0911-07_#100673228 TJC 3-22-12

Hardwood runner

Marked cutline TOP¾ x /" groove

1212-011_#100673611 SHOPTJC 12-19-12

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Spray adhesive Plastic wall TIPScorner guards 2013 Sponsored by:

In each issue of WOOD® magazine, the editors choose their favorite tip for Top Shop Tip honors. In 2013, you also voted for your favorites from each issue for the Readers’ Choice award. We then pitted them against each other to name one as 2013’s Shop Tip of the Year! Here are those tips.

woodmagazine.com/tips 1211-04_#100673316 TJC 4-16-12

MARCH issue 217 Hinges

Need a lift? Make and mount one to your tablesaw Heaving heavy sheet goods onto your tablesaw might be the most physically Hardwood insert to t fence tube demanding task in woodworking. Here’s a solution: Add this simple, remov- able lift to your tablesaw and easily swing even full sheets of plywood or MDF onto the saw table without damaging the stock—or your back. To make ¾" plywood A-frame it, fit a 12"-long hardwood insert to your tablesaw’s fence tube. Then, attach the 3⁄4"-plywood A-frame so that it just touches the shop floor. OO To use the lift, place one edge of the sheet onto the A-frame W D EADER and slide it until it’s centered. Lifting with your legs, swing the R S ’ A-frame up until the top edge of the sheet rests on the saw table. Nudge the sheet off the frame and onto your tablesaw. 0312-08_#100673406 —Dan Martin, Galena, Ohio T O TJC 8-7-12 P TI P edits 10-17-12 C H O IC E

ADER E S’ OOD R No-rock, easy-rollW planer outfeed conveyer My benchtop planer used to snipe until T C H I C E I came up with this inexpensiveO P T I P O outfeed support that rests on my Leveler benchtop. PVC outfeed roller After moving my planer (on its stand) beside my workbench, I mea- sured the height difference between the planer’s outfeed table and the workbench and used that dimension to determine the approximate height of the conveyer frame. I built the frame from 3⁄4" stock and installed simple “rollers” made from 1" PVC tubing with end caps drilled for 1⁄4" steel-rod axles. I inserted the rods through holes drilled in the frame and capped the exposed rod ends with push nuts. Finally, six levelers, made from carriage bolts, star knobs, and threaded Star knob 1" PVC with caps inserts, help fine-tune the rollers to Threaded insert align them with the planer’s outfeed Push nut table. When not in use, the conveyer stores vertically to save space. Carriage bolt —Don Riley, Marietta, Ohio ¼" steel rod

Top Shop Tips of 2013 MAY issue 218

Angle finder becomes dead-on height indicator DE OOD EA RS When setting up my router table for cutting half-lap joints, I figured out a quick and W R ’ reliable way to adjust router bit height with more accuracy than eyeballing it against a rule. I needed to raise the router bit 3⁄8" above the table, so I laid a 3⁄8" twist drill bit on the router table and rested a flat piece of scrap atop both bits, as shown. After placing T an electronic angle finder on the router table and zeroing the scale, I placed the O P TI P C H E finder on the scrap and raised the router bit until the angle finder read zero. O I C —Lester Borja, Lansing, Ill. DE OOD EA RS W R ’

T O P C P TI H O I C E

Electronic angle nder

Flat scrap

/" drill bit

Raise or lower router bit until angle nder reads 0.0˚.

woodmagazine.com/tips 1212-03_#100673602 TJC 12-20-12 edit 2-4-13 TJC

JULY issue 219

Big jig keeps face frames flat and square When assembling a tall, narrow face frame for a bookcase, 1212-011_#100673611 Face frame I knew an assembly jig would help keep it square and flat. Looking TJC 12-19-12 around the shop, I found just what I needed to build such a jig: an old door and a sheet of perforated hardboard. To make the jig, first screw the hardboard to the door. Drill pilot holes centered in the width of the hardwood cleats and screw those to the door, aligning the screws with the hard- Cleats board’s perforations, as shown. To use the jig, clamp the frame parts to the cleats as you glue up the assembly. The cleats can be moved easily for new projects, and the door can be tucked against the wall until needed again. —Edouard Piché, Troy, Mich.

WOOD ADER RE S ’

T O P TI P C H O IC E Perforated hardboard screwed to old door

Spray adhesive Plastic wall corner guards S’ CH ER O D I A C

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2 R E 01 3 W I N N

Corner guards make cheap, slick slides Small drawers don’t usually need to support much weight, so why mount expensive sliding hardware to them? Instead, try acrylic corner guards used to protect drywall. Use high-strength spray adhesive to attach them to the cabinet’s insides. They provide a slippery, long-wearing surface for the drawers to ride on. —Bill Seitz, LaPorte, Ind.

Top Shop Tips of 2013 SEPTEMBER issue 220

Rafter square

Rafter square adapts a sled to make miters DEDE OOODOD EAEA RSRS For accurate crosscuts on the tablesaw, I rely on a sled. I wanted that same WW R R ’ ’ precision for miters, but I didn’t want to build anotherTo sled lie at, for remove 45° cuts. That’s when I came up with this simple and inexpensiveone upgrade side of to my existing sled. All it takes is a plastic rafter square. the square’s lip. Begin by grinding or filing away one side of the square’s lip so it lies T T flat. Align one corner of the square with the edge of the saw kerf in the O OP PT ITPI P C HC H E E sled, placing the square’s longest side tightly against the sled’s fence. Drill O OI CI C a 3⁄8" hole through the square and into the sled, and install a threaded insert in that hole. Now you can quickly install the rafter square for 45° cuts, and remove it by using a star knob. Plastic rafter square —Bill Wells, Olympia, Wash.

¼" star knob Rafter square

22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Rafter square

To lie at, remove one side of Sled base the square’s lip.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ¼" threaded insert

Rafter square Plastic rafter square

¼" star knob To lie at, remove one side of the square’s lip. 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Rafter square

Sled base Plastic rafter square

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ¼" threaded insert

¼" star knob

22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Rafter square

Sled base

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ¼" threaded insert

woodmagazine.com/tips 0911-07_#100673228 TJC 3-22-12

Shop-made circ-saw OCTOBER guide can’t stray issue 221 Hardwood While I don’t care for wrestling sheet runner goods atop my tablesaw to cut them, I dislike even more the hassle that comes with setting up most circular–saw guides: all that measuring, offsetting, and praying it comes out right. So I built this simple tracked guide that puts the blade in line with the cutline every time. To build one, cut a piece of MDF Marked 1212-08_#100673606wider than your saw’s base and as long TJC 4-8-13 ¾ x /" groove cutline edits 6-13-13 TJCas you’ll need to span your sheet goods. Then, cut a 3⁄4"-wide groove 3⁄8"-deep the length of the MDF. Mount a 3⁄4"-wide ADER hardwood runner to your saw base (to E S’ OOD R match the groove in the MDF) and wax W it with paraffin. Place the runner in the groove, turn the saw on and cut the full length of the MDF. Now, simply align the edge of the guide with any cutline, clamp it in place, and run the saw in T C H I C E O P TI P O the groove for an accurate cut. —Lonnie Holbrook, Kannapolis, N.C.

Copper wire to prevent kinking Maximum suction level ¾"-I.D. clear WOOD vinyl tubing ADER RE S ’

T O Resting P TI P level C H O IC E Gauge shows reduction in Dust collector dust-collection suction I tend to leave dust-collection blast gates open after Colored water using a machine, and that reduces suction at the next tool used. To provide instant visual indication of a drop in suction, I came up with this handy gauge. ¾" brass pex 3 coupling To make one, attach a length of ⁄4" clear vinyl tubing to the dust collector’s pipe within a few feet of the dust collector and mount it as shown. Pour a small amount of water (adding a few drops of food coloring makes it easier to see) into the tubing and mark the resting level of the liquid. With one blast gate open and a clean filter in the dust collector, turn on the dust collector and mark the maximum suction level next to the tubing. Now, you can spot a drop in suction—caused by extra blast gates open, leaks in the system, clogged filter media, or full bags—just by looking at the gauge to see if the water level has fallen. —Ken Wadsworth, Sedalia, Colo.

Top Shop Tips of 2013 0413-02_#100673818 TJC 6-11-13 edits 7-1-13 TJC

Epoxy rod into ½ x 2½"– top rail. diameter wheel /" threaded rod, 5" long

NOVEMBER /" nut epoxied 0413-02_#100673818 2x6" into counterbore TJC 6-11-13 issue 222 edits 7-1-13 TJC ripped into two pieces 1¼" and 4¼" /" flat washers / x 3" mortise Rip the rail to tweak the top WOOD In my garage shop, I use sawhorses for my tablesaw outfeed supports. But I don’t EADER 5" R S always put the saw in the same spot, and the uneven floor sometimes had me ’ shimming the sawhorse feet to get them flush and level with the tablesaw top. So I added these adjusters to quickly make small leveling adjustments. A few quick twists of the shop-made wheels raises or lowers either end of the top rail and offsets the T O angle of the floor. P TI P —David McGuffin, Louisville, Ky. C H O IC E

Epoxy rod into ½ x 2½"– top rail. diameter wheel /" threaded rod, 5" long 0213-04_#100673738 TJC 4-8-13 /" nut epoxied 2x6" into counterbore ripped into two pieces 1¼" and 4¼" /" flat washers / x 3" mortise

5"

ADER E S’ OOD R W

Backing board T C H I C E O P TI P O Door-hanging jig frees your mind and hand Cabinet rest Mounting overlay doors on a cabinet seems to take three hands. This simple jig supports the door while you install it. Build the jig as shown from scrapwood, with the door rest offset from the cabinet rest by the amount of the door’s overlay. Mount the door rest to the jig’s center to form a T-shape and you can use the same jig for both left- and right-hinged doors. Clamp it in place, mount the hinges to the cabinet door, and rest the door on the jig. Drill pilot holes for the hinges in the cabinet and drive the screws. Door rest —Dan Buss, Viroqua, Wis.

woodmagazine.com/tips