Reducing the thickness of wood: The Preac thickness sander is made to reduce wood in thickness.   It has the advantage of leaving none of the chip out experienced with planers on very thin lumber.  It is very easy to use and the abrasive sleeves last a long time.  Works on any thickness or type of wood up to 3" width. I just put it up on the you-asked page of http://smallerthanlife.com . http://www.nh.ultranet.com/~smallife/you_asked.htm Planing mini lumber can be done using a full size planer and a backing board. It works pretty well down to 1/8".   Thinner than that, I get lots of tear out and lose too much lumber up the dust collector.  This is especially true with the quarter sawn cherry we prefer to use.

The Carbatec miniature lathe and duplicator are also up on the web site. http://www.nh.ultranet.com/~smallife/carbatec.htm

Pete Boorum

Bending tubing:   for bending metal tubing Micro-Mark sells a little set of benders, the one reasonably priced item in their catalog, as far as I'm concerned. For five bucks you get five densely-coiled steel springs from a sixteenth to three sixteenths outside diameter. You slip the tubing into the appropriate one and bend. The springs keep the kinks out. I've only used them with brass and I anneal it first.

A method that doesn't require benders is packing the tubing with sand before bending to keep the kinks out and using a jig to bend tubing around.

Mary Kelly

Bending Tubing: You did not say if your bent tube had to be or stay hollow. Here are a couple of hints.

14 gauge solid copper wire is about 1/16 inch in diameter. Smaller number gauges are larger diameter. You can buy "Romex" by the foot at builders supply shops such as Home Depot, Lowes, etc. Suppose you wanted to make an old faciendo pipe frame headboard. For such in half scale, I would use 14 gauge (Scale 1.5" diameter) Strip off the insulation with a sharp exacto. Clamp one end of the bare wire into a small bench vise or have a friend hold it firmly with a pair of Vise Grip pliers. Fasten the other end into the chuck of an electric drill. Pull moderately tight and spin the electric drill. The wire will magically become perfectly straight as it twists. Cut pieces to size and bend over radiused corners in a block of wood.

A technique with hollow stock would be to use KS hobby brass tubing. Anneal the brass by heating it to cherry red in a gas flame and then allow to cool slowly on a pot holder. For very easy curves, you maybe able to slowly bend freehand or over a form after it is cooled.   For tighter turns, kinks can be controlled by stuffing the annealed brass with fine salt. Cap the ends with solder and then form your corners. After bending, unsolder the capped ends, dump out most of the salt and dissolve any that may be "packed in" by soaking in a pan of water. Rinse away any residual salt, polish, cut, and enjoy.

Petitfacades

Miniature woodworking tools: I have been interested in miniature woodworking for some time, and have been using a scroll saw, delta 1" belt sander, full-size table saw and chop saw, along with the Dremel drill press and shaper table. My Christmas present from my DH was a Preac table saw and thickness sander. What a wonderful addition to my workshop.

The thickness sander enables me to create all my mini-lumber at the exact thickness I need. No more waiting for an order of "close to but not exact" thickness lumber to build scale furniture and cabinets. I can create any thickness I need from what I have in the shop. Now I can use any of the hardwoods, such as cherry or walnut, and get away from using basswood (with its greater range of available thicknesses). If I need 1/32 inch cherry, I just put a 1/8 inch piece in the sander and make my own. The sander is easy to work and not intimidating ( I still grit my teeth in fear and intimidation when I use my full size table saw).

The new Preac table saw is wonderful for straight cuts for moulding or furniture pieces. I can make dados for shelves and sand the shelf lumber down to the exact thickness to fit in the dado.   I have been busy making store counters, shelving units, and plant tables for my street of shops. Even my husband is impressed with the results.

I bought my tools from Pam and Pete Boorum at http://www.smallerthanlife.com.

Preac also has a website, where you can get more information.

It just proves the old adage " get the right tool for the job". If anyone would like to see pictures, or have questions, please email me.

Sharon Blake, Wasilla, Alaska

Cleaning brushes: Another tip for anybody that doesn't like using white spirit to clean the brushes after painting with oil based stuff: I whisk the brush in a little jar containing cooking oil (any will do) and after that the paint/varnish can easily be washed of with warm soapy water.

Emmy

Sealing Paper Flooring: I used to finish paper flooring using Mod Podge.   Lay the flooring using yes glue & let it dry thoroughly.  Use a sponge brush & brush the Mod Podge lightly over the floor & let dry.

Sari

Re-Painting Shiny Furniture:  You said you have sanded the gloss away.  Have you tried cleaning it with TSP cleaner.  Cleaning with TSP is recommended if you plan to paint paneling (which has a very high gloss).  Be sure to use rubber gloves while cleaning with the solution.

Then a coat of primer, and your paint should stick like glue.

Debbie

RUSTING EQUIPMENT: Wherever there is rust, some metal has been removed to make the rust leaving little pits. There is a product called naval jelly in the USA which chemically reduces the iron oxide (rust). This will remove the rust and leave a black deposit in the pits. Probably not very useful. Other than that careful treatment with sand paper or synthetic steel wool is all you can do.

I use paste wax on the machined surfaces of all my equipment. Helps protect against rust and also lubricates. If you are storing where there might be condensation, coat machined surfaces with oil. If you are storing for an extended period of time coat with grease. Sorry, there is no easy solution.

Pete Boorum

Transferring A Pattern: Avery makes a removable Glue Stick. It makes any piece of paper work like a Post-A-Note. I use a 6B pencil to color the back of my pattern, just as I teach children to do in basic drawing classes. This makes a graphite back that will mark easily when pressure is applied. My pattern is usually scanned to my computer and sized to the appropriate dimensions. Using the glue stick, I gently press it in place on the item I am working on. I use a red pencil to trace my pattern so I know where I have been if the phone rings and interrupts me. This is a simple, quick way to transfer a design.

Becky Holliday

Zap-a-Gap is cyanoacrylate or "super glue".What it is most useful for is assembly of light, non-porous or semi-porous materials (ceramic, leather, cork, wood and so on). It generally works best at temps of between 70-100 deg F. Some slower cyanoacrylates require the use of an "accelerator" that is normally sprayed on one surface prior to bonding. Zap-a-Gap is normally used as is, without an accelerator.

Brian, Roundwood Studio

Alligator clips: Alligator clips are one of my favorite tools! They are metal and are kind of like small pinchinhable clothes pins with teeth. You can get them in the automotive department at Wal- Mart or at Radio shack.Radio Shack has more sizes and styles to choose from, but are a tad more expensive. Still cheap considering how great they are for clamping tiny things together. The clips with the teeth will make little dents in some things, so get some of the flat ones (with no teeth) also.

Ginger in Sunny Arizona

Other temporary "Glue clamps"

Stationary clamps. The black, spring steel ones from office supply stores (or just from the office) Several sizes, very strong, very useful

Old fashioned screw type earring clamps

Springy strips of wood pressing into baseboards and other moldings at one end and propped against a corner or an opposite wall of the room setting

Coil springs bent to open the coils along one side while parts to be held are inserted.

The fingers of an overeager "helper".This secures some parts and protects others from alternative mischief. Hold this about 20 minutes until the Tacky glue sets up

My precision challenged wife considers that my 60 year old micrometer is a very fancy c-clamp

My strongest clamp is the garage door with the safety reversing sensor disabled. (NOT recommended but it sure do work good)

Mel K.

Hot glue OR NOT: One way I keep my miniaturing affordable is to scrounge for old kit houses at yard sales, thrift shops, flea markets, and yes even out of the trash, and without fail those that were assembled with hot glue (the majority) must be rebuilt because that stuff just doesn't hold up. One or two summers in a hot attic, and somebody's lovingly crafted, outgrown plaything turns into a stack of kindling -- or my bargain! That's the challenge of budget crafting, to take these, rehab them (starting with wood glue), and find them a new home.

Loretta.Sniarowski

Hot-glued houses: Wanted to comment on houses being put together by shops with hot glue. this is NOT a good idea. As a former shop owner, I would not have used this method. Hot glue is brittle is not intended for this sort of bond. Sounds as if the builders might be just cutting time corners in order to crank our a few more houses more quickly. I had the experience of putting together a small foam core house with hot glue once - and then stored the thing in an attic. Went up to retrieve it one hot summer's day - - and it slid apart in my hands!

On the other hand - hot glue can be used as a clamp - I have used it in conjunction with a good wood glue - dotting it on joints in a few places to hold the structure until the wood glue sets up - and perhaps that is what the folks in the shop were doing -it does work well.

Phyllis M Artabasy

Cutting mat board: For just cutting mat board on a straight edge, you can use a utility or Exacto knife, preferably with a metal straight edge as your guide. The important things are to have a truly sharp blade and to not rush the cut. Figure on three or more careful runs to get all the way through. A dull blade and pushing down too hard to rush the cut are what mangles the board. I also cut with the right side up, because with even a good cut, there can be little feathery bits left on the "back" of the cut. If you're trying to get the angle cut that professional framers put on the inner edge of a mat, you need a mat cutter. The cheapest one I know of is almost $70. I saw a hand-held one once that was cheaper, can't find it in my catalogs today, but I am guessing it's a bear to use anyway. I had a chance once to use a professional quality mat cutter and found that, while it was definitely easier than a knife and straight edge, it still took some finesse to get it right

Chrissy the Hyphenated

What is the best glue/cement to repair ceramics or pottery?

Superglue Gel. The "Gel" part is important as the regular superglue is runny. The Gel is perfect. I buy it at Wal-Mart and it's very reasonable about $1 for 2 tubes. However, no matter how good you are, a crack will show in the piece. For painted pieces you can try painting over the crack.

Carol

Workshop tips: I wanted to share two workshop tips that I haven't seen anywhere that I can remember. First, I buy lots of scrap strip and trim wood in $1 bundles at my local mini shop. Then I get them home and have a big disorganized mess of wood. To remedy the situation, I went to the office supply store and bought several of the little plastic racks that consist of a set of vertical slots for sorting mail. These work perfectly to keep my wood in order.

Also wanted to share that one of the homemade clamps I use for all kinds of things is hair chompies. They come in many sizes, down to teeny, and with various tensions as well. Very useful!

Linda in Leroy, OH

Attaching accessories: I attach everything to the surface it sits on. Most of the time I use "Mini-Hold" which is a wax adhesive that can be found in most miniature shops. It cleans up off of most surfaces by simple removal, although I sometimes must use a little furniture polish to get faint residue that is occasionally left behind. It has eased my frustration level by geometric proportions, as I was constantly placing little vignettes 'just so' on my work bench, only to have them joggle into a heap when they (literally!) hit the room box. That all changed about 4 years ago, when I bought my little container of Mini-Hold. I use such small amounts of the stuff to pin the miniatures down, that I am only about 1/3 through of my container. I think it cost me $2.50, and it was well worth every penny.

DeeDee in Carmel

Dado, Groove or Rebate: Not that it matters, but since you asked; a dado goes across the grain, a groove is with the grain, a rebate is along an edge, so its open on one side.

Tom Berkner

Removing a glued label from a magazine: Something I learned about getting labels off of stuff and undoing pictures or anything glued to something without ruining the object is using a product called UNDU  You can buy it in almost every craft store, Wal Mart, any store that carries scrapbooking supplies.   It comes in a plastic bottle with this plastic thing attached to use to lift the glued object from.   You just squeeze a few drops from the bottle, wait a bit and then gently use the plastic thing to get under the sticker or picture and gently lift it.   It will come up and the Undu will not stain or discolor.  I just love it and use it for everything.  It's about $5.00 or so, depending on the size

Michele