Popular Woodworking 2009-02 № 174, страница 19

—■ The Wood Whisperer ■—

On the level. This small story stick was used to position the shelves in this cabinet, ensuring the shelves were equally spaced.

Quick, accurate locator. A few

shims hold the door and allow for direct transfer of the mortise center-lines from masking tape to door.

Not in inches or feet. Two story sticks were all it took to determine si. and length, as well as position, of each piece of this entertainment ce

So instead, I opted for a set of story sticks made from 'A" birch plywood.

I simply laid one of the sticks on the floor and pushed the end up against the adjoining wall. 1 then used a pencil to mark the start and stop points of each divider. I did the same in the vertical dimension with a second stick. In a matter of three minutes, 1 had an accurate representation of a relatively complex set of cubbies.

With the story slicks back in my shop, I was able to construct the facade with a level of confidence 1 would not have had using the tape-measure method.

A more current example of this tape measure-less system was found in my shop as I was writing this article. I was working on a small decorative cabinet featuring two simple inset doors. The mortises for the hinges were routed into the case sides earlier in the process, and the challenge was to then accurately transfer the location of those hinges to the doors.

Further complicating things was the fact that 1 wanted a'/16" reveal around all sides of the door, so it was important that the hinges be placed in exactly the right positions. Of course, 1 could have just taken a few careful measurements, done a dance for the woodworking gods and hoped for the best. But there was a more accurate and simple, if not slightly Neanderthal, solution.

By using shims to center the door within

the case opening, 1 was able to directly transfer the centerline of each mortise from the case side to the door. With two simple pencil strokes, I had the marks 1 needed to rout the the door.

A Path to a Perfect Fit

Another important aspect in the "Throw Away Your Tape Measure" building style is the act of cutting itself. When I first started woodworking, 1 thought that one day 1 would be good enough to make cuts consistently on a pencil mark. 1 soon realized that even if my cut was dead on, my mark could very well be off and the piece would not fit anyway.

So I quickly adopted a cut-to-fit methodology. That is, 1 find it better to cut my parts slightly oversized, and carefully nibble away the stock until the fit is perfect. It may take a few more minutes to do this, but an air-tight fit will be your reward and there is very little risk of cutting your parts too short.

Many of you may be surprised to know that you are already using techniques based on the "Throw Away Your Tape Measure" principles. Every time you use a stop block for a repeated cut, a template to make exact copies, a set of tails to mark your pins (or vice versa), or even spacers to arrange a set of drawer slides, you are exercising this concept.

Keep in mind that none of this information is The Wood Whisperer's bright idea. 1 am just

sharing techniques that were gleaned from more knowledgeable woodworkers with years of field experience. And believe me, we've only scratched the surface here. My hope is that this quick introduction will inspire you to think critically about how you process your project parts. Perhaps the next time you pull out that tape measure to take a critical measurement, you'll recall some of these ideas and realize that there just might be a very simple solution that will save you time and stress - and increase your accuracy to boot! PW

Marc is a professional woodworker as well as the creator and host of The Wood Whisperer (thewoodwhisperer. com). The Wood Whisperer (an instructional Internet woodworking show) represents Marc's three passions: woodworking, technology and education.

About This Column

Our "Wood Whisperer" column features woodworking thoughts and ideas, along with shop techniques from Marc Spagnuolo. Each column has a corresponding video related to the techniques or views expressed in the column available at popularwoodworking. com/video.

30 ■ Popular Woodworking February 2009