5 Head-Slappingly Good Shop Tips and Build Tricks
More shop tips and tricks that you’ll likely want to give a try.
tricks
Six More “Why Didn’t I Think of That?” Tips
Another collection of useful and clever shop tips.
Reuse a Salt Container as a Pour-spout Jar Lid
Our own inimitable Laura Cochrane spotted this clever trick over at The Craft Patch. It may not be glamorous or sexy, but I love insanely simple stuff like this born of paying careful attention to what’s right there in front of you.
Tape Up a Coffee Filter to Catch Drill Dust
Clever idea I first saw in a recent issue of The Family Handyman. The flat-folding “cone” style filters will be easier to handle. It’s similar to the Post-It note trick, but less likely to leak out the sides. See also, e.g., the coffee cup trick for catching debris while drilling overhead.
Make: Projects – Hang a picture from a pull tab
When I was a teenager, we had a distinctly impolite name for a pull tab that had been removed from the can with the rivet ring still intact, said name being based on a persistent urban legend about the alleged redemption value of these relatively rare tabs. I can assure you, dear readers, that legend has nothing to do with the reason I am familiar with this handy trick for removing pull tabs with the ring intact every time. Turns out, a tab with an intact rivet ring is quite useful for mounting to wooden frames as a picture hanger. And I, you know, have to hang up lots of pictures. Seriously.
Reusing old optical disc spindles for cable storage
Clever idea from reddit user Crath. Unfortunately, I think most of us are likely to have many more cables than empty CD/DVD-ROM spindles lying around. Still, me likey. [via Recyclart]
Remove Dried Hot Glue Easily
MAKE magazine reader John Mangan shared a nifty simple trick with us: you can remove dried hot glue with isopropyl alcohol and cotton swabs. He made a video demonstration to share the knowledge, I posted it on Makezine yesterday, and it’s been well-received. Since there are no shortage of crafts that utilize hot glue, I’m […]
