Look around as you move throughout your day. You see examples of man’s mastery of woodworking everywhere. From mailbox posts to pieces of furniture and art to full buildings, the power to use wood to create is a reason why civilization even gets to exists in many corners of the world. If you want to empower yourself with this skill, keep reading.
Using a good wood glue can make joined pieces even stronger than the wood itself. The key to strength in a glued joint is the amount of time the glue takes to set. Glue that takes longer to cure is better than quick setting glue. Slower setting glue has more time to penetrate into the fibers of the wood, which enhances the strength of the joint.
Gel stains are an excellent choice for furniture staining. Gel stains attach to wood better, as liquid stains run. Gel stains will create a more consistent finish on pieces, as well.
Familiarize yourself with the tools that you are going to use. This is a very important tip for the beginner, but even more advanced woodworkers can benefit from it too. Lay out the tools and make sure that you know the workings of each one. If you’ve got a brand new tool to you, spend the time that you need with it.
Clean your saw’s teeth before cutting lumber. To thoroughly clean your saw blade dip a shop rag into a little acetone and wipe the blade thoroughly. Additionally, using a piece of sandpaper that has a fine grit will remove any sap or gumminess from your skill saw’s cutting blades.
If you will be re-coating an existing finish, be sure that the surface is clean and free of any wax or oils. Then, let it dry completely, and lightly scuff the surface with a 220-grit sandpaper so that the finish you are applying will have something to hold onto.
Buy some scrap wood and use it to practice on. Scrap wood is really cheap, and it makes for great practice wood. Use it to try new skills that you’re learning. Practice with new tools on it. Make your mistakes here, not when it counts. You’ll be happy you did in terms of budget.
Always wear safety glasses when you are doing anything that involves woodworking. If you do not take the time to put the glasses on you are taking a huge risk that is not sensible. Just think, if you lose your eye sight you will not be able to do woodworking every again.
Before gluing your project together, you should try dry fitting first to make sure the pieces fit together properly. If you attempt to readjust the pieces once glued together, you risk damage to your project. You can figure out what goes where with a dry fit.
If there is a joint in your work that does not fit together properly, this cannot be fixed with glue. While it may seem like the simple way to fix things, it will only work temporarily. The best thing to do would be to start over and be more careful the next time.
Glue can cause nasty stains on your finished work. You can eliminate stains easily using a piece of tape. First, clamp your wood together without any glue. Put a piece of tape over the joint. Cut the tape on the joint with a sharp knife. You can now clamp the wood together with glue and any excess will ooze onto the tape, not the wood.
Now that you have read this article, you know a few things about getting started successfully in woodworking. Use the ideas here to do a project that improves your life. Perhaps you build yourself a deck. Maybe you give new life to a piece of furniture someone got rid of. Whatever your inspiration, this article gave you the knowledge to get some woodworking done!
Leave a Reply