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JRammit

Space Saving Tools

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Dont most hand held sanders have a trigger you have to hold down?.... I had thought about cutting a slit in my bench and mounting my jigsaw upside down underneath.. But id have to rig the trigger with a rubber band or something

That sort of hack is usually done by wiring the trigger back and plugging the device into a switched outlet. Used to be little table saws made that way with 7 1/4 saw bolted to the bottom of the table.

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I'm with Bob on this one, I have two power tools (scroll saw and drill press) that I use.   The rest of my work is done with a carving knife, finger drills, and sand paper.    I only work with balsa wood and the power sanders were just too powerful for my taste.  

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Hand carving balsa baits is truely a form of art... One in which a steady hand and keen eye are the most valuable tools

But im far from an artist... More of a designer

There are ALOT of things im anxious to build just to see if they work... If they do, id like the ability to duplicate them as accurately as possible... If they dont, then the less time i invest, the better

Ive been capable without the tools.. But cant wait to see my capabilities with them!

Edited by JRammit
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Keep an eye on your local craigslist.  Also look for somebody who wants to "trade."  You could have just what they need.  I might also suggest you look for the slightly upgrade 12speed mini drill press as it is likely to have a removeable MT2 taper as opposed to the cheaper little five speeds which leave you stuck with just a standard drill chuck.  

Edited by Bob La Londe
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Well since the drill press can double as a sander (like Travis said), i can afford the space for a full sized bench top model....... Plus the mini press would limit the length of bait to drill through (like clemmy said)

So i got my eye on this now

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Skil-10-in-Drill-Press-with-Laser-3320-01/204504289?cm_mmc=Shopping%7cG%7cBase%7cPLA%7cD25T%7cPowerTools&gclid=CjwKEAjwovytBRCdxtyKqfL5nUISJACaugG1VP8GV_WhFVqE8fLT3-o4Hk_8VDOaMOGBXPzMLPVMlhoCCcjw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

But i like the craigslist idea too!... Ill look into that (like Bob said)

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I was a working carpenter, cabinet maker, and general contractor for almost 50 years, so I have a garage full of wood working tools

But the power tool I use most for shaping is this oscillating belt sander:

http://m.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-Oscillating-Edge-Belt-Spindle-Sander-EB4424/100061671/

Remarkably, even though I bought mine fifteen years ago, the price is still the same, and the machine just keeps on keeping on!

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I was a working carpenter, cabinet maker, and general contractor for almost 50 years, so I have a garage full of wood working tools

But the power tool I use most for shaping is this oscillating belt sander:

http://m.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-Oscillating-Edge-Belt-Spindle-Sander-EB4424/100061671/

Remarkably, even though I bought mine fifteen years ago, the price is still the same, and the machine just keeps on keeping on!

 

I use mine a lot also and still comes in as the best buy and best tool every other year when they do they oscillating spindle sander shoot outs.  I don't use it too much for cranks when shaping is concerned but have used it a few times on larger swim baits.

 

I am not for sure what tool I would choose if I had to just pick one.  Quality tools (hand or power) make a huge difference in enjoyment and time spent being productive in the shop.  

Edited by Travis
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Well since the drill press can double as a sander (like Travis said), i can afford the space for a full sized bench top model....... Plus the mini press would limit the length of bait to drill through (like clemmy said)

So i got my eye on this now

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Skil-10-in-Drill-Press-with-Laser-3320-01/204504289?cm_mmc=Shopping%7cG%7cBase%7cPLA%7cD25T%7cPowerTools&gclid=CjwKEAjwovytBRCdxtyKqfL5nUISJACaugG1VP8GV_WhFVqE8fLT3-o4Hk_8VDOaMOGBXPzMLPVMlhoCCcjw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

But i like the craigslist idea too!... Ill look into that (like Bob said)

 

 

That's the little five speed.  Seems like everybody sells one.  They run from 69.95 (less on sale) at Harbor Freight to $129.95 it seems, and except for the color and the boxes they could all be the same.  Go down to home depot and look at their shelf demo.  Then extend the quill.  You will see it has very short throw.  You will also see there is no slot in the quill to knock out the taper limiting you to ONLY what you can put in the drill chuck.

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I think i know the answer to this question... But ill ask anyway...

Has anyone tried the rotary cutting bits for cutting out blanks??

Ive never done carpentry for a living, but i did install home theater systems for a while several years ago... My company bought us a roto-zip for cutting speaker holes.... It was just next to worthless, hardly any control over where the bit wanted to go... Too many round speakers in oval holes, so we went back to the jig saw

But i wonder if it would be of any use on a stationary tool.. Like say.. A drill press??..... I would figure it to be more of a hazard than anything.. But if it worked.. I would have 3 tools in 1

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I think the speed is going to be a bit on the slow side.  Also, a spinning cutter of that kind is hard to control, but it might be possible if you hook your thumbs on the table, and manipulate the part with your finger tips so you can't suck a finger into the cutter.  Even with something like drywall and a Rotozip tool it takes a lot of practice to just make decent square holes for boxes.  I've watched many a drywaller going happily along leaving turd holes for the mud guy to fix.  

 

A band saw is a better tool for roughing out blanks, but of course you are space limited.  

Edited by Bob La Londe
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Dave, i liked the way you did the bawal crank in your video... Your cut out lines were larger than the body itself... So that the sander does the detailed work

Thats why i mention the rotary cutter... Wouldnt have to be an exact cut if i let the sander pick up the slack

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I am sure with a enough time you could get a rough blank knocked out with a chain saw.  The rotary cutter is a bad idea along with most anything else that isn't intended to cut wood. Yes you can make it work but why when there are far superior tools designed to do what you need to do.  It does not take too long for most that do any sort of woodworking on a consistent basis to come to the conclusion proper tools and set up (doesn't  have to be expensive) has significant impact on overall time it takes do to a task and often makes results better as less error when something can be done effortlessly.   A coping saw and decent blades is a far better choice to cut out a blank. A run of the mill ryoba will make short work of ripping and crosscutting any wood to blanks or PVC for that matter. 

Edited by Travis
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Apart from drilling machines, I do not like rotary cutters. If I can find another way to do the job, a rotary blade is my last choice.

For some jobs it is the only efficient choice; like cutting 18mm ply or ripping down 4m long stock meranti.

Routers and circular cutter blades are 'break glass in case of emergency' tools.

Dave

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I would skip the scroll saw completely and get a small band saw if power tools are the way you are going.  The foot print is smaller and cuts much faster and opens up a lot more options of use than a scroll saw.  My scroll saw gets used some but mainly is a rust collector.  The band saw with proper set up and blade selection will be able to easily cut out cranks, make lip slots, re saw and break down wood, and cut lips effortlessly.  You also have a tool that can do other things outside of lure making.     

 

If space is the limiting factor I would redesign your work bench area and make so you can slide in a flip top cart and have the drill press on one side and the band saw on the other.You can size the cart appropriately to fit the tools and never mess with lifting or moving them.  A small band saw no big deal to move typically but the drill press will end up staying in place.  Craigslist can have some good deals, as mentioned, and will let you spend the same money on higher quality machinery if you go used or old. I have a 14" inch band saw that gets most of the work but kept a low budget Delta just for cutting out blanks. The scrap wood on the band saw was left over from cutting out 6 blanks that were then taken to the drill press.  Probably 10 minutes from start to finish to have 6 blanks, hook and lip tie drilled, lip slot cut, ballast hole drilled, and ready to shape with the knife. 

 

DSC_0262_zpsfe4652e1.jpg

 

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Edited by Travis
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