Sunday, July 22, 2018

How to Make a Large Bevel Gauge


A bevel gauge or false square is an adjustable gauge used for setting and transferring angles. A hardwood blade is connected to a wooden handle with a wing nut.









I have 2 bevel gauges and use them both. The small bevel gauge  I made a while back and it is small enough to fit in my pocket which comes in handy. It is just the right size for marking 2x4' s. and small pieces. Then I have the store bought one which has a blade around 6 inches long. 
                          


Working with larger projects it would make sense to make a larger bevel gauge. I have never seen large ones in stores.






The gauge I will be making will be 15" in length.  To cut the wood to size I will use a mitre gauge and a stopblock





I then used my  tablesaw clamp to make sure the piece cut tight to the fence. This helps to make a clean and accurate cut.




 


The gauge handle will be Brazilian cherry and the blade will be maple. 

Note: Everything can be sanded except for the inside of the 2 handle parts. Leaving these rough is important for clamping, when the wing nut is tightened it locks the blade real tight. 



The 3 pieces are clamped together with a hand screw clamp then put in a vise and one end is marked using a compass. Now the end can be drilled and rounded.  










The clamp is still on and a bolt is put in and the end can be trimmed on the bandsaw.  


 

Now it can be cleaned up with the belt sander.




 A  piece of the maple blade is cut and a piece of cherry. The cherry block should be cut a tiny bit thicker than the blade, it will be glued in one end.   


The end block is glued and clamped after it is dry it can be trimmed down. 

 

  A bolt, washer and wingnut will be used for the blade and handle. Tightening the wingnut will keep it very secure in any position. 


    I did a few tests at different angles and it works great. 



Conclusion

Bevel gauges are a must for any shop and making one yourself is very rewarding. 
A large one will come in handy when working with larger projects. 




I don't know why large ones  are not available in store. I like the idea I wont have to fuss with different size rulers when marking angles.





See Also


                                        
   
                 Mini Kerf Maker                                      Pocket Bevel Gauge                
                                                                        

Monday, July 2, 2018

Tool wall organizer





In the garage you can use your walls as storage space.  Keeping tools organized and the right tools at hand is important. Making these tool holders is easy and will look great in your shop. 


Watch the video here.



                               


I did not have a piece of birch plywood that was thick enough so I made my own by glueing two pieces of plywood together. One piece was a 5/8th" cheap plywood and the other was a 1/8" piece of Baltic birch.

  

  To measure the width of the wall where I wanted to put my tool wall I used my Dowel stop gauge




I transferred the measurement over to the table saw. Very simple and works accurately every time.





A notch was cut in the back board, this was for the Knife Switch. I made the switch for halloween a few years and found it very handy in the workshop so I left it up.


To make the tool blocks I will use a 2x4. This will be inexpensive but will look good and  work fine. First I will cut a couple of blocks to the approximate size and I will make sure to avoid most of the knots.

After the blocks were rough cut with the jigsaw I cleaned them up using the table saw.







 One of the tool holders I wanted to  make a little different. I cut 2 strips of Brazilian cherry and glued them on the top and bottom, this will give it some nice contrast.


 Here the ends are carefully marked and then drilled out with a 3/4" Forstner bit, this will be for the 3/4" dowels. 





I used my bandsaw sled to cut 6  3/4" inch dowels.


 The tool blocks are placed on the backboard and are squared up then the dowels are marked and ready to be drilled.






Time must be taken to space the holes for the Forstner bits. To do this I laid the block on its back and spaced the bits on the table then marked them.









 Here are the tool holders for my Forstner bits and screwdriver bits. This is what I wanted for now but the holders could be used for any tools you would like. 






Conclusion                                                                                                                                            
These tools holders are very easy to hang and move around the shop, they can also sit on a workbench.

It would be a good idea to make many of these blocks and use them for many different types of tools. Also 2 dowels can be placed anywhere in your shop and the blocks can hang  wherever you need them.                                                   
                                                                                                                                        
See also                                                                             

     Mini kerfmaker                         Tool wall holder              Spray can door rack