Welcome to my blog. Let what you see stimulate your imagination and inspire your own creations.

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Choosing a Dust Mask

A while back, I mentioned that I was trying out different dust masks, looking for the one that seemed most effective and was most comfortable to use.  With all the sanding I do, using a dust mask is a necessity.

I had been using a conventional dust mask, rated N99, and was pretty happy with it.  However, it tended to fog my protective goggles, so I bought a Dust Bee Gone and a Totobobo mask to see if either of them were better for me.  All were recommended by other users.


The Dust Bee Gone needed to be altered, since the medium size was too large for my face.  I removed the blue banding and cut back on the filtering material so it would fit properly.  I found that it was easy to damage the filtering material with the velcro on the straps, and that dust seemed to come through much too easily.  On top of that, my goggles still fogged, even though they were not supposed to.

The Totobobo was much too fidgety for me to use comfortably.  The adjustable straps are a very thin, stretchy plastic, and felt as though they would break at any time.  They didn't, but I felt uneasy every time I adjusted them.  In addition, the plastic would be quite uncomfortable in warm weather, and you needed to keep replacement filters on hand.  And my goggles still fogged!

So, I'm back to using my standard dust mask.  I keep a supply on hand, and am learning to adjust my goggles to control the fogging.  I know that others have been very happy with the Dust Bee Gone and the Totobobo, but unfortunately, I'm not one of them.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Sanding with SuperMax

Finally gave my new SuperMax Drum sander a proper workout, and it really met all my expectations. Nice when that happens!

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Second project from new shop

I'm determined to use as much of my stored wood as possible before buying or re-sawing more lumber. This bowl used part of a piece of teak I've been storing for several years.  Teak cuts very nicely, even though the silica it contains is hard on blades.  The oiliness is controlled by sanding just before gluing, and I used spray lacquer which I find to be pretty problem-free.

In addition to the teak, I used cherry and purpleheart for the decorative rings, and maple and mahogany veneers and thin wood.

The sanding and shaping was demanding and took a long time.  Even then, it wasn't perfect, but I know my limits!