Lost Art Press

Tools to Make ‘Smalls’

Posted on by Lost Art Press

Our new “Smalls” pocket book contains plans for 18 on-the-wee-side projects that will help use up nice offcuts from your scrap bin. And if you ever need to whip up a last-minute handmade gift, “Smalls” will be a big help.

A few beginning woodworkers have asked us what tools they’ll need to build the projects in the book. So we compiled a complete list of tools mentioned in the book, and we listed them below.

Don’t freak out. You don’t need all these tools. Instead, you can choose from path A, B or C. Read on, and it will all make sense.

Saws
• Band saw
• Coping saw (with fine blades)
• Crosscut and rip backsaws
• Table saw (if not using hand tools for dados, rabbets and grooves)

A small band saw (such as a 10″ benchtop model) will allow you to make all the straight and curved cuts necessary to build the projects in the book. Or, if you want to do things by hand, get two backsaws and a coping saw to handle the straight and curved cuts. A table saw will let you make all the straight cuts – and it can help you make a lot of the joints, too. 

Striking
• Mallet
• 8-10 oz. hammer
• 16 oz. hammer

You could get by with just one of these tools if need be. I’d probably choose the 16 ounce hammer, which is a standard size in most workshops.

Engraving
• Engraving tool

One of the projects (the six-board chest) uses our Crucible engraving tool to decorate its front. 

Marking & Measuring
• Compass
• Sliding bevel
• 12″ and 6″ combination square
• Protractor

You don’t need all of these tools. A combination square (either size) will be the most handy. If the project uses angles other than 90°, you’ll also need the sliding bevel and a protractor. The compass helps you lay out arcs and use the engraving tool.

Planes
• Block plane
• Jack plane
• Smoothing plane
• Skew rabbet plane
• Router plane
• Plow plane
• Beading plane

I know, I know, that’s a long list of planes. You don’t need them all. You can get by with only one of the three general-purpose planes: block, jack or smooth plane. The next three planes are for hand joinery. If you have a table saw, you can skip these. And the beading plane is for decoration.

Chisels/Gouges
• 1/4″ and 1/2″ chisel
• Any “tight sweep” carving gouge

You need at least one chisel to make anything out of wood. If you are going to buy only one for this book, get the 1/4″ tool. Also, a carving gouge is helpful in adding decorative details. 

Shaping & Finishing
• Rasp (fine and coarse)
• Sandpaper (#120, #220)
• Fine sanding sponge

After you make your curved cuts, you’ll need to clean up the work with either a rasp or sandpaper. You don’t have to have both. The fine sanding sponge is for achieving a smooth finish after a coat of paint or film finish.

Etc.
• Drill/driver
• Drill press
• Pin nailer
• 1″ tenon cutter
• Drawknife
• Spokeshave
• 1″ auger bit
• Router (with thumbnail bit)
• Adhesive spray

A drill/driver is a must in our workshop. You can use that instead of a drill press for almost any drilling operation called for in “Smalls.” A pin nailer is only necessary if you don’t want to drive your nails with a hammer. The next four items – 1″ tenon cutter, drawknife, spokeshave, 1″ auger bit – are necessary only if you want to build the stool in the book. And the adhesive spray is very helpful for attaching patterns to wood (the book contains a lot of patterns…).

— Christopher Schwarz & Kale Vogt

An American, an Irish Chair, in Germany

Posted on by Lost Art Press

I’ve taught woodworking at Dictum GmbH in Germany for many years. And it’s always a bit disorienting (but fun). I’m an American with a German last name who teaches people how to make chairs from Wales, Scotland and Ireland. And the students are German, Swedish, Mexican, Polish, Dutch….

And the class is in Bavaria. But taught in English.

Somehow we make it work, and the classes are always the highlight of my summer. During the last decade, I’ve made lots of close friends overseas through these classes. This year I taught students how to make an Irish Gibson chair, then we spent a week making a comb-back chair with steam-bent components.

Heiko Pulcher, one of my friends at Dictum, took the following video during my class on the Gibson chair. Check it out.

This class also represented a big step forward in my understanding of this Irish chair. I’ve been making this chair form for eight years now, and I have continually refined the process to make it simpler and to remove jigs and math.

I think I have finally nailed it.

This year I plan to film the new process. It will replace our existing video for sale in our store. If you bought the old video, you will get the new one for free. Stay tuned.

— Christopher Schwarz

Kill Wood-boring Insects with Kitchen Appliances

Posted on by Lost Art Press

When I first started harvesting green wood for my workshop, I was worried about bringing wood-boring insects into my workshop. It would be like letting loose 1,000 raccoons into a Golden Corral restaurant.

So I got some advice from fellow woodworkers. All of the advice involved pesticides. And some of it sounded reckless. (Put the wood in a garbage bag with an aerosol bug bomb. Be sure to tie up the bag really quick!)

Years ago, I found this short article by Michael F. Potter, an extension entomologist at the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, and it was exactly what I wanted. Potter recommends eliminating insects from the wood using your fridge or your oven.

I’ve been using his freezing method for several years, and it has worked brilliantly.

In short: Put the wood in your freezer and set it for -4° F. Let the wood stay there for seven days. Remove it. Done.

Potter recommends using a plastic bag to protect the wood, but he’s mostly concerned about finished household items. I haven’t found it necessary when freezing raw wood.

The article also discusses how to kill bugs with your oven and gentle heat. I haven’t tried this method yet. I want to experiment first with some test pieces that are green because the method might rapidly dry out the stock and check the ends. (Potter does recommend adding a pan of water to the oven to keep the humidity high. I am interested in this technique; I just haven’t had time to give it a go.)

Another bonus with the freezing method: If you keep the green wood in the freezer it won’t dry out and will stay green as long as it’s frozen.

All this is just another excuse to add a beer fridge insect deinfestation device to your workshop.

— Christopher Schwarz

Slöjd Key Fob from ‘Karvsnitt’

Posted on by fitz

The following is one of the projects in Jögge Sundqvist’s book “Karvsnitt: Carving, Pattern & Color in the Slöjd Tradition”

Cutting patterns and symbols in wood, and enhancing them with vibrant color, are folk traditions kept alive in the slöjd craft. Through decorations imbued with meaning, chip carving has given soul to slöjd woodcraft throughout history. Even today, chip carving offers a natural complement to an artfully crafted spoon, cutting board or shrink box – and it provides the opportunity to develop your own creativity and meaningful patterns.

This book teaches you techniques for cutting triangle chips, fingernail cuts, lines and letters — plus you’ll learn what kind of wood, knives and tools you need to get started, and techniques for painting your finished work. You’ll find 15 projects, from simple decorations on knife handles and signs to more demanding objects such as boxes and combs.

A good way to practice cutting patterns is to make a bunch of key fobs. The main purpose of a key fob is to indicate which lock the key is for. It should also be handy enough to fit in your pocket, but large enough to prevent the key from being lost. Some hotel key fobs are large and heavy so that the traveler won’t forget it in their pocket. The color and shape should be distinct, so that you don’t have to read the carved text every time you are looking for a key.

Level of difficulty: easy

Tools: Saw, axe, drawknife, sheath knife, fine-toothed Japanese saw, chip carving knife, drill 4mm (3/16″).

Material: Straight-grained birch, alder, willow or aspen. Metal wire or a small staple.

The blank should be 20-25cm (~8″) long. This makes it easier to quickly carve it smooth with a knife or in a shaving horse.

Choose the width and final length of your key fob. A standard size to start from is 6 x 30 x 80mm (1/4″ x 1-1/4″ x 3-1/8″).

METHOD
From straight-grained, knot-free material, split out a blank and thin it down to a thickness of about 5-6mm (~1/4″). Carve it smooth with a drawknife or a long sheath knife on both sides.

Start by making a few sketches that you are happy with. Keep in mind that the letters should not be too small, otherwise they will be difficult to cut. Between 12 and 15mm (1/2″-9/16″ )is a good place to start.

There are different ways to attach the key. You can drill a 4mm (3/16″) hole for a string or strap, or you can insert a 19mm (3/4″) long staple into two 1.5mm (~1/16″) holes drilled into the end-grain wood.

Draw the outer contours onto the blank and saw it out a little roughly. Carve the sides and chamfer all the edges. Cut any concave surfaces with a gouge, such as grooves and shallow relief carvings.

Draw the text and any decorations as carefully as you can. Strop your chip carving knife, find good lighting and start cutting your pattern using the chip carving techniques.

When you are happy with the pattern, you can paint your key ring; see the chapter on painting.

Mind Upon Mind: Help With Planing Octagons

Posted on by Kara Uhl

Editor’s note: Our Mind Upon Mind series is a nod to a 1937 Chips from the Chisel column (also featured in “Honest Labour: The Charles H. Hayward Years”), in which Hayward wrote, “The influence of mind upon mind is extraordinary.” The idea being there’s often room for improvement. To that end, we’ve asked you what else you have thought of, tried out and improved upon after building projects from our books.

Send us your own ideas! Email [email protected]. You can read more about the submission process here.

Today’s pick is courtesy of Adam Chevalier. Thanks, Adam!

— Kara Gebhart Uhl

I believe Chris has moved from his planing cradle to his carver’s vise for holding legs and sticks [while planing them] because it can be tricky to keep the work from sliding around in a planing cradle.

I tried this, but it raised the work too high for me to keep good pressure on my plane. Instead, I fastened the planing cradle to the bench as if it was a wide board with a stop and doe’s foot.

To keep the work from sliding, I just put some painter’s tape on the inside of the cradle and attached a block with CA (cyanoacrylate) glue to keep the work stationary.

— Adam Chevalier