Shop made compass

Very nice. I made a compass once…out of a clothes pin and some tape and a screw…not nearly as big or nice looking as yours, but it was all I had to work with where I was at the time and I wanted to draw some arcs.

-- Grace & peace, Chris+

Very nice.
It’s funny… every time I think of a tool that I need, someone posts one that they made.
This place is filled with great ideas.
Thanks for sharing.

-- Close to Ottawa Ontario Canada

Looks good. That should definately get the job done. Thanks for the post.

-- Doug - Make an effort to live by the slogan "We try harder"

Neato!

-- Stephen Mines (Saltmines@aol.com)

Very well done. I need one of this too

-- Stelios L.A. Stavrinides: - I am not so rich to buy cheap tools, but... necessity is the mother of inventions - http://www.steliart.com --

nothing can´t be compared to used homemade tools
congrat´s with the new toy :-)

how did you made the locking mechanisme ?

take care
Dennis

First you make the tool to make the tool to make the tool to make the… what was it I was going to make in the first place? I forgot… :)

-- The nicer the nice, the higher the price!

that will surely “strike an arc”

-- Roger from KY. Work/Play/Travel Safe. Kentuk55@bellsouth.net

Thanks for the nice comments guys!
I made this to be able to layout a pattern (using radial line development) on cardboard for a shop built cyclone I am planning to make soon.
One other thing I want to do to the compass is move the pencil thumbscrew up a bit and counter bore the hole to accept a sharpie pen.
Dennis, the locking mechanism is simply a lid stay I scrounged a while back from an old record player TV console someone had thrown away. I had to remove the part that attaches to the lid and place a screw there instead.
I keep a hammer, Flathead and phillips screwdrivers, pry-bar in the car at all times so that whenever I see some one throwing away old furniture (or even new junky furniture I can salvage the hardware off it. I have hinges, screws. and all sorts of hardware in coffee cans in my shed just waiting for an opportunity to be re-used or re-purposed. In most cases the hardware is the most usable part of the furniture, if the wood is solid and not particle board I will take that apart too. Sometimes even MDF furniture if it hasn’t seen any weather will make it’s way to my shop. I don’t have a big shed so I have to cull the junk in it from time to time and this spring I really have to get it organized.

-- Ted, Browns Mills, NJ http://www.twhgrafx.com/blog/ Darn! I cut it 3 times and it's still too short! I get ideas for things that I can make to make things easier for me to make!

great invention!

-- Kelly, woodworker under construction

Thank´s Tinnocker
for reminding me of this with the recycling thing ….. LOL
I always seems to forget it when I drive around and see a cointainer people is filling
when they empty a house ….not that I don´t pick up things but this with
only hunting the hardware as you have done I always forget outside my own premisis

take care
Dennis