Archive for: April 2010

Here we introduce Primary Face, Secondary Face, Foot Prints, Touch Types and the importance of Part Names.

Face Types
When a part is created there lies a point in the part called the centroid. The centroid is the centre of mass of the part, if we were to suspend this part from a string attached to the centroid it would remain perfectly in balance.

Creating an assembly of these parts to make a cabinet also creates an assembly of centroids. The amalgamation of these centroids then creates a common point known as the centroid of the cabinet, and generally lies inside the cabinet. 

Analyzer …

The most common mistake woodworkers make while planing is that they use their arms to do most of the work. As a result they tend to throw the tool instead of pushing it. Continued use of this technique can cause a lot of pain in a woodworker’s arms and should be avoided.

By locking the arm to the side and walking beside the work in a movement resembling a controlled fall, woodworkers let the weight of the body and gravity do most of the work. This also provides better control and consistent pressure.

The centre of the blade should be …

One of Australia’s finest and most versatile timbers, Jarrah, a native of south-west Australia has been used since European settlement for a wide range of woodworking products. While Jarrah is hard, strong and easy to work with, woodworkers have found a few challenges that the wood presents, and need to know how these can be overcome.

Unlike other Australian wood such as blackwood or Queensland walnut, Jarrah has no appreciable silica content, so cutting blades do not wear out excessively from abrasion. The cutting blades however do tend to chip or crumble because of Jarrah’s hardness. For cutting Jarrah, …