What AM I doing wrong?
I've made several items in the past but just recently picked woodworking up again.
I made the 18" doll bed and I was less that pleased. The foot board and head board vertical pieces just did not line up well when I was screwing them together. I had problems with almost every joint being offset or crooked. And now today, I attempt to make the doll bunk beds and I have the same issues. This time, I thought that using the Kreg jig would make a positive difference. It hasn't.
I don't know if I'm not clamping them right or what. But I've split the upright both times! And they do not stay flush but are offset ... and never the same direction. GRRRR
I seem to think it IS in fact a clamping issue .. if you agree, what kind of clamps to you use?
And another question .. how well/much do you sand these projects? I spent over 2 hours sanding (with 120 grit orbital sander) .. not sure if I'm just inept or picky.
Thanks so much.
June in KS
claydowling
Sat, 08/13/2011 - 20:05
Multiple problems/solutions
June,
There are probably multiple problems plaguing you here.
The problem of pieces not lining up properly is probably caused by cuts being out of square, or pieces which are supposed to be the same size are slightly off.
The problem of cuts out of square can be corrected by squaring up your saw. I find I need to do this occasionally with my power equipment. You'll need a small machinists square, which you'll use to check square against the fence on your miter saw.
The problem if inconsistent lengths requires a little practical geometry. If you have more than one piece to be cut to the same length, clamp a block to the fence on your miter saw the appropriate distance from the blade, and make every cut against that block.
If you don't have a miter saw, pick up a hand saw and check out some of the good sawing videos on YouTube and other video sites. I can't recommend trying to do accurate cuts with a circular saw. The saw was designed for construction-grade cuts, not furniture grade.
As for splitting out pieces, consider pre-drilling holes. I'm not sure of the details where you were splitting legs, but screws will split out wood if they don't have an adequate pilot hole.