Search results

True about the comparison - the wire was a twisted cable, the Dynema was braided, so I suspect that explains the difference in elasticity. There was definitely more lag between the cable tightening and the glider moving, and in 'bumpy' air the Dynema gave a smoother climb. I doubt the OP wanted...

I've winch launched gliders on Dynema and you can definitely feel the stretch. Noticeably more than the steel wire we used to use. But definitely less stretch than polypropylene rope.

You might find this thread helpful: https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/threads/humidity-and-wood-movement-the-basics.135336/ The cupping isn't caused by something you did, just by a large humidity change. Knowing why and how wood moves means you can design to cope with it.

Role models don't always work as expected. My own father did a lot of DIY and once made a serviceable kitchen table, but he specialised in destroying things and rebuilding them with 6 inch nails, 8 inch if he had them. I make ukuleles and guitars. I guess I learnt that you can do most things...

I had to collect ashes recently, and they are in a stout cardboard box around 10 x 8 x 6 inches. Quite heavy too. I'd ask your friend for dimensions, especially for ashes and earth which could be any size. The whole could be pretty heavy, so plan for stout handles.

It's just possible that it's Spanish Cedar (a mahogany relative, not a real cedar). I found some in a Victorian wardrobe, just a couple of rails. If it's surprisingly light and dents easily, that's my guess. I get a spicy smell when its planed. Often used for guitar necks by classical builders.

There are four steps to setting the intonation once you have the bridge in roughly the right place. To do that, measure from the face of the nut to the centre of the 12th fret and double it. Your saddles need to be that distance from the nut plus a small amount (on a Strat, maybe as little as...

There are two ways to get a matt finish: 1. Sand but don't buff. This will shine up lots with handling. 2. Add some particles to the finish which scatter light - this is what's done for matt lacquers etc. They'll shine up a bit with wear, but not to full gloss. I've not heard any way of...

If you are laminating the pieces, some kind of former is almost essential. Hand bending produces similar, but not usually identical, shapes. It would help to know wood species, how sharp the bend, and what the next steps are.

I've bent a fair amount on a hot pipe/bending iron. Much depends on how tight your bends need to be and what species of wood. A bend similar to the curve at the waist of a guitar is quite hard to achieve, even at 2mm thick. For tighter bends I'm looking at 1.5mm or less. The three main failures...

Maybe daft, but would a hard point handsaw handle this? If so you could cut outside and avoid the swarf problem.

Most wax is quite soft, even when fully hardened. Though a thin coat on my tables doesn't show scuff marks. Maybe you need quite a bit more buffing? If that fails, remove wax and varnish I guess.

There's a good chance the paint is not, or not very, soluble in alcohol. If you go gently you might be able to wipe off much of the varnish, if it is shellac, without going though to the paint. If so, that might smooth it enough so you can refinish over the top (I'd suggest clear shellac in...

Be aware that epoxy probably won't stop the crack expanding, or the crack extending, if that's what the slab wants to do. Your first step is to get the slab to the same humidity condition as where the table will live, and to be sure its fully acclimatised to that humidity. If so, it won't move...

Hot hide glue, but I come from the luthiery camp so ... For a small joint, kitchen gelatine crystals (ultra refined hot hide glue) give a super-clear glue, but it gels in seconds so won't work to joint boards.

I find oil finishes the best for popping grain, with shellac a close second. Try wiping on some boiled linseed oil, leave a minute or so, then wipe off thoroughly. Leave 2 or 3 days to dry, a week if you have the patience, then apply your chosen finish. Or clear shellac, which is quicker as...

Excellent reputation.

As I understand it, the confusion arises because to a sawyer the terms relate to the way they decide to saw the log, whereas woodworkers use them to describe the resulting grain orientation. This is why I always refer to vertical grain rather than quarter-sawn. When a sawyer flat saws a log...

This puzzled me until I realised your second post was Option 3, not 4! I build musical instruments, not tables, but that means I have quite a bit of experience with humidity movement. You have two issues here: 1. Cupping or bowing after the initial glue up. This is likely to be because the...

Don't remove the bend! That fretboard has a tight radius, 12 inches I think, to make barre chords and bending easier. It won't play well with a flat fretboard. If anything, work out a way to slightly overbend the frets - they go in better if you seat the ends first and then tap down the...