Well Teague is crawling up a storm and I am STILL making the fence to keep him away from the wood stove. Well, I guess I need to adjust my goal. I will have the fence done by the time he is walking. (or driving, whichever is later...)
The fence is five sided to match the stone platform on which the stove sits. I decided to use mitered halved corner joints. They seem simple, but they are harder than they look. Plus, they are right there, out in the open for all to see. Hmm. Maybe I should have used some other joint...
The angle is marked using a sliding bevel (adjusted for each corner as the original builders of the platform didn't give a rip if the angles were congruent or not) marked with a knife, and then a second knife cut in the waste side creates a tiny groove to guide the saw.
The piece is clamped in the end vise and the depth is marked.
Rip down to the shoulder...
...then crosscut the shoulder...
...and clean it all up with a chisel.
Now only 15 more of these and I can start on the endless mortise and tenons. "Hey Teague! Crawling is important for brain development - keep working on it buddy!"
Dang, that's a pretty looking half-joint. What kind of wood are you using for that?
ReplyDeleteAs for the crawling, we are going though our own baby-proofing phase. That must be an important part of adult development - trying to look at things from a baby's perspective, find what is most dangerous, and figure that that is what they will first go for.
Great start on the fence.
Dan: I always look forward to your post when I see that you have updated with a new post or project.
ReplyDeleteI do have a question for this Project thou... When you are Cutting your 1/2 Lap Joints... Do you undercut just a Sly to compensate for extra Material Lost from the chisle to smooth it out?
Or are you that AWESOME, that you cut it dead on with min cleanup and great connection of the 2 joints? lol
I can't wait to see new post on this project!
Handi
Hey, if it takes long enough, then Teague can help you with it.
ReplyDeleteGeemoney - the wood is some kind of mahogany-like stuff (not to get technical or anything :) It's a little odd, some of it is hard as a rock and some of it is pop corny. But I can get it clear and cheap and it works out well if I remember to get extra.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about trying to think like a baby - will he go for the pile of toys? or the electrical outlet? The outlet! And Teague successfully defeated a second brand of outlet cover tonight! It took him about 1/2 a second to whip that thing off the wall - sheesh!
Handi - there are probably a lot of different ways to approach this, but here's my technique. I mark the piece dead on half-thickness. Then I saw just on the waste side of the line. If I nail it, it doesn't need much cleanup and things work just fine. If I wandered as I was sawing (usually from forcing the saw) then I flatten it with the chisel. The two glued surfaces need to be flat to get a strong glue joint. If I wandered farther into the waste side, everything is fine. If I wandered the other direction, that's a problem. If I haven't cut the other piece for that joint yet, I can try to adjust it (make it thicker) to compensate, or if it is very close, I can clean things up by planing the top and bottom of the glued joint. I aim for perfection, but rarely hit it :)
Josh - Great idea! I'll just add that to Teague's chore list...
Looking good...sounds like Teague is growing up quick!
ReplyDeleteHey Kerry -
ReplyDeleteYes, he sure is! I really need to get this thing done fast.
Your blog is looking great and I am glad you are having fun. We still need to make that cribbage board sometime. And thanks for the book, it really has me wanting to build a boat.
Dan: I hear you... I aim for perfection for all my Projects as well. Sometimes I get it, sometimes I beat myself up wondering why it didn't go the way it was Planned.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the heads up, this will help me out when I attempt to do these joints with Hand tools...
Handi