Messages

421

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / How would you cut out the letters?

« on: July 07, 2012, 10:06:55 am »

I cut out some words from a piece as shown in the pictures below.  Getting in the interior portions of the capital "A" back in place was easy, but the lower case "b", "o", and "a" were a real problem.  In the case of the "A", I cut the outer perimeter of the letter, then filed away the front 1/2 of the bottom of the pyramid.  It was easy for the "A" but the smaller lower case letters were a real problem.  I ended up cutting slightly over-sized lower case letters and filing the interior piece to fit.

It was very fussy and not very pretty.  One option would be to put a backer on but I wanted to be able to see through where the letters were cut out.

Does anyone have a better idea on how to do this? 

Thanks,
Jim
PS
This was for the flooring company that gave me a bunch of sample.  I wanted to use two of their samples to make this.  When I gave them the piece, they gave me another box of samples - cumaru, jabota, walnut, and tauari.  The best part is that most are unfinished so I don't have to get out the belt sander.
J

422

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Re: Picture frame making video

« on: July 07, 2012, 09:28:11 am »

mrsn, good point.  I just cut it quickly to see how it would work.  I did notice that some parts of the "joints" are  tight and others are loose - must have pushed sideways.

Jim

423

Computer questions / Re: Computer infection

« on: July 06, 2012, 11:06:28 pm »

The FBI has been running servers to protect infected computers against the problems, including no Internet service, to give people time to check their computers.  These servers shut down this weekend so if your computer hasn't been checked, you may be unable to connect to this forum.

For more information, see my first post on this.  The post also gives links you can use to see if you are infected.

Good luck,
Jim

424

Ask Steve a question. / Re: key chain maker

« on: July 06, 2012, 09:43:19 pm »

Well, let's see . . .
- rent instructional cat skinning video, study carefully, and apply what you learn
- try the classic 'toothpaste tube' method
- centrifugal force
- suddenly and severely frighten cat. try sneaking up and clapping cymbals
- press cat's eject button

That should prove there is more than one way to skin a cat.
Jim
PS
No cats were harmed during the composing of this reply.
J
PPS
I stole these from http://popechuck.tripod.com/nonpope/skinacat.html
J

425

Ask Steve a question. / Re: key chain maker

« on: July 05, 2012, 09:23:38 am »

Even though Steve doesn't personally answer many post on this part of the forum, most of the questions are answered.  Sometimes there are differing opinions but that only proves there is more than one way to skin a cat.

I agree with Russ, Steve does a lot for us, for free.

Jim

426

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Re: Picture frame making video

« on: July 05, 2012, 08:28:14 am »

Made a frame, as a test, using some scrap wood - that's why the surface looks rough. The layout lines were only a guide.  (Should have turned the frame over to hide the lines.)

I used an FD-UR #5 blade as that is what was in my saw.   

!!!  Correction - I used a FD-SR #7 blade - much larger than I thought.  Maybe that's the cause of the poor fit.   !!!

The joints are not very tight compared to the samples the Japanese scroller showed but I found a note on his site that he fills the gaps with wood flour (sawdust).

Most picture frames will be fairly thick, at least 1/2" so the combined cut would be 1" thick.  If anyone has any suggestions on getting a tighter fit, I'd be interested in their comments.

Jim

427

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Re: Picture frame making video

« on: July 05, 2012, 07:24:56 am »

I looked at the video's site www10.ocn.ne.jp/~kouzou/ - it's only in Japanese but if you copy the URL (www10.ocn.ne.jp/~kouzou/) into the Google search page and then in the search results select the "translate this page" option, you can look around his site.  Google automatically translates each page of the site as you click on it.  The translation is rough but you get the idea. 

He gives instructions and a video for his creations so you can get the idea.

I got a kick out of on of his toys (third column - A Simple Toy), but then I have a weird sense of humour. 

Have fun looking around, you may get some ideas.
Jim
PS
I'm working on a frame using his method and will report soon.
J

428

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Re: Picture frame making video

« on: July 02, 2012, 06:32:06 pm »

Found it, after I used the proper search terms.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AM-3BjC4quw

Jim

429

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Picture frame making video

« on: July 02, 2012, 06:21:23 pm »

A while ago I read a post, perhaps on this forum but perhaps not, with a link to a video of a guy making picture frames.  Instead of making 45 degree mitres, he overlapped the corners and cut a sort of squiggly line through both pieces.  The two pieces would then fit together and hold without glue.  But, glue was probably used in the final assembly.

Can anyone point me to this video?

Thanks,
Jim

430

The Coffee Shop / Re: Sleep apnea

« on: June 30, 2012, 10:57:34 pm »

Bill, my friend who wears a CPAP swears by a mask that has a little nub that goes in each nostril and wouldn't change.  That type, called a nasal pillow mask, should work with a beard and mustache.

Something to remember if you need to back on the CPAP.

This site http://www.sleepnet.com/apnea/apneainf.html has a lot of information on CPAP usage and many people's experience.

Good luck,
Jim

431

The Coffee Shop / Re: Sleep apnea

« on: June 30, 2012, 08:27:26 pm »

A friend has sleep apnea and has been wearing a CPAP for well over 5 years.  It makes a great difference in the quality of the sleep and in the amount of energy available during the day.  It took a while trying different masks to get the right one - the supplier of the unit allowed testing 4 or 5 different masks, at no charge, which helped a lot.

It does take a bit of time to get used to the mask but if you a CPAP, don't give up on it as the results are worth it.  Extreme cases of untreated sleep apnea could result in gangrene and amputation of the lower legs!!

Most CPAP machines work with distilled water to humidify the air.  The cheapest place to get distilled (not bottled), is a the local wine making store.  In Montreal, it runs $2 for 10 litres (2.6 USG). 

Another thing for travelers, the airport security will allow you to bring a liter or two on board - for the CPAP.  The CPAP is considered a medical device so it doesn't count in the number of bags you can carry on board.  Check with your air security organization for the details.

I recommend carrying the CPAP prescription, or a copy of it, with you and also that you ask the doctor to specifically write "distilled water" on the prescription.

Best of luck and remember, if you need it, use it.
Jim

432

Computer questions / Re: Puter cleanup

« on: June 23, 2012, 05:15:03 pm »

Defragging your hard drive will help speed things up.  Windows comes with its own defrag program but I like Defraggler, from the same people that make CCleaner. http://www.piriform.com/products

Running the "Disk Cleanup" program in Windows is also a good idea.

Jim

433

Computer questions / Enlarging patterns

« on: June 21, 2012, 12:52:10 pm »

I want to enlarge some of Steve's patterns (PDF file) by 300 or 400%.  I have also wanted to enlarge bitmap (jpg) images to cut larger pieces.

I found a clever way to enlarge PDFs http://ask-leo.com/how_can_i_enlarge_a_pdf_for_printing.html but the patterns start to get a little fuzzy as they get larger.  PDfs are raster images so I would need a program to manipulate raster images. 

Using GIMP for JPGs (bitmap image) results in very fuzzy blowups and it is hard to follow the line.

How do you make significant enlargements of bitmap and PDF images?  Freeware is preferred, naturally.

Thanks,
Jim

434

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Re: Stack Cutting Question

« on: June 21, 2012, 12:17:34 pm »

Rog, that's the smart way to do it but I cut the "P" first and then thought about how to cut the inner part.

Next time,
Jim

435

Tutorials, Techniques and Tips / Re: Stack Cutting Question

« on: June 21, 2012, 09:19:29 am »

Thanks to both of you for the help.  dgman's idea was so simple, that must be why I didn't think of it.  It will be my solution.

mrsn, the zero clearance insert is a good idea but I find the top piece wants to jump upwards - my 40-690 has some forwards/backwards movement of the blade that I can't seem to get rid of.

Thanks again to both of you and have a good day.
Jim