I’ve generated two 50 gallon barrels of scrap oak (all 1.75″ thick, 4″ to 6″ varying length and width. I thought I make blocks for my grand children but working with these short pieces I find to be slow and dangerous. Before I run them through my wood stove I’d like to hear from any one about what good use I might put these pieces to.
Thanks,
Tom
Replies
Tom:
Resaw them into thinner pieces, 3/8 to 5/8 and make boxes. They're great for spices, jewelry, pen and paper or anything else. Boxes can be a good learning experience and they make great gifts. They're kind of fun to make. With two barrels of oak you can make maybe a hundred boxes.
Good luck, Jim
Edited 3/1/2009 11:44 pm ET by James R.
I have 9.5 fingers from sawing a piece of wood that was too small. Granted, most of it was my own stupidity, but working with small pieces is inherently dangerous. At my house, small pieces get converted to heat.
Ahhh, the eternal question. We generate all these scrap pieces that we think might come in handy someday, then when "someday" arrives, we realize that we're creating them far faster than we'll ever use them - and all we really do with them is move them out of the way as we make even more. - lol
It's painful, but you gotta purge the pile from time to time. I have a self-imposed limit on the space I reserve for "scrap" and I don't allow myself to let it grow. I don't keep much oak since it's relatively inexpensive, but I have some rosewood that's been around for about four years, some 6/4 walnut, some 5/4 beech, VG fir, and some really nice tight grained redwood that I just can't toss out.
Is "Owego" anywhere near Oswego, NY? I spent a little time there in the '70's and '80's when I worked on the nuke plants up there.
Owego's 100 miles from Oswego.
I agree with small boxes and other small things that can be used for Xmas gifts in lieu of buying. That's what I do with them along with using some for backer boards for drilling.. chopping.. etc. A few get used to dry small finished items.
And.. when I do legs (as right now on a computer desk-hutch) I use a scrap piece to stand them on. I simply insert a dowel in the scrap and drill a dowel hole in one end of the leg. Insert it and it stands straight up on the scrap which makes finishing all 4 sides much easier.
Some get used in jigs.. cauls.. sacrificial fences.. etc. etc.. So.. you can see I make use of them. But.. if you get a major over-run... you gotta do what you gotta do even though it hurts. But Xmas gifts top my list of uses as I end up with oak.. maple.. Spanish cedar.. etc. etc. it seems. No one will ever guess they were scrap IMO.
Good luck...
Sarge..
Great work, love that soft maple with the worm holes and streaks. Ever try putting a brown stain on it? Saw a whole kitchen made and stained with it an it was fantastic.
Haven't used stain on maple yet... when I use maple I am generally looked for a clear finish as I chose it for being light in color. In this case I wanted a light color to contrast starkly with the purple-heart. But.. I'm open to doing anything and usually do a test piece first to see how it looks to my eye. I will try some as I do have scrap and use it for things just as that.
Thanks on the box. I built one for my wife Lisa and one for my favorite niece Lydia. I have never built a small box before as I have been consumed by large carcass work since the 70's. But.. I do have some smaller gift type items on the agenda this year. I have a computer desk-hutch working and just as soon as I finish... maybe a run of Xmas gifts for the coming season.
Sarge..
Edited 3/4/2009 10:19 am ET by SARGEgrinder47
Hey Sarge , can you post a few more pictures of this great box ? Thanks Gary
Just thought I would add my two cents.
I know a little old lady who lives near by and I give her all the scraps from my shop except the pine. She burns them in her wood stove. She loves it because it's much smaller to deal with at her age than a full size log, although she does that too.
Just thought from the Northeast. :)
They were a set DT59 as I made two... one for my wife and one for my favorite niece. I have never done any small boxes before or much else small for that matter. I posted them in the Gallery on this forum but... not the big Gallery as my work is not gallery quality.
So.. do a search in Gallery (as in General Discussion.. Power Tool.. etc.) under My First Small Boxes I believe as they should be in the archives from within the last 6 weeks. I think all of 3 people posted a comment. I also posted them in the Steel City box contest but... they do not show up there so I won't bother again.
Aw h*ll.. the way the archives and search work.. here they are once I think about it. Searching here takes too much time and you could build a major piece before you find something. Here ya go.... ha.. ha... ha..ha..
The names are cut with a DW scroll saw.. my first attempt at scrolling and the hinges are simply hidden pins in case you wonder. Any other questions.. feel free to ask. I did learn a lot about small items and end up with some jigs that will save much time on the second attempt.
Regards...
Sarge..
Sarge , thanks a million , great job . This will give me a few ideas of my own . It may be your first attempt but you would never know it , like all of the things I've seen you build . Can't wait to see your next project . Gary
SargeThat's a wonderful box--I love the top board, too. Great character and spalting. Tom"Notice that at no time do my fingers leave my hand"
Thanks Tom... I look forward to finishing the computer desk-hutch so I can turn my attention to smaller items as this... I would like to have more time to use my DW scroll saw also on some delicate projects. I didn't have a clue using that scroll saw for the first time but.. with about 45 minutes of tinkering and practice on scrap... I feel I actually did a pretty good job with scrolling the names. But... much room for improvement as with anything.
Regards...
Sarge..
I heat the shop with them, for the very reasons that you cite.
Best,
John
You could always make a mini crosscut sled with a hold-down clamp to make it safe to saw the small pieces.
All of my uses for scrap bits have already been mentioned.
Call me piggish. Oak goes into my BBQ smoker.
(Is that Swine WoodWorking?)
No, but I'll be over for dinner.
After all the best pieces are used , Red Oak makes some of the best BBQ wood .
If you know any BBQ experts give them a bag O' Oak .
They will be back for more
Classified :
free BBq wood , love to try new dishes
Is that Lake Oswego Oregon ?
dusty , time to eat
Edited 3/2/2009 10:19 pm ET by oldusty
Thats a great idea about the BBQ. I have a bunch lying around taking up shop space. How does hickory rate as a BBQ wood? Got a lot of scraps of that also.
Anybody do Salmon on a cedar plank on the grill? Been wanting to try that.
I'm getting hungry from this post.
Hickory works great in the smoker and on the BBQ but it is strong so a little goes a long way . The Red Oak is great Alder is also good as well as Apple wood.
dusty, and time to eat
I'm partial to mesquite. I've used hickory, pecan and oak too. I keep coming back to the mesquite. Tom
"Notice that at no time do my fingers leave my hand"
In addition to my woodworking, I am a remodeling contractor/handyman. I learned from my handyman business that keeping/collecting the scraps and leftovers can be overwhelming.
So i have been using the "easy/cheap" decision method on all such materials. But only after deciding if there might be some future use.
Is it easy to store this leftover piece, and is it expensive to replace this leftover?
If it's easy to store, and expensive to replace, and there's a future need, then I keep it. I'm sure you follow the thought process, so i won't go through all of the possibilities.
So, wood scraps -- they can be easy to store, and sometimes expensive to replace (but not really when you're talking about oak). So, got a use for the stuff?
And be honest -- will you take the time to make all of those tiny projects that sell for less than the hours they took to make?
(Said differently -- will you make all of those wonderful Christmas gifts that people seem to love, even though working with small pieces is a pain in the neck?)
I find it hard to determine what is scrap, living in the middle of a treeless plain.
I have thought of the intarsia dudes. Perhaps they would like to take a run through the pile before it hits the firepit.
Going to try the BBQ thing as soon as the snow melts and I can see it.
I tend to be a packrat and keep any little scrap of wood that falls off of the saw. This includes common pine. I can just see in my head the projects, jigs, etc. that I might possibly someday need a piece of 2" x 6" pine for. I recently cleaned it out a bit, but I'm sure I'm keeping far too much junk. It just feels wasteful to toss it though.
I think it's a good idea to use the ease/expense concept to decide what to keep, and also decide if there are any specific projects that you will use the wood for. I am a good talker, but we'll see about application. :-)
Not sure how oak works for cutting boards, but you could make some thick ones with end grain vertical with that much would. Might get youngsters involved in the making of them. Then they would also have gifts to give to friends and family. I am sure a favorite teacher would prefer one to an apple.
They aren't the most challenging thing to make, but they are quite useful.
Tom
This might sound silly but I get backed up with the small stuff. I teach in a high school here in NC. I decided to take all of these small pieces of oak, walnut, cherry and maple and use them up. I made a jig to hold the small 4 x 6 and 5 x7 pieces so I could put a simple edge on the pieces. I give them to the teachers at my school and they put pictures on them and cheap brass plates to give to "students of the week" or some other recognition deal.
I have had students come back 10 years later and tell me they still have the plaque with their name on it.
Some goes in the stove granted. I like the feelin' I get from appreciative students a little more.
Maybe there's a school near you?
dan
You could make some of these.
I want one!
All you need is a plan and patience
Dood ,
That is very cool , and looks like someone got into it and had fun too.
And QSRO to boot
Edited 3/5/2009 8:43 pm ET by oldusty
Thanks, 89 hours of fun.
See if an elementary or middle school art teacher might be able to use them.
Way back when I worked at a cabinet shop we had a cabinet dept. separate from a door/drawer front dept. which I was in charge of. Nine guys churned out 250 doors/drawer fronts a day from rough lumber with some great machinery but no dust collection. Large fans blew the dust out the back door! (Cheap Boss)
With fifty three different designs of raised panel doors, we had many, many small pieces and parts and shaping small parts on a Northfield Shaper became a nightmare of nerves. We used 1/4 inch aluminum plate templates with an oak fence mounted with screws and hold downs attached to the fence to make it a bit less unnerving. Get creative with hold downs for grip and safety. Used Pledge on the shaper for slick and it worked well. Still have all my didgets.
My grandkids are my best clients and my greatest admirers!
RPM1
Put asorted pieces in boxes, put a price on them and put them on creagslist. I know a man in Tampa Fl that gets rid of all he has that way.
I hate to let good wood go too, but when I do, my scraps go in one of these at the end of day (the wood version that is).
http://www.islandhottub.com/
Good luck!
C
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