Thursday, March 8, 2012

Shop Efficiency with Mike Pekovich

We concluded the recent Fine Woodworking Office and Shop tour with our hosts, Matt Kenney and Mike Pekovich providing us with shot demonstrations of how they stay efficient in the shop.

Professor Pekovich

Whereas Matt spoke mostly of hand tools and achieving an efficient flow and rhythm with bench appliances (read about his demonstration here), Mike’s demonstration included the use of a cabinet saw and custom ground blade and focused primarily on cutting dovetails.

Here are my (imperfect) notes on Mike’s demonstation:
  • Get in the shop every day
    • Thinking can and should be done outside the shop
    • Figure out what you’re going to do and how you’re going to do it outside the shop
    • Work is for in the shop
  • Dovetails
    • Have a saw blade ground to the dovetails angle. This will cut and clean out the corners of tails beautifully and quickly.
    • To square the tail board on the pin board for marking the pins, let your thumbs tell you when the two (2) boards are even with each other.
    • Use a plane on it’s side or a scrap board to set the pin board’s height in the vise and to hold the far end of the tail board while marking.
    • Saw with confidence.
    • Gaps are more likely to occur when paring then when sawing.
    • When you’re not confident you’ll cut straight
      • Cheat in from the line
      • Steer away from the line
    • Sawing Pins
      • Get setup in a stance, start sawing and let the saw go (in terms of steering, you still have to hold on).
      • Keep your arm straight and tight to your body.
      • Practice cutting all the way down to the spine of the saw.
      • Make all the pin cuts in one direction, then change stance and make the cuts in the other direction.
    • By cutting the tails first, the pins are able to absorb the slop.
Mikes test board for setting the angle of the saw and the custom ground blade.
Cutting tails o the table saw.
Set the pin board height and support the tail board with a plane on its side.
Align the tail board with your thumbs.
Cut all the pin cuts of one directions first, then change your stance
and then cut the other direction cuts.

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