No, it’s not Christmas! And not that kind of goose! This is a flying Canada goose that I carved a couple of years ago as a Christmas gift for my wife. It was a whimsical project in a folk art kind of way that was fun to do.

It was based on an article in Issue #4 of the Carving magazine. I was intrigued by the way that the wings were done so I thought I’d give it a try. It was also my first time at painting a piece.

The project was quite simple. Basically cutting the pattern out for the body and a bit of carving around the head and beak. The wings were cut out and feathers carved using a V tool. It sits on a wooden shaft and base and stands approximately 22″ high.

Here is a close up of the wing. You can see where it was carved to give a layered look:

Continue reading 'A Carved Flying Canada Goose'

Last nights meeting of the Atlantic Woodworkers Association was an informational and entertaining one. We were treated to the seemingly endless wisdom of Mel Larsen, the Canadian representative of SIA Abrasives.

SIA Abrasives, with their head office in Frauenfeld, Switzerland, is the oldest manufacturer of coated abrasives in the world and a popular choice among woodworkers. Their noticeable yellow sandpaper is commonplace in many home workshops as well as widely used in industry applications including wood, automotive and metal.

Mel took a different approach for this presentation than he has taken in the past. Instead of focusing on the SIA product line and its use he took a broader view and spoke on wood and the steps to take to create a quality finish as well as the pitfalls and concerns.

Here, in point form, are the notes I was able to make from this fast-paced, tip-laden presentation:

Continue reading 'A Sand Storm Sweeps The AWA'

We were treated to two great presentations last night at this months Nova Woodturners Guild meeting. The first was a sharpening presentation by Don Moore and the second was an information session on hollow turning by Dave Wilkins.

Don began the evening showing us the various facets of correctly sharpening our woodturning tools. Some of the information he imparted (and/or reminded us of) included:

I just added a photo gallery for photos of my woodworking projects. I added this to give me (and you) a quick view of my work to date, sort of a ‘power wall’.

The gallery shows a thumbnail display where you can click the thumbnail to show the full size photo. From there you can continue to view the other photos in the gallery in full size by clicking either previous or next. The projects are shown in chronological order with the latest ones shown first.

There is also a slideshow option where you can sit back and watch as it randomly rotates through the photos automatically.

Yon can view this gallery of woodworking photos by clicking the ‘Gallery’ tab on the top menu or by clicking here.

You can also still view the full information posts for each of the individual projects in the ‘My Projects’ category here.

Enjoy!

Back to the shop…

Here’s a bowl of fire! Well, that’s what it looks like to me. I used an African hardwood called Padauk to create this bowl. With its rich grain and fiery red color it certainly makes a fine piece.

The bowl is 6″ in diameter and 2″ tall and finished with the new finishes that I recently bought. You can see how these finishes really enhances the project.

Padauk ranges in color from a deep red to a bright orange and it will darken overtime to a dark reddish brown.

Continue reading 'Pretty Padauk - A Bowl Of Fire'

In my quest to find the perfect finish… ah, it’s every woodworker’s dream… but seriously, as I mentioned in earlier posts I’m in the process of trying different finishes so I picked up the double whammy combo of U-Beaut’s Shellawax Cream and EEE-Ultra Shine.

These products give a finish that looks like a French polish that brings out lights and grain in the wood. It adds a whole new dimension to a turned item in a matter of seconds. Sounds too good to be true, but it is. They were initially designed for use on high end, exhibition, museum, gallery and collectors quality, woodturned items.

Shellawax Cream is a friction polish that also doubles as a buffing polish. On the lathe it gives a brilliant shine in seconds, can be handled immediately, is non toxic and water resistant. On woodcarvings and flat surfaces it gives a rich deep shine in a matter of minutes. It is a fusion mixture of pharmaceutical grade white shellac and a number of highly refined, non-toxic waxes with a shelf life of several years.

EEE-Ultra Shine is a cut and polish paste wax containing Tripoli powder, an ultra fine abrasive. The polish is designed to be used in conjunction with the Shellawax Cream.

Continue reading 'U-Beaut Shellawax And UltraShine Polish'

1. To sand in a hard to reach place just cut a piece of sandpaper to fit on the end of a tongue depressor or popsicle stick and glue it on. Then trim off any excess sandpaper. If you need a thinner sanding surface the tongue depressors and popsicle sticks split very easily. Split and then glue on the sandpaper.

2. Clamps too short? Extend your clamp length by joining two clamps with a third one. Sometimes you can get away with just two clamps if the angle of the clamp heads of the two joined clamps is suitable to your application.

3. If you need to countersink screws inside a drawer for a drawer pull simply drill the hole for the draw pull screw. Then, keeping the drill bit in the hole, mount the countersink cutter to the bit where it extends into the inside of the drawer. Reverse the rotation of the drill and gently pull back to create the countersink.

4. When cutting a slot for an exposed spline use an outer dado blade instead of your regular combination table saw blade. The raker teeth on the outer dado blade will create a flat-bottomed kerf instead of the V-bottomed kerf made by the alternating teeth on the combination blade, thereby allowing the spline to seat properly with no noticeable gaps. This bears repeating, only use an outer dado blade. Never use the inside dado blades alone!

5. When filling nail holes with putty there is often the tendency to apply to much. This results in more sanding and can leave ‘oil’ marks on the wood. To eliminate this problem place masking tape where you are going to nail. Then pound in the nail, sink the head, fill the hole and remove the tape. All you are left with is a small bit of putty that is easily sanded and leaves no mark.

These are just a few tips that I picked up over this past week. They come from a variety of sources including books, magazines, newsletters, online and some from personal experience.

There are more Woodworking Tips and Tidbits located here.

Got a woodworking tip that you want to share? Let me know and I’ll add it in a future issue of Tips and Tidbits!

Back to the shop…

From all indication Woodworkers Safety Week 2008 has been a huge success! Throughout this past week there has been a slew (my new word) of blog posts related to workshop safety from a wide variety of woodworkers and from an even wider variety of perspectives. The woodworking forums and blog comment areas were also abuzz with helpful tips and personal ‘horror’ stories.

The purpose of Woodworkers Safety Week was to “refresh our memories about the importance of safety and proper techniques”. Too often we sidestep proper safety cautions, get complacent or are just unaware of the inherent dangers with woodworking. This week focused on these issues, bringing attention to areas of required safety, the necessity of being alert to them and some steps to take to ensure that your shop and your work habits are following these safety guidelines.

When The Wood Whisperer, Marc Spagnuolo, announced the first annual week devoted to safety in the workshop it was quickly supported by the woodworking community. Throughout the week bloggers, podcasters and vidcasters turned their attention to this serious issue, creating a cornucopia of workshop safety articles.

Here is a list of some of the posts that were made over this week. You’ll find some great safety tips, a bit of humor, some gruesome images and lots to think about!

Continue reading 'Woodworkers Safety Week 2008 A Success!'

Here’s a cutting board that I just finished today that is made out of Maple and Cherry blocks in a checkerboard style with two Cherry ends.

It measures 8 1/2″ X 10″ X 1″ thick and finished with Tried & True a combination of linseed oil and beeswax.

Back to the shop…

Working with wood can be hazardous to your health! I’m sorry but there is just no nice way to say it.

The dust and sap from various types of wood can be toxic and cause a variety of health concerns including respiratory issues and eye and skin irritation.

Skin irritation can be caused by contact with the wood, its dust, its bark or its sap and result in a rash or ‘irritant dermatitis’.

Eye irritation includes soreness, watering and conjunctivitis, which is inflammation of the conjunctiva, the delicate mucous membrane that lines the inner surface of the eyelids and covers the front part of the white of the eye.

Respiratory issues include runny nose, violent sneezing, blocked nose, nose bleeds, forced asthma attacks and, although rare, nasal cancer.

Symptoms usually subside when contact with the irritant is removed. However, a serious concern is when instead of just becoming irritated the body becomes sensitized. Once sensitized, the body sets up an allergic reaction, and the body may react severely if subsequently exposed to very small amounts of the wood dust. Unlike irritation, where one can continue to work with the dust once it is controlled below the level of irritation, people who become sensitized will not normally be able to continue working with the dust, no matter how low the exposure. Some wood dusts can cause asthma as an allergic reaction.

Here is a chart showing a list of some woods and their known issues. This chart first appeared in American Woodturner magazine in June of 1990 and has become a standard reference for woodworkers. Obviously, because of the vast array of tree types this list is not complete, it is unlikely that any list could. However, it still makes a great guide to wood toxicity. The key to the lettering code used is located at the bottom of the list.

Continue reading 'Wood Toxicity Is Nothing To Sneeze At'