Shopsmith Forums

Hi Bob,

I have a real hard time parting with any of the wood. I see it as money being thrown away. So...my scraps usually stack, lean or otherwise take up valuable room until I can use them, or my dad removes them for firewood. He never takes the "valuable" scraps, according to him.

My wife once removed several pieces of "scrap" 1"x1" red oak pieces, that I was "saving", for use as fence posts for a wire fence that she built to keep Labradoodle puppies in that she was raising.

Bob,

Like Tim, I have a very hard time tossing away any wood. It seems that one always needs a small piece of wood to "help" complete a project, whether it is used as a sanding block,drill support/backer, a spacer, or as a lift off the workbench. Just don't like the feeling knowing that I tossed away a piece of wood that I now need!

For the last few years, I have taken some of my hardwood pieces, and glued them together, and then, set them aside for future, or when needed turning projects such as tool handles, etc. Recently, I made several screwdrivers (Rockler kits) as presents out of the glued up scrap wood. More recently, I used a scrap/glue up to turn a spindle for a small flag pole. I have also used scrap wood to test cuts or fits before using the good stuff!

Last year, I used some Red Oak scraps, bandsawed/planed them down, glued them up and made some clipboards as presents.

Because I hunt and fly fish, I always make it a point to take along my "Irish Kettle" for tea, hot chocolate, soup, etc. For fuel, I save the real small pieces of wood, and even sawdust chips (fire starters) in ziplock gallon size bags. One bag of scrap wood supplies the fuel for several "hot chocolate breaks"!

Finally, I am always on the lookout for shop aids, jigs, etc. that I can make out of scrap wood, and there always seems to be that phone call from a relative that "needs a small piece of wood" for something!

Save those scraps!
John

I never throw away scraps. I am forever finding both large and small uses for scrap wood.Last month while visiting my son near Tulsa we built a fence to keep his dogs in. It was 6 foot tall and my wife couldn't reach the gate latch. My son decided he wanted to construct a gate latch release that would sit on top of the post and could be opened from either the inside or outside. He had a two inch long piece of triangular steel that he couldn't bring himself to toss. We used that piece of steel, another 2 " square piece of steel, a 2" by 6" strip of steel and a 3/8" steel nut to creat the latch he wanted. A truly slick invention. I even learned to weld that day. I guess in the right hands steel scraps are as valuable as wood. fjimp

I'm with all of those who save scraps. I'm always finding uses for pieces! Recently found a small piece of 1/4" plywood. Really!! Actually 1/4" thickness. Although the piece was too small for anything by itself, it became just what I was looking for to become drawer bottoms.

BTW, John (flasbacpt) just reminded me of the need of you Northerners to build fires. Years ago we always carried a tinder box and then got a little smarter and soaked up some wood chips (planer shavings) with diesel fuel and kept it in an old snoose box. A candy tin will also do just fine. This was the best fire starter I ever came across. It is not explosive when opened, but the chips will ignite immediately and give enough heat to start larger wood. The trick is to keep it sealed until you are ready to use, and use only part of it at a time. We also kept a one pound coffee tin half full with this stuff and scooped a handful into a stove to start a new fire.

Another way to make a fire starter is to roll up a strip of corrugated cardboard (as wide as a snoose box) - put the cardboard in the box and drip in melted paraffin (a little over half full). Now you have a large candle. Just ignite the pieces of cardboard sticking out of the paraffin and let the whole box burn up in the fire.

charlese wrote:...Another way to make a fire starter is to roll up a strip of corrugated cardboard (as wide as a snoose box) - put the cardboard in the box and drip in melted paraffin (a little over half full). Now you have a large candle. Just ignite the pieces of cardboard sticking out of the paraffin and let the whole box burn up in the fire.

During the late summer months, up in the mountains where I go camping, there is sometimes a ban on campfires due to the fire danger. Our Rangers say that candles are oakay to burn, and described to us how to make a campfire candle. Take a metal cookie tin and fill it with rolled up corrugated cardboard, melt wax over the cardboard until it is full to the top. Sound familiar? When you light it, it will burn for hours. It does knot provide much heat, but it does give everybody something to sit around in the evening. We only did it once: We discovered that the smoke it created was terrible.

I just came across two more uses of scrap wood. The first involves old kitchen cutting boards. One has two different types of wood, making a stripe pattern. My wife was going to toss them, and I saved them from the trash bin. I am going to cut the alternating stripe one down at about a 5 degree angle, and then glue up the pieces for maybe mill grinders??
I also "found" some scrap red oak (by looking for something else!...another story) that I think that I could glue up and use to turn some travel mugs that Rockler sells.
Firestarters..... My method is the standard backpackers way. I take cotton balls, smear them with vasoline (petroleum jelly), and place them into old 35mm cannisters.
When I need a fire, I just place one cotton ball on top of a small pile of sawdust, surrounded by scrap wood, and with one strike of steel/flint.....instant flame! The cotton/petrolem jelly combo ignites and burns long enough to get the sawdust and wood going.

The other story................. Have you ever looked for something, and could not find it??? Drives one nuts at times!!! Well, never worry..........in a couple of days, just start looking for something else!! You will then find the original item that you were looking for!! Never fails for me!

Have a good sawdust day!
John

flashbacpt wrote:
The other story................. Have you ever looked for something, and could not find it??? Drives one nuts at times!!! Well, never worry..........in a couple of days, just start looking for something else!! You will then find the original item that you were looking for!! Never fails for me!

Have a good sawdust day!
John

What a relief!!.......I thought I was the only one so inflicted.

Hey there John (flashbacpt)! That was a very enjoyable post! The cotton ball method of fire starting works well alright! What I forgot to mention was most of the fires we had to start were in the winter. I remember one lunch fire in particular - we had prepared hamburger patties all wrapped up in aluminum foil. Frozen of course by lunch time. We prepared a spot in the trail to have the fire, started it and got a bunch of coals. Threw the foil wrapped burgers in the coals and waited a few minutes. When we fished out the burgers, we had to dig down 3 feet. The fire had melted the snow. Lunch was very good!!!

Wanted to report that you method of finding lost things always works for me too! Recently couldn't find a 14" long bench plane! Found it right after it was no longer needed. Seems I had moved the shelf where it was supposed to be.

a1gutterman wrote:During the late summer months, up in the mountains where I go camping, there is sometimes a ban on campfires due to the fire danger. Our Rangers say that candles are oakay to burn, and described to us how to make a campfire candle. Take a metal cookie tin and fill it with rolled up corrugated cardboard, melt wax over the cardboard until it is full to the top. Sound familiar? When you light it, it will burn for hours. It does knot provide much heat, but it does give everybody something to sit around in the evening. We only did it once: We discovered that the smoke it created was terrible.

Tim - It's not supposed to be a warming fire - just a fire starter! As for the smoke - Must have been Chinese cardboard.