Posted by
chun
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5:50 PM
Labels:
cubes,
storage,
versatile,
Woodworking
Weve been giving my sons bedroom a makeover all week long. One of the things needed was more storage. I decided just to make some simple cubes out of MDF and let Wyatt stack and arrange them however he liked. Sort of like those old crates for storing LP records.
But the thought of making a bunch of identical cubes seemed really boring, so I made four variations of the five-sided cube.
I thought about various ways of joining all the edges together. My first thought was to use 45 degree bevels. That way each side could be the same size. The drawback is that gluing them up straight is more of a challenge. For making eight boxes, I decided simple butt joints would be the easiest and quickest. Since these are made out of MDF and painted, I really didnt need anything fancy.
The fun thing about these is setting them up in all different ways. I suspect they might be a hit in college students dorm rooms, too.
*****
Posted by
chun
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|
10:25 AM
Labels:
first,
Woodworking,
workbench
The Chicken & The Egg Workbench Conundrum...
As its been sunny lately and the room I intend to use isnt quite ready, I have been using a scrap piece of kitchen worktop placed on the garden table as a makeshift bench to clean & sharpen up my tools.
I was considering using the same piece of worktop and maybe knocking together some rough saw horses for it to go across as a slightly more rigid bench solution. However, it seems I would still be wrestling with clamps holding more clamps to hold a work piece. While Im sure its doable its far from ideal - much like previously living on a boat!
I could try and build a bench myself, but lets face it with my skills and no other bench to build it on, Im not sure its going to be any better than the saw horse solution.
Therefore, after much deliberation and reading, I have decided that the best thing (for me) is to buy a beginner bench.
This bench at only £126 seems pretty cheap and despite a few poor reviews must be more sturdy than the other solutions, especially if I can butt it up against a wall. It includes two vices and other work holding devices. I dont think I could build anything better for the price.
A friend introduced me to Axminster Tools and it took less than 5 minutes to sign up and pay for this little beauty, with free next day delivery! While I dont expect it will be as solid or rigid as a professional bench, for the price I dont think it can be beaten as a beginner bench. If the woodworking bug really takes hold then obviously Id like to build my own full size bench at some stage but by then I would know what Im doing (hopefully) and probably wouldnt be working out of a tiny spare room.
Time to kick off the holiday gift-making season! For those of you in America, this would also make a great Thanksgiving project.