Always looking to provide features clients with that huge wow factor, I recently came across a neat product made by Blum that will do just that and not only put the wow factor in their project but most likley the huh factor too.
New to the market, Blum has developed a servo system that essentally opens doors and drawers for you. Check it out
A couple months back I was fortunate to be able to participate in a solid surface certification program put on by a local hardwood supplier. As with any trade seminar many of my fellow cabinet and furniture makers turned out for a great day of networking and education. Being a small one man shop I felt somewhat out of place in an arena of companies that have multiple teams to do what I do myself. As the day progressed I soon realized, amongst many other reasons, why I am a one man shop and don’t have a sales team, fabrication team and installation team. Why you might ask?
There seems to be a certain satisfaction I get from working with a client from the beginning to the end. A certain lack of communication that tends to happen when layers of management is part of the process. Something that not only gets lost though the various plethora of people you deal with at a larger company but the problems associated as well. Maybe a detail the salesmen didn’t tell the craftsmen, something the craftsmen didn’t tell the installer, a process the installer didn’t tell the client. Probably one of the best experiences I have been fortunate to have is commissioning a small local company to build an offroad car. While most likley more expensive the most, the end result was pure satisfaction and a grin from ear to ear! Proof that less can really be more:)
Congratulations to all the winners and participants of the Lumberjocks Winter Woodworking Challenge. Yet another awesome contest with amazing entries. I will agree with others when I say this had to have been one of the hardest contests to pick a winner. It seems as the LJ community grows so does the talent and this contest was yet another testament to such talent!
For more information and to check out the winning entries head on over to Lumberjocks.com
One of the many ways to add visual interest to a project is to add a curve. Now for most of us this is no easy task and not to mention the tools, equipment and knowledge involved to create such interest. This, however, has changed in the last couple of years with the growth of products like Kerfkore. Although not new to the industry it seems like a worthy mention especially to those who want to add curves but lack the equipment of even knowledge for that matter.
Essentially, Kerfkore is a flexible substrate that allows you to add your choice of a flexible surface such as high pressure laminate, wood veneers or metals to name a view and then mold them to your desired radius or curve of not less than 3 1/2″. Amazing huh? Now it won’t take the place of steam bending or the bent lamination process but it can be an economical solution for various projects.
Visit Kerfkore for more information and find a supplier near you.
RJ
Phoenix area woodworkers mark your calendar! On February 21st 22nd The Arizona Association of Fine Woodworkers will be holding their 5th annual Excellence in Woodworking show at the Mesa Convention Center. The show is open to woodworkers of all abilities and is a relatively cheap way to exhibit your work.
For more information click here http://www.azfinewoodworkers.org/
RJ
I currently subscribe to various woodworking trade publications geared both large and small shops. An article that caught me eye recently came from Wood Digest. Although this is a publication geared toward extremely large shops I think the basic principles apply much the same way to our one man shows. One principle in particular is cash flow.
Stated simply cash flow is the amount of cash received and paid by a business within defined period of time. So you say how does this affect me? Well something I learned early was I couldn’t live on big projects alone. Sure a $5,000 conference table is a great commission but if I can’t turn it around and get paid it really does my business no good.
With that in mind I thought I would touch on a couple ideas within the article and from personal experience.
Take the small jobs - Like I mentioned earlier large commissions are great but don’t let all the small jobs get away. A quick furniture repair job or refinish project can put a quick couple of bucks in your pocket and those couple of bucks may pay the phone bill or buy a new saw blade:) Here’s a chance to get paid once a week and once a month.
30/30/30/10 - Try a different pay schedule? Rather than the old 50% up front and remainder on completion look for 30% upfront, 30% as a progress payment and 30% due upon completion. What about the other 10% you ask? Well require that 30 days upon completion. This will allow you the opportunity to touch base with your client and make sure they are as happy then as they where upon delivery.
Offer discounts to get paid quickly - Now who won’t take that 10% discount for early payment? Think of it this way, you get paid now VS a month from now and hopefully there may be some interest you won’t have to pay!
Use other people’s money - Know your suppliers billing cycle. Can you put off purchasing 10 sheets of plywood today if tomorrow the new billing cycle starts and you get an additional 45 days to pay?
RJ
Thank god for lumberjocks.com and yet another woodworking contest! It seems, that nowadays, this is about the only thing that get’s to contribute to my blog. Unfortunately, with so many projects in the works and the holidays upon us it’s been difficult to find time to write:( Of course that’s about to change with yet anouther Lumberjocks.com woodworking contest.
Not to be out done by the last contest, Martin over at LJ has again come up with two awesome catagories and a host of great sponsers and prizes for the winners.
The first catagory requires you incorporate a knot into your project and the second project requires a secret compartment. For more details on this awesome contest head on over to Lumberjocks.com!
Hurry, entry deadline is January 31.
In today’s economy, charities throughout the country are seeing an enormous decline in charitable donations. It goes without saying we all just don’t have too much, if anything, to give. Sure we can all give our time but most often that isn’t too practical. So what’s left you say?
Over conversation with a neighbor the other day I got to thinking it may be nice if maybe once a year I was able to work with a charity to design and build a custom piece of furniture that might be auctioned or raffled off with the entire proceeds being contributed directly to that one lucky charity. By spreading one project out over a longer period, having the ability to fit various portions into my busy schedule and incorporating existing or left over materials from other project into a charity project it really seems like a win win situation.
In the coming weeks and months I will hopefully be outlining my plan on how I will solicit interested charities and set up project guidelines. As always comments are welcome.
RJ
Ok, well maybe not in the earthy sense of the word but the shop has gone green literally. With the proposed kitchen remodel looming in the near future larger and upgraded equipment has become a must!! So with having purchased a 17″ Grizzly band saw I thought I would continue on with the green theme, stick with Grizzly and purchase a 15″ Planer with shelix head, 8″ jointer with shelix head and 10″ cabinet saw with router table extension and out feed roller system. In the next month or so, after I have had a little time on each of them, I will be posting reviews. So far my opinion is mixed but overall a very positive one.
Ron
Uh??? What??? As I am sure you are thinking I must have lost my mind with such a statement I would like to take this opportunity to explain my madness.
“The human hand has a particularly refined sense of touch. According to Smithsonian magazine, researchers found that our hand can detect a dot just three microns high. (A human hair has a diameter of 50 to 100 microns.) However, by “using a texture rather than a dot, the researchers found the hand can detect roughness just 75 nanometers high”—a nanometer being one thousandth of a micron! Such remarkable sensitivity is attributed to about 2,000 touch receptors in each fingertip.” So what you say???
Well first off those numbers are some extremely tight tolerances and sure your joinery needs to fit tight but I think many of us overlook are sense of touch as a quality control tool. Often times a defect or blemish can be extremely apparent to the touch when only just visible to the eye. Taking this approach to the finer details of your woodworking will, without a doubt, make your projects standout from the rest and no where is this more apparent than at the finishing stages.
Try this on your next project. At each stage in your project close your eyes and run your hands over your entire project. Does it flow? What do you feel? To be honest you shouldn’t feel much of anything and if you do then it’s a great time to fix the flaw. No, changes in joinery, milling marks, tear out, end grain, saw marks, fasteners, dust nibs, runs in the finish…. the list goes on.
Look at your best work. Now feel it. Look at your worst work. Now feel it. Now tell me there’s not a difference!
RJ
Although I haven’t been posting much that doesn’t mean I haven’t been busy!! In fact things have been a little crazy both in the shop and on the drawing board.
Since my last post I wrapped up a couple small projects, started design on a kitchen, upgraded my jointer, planer and tablesaw (Stay tuned for the reviews), and trying hard to finish my wife’s corner curio, sold some trucks, bought some cars, went on vacation… yeah the list goes on but things are slowly getting under control. With any luck I will be able to at least provide something constructive on a more frequent basis. A couple articles I am currently working on include: Kitchen design, tips on spotting quality furniture, tool reviews and a little something on Shaker furniture and my trip to Hancock Shaker Village. So till then be safe!!
RJ
Unfortunately, well if you want to call it that, I have been so busy in the shop I almost forgot the summer Lumberjocks.com contest had come to an end:( I think wow about sums it up!! So if you are looking for a little inspiration head over to LumberJocks and check out all the winners and all the entries. Some truly amazing work there! Congrats to all the winners! Just how will Martin top this when the Winter Awards come around? I guess we’ll have to wait and see:)
Ok I am not blind but I am getting older. Not that I am that old but old enough to have reading glasses in the shop in order to see the small things easier:( I really don’t mind wearing the glasses so much as having to swap out to the safety glasses on a regular basis or worst yet leaving the cheap reading glasses on in lieu of the safety glasses.
As of now this has all changed! During a recent trip to my local Louis and Company I noticed the “Cateyes” by FastCap and thought these were for me!! Wow what a concept safety glasses with small magnifiers in them (safety glasses with bi focals) LOL. Now these aren’t prescription safety glasses but they do get the job done. Yes, it does take a couple minutes to adjust to the bifocal type area but in no time you don’t even realize they are there! They come in various magnification powers from 1.5 to 3.0 and the best part is they run about $6.99 a pair. So far I have found them to be pretty comfortable and the 1.5 power just right for me. So if you too have a slight visual impairment like myself I would definitely recommend checking a pair of these out.
Yes, the time has come for yet another great Lumberjocks.com challenge! For those who aren’t in the know Lumberjocks.com is probably one of the most frequented woodworking websites on the net. Each year Lumberjocks.com host various challenges throughout the year with various themes. One theme was based on what a woodworker could build with a 2×4. Another involved building anything without glue or fasteners and with awesome sponsors and prizes awarded to the winners the entries are just amazing. This summer’s challenge is no different.
Finally it’s complete:) Designed for a client with modern tastes this project had it’s moments!!! It was constructed primarily from alder, with a book matched, home sawn, curly maple veneer top and walnut inlay. Five coats of an oil/varnish finish was applied by both wiping and spaying. To help accentuate the curl in the maple a shellac/dye process was used. It stands 36” high and is 12” wide and 68” long.
Unfortunatley, my most recent photos are less than desirable so hopefully I will have another chance this afternoon to take some more. This photo below was taking in the middle of the finishing process but is much better at showing the figure in the top:)
