No Power Tool Mandolin

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

Would this work well? https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?m...2F162895467888

[jwpope]

Pranav,
Contact John Preston over at Old World Tonewoods in Lewisburg, WV. I've purchased some beautiful spruce tops in the $15-$20 range from him in the past. Super Nice guy too!

[Marty Jacobson]

Would this work well? https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?m...2F162895467888

Yep. I'd probably leave it 3mm thick as it is now, just sand it smooth and add an X brace and you're on your way. Alaskan cedar needs to be about 50% thicker than spruce, at least in the center.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

Yep. I'd probably leave it 3mm thick as it is now, just sand it smooth and add an X brace and you're on your way. Alaskan cedar needs to be about 50% thicker than spruce, at least in the center.

Unfortunately, that was bought. Would this work?
http://www.stewmac.com/Materials_and...RoC8LQQAvD_BwE

[Matt Harris]

You need a plan before you start buying things. Otherwise you may (likely will) end up wasting money at some point in the process.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

You need a plan before you start buying things. Otherwise you may (likely will) end up wasting money at some point in the process.

I need a plan before buying wood? I thought I just need the minimum sizes.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

It's a good thing y'all told me to practice. I was practicing a few minutes ago by making a little plane, and the chisel slipped and made a huge deep gash in my left hand. Blood spurted out (I think I might have hit a vessel), and got all over my practice pine. If that were a real part of my mando, boy, would I have a story to tell people when they tell me, "that's a beautiful piece of cedar, love the red splotches".

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

going to get stitches now

[Jeff Mando]

going to get stitches now

Like I say, this is an entertaining thread. Already at 9 pages, I think it has the potential to go the distance!

FWIW, Pranav, I hope you were joking about the stitches. Otherwise, I hope you are OK. Big, big disclaimer with all tools -- power or not -- be really careful EVERYTIME you pick one up.

30+ years ago I worked in a warehouse, packing boxes, using a tape gun and a box cutter. First day there I cut myself. Second day there I cut myself again. Third day I cut myself deep and there was blood everywhere. After that I never cut myself again.

[pops1]

Talking to a friend of mine decades ago, who also was a luthier. He said he was at a dinner with friends, all luthiers, he was looking around the table and happened to notice he was the only one with all his fingers. BE CAREFUL!!! We work with sharp, very sharp tools and a slip can lead to blood, stitches, and or loss of something we all want to keep. Most all of us that work with sharp things cut ourselves at some point, usually earlier than later. When I worked in a printing shop many decades ago I would get paper cuts, they hurt, but were not serious. After several years printing it was extremely rare to get a paper cut. Most here have talked about going slow, there is a reason to take it easy and go slow. I hope you are all right and didn't cut too deeply.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

Like I say, this is an entertaining thread. Already at 9 pages, I think it has the potential to go the distance!

FWIW, Pranav, I hope you were joking about the stitches. Otherwise, I hope you are OK. Big, big disclaimer with all tools -- power or not -- be really careful EVERYTIME you pick one up.

30+ years ago I worked in a warehouse, packing boxes, using a tape gun and a box cutter. First day there I cut myself. Second day there I cut myself again. Third day I cut myself deep and there was blood everywhere. After that I never cut myself again.

Not joking, my friend. Just got them. I can't tell if you say entertaining in a sarcastic mocking way, or genuinely think so, but I think so too. I might just make a soap opera based on an indecisive teenager making a mandolin.

[Jeff Mando]

It's all in good fun. Maybe a little mockery. Probably some sarcasm. But, I certainly don't want to be entertained at the misery of others -- that's what COPS is for!

I was comparing your journey to another thread called "the search continues" by Demetrius from a couple years ago. I referred to it in post #147. Anyway, do a Google search, it is worth reading, might take you an hour if you read fast. It is a classic, IMHO. But, totally different than from where you are coming from. But, sure, extended internet forums are basically low budget reality tv!

And, I said this before on this forum and others, reading them is cheap therapy for many of us!

No hard feelings, Pranav! I want you to succeed.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

It's all in good fun. Maybe a little mockery. Probably some sarcasm. But, I certainly don't want to be entertained at the misery of others -- that's what COPS is for!

I was comparing your journey to another thread called "the search continues" by Demetrius from a couple years ago. I referred to it in post #147. Anyway, do a Google search, it is worth reading, might take you an hour if you read fast. It is a classic, IMHO. But, totally different than from where you are coming from. But, sure, extended internet forums are basically low budget reality tv!

And, I said this before on this forum and others, reading them is cheap therapy for many of us!

No hard feelings, Pranav! I want you to succeed.

Haha found it. From the outside it sure is funny, but god do i hope i don't sound like that lol.

[John Kelly]

I really loved you post #208, Pranav - "going to get stitches now" You have suddenly become a man of very few words. The warnings re sharp tools are obviously something that is critical for us all when working with all the dangerous implements we use, but remember too that there is perhaps even greater danger from tools which have not been sharpened properly. A blunted chisel will require much more force to get it to cut, and this is when a slip is much more likely. Did you have the wood suitably gripped in a vise or other method of clamping?

Hope you are not out of action for too long.

[Marty Jacobson]

Hey Pranav, I've been there, too. I was doing something stupid with a razor blade (i.e. trying to work efficiently rather than safely) and cut my hand. It was a miracle the blood didn't get on the curly redwood mandolin top, which would have been unusable since it was already sanded to final surface finish.
What I realized from that was that you have to always be aware of:
1. What direction forces are being applied,
2. How big the forces are,
3. If the forces you're applying to the sharp thing are enough to move the sharp thing towards your hand, should something unexpected occur,
4. Then don't do that.

This basically works for any tool, including jointers, planers, bandsaws, chisels, etc. One of the reasons why people like to use a mallet with gouges for carving is that you give a sharp tap to the carving tool which moves it with a lot of force, but only moves it a very short distance.

I also realized that I stopped to check the mandolin top before I checked my injury... dumb, I know. Anyway, since I did that, several years ago, I haven't hurt myself since. Other than the repetitive stress injuries I gave myself by sanding, so that's an ongoing battle.

Watch some videos online of people carving or cutting dovetails. Watch where their hands are, and set up your work like that. At no point should your tool be cutting towards a part of your body, even if there is wood (or a workbench) between the tool and you.

Also, are you clamping down your work? You cannot work safely, and you cannot work carefully, if your part that you are carving is not held down to your workbench.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

Ehrm. I know you will facepalm when you read this, but no, I did not clamp it. What's worse is I don't have a workbench. I usually lay a mat down in my basement floor, and sit on there and work. I probably sound really stupid right now.

[John Kelly]

Ehrm. I know you will facepalm when you read this, but no, I did not clamp it. What's worse is I don't have a workbench. I usually lay a mat down in my basement floor, and sit on there and work. I probably sound really stupid right now.

You are only stupid if you do not learn from it, Pranav. Marty's post highlights how simple it is to injure yourself but to learn from it and be able to eliminate some potential accident scenarios. I wrote my post above as one who has managed, many years ago, to put a power drill into my thumb while helping a friend to install a shower. I had just warned him to keep his hands clear of what he was holding, as I was almost through the aluminium frame, when the drill broke through and I neatly skewered my left thumb. I too had to go for stitches!

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

I really loved you post #208, Pranav - "going to get stitches now" You have suddenly become a man of very few words.

Haha I became a man of few words because I can only type with my right hand.

You are only stupid if you do not learn from it, Pranav. Marty's post highlights how simple it is to injure yourself but to learn from it and be able to eliminate some potential accident scenarios. I wrote my post above as one who has managed, many years ago, to put a power drill into my thumb while helping a friend to install a shower. I had just warned him to keep his hands clear of what he was holding, as I was almost through the aluminium frame, when the drill broke through and I neatly skewered my left thumb. I too had to go for stitches!

Yep, you learn from your mistakes. Does somebody know if you can convert a normal desk into a workbench? What exactly qualifies a workbench?

[pops1]

A desk or kitchen table, a board or piece of plywood. Anything can be a work bench, it's nice it you can reinforce it and screw or secure it to a wall to keep it solid and from moving. A bench with you sitting on it can work, it is also nice to be able to clamp your work to the bench to keep you hands on the tool and not having to hold the tool and the work.

[Marty Jacobson]

Many Japanese and Japanese-inspired woodworkers work on the floor. It's fine, you just need a way to secure your work. Look up Japanese woodworking videos, you will see lots of examples (and some very enviable sharpening skills...)

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

No. The boards are apparently 12.6" long and a little over 9" wide. You need 10" wide minimum for a mandolin. And you can't glue the "boards" together end to end. I would suggest humbly that you get a set of plans before you go on your adventure. Kind of like a map before you set out to sea. I forget the name of the Scandinavian guy that did his adventure, but check out Kon-Tiki. A wild ride on a raft across the ocean. Maps and plans are a good thing. At the least, they're helpful.

I believe you are of Indian descent. And I love Indian food and do my best to cook it often at home. And some things are problematic for me- like cooking dosa. I have recipes. I can buy the batter at a local store. I've watched videos and watched it cooked in restaurants and friends' homes. And it's still hard to do right. It's a lot like building a mandolin.

Bookmatching works with the long grain of the wood, not the end grain.

I was looking at the link once more and it seems to work by gluing the long grain. If you glue the two pieces together by the long grain, they should be 18" by 12". If you did it by the end grain it would be 9" by 24", which wouldn't work anyways.

[Marty Jacobson]

Gluing side grain, if the surfaces are perfectly flat, the glue is good, and the joint is clamped well, is stronger than the surrounding wood. Gluing end grain is always much weaker than the surrounding wood. This predicates how a lot of glue joints are designed.

Getting a good glue joint is one of the hardest parts of woodworking. You can't just take two pieces of wood and glue them together. They have to be planed perfectly in multiple axes (no twist or curve in any direction). Turns out that's not easy to do.

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

Gluing side grain, if the surfaces are perfectly flat, the glue is good, and the joint is clamped well, is stronger than the surrounding wood. Gluing end grain is always much weaker than the surrounding wood. This predicates how a lot of glue joints are designed.

Getting a good glue joint is one of the hardest parts of woodworking. You can't just take two pieces of wood and glue them together. They have to be planed perfectly in multiple axes (no twist or curve in any direction). Turns out that's not easy to do.

Still not completely understanding, but I'll take your word for it. Anybody have a recommendation for what to buy with the $20 gift card? Maybe a vice, ryoba saw, jigsaw, or tonewood? If anybody needs something on Amazon, I could also use it for that, and you could pay me $20 through PayPal.

[Marty Jacobson]

I'd get a couple of these if you don't have any clamps. Total should come to under $30 including shipping...
https://www.amazon.com/Bessey-GSCC2-...5%3A2470955011

[Pranav Ajay Warrier]

I'd get a couple of these if you don't have any clamps. Total should come to under $30 including shipping...
https://www.amazon.com/Bessey-GSCC2-...5%3A2470955011

Luckily, I already have access to various clamps, so I'm good in that department.