October 31, 2006
Thinking that the consistency of pumpkin falls somewhere between drywall and pine, I tried out a few wood- and wall-working tools on a fresh gourd one recent afternoon. In competition with several twist bits, a forstner, a keyhole saw and a Rotozip, I'm pleased to report that Irwin's Speedbor bits took the pumpkin's cake.
Irwin souped up the common spade bit with a deep blue recess beneath the cutting blade, which channels the waste material up and out of the hole, leaving a clean, flat surface for the bit to carve. While others left orange tendrils dangling Spanish moss-like across the back of the hole, the Speedbor's paddle wrapped up the pumpkin pulp like a forkful of spaghetti.
Additionally, I saw very little blowout on the work piece's brittle surface (this was the major problem with the keyhole saw, which otherwise was easily controlled, precise, and valuable for its ability to make shapes other than circles). Still, with the lights low and a candle lit behind the 3/8-inch to 1-1/2-inch openings, the Speedbor's work shone like tiny spotlights spangled across my mantel. One friend said the effect made her want to get up and dance. When we put this pumpkin on a turntable at the Halloween party, we're going to have ourselves a DIY disco ball.
More
October 10, 2006
My Grandpa taught me how to use a framing square and a folding rule, and I’ve been a long-time holdout against the Speed Squares you see on every jobsite. But now I have been won over, and I’m writing this item for any other die-hards out there.
The Speed Square looks like a 45-degree drafting triangle made out of aluminum, with the all-important addition of a fence on one short side. They come in 7-inch and 12-inch sizes. Right from the get-go, the Speed Square is ahead of the framing square because you don’t have to tilt it up to hook the tongue over the edge of the wood; the fence does that for you. Square crosscut lines are guaranteed. You can use it for all the other common measuring and layout jobs, including rafters and stairs. Mine even has notches to help guide a pencil parallel to the long edge of the wood.
For me, the real big selling point was watching a guy use his 12-inch speed square as a crosscut fence for his circular saw. Square in one hand, saw in the other, and he was done while I was still looking for a suitable scrap to use as a fence. I mean, duh!
Now here’s the bonus. When you drop a regular L-shaped framing square off the ladder onto concrete, you can pretty much bet that it won’t be square any more. But when you drop a speed square, because it includes all three sides of the triangle, it just bounces and rattles onto the cement, and when you climb down to pick it up, you’ll find that it is still square.
More
October 5, 2006
I moved into my first apartment, a two-bedroom in downtown Saratoga Springs with exposed brick walls for $425, at age 17. I’d graduated a semester early from high school—in a hurry to get out and work for a living, which turned out to be a lot more of a drag than calculus—and my father gave me a housewarming present that I still have: the
combination screwdriver/hammer from Gam Tools.
Now, some folks feel that a tool ought to do one thing and do that one thing well, but for a starter tool, especially for a just-graduating kid starter tool that's only $12, the hammer/screwdriver just might do the trick. The hammer is at least strong enough to hang that Klimt painting on the bare living room wall, and the screwdriver—usually a combination of Phillips head and flat head—can help them put together their pre-fab furniture.
More
