Woodworker's Journal 1993-17-1, страница 22

Woodworking Basics

Continued

formity—you usually have to trim the legs after assembly anyway.

I strongly recommend boring the sockets entirely through plank seats and wedging the tenons at assembly (as opposed to boring blind socket holes only part way through the seat). Beginner's tenons are frequently loose fitting, and the wedge expands the tenon to fill the space, making a much stronger joint.

Assembly

Assembly is not difficult. We try the tenons in their sockets to make sure they fit. smear glue in the sockets and on the tenons, and push them together. To start the wedges, we use a chisel to start a split in ihe cenierof ihe protruding tenon end. al right angles to the grain of the seal (Photo Ki, ihen drive ihe wedge home (Photo L). (Alternatively, you can saw slots for ihe wedges before assembly.) The drawknife is hand) for fashioning wedges.

Green wood shrinks as it dries, so it is best to let ihe tenons dry oul before assembly—several days in a dry, warm spot does ihe trick. Children don't like to wait, so you can speed ihis process by burying the tenons in a buckel of hot sand for an hour or so. 1 heat the sand on a portable electric cixiking ring with

Photo J: Children usually need help steadying the brace when boring sockets in the seal. Itore the holes from the bottom of the seal, holding Ihe brace al the desired leg angle.

adjustable temperature settings—if the sand gets too hoi. il can char the ends of the tenons. If you don't want to go to this trouble, and your child is itching to complete ihe stool right away, go ahead. You can always tighten a shrunken, loosened tenon by driving in another wedge.

After the glue has dried, trim the tenons flat with the top surface of ihe seat. If the stool wobbles—which is

Photos A", L: After assembling the glued legs and sockets, start a split in ihe end of each tenon willt a chisel (Photo K) then drive in a wedge lo tighten the joint (Photo L).

SAFETY: Kids and the Cutting Edge

Green woodworking, you may be thinking, sounds great for kids, but what about those sharp tools— spoke shaves and. for heavens sake, drawknives? My youngest child has been using spokeshaves since he was three. The tool is easy for small hands lo manipulate, the blade is well protected and both hands are occupied on the tool, out of harms way. 1 think ihey arc one of ihe safest woodworking tools for kids.

A draw knife is a far safer lool lo use than its w icked looks would indicate. Again, both hands are occupied- And although you pull the tool toward you. the natural limitations to the movemenl of your arms make it very difficult to pull the cutting edge into your body. Drawknives are most dangerous when not being used—when they're being picked up or carried around. The unprotected blade exacts a painful price for careless handling. The most difficult thing about drawknives is learning to control the cut—cutting with a drawknife is much more like whittling than planing. When your child can handle a jackknife, he or

she can probably cope with a drawknife. As w ith all things related lo our children's well being, where there's a choice to be made, the w ise choice is the safe one. If you have any doubts about your child's ability 10 safely and responsibly handle the drawknife. lei ihem use the spokeshave instead.

Remember that a dull lool is more dangerous than a sharp one. Control is essential for safety, and the more muscle required to move a dull tool through wood, the less control the child will have over it. When you believe your kids are ready to handle edge tools, make sure they're sharp ones.

Most important for safety is the character and development of the child. My oldest is conscientious and cautious, ihe middle child is headstrong and impulsive, the youngest lacks the motor ski lis of the other two. I gauge their lool use and the amount of supervision ihey need accordingly. 1 have worked hard 10 impress upon them that tools are nol lovs and to teach them ihe proper w ay to handle tools. We've had a few superficial cuts, bui nothing requiring more than a Band-Aid.

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The Woodworker's Muma!