to produce a 25 degree bevel.  Second, the chisel goes to an ever so flat piece of 400 grit wet/dry silicon carbide paper attached with spray adhesive to 1/2" plate glass.  Holding the chisel off the side of the workbench I polish the back alternating with pushing the cutting edge gently forward while resting on the two high points of the arc made by the grinding wheel.  This alternation is repeated three or four times (more is not better!), and the chisel is ready to add value.

Tool Tip #8: Easy Fill for Portable Tank

Portable air tanks are not only great for filling tires, but also supply compressed air for such impulse tools as brad nailers, making for quieter, more peaceful installations.  Typically they are designed to be filled with an air chuck through a standard valve stem shown here within the knurled red knob.  Much faster and easier, however, is using a double-ended male plug placed into the female quick couplers of both the compressor and the portable air tank.  Thus the tank is filled through it's outlet (make sure the air valve is on!).  If you're fast you can release both female quick couplers simultaneously, and the male plug assembly just falls away with no air loss from the tank.

Double Tier Microwave Cabinet

Vent Hood Enclosure

Woodworking Tip #8: Anti-Skid Miter Gauge

Coat a piece of 400 grit sandpaper with spray adhesive, stick it to your miter gauge(s) and trim the excess sandpaper off with a razor blade.  The sandpaper provides just the right amount of resistance to prevent the workpiece from slipping left or right and gives a surprising amount of security to your grip.  You won't even find yourself renewing this anti-skid mat very often as the sandpaper really does no sanding.

Craftsman Style Coffee Table

Coffee Table -- Drawer Detail

Coffee Table -- End Detail

Lean Thinking Tip #5: Second Story Office

Originally utilized to keep a laptop clear of the working surface on the "Apronless Shipping Tables" (see post Feb. 15, 2009) that I built for my son's business,  bikeshophub.com, I now use this modified CompX Ergonomx monitor mount as my second story office.  A slot under the specially made platform contains the current project folder, a tray contains pens, pencils, bike tire gauge, cell phone, tape measure, etc., another slot holds a pad, order cards, calculator, etc., ear protection hangs on the side and more.  The fully articulating arm can raise or lower in a 13" range as well as swing into any position or completely off the workbench.  Thus everything is quickly accessible without cluttering the work area.  A fully articulating magnifying halogen lamp unit completes this second story office, akin to the half story in Being John Malkovich.

Woodworking Tip #7: Doweling Jig Stability

Most doweling jigs, in this case a "Dowl-It," lack stability when resting on a narrow piece of wood, a typical end grain situation as in the photo.  To insure that the jig does not tilt in any direction and the drilled hole is perfectly perpendicular, I employ a device.  Just tighten the jig on the piece of wood, lower the wood into a vice until the jig evenly contacts the top surface of the vice and then tighten the vice onto the wood.  The jig is totally secure now despite being attached to a piece of wood with a quite narrow surface.

Corbel Shelf & Column Wraps

Bookcases & Rain Glass Cabinet

Woodworking Tip #6: Magazine Storage

This feature works extremely well in keeping bound magazines upright, parallel and straight rather than becoming a huge accordion.  A partition is added to the shelf, in this case set in its own groove and about 2/3 the width of the magazine. The thickness of the partition is equal to the difference between the magazine's thickness at the spine and  leaf edge, times the number of magazines between partitions.   Don't do the math.  Just stack some magazines and determine the right number by trial and error with a piece of the partition laying on the leaf edge.  Your collection will look beautiful, and the need for boxes is obviated.  The issues are easy to remove as well.

Tool Tip #7: Sleeves to Shoulders

In my penchant for quick access to tools, I've found the best way to place a small diameter tool or bit in pegboard is often just to stick it straight in.  This is made more feasible by the fact that the pegboard is mounted over 1.5" of high density foam which holds it shape well.  Doing "in and out" too much, however, erodes and enlarges the hole.   The solution is to create a shoulder for the hole with a sleeve, in this case a Knape & Vogt sleeve actually designed to receive a shelf support spoon with a .25" pin diameter.  Since the external diameter of the sleeve is greater than the diameter of the pegboard hole these sleeves fit nice and tight, providing permanent reinforcement.  Of course, using these sleeves for actual shelf supports provides durability, security and beauty.

Lean Thinking Tip #4: No Step, No Put

Few surfaces are more inviting to put down whatever is in your hands as the pristine, shiny table of a table saw.   Now take a look at this Airbus wing, perhaps click on the image to enlarge, and you will see two small placards stating: “NO STEP....”  Implied are dire results, even damage to the wing.  I’ve been thinking of printing placards, inspired by those "NO STEP" ones found on aircraft,  for all the nice flat tool beds, workbenches and seeming tables in my shop. They would state:  “NO PUT.”  Yes, because every time you do put some non-workpiece down on a work surface, damage does occur, damage to productivity, even safety.  I’ve actually found myself having to move a handful of objects stored on the tiny bed of the disc sander.  Just think, walking into your workspace:  every work surface free and ready to use. Wishful thinking!

The Purpose of this Blog

The primary purpose of the Flying Circus Studios Blog is to provide a flexible online portfolio of my work for potential customers, for past customers, whose work is shown, though anonymously, and for friends, family and the curious.  The task of converting nearly three decades of film images still lies before me.  Secondarily I use this Blog to share some of the tips and hints I've gleaned over the years both in reference to woodworking and aviation, sometimes even with analogy.  These currently fall in five categories:  Flying Hints, Tool Tips, Woodworking Tips, Lean Thinking Tips and Finishing Tips.  Using the Google "search this blog" tool one can view the text of all the entries in any one category (use the singular, e.g. Tool Tip).  My hope is that one of these might prove useful to you and that my readers share them with their like-minded compeers.

Tool Tip #6: Replacement Power Cord

Long and short, heavy gauge and light gauge, with ground and without ground describe the variety of extension cords I keep in my tool kit, but besides extending cords they have another useful function.  Should the power cord on most any power tool fail, an instant replacement is already on hand.  A soldering iron and sometimes crimp-on connectors can make this replacement quite professional.  Make sure, of course, that the wire gauge of the extension cord matches or exceeds the cord on the tool and that the number of conductors is the same.  Generally you'll be surprised how high the cord's gauge on the tool is.  Four advantages here:  1)  You fixed the tool at a fraction of the price you'd pay for a "real" power cord;  2)  You may now have a bright safety orange cord instead of plain old black;  3) You can have a cord of any length you like;   4)   You've saved a trip, and the job can plunge ahead.

Factory Mods

Factory Mods

Flying Hint #4: Infrequent Flyer

Notwithstanding a fair amount of gratuitous pitch, yaw and roll, I have never had a flight student who could not maneuver an aircraft from point A to point B.  Here's the rub:  enter herein, take a seat and takeoff  (a fairly easy operation); you're now faced with landing the aircraft.  Landing requires not only training and experience but also practice, recency and currency.  FAR 61.57 (Federal Aviation Regulation) requires three takeoffs and three landing within the preceding 90 days in order to carry passengers.  For someone like myself, who doesn't get to fly nearly as often as desired, I've reduced  that minimum to 30 days, which more clearly aligns with the upper flat part of the landing sharpness curve.

Lean Thinking Tip #3: The 180 Degree Turn

Upon encountering instrument or adverse weather conditions a VFR (visual flight rules) pilot is supposed to execute the “180° turn,” i.e. turn back to better weather.  This simple maneuver can be a real lifesaver.  In the shop I execute the 180° turn as a real time saver.  Directly across a 4' aisle from my 8' long workbench is a large pegboard panel, also 8' long, as well as 8' high.  A half turn and within arm’s reach lie about 90% of the hand tools, jigs, bits, materials, supplies, etc. that I use every day, each appropriately mounted, each easy to find and each easily returned back to a safe port.  (Thoughts about small power tool storage in a future post.)

Low and Fast Approach

"Copper Collage" Trivet

Tool Tip #5: Magnets in Molded Plastic Cases

Once upon a time all tool cases were metal, but with the advent of molded plastic cases I had to adapt this little magnetic storage trick.  Now I attach the magnet to the case using epoxy, but it still functions well as a handy storage "tray" for a myriad of blades, bits, wrenches, keys, drivers or whatever is needed for the particular tool in hand or in case, as it were.

Tool Tip #4: Extension Cord Hair Band

A really quick and easy way to cinch an extension cord for storage is to wrap the center with a cross section of car inner tube looped through itself.  Mine are cut with pinking shears, and the little teeth provide even better "locking."  Car inner tubes are harder to find these days, but just one from your local tire dealer or flea market will produce numerous handy giant rubber bands for this and lots of other binding purposes.

Woodworking Tip #5: Velcro's New Coat

When the good guys at Woodworker's Supply offered to send me a sampler of their Black-Max ceramic sanding discs, it was a no-brainer to accept.  Thing was I received 5" PSA discs, but my sander pad is hook and loop.  The adaptation was as easy as first attaching a disc of real fine 320 grit H&L sandpaper, then sticking the new PSA Black-Max disc to it.  This worked even better after some of the grit got peeled off by the adhesive.  Thing was too I was working on a deck instead of furniture, but the Black-Max ate through beams and balusters like there was no tomorrow.

Staggered Display Shelves

Woodworking Tip #4: Level Biscuits

Should a biscuit slot not be exactly at right angles to the surface, the desired alignment of the pieces is inevitably thrown off.  Yet often cutting the slot cannot be accomplished easily with the fixed shoe of the joiner on a flat surface.  I solved this problem by gluing a line level on the base of my DeWalt Plate Joiner.  With the workpiece plumb, of course, centering the bubble on the line level gives you a slot cut perfectly perpendicular to the surface without depending entirely on the fence.  This is especially helpful in cutting the slots on, say, the edging piece to a countertop or such.

Woodworking Tip #3: Old Sole Eraser

This seems especially apropos on the day news broke of the oldest shoe ever found, in Armenia.  So earlier this week when my work boot began running off at the mouth I knew this old shoe now had new purpose.  The soft soles of work boots make great "erasers" to clean sanding belts and discs, though you will find that the most any other "rubber" bottomed shoe sole will do the trick too. The shoe pictured is not 5500 years old, but it was just replaced by a lesser old shoe.

Lean Thinking Tip #2: Plague of Cheap Tools

Cheap, frequently used tools should be plentiful and everywhere, never items for which you have to look.  I used to think a work apron would keep such things handy, but inevitably they would be used and left wherever.  Invest in some extras of your favorites and scatter them like a plague around your workshop.  You'll never have to search again.  One note:  if you use multiple measuring tools do check that they are calibrated to one another.

Lift Accessible Day Bed (10+ years usage)