Thursday 21 March 2013

Quick Clamp



Clamp for wedge-shaped jobs

Faced with drilling and countersinking holes in 25 wedge-shaped wooden pegs, I assembled a sturdy, adjustable vise from two wood scraps and three screws in one minute. As shown in the drawing, I used my free hand to pivot the swing arm toward the fixed arm. This squeezing pinched a peg hard enough to hold it steady while I bored its holes.


Sandra Simmers, Purcellville, VA

 

Tuesday 19 March 2013

Tenon Joints on a Table Saw


Tablesaw tenons

I recently built a railing for a customer’s deck, and I used 2x2s for the spindles. For strength, I used a mortise- and-tenon assembly. The challenge became cutting quick, accurate tenons on the ends of the 2x2s.

As shown in the drawing, I clamped a pair of scrap 2x4s to the top of my tablesaw. I bored a hole in each 2x4 sized to allow a 2x2 to be pushed through and rotated into the spinning dado head. Raising or lowering the dado head controls the diameter of the tenon. I positioned the rip fence to act as a depth stop. Once I had this setup dialed in, it was simply a sequence of pushing and turning the 2x2s to cut the tenons.


Peter Blackmore, Courtenay, British Columbia, ca

 

Thursday 14 March 2013

DIY Roller Stand



Recycled Roller Stand
When my home-exercise treadmill finally died, I took it apart so that it would be easier to move and so that I could dispose of it with my household garbage. When I got to the wide roller for the main belt, though, I couldn’t bear to toss it, even though I didn’t have any particular use in mind. Then one day I needed an out feed roller for my table saw.

As shown in the drawing at right, I built a sawhorse as a support stand. Something smaller would have worked, but I can always use an extra sawhorse. The roller is mounted on a 1x upright that rides in a pair of slots cut in the sawhorse’s top and shelf. A homemade clamp built with T-nuts and a carriage bolt holds the roller at whatever height I need.


Kevin Ireton, New Milford, CT