I can haz toolz.

"Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo" (rustyvandura) 01/28/2019 at 13:31 • Filed to: None

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I made those cabinet doors from scratch. Douglas fir. To keep the idiot doggo from raiding the kitchen garbage. I’ll make the rest of them over prob’ly the next two years.

BaconSandwich is tasty. > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/28/2019 at 14:18

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Nicely done. 

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > BaconSandwich is tasty. 01/28/2019 at 14:31

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Thank you. First cabinet doors ever. Fun, but time consuming. Real cabinet makers have jigs and special tools to make things go faster.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/28/2019 at 15:04

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Good work!

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/28/2019 at 15:47

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Thank you. What I lack is a sufficiently large, sufficiently flat surface to assemble the doors on. But for a first effort, I’m largely satisfied. My biggest disappointment is that I think the gap between the doors is slightly too wide, but not wide enough to change it.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/28/2019 at 17:59

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A big flat work area does make life about a million times easier.

Actually, it's best to leave some room in between the two doors. It leaves room for the doors to expand when things get humid in the summer, and not stick.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/28/2019 at 18:22

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If I’m totally honest, I’m a little blown away by how good that looks. Really, really pleased. I bought a jointer for that project so I could mill my stiles. I’d bought a planer a few summers ago. I did the stiles out of Doug fir. I buy it surface dry from a lumber yard in Oakland and it has very tight grain. The original cabinets were all Doug fir, but the doors were plywood slabs.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/28/2019 at 19:17

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Your doors look t otally factory from here, for what that’s worth :)

I had a planner and a jointer at home, but I never used them. I do my fine woodworking at school, where I have six 5'x6' workbenches to spread out on. I sold the ones I had.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/28/2019 at 22:12

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Thank you. Personally? I think you’d have to pay a lot of money to get anything better, though upon close-up examination, there are some little flaws. I bade a really nice silverware drawer, too. The original cabinets were built in place when the house was constructed in like 1959. The kind of old cabinets people love to have ripped out and replaced with crappy and expensive new stuff. I’m sure when we move, the new owners will gut the kitchen and begin again which, this home being in the Bay Area, they’ll pay a pretty penny for the opportunity to do.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/28/2019 at 22:50

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You’re welcome. Yes, you’d have to pay big bucks to get anything better. There will always be little flaws, perfection is not really an achievable goal. Nor is it necessary. Nobody will ever see those flaws but you. The cabinets I’ve made for my kitchen certainly have their share.  I’ve finally learned not to point them out to people, and simply let them enjoy how they look. This is especially important for my wife, who does not done out compliments easily, but has told me that she is very very happy with her new kitchen, even though it isn’t done yet.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/29/2019 at 11:02

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I prefer some flaws in things, honestly, generally. Some flaws in an otherwise very tidy project make the result, well, organic .

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/29/2019 at 11:32

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I always tell my students who are disappointed that their very good project isn’t perfect, “It’s handmade.  Handmade things are not perfect, that’s how you can tell something is handmade.”

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/29/2019 at 12:28

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My daughters accuse me of overthinking things, but that’s how I roll. I’m always trying to learn something, particularly hand and craft skills. When something has flaws that’s been hand made, it shows learning going on. I like coming across something I fabricated years or decades ago and examining it to see how my practice has changed over the years. And I’m frequently quite pleased with that older work.

I’ll tell you one thing that’s changed: screws . When I started really tinkering, there were wood screws and black sheetrock screws. That was it. And from my youth, when my grandfather worked wood, there were only wood screws and they were all slotted.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/29/2019 at 13:01

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Even in the last 10 or 12 years screws have changed immensely . Man, are there some good screws available these day!

Ugh, slotted wood screws. I HAAAAAATE slotted wood screws!

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/29/2019 at 15:54

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Pappy would drill a contoured pilot hole, then drive them with his corded drill. Into hardwood.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/29/2019 at 16:31

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Been there, done that.  Never again though.  When I took over this shop, I had tons of slotted wood screws.  I scrapped them.  Wasteful? Yes, but if I’m not willing to do it, I’m not going to make my students do it either.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > shop-teacher 01/29/2019 at 18:30

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I don’t think they hold well, either.

shop-teacher > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 01/29/2019 at 22:07

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Nope, they don't.