Recent content by Beatsy

Haha - I hear you. But at least you can get at Land Rover internals to fix things when they break. The engines and gubbins in modern cars look like they've been poured in. No gaps anywhere! I couldn't believe the palaver needed just to change a headlamp bulb on my Toyota Yaris. Had to take off...

Indeed. I think Osmo are very heavy on marketing blurb (emphasising all the good points and utterly ignoring the not so good) but rather light on innovation. As far as I can tell, all of their products, including Rubio, are common known finishes and oils "under the hood". They just obfuscate and...

I don't think Rubio (monocoat 2c) works out *that* expensive in comparison - mainly because a little goes such a l-o-o-o-n-g way. It is extremely convenient to use too - but has a few limitations to watch out for. It's basically just boiled linseed oil, albeit with added hardener and (probably)...

If the joints are loose I'm not sure Titebond will have enough "gap filling" ability to give a good bond. I'd choose a "structural" UF resin like Semforite or Cascamite. These can be cleaned off with water too.

The slots are for taking them out. After using a Birmingham screwdriver to put 'em in 🙂

A century to grow four inches was relatively compatible with usage rates back then (yes, I know our island was once woods from shore to shore, hence "relatively"). Were that the growth rate of modern, domestic lumber we'd be living on tundra!

Me and the "one square at a time" chess board again (my one and only woodworking project)... I'm edging the individual squares with a double layer of smoked oak veneer using Semforite UF resin glue. The first layer is stuck and sanded to size (veneers contribute to the final dimensions), then...

Ah, I see. Thanks for clarifying. I can see the convenience of PSA but I'd rather the makers put *all* the cost of manufacture into the quality of the sandpaper, not divert some to a "non core function", like sticking to stuff.

Sorry, not sure what this means. I prefer plain-backed as I'm sticking the paper to glass with PVA (Norton A275 AO, on rolls). I quickly "scrub" a thin layer of PVA on so the glass looks barely "fogged" then whap the sandpaper on pronto and stick masking tape around the edges to stop curling...

As this thread came back to life, I thought I'd report that the Semforite is now in use and works just like the Cascamite I knew and loved, only whiter. I also got some Abranet to try out (on a whim when I came across a one-off deal on a small selection of cut pieces). It's very good as an...

I recently got one of those too. The iron was ground a tiny bit off square on mine, although it was such a small amount it was well into OCD territory and effectively inconsequential TBH. I still had to regrind it though. Nice toy!

Shroedinger's woodworking tool?

Flippin' terrorism laws made loads of useful chemicals unavailable to the public. I use(d) concentrated acids, high-strength peroxide and all sorts of powerful oxidisers for some of my microscopy work (cleaning diatoms and micro-fossil material for mounting). Well, I used to. All are restricted...

Zoom in with a phone camera?

A scope isn't entirely suitable for what you want to examine, as you have experienced, so I wouldn't recommend one - inexpensive or otherwise. The thing is, the most important part of "seeing" details in any magnified image is the lighting. Think about how you'd inspect a chisel by eye when...