Vol.1
No.13
31
July 2002
Tips
from Julian Biggers
1. Wiping rags. Everyone knows about using old T-shirts
as rags to wipe off stain. Now consider old cotton pajamas. Cut off the
legs and arms, and then cut across slices to desired size. Roll up the
legs and arms for storage until you need to cut off a slice.
2. Save your soft bristle toothbrush. (a) Good for cleaning
teeth of cutters, burs, and saw blades. (b) Good to buff/polish finish
in tight places (It's like a small shoe brush).
3. Easy template for lathe duplication. Thin plastic
strips available at hobby shops make a good compromise between cardboard
and brass for duplicator templates. Glue pattern to the plastic with
rubber cement. Cut out shape with sharp knife and/or jeweler's saw. Finish
with files. A pattern is good for 20-30 uses before showing wear.
Glues and Gluing
4. Tinted glue. I use dark tinted glue with dark woods, i.e. mahogany,
walnut, cherry. You can see excess glue and scrape/sand it off. None
of those blotches or "ghosts" appears after staining because
the glue blends with the stain. Purchase from a hobby story (House of
Miniatures brand), at your local hardware store, or make your own. Add
dark brown acrylic paint to good quality white glue to tint desired.
Test on scrap wood.
5. Bottles of super glue say, "Store in cool, dry place." If
not used often, keep it in the refrigerator and it will last almost indefinitely.
6. Next time at a hobby store check out the "house brand" of
super glue (Cyanoacrylate). It is usually cheaper than name brands. (From
the Frugal Woodworker)
7. Carol Hardy, Guild Fellow, says: "I use a combination of glues
in very small areas where there is hardly any surface to glue two pieces
together. For example: a very small mortise and tenon joint where I apply
a light coat of white glue to the tenon and a small drop of super glue
into the mortise; clamp immediately. The mix of two glues almost acts
like epoxy."
8. Carol Hardy also suggests: insert a 1" piece of super-fine Teflon
tubing in the top of the superglue bottle. It allows for a very small
dot of glue to be dispensed and the tubing does not clog up. Sometimes
a small piece of glue will dry on the very tip, so I cut off just the
tip of the tube to re-open it (about 1/32" inch). The tubing can
be found at model railroad store and comes in two diameters, and 12” length.
9. Ever have a piece of wood rip out of the tailstock while trying to
turn it? After punching the centering hole, coat the end of the wood
with super glue. It binds the fibers together and almost prohibits "rip
out".
10. Strengthen butt joints. Use point of X-Acto #11 blade (or similar)
to punch a few indents at junction of two parts. Glue will enter indents
and, when dry, will form "rivets" to strengthen joint. (Bet
this combined with #8 above would give a really strong joint.)
Stains, Dyes, and Waxes
11. A potassium dichromate solution will age cherry 10 years in 15 minutes.
Dissolve one teaspoon of crystals in one quart of water. The full color
change will take several hours actually. Seal the treated wood with a
coat of shellac. Try on mahogany for an "old brown" stain.
Caution: potassium dichromate ain't good for your health if taken internally
or to bathe in.
12. Oil-based stain to order from Therese Bahl, Guild Fellow. To a quarter
inch of oil paint squeezed from a tube, add one part cobalt (drying agent)
and three parts paint thinner (mineral spirits). Burnt umber gives a
warm brown; raw umber has a cooler shade of brown; raw sienna has a reddish
hue; yellow ochre with a bit of burnt sienna yields an orange-brown.
Try mix and match, other colors.
13. Standard beeswax polish. Mix one part beeswax shaved into thin pieces
with three parts turpentine. Melt the wax in a double boiler over electric
heat. Remove from heat and add turpentine while stirring. Pour into jar/can
and let cool. You can make the recipe without heating by combining ingredients
in a jar, stirring, and let dissolve overnight.
Adjust consistency by adding turpentine or beeswax. Add dry artist's
pigments to wax, if you want a colored wax.
14. Old paste floor wax. Melting wax as above, and adding turpentine
and cobalt can rejuvenate the wax. For colored wax, try adding oil stain
while wax is still liquid.
15. Kiwi shoe polish. Shoe polish is high in carnauba (hard) wax. Neutral
color for general polishing. Cordovan wax for a nice reddish-brown color.
16. Some sources for finishing products. Liberon/Star Kremer Pigments,
Inc. P.O. Box 86, 228 Elizabeth St. Mendocino CA 95460 . New York NY
10012, 800-245-5611 212-219-2394 www.woodfinishsupply.com www.kremer-pigmente.de
-Julian