Ikea carries several lines of furniture. some are inexpensive and designed for people on a budget, and some are very high quality that wear well and have better wood components, hinges, levelling feet, etc.
The 32mm system, using materials and hardware (designed for RTA cabinetry) enable IKEA to ship cabinets flat in boxes, so that more product can be carried in trucks and containers. it also provides a standard assembly method for almost all IKEA casegoods.
While you may not consider all IKEA furniture quality, their products are functional and serviceable.
My opinion is that you get a good value for the money, just don’t expect something to hand down to your great grandchildren.
Disclaimer: I shop at IKEA, and am an Elite Tasker for Taskrabbit — which is owned by IKEA. I repair and assemble IKEA furniture for Taskrabbit. You can read my blog on woodworking here.
I will say that IKEA is known for it’s food. I love the meatballs.
If your log is green wood (freshly cut, or “wet”), you will need a bandsaw with a throat larger than 10″ (and capable of dealing with the irregularity in a long 10″ diameter log).
I would recommend (on the modest side) a 14″ – 18″ bandsaw like this one by Laguna Tools:
If the log is green, you have to allow for drying and shrinkage, so you may cut the pieces 1/2′ thick and then use a thickness planer to get it to the final 1/4″ thickness, after allowing the wood to dry to dry. (8–10% moisture content before planing). This is some good information on how to dry wood; Cutting And Drying Logs Into Boards – Woodworkers guild of America.
after the wood is dried to 6-10% moisture content, you will need a thickness planer. Thickness Planers are available from big box stores, Amazon, and eBay.
After the wood is sized to thickness, you will need a jointer and a table saw to clean up a long edge and square the board.
At this point your 1/4″ S4S (surfaced 4 sides) boards are ready for fabrication.
Some caveats: These are powerful machines, and caution must be exercised with each machining operation. Use protective gear like safety glasses, ear protection, dust protection, and gloves. Make sure you have all the machines setup and working correctly, and make test passes before machining all the wood, so the slabs will be uniform and true. (parallel sides).
Depending on your specific application, you may need a larger bandsaw, a tablesaw, a jointer, and more – especially if you make the jigs and supporting tables yourself.
Thank you for reading, and Have fun making your own boards from logs!
Disclaimer: I am a trained woodworker and have my own blog, The Chenkin Workshop
When you are painting or just hanging a sign, you don’t want the tape to rip the paint off your wall. It’s unsightly and sometimes difficult to repair. Avoid Duct tape, flex tape, most scotch tapes, and packing tapes.
Masking tape is not the best. It gets old, and the sticky glue can rip paint off a surface too easily, especially if you press it hard and it bonds to the paint. This doesn’t mean it won’t work, just that it is not “the best”. You have to use your judgement, and decide what option you are going to go with.
My best experience is with Blue Painters tape and Frog tape (images and links from Amazon:
There are lots of brands that make Painters tape – 3M, Scotch, etc., and most all will work. Try to use fresh tape whenever possible, and don’t leave it on more than a few days at most. Some tapes advertise that they can be left on for 30 days.
If you need to put up a hook that can come down without marring the wall, you can get these:
Command Hooks, available on Amazon, eBay, or at your local big box or hardware store. I use them for picture hanging, and keep an organizer box full of them in my van. Small ones don’t carry a lot of weight, so pay attention to the weight of what you are hanging.
If you have severely stained Cedar siding, you can power wash it with a wide nozzle and low pressure. Cedar siding is durable but can be damaged easily by excess pressure, especially when it is aged or very dried out. You should only use a wide nozzle, because the narrow stream of a straight nozzle is capable of drilling a hole in the soft cedar.
Let me expand on this:
First, make sure the siding is fastened well to the house. Even at low pressure, you can break loose cedar shingles. If you have to secure any loose shingles – ONLY USE SIDING NAILS! (other nails may rust or corrode and streak the siding). If you don’t have – or want – a power washer, You can even use garden hose with a pressure sprayer head like this:
Second, using a good cleaner BEFORE power washing to remove and brighten the siding will make the job easier with less power washing.
Rust-Oleum 16003 3-Pound Jar Wolman Deckbrite Wood Cleaner and Coating Prep – (From Amazon) is a typical deck wash. Avoid harsher bleaches. Power washing after you put this on will make your siding look new. You can put it on with a soft dip brush and extension pole (to make sure you get it into the grooves and dirty spots, or use a pump type Garden Sprayer. Wood cleaners remove the oxidation and mold from cedar siding prior to power washing.
After the Siding is clean, consider sealing it or staining it to slow down the aging process and prevent the cedar from drying out. Age and cleaning will dry the cedar, removing it’s adhesion a d resistance to wear and aging. It will also keep the siding clean and attractive longer.
Cedar siding is one of the best natural siding materials for your home. It is attractive and resistant to pests and weather. Keeping it maintained is a very smart investment for your home!
I hope you found my point of view enlightening and informative.
Today we have a unique showcase for displaying Cellos custom built by Stefan Dromlewicz, Woodworking contractor from Waldorf, Maryland, for Foxes Music in Falls Church, Virginia.
The piece was custom designed for the owner, and made from White Oak Plywood panels and solids, hand finished in a water based gloss polyurethane.
The cabinet features steel angle supports, bump rails, and assembly with finish screws for easy modification. It can hold 13 Cellos.
David with the fully populated Cello rack.David with the fully populated Cello rack.David and Stefan with the fully populated Cello rack.David going to get another Cello…. And another Cello…View from the back of Foxes Music Co.SEE? I told you the Cellos would fit….Finished display rack, spent woodworker!I built this! Look! (doing happy dance)A lot of work went into this. (reflective moment).David and Stefan with completed display!
The instrument slots feature padding to protect the neck of the cello, as well as the body, and turn the instrument approximately 30 degrees for added visibility.
The Cello display is a complement to the Violin display (not pictured).
Congratulations to Stefan and Foxes Music for this wonderful display!
Using an exotic wood in your projects can be visually exciting and fun. It adds an element of unique feeling to your work. Some exotics have properties in texture, tone, grain, and weight that make your work special.
The “Big Box” stores have traditional Lumber – typically an assortment of S4S Pine, Birch, Red Oak, Maple, and Poplar in varying thicknesses and lengths. Most typically 4/4″ dressed to 3/4″ finish thickness. while you are not paying for the waste, you are paying for a “milled to size” and ready to fabricate piece of lumber.
This is a photo of my kitchen table, with and inlaid chessboard , made by my dad in the ’80’s, and refinished by me. It is a combination of Walnut and Sugar Maple.
Most exotic and special order lumber ordered by the board foot, and is usually rough, meaning you will need a Jointer and a Thickness Planer to machine the wood to it’s finish size.
Traditional lumberyards, and the “pro desk” at a big box store can special order unique lumber for you, and even have it milled to size, saving you time and having to purchase a jointer and thickness planer.
If you look, you can see ads for Lumber in Craigslist, and Ebay is another potential source for exotics, as people tend buy much more than they need (I endorse the practice, and usually figure 20 – 25% overage, to cover errors and “oopses”). If you are really lucky, you can Google “Exotic Lumber” and a local source may pop up!
Don’t be afraid to put an ad up in the local lumberyard, or on some woodworking boards, to see if someone has the species you are looking for available. When we cleared out my dad’s basement, he had a lot of Walnut, Maple, Cherry, and other woods that he was “saving” for the right project. The woodworkers who bought this assortment of wood were excited to have it! Walnut trees mature after 160 years of growth; architectural grade Walnut from old growth trees is prized. This is especially true if you want a wider width, or want to “bookmatch” the boards from the same tree.
When you have the cut list for your project, add 20% for waste, and see what you can get. Be creative. IPE, a South American Hardwood popular for decks, may be available from local deck builders. that would be worth a few phone calls. If you make pens, smaller pieces my be all you need, and a furniture repair shop may have old case goods that have salvageable wood parts. repurposing wood is a very green thing to do.
This Amazon link illustrates a several types of covers. Order them NOW, before the winter – Local stores will run out of these, and they are so much easier to put on than wrapping the spigot with insulation, towels, etc.
If it is unusually cold, old timers would leave a small drip of water running, since moving water does not freeze. I would only do this in an extreme situation.
If you don’t cover the spigot, and it does freeze, you will have to have it repaired or replaced. this will cost a lot more than a cover. It is also a good idea to drain your hoses and bring them inside, or in a shed or garage, where they are shielded from the elements.
In my experience with water based dyes (Like Aniline or alcohol based dyes, etc.) the water “carries” the dye into the pores of the wood. After it dries, you need to “lock in” the dye with a sealing agent. In this case, Tung oil. There are other finishes that will work too, but you have to consider the use of the wood (Marine-commercial-decorative??) and the appearance you want to achieve.
Tung oil finishes usually take a day or two to dry, unless you rub it in several thin coats. It is also good for oily woods that need to be restored, as the oil soaks into the wood, renewing it’s luster. Unless you are familiar with it, make sure you test it on a piece of scrap. make sure you blow off the piece with compressed air or use a tack rag to clean the open grain prior to finishing. Tung oil is not a thick “top-coat” finish like polyurethane, it’s usually rubbed into the pores of the wood to seal it.
Tung oil is usually a wiped on finish; it’s a good idea to wear gloves and have good rags for wiping and cleanup! Remember the oily rags are combustible, so hang them or dispose of them carefully.
And here are some things you may want to have on hand:
My closet demon is messiness, that tends to get worse over time.
I have to make a conscious effort to get rid of old, ill fitting, or worn clothing, and find time to try on everything in the closet that may not fit right, or look right.
Some favorite shoes in a pile, that are way past their usable life? – I had to learn to let go.
You also have to put everything away when it comes back from the wash or dry cleaners.
Too many hangers? gotta go, gotta go!
Get bins for camera stuff, accessories, coin collections, etc. Clear things off the floor, get a shoe rack, tie rack, etc. Whatever makes sense.
It may not happen in a day (without extreme measures), but it can be done.
If necessary, get a closet organizer (from the big box store, container store, etc.) and carefully look at everything before putting it away. Strong lighting helps identify stained, worn, aging or discolored goods. Be ruthless – you can always get more.
Good luck with taming your closet demons! Fight the good fight!
I use a larger battery, like the 3 or 4 amp, and it has a laser guide to cut right on a pencil line. Or I spring clamp a board to the work as a guide for the saw shoe.
Let me tell you why it’s my favorite – I do a lot of work with 3/4 inch stock, and 1/2″ – 3/4″ plywood. (This little saw is not really suited for cutting larger 4×4’s or 2×6 boards)
No cord to get stuck on the work and pull you off the pencil mark; larger Lithium-Ion batteries give this little baby some power, and it is lightweight and quick – just grab it and go. Mine has the depth preset at about an inch.
Best part about this tool, is that it is carried at all Home Depot stores. If I manage to break it, I am 20 minutes away from picking up a new one. and yes, it is primarily a “homeowner-grade” tool, but it is accurate and well suited enough for my day to day woodworking. It is also available in the Ryobi Combo kit, like this one, where you get extra tools and batteries for big savings.
As there are improvements in the technology coming all the time, I expect to have new favorites, but this baby is a keeper. (Update: they just released the 7 1/4″ version. I may need to upgrade).
On more point; Don’t forget safety – just because it is quick and easy, keep the glasses, mask, and apron handy. And sweep up! don’t be tracking sawdust all over! Keep the dust broom and pan handy.
I hope you found my point of view enlightening and informative.