Gary is a friend of a friend of mine. He is a master of building high-quality solutions to problems in his shop. Just watch how he adapts a dust hood to his lathe. The notched stick he crafts for adjusting the hood angle is a thing of beauty.
Pat Percival of NorthCoast Knives posted this simple phototutorial demonstrating how he makes decorative handle pins for his custom knives by nesting telescoping metal tubing of various sizes, shapes, and materials. These are known as “mosaic” pins among knifemakers, and although Pat only mentions it in passing, it is generally agreed that the voids in the design need to be filled with some kind of resin, which is often epoxy with coloring agents added to taste.
“Micarta” (Wikipedia) is a genericized trademark that refers to a rigid composite material made from laminated paper, fiberglass, cloth, or other material impregnated with a plastic resin. It is commonly used as an electrical insulator and as a tool handle, particularly for knives.
Cliff Fendley of Fendley Knives, together with fellow knifemaker Mike Carter of Carter Crafts, set out to make some “micarta” of their own using scrap denim and epoxy resin. Even better, they documented their efforts with a detailed series of photos so others can play along at home. Kudos to both makers for “open-sourcing” a method they could easily have kept under their hats as a trade secret. [Thanks, Alan Dove!]
Epoxyworks is a free magazine published biannually, and archived online, by Michigan’s Gougeon Brothers, Inc., who use it to promote their West System brand of epoxy resins, which I have not used and have no stake in, but it’s chock full of tutorials, tips, and techniques for working with composite materials that could probably be “de-branded” and used with whomever’s products you prefer. Shown here are photos from one article that caught my eye (PDF), by J.R. Watson, showing how to form straight and curved rigid composite tubes in carbon fiber, kevlar, fiberglass, or other braided material by laying the composite up over a mold made from split foam pipe insulation. It also covers techniques for joining the finished rigid tubing sections. [Thanks, Alan Dove!]
Alan at Hacked Gadgets found this neat video that shows how ball bearings are made.
These are where (some) TVs are made.. The SAMSUNG factory in Kaluga @ English Russia.
Vik Olliver put up a great tutorial about how you can successfully drill down the middle of a shaft using a standard drill press and cheap vise.
