Watcha Makin'?

[samandothers]

@firefighter ontheside did you fill the corner and one edge with epoxy?  They appear different colors and maybe finish, are they?  The pours look very good and the table on the SS does make the walnut stand out.  

[21incher]

Only  making some fridge magnets to put in stockings. 5 down  95 to go. A great  way to use up scrap 



 

 
 

 r>
My wife thinks  some are mean but I say I have put careful thought into wo gets them. Bought a bunch  of commercially licensed artworks so I can sell a batch also. Takes about  5 minutes to make one on my little lasers and when my Co2 laser arrives should  only take a minute each. Having fun before the big projects start. Who else is making Christmas trinkets.

[beenthere]

Looks like you could do better with the language. At least for the FF.  tks.

Gift idea is good, and good luck with the quantity needed.

[firefighter ontheside]

Sam, the one corner and the middle of other end have black resin poured in the void.  On that last picture of mine its hard to tell the difference between the edge of the stainless and the edge of the walnut.  The finish is the same on the resin and the walnut, linseed oil.

[21incher]

Looks like you could do better with the language. At least for the FF.  tks.

Gift idea is good, and good luck with the quantity needed.

I marked them up

[Don P]

I prefer one long spline that comes within about an inch and a half of each edge or if it's like 20" long, I will put in 4 splines about 4-5" wide.

;D

[firefighter ontheside]

I did a search for singer sewing machines and found someone selling just the cast base parts for $40.  Perfect...then I don't have to feel guilty about ruining an antique.  That will  be my next table with a matching piece of walnut.

[doc henderson]

I made a table with one.  some of the antique folks get a bunch of the bases.  we have a Renews it store and they have to store them at a nearby warehouse open on Saturdays to decrease inventory.

[Old Greenhorn]

I prefer one long spline that comes within about an inch and a half of each edge or if it's like 20" long, I will put in 4 splines about 4-5" wide.

;D

What did I say? ???

[Larry]

I did a search for singer sewing machines and found someone selling just the cast base parts for $40.  Perfect...then I don't have to feel guilty about ruining an antique.  That will  be my next table with a matching piece of walnut.

The only ones I can afford to buy are so far gone they can't be restored.  On the last three I got the cabinets were trash.  I did salvage a few of the drawers and the actual machines went to two other people for parts.  $30 to $60 seems to be the price at auctions.  It is sorta amazing at all the different companies that were making them at the time.

[Don P]

You prefer one long spline for big stuff, unless its 20" long, then you use 4 5" long ones. Is that the same as 6 of one? I am just picking at you  ;D.

[Old Greenhorn]

OK, yeah, much confusion. When I said one long spline, I meant about 6" long or what fits as opposed to 1" dominos x 3. I never go over 6" long splines just because fitting and gluing is a pain, so on a 20" long joint I will put in three 6" splines or so. That's why I asked what you meant, I figured I had not been clear, and I was right. Making an 18" wide board at 3/8 think is more than I can do, so I just make one 6" wide, plane to thickness checking with calipers, and cut them off as required then put the board aside as stock for the next time. The grain has got to run the right way and it has to be clear solid stock.

[tule peak timber]

you might want to take a look at baltic birch plywood for your long splines 

[Old Greenhorn]

Rob, with full respect to your encyclopedic knowledge and experience, I am not seeing how plywood would be an improvement? Half the grain is running the wrong way for one, and a piece only 3/8 thick can't be as strong as a piece of clear Ash with it's grain all running the 'right' way, can it? Even just comparing Birch to Ash I will have to go look, but I think the ash will be much stronger, won't it?
Besides. I don't have any of that material, it's real pricey around here and not sure if I could buy small pieces.

EDIT TO ADD:

 Ok, I just did some homework and as usual, learned something. Birch is marginally stronger than Ash. Also see in the charts that Hickory is far better than both. Guess I should get some of the drying.
 However, I still don't see the value of plywood over clear straight grained wood in this application. Can you point me at a reference for that kind of data?

[DMcCoy]

Splines.  Cross grain, 20:1, 10:1 run out or just straight grain? 
we use old sewing machines as end tables for our couch.

[firefighter ontheside]

Baltic birch would make a great spline.  There are no voids.  The stuff I just got is right at 1/4" which is why I used it for the panels in the cabinet doors I just made.  There is plenty of wood running in the direction you need it to be.  The spline really is just for alignment and the strength of the joint should come from all the glue surface.  It also saves a bunch of time making the spline.  

[Hilltop366]

Me thinks the point was plywood for long spline so you don't need a extra wide board. 

[firefighter ontheside]

That too.

[tule peak timber]

The Baltic ply is very stable and strong can be used in long lengths for tenons, splines, and sistering under a slab to slab application. I think you can buy smaller quantities from Rockler and such to keep the cost down. You can also glue it up to make massive dominoes for timber joinery (slip tenons).I use traditional MT, slip tenons, and splines depending on the project size. The Baltic goes into the hole, long or narrow every time without struggling -nice and stable.
 . There is also tooling made for a shaper that makes self-aligning grooves in edge-to-edge boards that is cool because you end up with flat panels every time at clamping.

This tooling is nice for repetitive work like restaurant tables or big door panels for a house outfitting. It is like micro MT.  
  Back to splines, I find it easier(faster) to plow two pockets on a shaper or router table on opposing boards than making individual pocket holes for dominoes. Pulling a scrap of Baltic off the shelf running it through the saw and I'm ready to go.
 A little trick on the waterfall knife edge is to make the spline a little loose in the dado pockets and use thickened epoxy for glue. You will have time to "tweak" the fit to perfection for that "knife "edge. A little walnut waterfall.

 

 

[Old Greenhorn]

Well I am with Rob on the long routed slots. As for the choice of plywood over natural woods I will stick with what I use. Bill, I will disagree with you on the question of strength. Unlike biscuits and dowels, which only provide alignment, these splines do give a LOT of added strength to the joint. Consider that on a 45° joint you are still gluing end grains to each other and we all know there ain't much there for strength. The spline is glued inside the mortise to more of the long grain and provides a lot of added strength. When I make this bench I don't even need to glue it before I can sit on it. The spline take my weight easily. So there is that. We all have our ways and thoughts and beliefs, hopefully founded in some good logic. For me, this works and I am satisfied the bench, in this case, turned out as well as my skills will allow.



 

 The joint matches don't look too bad either, I think.



 

 Now I just have to do some more finish coats and find somebody that just 'has to have this' bench. I am thinking $450., what do y'all think?

[terrifictimbersllc]

 $450=1.5 SGU= 1 SOGHU.  8)

[Old Greenhorn]

Well Dennis, I think I am honored. But if I had a say I would think an SOGHU = $500 because that's a nice round number I use to figure expenses and incomes. I actually thought about that price on this piece, but if I can sell it locally, I knocked off 50 bucks because I am not thoroughly pleased with the finish. If it was to sell through a broker or outlet, it would have to bring in more than than. But it's entirely up to the buyer. It might sit for a year or two and go for a song, which is what I think will happen to a lot of my 'stock'. It's why I prefer to make things to order and make everybody happy.

[Wlmedley]

Tom,I think you will get your price.Nice bench!

[Old Greenhorn]

Thanks Wlmedley, I just have to find the right person for this and that can be a search.

 Dennis I went back and checked on the FF lore for the SGU. I had thought it originated with Posten Whitehead, but now I se it was actually Southside? Not sure how I had that wrong, but I suppose we should run it by him before we make any alterations. I don't want to get in Dutch. I think it's best to just stay with the SGU we all know to avoid confusion, next thing you know we will have our own version of SGUcoins running rampant and you know how that can turn out. ;D

[Andries]

Hey Tom, some of us Dutch-born guys might resemble that remark! 😋 
The way I remember it, Poston's price on:
a fancy bench $350
an outhouse $350 
a bar top $350
Since his nickname was The Goat, $350 was named (by Southside?) the Standard Goat Unit. The infamous SGU. 
No blockchains we're involved and bitcoins weren't a thing yet, at least not for me.