Author: woodshoplifepodcast

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Guy

1) Hey guys,  I have been wanting to switch over to water based spray finishes for awhile, since for the foreseeable future my shop will remain connected to the house. I either use a conversion varnish or danish oil then wax. Doing oil and wax is a great look but too time consuming for any real deadline. That leads to conversion varnish but that requires a nice day outside or for the wife and kids to leave the house for a little while (museum, zoo, park, etc) Neither is practical and plus I want to go to the zoo too.

The argument against water based varnishes is the clear/milky look instead of a rich deep glow. But couldn’t you just spray an amber shellac coat first, sealing and giving the beautiful color that solvents give? Then finish with a quality water based coat, thinking Target Coatings EMTECH line.

Side note, I have used rubio and while I don’t mind it on occasion (I know guy is not a fan), I hate having to mix and the lack of options for sheen.

Thanks team! – Patrick

2) I have heard you all talk about how much you love and use for MFT tables and top and I love mine for those sweet, square, 27″ crosscuts. What I haven’t figured out yet is how to utilize it for much of anything else.  I think one of you mentioned it as an assembly table, but it would be awesome to hear more ideas on how you utilize it your shops.

Thanks! Jeremy

Sean

1) Help me settle a bet with my wife.

She thinks I’m quote unquote “injury prone” in the woodshop. I always have Band-Aids on my hands and arms. She jokes that I am 30% bandaid at all times.  I wouldn’t consider myself injury prone, other than that one chisel incident last summer (chisel into index knuckle, 10 stitches, yada yada yada).

My question is, on a normal day, how many minor injuries do you receive? Cuts, scrapes, splinters, scratches, anything that requires a bandaid. What do you consider the normal course of a day on this kind of thing? I need to explain to her that this kind of thing is just the cost of doing business.

Thanks again! – Eric

2) Hey Guys, Isaac from Teton Woodshop.

I have a question about drum sanders. I recently bought a drum sander because I don’t like sanding (shocker) and I thought it would cut down on sanding time for panels. However I found it left deep scratches in the wood that took quite awhile to sand out with the random orbital sander. I am finding much easier to just make sure my boards are flat, line up the glue joints with dominos and sand with a random orbital sander without using the drum sander. This process seems much faster for me.

Am I missing something in my use of the drum sander? I hear it is a luxury to have in the shop but I find it being more of a nuisance than a luxury at this point. I’d love to hear about how you guys use it to see why you consider it a luxury and I consider it a large space taker in the shop.

Huy

1) Hey Gents, wanted to say you have an awesome show going. Wanted to know if you’ve ever held off on making something because you don’t have a specific tool or upgraded tool? For instance I currently have a Dewalt jobsite table saw so not the most reliable or accurate saw and am saving up for a cabinet saw and think I’ll be more comfortable making things then. Thanks again. – Paul

2) I bought a cordless Dewalt track saw. I picked it because of the two way track and you don’t have to spin the tracks around as much when breaking down plywood. It was my first track saw. Now, I’m realizing that I can’t use the after market accessories available to Festool tracksaw owners like the parallel guides and the 90 degree guide.  Do you think these accessories are worth selling my Dewalt and getting the Festool?  I would like to move to final cuts with the track saw as mentioned by Guy in the last episode. – Brian

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Guy’s questions

1) Easy question for you today! What’s the number one math you hate to do in the shop? For me it’s calculating measurements on the router. For instance let’s say I’m making a template to use a guide bushing on. For some reason getting that perfect measurement from center to the edge makes me cringe. Another in this aspect is measuring from the base of the router to the center of the bit, or even the blade of the bit for a groove or dado. Just always seems to make me want to call it quits and grab a beer.

Guy, you’re almost as cool as your Lamello. Huy, your work is almost as intense as your social media posts. Sean, your just about as fancy as your finished pieces! As always, Thank you for your time and please keep up the absolutely wonderful work y’all are doing on the podcast and your shops!

Thanks,

Brent Jarvis

Clean Cut Woodworking

2) Sawstop has a sliding table option. As you can tell, I love sliding tables! However, is it worth the big $$$ for this option if I could just get the Incra sliding miter 5000? It takes less room, but what do I lose by going this way? -Tony
 

Sean’s questions

1) I’m starting to make more and more cabinet type projects. Do you have any cabinet building books you recommend? I want to make sure I am doing things correctly. -Hunter

2) Gents, thank you for the awesome format of this podcast. Love it.

I started thinking to get a scroll saw and then realized a CNC can do what I’m looking for as well provided I’m willing to chop the rounded corners left by the cnc bit square. It seems the CNC is more versatile so if I’m going to invest in a new skill, it might be the way to go. In your opinions, if price is not a factor can a CNC fill the void a scroll saw fills or do I need to learn to use both?

Thanks!
-Matt

Huy’s questions

1) My question is regarding miter stations: Do I really need one? The last couple of years I’ve been using a cordless jigsaw to break down rough stock and precision crosscuts I’ve used my incra 5000. When building tabletops, I square up with my tracksaw so no need there…Do you guys find them integral to your processes?  

I should add I intend to begin focusing on building rocking chairs. Not having built a rocker before, I’d like to know if the miter saw becomes more or less important in that specific application?

Thanks,

Ray

2) Howdy Guys – Love the podcast, best on the web!

I’ve taken on a garage cabinetry project for a friend. They’re wanting the melamine floor to ceiling type and would like your opinions on melamine table saw blades.

I see there are two types, the “Triple Chip” and the “Steep Bevel” teeth. Is one better than the other? And is one more useful for other tasks also, like veneered panels/ply. Will probably go with either Infinity or Forest unless you have other suggestions.

I’ll be using two-sided melamine, don’t have a tracksaw, so will be breaking then down with a circular saw and then to final dimensions on cabinet saw (Powermatic 66).

Thanks for all the insights you all share and for keeping it entertaining!
-Eric

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Guy:

1) Always enjoy listening to your podcast while working in my shop. I recently saw Huy using a router set to cut cope and stick joints for some cabinet doors.  I have a similar set by Freud that I have used to cut many similar joints over the past several years.  My set has not been cutting very well the last few times I used it so I took it to have it professionally sharpened. It’s no better now than before, maybe worse. Should I try having them sharpened again, or is this just the nature of the beast?

Keep up the good work on the podcast. -John

2) Sharpening vs replacing.  I’m still running straight knives on my planer and jointer and always wondered what makes more sense between the two.  The local Rockler and Woodcraft stores offer send away sharpening for these and all other blades and bits.  It’s about $20-25 for a set of blades to get sharpened, but they’re about the same to just replace them.  I could be just getting the “cheaper” blades as they’re not carbide tipped or anything special.

 What are your thoughts?  I know table saw/miter saw blades are different and seem to last longer.  What were your methods before going to helical everything? Joey

Sean:

1) New to woodworking, love the podcast, learned a ton from you guys so far! My question is about determining moisture in wood when purchasing. I’ve heard you guys talk a lot about needing to sticker wood and let dry before beginning a project, but how does a person know when choosing pieces from their local dealer, what the moisture level is? Does everyone just take a moisture meter with them when selecting boards? Or is there some other way to know which pieces will allow me to start on a project sooner than later? If I want to build a table for example, I don’t want to have to wait two years for my lumber to dry before starting the project. Again, I’m new to woodworking, so apologies if this seems elementary. -Tony

2) Just watched an episode of Woodsmith Shop on my local PBS channel.  They were making a white oak gentleman’s dresser, and used a “gel varnish” for the finish. I have never heard of this before, and I was wondering if any of you guys have used it before? They did not identify the make or model of the product, but Old Masters is one of their sponsors, so I suspect it may have come from them.

Huy:

1) Enjoy your program very much. How did three intelligent talented young men (yes Guy your are younger then I) living so far apart geographly ever become close friends? My question is I would like to add a good jointer to my modest woodworking shop (https://www.instagram.com/papajimshobbywoodworking/) but due to space constraints a floor model would not fit at this time and a 6 inch model may not always be wide enough. Have been looking online at the Model 40180HC-CT (with carbide tips) jointer from www.cutechtool.com Any thoughts on this or suggestions on a different jointer. I am retired from a carrier in massage therapy now living on Uncle Sams monthly donations and enjoying my hobby. Thank you and have the best day ever. James

2) First, I own a large 27”x43” Incra router table. It takes up a lot of space. Is it worth getting rid of the table and getting the built in router table option on a Sawstop? I realize I probably will lose the Incra fence, but I could get back significant room. 

Tony from Atlanta

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Guy

1) I have a couple of Bessey F-Style clamps and some wooden ones made by Klemsia here in Germany (https://www.klemmsia.de). What to get next? Are parallel clamps like Bessey’s REVO really worth the extra price? Lots of people in the US seem to use pipe clamps – what’s so good about them? Are there any specialty clamps that should go into my basic kit like wooden handscrews or one handed clamps? Jarmo

2) I have seen lots of articles on making and using shooting boards but I don’t understand very well the theory behind shooting miters. How does the process work? I mean, if I make a mitered frame, and the miters aren’t perfect, what is the order or operations or the process for shooting the perfectly while maintaining the perfect length of opposing sides? As I think about it, it seems like trueing a miter also shortens the piece with will introduce a new problem and I’ll end up chasing perfection forever. Can you help me understand this?

Thank you so much! I love your show and I seriously appreciate all the effort that goes into it. All of you make my hobby even more enjoyable! – Mart

Sean

1) Hello guys, I am in the process of building my first real workbench and was wondering how you like the benches you have. I’ve seen your benches on YouTube-my questions are, how did you decide on your design/type of bench and vise styles? Is there any things you would do next time? The stuff I’m interested in is usually furniture, using mostly power tools but want to use hand tools more often. Any other discussion on the topic would be appreciated. Thanks and keep up the good work on the podcast- don’t ever change your format- it’s what makes this podcast stick out from the crowd! – Travis

2) Ihave a couple of questions about my DeWalt DW735 planer. Lately I’ve been having trouble with the planer not pulling the wood through. I’ve tried waxing the wings and bed and cleaning the rollers with mineral spirits. These help for a bit, but eventually it stops pulling the wood through again. Any ideas on what might be causing this? Brian

Huy

1) Question: I’m a diy’re and have accumulated my tools over the years. I have a Ridgid Planer and a Ridgid 6” jointer and a Delta Bandsaw 14”. They all run fine. My question is – would it be worth the money To upgrade the Ridgid machines with the helix cutters and the Bandsaw with a Carter bandsaw guides. If I did them all it would be around $1000.00. – Dave

2) How do you know when a piece of sandpaper is worn out or no longer the grit it says it is? I use high quality klingspor sanding discs that last a long time but not sure how to tell when they are no longer effective. Is there a board footage or rule of thumb you guys can talk about? – Stockbilt