I have a large supply of 3.5-4"poplar boards, ranging from about 1/8" to
1/2", and would like to know if anyone has any ideas for quick crafts I can
put together with them. The quick crafts are for working with inexperienced
wood workers. I have done some carving on them, and made some small
knick-knack shelves. Because they are so thin, the 1/8" - 1/4" pieces are
hard to work with. I hope to find a better way to sand them, as pushing them
against the belt sander is quite dangerous. I would love to figure out a way
to make "rough wood" light houses with them, or maybe some bird houses. Part
of the challenge is how easy it is to snap them, so I need non-weight baring
projects (no stools or big shelves.
The nicest thing about this wood is the striped configuration. Some stripes
are green, others purple.
Can anyone give me ideas or recommend plans I can purchase for this type of
project? I want to prepare something for a craft show this summer.
Thanks.
Prometheus wrote:
> On Thu, 15 Jun 2006 11:58:30 -0500, "JAV" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Awesome ideas. Now all I have to do is get a dictionary! :-)
>>
>> I would love to do the finger joined boxes, but I think there's a lot more
>> work than I can afford, since I only have 3 weeks for the fairs. Any quicker
>> way to join the boxes?
>
> Do you have a table saw?
>
> The finger joints are pretty easy with a miter gauge and a bit of
> scrap. I just started doing them, and as I still haven't gotten
> around to selecting a dado stack, I just make the fingers the width of
> my saw kerf, and it's really simple. Same jig can be used with a
> router table that has a miter slot, or a floating jig with a slot that
> can ride on a guide bushing.
>
> It's maybe quicker to use miters, but that's only maybe. Lots of
> folks have trouble getting them set up properly- if the angle is off
> by 1/2 degree (for example), it ends up being a 2 degree gap one way
> or the other on the last corner- and they're not as strong.
>
> Otherwise, you could just butt joint them and nail or screw them. If
> you nail them, you can set the heads and call it a day, if screwed,
> you can pre-drill so the head sinks below the surface, and use a dowel
> to cover up the screw head. Neither is high art, but you might find
> they sell just fine anyways.
>
I've just finished my first box with finger joints or box joints. I did
mine on a router as described above.
It took a bit of goofing around to the the jig right, but once I got it,
the router made quick work of it. I used Doug Stowe's book on box making
by Taunton Press for the jig idea.
The box is small, 6" x 3" x 4" high, but even in that small amount of
real estate I was able to make a ton of mistakes.
Regardless, I'll make more of them with this method. It's quick,
relatively accurate and very repeatable.
I purposely didn't have high expectations for this box, because I knew
that I'd bugger up something or the other, and figured if I finished a
decent looking box that was also functional, I'd have been successful
and I'd have learned something. Both happened, so it's given me
incentive to move along with it and make the next one a bit more involved.
Tanus
--
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Drawer dividers, dancing man.
Wilson
"JAV" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I have a large supply of 3.5-4"poplar boards, ranging from about 1/8" to
>1/2", and would like to know if anyone has any ideas for quick crafts I can
>put together with them. The quick crafts are for working with inexperienced
>wood workers. I have done some carving on them, and made some small
>knick-knack shelves. Because they are so thin, the 1/8" - 1/4" pieces are
>hard to work with. I hope to find a better way to sand them, as pushing
>them against the belt sander is quite dangerous. I would love to figure out
>a way to make "rough wood" light houses with them, or maybe some bird
>houses. Part of the challenge is how easy it is to snap them, so I need
>non-weight baring projects (no stools or big shelves.
>
> The nicest thing about this wood is the striped configuration. Some
> stripes are green, others purple.
>
> Can anyone give me ideas or recommend plans I can purchase for this type
> of project? I want to prepare something for a craft show this summer.
>
> Thanks.
>
Awesome ideas. Now all I have to do is get a dictionary! :-)
I would love to do the finger joined boxes, but I think there's a lot more
work than I can afford, since I only have 3 weeks for the fairs. Any quicker
way to join the boxes?
Thanks.
"Hambone Slim" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "JAV" wrote...
>> I have a large supply of 3.5-4"poplar boards, ranging from about 1/8" to
>> 1/2", and would like to know if anyone has any ideas for quick crafts I
> can
>> put together with them. The quick crafts are for working with
> inexperienced
>> wood workers.
>
>
> mini dioramas featuring quaint buildings (or lighthouses)
>
> door harps or zitherettes or mini dulcimers
>
> finger-joined fly boxes
>
> micro dollhouses for pet bugs
>
> calligraphy signs with corny sayings
>
> mini ceremonial masks of different cultures
>
> small coats of arms hand-carved & painted on the spot (beats sitting like
> a
> lump all day at a craft fair)
>
>
>
>
> --
> Timothy Juvenal
> www.rude-tone.com/work.htm
>
>
On Thu, 15 Jun 2006 11:58:30 -0500, "JAV" <[email protected]> wrote:
>Awesome ideas. Now all I have to do is get a dictionary! :-)
>
>I would love to do the finger joined boxes, but I think there's a lot more
>work than I can afford, since I only have 3 weeks for the fairs. Any quicker
>way to join the boxes?
Do you have a table saw?
The finger joints are pretty easy with a miter gauge and a bit of
scrap. I just started doing them, and as I still haven't gotten
around to selecting a dado stack, I just make the fingers the width of
my saw kerf, and it's really simple. Same jig can be used with a
router table that has a miter slot, or a floating jig with a slot that
can ride on a guide bushing.
It's maybe quicker to use miters, but that's only maybe. Lots of
folks have trouble getting them set up properly- if the angle is off
by 1/2 degree (for example), it ends up being a 2 degree gap one way
or the other on the last corner- and they're not as strong.
Otherwise, you could just butt joint them and nail or screw them. If
you nail them, you can set the heads and call it a day, if screwed,
you can pre-drill so the head sinks below the surface, and use a dowel
to cover up the screw head. Neither is high art, but you might find
they sell just fine anyways.
"JAV" wrote...
> I have a large supply of 3.5-4"poplar boards, ranging from about 1/8" to
> 1/2", and would like to know if anyone has any ideas for quick crafts I
can
> put together with them. The quick crafts are for working with
inexperienced
> wood workers.
mini dioramas featuring quaint buildings (or lighthouses)
door harps or zitherettes or mini dulcimers
finger-joined fly boxes
micro dollhouses for pet bugs
calligraphy signs with corny sayings
mini ceremonial masks of different cultures
small coats of arms hand-carved & painted on the spot (beats sitting like a
lump all day at a craft fair)
--
Timothy Juvenal
www.rude-tone.com/work.htm