49 - Cabinet Maker's Tool Chest, страница 5

TIPS & TECHNIQUES

Quick Tips

■ After rubbing a dried finish with steel wool, it's hard to clean up the tiny metal fibers that remain on the surface. My solution is to stick a magnet in a plastic bag and "sweep" it across the surface, see photos below. The metal slivers that stick to the bag are easy to remove. Just hold the bag over a trash can and remove the magnet.

@ When cutting delicate parts on a scroll saw, it's frustrating if a small piece breaks off. The problem is it isn't fully supported over the blade opening in the saw table.

To add extra support, I make a "zero-clearance" insert by poking the end of the blade through a business card (inset photo) and taping the card to the table, see photo.

Rick Hutcheson..... ......

Grimes, Iowa

Custom Fit Dado Joint

@ In ShopNotes No. 45, you showed a method of cutting a dado joint on the table saw without using a dado blade. It uses two spacer blocks to establish the width of the dado.

That method works fine. In fact, I

use a similar technique with a slight twist. A screw installed in one of the spacer blocks makes it easy to "fine tune" the width of the dado and create a custom fit joint.

The idea is to clamp the two blocks

to the rip fence so they're offset, see Fig. 1. (Place the block with the screw against the fence.) To cut one side of the dado, butt the workpiece against the block closest to the blade and make a pass, see Fig. la. Now set the workpiece against the screw and make a second pass to cut the other side of the dado, see Figs. 2 and 2a.

After removing the waste material in between, test fit the dado joint If it's too tight (or too loose), simply adjust the screw in or out, see Fig. 2b.

Phil Pratt Marco Island, Florida

Send in Your Shop Tips

If you have a unique shop tip, we'd like to consider featuring it in one or more of our print or electronic publications.

We'll pay up to $200 for a tip we publish. Just write down the tip and mail it to ShopNotes, Attn.: Readers'Tips, 2200 Grand Ave., Des Moines, LA 50312. Or FAX it to 515-282-6741, or send us an e-mail at shopnotes@shopnotes.com. Please include your name, address and daytime phone number in case we have any questions.

SPACER BLOCKS-.

WORKPIECE

FIRST

CUT

/

OF DADO (SEE DETAIL 'b')

SECOND CUT

No. 49

ShopNotes

5