Posts Tagged ‘do it yourself’

I have been toying with a woodworking business idea for some time now.  So I thought I would share with my readers.  Feel free to respond if you like.  I really like this CNC machine made by Rockler called the Shark.  It is compact enough to fit in my small space and do some really neat work.  My office is on the other side of the workshop, so the idea of me working on my computer on one side and having the cnc running on the other is appealing for some reason.

Woodworking businesses

2009 has been a tough year if you are in business, this year should be better.  If you are thinking about starting something I think this machine or one similiar can be very helpful.  Most woodoworkers tend to think old school when they want to start something up at home.  I say why not go out on the edge a bit and use the machine to create some buzz in the community and a little cash in your pocket.  About the only downside of this particular machine is that it does not do bigger pieces of wood, however you will have to shell out considerably more cash to make get a bigger size.  The next size up seems to be a 4 x4 sized machine but it seems the offerings are slim.  Shop bot seems to be the only one with a machine that size and its really not covered or presented that well.

Use this machine for:

• Making plaques
• Signs for garages (men’s toys)
• Kids items
• kitchen signs
• decorative art
• copies of photos

I have a few good ideas in my head.  If I were just starting out, I definetly would harness the power of Ebay to get started.  Ebay has spent gajillions of dollars on marketing and that makes perfect sense for someone who is just starting out.  Lots and lots of people go to Ebay looking for something unusual or custom made and you don’t have to drop a lot of money to get a website going.

Specs  You can see the Rockler CNC Shark or read further:

Improvements over the original CNC Shark:

• Twice the workable area
• Increased strength
• Includes updated version of VCarve software (5.0)
• Includes 1/2” Dia. V-Groove Router Bit
• Includes two Hold-down Clamps

Additional features:

• High speed traverse
• Less than .001″ resolution
• USB interface with removable memory card interfacee
• Includes mounts for a Bosch router (router sold separately)

Capable of interfacing with the following CNC programs:

• VCarve Pro
• 3D Cut
• Photo Carve
• BobCadt
• BobArt
• BobNestCad
• Mach 3
• Lazy Cam

MACHINE

• Travel: X: 24″ Y: 24″ Z: 4.25″
• High Speed traverse
• Bearings: 12 Precision Linear Bearing Guides (4 on each axis) that maximizes rigidity
• Resolution: less then .001 of an inch
• High Power Hybrid 1.8-degree steppers
• USB interface with on controller memory storage
• 24V Supply to provide full power to the steppers
• VCarve 5.0 program included (you can swap with BobCad 21)
• Rockler Holding Clamps included
• Rockler Router V bit included

This is the follow up for the router table that I reviewed here. I think that you will find that having a video can help you get a better idea of the features of the table and give you some more information. The fence turned out to be an interesting feature. I am going to post a separate video going over how it works and what makes it unique.

 By Jennifer Akre

Once you finish a cabinet remodel you still need to install the new cabinet pulls. There are a few simple tricks to use to ensure the job goes quickly, smoothly and will look great. So here’s a quick guide on how to install cabinet door pulls.

The first thing you’ll need to do is figure out just where you want to put up the new door pulls. Use a little bit of paste to tack the first cabinet pull up onto the cabinet door. You can adjust the pull up, down, left or right until it looks just right.

Now go to the furthest cabinet and stick up another knob in the same general location. Adjust it until it’s in line with the first handle you stuck into place.

Grab a chalk line and a buddy.

Snap the chalk line across the row of cabinets above and below the two knobs you stuck up with the paste. This gives you a reference point for the height of the door pulls. You won’t have to worry about them sitting uneven on the door fronts.

Now you can just measure how deep the door pull is from the edge of the cabinet and you have the measurements you need to install all of the cabinet door pulls.

Now you’ll want to construct a quick template so that all the pulls go up in the same location.

Grab a piece of wood and mark off the offset you just measured.

Drill holes through the wood that line up with the cabinet door pull and attach bolts.

Now you can take the template and hold it up to cabinet door. Stick a pencil through the door and mark the front of the cabinet.

Next use a cordless drill to put holes in all the cabinet doors at the same time. This will save you time from having to switch out between screwdriver and drill after each cabinet.

Once you drilled out all the pilot holes grab one of the bolts from the cabinet and use it as a test fit. Increase the size of your drill bits until you reach the size of the bolt.

Go back and enlarge all the holes to the same size.

Now you can put down the drill and switch to the screwdriver for good.

Slide each bolt through the back of the cabinet doors. Use the screwdriver to tighten the cabinet pulls to the door facing. You don’t want to crank down too hard on the screws you’ll risk stripping the screws and warping the door pulls.

All that’s left to do is clean up all the saw dust from the drilling. Just vacuum it all up and you’re finished!

Hopefully this guide on how to install cabinet door pulls will make your remodeling job a little easier. These are but a few tips to make the job go smoothly. Just snap a few chalk lines make a template and you’ll have new cabinet pulls up in a few short hours.

Author Jennifer Akre is an owner of a wide variety of online specialty shops including that offer both items and information on how you can easily furnish and decorate your space. Whether it is knobs for your bathroom or cabinet hardware for your kitchen there are many tips you can use to make those spots both functional and beautiful. Click today and indulge your senses.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jennifer_Akre
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Install-Cabinet-Door-Pulls&id=2557483

I found a nice contest over at the Router Table Depot.  They are giving away a 50 router bit set for joining their newsletter.  I thought this was one of those “no brainer” things since their newsletter gives out sales information, tips and coupon codes.  Considering the holidays are here, the chances of winning are way better than the lotto.  The 50 Piece set is nice too, 1/4″ carbide tipped and comes with the cabinet.  They even pay the shipping.  The drawing is on the 26th of November.

Enter the drawing Here

You can see the 50 Piece router bit set here.

This holiday season its time to either buy yourself a gift or get one for someone special.  I put together a little poll to gather some information.  Some people are focused on only buying brand named tools.  Some don’t care or maybe even do not know any better.  Truth is most brands manufacture somewhere else and you can find the exact same table with either different color sequences  and different brand names.  This is very common and happens often.  Does Price motivate you?  How about customer service?  Sometimes things get damaged in shipping, having someone to call can make the day!  Considering the fact that router tables have a lot of parts to them, its inevitable that one of those parts are not going to be perfect.  Having someone to contact can save the day in getting a replacement part.  Go ahead, say whats on your mind.

We did a review of the video series for Sommerfeld tools and its only fair to have a look at the router table that was featured in it.  If you are doing some research to figure out which table to buy, this table should certainly be included.  However it is not the cheapest and should be rightfully compared with router tables in its same price class.  It is well thought out and offers a very nice fence.  Below are the particulars for the table and the fence.  You can find the table at their website, www.sommerfeldtools.com

Table Top

Huge 36″ x 27″ extruded aluminum Table gives you plenty of support for your largest workpieces

This is a very interesting series by Sommerfeld Tools.  This particular video covers the “router tables made easy” DVD.  First off, a lot of people do not know much about Sommerfeld tools, they are not really lumped in with the big brand names.  In some ways that can be very good.  This 6 minute video shows a lot of information of what’s on the DVD, that is a good thing.  Here is an overview of the video:

• Preview from the “Made Easy” series
• New extruded table top overview
• Review of the cabinet DVD
• Table overview size is 36” x 27”
• Fence is 48” x 4 ¾”
• Fence uses retractable pin and good dust collection
• Sub fences
• 3 zero clearance inserts on fence
• 3 insert rings for the router table insert

Cabinet

• Building the face frame first
• Self aligning Tongue and Groove Joinery
• Laying out the parts
• Uses pocket hole joinery
• Matched tongue and groove router bits
• Uses a jig for bit height (available at their site)
• You cut all grooves at once
• Assembly of the case
• Drawer assembly
• Dovetail joinery for drawers, another cool jig that you use on your router table
• Easy set jig for cope cuts
• Drawer fronts
• Drawer pulls
• Easy board jig for mounting drawers
• DVD is only $9.90 plus free shipping

You can find this video here at there website.

This is a pretty neat video showing you some of the benefits of working with a monster router table.  The highlights of the video are:

Video summary Text

• Heavy duty gas operated lifting springs
• A 100lb top
• Locking knobs hold it down
• Easy router adjustments
• No router insert

You can also find this table at: