ia Issue 5 =Turned Tool Handles =Roll-Around Shop Cart | "Small-Piece Miter Box = Adjustable Set-Up GaugeIssue 5 ‘September 1992 ‘worron Donal B, Pesehke eorromt ommgcron Dough I, Hicks wanaeine sorron Torry J. Strohman assisune corrons.Richanl S. Peters ‘Thm Robertson ‘onearie omsoton ‘Ted Kralioek ‘art oiacron Cary Christensen savsraxrons Kurt Sculls ‘Will Niskanen ‘Roger Relland Mark Higdon pasion omteror Ken Munkel | esionene Jen Hale Svoe Kent Woish pworoonapue Crayola England ‘suopuanaaen Steve Curtis ‘moutarion ineeron Liz Brodeson sussonerion manacun Phyllis Jessen ‘imcutarion anatver Jim Woodson ewsstano sates Kent A. Buckton ‘cowrmouisn Paul B. Gray ccouwrine Linda O'Rourke wooxkeerne Julianne Spears erwonc pum, Douglas M. Lidster aoumetnarive neers. Chery] Scott Salis Fish rnecernonisr Jeanne Johnson punoma mawrexance Ken Griffith Jennie Enos (Supr), Jeff Jane, Joy Johndon, Sera Jekinsen, Ami Blsnahan ‘Jerry Corso Supe), Coa Shoshan, ‘Ronald Long, Don MeN), Chick Caron a nee ea Scoprign ity Wedanth aera A satratnet pues far in Sind caribaea (Gea 2100 er ae ee ee Ble a Soe ee SER e es ‘ardwood, softwood, ply- wood, pegboard, and ‘Masonite. Just a few of the materials we used to make the projects in this issue, Often we take the material we use for granted. But selecting and using tthe right material is the basis for quality ina project. NEW FEATURE. In this issue, we're introducing a new feature called Lumberyard. Over time well look at the standards used for lumber. How it’s graded. New products and materials, And tips ‘on selecting the best product. This features aresult ofall the ‘questions we receive about wood. This time we're taking alook at ‘some of the grading standards for hardwood lumber. ‘To get a better understanding of these standards we sent Rick Peters to 2 National Hardwood Lumber Association Seminar. ‘Riek eame back from the semi- nar muttering about a sore back and lots of work. (Actually, T thinkche had a great time hanging around the saw mill) Bat in the end, it was worth it Rick gathered a mountain of i formation and some new insights on lumber standards. CATALOG. Another change you may notice is there's not a Shop Supplies catalog with your issuc This is not an oversight. The Shop Supplies catalog is being completely redesigned. ‘The people involved with the catalog are looking at new ideas and products. And new ways of presenting these ideas to you. In the mean time we will con- tinue to offer kits and hard to find hardware on the Sourees page. HARDWARE. Speaking of hard- ware, starting with this issue we areincluding a hardware list with each project. Whenever possible, the pro- jects in ShopNotes are designed to use hardware that is readily available. Or ean be easily substi- ‘uted for something similar. But, occasionally a hard to find piece of hardware works better ‘than anything else. In this ease is the magnet we used for the Set-Up Gauge. Its called a rare earth magnet and is much stronger than any of ‘the other magnets we tried. The only problem is this type of mag- net is not readily available, 50 we're offering these magnets on the Sources page. BRASS, T've always admired the look of brass and wood tools. Two of the projects in this issue (Tool Handles and the Set-up Gange) have brass parts. But brass parts are used for ‘more than decoration. For exam- ple on the tool handles shown on page 10, I used a brass ferrule. ‘The ferruleisinstalled on the end ofthe handle and preventsit from splitting. For the Set-Up Gauge shown on page 24, I used brass for dif- ferent reasons, To protect the base of the gauge from wear, I added a wide brass strip, An- other brass strip keeps the 6" ‘metal rule vertieally aligned. ADDITIONS. Since the last is- sue of ShopNotes we've added a few new faces. Mark Higdon is helping produce the art. work. Kent Welsh has joined our design staff, And Jeanne Johnson is our new receptionist.PTT e Contents Small-Piece Miter Box Cut tight-fitting miters on small pieces of trim with this shop-made miter box. Sinai Shopilips== = Five space-saving tips to make your woodworking shop more comfortable and efficient. foolilandies sees Sc. ee 10) Manufactured handles are designed so “one size fits all" A custom-turned handle looks and feels better Small-Piece Miter Box page 4 numing sige = a You don't have to own a lathe to turn wood. This simple Jig lets you turn small projects on your drill press. Roll-Around Shop Cart ____ 16 ea Pegboard panels and pull-out trays combine to create much-needed storage space. Adding castors converts the cart nto a mobile work surface. Stub Tenon & Groove____ 22 The secret to this strong and simple joint is to glue a ‘man-made panel into the grooves of a frame. Adjustable Set-Up Gauge ___ 24 This shop-built precision gauge ensures accurate height, depth, and distance measurements. Shop Solutions ____________28 Five shop-tested tips: Driling Tip, Scroll Saw Blade Organizer, A Tip for Turning, Squaring a Miter Gauge, and Pads for C-clamps. Lumber Thickness ______ 30 Find out why saw mills, lumber yards, and retail outlets often use diferent terms to designate lumber thickness. 3 tan8°. Hardware, project supplies, and mail order sources for the projects in this issue. No.5 ‘ShopNotes 3 Toot Handles page 10 Set-Up Gauge page 24Tire Small-Piece e © (2)119"Fh reve © (10) 4" Fh Serews © (0) 910" HexNuto © (4) 910" Waohore © (4) Ste" x 4¥2" Hex Head Bolts © (1) 540" Th. ncert © () ext" Ta Knob © (1) Vax 2" Hex Bolt © 2)" Woohers © (14 Looe Nut * (12) 56" fon Spor WFD. x1 OD. © (4) 916"x216"Com Preecion Springs PIVOT ARM Sher agt texeour C= accurate miters on ‘small pieces of trim ean be a er challenge. A table saw has a ten- dency to chip out or even “ex- is" Hexnur plode” small pieces. Another option is to use a hand miter box. But sometimes they're too large to be effective with small pieces. So I decided to build a sealed down version of a professional EXPLODED VIEW ShopNotes miter box. It uses. 10"-long back saw and is designed with all the features of a full-size miter box. FEATURES, The miter boxisde- signed so the saw can adjust to angles up to 45° in cach direction, ‘And there's a “stop” that lets you “fine tune” the 45° cuts. Finally, there’s a unique guide system that keeps the savy cutting straight, ‘THREE PARTS. The miter box has three main parts: a base as- sembly, a fence, and a pivot arm, see Exploded View. (I used 44". thick maple for all wood parts.) BASE ASSEMBLY ‘To make the miter box, the first step is to build the base assembly. It consists of a base, a material rest, and a pair of feet. BASE. The base (A) is made up of two pieces, see Fig, 1. Tb allow clearance for the pivot arm to swing, the front edge is curved. ‘An easy way to make this curve is to dry-clamp the pieces and then draw a 6" radius, sce Fig. 1. ‘Then simply remove the clamp, cut the eurve on the front piece, and glue the base together. PIVOT HOLE. To complete the base, drilla 14"-dia, hole atthe cen- ter of the radius, This is used later toattach the pivot armto the base, No.5JIGS & ACCESSORIES ‘MATERIAL REST. The next step is to make the material rest (B). ‘The purpose of the rest is to raise aworkpiece offthe base. Thisere- ates a space that allows the pivot arm to swing back and forth. ‘The material resis made of two pieces — each with a 45° miter on oneend, see Fig. 2. Holesare drilled in the mitered ends for adjustment screws, These serews act as “stops” for the pivot ann and are used to fine tune the 45° angles of the saw. ATTACH REST. After the mate- rial rest is cut, the next step is to attach it to the base, Note: To create a lip for the fence to rest on, the back edge of the rest: is located 24" in from the back edge of the base. The tricks to position the two pieces so the back edges are in line with each other, see Fig. 2. This ensures that the fence (which is serewed to the material rest later) will also be straight. I checked the alignment with a straightedge, and then glued and serewed the rest (B) to the base. FEET. To complete the base as- sembly, serew a foot (C) to each end of the base, see Fig. 3. ‘The fence (D) provides a straight, even surface to hold a workpiece against. Like the material rest, i's ‘made of two pieees, see Fig. 4. Each of the pieces is mitered on one end to provide clearance for the pivot arm to swing, Then the ‘SECOND: “AckO38 JOMT LINE 10 MARE REALIGNMENT EASIER Fest: Dev-cuaMP TWO riecES: Or BabE ToETHER Ne ‘eens RAGIUS FEST, LDU ALOR HOLE FoR rhe AovtisteNT scKen ise sreaeirepse TOALIGN BACK EDGE. OP MATERIAL REST ‘SECOND: Se rRoM Back Eber or Base fence is serewed to the back edge of the material rest, see Fig. 4a ‘FACE. Aer installing the fence, T added a face (E) made of 14'- thick Masonite. Here again, the ends are mitered for clearance. ‘Then the face is glued to the fence. To provide dust relief, Left an 14" gap between the material rest and the face, see Fig. 4a, pay ia FIRST: oy NOTE: wien enos OFFENCE AND FACE ~ won tie"rh sexist sn cenrerroaron — MOOPECREWS ‘worl oF BASE No.5 ShopNotes 5rr NoTe: NOTE: spacers rouct Phd teas |" AAR é : sense : er nexsour > >| 4s ® “846 enor © 2 ® l Tiel : A) wna oie b. Notch PRowDEs mee ee __ [orm SIDE View ‘The heart of the miter box is the pivot arm. This arm does a couple of things, First of all, it serves as a platform for the system that guides the saw, see Fig.5. And it pivots to position the saw at the desired angle. ‘The pivot arm starts out as a simple 2" x 10" blank, see Fig. 6. ‘Then notches are cut on the bot- tom of the blank to provide clearance for the nuts that. se~ cure the guide system to the arm, see Figs. 5b and 6, ‘To attach the arm to the base, counterbore a pivot hole near the notched end. The other end ofthe arm is chamfered to relieve the sharp corner, GUIDE SYSTEM After cutting the arm to shape, thenextstep isto install the guide system. This system supports the saw and “tracks” the blade in a straight line. 6 NYLONSPACERS.The key to the guide system is a dazen nylon spacers I picked up at the hard- warestore, see Fig. 5. (There's also source of handware for the miter box on page 81.) Three of these spacers and a spring slip loosely over each of four hex bolts. Then these “guide bolts” are mounted in pairs on the pivot arm. When you slide the saw be- tween the bolts, the spacers press against the side of the blade and eliminate any “play”. DRILL HOLES. To make this all work, it's important to locate the 6 e018, pwor ARM MOE w-D1A Hole ‘Ser COUNTERBORE ae counrensoxe® SIDE View ‘ShopNotes No.5holes for each pair of bolts so the [77] spacers touch, see Fig. 5a. (I CLAM THES 08 drilled the holes so the center- | suenotero @ ey | Ream points are 1546" apart, see Fig. 6.) poe Why doesn’t this side pressure | a. eeqne. cause the blade to bind? Because INSERT of the holes in the spacers. ‘They're larger than the diameter Vs of the bolts. So with each stroke eae Ee wacdure| yd oftthesaw, the spacers spin easily. KNOB “ In addition to guiding the blade, the spacers support the apes = a metal “back” of the saw, see Fig. & = tl a.) 5. When you make aeut, the spac- con na erstravel downthebolts with the {E ae wexseur| blade. When the cut is finished, ao the springs return the spacers 7 | we wactier {and saw) tothe starting position. {| wrtock wr CLAMP: After installing the hardware for x the guide system, I made clarap wor hot sa ew ica (G) to lock the arm in place, see Fig. 7. The clamp is just a wood You'll need to sand the dowel 80 8.'To do this, I used 2" hex bolt block with a hole drilled through it slides easily in the hole. asapivot pin. (This islonger than it to house a threaded insert and Next, to prevent the arm from I needed, but the smooth shat, dowel, see Fig. 7a. liftingwhenthe nobistightened prevents the threads from ‘Tightening a knob (or thumb- down, I giued a piece of 14" Ma- “chewing up” the pivot hole.) screw) in the insert pushes the sonite tothe bottom of the clamp. Finally, after tightening a lock end of the dowel against the ATTACHARM. All that’s left to nut snug on the end of the bolt, curved edge of the base. This complete the miter box is to at- the exeess threads ean be cut off, locks the arm in place. Note: tach the arm tothe base,see Fig. see Fig. 8a. Adjusting the Miter Box ‘Step 1: Place the 45° face of a combl- Step 2: Next, outa test piece to check Step 3:To position the plvot arm for ‘ration square against fence. Then pivot the accuracy. To fine tune the 45° an- 90° cuts, repeat the process of rough the arm so guide bolts touch the edge gle, move the adjustment sorew in or positioning the arm and making trial of the blade and lock arm in place. cut unt the angle is perfect. euts. Then senbe a line on the base. No.5 ‘ShopNotes 1COMBINING TOOLS One space-saving tip is to com- bine two stationary tools into one. An example of this would be to tum the extension wing of yourtablesawintoa router table, bee drawing. Besides saving floor space, there's another advantage to this set-up. You can use your rip fence to guide a workpiece on both the table saw and the router. Note: When you're not using the router, just lower the bit so it doesn't protrude through the top of the extension. ‘SHARING BENCH SPACE ‘There never seems to be enough bench-top space in the shop. A simple turntable can help you get the most out of the space avail- able, see drawing, Mounting tools to a turntable keeps them grouped tightly to- gether, but still accessible. This Tets you turn wasted space (such as a corner of a bench) into a handy work station. ‘The turntable is just a plywood disk that’s bolted through its cen- ter toa bench. To reduce friction, furniture glides are nailed to the bottom of the plywood. To “lock” the turntable in position, drill holes through the turntable into the bench top and insert a dowel. 8 (ere These five space-saving tips will help you get the most out of your small workshop. eercace EXTENSION WING WITH ROUTER TABLE ba rer cue BOLT PLYWOOD TURNTABLE @ TO WORKBENCH ‘ShopNotesEXTRA WORK SPACE @© espace is tinited in your shop, you ean convert your table saw into a light-duty assembly or fin~ ishing area. This is easy to do. Just slip a shop-made cover over the top of the saw, see drawing. ‘The cover isa piece of plywood ‘that’s cut to fit the overall dimen- sions of your saw table. To keep it from shifting in use, glue wood trim around the edges. Note: This cover is not de- signed for heavy weights or ham- mer blows, {t's smprising how well two tools ean work together if you position them next to each other. For example, locate a drill press next to a radial arm saw, see drawing. Positioning the drill press like 9 this allows you to support and safely cut long boards on the ra- dial arm saw. ‘To do this, position the drill presstothe leftof your radial arm saw. Then raise or lower the drill press table until the workpiece lays flat on the saw table. When ifslevel, make the eut. Many woodworkers position their tools around the perimeter of the shop. But grouping tools together cansavealotofspace,see drawing. ‘The tricks positioning the toolss0 they don't interfere with each other in use. For example, ifyour router ta- bles the same height (or slightly ower) as your table saw, you can position it behind the saw. This way it saves space and acts as an outfeed table. Or if the top of your jointer @ verceistower than tie topofyour table saw, you can slide t right up next to the table saw. No.5 CUT PLYWOOD COVER TO FIT YOUR SAW CoveRN PLACE covesSnrinnen Ee ON sowsrrane | waar oes USE TOOL HEIGHTS TO roemon ours YOUR ADVANTAGE ‘Ag OUTFEED —} __soe- ‘mallet with a leather face.) neck shouldbe Rr [exeieh ees tee FERRULE. The tool end of the shaped to handle is sized for a 56" brass hex fityour thumb, ‘The form of a chisel handle is de- neck should be sized and shaped nut that serves as a ferrule. (For termined by its function. For a to it yourthumb so youfeeleom- more on this, refer to page 13.) paring chisel (that is meant tobe fortable pushing the blade into Like file handles, ahole isdrilled pushed rather than struck), I thewood without fear ofslipping. inthe oolend toacceptthetangon chose rather traditional handle. _ Compare this to the chisel han- a chisel, see box below. This style is especially suited dle below that is designed to be MATERIALS. Since this handle for handwork beeause the barrel _ struck with a mallet, isnot intened to be struck with a of the handle tapers to a small DOMED END. Another feature mallet you can use just about any neck, which then flares to a of this handle is the rounded or kind of wood. I tured a piece of thumb stop. “domed” end. When using two maple whieh created a unique ‘Thebarrel should besizedtofit hands to push the chisel through swirling pattern on the handle ‘your hand comfortably. And the a workpiece, the dome helps cush- shown above, Straight-grained > NOTE:sno is eizepror _ tional features added to this han- ak, a hoop, and Se BRASS PLUGINS FFE. de to help it withstand the shock a leather washer & from a mallet, HOOP First, [added a hoop on the end of the handle to protect it combine tel pee, ple elie [e from splitting or deforming Me ‘The hoop is made from a soc- this handle with- Beto stand blows "880 froma mallet. Hexnur tion of brass pipe. Since it doesn’t If you're going to use a chisel serewon (likethe brassmat Iused primarily for chopping, the han- for the ferrule), it's fitted to the le should be designed to with- end ofthe handle and sized so the oanereeornoe | Stand repeated blows. ‘wood mushrooms over the hoop EAUAZ pAbcreR | Woon.'To take the shock from to hold it in place. (For more on amallet, the wood for the handle making a hoop, refer to page 18). needs to be tough and springy. (I LEATHER WASHER. At the chose oak for the handle shown other end of the handle, T used a above.) Also, the wood should be 54" brass hex nut for a ferrule, as straight-grained and frve of knots _on the other handles. toreduce the chance of breakage. But before attaching the han- HANDLESHAPE. The shape of dle, I added a leather washer to the handle isnot aseriticalas that fit between the tool and the fer- ‘Toft tho chivel in the handle, the holes sized | ofaparing chisel. Ichoseasimple rule. The washer aets as a “shock tomaich the diameter of thetang and dritied | barrelshaped handle that’s easy absorber” to help exshion the @ slightly deeper than the length ofthe tang, to grip with my hand. ‘blows of a mallet, (I made this However, there are two addi washer from an old belt.) 12 ShopNotes No.5Se © Ferrules ‘Turning the handle to shape is TANG. However, the problem Jjust the first step. ‘To mount the here is the tang acts as a wedge ‘chisel blade to it you need to drill and can easily aplit the handle. To ahole for the tang. Then yon can prevent this, a ferrule is mounted rive the handle onto the blade, to surround the hole for the tang. 1] comemerese, | [3] THIRD: rave HANDLE ‘ONTO TANG. Fist: “READ NUT ONTO RANDLE ToonAre OPTIONAL LeaTHER Wagner on cH TaNe MANDLE ATO AB sohock ABooReE SECOND: "#001 AOAINOT peo Tedoesn’t take much poundingon _ BRASS PIPE.The hoop is cut ahandle before the end starts to from a short length of 84° brass split and deform. To prevent this, pipe. (I picked the pipe up in the Tinstall a metal hoop on the end plumbing department at the of the handle, see Fig. 1. hardware store.) 1 | sanoenpor. a. POUND WaTH MALLET 10 MUSHROOM END OVER HOOP Note: urhoor From Sat BeAce Pre FERRULE. | made a ferrule by <4 Ferrules made grinding the “corners off a brass hhex nut, (I chose brass because it’s easy to grind to shape and polishes up nicely.) Installing the ferrule is simple. ust tighten the mat in a vise and serew the handle into the nut like a wooden bolt, soe Fig. 1. FINISH. When the nut. “bot- ‘toms out” on the handle, back it off and grind the comers smooth, see Fig. 2. To polish the ferrule, sand it with progressively finer grits (120 to 600) of silicon ear- bide sandpaper. LEATHER WASHER. AS an op- tion, youmay want toadd aleather washer as a “shock absorber” be- tween the blade and the ferrule, see Fig. 3. SEATHANDLE. Afterretighten- ing the ferrule, the last step is to seat the chisel blade in the handle. ‘Todo this, place the cutting end of the blade against a wood block and Grive the handle onto the tang, see Fig.3. from brass hex nuts prevent the handle trom spliting when driving it onto the tang. ‘To prevent gouging the wood A metal hoop when fitting the hoop over the end, file a slight bevel on the in- side edge of the hoop, see Fig. 1a. Unlike the ferrules, there are no threads to hold the hoop in place. Sohow doyou keep the hoop from slipping off as the handle shrinks ‘with changes in humidity? ‘The hoop is eut to length so it sits slightly below the end of the handle, see Fig. 1a. Then, after striking the handle a few times with a mallet, the exposed end grain bends over the hoop. This creates a “mushroom” that locks ‘the hoop in place. 13 made trom a piece of brass ipe reinforces the end ofa chisel handle.Allit takes to convert your drill press into a lathe are a few scraps of wood, a couple of bolts, and an ordinary screwdriver. EXPLODED VIEW #Bx112" Fh woODScrEWS ic SUPPORT BLOCK AND BASE. ‘ARE MADE FROM 34" PLYWOOD JIGS AND ACCESSORIES Turning Jig ‘The guys in the shop were just 2 bit skeptical when I first showed them this turning jig. After all, sing a drill press as a vertical lathe is a bit unorthodox, see photo. Not to mention the fact that I used an ordinary flat-bladed screwdriver as a turning tool. (For more on this, refer to box on page 15.) After turning a few tool handles, everyone was, amazed at how much this jig functioned like a stand- ard lathe, That's beeause it has the same basic com- ponents as a lathe: a drive center, a tailstock, and a tool rest, see drawing below. DRIVE CENTER. 'To turn a block of wood, you have to prepare one end of the block by eutting a diagonal kerf, and drilling a hole for the drive cen- tex, refer to Step 2 on next page. ‘The drive center transfers the rotation ofthe drill press chuck to the workpiece. It's made from a bolt, with the head and threads eut off, and has a 6d nail ‘mounted at one end of the bolt. (For a tip on drilling the hole to mount the nail, see page 28.) ‘TAILSTOCK.The other end of the workpiece spins on a tailstock. This is just a bolt or rod that fits in a block i > of" thieks hardwood, . NOTE: cur oFr HEAD OF NAIL (cur From NOTE:pRILt HOLE 94" IN FROM EDGE 14 BOLT OR ROD) ‘ShopNotes Here again, the head and threads are cut off ‘To fit ‘the center of the workpiece, grind one end toa point, see box below. Then drill a hole in the block to support and position the bolt on the drill press table, ‘TOOLREST ASSEMBLY. The last part of the turn- ing jig is a tool rest assembly. The purpose of this assembly is to support and guide the seraper. It consists of three parts: a tool rest, a support block, and a base, see Exploded View. Note: The tool rest ismade from hardwood, while the support block and base are made from plywood. So that you can hold the scraper at an angle tothe workpiece, ent-a45° chamfer on one edge of the tool rest, leaving a %o'-wide edge to support the flat side of the screwdriver blade. ‘To complete the turning jig, screw the tool rest and support block to one comer of the base, CE TO CT To grind a point on the end of @ bolt or rod, clamp a block with a notch the same diameter as the bolt to the tool rest. Then. grind the point as yourotate the bolt by hand. No.5PI ee Using the Turning Jig neortenos ‘oreLoen fro secure exocx, ocx conto. Boe ciate) Step 1:To locate the top and bottom centersofthe block, draw diagonals across the comers, and mark the centers with an aw, Step 2:Next, aril a hole to ac- cept the end of the drive center. Then cut a kerf across one of the dlagonal ines to engage the nail Step 3: After mounting the block between the drive center and the tailstock, square up the block ‘and clamp tailstock to the table. i i PS) ccc or reore peor, ceuresoF BABE MORRIE Nore: SEL grMEDBEDWEEN "B00 1800 sero Step 4:Nexi, position the base on the drill press table so the edge of the too! rest is slightly to the left ofthe micole of the block. Step 5: Now clamp the base so edge ofrestis ¥a"from the comers of the block. To check for clear- ance, rotate the block by hand. ‘Step 6: Holding the flat part of the blade against the edge of the tool rest, gently push the cutting tip into the spinning workpiece. Like a lathe standing on end, the drill press chuck turns a block between two centers: a drive center and a tailstock. All that's required to make a seraping toolisascrewdriverand a few minutes to grind a slight bevel on the end of the blade. I made two different scrapers. On one, the corners are rounded ‘to prevent the blade from “eatch- jing” when seraping a curve, see Fig. 1. The other has the original square comers for straight- shouldered cuts, see Fig. 2. ‘BEVELED END~7, No.5 ‘ShopNotes 15Fae Ss Roll-Around ° Shop Cart Wheels, pegboard panels, and pull-out trays combine to make this roll-around cart a versatile addition to your shop. torage and bench space. ‘There never seems to be ‘enoughin the shop. Powertools, and accessories end up buried under sawdust. And when a project gets started, the bench gets hidden under a pile of lumber. What I needed was storage space that could double as a bench or work surface. And it had to be mobile, This way I could move it easily around the shop where it was needed. ‘The solution to this problem is the shop cart shown above, STORAGE SPACE. First of all, there's plenty of storage space, both inside and out. A divided see- tion inside the cart holds power tools and supplies. And an open area under the top is the perfect place to keep clamps handy. PEGBOARD PANELS. Pegboard side and ack panels provide an easy way tohang often useditems on the outside ofthe cart. This keeps tools and other accessories right at hand. OPTIONAL TRAYS. Trays on the inside of the cart null out on fall extension slides. And this makes it easy to find those tools and parts that always seem to hide way in the back. JOINERY. Another feature of this cart is it’s easy ‘to build. Iused a simple stub tenon and groove joint throughout. (For more on this joint, see page 22.) Cutting Diagram Sener | Sex 772 {0 BOARDS) = Sy . aie 72 co ponte) ¥ [ v i ¥ [ ¥ Vy “ien6°-7 (0 BOARS) z = = v = ‘A Pegboard panels are a convenient a i: way to keep tools and accessories | tasi-2e Aes eectecane +hanay. And an open shelf under the top x x Hepner - 49: MASONITE, Is the perfect place for storing clamps. 16 ShopNotes No.5Pe EXPLODED = VIEW ®-— — noe 2, oe TRIM FILLER STRIP @- ae ® S FRO! > ® 2, ¥ & Materials & Hardware List Back Top ‘A Top/tem, Rails (2) Ya x3-S4Ve 0 Top Fieces(2) 1912 x42 -Y2 ply B End Srlee(2) Yx2l-17 P TopCower(i) 19/2 x42 4 Masonite ConerStle(!) %4x8-17 @ SideTim(2)_ Yaxta-10%e D. Fanels (2) 14x17-Va Pegboard —R_ Front/Bk. Trim (2) 4x 1V4 -452 Sides Doors E Stiles (4) Yax3-26¥2 S Stiles (4) 44x5-22 F Raile (4) Wax5-14 T Rails (4) Sax 3-122 @ Panele (2) 14x17-V4 Pegboard U- Panelo (2) 12¥2 x 16/2 - Vs Masorice H Filler Strips (4) Vax¥a-6 Pull-Out Trays Shelves V Front/Backs (4) 94294 -16 1 Shelves (2) 18¥axB4Ve-Yeply W. Sides (4) 44 x2¥4 -172 J Shelf Edging (2) ¥%4x V2 -34V2 X Bottoms (2) 18V4 x 17V2 - V4 Masonite K Side Supporte (4) 4x1 -18 Peeuerel e L Back Supports (2) 4 «1-25 © (4) 3" Casters wiLag Screws © (36) 1V4" Fh Woodscrews M- Conter Dvider (1) 18%4%20-Ve ply (2) 114" Door lle w/Screne._© (2) Pr 18" Drawer Sides IN) sGawter Blocks (2) Sx B= 1714 © (4) ¥e"x1V2" Hinges w/Screws © (2) Magnetic Door Catches No.5 ‘ShopNotes lzETT Back and Sides ‘The roll-around shop cart is basi- cally a simple cabinet. It’s made up of a back and two sides, refer to Exploded View. I started work on the cart by making the back. The backs just a frame and two pegboard panels, The frame consisis of aiop and bottom rail (A), two end stiles (B), and a center stile (C), see Fig. 1. The stiles fit between the rails and support the two peg- board pares (D). SOINERY. After Teul the frame and panel pieces to size, T use a stub tenon and groove joint to join the frame and the panels to- ‘gether, see Details in Fig 1. Por step-by-step instructions on how TOP RAIL x37) to cut this joint, see the article on page 22,) ‘SIDES ‘The sides are made just like the back. Except this time the rails fit between the stiles, see Fig. 2. Each side is made up of two stiles (E), two rails (F), and a pegboard panel (G), see Fig. 2. Note: To simplify construction of the cart, Tused identical peg- board panels for both the back and the sides, ‘To ereate the open space under the top of the cart (for elamps.and other tools), I positioned one of the rails (F) 6" down from the top of the stile (), see Figs.2 and 2a, FILLER STRIPS. But there’s problem with positioning the rails like this. It leaves an open groove on the inside edge of each stile. To fill these grooves, Fused filler strips (H), see Fig. 2a. ASSEMBLY, After the filler strips are glued into the grooves, the last step is to assemble the basic cabinet. ‘To do this, gine and elamp the back between the sides so the bottom edges are flush, see Figs. Band 3a, ] SIDE | ree STRIP ore ee) cue mur onkiP GROOVE STE (32602 Note: AG FRAME er0ck teuartmice 3 GLUE AND CLAMP oe Shox to sipes 60 Se Biocon a se camp eAck BEMEEN ODES ane 18 ‘ShopNotes No.5Shelves and Divider ‘The shelves of the shop cart pro- vide storage space and help strengthen the eabinet, refer to Exploded View. The two shelves are identical and easy to build. SHELVES. Each shelf (1) is ‘made froma piece of 14" plywood. ‘Then to prevent the shelf from bowing and to cover the plywood edge, I added a piece of shelf edg- ‘ing (J), see Fig. 4 This edging is joined to the shelf with an offset: tongue and groove joint, see Fig. 4a, After the joints are cut, the edging is ‘glued to the shelf. SUPPORTS. To attach the shelves to the cabinet, used shelf supports. They're pre-drilled to make it easy to screw the shelves to the cabinet, see Fig. 4. The side supports (K) are ‘glued to the shelf first. Then a back support (L) is eut to fit be- tween them, see Fig. 4. ATTACH SHELVES. ‘To attach the shelves, screw the lowershelf inside the eabinet so the bottom of the edging (J) is lush with the bottom of the cabinet, see Fig. 5. Then to create a lip around the upper shelf (s0 tools won't roll off), position the shelf ¥2" below the top rails (A and F) and serew ‘tin place, see Fig. 5a, CENTERDIVIDER. Next, a NOTE: Fe Cozins ano ourraRss ‘SECOND: DSi oN sine currorre, E Sten Bact curron® For ‘COORTERSINN INSIDE FACE or eurroxta crew oP ‘Saeur ie ALTO. Rete aoe rn center divider (M) is screwed be- shelf edging (J) and back support These 1"-thiek blocks provide ex- tween theshelves,see Fig.6.The (L), see Fig. 6a. tra holding power for the serews center divider is just a piece of CASTERS.Finally, a set of that hold the locking swivel cast- +14" plywood with the top twocor- caster blocks (N) are glued under ers in place, see Fig. 7. (For ners notched to fit around the the bottom shelf, see Fig. 7. sources of casters, see page 31.) HE 6 He | @)| |Z) vere 9 caren Pee i ca BLOCK Lenssen sie sere eas No.5 ShopNotes 19Top With the center divider screwed @ in place, the next step is to make " ‘the top of the shop cart. ‘Two PiEces. ‘The top is made by gluing up two plywood top pieces (0). These pieces are cut to ‘mateh the overall width of the sides (191") and to a length of 42". Note: The 42" length allows for a8" overhang on each end. To “lock” the top in place, Teut dadoes on the underside of the plywood to ft over the side stiles omer 7 (B), see Fig. 8a, Once they're cut, (eeeoerai) the top pieces are screwed to the cart, see Fig. 9. FIRST. screw Tor paces TO sie St TOP COVER. Since I wanted a SECOND: owe on ror coven hard, smooth surface for the top THIRD: GLUE AND CLAMP ofthe cart, I glued a Masonite top cover (P) on top of the plywood pieces (0), see Fig. 9. Note: Youcan eutthe top cover the same size as the top pieces A flush trim bit (0), or cut it oversize and use a ina hand-held Mush trim bit, see margin tip. i TRIM. The edges of the top are router makes tt sered with side trim (Q) and easy to get a frontiack trim (R), see Fig. 9 Slush edge. ~ Before I glued the front and back trim (R) to the top, T knocked off the sharp corners by cutting a chamfer on the ends, see Fig 9a. ‘After all of the trim is glued in place, I routed a 14" chamfer reowniee. _,f90z along the top edge, see Fig. 9b. mas Doors To reduce dust inside the cart, I 10] added a pair of doors. The doors are made just like the rest of the | NOTE: cabinet — a simple frame and )2s4¢=0 panel, see Fig. 10. THICK FRAMES. Tb make the frames, first cut the stiles (S) to mateh the distance between the bottom of the lower shelf and the top of the upper shelf (22" long), refer to Exploded View. ‘The rails (T) are a little trick- ier. The idea here is to cut them: to length so the doors are tight 20 ‘ShopNotes No.5ae eas against each other and flush with the sides of the eabinet, see photo on page 16. To do this you'll have to con- sider the width of the stiles (", and the length of the stub tenons G4", Tn my ease, the rails (T) measure 1244" long. PANELS. Since I wouldn't: be hanging anything on the doors, the panels (U) are cut from solid ‘Masonite. Here again, they're eut to fit the frames, see Fig. 10. After the doors are glued up, _you'llneed to plane the stiles to cre- ‘tea 40" gap between the doors, wooo MOUNFDOORS, The next step Door ru is to mount the doors to the eabi- net with butt hinges, see Fig. 11. The easiest way to do this is HARDWARE. After the doors Next, I drilled centered holes to cut mortises in the front edge are screwed to the cart, I in- in the door stiles and serewed on of the side stiles (E) to match stalled apairofmagnetiecatches, a pair of door pulls, see Fig. 11. the thickness of the hinge, see sce Fig. 11b. They keep the doors ‘To complete the eart, brush on Fig. La, closed when the eart is moved. two eoats of satin polyurethane. Optional Pull-Out Trays After completing the shop eart, I make rabbet joint, see Fi added a couple of pull-out trays. Next, a groove is cut in the ‘These trays slide all the way out frame pieces to accept a Masonite on aset of full-extension drawer bottom (X). slides, see photo, DRAWER SLIDES. The pull-out ‘TRAYS, Bach tray consists of a trays.are mounted on aset of full- ‘frontiback (V) and pair of sides extension slides. (For sourees of (W). Note: Sines the drawer drawer slides, see page 31.) slides require 14" of clearance on _‘The lower tray is mounted so it each side, the overall width of the sits about Ye" above the bottom trays is 16" shelf, And the upper tray is The ends of the tray are then mounted 91" up from the bot- Joined together with an easy to tom shelf, see Fig. 2 (a. 2 : a ¢ ee = ether END VIEW bs b. now oe [te ve || | sav ¥ rnoteace oman oats, | ee seh Bot ooh S| lrorcoueny reat 2 We" ABOVE BOTTOM SHELF BOTTOM SHELF No.5 ‘ShopNotes 21aT Stub Tenon & Groove trength and simplicity. Two the panel like “edging” reasons why Toften use stub and actually become part Simple joinery tenon nd groove joinery when a of the joint. This allows ‘anda man- Project calls for frame and panel you to cut a short (stub) made panel cmstruetion tenon that fits in. the ‘Actually, this type of joint same groove as the panel create a strorg should only be used with one type instead of cutting a deeper mor-_ takesisasimple set-up and a cou- frame and ofpancl—amanafactured panel tise and a full-length tenon, ple passes on the table saw. (Re- panel assembly. (such as plywood, Masonite, or — Tuseatwo-step processtomake fer to Figs. 2 and 3.) pegboard). a stub tenon and groove joint. STUB TENONS. The next step ‘These panels are dimension- "THE GROOVES.The first step is to cut short stub tenons on the ally stable (they won't “move” is to eut grooves in the inside ends ofthe railsto fit the grooves, ‘with changes in humidity), This edges ofall the frame pieces, see refer to Fig. 1b. Just like the allows you to glue the frame di- Figs. 1 and 1a. The grooves are grooves, the tenons are cut in reetly on the edge of the panel, sized to hold the panel in place several passes. see Fig. 1. with a friction fit. ‘The secret to getting a good fit Note:Solid wood panels should Cutting the grooves (and later is to cut the tenons slightly over- never be glued inside a frame. cutting the stub tenons) goes alot _ size. Then “sneak up” on the final ‘They must be able to“move.” easier ifthe grooves are centered thickness until the tenon just With a stub tenon and groove _onthethieknessofthe stock. For- slips into the groove with a frie- Joint, the frame pieces surround tunately, this is easy to do. Allit tion fit. 1 / GROOVE / ~ STILE oF sroae Nott O revon ras onootte hee cor Steove oN watenericces snoorame “RAIL ShopNotes. No.5 22aaa ee Cutting the Grooves ‘The grooves are cut in the rails [DB 2 and stiles for two purposes. First, worsrece | A. they hold the panels in the frame. ae: And second, they serve as open “mortises” for the stub tenons. CENTERED GROOVE. The im- S portant thing isto cut agroove 80 \ : FIRST CUT it’s centered on the edge of the ‘or oRoore frame piece. To do this, start by setting the blade height to the rcaveeee. desired depth for the groove. 7 AGAINST FENCE ‘The triek to getting the groove : perfoctly centered istostart with thebladeroughly centeredonthe [a5 workpiece, and make a pass, see Fig.2. ‘Then without moving the rip fence, flip the piece end for end and take another pass, see Fig. 3. ‘ESD THEFIT Now check the fiton the panel. Ifthe groove isn’t wide enough for the panel, move the fence and repeat the process. ‘When you get a snug fit, eut a ‘groove in all your frame pieces. Cutting the Stub Tenons After the grooves are cut, the [7 next step is to eut stub tenons to fit the grooves. To do this, I use ‘the same type of procedure as ser BLADE above, flipping the piece, and elon ro “sneaking up” on the final cut. SET UPSAW.Start by setting the height of the blade by using one of the grooved pieces as a gange, see Fig. 4. Next, set the rip fence so the distance between it and the out side of the blade is just slightly less than the depth of the groove, see Fig.5. CUT THE TENONS.To cut the tenon, make the first pass at the shoulder of the tenon, see Fig. 6a. ‘Then slide the workpiece over to ‘complete the tenon at the end. ‘Then flip the workpiece over to ‘cut the other side. If necessary, raise the blade or move the fence and repeat: the procedure until ‘the tenon fits snug in the groove, ea Or BLADE CUT TENONLIN SEVERAL PASSES No.5 ‘ShopNotes 28