Cooking Out the Water.
Dana Myers of Beaverdale, IA realized that her dowels had swollen in the humid weather and wouldn’t fit in the holes for her dowel joints. She decided to cook them in the microwave in 30 second increments to dry them back to their normal size.
Finest Finish.
Phil Huber of Urbandale, IA had sanded up through the grits and put the final coat of finish on his platter. Before he called it done though, he did one last sanding with kraft paper. The paper has just enough abrasiveness to create a smooth surface and consistent sheen.
Surgical Tubing Clamp.
Chris Fitch of Winterset, IA came up with this clever clamp when trying to glue up a bandsaw box, which has tapered and curved edges. The tubing can be stretched and wrapped to fit any shape, while the latex provides a sure grip. After wrapping tightly, the tubing can be tied off at any length you need for that project.
Plug Cutter Clamping.
John Doyle of Ankeny, IA was using a bending form to shape pieces of copper, which meant tightening, untightening, and tightening those bar clamps over again. Then he noticed a 1” plug cutting bit collecting dust. The gaps in the teeth were large enough to fit around the clamp handle. By chucking the cutter up in a drill, he could quickly loosen or tighen his clamps, saving him some significant time.
