I do a lot of shopping online. If I could buy all my groceries and gas for my car online, I might never buy anything in person. Heck, I might not ever leave the house (except to buy hardwood...that's something I still think must be done in person). I am also up very early in the morning, and sometimes that's when I do my shopping. Maybe there are others like me out there, so...
I have done a little revamping of my website. I now have an online store set up. At least, I'm pretty sure I do. It tested pretty well, with shipping through UPS and US Postal, payment through Paypal. I'm working on getting Fedex available, but they seem to be a challenge. I must say, I now have a deep appreciation for sites like Amazon and eBay.
Currently, I am only selling the European Kraft paper online. Maybe someday I'll expand, but for now I thought some people might like to be able to order online. Check it out, and if anything seems buggy, please email or call. My website is www.highfillcustomwoodworks.com, click on the STORE option to the left.
Sunday, March 29, 2015
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Homemade Veneer Hammer
I was recently making a marquetry panel and needed (or wanted) to veneer the back in a cheap veneer to balance the panel. My vacuum pump was out of commission, so I turned to the idea of hammer veneering (at least for the backer veneer...hammer veneering the marquetry to the front of the panel would likely be a good exercise in ruining marquetry). I'd never tried hammer veneering and didn't have a veneer hammer.
Perusing the internet for a veneer hammer to purchase, I wasn't overly excited by what I saw. I decided I'd make my own. The veneer hammer you see below is entirely out of scrap except for the 1/4" brass strip at the business end of the hammer. The head is a scrap of oak left over from building the chevalet; the handle is an extra cherry leg from a coffee table. The brass strip is 1/8" thick, 1 1/4" wide. I bought a 12" length off Amazon for $6.
I took the basic dimensions and shape of the veneer hammer from Tage Frid's article in FWW #10. I think there's about 1/4" of brass sticking out of the head. I eased the edges and corners of the brass strip with a file. I used a double wedged tenon to secure the handle to the head. I did some rough shaping on the handle using rasps and a spokeshave, just to make it comfortable.
I did not bother securing the brass strip into the head of the veneer hammer. It's just press fit in a snug groove. (One reason I left it proud on the ends: so I can easily pry it out if I ever choose to.)
This is not a tool to show off at an art show...it's for working. The next one I make, I'll be sure to start with enough material at the end of the handle to flare it out a bit, but I don't imagine I'll be so vigorous with this one as to lose my grip. It's really just a squegee.
I used a brass strip so that I can put the veneer hammer in a dish of hot water to keep the metal warm. The brass won't rust. What I did was put a little water in a small pan on a hot plate, then stuck the brass of the veneer hammer in the water.
This worked out very nicely. I'm glad I tried hammer veneering, and I'm glad I made my own veneer hammer (total cash outlay = $6...not bad). I intend to use this technique on work in the future. If you want to see a good video on hammer veneering, go to www.woodtreks.com and search for hammer veneer (or click here).
Perusing the internet for a veneer hammer to purchase, I wasn't overly excited by what I saw. I decided I'd make my own. The veneer hammer you see below is entirely out of scrap except for the 1/4" brass strip at the business end of the hammer. The head is a scrap of oak left over from building the chevalet; the handle is an extra cherry leg from a coffee table. The brass strip is 1/8" thick, 1 1/4" wide. I bought a 12" length off Amazon for $6.
I took the basic dimensions and shape of the veneer hammer from Tage Frid's article in FWW #10. I think there's about 1/4" of brass sticking out of the head. I eased the edges and corners of the brass strip with a file. I used a double wedged tenon to secure the handle to the head. I did some rough shaping on the handle using rasps and a spokeshave, just to make it comfortable.
I did not bother securing the brass strip into the head of the veneer hammer. It's just press fit in a snug groove. (One reason I left it proud on the ends: so I can easily pry it out if I ever choose to.)
This is not a tool to show off at an art show...it's for working. The next one I make, I'll be sure to start with enough material at the end of the handle to flare it out a bit, but I don't imagine I'll be so vigorous with this one as to lose my grip. It's really just a squegee.
I used a brass strip so that I can put the veneer hammer in a dish of hot water to keep the metal warm. The brass won't rust. What I did was put a little water in a small pan on a hot plate, then stuck the brass of the veneer hammer in the water.
This worked out very nicely. I'm glad I tried hammer veneering, and I'm glad I made my own veneer hammer (total cash outlay = $6...not bad). I intend to use this technique on work in the future. If you want to see a good video on hammer veneering, go to www.woodtreks.com and search for hammer veneer (or click here).
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