Tips and Tricks Archives - Page 2 of 2

An Amazing Random Orbital Sander Festool Doesn’t Want You to See! 😱

Here is a quick review of the Max XT random orbital sander. A great alternative to Festool and Mirka sanders, A 6in 5.0mm orbit makes quick work and is very stable on the work piece. It can be purchased here.

【Low Noise Sander】MAXXT random orbital sander with a 3A 350W brushless EC motor delivers stable speed, low noise, low maintenance requirements and a high degree of efficiency. The machine’s low weight and minimal noise emissions enable flexible and low-fatigue work.

【Low Vibration Sander】Low vibrations for comfortable working in continuous operation. The vibration-optimised eccentric drive guarantees low vibration during operation and therefore pleasant working.

【Ergonomic Design】The symmetrical design of the random orbital sander 6 inch is suitable for both right-handers and left-handers. This sander is perfectly built for manual operation to reduce fatigue when carrying out overhead sanding work and a good feeling on edges, as well as convenient operation in any position. The built-in overload protection ensures additional safety.

【High Efficiency】Unique brushless motor for maximum efficiency when sanding, even in continuous operation. EC technology results in longer life. For an optimum operating smoothness at speeds of up to 10,000 rpm.

【Low Maintenance】The multi-hole pad holder guarantees effective removal of the sanding dust in combination with an industrial vacuum cleaner. Due to no carbon brushes are used, the sander also requires significantly less maintenance.

POLISHING COMPOUNDS

COMPOUND CATEGORIES

There are three primary categories of polishing compounds:

Cutting compounds known as Tripolis. High cuts remove more than lower cuts. These compounds eliminate dull scratches and emery marks to deliver a smooth, dull, surface.
Intermediates, which cut away rough surfaces and provides a degree of luster.
Finishing rouges, which are burnishing compounds used to deliver a high-quality polish.

Polishing compounds come in many forms, with surfaces that range from extra coarse to extra-fine. Depending on the application and how much smoothing needs to be done, different compounds can be used during the process to achieve the desired results.

If you are new to sharpening, you can view our free tutorials here

COMMONLY-USED POLISHING COMPOUNDS

I have compiled a list of commonly-used polishing compounds along with their recommended applications below. The most common compound used in woodworking is green but white works very well also.

GREEN

This intermediate metal polishing compound is mainly used to finish stainless steel surfaces, which is why it is often referred to as the stainless steel compound. It removes scratches and provides a mirror-like finish.

WHITE

Used primarily on hard metals and stainless steel, white polishing compounds have a finer composition that make it ideal for the cutting and intermediate stages of the polishing process.

BLACK

The black polishing compound is used in smaller doses to add shine to aluminum, steel, copper, brass, and similar metals. The black emery compound in particular is recommended if you need to remove deep scratches or smooth rough surfaces.

BROWN

The brown polishing compound is highly versatile and commonly used to polish surfaces on softer metals like brass, copper, and aluminum. It can even be applied to wood surfaces, resulting in a lustrous finish.

YELLOW

These dry, low-residue polishing compounds deliver a brilliant shine on hard metals like gold and platinum, which is why this particular compound is popular in the jewelry industry.

PINK

This dual-purpose compound is applied in the first stage of soft metal polishing and in the final stage of hard metal polishing to add a finishing touch. It is one of the most versatile compounds, as it can also be used on wood, painted surfaces, and plastic.

Stratocaster guitar, Custom build.

This build started life as a ST Style Paulownia build your own kit. When I received it I decided to do a couple of minor mods to the body

The building of my stratocaster guitar was a very fun and relaxing build. I used paints I had never used before and received excellent results in the process. This is a sponsored build with Thefretwire.com

This build started life as a ST Style Paulownia build your own kit. When I received it I decided to do a couple of minor mods to the body to make it a little different from others in this design. All of the rounded corners were chamfered and the jack plate hole plugged and moved to the side of the body.

My first step was to take the Stratocaster guitar body to the spindle sander. I gently sanded the outer edges of the entire body to square off the sides and remove the rounded shaped look. I sanded with 80 grit the stepped up to 120 grit to get it shaped like I had in mind. the idea here was slow and easy to keep the main shape just make it look a little different so it stands out.

The next step was to remove those annoying rounded over corners. To add some style to the shape, a chamfer all the way aroundis added. I chamfered both sides and where the belly cut is. I let the chamfer fade into the belly cut so the body was not sharp and pointy in that area. With a little hand sanding the belly cut blends right into the chamfers on the back and looks seamless.

I marked a square area around the stock jack plate hole and used a chisel to cut back to the line so the 1/4 in spiral upcut bit in the next step didn’t cause tear out on the body. Use a sharp knife to mark out the lines you want to cut to then take a sharp chisel and cut back to the line you just made so the router bit cuts up to the line cleanly.

I used a small Grizzly plunge router to slowly cut out the hole for the jack plate. Then I plugged it with a piece of poplar scrap 5/8 of an inch thick. A new jack plate hole was drilled into the lower side of the body. Set the depth stop on the router so you know when you have reached the proper depth and take a few shallow passes to get clean cuts down to final depth.

After filling the jack plate hole I sealed the body and sanded to make everything look like a factory body. I then drilled into the end of the body to attach the new jack plate.

The next step was applying a few even coats of a heavy silver metal flake paint from Duplicolor. The metal specks paint has a very nice sized flake that is perfect for applying a candy paint over.

The body was sprayed with blood red candy color. Then it was sprayed with 6 coats of clear and wet sanded and buffed. In the sun it really shines!!

The Queenanne end table project.

Since I made the Queenanne sofa table I needed two end tables to match it. Like the sofa table they are made from air dried rough sawn cherry lumber and finished with General Finishes water based dye stain and Old world garnet shellac mixed in a one pound cut so I could layer it to achieve the tone I was looking for.

To get started I made the leg blanks out of 4/4 rough sawn cherry lumber from a local mill. Each leg is made up from 4 boards glued up to give me the 3 inch thickness I needed. Then I trace my template onto the leg blanks twice. They are then cut out on the band saw. Each leg requires four long cuts to make the shape.

Cut along one part of the pattern then tape it back on to the blank. You can see the tape in the picture to the right. This is done because you will cut your pattern off the second side and you need to add it back to the blank. Your cuts do not need to be perfect because you will be shaping with files and rasps in the next step.

After cutting your pattern four times per leg you will end up with something like the picture to the left. A rough Cabriole leg. This was cut on a 9 inch under powered bandsaw so it is very rough. But I didn’t worry about that because the fun part comes next. Shaping them so they all look alike.

Once you get the legs cut you can start the fun time of shaping them with files and rasps. Start out by marking layout lines to so you know where to stop removing excess material and start with the rasps. On these legs I marked a little over 1/4 inch from each corner. The amount removed is up to you and your design.

I then started with a spokeshave to remove the most of the material slow and easy until I hit my layout lines. When I reached a curved section I use my Narex chisels to cut back to the line. I stop now and then to be sure that I am heading in the right way with my design so I do not go to far or maybe I need to remove more to get the desired shape.

Once I get back to my lines I grab my Narex rasps and start rounding over the edges until I get a shape I like. Go slow and easy so you don’t make any area to narrow for the look of the legs. Once you get the basic shape with the rasps the switch to a fine file to refine your curves. You might even want to get some needle files for the tight spots.

Work with one leg until it is exactly how you want it to look. Then you have a template you can compare the other three to as you repeat the process on them one by one. There is no set standard pattern for these. You can make them look how you want. You can carve them or make them as round as you want, It is all up to you.

A dust collection option to Festool and Rockler kits

After purchasing a Festool Domino I started looking for a dust collection option. The Festool hose is so expensive and the Rockler kit was on backorder at the time. So i sat down and started to do some research and found this kit on amazon and it is perfect, cost effection, and in stock.

The Cen-Tec 94181 is a great dust collection option to the Festool hose and connector and the Rockler dust rite system. The hose comes in different lengths and comes with two adapters for common port sizes seen today. They also sell different sized adapters incase you need a special size for your tool. With this one hose and a set of adapters I was able to hook all of my smaller tools to the shop vac and keep my lungs cleaner.