Popular Woodworking 2006-08 № 156, страница 72
it used to be due to sharpening. After 20 years, I've honed away about 3/i6" from the blade. I'm hoping it will last as long as I do, but for seven bucks, it might be worth it to pick up a spare. Although it isn't ground with a single bevel like a traditional marking knife, I didn't know that when I started using it as one, and it works well. I like it because it fits in tight corners almost as well as the X-Acto, but it has a sturdier feel to it. I also use it for basic knife duties - whittling pegs, opening boxes, crosscutting veneer, etc. Seeing Things a New Way Maybe we're just getting old, but inexpensive aids to vision were on several lists. An adjustable-arm light mounted on a workbench provides supplemental, or raking light that improves things immensely. (Editor Christopher Schwarz replaced the clamp on a desk lamp with a wood plug that fits in a bench dog hole.) Safety glasses with bifocal reading glasses built in, a flip-down loupe on a headband, and a photographer's slide-viewing loupe let us see what is really happening up Getting from an initial cut to a finished shape usually involves removing small amounts of material in an easy to control way. This open rasp works well both for refining curves and fitting joints. The handle is optional. The tool works great without it (and is less expensive). An X-Acto #1 craft knife (right) retails for $2.99 and comes with five extra blades. The "Whittlin' Jack" retails for $6.95. For just a few dollars more than a box of lead pencils you can have a permanent method for marking lines that will vastly improve the quality of your work. close. Maybe these aren't merely aids to poor vision, but a reflection of a desire to get things perfect to a degree beyond the norm. If genius is in the details, the ability to see the details clearly is an excellent starting point. Woodworker and author Paul Anthony had this to say: One of my best friends in the shop is a plastic 8x magnifying loupe that I bought for $6 at a photo-supply store. Designed for viewing 35mm slides, it is also perfect for scrutinizing tool edges during sharpening, providing a per spective that I can't hope to achieve with my naked (and somewhat uncooperative) eyes. If I'm uncertain at all about my progress or sharpening technique, the loupe lets me know whether the metal is really polishing up and whether tool faces are meeting to create a truly sharp edge. In addition to sharpening, the loupe zooms me in for all sorts of inspections, such as checking the real quality of a cut from a bit or blade, or perhaps the extent of damage from a section of lifted or torn grain. Changing for the Better No matter how long we've been woodworking, it's never too late to adopt a new tool or method. Craftsman Frank Klausz only recently started to use holdfasts on a regular basis. The recently introduced holdfast from Gramercy tools works and is affordable, and joins a small wood spokeshave, his other favorite inexpensive tool. It's worth a lot more now than the $201 paid for it. It isn't always the tools themselves that mean something significant. Most of these are important to us because they are a tangible reminder of a change in attitude. A physical way of saying: "I now know what's important to my work and what isn't, and I'm through with messing around." Contributing Editor Glen SUPPLIES Lee Valley 800-871-8158 or leevalley.com • 18 pinch dogs in three sizes #05E10.10 , $22.50 Hyde Tools 800-872-4933 or hydetools.com • pry bar/scraper #45600, $7.39 GunAccessories.com 800-653-7890 • original "Whittlin' Jack" knife #UC-423, $6.95 Highland Hardware 800-241-6748 or tools-for-woodworking.com • Shinto rasp replacement blade #126402, $16.99 (blade w/handle also available) Tools for Working Wood 800-426-4613 or toolsforworkingwood.com • Zona knife (similar to X-Acto) #MS-LAYKN.XX, $4.95 • Gramercy Holdfast #MS-HOLDFAST.XX, $16.95 70 Popular Woodworking August 2006 |
