I have to find a machine screw that fits into a threaded hole. 8-32 fits but does not thread correctly, so its probably a metric thread. Searching the web, I snagged this table from the Elgin fastener website. So it looks like I’ll have to get a M4 x .07 screw. Putting the table on my blog is a good way of knowing where I can find it!
Just found this article at metalgeek.com on making wood/mdf jigs for bending steel pipe without an expensive bender. I particularly like the chart at the bottom of the article for bending jig diameter vs. actual diameter wanted. There’s a difference since the pipe will always spring back a little after bending to a form.
Looking around some more – he’s got all kinds of awesome stuff in that site. Here‘s a coping calculator for generating a cut template when you want to join two round pipes together at any angle. And he even has instructions for how to convert an image of the world into a steel globe using all kinds of computer majic.
The headlamp is a hands-down contender for the best thing to have in your toolbag. I’ve seen fancy ones on spelunkers and other intrepid folks who mess around in dark places (urban explorers coolest of all). I’ve also seen theater techs and circus folk with them as they do their business, but I very rarely see them on the construction site. I think this is a shame because having a steady bright light is an incredible thing when you are coping a crown molding or installing cabinets. And if you are an electrician or plumber, then the advantages should be obvious.
If you can, go to any hardware or sporting goods store and slap down $15 for a half decent LED model. Try to find one with a rugged case so it doesn’t get wasted in your toolbag. The more LEDs on them the better – my new Energizer model has 5 LEDs but 3 are okay too. Generally they take 3 AAA batteries which will last you a month or so with regular use.
It’s good, nay, neccessary to have the right tool for the job. If you have to do lots of different things it is therefore good to have the right tool for lots of different jobs. All the more so if you want to keep your toolkit small & light. In New York it is expensive and inefficient to go to the job site every day with a truck full of tools. Generally you load in all your relevant tools and materials with a crew and then take public transportation most of the other days. Often though you may have a small job where you need just a small bag of hand tools and a drill set.
Even if you don’t think you’ll need to cut any wood, you never know. Or you know you will but just don’t want to lug a saw with you. So The Japanese Pullsaw is a great thing to have in the bag. As opposed to standard American handsaws, Japanese saws cut on the pull stroke. This means that the blade can be incredibly thin, since they do not need the stiffness required for a push cut. Also, the blades easily are removable from the handle which makes for very easy storage in even a small tool bag.
There are many varieties of Japanese hand saws, but the two most common are the Dôzuki and the Ryôba:
Dozuki Saw: A backsaw that is useful for precise cuts because of its stiffening rib on the back. Great to have in the shop to do all those hand-cut dovetails. Disadvantage is the depth of cuts are limited.
Ryoba Saw: A double-sided saw with a cross-cutting blade on one side & ripping blade on the other. This is my preference. The cross-cutting blade is incredibly sharp and can cut through a 2×4 in just a few strokes. Add it to a miter box & you have an easy way to cut a few small trim pieces if you don’t want the fuss & dust of a chop-saw.
Even in a shop situation with a good outfeed table, table saws are tough to use – and dangerous too. Often though, I’m on a jobsite and I don’t have any good (or safe) way to cut a long piece on a table saw that has no outfeed table. Obviously I still have to find a way to cut the wood.
I learned a trick by watching my friend Rob Fisher a few years ago. Essentially you cut the piece in half, then tilt the piece up from the blade and flip it around (around the same axis of a see-saw) and complete your cut from the other side. When the piece is fully cut you tilt up both cut pieces together. I made a little movie that I hope will help illustrate the process.
(Only try this out if you know what you’re doing with tools!!)
Firefox was getting sluggish doing just the simplest of things and that’s just unneccessarily annoying. So I found these instructions on Hack A Day:
1.Type “about:config” into the address bar and hit return. Scroll down and look for the following entries:
network.http.pipelining network.http.proxy.pipelining network.http.pipelining.maxrequests
Normally the browser will make one request to a web page at a time. When you enable pipelining it will make several at once, which really speeds up page loading.
2. Alter the entries as follows:
Set “network.http.pipelining” to “true”
Set “network.http.proxy.pipelining” to “true”
Set “network.http.pipelining.maxrequests” to some number like 30. This means it will make 30 requests at once.
3. Lastly right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it “nglayout.initialpaint.delay” and set its value to “0″. This value is the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it receives.
You should be happier now!
Every time I use a table saw I remind myself to be careful. I can’t think of another commonly used tool that is as dangerous. Not only does the sharp blade spin extremely fast but using the tool correctly takes finesse and concentration.
This video shows how the SawStop table saw will save a body part that touches the blade. If you touch the spinning blade with a finger, an aluminum brake will slam itself against the blade within milliseconds. This ruins both the braking mechanism and the blade, but you do keep a finger.
The video shows that this system is very effective. I do wonder though – would I be as careful with this saw? So far in my working career, my caution has proved effective. Perhaps with a bigger shop and employees I might feel safer knowing nobody would get hurt, but then again don’t you want your employees to have just the same caution?
Here’s a great site full of resources for us creatives, the 99 Percent. I’ve only just perused the site but I really like their tagline:
It’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen.
I couldn’t agree more.
