What are you building?
Today I basically just made a cast out of an old gym sock.
But that isn't what you meant...I am making a clock for my daughters room, I am making a wood feature wall on the landing of our staircase leading to the basement. I am making a bench, Which I will hopefully get the lumber for this week, most likely Walnut.
This summer I was to make some outdoor furniture for the deck, a trellis and an old British police box as a shed, though I am not sure that is in the budget.
Which kind of wood are you using? I run a specialty wood store if you didn’t know.
I had no idea. Where are you located? I am in the GTA. I usually source mine through assignment dealers. I am looking to get a Walnut live edge slab somewhere around 40-60" at maybe 1.5" or so. I am no expert, believe me. I just look for something I think will work as a bench or table.
Last bench I made was around the size I described 40" or so by 1.5" thick and about 18-20" wide. I bought it for $35.
I went to Exotic Woods to take a look and nearly passed out at the prices there.
I would like to make a bench out of a curly wood type but the prices just seem too steep.
I’m in B.C.
Walnut has skyrocketed in price the last two years so you will pay a ton for it. I deal in lots of live edge, currently maple is still the best deal but sometimes I find exotic woods that are surprisingly cheap. I had a 36” wide x 20’ x 2” thick piece of Padauk that sold for $2000.00. That is really cheap and I made good money.
My advice is to go to your local places and see if they have any cracked or checked pieces they want to get rid of. I generally give big discounts of pieces like that then up sell epoxy and tints. It’s super easy to fix up a junky slab of wood with epoxy and it’s really fun.
Good luck!
Hey thanks for the inside info! I am new to all of this so it is really appreciated. I have wanted to work with epoxy to route some words or images into the benches instead of just always doing an inlay, which to me is hard.
In your opinion, is a heat gun an absolute nessecity when using epoxy?
Thanks again.
lifted, read some military history, watched football, but the manliest shit of all was getting supervised by my girlfriend while switching out all the downstairs blinds b/c apparently the ones she picked out last year weren't up to her code. did it without complaining, too. tomorrow we change out the upstairs blinds, can't tell you fellas how much I'm really looking forward to that
I’m can be, I use a blow torch. The key is to heat up the epoxy so it removes the air bubbles. Another trick I use is to mix the epoxy in a plastic cup and to place it in warm/hot water and to stir it a lot so it becomes looser. It makes it easier to pour.
I sell Ecopoxy and they make glow in the dark green and blue. So cool.
Good to have another woodworker on the forum.
I'd barely call myself a woodworker lol. I am an aspiring woodworker. That is a great tip about the hot water, I do the same thing with liquid worts. Like I said, I will hopefully get out to a supplier this week and pick something up, if I remember when I am finished I will upload a pic of it on a thread I make to your attention, see what you think. It is good to know there is a real woodworker here.
Again, thanks for the tips and info.
Any pics of this? I'm intrigued.
Built 3 baby gates. In the process of painting.
Made them bi-fold so they tuck away nice and neat when not on use.
Had to do picket style so the cat could get through.
Made them bi-fold so they tuck away nice and neat when not on use.
Had to do picket style so the cat could get through.
I never even thought about making my own baby gates.....the wife has been pestering me about buying some more.Built 3 baby gates. In the process of painting.
Made them bi-fold so they tuck away nice and neat when not on use.
Had to do picket style so the cat could get through.
Are those frames not too heavy for the hinges though? What do you have on the far end of the gate to secure it to the other wall?
That's a sweet dead blow hammer!
Not much weight. 8 lbs per gate I would say. All out of 2x4 from job site 2 2"×3/8" dowels connecting uprights to horizontals. I have deadbolts to secure the bifolds from opening/pinching fingers. Waiting on wife to get back to decide on a latch system to keep them closed. Not sure if she wants a gate latch system or what.
All in I'd say it cost me 10$ a gate which I can write off through my company. All lumber came from my job site. Hinges were most expensive 12 x 3$ a piece. And paint $35 a gallon which I used maybe an 1/8 of
Edit: I should mention I used 3" screws to secure hinges into solid backing. Screws that come with hinges aren't adequate enough to hold gate. They tuck away really nice rather than sticking out when opened
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Nice, thanks for the reply. It's brilliant. They want $100 a gate in the stores. I am going to look into this! Just need to get some more dowels. Thanks again man.
I would imagine you could save yourself a bit of work and $ foregoing the dowels. It was an honest amount of work marking out and drilling dowels, I have zero shop space so I'm limited.
If you have finish/brad nailer even screws would work. Anything regarding babies isn't cheap. I've been plugging away on these after work seeing as it's lonely up in here. Wife and kid still on holidays and all.
Hope it works out for you.
Yeah I guess you are right, but there is something satisfying about getting all your holes lined up perfectly and everything being true and plumb. I will probably just use pocket holes if I make them, super strong and easy. Enjoy your time alone, it is lonely now but at least it is quiet right? lol
They look really nice folded away like that, I am going to show the wife and take my marching orders.
That's about the only cocktail I enjoy (I typically drink my bourbon or whiskey neat) Nice work, I love old fashioneds. What whiskey did you use?
Heavy poured ol' fashioned with homemade simple syrup.
Buffalo trace. I enjoy black Manhattans as well. I cheat and use Chambord liquor cus avena liquor is hard to find around here.
Buffalo Trace is great. I always have a bottle of that on hand. Haven't tried a black manhattan, gonna look that up.
Do yourself a favor and get on that. Love ol fashions but black manhattans are on a whole other level! A proper drink càlls for avena which I really can't find out here. Chambord (blackberry liquor) does the trick though