Thread: Good tools and RIGHT tools.....

Just about every tool on the bench has either been made or modified by yours truly, which led me to thinking how satisfying it is to work with nice tools, that are truly fit for the purpose

I hope to be in that position one day…

For me it doesn't matter what I am making, as it is the making that gives me satisfaction. Double that if your making something with tools you made!

When did you make that while tool with the loop handle???

Ian, heres another use for a cot once its beeb out grown.

Hi Ian,

Thanks for that, I wonder if the grandchild ( son perhaps ) will one day inherit some of those self same tools... I can see a few family heirlooms being passed down the generations..

The only glaring omission in the arsenal is a range of planes, maybe an infill or two?

Regards
Ray

Originally Posted by DSEL74

....When did you make that while tool with the loop handle???......

That's one of the few tools I didn't make Dale. But it's as essential as the rest!

Originally Posted by IanW

That's one of the few tools I didn't make Dale. But it's as essential as the rest!

But I am sure your continually modifying the contents.

On a serious note, when working with so many gauges at once how do you remember which one is set for what?

Originally Posted by RayG

......The only glaring omission in the arsenal is a range of planes, maybe an infill or two? ..

Ray, they'd already had their turn, prepping the stock. If I'd taken a pic the day before, there would have been a #7 and a #5 1/2 and my own-made infill on the bench, but you wouldn't have been able to see them for the dirty great pile of shavings all over the shop! Preparing recycled wood is more damn work than starting with clean new stuff...

The two planes on the bench are just assisting the assembly stage, the #4 for a bit of tweaking of the fit on the slats, and the 78 for tweaking the sawn cheeks of tenons. My method is to saw off the waste to about 0.5mm from the line, then smooth & flatten the surface with a couple of strokes of the 78. They are not the most elegant precision instrument ever made, but at this job, I reckon they excel. The #4 isn't my 'bes't' plane, either, it's a fettled English Stanley, good, but not brilliant. However, it has a superb early Hock blade that is so easy to hone, yet holds an edge extremely well. I have a Clifton #4 which I keep super sharp & with a finely-fitted cap iron for 90% of the final smoothing jobs (& my infill for the really recalcitrant stuff), but the #4 on the bench gets more general bench time that the others because it's just such a good little all-round workhorse. I guess this is what I was alluding to above by the right tools - they're the ones that suit you, and not necessarily the ones another person might favour for the same tasks.

Trev - that's an idea for recycling a cot that I hadn't seen before. The shop selling cots had a couple of models that convert into a sofa, but they didn't look all that comfy to me, with their wide, flat seats and tall straight sides!

Cots are the Cinderellas of the furniture world, aren't they? You use them for such a short time, then pack them away for the next generation, by which time fashion has changed radically, not to mention standards (it's illegal to even give away a cot for its intended use if it doesn't meet current standards). Any other ideas for recycling a cot, out there (apart from filling them with potted palms )?

Cheers,

Originally Posted by DSEL74

On a serious note, when working with so many gauges at once how do you remember which one is set for what?

That's easy, Dale - I don't!

Actually, it's usually not difficult at all, because if in doubt, I can always check against the original piece it was set to. Having gauges of different sizes in different woods makes it easier, too. The reason I had so many on the go at once is that I was working out the fit of the tenons on the slats & rails as I went along - some needed off-setting, & the amount of offset was determined by what looked right, so I didn't want to change the setting of the mortise gauge once I had it set. But once everything was worked out on the one end, it was very simple & quick to lay out the second - as long as I used the right gauge.

It's interesting to note the different ways people go about making things. I often start with nothing more than a sketch with the essential dimensions, & work out the exact placement of joints etc. on the fly, but some folks like to have everything worked out to the last millimetre on a plan before touching the first piece of wood. Since joints are mostly either centred, and/or flush, it's usually not a big problem, but the legs on this cot were a special challenge because there were no straight reference edges to work from for the cross-rail joints. If I'd been using new stock, I could have laid them out while they were still in the square, but I had to squeeze these legs out of the one thick piece that was suitable. As it was, I had to re-draw them several times, flipping the template this way & that to get them to fit, so I couldn't take advantage of any straight edges!

All good fun when you are not trying to make a living at it!

Cheers,

Originally Posted by IanW

Trev - that's an idea for recycling a cot that I hadn't seen before. The shop selling cots had a couple of models that convert into a sofa, but they didn't look all that comfy to me, with their wide, flat seats and tall straight sides!

Cots are the Cinderellas of the furniture world, aren't they? You use them for such a short time, then pack them away for the next generation, by which time fashion has changed radically, not to mention standards (it's illegal to even give away a cot for its intended use if it doesn't meet current standards). Any other ideas for recycling a cot, out there (apart from filling them with potted palms )?

Cheers,

Yes I thought that it was a very practical recycling solution as well. I see literally hundreds of old cots at the local tip recycling shop and when you see them made into something so useful so easily it just makes my mind boggle.
BTW the marking guages are all wrapped up and under the tree. Roll on Xmas day

I think of this carpenters gauge as more of an artifact than a tool. It's rough as bags but accurate enough and heaps of charm!

"Tools", for me, includes musical instruments. I play music 1-2 times a month with 2 mates, just for laffs. When we play at my place we use instruments made by me. Double bass, archtop guitars, mandolins and viola. It's nice being in the middle of a sound made by my instruments. I haven't made a fiddle yet because I have two I'm quite happy with.

Bill, I envy you on two counts. One is being able to play any instrument. Much as I love music, ABC FM is my constant companion (apart from the dog!) in the shed, the closest I ever got to an 'instrument' was a bugle, when I was in the school cadets. I can do a pretty good rendition of the Last Post, or Retreat, but I think the neighbours would raise a few objections if I were to hold a jam session twice a month.

I reckon making a 'real' instrument is the pinnacle of woodworking. For the last 40 years or more, I've looked furtively at books on making them, but never been game to give one a go. Not sure what my problem is, whether it's fear of making a dud (which of course the first one or two would inevitably be) or the thought of the godawful noise I'd making trying to play it.......

Cheers,

Ian, just plow thru the first one to find out what's what, then make a stab at a good one. You can learn a lot in a short time if you don't worry about every little detail.

Originally Posted by Ball Peen

Ian, just plow thru the first one to find out what's what, then make a stab at a good one. You can learn a lot in a short time if you don't worry about every little detail.

I'm sure you're right Bill, my main handicaps are setting my goals too high, & fear of failure. One of these days, when I've finished all my other projects, maybe I can come & watch you making something. That might help.....

Cheers,