| Blog series by newTim | updated 123 days ago | 10 parts | 3234 reads | 36 comments total |
Part 1: Sketching Up
So I finally joined the ranks of all you pro-Sketchuppers. I watched some of the videos a while back and didn’t get it. Tonight I watched the first five videos from the Sketchup for Woodworkers website and it all became real clear. At least enough to make a decent model. Acknowledgements and thanks go out to Rob Cameraon for all his efforts. And so it begins… I imported a photo from my first gate’s patina taken before I messed it up with wax. I think it still turned ...
Part 2: Frame & Arch Layout
One of the main challenges of cutting an arch is figuring out the dimensions and glue angle of straight boards from which an arch can be cut. Fortunately, this time around I’m using Sketchup. As you can see in the picture it is pretty easy to figure these out, although I’m still searching for a formula to calculate the dimensions. The vertical angle is 15 degrees. I drew a line intersecting the bottom of the middle of the arch with the bottom of the right side. I then made a ...
Part 3: More Mortise Magic
Okay, by now you’ve heard it a few times, I really like the Mortise Pal jig. This time around I paired it with the Milescraft Turnlock system which a allows you to attach bushings and other things to the router base very fast and without screws. In fact, once I get caught up on the blogs I plan to write a review of this system. Suffice it to say for now that I really like the concept and it is much easier on my catcher’s mit hands. The new Mortise Pal is wide enough that...
Part 4: Cut the Arch
So here’s a step by step process I used to cut the inner and outer arches. The basic plan is to dry fit the door frame, set up the pivot for the circle jig, cut a groove for the outer arch, move the stiles out of the way while keeping the arch clamped in place, cut a groove for the inner arch, use a jig saw to cut through the grooves, then use a flush trim bit to finish the arch cuts. Step 1: This time around I learned to cut a board to fit in the middle and mark its location on th...
Part 5: Mistakes... Aaaaaaaaaaargh!
I hate mistakes. However, sometimes I like the challenge of fixing them. The idea I think is to not just cover them up, but if the fix cannot be hidden, make it appear to be part of the original design. Or as many a Lumberjock might say, make it into a design enhancement. So here’s my latest error. While cutting the outer arch the pivot board and pin moved causing an unsightly gash. And here’s a close up. So the idea came to me to make a dado, or rabbet, or groo...
Part 6: Lap Joint
Between the All Star game on one channel and USA v. China Men’s Volleyball on the other, I thought I’d squeeze in a short entry. The design of this gate is a little different from the first. I like to change up the designs so I can experiment with new or different skills. There is an existing gate hanging from a galvanized pipe frame that is very sturdy so I wanted to attach the new gate to this frame. Here’s the sketchup model. What I’ve learned about lap j...
Part 7: Rabbet & Dry Fit Frame
I found out you can cut almost any size rabbet with a combination of a rabbeting bit and a straight bit. The rabbet bit has a bottom guide and the straight bit has a top guide. On the first gate the panel is held in place by stays on the front and back. On this gate the panel is recessed into a rabbet and will be held in place with stays on the front. The rabbet is cut deep enough so the panel will rest against the rails that are seated in the back with lap joints (see previous blog). I ...
Part 8: Apply the Patina
Just sitting here listening to Atlas Shrugged (“Money is the source of all good” and “Taggart/Reardon 2010” and “Who is John Galt?”) and enjoying another ‘Delta’ breeze summer evening in Orangevale (Sacramento). Sorry I haven’t updated this series in awhile. I’ve been cooped up in a small classroom for two weeks with twenty other souls, all of whom had hundreds of places they’d rather be, learning the most mind numbing materi...
Part 9: Aged Patina
Now I get to the good part. I wish I had taken pictures right after I had first applied the chemicals because the patina continued to mellow in the sun, but you can’t really see the difference. As I said in the last blog, I really hated the initial finish. It looked like a biological mess. You get the idea. Anyway, I learned you can easily wipe the patina with a rag to either remove some spots or blend them with others. This time around I didn’t seal it in wax nor did I rins...
Part 10: Charles Neil Trick
So I wasn’t too happy with the look of the front stays on this gate. And I had also made another router mistake when cutting the rabbet. What to do? What to do? Seems like I’m always messing things up. Well time for a design enhancement. I had the idea when doing the first gate that a molding that framed the panel might look good. Seems like a good time to try it out. Since I had also received my new, longer, circle cutting bar for my Milescraft cirlce jig, now seeme...
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