Its Starting To Come Together

For the first time in over a year my clamps are off the floor, out of buckets and hanging on the wall where they belong.

This was a less than useful home for my parallel clamps.

This past week I was able to spend some time in the shop. With the walls and floor finished, I focused on getting tools out of their piles on the floor and into their permanent homes. This is a slow process, as I usually have to design and build their permanent home first.
I knew that the design for the clamp racks had to be efficient. I used to use Woodpecker Clamp Racks. Though they were strong, easy to use and cost effective, they only stored clamps one (1) clamp deep. Given my abundance of clamps and shortage of wall space, this mean they had to go. Six (6) months ago, they moved to my Dads shop and theyve been happy there since.

My old Woodpeckers clamp racks now house my Dads Parallels.

For the new racks in my shop, I spent a few days savings rack designs to a Pinterest board. The I took the materials I had at hand and got to work.

5/4 Pine, 3/4" OSB & 1/2 Baltic Birch served as great materials for the clamp racks.

I ended up with three (3) simple racks. They total 10 slots for clamps. Each slot is 12" long and holds between six (6) and eight (8) clamps, depending on the size of the clamp head.

In use, the 3 racks work wonderfully.

I also made a simple rack for my quick clamps. Its just two (2) pipes (the original guide rails from my band saws factory fence) set into a wood block. I took the idea from the pipe clamps which my quick clamps used to hang from.

Simple and effective quick clamp storage.

Finally I made a quick rack for my Systainers. This rack is just a temporary measure, but Im looking to consolidate all my storage and get everything off the floor. In those terms, it works well.

A quick and dirty systainer rack.

Hopefully Ill get further on it this week, though I have to start working on the next quilt rack as it is due at the by the end of September.

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Dovetail backsaw version 2

Stewie has just finished this dt backsaw, the same of previous post but made whit a different wood. Enjoy it!
Well this one is of the same design but I have used Makore as the handle wood. I have included some end grain photos of the handle so you get a better idea of the amount of work that goes into achieving a quality finish. That also goes with the shaping of the bevels on the brass hardback. It takes a lot of time to do this by hand and I sometimes curse the extra effort required, but it does add that extra flair to the final look of the saw.
Stewie;

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Abrasive paper and double side tape together for flattening

The abrasive paper attached to a plan surface is a good choice to flatten soles of metal planes for significantly improving their performances. Usually I use spray glue that allows a valid bur reversible bonding so you can easily replace the abrasive when it is exhausted. The only drawback is the glue residue left on the glass plate that has to be cleaned with alcohol every time . An alternative choice is to use double-sided adhesive tape which provides excellent grip and when removed leaves no residue on glass and results in faster replacement operations .

If you cant find a full sheet of sandpaper wide enough then you could join two narrow strips togheter.

. The tape thickness is minimal and does not affect the flatness degree useful to obtain a good levelled surface.

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When we use a block plane with one hand for planing a piece held in the grip, there is the risk of tripping on the edge and see the plane flying to the floor, almost alchoices with tragic consequences for our tool.Of course precautions are taken only after having experienced the event and so my vintage #9 1 / 2  has experienced how hard the lab floor is! Fortunately, the body plane was not damaged: the only consequence was the cap lever breaking.I had the idea for the problem solution from Nintendo Wii remote to wich I removed the safety loop and secured it in the slot created by the mouth regulating lever. In other block plane models it can also be secured directly around the front knobIt does not interfere with the planing action  and avoid any danger of falling.

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Online Woodworking In America

This year there will be a first at Woodworking in America. In addition to the normal lectures and classes about all sorts of woodworking, there will be an Online Woodworking Roundtable on Friday afternoon at 4:30. Either Popular Woodworking has run out of real woodworking to discuss (I find this hard to believe) or were really onto something with this online woodworking thing (seems equally unlikely).

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Stand back offline woodworkers. Here we come.

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The Online Woodworking Roundtable panel will include my fellow +Modern Woodworkers Association podcast hosts, +Christopher Adkins and +Tom Iovino. Filling out the roster will be online heavy hitters +Marc Spagnuolo, +Matt Vanderlist and +Shannon Rogers of Wood Talk Show. Im not on the panel myself, but Ill be in the front row leading the hecklers.
From the lecture description:

With Marc Spagnuolo, Matt Vanderlist, Shannon Rogers, Tom Iovino, Chris Adkins and more. Few things have changed the face of woodworking more than the advent of the Internet. Whether you enjoy the latest, cutting-edge power tools or want to learn more about the traditional skills of centuries past, there are web sites and bloggers that will capture your interest. Join a panel of the best-known online woodworkers and educators to find out how to get the most out of your online woodworking experience, discover what goes into creating valuable online content and learn how they are reaching out to a new generation of craftsmen and craftswomen.If youre reading this, you know about the online woodworking community. Please join us for the lecture on Friday afternoon. Well talk of all the community has to offer and demonstrate that it is THE place to be in the current world of woodworking.
Dont forget about the+Modern Woodworkers Association Podcast. We talk woodworking with Guests from around the world of woodworking every other week. Subscribe to the RSS feed or iTunes today.

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Together for Ever!

Should have more than a one hundred years these tongue and groove planes. I picked up them from ebay, maybe they come from Austria or Germany. No marks on the plane body, neither on the blades.They cut a 8 mm tongue and groove.

When I had them I noticed they needed a restoring job. The plane body showed numerous worm holes, although the wood was solid enough.

The main problem was that the wooden screws was blocked into the body and for two of them I cannot unscrew. The only solution was sawing the plane body for reach the thread and release the screw. The damage was inevitable and a repair needed!I dislike to have these tools only for collecting them; I love to use them too. So I attempted to a structural and functional recovery, preserving, if possible, their lived-in look with some sign of aging

After washing with soap and treated with an anti-worm product (although the old holes seemed empty), blades and steel skates received a anti-rust treatment.

The pieces were then re-glued and veneers were used for closing the saw grooves. Then I closed the worm holes, leaving some intentionally.

The functional recovery concerned after all in to steady contact points (soles and fences). For this job I used mahogany strips. This wood is also present in the wedges and regulating screws.
The skate bed and sides were rectified by a big file and by sliding the plow on the abrasive paper while keeping it square.

The two half-skates are inserted into a groove of plane body. At heel ant toe, the skates have dovetail shape and are firmly held by a nail driven into the body.

One wooden screw has split while removing it and I had to repair by gluing.

All screws had difficulties to move in their threads, so I used a thin cylindric rasp for easy their action.

Blades are hand forged; the plow plane blade was worn-out, so I had to substitute it.I started from a 32 mm single plane iron, cut by a angle grinder (cooling often) and refinished at bench grinder.

By looking at old blade, it shows a trapezoidal section and slightly tapered sides; this avoids the cutter binds into the groove walls, even if the plane rocks a bit.

Moreover, the original blades show a convex shape for a stronger holding of them by wedge; I imitate this for the new blade and it works. 

Finally, I rectified the contact surfaces (soles and fences) for having the cutting edge square to the fence and parallel to the sole. Of course I tried to cut a joint.

 

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