James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high quality
wood boring bits.
Master woodworker James Krenov says, "A simple way to make what we in
Europe call a cabinetmaker's drill is to regrind an ordinary
straight-shank metal drill. This may sound complicated but...you can
easily produce drills with a sharp center spur and very sharp,
clean-cutting edges." (The Fine Art of Cabinetmaking, page 133) A center
spur or brad point reduces the chance of error. I use my belt sander to
regrind my drills. Some supply houses are selling brad point drills in
slightly under and over sizes today. Years ago I had to make my own and
still do. It's much cheaper.
You can see a photograph of one resulting bit on page 31 of my free
downloadable book at
<http://www.woodentoy.com/horsebook/horsebookcover.html>
The availability of number and letter sized bits has really added to the
quality of my dowel joinery and I encourage anyone
to try Krenov's technique. The mass produced letter sized bits are cheap
and bore wood
very nicely with the simple regringing Krenov suggests.
good luck
john the toymaker
www.woodentoy.com
John wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>, "mp" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>
> > > James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> > > to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high
quality
> > > wood boring bits.
> >
> > Thinly disguised spam.
>
> Dear mp,
>
> Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits.
I thought you were too. Then I went to your website and didn;t see
anything about drill bits.
That doesn't make your article spam, it does make it deceptive.
--
FF
Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
> "J" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>
>
> Look at all the publicity he got though. The book is FREE, so he
didn't try
> to sell anything that was not mentioned. IMO, the book is pretty
good and
> the author has a lot of time invested. So what if he happens to sell
plans,
> he gives a good start for free.
Well no one is compalining oabout that.
--
FF
Dave Balderstone wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>, mp <[email protected]>
wrote:
>
> > If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and
say so?
>
> He's GIVING AWAY his book, not "promoting" it.
>
> Geez...
>
To be precise, he's promoting the give-away.
Actually, he promoted a method for making your own brad-point bits,
but when I went to his site to read about I found nothing of the sort
which I found to be very annoying as I was hoping to see how to make
my own brad point bits.
He wasted my time, just like I'm wasting yours....
--
FF
Andy Dingley wrote:
> On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 21:11:22 -0500, loutent <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >I know, I have to "kill" the tree to do that.
>
> Good thing too. Regularly killing trees is an important part of
> maintaining forests.
Nah, if you leave them alone they die just fine on their own.
No need to kill the trees to 'maintain' the forest. Forests
are a climax environment, they maintain on their own.
Of course if you want wood you need to kill the trees sooner
befor they die on their own. I think that's what you mean, to
_manage_ a tree farm for lumber you need to kill trees on a
regular basis, right? A good thing too, because the better
we are at managing tree farms the less demand there will be
to kill forest trees for wood.
--
FF
J wrote:
> <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> > John wrote:
> > > In article <[email protected]>, "mp"
<[email protected]>
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > > > James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> > > > > to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high
> > quality
> > > > > wood boring bits.
> > > >
> > > > Thinly disguised spam.
> > >
> > > Dear mp,
> > >
> > > Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill
bits.
> >
> >
> > I thought you were too. Then I went to your website and didn;t see
> > anything about drill bits.
> >
> > That doesn't make your article spam, it does make it deceptive.
>
> All spam is deceptive.
> The post was deceptive ...
> Socrates is immortal.
>
Upon reviewing the original article, I have to conclude that
was wrong to even say that it was deceptive. It is inaccurate
of John to claim that he was 'thought he was talking about
drill bits' inasmuch as the article discussed drill bits only
as an way of introducing his book which was the real subject of
his article. In fact, the original article was pretty straight-
forward about that.
Digressing, spam is not spam by virtue of commercial, promotional,
or deceptive intent. It is the volume, for example widespread
or frequent posting or crossposting that makes spam spam.
Historically, advertisements have been discouraged in UseNet
newsgroups, but that is different issue.
As to where we should draw the line here in rec.nahrm, I dunno.
It is generally acceptable to append a plug for one's product,
cause, or free literature to an on-topic article. John's article
started off that way but his discussion is pretty superficial.
Had he given us a description of HOW to make a drill bit into
a forstner bit and then appended his promotion of his free
book the promotional content would have been better
received I think..
I encourage John to post a detailed description of how to
make the bits, and won't mind a bit if he includes a plug
for his book, website, or business along with that useful
information.
--
FF
Andy Dingley wrote:
> On 15 Feb 2005 12:07:14 -0800, [email protected] wrote:
>
> >Nah, if you leave them alone they die just fine on their own.
> >No need to kill the trees to 'maintain' the forest.
>
> Fair point if the forest is somehow preserved, but round here we're
> short of land. A forest that can justify itself as a tree factory can
> survive - something that's just "there" is likely to find itself
> getting houses built on it.
In most locales the city (if there is one) or county government
can seize 'undeveloped' land under emminent domain and then re-sell
it for 'developement' making it impossible to preserve. The simple
fact that the land has been preserved is sufficient to legally
condemn it.
--
FF
"J" <[email protected]> wrote:
>> It is generally acceptable to append a plug for one's product,
>> cause, or free literature to an on-topic article. John's article
>> started off that way but his discussion is pretty superficial.
>
> I agree. He should have just stated - "hey, I have a 9MB free PDF
> about building rocking horses" and left Krenov out of it.
>
>> Had he given us a description of HOW to make a drill bit into
>> a forstner bit and then appended his promotion of his free
>> book the promotional content would have been better
>> received I think..
>
> I still want to know how he actually makes the brad point bit. Are
> there any tricks or do you just grind it down?
PG 31 of the FREE BOOK.
>
>> I encourage John to post a detailed description of how to
>> make the bits, and won't mind a bit if he includes a plug
>> for his book, website, or business along with that useful
>> information.
>>
>> FF
>
> I don't think anyone here is against the distribution of free high
> quality information.
But you didn't bother to read it. :o)
>
> -j
>
>
In article <[email protected]>, Rick
<[email protected]> wrote:
> Anyway, don't let MP's comments speak for all of us. He certainly doesn't
> speak for me on this subject.
Nor me. I've d/l'd the book but haven't read it yet.
Still, John, thanks! It's appreciated.
djb
--
"The thing about saying the wrong words is that A, I don't notice it, and B,
sometimes orange water gibbon bucket and plastic." -- Mr. Burrows
In article <[email protected]>, mp <[email protected]> wrote:
> If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and say so?
He's GIVING AWAY his book, not "promoting" it.
Geez...
djb
--
"Modern technology has enabled us to communicate and organize with speed and
efficiency never before possible. People have gotten less competent to
compensate for this." - CW
> (ex.:The only trouble with designing and working in wood is that it has the
> advantage - or disadvantage, however you look at it - of being beautiful
> in itself...take a piece of wood - plane, sand and oil it, and you will find
> it is a beautiful thing. The more you do to it from then on, the more chance
> that you will make it worse. Therefore, working with a material of such
> natural beauty, I feel that we have to design very quietly and use simple
> forms.
> Tage Frid Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking - 1979)
This is so much the case. If you love working with wood, it is
almost a love-hate type of thing.
I could slice a cross-section out of a trunk of red oak and
hang it on the wall, I swear...
I know, I have to "kill" the tree to do that.
Not making too much sense I guess - except to me (and
some woodworkers).
Lou
On 15 Feb 2005 12:07:14 -0800, [email protected] wrote:
>Nah, if you leave them alone they die just fine on their own.
>No need to kill the trees to 'maintain' the forest.
Fair point if the forest is somehow preserved, but round here we're
short of land. A forest that can justify itself as a tree factory can
survive - something that's just "there" is likely to find itself
getting houses built on it.
on 2/14/2005 2:35 PM mp said the following:
>>Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits. I
>>thought long and hard about giving my woodworking book away for free.
>
>
> If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and say so?
If Krenov taught you about spam, perhaps you should have paid closer
attention while he was talking instead of putting the pencils in your
ears and nose.
If someone responds to a question about left-handed widgets by posting a
website where one may purchase them is that SPAM? Not really,
especially if it's the site of a third party.
If someone posts a site showing an example of a drill bit that was
home-made and responsive to the topic of woodworking AND offers the
entire book from which the example comes for FREE, is that SPAM?
Only to someone who doesn't know what they are talking about, I think.
Bob - who has absolutely no confusion about this.
"John" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high quality
<snipped 4 BW>
Thanks for taking the time to post...
I've read the replies, and while the more narrow minded may call it SPAM, I
downloaded the book, and particularly enjoy the quotes liberally sprinkled
therein;
(ex.:The only trouble with designing and working in wood is that it has the
advantage - or disadvantage, however you look at it - of being beautiful
in itself...take a piece of wood - plane, sand and oil it, and you will find
it
is a beautiful thing. The more you do to it from then on, the more chance
that you will make it worse. Therefore, working with a material of such
natural beauty, I feel that we have to design very quietly and use simple
forms.
Tage Frid Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking - 1979)
While you do offer to sell plans on your site, this post served (to me) to
offer something for nothing... and in my mind, that isn't SPAM!
Thanks again,
Tom
THANK YOU!
"Dave Balderstone" <dave@N_O_T_T_H_I_S.balderstone.ca> wrote in message
news:140220052036424813%dave@N_O_T_T_H_I_S.balderstone.ca...
> In article <[email protected]>, mp <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and say
so?
>
> He's GIVING AWAY his book, not "promoting" it.
>
> Geez...
>
> djb
>
> --
> "Modern technology has enabled us to communicate and organize with speed
and
> efficiency never before possible. People have gotten less competent to
> compensate for this." - CW
On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 10:52:26 -0600, [email protected] (John) wrote:
Fun book to browse and read... thanks, John..
>James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
>to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high quality
>wood boring bits.
>
>
>Master woodworker James Krenov says, "A simple way to make what we in
>Europe call a cabinetmaker's drill is to regrind an ordinary
>straight-shank metal drill. This may sound complicated but...you can
>easily produce drills with a sharp center spur and very sharp,
>clean-cutting edges." (The Fine Art of Cabinetmaking, page 133) A center
>spur or brad point reduces the chance of error. I use my belt sander to
>regrind my drills. Some supply houses are selling brad point drills in
>slightly under and over sizes today. Years ago I had to make my own and
>still do. It's much cheaper.
>
>
>You can see a photograph of one resulting bit on page 31 of my free
>downloadable book at
>
><http://www.woodentoy.com/horsebook/horsebookcover.html>
>
>The availability of number and letter sized bits has really added to the
>quality of my dowel joinery and I encourage anyone
>to try Krenov's technique. The mass produced letter sized bits are cheap
>and bore wood
>very nicely with the simple regringing Krenov suggests.
>
>good luck
>
>john the toymaker
>
>www.woodentoy.com
mac
Please remove splinters before emailing
On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 20:29:34 GMT, the inscrutable "Rick"
<[email protected]> spake:
--snip--
>I'm still trying to understand the constant tension between people looking
>for free plans, and those complaining when someone provides them with a well
>written, thoughtful set of plans, or a link to them (Hi JOAT). I don't know
>... maybe it's because you're running a business (like Steve Knight, Tom
>Planman, Rob Lee, Ron Hock and a host of others) and DARED to put a link to
>your website (like some of them do) ... or perhaps MP was just having a bad
>day.
--snip--
>Postscript
>
>I'm quite surprised when I see how few comments are generated on straight
>information on the wreck, yet let an opinion out and it's discussed
>endlessly (the word THRASHED comes to mind ... upper case letters and all).
>To counter that, I've started what can be described as a sport ... one that
>does:
>(a) plant a phrase in people's heads and see how often it turns up in
>unrelated topics as a means of judging readership or
>(b) absolutely KILL a running argument by posting facts. Guess I'll have to
>add
>(c) thoughtful thanks for outstanding deeds. Might work if people wouldn't
>keep looking down, shuffling their feet and saying "oh gosh" and going the
>other way.
Heh heh heh. With whom are you playing this sport, Rick?
Looks like fun.
>Guess it's time to remember the following:
>
>It is not necessary to understand things in order to argue about them --
>Beaumarchais (LJ ... do you have this in a XXL?)
Sure, I can make custom tees. $30 gets you any saying on the front or
back. What's your white/light color choice? (I don't do black tees.)
(P.S: I was skipping through/past this message when my vewwy own
initials caught my eye.)
----------------------------------
VIRTUE...is its own punishment
http://www.diversify.com Website Applications
==================================================
Rick wrote:
> your website (like some of them do) ... or perhaps MP was just having a bad
> day.
I don't know why MP had the reaction he did, but I had -- at first -- a
similar one. By the time I got to the thread, many recognizable (i.e.
not shills) posters had made nice comments, so he got a respite.
Was my reaction unfair? Oh yeah. Was it justified? MMM...well, that is
kinda different. It was .. warrented might be the right word. The thing
is, I get hit day in and day out with spam. Arseholes call me up on the
phone several times a week. Seems a very goodly number of them offer me
something free, and never in quite direct terms. So along comes John,
dropping Krenov's name and saying what great stuff he has and all, and
how you can learn all about it in his new *free* book.
Bah, a pox upon you! May the flea's of thosand camels infest your armpits!!
Ah, wait, this might actually be legit. Sigh. It is hard to be rational
when so many people are trying to con you.
PK
"J" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I agree. The info on drill bits was hardly the central topic and there was
> nothing there but a picture of one stating that you can do it on your
> beltsander for cheap.
>
> Nice book, but wrong approach towards promoting it.
>
> -j
>
Look at all the publicity he got though. The book is FREE, so he didn't try
to sell anything that was not mentioned. IMO, the book is pretty good and
the author has a lot of time invested. So what if he happens to sell plans,
he gives a good start for free.
[email protected] wrote:
>
> Dave Balderstone wrote:
>> In article <[email protected]>, mp <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>>
>> > If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and
> say so?
>>
>> He's GIVING AWAY his book, not "promoting" it.
>>
>> Geez...
>>
>
> To be precise, he's promoting the give-away.
>
> Actually, he promoted a method for making your own brad-point bits,
> but when I went to his site to read about I found nothing of the sort
> which I found to be very annoying as I was hoping to see how to make
> my own brad point bits.
>
> He wasted my time, just like I'm wasting yours....
Pg. 31 of his FREE BOOK.
>
"mp" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> > James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> > to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high quality
> > wood boring bits.
>
> Thinly disguised spam.
>
>
This is SPAM? mp, you are the pot calling the kettle black today. You posted
7 times on an OT political discussion just in the last 24 hours...
John, at least, talked about a woodworker and a woodworkers book available
from the author for free download.
Keep it up John.
Jack
> Dear mp,
>
> Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits. I
> thought long and hard about giving my woodworking book away for free. The
> lessons learned in 4 decades of woodworking seemed like they might be
> helpful to those new at the craft.
Hi John,
I was going to drop you a note via e-mail when I saw this ... figured one
good comment outweighs at least one bad comment!
I downloaded your book and I have to say I sat and read the whole thing
through ... AFTER I jumped to the brad-point drill bit information.
Nice writing style, easy to follow directions, and well laid out. Only one
photo encroached on the text but I could still make out what you were
getting at, so absolutely no complaints.
Now ... IF ever I should make any rocking horses it will be for the local
pre-schools (when I get the time ... sigh). I certainly know where I'll
start off. I missed the plans section on your website ... I'll have to go
back and take a second look.
Thank you for sharing your work and your knowledge.
I'm still trying to understand the constant tension between people looking
for free plans, and those complaining when someone provides them with a well
written, thoughtful set of plans, or a link to them (Hi JOAT). I don't know
... maybe it's because you're running a business (like Steve Knight, Tom
Planman, Rob Lee, Ron Hock and a host of others) and DARED to put a link to
your website (like some of them do) ... or perhaps MP was just having a bad
day.
Anyway, don't let MP's comments speak for all of us. He certainly doesn't
speak for me on this subject.
Regards,
Rick
Postscript
I'm quite surprised when I see how few comments are generated on straight
information on the wreck, yet let an opinion out and it's discussed
endlessly (the word THRASHED comes to mind ... upper case letters and all).
To counter that, I've started what can be described as a sport ... one that
does:
(a) plant a phrase in people's heads and see how often it turns up in
unrelated topics as a means of judging readership or
(b) absolutely KILL a running argument by posting facts. Guess I'll have to
add
(c) thoughtful thanks for outstanding deeds. Might work if people wouldn't
keep looking down, shuffling their feet and saying "oh gosh" and going the
other way.
Guess it's time to remember the following:
It is not necessary to understand things in order to argue about them --
Beaumarchais (LJ ... do you have this in a XXL?)
Mon, Feb 14, 2005, 8:29pm (EST+5) [email protected]
(Rick) waves wildly and calls out:
<snip>Hi JOAT <snip>
Hi Rick.
JOAT
Intellectual brilliance is no guarantee against being dead wrong.
- David Fasold
I downloaded the book and loved it. Haven't had the opportunity to look
at it closely, but I don't see a problem.
Thanks for sharing.
John wrote:
>
>
> You can see a photograph of one resulting bit on page 31 of my free
> downloadable book at
>
> <http://www.woodentoy.com/horsebook/horsebookcover.html>
>
> good luck
>
> john the toymaker
>
> www.woodentoy.com
--
Will
Occasional Techno-geek
John,
I saw no spam. I enjoyed your site and your attitude toward
woodworking. I much prefer roaming through your post and site to
most of the OT drivel that bandies around this group. It also
sure beats someone asking about the best router, table saw, saw
blade, etc with 50 posts following it.
(top posted for your convenience)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)
[email protected]
"John" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high
> quality
> wood boring bits.
>
>
> Master woodworker James Krenov says, "A simple way to make what
> we in
> Europe call a cabinetmaker's drill is to regrind an ordinary
> straight-shank metal drill. This may sound complicated
> but...you can
> easily produce drills with a sharp center spur and very sharp,
> clean-cutting edges." (The Fine Art of Cabinetmaking, page 133)
> A center
> spur or brad point reduces the chance of error. I use my belt
> sander to
> regrind my drills. Some supply houses are selling brad point
> drills in
> slightly under and over sizes today. Years ago I had to make my
> own and
> still do. It's much cheaper.
>
>
> You can see a photograph of one resulting bit on page 31 of my
> free
> downloadable book at
>
> <http://www.woodentoy.com/horsebook/horsebookcover.html>
>
> The availability of number and letter sized bits has really
> added to the
> quality of my dowel joinery and I encourage anyone
> to try Krenov's technique. The mass produced letter sized bits
> are cheap
> and bore wood
> very nicely with the simple regringing Krenov suggests.
>
> good luck
>
> john the toymaker
>
> www.woodentoy.com
On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 08:59:19 -0800, "mp" <[email protected]> wrote:
>Thinly disguised spam.
You need more viagra adverts in your inbox.
I agree. The info on drill bits was hardly the central topic and there was
nothing there but a picture of one stating that you can do it on your
beltsander for cheap.
Nice book, but wrong approach towards promoting it.
-j
"mp" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> > Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits. I
> > thought long and hard about giving my woodworking book away for free.
>
> If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and say
so?
>
>
<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> John wrote:
> > In article <[email protected]>, "mp" <[email protected]>
> wrote:
> >
> > > > James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> > > > to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high
> quality
> > > > wood boring bits.
> > >
> > > Thinly disguised spam.
> >
> > Dear mp,
> >
> > Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits.
>
>
> I thought you were too. Then I went to your website and didn;t see
> anything about drill bits.
>
> That doesn't make your article spam, it does make it deceptive.
All spam is deceptive.
The post was deceptive ...
Socrates is immortal.
-j
> It is generally acceptable to append a plug for one's product,
> cause, or free literature to an on-topic article. John's article
> started off that way but his discussion is pretty superficial.
I agree. He should have just stated - "hey, I have a 9MB free PDF about
building rocking horses" and left Krenov out of it.
> Had he given us a description of HOW to make a drill bit into
> a forstner bit and then appended his promotion of his free
> book the promotional content would have been better
> received I think..
I still want to know how he actually makes the brad point bit. Are there any
tricks or do you just grind it down?
> I encourage John to post a detailed description of how to
> make the bits, and won't mind a bit if he includes a plug
> for his book, website, or business along with that useful
> information.
>
> FF
I don't think anyone here is against the distribution of free high quality
information.
-j
"Lobby Dosser" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:11EQd.31923$uc.14409@trnddc03...
> "J" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >> It is generally acceptable to append a plug for one's product,
> >> cause, or free literature to an on-topic article. John's article
> >> started off that way but his discussion is pretty superficial.
> >
> > I agree. He should have just stated - "hey, I have a 9MB free PDF
> > about building rocking horses" and left Krenov out of it.
> >
> >> Had he given us a description of HOW to make a drill bit into
> >> a forstner bit and then appended his promotion of his free
> >> book the promotional content would have been better
> >> received I think..
> >
> > I still want to know how he actually makes the brad point bit. Are
> > there any tricks or do you just grind it down?
>
> PG 31 of the FREE BOOK.
I read it. There is a picture. There is no discussion of how.
-j
Why? If he had just promoted his book someone would have jumped on him about
that.
I downloaded the book and it looks good to me. Of course, I am not a
professional woodworker, just a novice that has fun making a lot of saw dust
on the way to some fun projects. I've received some good advice and some
good opinions form some of you, and I guess I have been lucky enough (to
this point) not to sound stupid enough is some peoples minds to require some
of the venomous replies I have seen as evidenced in this thread.
Too bad this is becoming such a pain in the ass group to read and
communicate with.
Oh and JT, I'm sure there are a couple punctuations and spelling errors in
here to whine about.
"mp" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>> Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits. I
>> thought long and hard about giving my woodworking book away for free.
>
> If you wanted to promote your book why didn't you just come out and say
> so?
>
In article <[email protected]>, "mp" <[email protected]> wrote:
> > James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> > to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high quality
> > wood boring bits.
>
> Thinly disguised spam.
Dear mp,
Spam? I'm a bit surprised. I thought I was talking about drill bits. I
thought long and hard about giving my woodworking book away for free. The
lessons learned in 4 decades of woodworking seemed like they might be
helpful to those new at the craft. I know Krenov's "A Cabinetmakers
Notebook" sure inspired and educated me 30 years ago and he didn't give it
away. I still recommend it to any woodworker I meet. Now, I'm not claiming
that my book approaches Krenov's in any way, probably wouldn't be free if
it did. Yet, should I keep my hard won lessons to myself? Might others end
up competing and taking my means of making a living? I'm not too worried I
guess. I'm always behind in my work and will no doubt retire before the
Chinese become real threats in fine toymaking, though those of you making
furniture better look for back up careers. I guess I'm fool enough to
always respond to questions I get about technique or sources of supply.
Seems only decent to help others in the craft.
(BTW- Krenov's homemade drill bits do work very well.)
Take a look at my book and see if there is good information there. It
really is free and beginners can use my experience to save lots of hard
knocks. The info presented can help on many projects and I would be
pleased to receive feedback to make it a better book. You must have read
where I offer full size rocking horse plans for sale. Am I wrong to ask
compensation if someone wants to benefit from my creative energy by using
my toy design? My attorney tells me this payment helps secure my
copyright. There seem lots of sites benevolently giving away free plans
(often mentioned in rec.woodworking). I can't as I am not independently
wealthy like they must be since they no doubt have no hidden revenue goals
in mind or their mention would call forth your accusation of spam. But,
you can use my book and their plans and likely make a fine horse and not
spend a nickle. You can have my hard won woodworking lessons for free.
But, my rocking horse design will cost you about the price of a
woodworking magazine, or a couple of stops at Starbucks, not that I think
rec.woodworking would be a profitable place for my marketing energies.
Most of what I see posted suggests a very frugal readership.
By the way, there is also a link on my site pointing to an article in the
New York Times. Please don't think that I am shilling for them and asking
you to subscribe.
Get a life! Enjoy the book! Or not! Its free! Don't buy the plans if
my need to protect my copyright or feed my family offends you. And
certainly don't venture further into my site where I actually ask folks to
buy my toys. Oh, the capitalistic evil!
john the toymaker
http://www.woodentoy.com
> > James Krenov, whose work and writings I admire, taught me how
> > to take ordinary HSS twist drill bits and make them into high quality
> > wood boring bits.
>
Several of you asked for more details on how to machine a brad point on an
ordinary twist drill. Krenov didn't elaborate, so I just experimented a
bit. Being basically always in a hurry I opted to use my belt sander. High
Speed Steel is very heat tolerant thankfully. I have a broad piece of 1/8
inch steel plate under the sanding belt of my 6 x 48 inch table mounted
belt sander. I use the flat surface on either side of the belt for
mounting jigs. The primary jig is used to sand the perfectly repeatable 45
degree chamfers on each edge of my toy building blocks. But thats another
topic. I use the edge of the 80 grit belt for grinding the drill bits. (I
really need some visual aids here) I hand hold the bit at an angle so
that one of the sharp cutting edges is parallel to the surface of the
belt. I lower the bit until it touches the steel plate beside the belt. I
then slide the bit sideways into the moving belt, stopping the slide when
there is a small unsanded point in the center of the bit. I then rotate
the bit through about 45 degrees to sand the portion behind the cutting
edge. Sorry, I don't know the vocabulary to describe the parts of a drill
bit. I then repeat with the other side. I don't find that the angles here
are critical. Actually I seem to reduce the cutting angles making for a
less agressive cut. Works great in a drill press. Keeping both cutting
edges perfectly matched sounds important and I do try, but not too
obsessively. Practice on an old bit or two and you will get the hang of
it. Its surprisingly easy. I even tried it on an 1/8 inch bit. Worked
fine, though larger bits are easier. I can send pictures if you email a
request. At the risk for sounding like a shop tool manual here is a
warning. You have to get your eye down pretty close to the action. Lots of
flying grit and metal particles are looking for eyeballs. Wear safety
glasses or better yet a face shield. Also, be patient. Grinding too fast
generates a lot of heat. Take your time. I think I can make the
modification on a bit in about 2 minutes.
Most hardware stores have letter sized bits. Here is a quote from my
dreaded book describing them.
> Dowels and Drills
>
> At this point you should have all the pieces of your horse
> carefully sanded and ready for assembly. I use wood
> dowels for all the joints on this horse, and some discussion
> of their use is necessary. Carefully fitted dowels make a
> very strong joint. Carefully fitted is the critical phrase. I
> hope you have a drill press to bore the dowel holes
> because it is much easier to get a quality result, although I
> built many horses without one in the early years.
> Whatever tool you choose, practice on some scrap pieces
> to perfect your technique. Practice, no kidding! All of these
> dowel ends will show, and ragged holes are a sign of
> careless craftsmanship.
> Purchasing hardwood dowels can be very frustrating. The
> lumber yard variety are often of an obscure wood species
> and quite random in size and quality. Sometimes they are
> noticeably outofround. I use 3 8 inch diameter maple
> dowels. All dowels are usually somewhat rough and also
> vary in size from order to order and season to season.
> Once you have your dowels you need some drill bits. Since
> dowels vary in diameter you need to match your drill bit
> to the dowels you will be using. I use high speed twist drills
> in a variety of sizes. Most hardware suppliers sell these bits
> in 1 16 inch increments. These won¹t do, so you may need
> to locate a more professional hardware store. You will be
> looking for letter size bits. These vary by only a few
> thousandths of an inch in diameter. I own sizes T, U, 3 8, V,
> W. This range seems to fit nearly any supposedly ³3 8²
> dowel I¹ve found.
>
> I also regrind the drill points to produce a brad point.
> Master woodworker James Krenov says, ³A simple way to
> make what we in Europe call a cabinetmaker¹s drill is to regrind
> an ordinary straightshank metal drill. This may sound
> complicated but...you can easily produce drills with a sharp
> center spur and very sharp, cleancutting edges.² (The Fine
> Art of Cabinetmaking, page 133) A center spur or brad
> point reduces the chance of error. I use my belt sander to
> regrind my drills. Some supply houses are selling brad
> point drills in slightly under and over sizes today. Years
> ago I had to make my own and still do. It¹s much cheaper.
The goal of my earlier post was to share a technique that has been useful
to me (regrinding drill bits). Perhaps referring to my free book was
clumsy or in bad taste. I thought the picture would be helpful and didn't
know how to post one here. I will try to be more careful in the future.
But, all this discussion has made me realize that the drill bit grinding
page in my book needs more pictures and an expanded description. Thanks
very much. I will take your advice. Please keep it coming. I hope every
father, mother, grandfather or grandmother can leave an heirloom rocking
horse behind.
Best of luck to you all,
John the toymaker
[email protected]
http://www.woodentoy.com
On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 21:11:22 -0500, loutent <[email protected]> wrote:
>I know, I have to "kill" the tree to do that.
Good thing too. Regularly killing trees is an important part of
maintaining forests.
[email protected] (John) wrote:
> Get a life! Enjoy the book! Or not! Its free! Don't buy the plans
> if my need to protect my copyright or feed my family offends you. And
> certainly don't venture further into my site where I actually ask
> folks to buy my toys. Oh, the capitalistic evil!
>
>
Downloaded the book. Will read it. FREE is a very good price!
I'll be back to buy a plan for grandkids!
Ignore the whiners.
Thanks for sharing.
LD