Layout, Measuring, and Marking
As a high school science teacher, I often experiment in my shop.
Sometimes you simply can’t angle-cut the end of a board using a tablesaw or mitersaw because of the length of the workpiece or where you’re working.
I like to mark the projects I build with one of those branding irons you heat with a propane torch. But if you don’t hold the iron squarely and with steady pressure, the design won’t burn evenly in the wood.
For laying out circles where the exact radius isn’t critical, I like to use a scrap of perforated hardboard.
It’s hard to see a pencil mark on dark woods, such as walnut.
Need to lay out a circle but don’t have a compass? No problem.
When building a doll cradle for my buddy’s daughter, I found that the plans he provided required enlarging.
For better access to the edges of workpieces while finishing, I rest them on pronged mending plates.
By drilling a 1⁄16 " hole in the center channel of a combination square at the 1" mark, I can easily lay out exact, parallel pencil lines.
Tip of the Day
Quick-cutting sandpaper template
Here’s a super-simple way of cutting sandpaper to exact size for sanding blocks and finishing... read more