Saturday I got to spend some time in the shop so I took advantage of it by installing the legs on the federal card table I’m building.

I made bridal joints for the front two legs in addition to mortise & tenon joints for the back to. (Back legs are attached to swing arms.) Then I assembled the pieces together.

Here are a few random photos from the install.

Marking Out Mortise Location

Installing Spacer & Brace For Swing Arms

Gluing Mortise & Tenons

Cutting Pins for Swing Arms

Test Fit Prior To Assembly

Next I’m going to have to mill the lumber for tops…

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Well after 24 hours I unclamped them, gave them a light sanding & wiped them down with mineral spirits.

Sorry the photo stink but it shows off the idea. (BTW The pateraes aren’t that dark!)

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Today I got another chance to get into the garage for a bit so I could work on the inlay table. (That seems I’ll never finish!)

Lucky for me today’s task was short & sweet so there was no excuses for not completing the install of the pateraes into the 2 front legs.

Now the pateraes I’m cheating on. They’re store bought so all I had to do was pop them out.

From there I centered them on my leg & using a small spacer block (to protect the paterae I clamped them to my leg.

From here I used my xacto knife to cut a groove around the paterae. Then after I removed the clamp & cut the line deeper into the leg.

Next I set the depth of my small router plan (I love this tool BTW!) to a bit stronger than the paterae thickness & started plowing out the material.

Using some sandpaper & a small chisel I test fit the piece into the hole. Making sure to keep a nice tight fit.

Then using liquid hide glue, I glue the pateraes in & set a pressure block (with tape on it to make sure the glue doesn’t stick) on top of them & clamp for 24 hours.

Tomorrow when I get home from work I’ll sand everything down & start marking the parts for installation.

Hopefully I also get to spend a bit more time both in the shop & on this project…

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When I’m woodworking & working with a design (or modifying an existing one) it seems the project always comes up with “opportunities” (I call them problems) to work out.  Sometimes they are very simple and sometimes they require a lot of thought.

With that, I’m a visual person; especially when it comes to working out problems.   And it’s not only in woodworking, I’m like that at work too.

Last year my boss & coworker started to chuckle when they saw me hang up a 3’ x 4’ whiteboard in my cube.  Asking questions like “whats that for?” & “who paid for that?”  They figured it was just a toy and after a week the $70 work spent on it would be for not.

But several months and several of their worked out “opportunities” later they figured it was time both of them get one for their cubes as well.

Well at home this had me wanting (I call it “needing”) to put a couple of whiteboards in my garage/shop but I wasn’t willing to spend $140 for them!  (I mean come on, that’s going to cut into my music, DVD & book fund.)

So while surfing the web at lunch one day I was looking at whiteboard paint and reading the horror stories of it and having to apply it and whatnot so I clicked on. Then just a few clicks later I came across what I considered gold.

It was a Mythbusters shop tour where they asked Jamie (the owner of M5 Industries, where MB is shot) about all the whiteboards everywhere.  He went on to explain that he and alot of other companies make their own whiteboards from the same materials as glossy melamine shower/tub boards.

With that I grabbed a whiteout pen and went to Lowes to test this out.  Once I found the boards (located in the paneling section of the store) I did a small test on the corner of one and it worked perfect.

After smiling at the fact that it worked (and looking over my shoulder to see if a worker noticed my “test”) I went and grabbed a plywood cart loaded 2 of the 4’x 8’ sheets, had them cut in half & picked up some construction adhesive.  $30.52 later I had 4 whiteboards & the means to hang them.

So far I’ve hung 2 of them up in the garage. Where the other two will  go is still a guess at this point.  (Maybe I’ll mount them to some fiberboard to make them study & portable.)  But the next time I can’t figure out my “opportunity” I won’t be able to say that I can’t visualize it!

(Forgive me for the photos.  It’s a 3g iPhone.)

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Sunday I decided to start working on the back rails for my table so when I headed out to the shop I I milled up the following parts to size.

• 1 – Spacer 3/4″” x 3.5″ x 5″
• 1 – Middle Stretcher 3/4″ x 3.5″ x 9″
• 2 – Swing Stretchers 3/4″ x 3.5″ x 14″

The length of the swing stretchers didn’t really matter I just knew 14″ was long enough for this stage of the game. Later I’ll need to cut them down and mill a tenon on each to attach to the legs.

With my parts milled it was time to start doing some layout work. The swings stretchers work by the way of hinged fingers so I marked a line 1 1/4″ from the edge of boards & laid out 5 equal spaces at 11/16″. (Click the photo for a better view)

From here I raised my table saw blade to 1 1/4″. Using an extended fence on my miter gauge, I nibbled away the slots in between the fingers making note to cut on the waste side of the line.

(Note: Depending on the type of blade you have in your table saw, you may need to go back with a chisel and do some clean up to the top of the spaces.)

After doing a dry fit I dug a penny out & used it to layout a round over on the ends of the fingers & using the spindle sander I rounded the corners.

I then did another dry fit but this time I clamped the 3 pieces to an auxiliary board (to keep the pieces from moving) & made my way over to the drill press it to bore 2 holes for the 1/4″ dia. steel rod that holds the parts together but also lets them swing open when needed.

Then using 2 drill bits as pins I did another test fit and found that when I tried to swing out my stretcher they were rubbing against the middle stretcher.

So using a carving chisel I cut out some relief for the fingers so they could swing open.

At this point I realized that I didn’t have the steal rod. So now I have to head out to Home Depot to pick one up but here’s a pic of the pre-assembly.

The next step for me is going to be working on the inlay in the legs but that’s for another post…

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This past weekend I was on eBay bidding for a Bridge City Tools CS-1 center scribe. (The CS-2 has been sold out so my only hope is eBay) So while I set a high bid I found out I lost anyway by $2.50. Sometimes it just isn’t meant to be I guess.

Anyway, the reason for this tool was so I could use it on the federal card table I’m currently building. I wanted to mark the center of the tapered legs so I could start laying out for the inlay.

Knowing that I could simply mark a few center points and play connect the dots I opted to build something instead.

My first go around was slim and easy to hold with threaded inserts and all kinds of fancyness that didn’t work worth a damn!

After a few more goofy attempts I told myself “Dude; you’re making this waaaayy to difficult!”

So with that I grabbed a piece of scrap measure out two holes for dowels and one the size of a pencil and glued it together.

With this I simply straddle the leg between the dowels and twisted till one each dowel touched a side. This centered the pencil down the leg and from there I started laying out centerlines.

Once that was completed, I set out to make another jig to hold the legs so I could start drawing the layout of inlay design I’m going to use.

It’s simply 2 pieces of 8/4 poplar screwed to a piece of 3/4″ MDF that wedges the leg in between. I have a registration mark on the jig that lines up with the bottom of the apron banding. From there I start plotting dimensions and using the compass to lay out the design I’m looking for.

When I actually start cutting out the groove for the inlay I’ll need to apply a clamp to the jig so the leg won’t slip but it’s tight enough for compass layout.

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Remember in my blog post “It’s All Done With Mirrors” when I wrote that when I open up a package of sequenced veneer that the first this I do it number the pieces?  Well this is when I explain a bit more of why I do that.

When veneering surfaces you can pick many different styles.  You can use one big piece of veneer or one of the following:

• Straight book matching
• 4-way book matching
• Radial matching (in the case of round pieces)

Here I want to address a potential problem that can happen with both 4-way & radial methods.

When we start laying out for both of these styles we tend to go in numerical order (1, 2, 3…).  But this can come back and bite you is when the seams from veneer piece 4 matches up to veneer piece 1 (in the case of 4-way matching.  Or the seams from your last piece of veneer butting up to your first piece in the case of radial matching.

When companies cut & sequence veneer they slice and stack it in the order it was cut from the log.  The further down the pile you go the more likely your grain patterns change.  Sometimes this differs slightly but sometimes it’s quite drastic.  It all depends on the tree.

So to try and reduce the chance of dealing with this I use The Rule of 2.

The Rule of 2 says that no piece of veneer shall be butted up to another piece higher than 2x from the number you gave it in the beginning?  (Confusing I know but take a look at the two examples below.)

As you can see, at no time does any piece of veneer butt up against another piece of veneer that has a number higher than 2x it’s given number.

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First off, this tip is  most beneficial when you have in large sheets of sequenced veneer.  But since I did not have any in hand I pulled out this Woodcraft mini-pack to use for my demonstration.

Indexing: When I open up any pack (large or small) of sequenced veneer the first thing I do is grab a pencil and number the pieces in one of the corners.  Since the manufacture has sequenced the veneer this will help you keep the the pieces in the order that they were cut from the log.  If you intend to do any book-matching with your veneer this will help you in the layout out of that so your growth rings match more closely.  (That we’ll expand on in another posting.)

Book-matching: When I start with a simple book-matching project I like to play around and see what pattern will look best for my project.  Since most burl is brittle and I don’t want to damage the sheets flipping them over trying to find a good match I simply grab a mirror.  This way I can position it anywhere on the top piece of my veneer stack (2 pieces) without worrying about  damaging them and I’m able to visually see immediately what the resulting match will be.

Once I find a match I like I use the mirror as a guide and grab a pencil to put a couple of registration marks on the veneer.  From here I  go to registering the pieces, taping them together, and start cutting them to size to use  with the project.

Quad Book-matching: If I’m going for a really cool look on say a table top I’ll grab 2 mirrors (oh and 4 pieces of veneer) and hold them at a 90 degree angle and can see visually see what that will look like.  By doing this I’m able to move all over the piece (remember the note about large pieces of veneer) until I find the pattern that really pops!

Other Uses: Also by using two mirror you can bring the angle in (under 90 degrees) and use the same procedure to get an idea of how a radial book-match would look.

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Today I received my copy of “Dovetailing Apprenticeship” in the mail.  It is one I’ve been looking forward to since Chuck told me he was putting the finishing touches on it.

So when Shannon sent the tweet about it being available I immediately went to the “Acanthus Workshop” web site & purchased a copy.  What follows is my notes/review of the DVD.

Image from Acanthus Workshops LLC

Part 1: The Intro

We start with Chuck explaining dovetails and how with practice you will become faster at making at making them.

From here he continues to explain that for a professional you want to become fast in order to complete your commission since this is how you can make your living.

He also explains how for the amateur that you want to increase your speed so you don’t get bored during your project.

Cause face it, if you get bored with the project the odds of not finishing it goes up!  (Something I have been guilty of a time or two in my life.)

During the discussion Chuck also talks about his theory of the history of the dovetail.  Using cut away pieces he explains how he thinks it derived from the wedged mortise & tennon joint.

Part 2: The Tools

From here he goes into the 9 tools  needed to make dovetails. During this Chuck walks through why he feels they are important/need and expands on what to look for in them.

That are:

1. Stable work surface (anything from a good bench to a door on 2 saw horses)
2. Vise
3. Dovetail saw (he prefers a western style but says to use what you like)
4. A modest set of chisels (he prefers Two Cherries due to the weight and thickness of them)
5. Marking gauge (any style)
6. Bevel gauge
7. Small square
8. Mallet
9. Hold-fast or clamp

Next Chuck explains the importance of using sharp chisels and goes through his 2 step method:

1. Starting by using a 10″ diameter white wheel on a grinder with a homemade jig
2. Finishing by using 1600 & 4000 whetstones

Part 3: The Triangle Marking System

Now that we have our tools ready we’re ready to start with the layout but before we start Chuck walks us though how to correctly use the triangle marking system.  He walks through how to utilize this system so you can keep your parts aligned.  This way you always know the inside/outside & tops of all your parts.

With your parts correctly marked you’re ready to address the question of “Pins of Tails” debate.  Here Chuck tells you that he prefers pins first most of the time but explains that either will work.  It’s just what makes you feel comfortable.

Part 4: The Dovetails

From here you walk through both through dovetails & 1/2 blind dovetails Chucks way.  I don’t want to go through this in detail because I don’t want to take away from the DVD.

All throughout the steps are shot zoomed in so you get a good view of how Chuck works.  The best part is Chuck included an instructional card that you can take into the shop that explains (in text & photos) both dovetail methods and triangle marking system.

My Conclusion:

Over all the DVD has alot of good informational you can utilize.   I look forward to the next one.  (Chuck if you’re reading, please make it a secret compartment DVD!)

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So let me start off with this: “Have you ever had one of those days where you shouldn’t be in the shop?”

You know, one of those days where everything turns out to be a PITA?!?

Well today was MY day!

Due to our schedules at home/work it’s been a while since I’ve been able to work on the federal inlay table and I needed to finish up the inlay on the apron.

I’ve had the semicircles on the ends done since my blog entry on Stringing Tight Curves. But since then I had not finished “connecting the dots” so to speak until today.

But I should have known better. I wasn’t in the mood to do it.

And I had other junk to do:

• computer & virus updates to install
• the Olympics was on
• laundry to be done
• yadda, yadda, yadda

But I needed to get this project moving.  Either that or submit my entry to the “Worlds Longest Time To Complete A Project” contest.

So anyway, against my better judgment, I went out and turned the heaters on so the shop could warm up and then started cutting/trimming pieces of inlay to size and made a quick 45 degree jig to help cut the scarf joints so I could glue the pieces into the my apron.

All in all, I only had 6 pieces to fit and it should have taken about an hour to do (taking my sweet time in all) but NO! Everything that could go wrong did.

It didn’t matter how many times I dry fitted the pieces into my apron, no matter how well the scarf joints went together, every time I put glue into the groove trouble would show its face.

I had 4 pieces just break, one that broke once I had it in but had to dig out with dental tools, (because the glue started setting and fit was that tight) way more glue squeeze out then I intended to clean up, and anything else you could come up with!

But in the end of day I got it all worked out but wow what a pain!  So next time you’re not “feeling it” take a hint, it might not be worth it!

BTW as a side note. Dental tools are great for working with inlay but get them from a dentist. The 4 piece set they sell at Rockler are garbage! (Now that’s not a dig at Rockler, just a “impromptu review” of that particular product.)

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