What is your woodworking boogie man?

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  • atgcpaul
    Veteran Member
    • Aug 2003
    • 4055
    • Maryland
    • Grizzly 1023SLX

    What is your woodworking boogie man?

    So what's your woodworking boogie man? What technique can you just not master? For me it's resawing on the bandsaw. I was trying to resaw some 11" walnut boards into veneer and for the life of me, I was making a mess of it. I think my saw is tuned, etc, but I can't seem to get it.
  • bmyers
    Veteran Member
    • Jun 2003
    • 1371
    • Fishkill, NY
    • bt 3100

    #2
    Carving. It's like drawing which I also can't do only the pencils are trying to bleed me out.
    "Why are there Braille codes on drive-up ATM machines?"

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    • radhak
      Veteran Member
      • Apr 2006
      • 3058
      • Miramar, FL
      • Right Tilt 3HP Unisaw

      #3
      Oh maan! When you list one, that's a problem for me - I have so many!

      I have resawn boards from 1" to 1/2" thick, and the most charitable description would be that on average, the overall thickness of the resultant boards came somewhat close to 1/2". But I kept my own expectations low, so was still able to use them and pass the unevenness off as 'character'

      But what I feel terrible about not getting right, is planing. I have been able to use a block planer to get a miter-joint to fit, or something small like that, but I just can't get to really 'plane' a board. Nor have I been able to 'joint' an edge for butt joining. I was also told, and have watched videos, of using hand planes to create a flush surface where solid-wood trim meets plywood, but have always ended up damaging the ply. And I can't blame the tool - I have paid dollars to buy from Lee Valley. So one of these days, when the day is long and I have nowhere to go and nothing to do, I plan to spend it on practicing, to get this skill right. But that does not seem imminent.

      Carving - hmm, never tried it, as yet. Wonder if I try it, if it will make me feel better about my bandsaw or planing skills!
      It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
      - Aristotle

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      • leehljp
        Just me
        • Dec 2002
        • 8429
        • Tunica, MS
        • BT3000/3100

        #4
        For me - the skew in turning. I have purchased two DVDs, watched numerous videos, read many "how to's" but the moment I put a skew and begin cutting, it catches and gouges a huge scratch. I grip tight and hang on tight but it grabs. I don't use the pointed end, but the heel end; I have tried cutting with the middle of the blade also. I have tried rotating the blade into the cut; I have tried bringing the heel into the cut, but in a few seconds it "grabs". I can get started with a small ribbon cut but suddenly it grabs and a chunk comes out. I can shave hair off of my arm with a light touch - it is that sharp. I have not developed that fine feel along with the right strength to keep it from "catching".

        I have a "feel" with my home made scraper. I can tell the degree of sharpness by the feel of it when turning; hard woods, soft woods, doesn't matter. I know the feel. I don't have that with the skew. With my scraper I can take .001 off for a length without a problem.

        Radhak, hand planing comes down to "feel". I think many tools come down to "feel". The user develops a fine sense of "feel" for the tool and the wood he is using it on.

        One thing that I learned years ago from experience and feel: I had the ability to do something that I just took for granted. When I was in Japan, a close American friend came to my house and asked me to cut two boards. One ripped and one cross cut. As I started to measure, he said, no need just generally cross cut the board and rip the other. I set the rip by hand and visualizing it. I ripped it and he laid one on top of the other and asked "How did you do that? I can't get that precise even when I measure?" Then I did the cross cut and cut the other board in half. He did the same and LOOKED at me: "HOW in the world do you do that? Precise!"

        I don't always get that but last week I was making some general cuts and not measuring. I laid my cuts on top of others and they were precise as though I was using "stop". Again, I don't always do that but that is from "feel", which is from experience and a tad bit of skill. More or less, it is honing a skill that is built in but has to developed.

        I can't get the feel of a skew though!
        Hank Lee

        Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

        Comment

        • twistsol
          Veteran Member
          • Dec 2002
          • 2893
          • Cottage Grove, MN, USA.
          • Ridgid R4512, 2x ShopSmith Mark V 520, 1951 Shopsmith 10ER

          #5
          I'm my own boogie man. I have limited time in the shop and because of that I make frequent stupid mistakes ... put a mortise on the end instead of the face, forget to account for the width of another part when cutting, depend on my memory for measurements, measure from the wrong end of non symmetrical parts. Going slow takes too long and going fast takes even longer.
          Chr's
          __________
          An ethical man knows the right thing to do.
          A moral man does it.

          Comment

          • BadeMillsap
            Senior Member
            • Dec 2005
            • 868
            • Bulverde, Texas, USA.
            • Grizzly G1023SL

            #6
            Well none of my resawing is film worthy for sure...

            But my most difficult shop exercise is "visualization" of three dimensions. If I need to plan joinery that is more than basic I have to build some sort of model to "see" how it will actually go together... always been that way... my dad can visualize 3D rotation but I simply don't have that ability

            Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

            "Like an old desperado, I paint the town beige ..." REK
            Bade Millsap
            Bulverde, Texas
            => Bade's Personal Web Log
            => Bade's Lutherie Web Log

            Comment

            • cwsmith
              Veteran Member
              • Dec 2005
              • 2737
              • NY Southern Tier, USA.
              • BT3100-1

              #7
              TIME... there just never seems to be enough of it to do the things I'd like to do. Every day there's some errand or other responsibility that seems of higher priority. There's so much to learn and so many things I'd like to try and just no opportunity.



              CWS
              Think it Through Before You Do!

              Comment

              • Carlos
                Veteran Member
                • Jan 2004
                • 1893
                • Phoenix, AZ, USA.

                #8
                Making tops for boxes. I have so many untopped boxes, and some with tops that simply say "what were you trying to achieve here?"

                Comment

                • dbhost
                  Slow and steady
                  • Apr 2008
                  • 9209
                  • League City, Texas
                  • Ryobi BT3100

                  #9
                  Mortise and tenon. My oops rate is pretty high.

                  Please like and subscribe to my YouTube channel. Please check out and subscribe to my Workshop Blog.

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                  • Two Much
                    Established Member
                    • Mar 2003
                    • 365
                    • Long Island, NY
                    • (two) Ryobe BT-3's

                    #10
                    I make drawings of everything I want. The problem I can't do shop drawings, just a plain flat sketches.
                    So, it's hard to relate my vision to my shop partner ( my husband) with just flat drawings.

                    Our son got me a designing program for designing furniture, but it's too difficult to use...
                    I rather just make flat drawings. Also, I make a lot of changes along the way.
                    Fortunately, we've made so much stuff around the house, that I can now just point to something
                    and say "make the top like that, or the sides like this."

                    The last two little tables we made look nothing like my original sketch.

                    Comment

                    • poolhound
                      Veteran Member
                      • Mar 2006
                      • 3195
                      • Phoenix, AZ
                      • BT3100

                      #11
                      Oh gosh I could write a list..

                      I would add myself to the resaw group. I think this is all about blade and BS tuning. Sometimes I can resaw and its like easy as a hot knife through butter. Other times I could not buy myself a straight cut. I have found that the supposedly magic 3/4 blades just dont work for me. I have a PWBS 14 with riser so the saw is fine but after trying 2 expensive 3/4 resaw blades havent managed anything buts scrap wood. I have had much better luck with 1/2 or even 1/4 blades. I do have a 5/8 and thats as big as I go now.

                      I think my biggest issue is dust, chips, shaving and general mess. I see these folks post videos of them working in their shops and there is not a speck of dust to be seen. How is this possible? I have pretty good DC to most tools and air filtration but I seem to be forever working in dust and chips. My worst offenders are

                      1. Drill Press - I have not found any good DC solution that doesn't just get in the way
                      2. Sliding CMS - I am guilty of not always truning on the DC when I use this for a quick cut or 2 but even with it turned on it doesnt catch everything.
                      3. band saw - I always hook up the DC but dust and offcuts do go all over.

                      The worst offender is the lathe. My small one is not too bad and when turning small things like pens and stoppers I have the PSI clear hood which does a pretty good job. On my big lathe I use a big gulp hood like the pic below. It helps a bit and gets a fair bit of sanding dust but when doing virtually any turning I doubt it gets even 20% of the chips and debris. This weekend I made a couple of large bowls. The chips and shavings from this went everywhere. All the shelves and tool racks nearby get hit and there was mess thrown all over even as far as across my table saw and workbench maybe 8-10 feet behind me!

                      HELP :-(

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                      Jon

                      Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
                      ________________________________

                      We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
                      techzibits.com

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