I’ll have more information soon but in mean time, here’s a couple of useful links. First, a link to the Marc Adams school. It’s an amazing place, I’ve taught there for over 10 years and can’t recommend it enough. Whether you’re a hand tool woodworker, a hybrid woodworker or somewhere else on the spectrum this is a great place to go to learn more about woodworking. Can’t recommend it enough. macadams.com

Next, being the nerd that I am, I always have a website dedicated to my classes. More details, photos and specific class information, and follow ups are posted here for my students. classroom.celeski.com

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The BARN Workbench is named for a community group of woodworkers and other artisans. BARN is the Bainbridge Artisan Resource Network located on Bainbridge Island. The island is directly across and a 35 minute ferry ride away from Seattle. Started by a group of enthusiastic woodworkers, the group has grown to include artisans with a number of interests, including fabric artists, metal workers, jewelers, writers, printers and more. After years of organizing and fundraising, they’re opening an incredible facility so that all the groups can share knowledge, tools and a great space to work in.

A great maker workspace

The woodworkers at BARN have built an incredible workshop with a little help from local professionals including Bob Spangler, Hugh Montgomery and myself to guide them through various tasks. Being the workbench junkie that I am, I took on the project of designing a workbench for the woodworkers’ bench room. The result is the BARN Workbench.

Every workbench project comes with a number of requirements or limitations. The BARN bench is no different. The bench is designed for hand tool woodworkers who might occasionally need to use a power tool like a Domino. It also had to be made at a moderate cost, assembled quickly with help from woodworkers with various levels of experience. And, there’s nine of them to make.

As the benches are being built, I’ll get into more details, but for now here are the basics of the design.

To benefit working with hand tools, I put an emphasis on quality hardware that serious woodworkers can appreciate. Each bench is equipped with a Benchcrafted Classic Leg Vise with a Criss Cross mechanism. The tail vise is a simple, well made 7” metal quick release model from Yost.

Rather than gluing up nine bench tops, the BARN bench uses a pre-made 25” x 72” x 1-7/8” thick maple top from Perfect Plank. The base is squared and milled 4×4 fir from your neighborhood home center with the legs doubled in width. Chris Schwarz took this approach with his excellent 2-day workbench plan. If you’re spoiled by building out of hardwood, you’ll find that working with flash kiln dried material is tricky, but doable if you take your time. Lots of expansion and cracking if you’re not careful. The results are plenty strong and inexpensive.

At this point, a question on a number of regular readers’ minds is where’s the digital woodworking in this bench? Was a CNC used? The answer to both questions, of course, is yes. Mounting a Benchcrafted vise requires a fair amount of work to create a large hole and a deep mortised pocket in the front left leg and vise chop. Certainly, this can be done by hand or with other power tools but with nine benches to build, a CNC makes the process simple, accurate and fast. Same for cutting and chamfering the very accurately placed dog holes in the top. In this case, for some of the special features of the top that I’ll get into later, accurate dog hole placement is particularly critical. Definitely, you can do this with other tools, but for this project, the CNC saves time and delivers accuracy.

As Steve Jobs used to say, “…there’s one more thing”. The vise chops. Being a designer, I thought it would be fun to make each bench unique and so using Rhino3D, I created a special 3D design for each vise chop. Then I milled them using 3D milling techniques I programmed in RhinoCAM on my CNCs. I used hard maple, local western maple, and eastern walnut. Why not make the vise chops fun to see and touch? Here’s a sneak peek of the six of the ten vise chops (9 + 1 spare) waiting for completion.

On the next BARN Workbench Post, I’ll take you on a video tour of the prototype bench and the BARN Bench features.

The post BARN Workbench Part Two appeared first on woodworking.digital.

Low cost, no cost, easy entry digital woodworking…

It always starts with a design

Digital woodworking is using digitally controlled tools in your workshop as an addition to hybrid and handtools. Most often that means owning and operating a CNC and learning to use CAD programs. For many, committing to a CNC is also a big step financially.

Here’s the thing, you can mine a nice chunk of the benefits of digital tools at little or no cost; with no long-term commitment and with very little fear of technology on your part by using a technique I used for many years.

It doesn’t matter how you approach woodworking; power tools, hybrid or hand tools, you can immediately benefit with this approach. This is a good trick any woodworker can use. I’ll show you how in this three-part series.

Start With Paper Patterns

The trick: If you have a computer, and if you’re reading this blog, likely you’ve got one then you can make a computer-generated drawing. Armed with a drawing, you can make patterns. With accurate patterns, you can make accurate parts. Wherever the direction of your woodworking path is taking you, I’m sure we all can agree that accurate parts are important. Patterns are the trick.

From the time I started woodworking as a hobby in the mid-1990’s, I created all my designs for my projects on a computer using graphic design drawing software. In the beginning, I used the same vector-based drawing tools I was already familiar with as a graphic designer. Most of the time it was Freehand and Adobe Illustrator. Both are similar, with Freehand, a long gone, favorite program that was a bit better at precision CAD control. I loved that program. Using either one, I would draw my furniture parts, full size. Once you have a full-size drawing, you can make a pattern.

If you already have Adobe Illustrator, it’s a good place to start. Worked very well for me. But, for a lot of people, the software cost of Adobe software is prohibitive and the time to learn is limiting — after all, it is a professional drawing tool. There are alternative drawing programs that are simpler to learn, cheaper and sometimes, free. But, no matter your choice, it does need to be a certain kind of software. Drawing software.

Use Vector Drawing or CAD Software

Some background. When I say drawing programs, I’m referring to vector-based drawing programs. Vector drawing programs are different than painting programs. When you draw something in a drawing program, it is not composed of individual pixels, but paths. Vector graphics are based on vectors which lead through locations called control points or nodes. Each of these points has a definite position on the X and Y axes. These points determine the path, that say, a curved line goes through. If you’ve ever used a plastic French curve and maneuvered it around tangent points to smooth out a curve, the idea is the same.

Rest assured that you don’t have to understand the details on what’s going underneath the surface, as all the detail is stored internally in the drawing file. You just draw the shapes or curves or lines you need. What makes drawing with vector based tools special is that no matter how the components of the drawing are scaled, the precision is held all the way through. If a drawing is enlarged or shrunk, it’s all executed, printed or machined on a CNC or other digitally based machines like a laser cutter, the results are perfect. Whether it’s a detail on a cufflink, a sign the size of a semi-truck, or a furniture part cut on a CNC, it doesn’t matter. Perfection is there. It’s not just vector-based drawing software that does this, CAD software works the same way.

Note that you cannot create patterns using painting or raster based programs like Adobe Photoshop or Microsoft Paint or the painting mode in Corel Draw. This kind of software creates pixels that are subject to scale. You can see this as you zoom all the way in, your drawing gets more and more “jaggy” as the pixels get bigger. Not so with vector based line drawing or CAD software. Some kind of vector-based drawing software is what you need to make paper or CNC cut patterns.

Examples of graphic design drawing software

• CAD software is always the first choice.
• Adobe Illustrator ” Part of the Adobe’s Creative Cloud. It’s a professional tool, so learning is required and expensive. PCs and Macs.
• Inkscape ” An open source (free) drawing program similar to Illustrator. Runs on PCs and Macs
• Autodesk Graphic ” Low cost but pretty powerful for Macs and PCs
• Corel Draw ” Moderate cost for Mac or PC

Start with CAD if you Can

In the world of digital woodworking, a vector-based graphics drawing program should be considered a temporary stop. It’ll get you started, it will work, as I proved for many years, but in the long run, you’re far better off using CAD software. All CAD software is vector based and therefore precise. The fact that it’s designed from the start for precision drawing tasks and has lots of extra tools to make working with it easier for woodworkers make it the better starting point. There are free CAD programs, low-cost programs, middle priced and expensive programs. Down the road, I’ll get into more details on what to look for and review different software but for a place to start making patterns, any CAD program will work.

Making Paper Patterns

Step one is to draw the pattern you want to make, full size. By that I mean if you’re drawing an arm of a chair that will be 35″ long, make sure you drawing of it is 35″ long. Use the tools in your drawing software that provide the information on the size and dimensions of a drawing to help you. Also, makes sure you are accurate in every way. Lines intended to be straight must be drawn straight. Critical dimensions are exact. This is where CAD software excels. You can do it with graphic design drawing software as I have done, but it’s trickier.

My first patterns were output onto paper via standard home/office printers. When larger than standard paper sizes were needed, I printed segments of a design using the automatic “tiling” printing feature that divides a large drawing into pieces that overlap that can be printed on smaller pages. To make it easier to splice them together, I would add targets or a grid to align segments and splice and tape the different pieces together until I had a full-size drawing of a part. Another method is to go to your local office supply or print service stores that offer larger scale output.

Next, I spray glue the paper pattern onto a piece of plywood or MDF, bandsaw to the line, smooth and blend with rasps until the everything is just right, then peel the paper off. This all worked quite well for me, but it became time-consuming as I needed more patterns and more complicated as I needed larger patterns. So, it was time to find a better way. It was time to skip the paper and go from directly from drawing straight to pattern making. More about that in Part Two

The post Pattern Making Basics appeared first on woodworking.digital.

Unlike earlier workshops, the October 4th recording won’t be posted on YouTube. Instead, I’ll create new videos and follow up blog posts on the Maker Workstation details at a future date.

Tools and Components

Rockler Portable Drill Guide with Vise
https://www.rockler.com/rockler-portable-drill-guide-with-vise

Rockler Portable Drill Guide
https://www.rockler.com/rockler-portable-drill-guide

Yost 9″ Front Vise
https://www.amazon.com/Yost-Tools-F9WW-Front-Vise/dp/B01M60Q4NN/workbenchdesi-20

Powertech Bench Dogs
https://www.amazon.com/POWERTEC-71188-Featured-Woodworking-Essential/dp/B07HWKTWZF/workbenchdesi-20

Low Profile Bench Dogs
https://www.amazon.com/POWERTEC-71037-Bench-Dogs-4-Pack/dp/B01NBWC08Y/workbenchdesi-20

BOSCH IXO VI Professional Screwdriver
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07X4J9JHC/workbenchdesi-20

3D Printable Models

Note: These models are sized for the Festool MFT system (20mm/96mm) and will not fit .750″ dog holes or the 4″ Maker Workstation grid. However, if you resize X and Y to 95% in your slicer, the dogs will fit .750″ dog holes just fine. Planing stops or corner stops are spaced to 96mm and will not fit the MWS 4″grid.

20mm Bench Dog Set
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4565616

Festool 20mm MFT Cam Clamping System
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2049103

My 3D Models on Thingiverse

The 3D models I share on Thingiverse are focused on visual and word designs. After the Maker Workstation is published in Popular Woodworking, I will share several new models and 3D printable workstation components, fixture components, tools and accessories. Stay tuned.
https://www.thingiverse.com/timcel/designs

3D Printers

Prusa i3 M3S 3D Printer
https://shop.prusa3d.com/en/3d-printers/180-original-prusa-i3-mk3s-kit.html

Prusa Mini 3D Printer
https://shop.prusa3d.com/en/3d-printers/994-original-prusa-mini.html

Creality Ender 3 Pro 3D Printer
https://www.amazon.com/Comgrow-Creality-Printer-Upgrade-Certified/dp/B07GYRQVYV/workbenchdesi-20

Snapmaker Modular 3-in-1 3D Printer
https://snapmaker.com

The post October 4th, 2020 Sunday Workshop Follow Up appeared first on woodworking.digital.

The reason for the delay? Very busy with several projects. One in particular will be of interest to woodworking.digital followers. I’ve designed a new kind of workbench with a focus on woodworkers more likely to use newer tools such as Festool Dominos, track saws and even small CNCs. The workbench and all the details will appear in an early 2021 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine. In the October workshop, I’ll show some of the process involved in the four year development of the project, the thinking behind it and a quick peek at the new bench. Let’s just say that it’s a very different workbench.

And, if timing is right — meaning it’s been installed at the client’s home before revealing it publicly, I’ll show a commissioned 3D sculpture project collaboration with artist, and siginicant other, Leslie Newman for the last several months .

The post Sunday Workshop: October 4th, 2020 appeared first on woodworking.digital.

I’ve posted the video recording of the workshop on my YouTube channel. Here’s the link if you missed it.. https://youtu.be/kAAFHM8Rhmw

Topic: Design Skills for Woodworkers

The post August 16th Workshop Follow Up: Design Skills for Woodworkers appeared first on woodworking.digital.

The plans for the bench are available on this site to registered users.

If a question that comes up during the workshop, just use the chat function in Zoom and I’ll do my best to answer it live. I may have a few questions of my own, too and will send out polls during the event. 

See you at the next Sunday Workshop.

To join the workshop, at the time of the meeting click the link below.

July 19th Sunday Workshop

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84988257618?pwd=SzFjMFRZcHFKaGg2b2UvUVlzRkxrdz09

Meeting ID: 849 8825 7618   Password: 809577

The post July 19th Workshop. Parametric Furniture Design and Construction appeared first on woodworking.digital.

On Sunday June 14th I held a Live Sunday Workshop via Zoom. The topic was about how I design a modern hall table in CAD and how to setup your CNC to machine it. On the next workshop on June 21st, I’ll show you how to convert the 2D furniture into 3D carved furniture. Lots to see! Speaking of which, here’s a link to the recording on my YouTube Channel… youtube.com/digitalwoodworking.

June 14th, Live Sunday Workshop 2D Furniture

https://youtu.be/oPzfCgXYbKg

See you at the next Sunday Workshop on June 21st.

The post June 14th Live Workshop Follow Up appeared first on woodworking.digital.