{"id":36892,"date":"2020-08-27T09:00:53","date_gmt":"2020-08-27T16:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/?p=36892"},"modified":"2020-08-25T10:40:45","modified_gmt":"2020-08-25T17:40:45","slug":"using-paper-towel-and-wood-glue-to-seal-up-molds-for-casting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/using-paper-towel-and-wood-glue-to-seal-up-molds-for-casting\/","title":{"rendered":"Using Paper Towel and Wood Glue to Seal Up Molds for Casting"},"content":{"rendered":"

I want to start collecting maker jargon and slang. (In a previous life, I co-created the \u201cJargon Watch\u201d column at\u00a0Wired<\/em>.) If you have shop and tool-related slang,\u00a0please share<\/a>. I\u2019ll be periodically running some of these submissions here.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Like one of the tips in this issue? Share it on social media and\u00a0link back here<\/a>. It really helps in spreading the word. Thanks!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Using Paper Towel and Wood Glue to Seal Up Molds for Casting<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"David

David Lynch dropping the science!<\/p><\/div>\n

I\u2019ve been loving David Lynch\u2019s channel on\u00a0YouTube<\/em>, with his daily weather reports and project updates. In\u00a0this video<\/a>, he shows off a wooden tripod-mountable iPhone holder he made along with a mold for casting some pieces for a sculpture. He shares a great tip about the mold. To close up a block mold for casting (so that the resin doesn\u2019t leak out), wrap it with paper towel soaked in wood glue. I\u2019ve heard of using plaster-impregnated gauze for this, but paper towel and glue is cheaper and more readily available.<\/p>\n

Making Custom Silicone Workbench Mats<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Made

Made to your specs.<\/p><\/div>\n

In\u00a0this video<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0I Like to Make Stuff<\/a>, Bob runs through the steps for how to design, mold, and cast your own custom silicone mat. There are obviously lots of these mats on the market, but making your own allows you to customize one to your specific needs. In the video, he shares a useful resource. It\u2019s a\u00a0ruler vector file generator<\/a>\u00a0that lets you create custom rulers. He creates a ruler in reverse, laser-cuts it, and uses it as part of the mold for his mat.<\/p>\n

Storing Sandpaper in an Accordion Folder<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Grit

Grit organized.<\/p><\/div>\n

Reader\u00a0David L<\/strong>\u00a0sent me this great little idea. \u201cI got disgusted with having more than a dozen different grits of sandpaper in a big pile, so I bought this 13-pocket accordion file at Malwart for about $5. I wish I\u2019d done this years ago!\u201d<\/p>\n

The Lack Rack<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Stack

Stack that crap with a Lack rack hack.<\/p><\/div>\n

By way of\u00a0Boing Boing<\/a>\u00a0comes this Ikea hack. People are turning the ten dollar\u00a0LACK side table<\/a>\u00a0into a server rack. As you can see above, you can even add casters and make it into a full-function computer\/server workstation.<\/p>\n

Creating a Power-Loss Indictor for Your Freezer<\/strong><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a tip from\u00a0my book<\/a>\u00a0that I thought would be good to resurface during hurricane season.<\/p>\n

To help determine whether your freezer thawed (or partially thawed) during a power outage, freeze a cup of water, place a quarter on top of it, and place it in the freezer. After a storm, when the power is restored, check the cup. If the quarter is unmoved, the freezer is safe. If it\u2019s partially submerged, you had some thawing, but the freezer contents are likely still safe. If the quarter is at the bot- tom, you had a significant failure and the freezer\u2019s contents are likely spoiled. By the way, if you do end up with a fridge or freezer full of spoiled food, check your homeowner\u2019s insurance policy. Spoiled food is usually covered (if not the result of flooding).<\/p>\n

Writing the Combination Directly onto a Lock?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\""Hey

“Hey look, this numbskull wrote the combo right on the lock!”<\/p><\/div>\n

Here\u2019s a great little trick for remembering a\u00a0combo lock<\/a>. Pick a secret number that you know you won\u2019t forget. Let\u2019s say it\u2019s 8. And let\u2019s say your lock combination is actually 7+26+30. You add 8 to those numbers and that\u2019s what you write down (15+34+38). This is \u201csecure\u201d enough that, under many locking situations, you can even write the inflated number directly onto the lock itself. [Via\u00a0Family Handyman<\/em>]<\/p>\n

Maker’s Muse<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Folding

Folding ruler dome. Brilliant!<\/p><\/div>\n

Last week<\/a>, we covered Laura Kampf\u2019s greenhouse dome, made with metal shipping bands. Here\u2019s Ellen, from\u00a0Crafts with Ellen<\/a>, who used old wooden folding rulers for her struts. These domes are being built as part of Tom Sachs\u2019\u00a0I.S.R.U. dome project<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Shop Talk<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Everyone

Everyone needs a few pairs of forceps\/hems in their toolbox.<\/p><\/div>\n

Mike M<\/strong>\u00a0reminds us of the tool-powers of medical forceps: “A pair of\u00a09″ forceps<\/a>\u00a0have been a pretty magical tool for handling tasks too small for my meat hooks.\u00a0They are great for fishing stuff out of small spaces or holding hot things, especially when a delicate touch is needed.”<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Tom M<\/strong>\u00a0writes: “I also love my\u00a0Swanson Tools Speed Square<\/a>\u2026Any idea why the notch at the 0-inch line of the speed square? I\u2019ve never figured out the benefit that trades off the downside of preventing me from making a pencil line all the way to the edge of the board.\u201d<\/p>\n

This notch is for pivoting the square if you need to swivel it on top of a workpiece (as opposed to the edge). My square came with flash inside this pivot that I had to Dremel out. But yes, it does make a divot in your line if you try and strike a line alone the entire edge.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Reader\u00a0Dave L\u00a0<\/strong>offers further ideas for removing stripped screws: \u201cAnother way to loosen stripped screws is to put a bit of\u00a0valve grinding compound<\/a>\u00a0on the tip of the screwdriver. It contains abrasive particles in oil. You could also carefully grind a slot in the head with with a Dremel emery wheel, but that takes a steady hand. You can then remove it with a slotted screwdriver.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gareth’s Tips, Tools, and Shop Tales – Issue #59<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13684,"featured_media":36893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[2371],"tags":[2372],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36892"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13684"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36892"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36892\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36901,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36892\/revisions\/36901"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36892"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36892"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tkdev.kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36892"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}