The Woodworker & Woodturner – September 2019

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62 The Woodworker & Good Woodworking September 2019 http://www.getwoodworking.com

LETTERS

CARVING & CARPENTRY

BANDSAW

OBSERVATION

WINDOW

NOT ANOTHER

GIRAFFE!

ANOTHER HAPPY PLANE RECIPIENT

Hi Tegan,

This is really a tip and request for bandsaw

manufacturers, although it’s a simple modification

for your readers.

I’ve only had two bandsaws – one a second-

hand Draper and just recently a Scheppach –

both of which are bench-top models. I have

modified both bandsaws to give me the ability

to observe the running of the bandsaw blade

around the motorised wheels, so that I can adjust

the position of the blade on the wheel during

operation. All bandsaw providers ask the operator

to adjust the blade to run on the middle of the

wheel, but most modern machines have a safety

cutoff when the doors are opened. So adjusting

the track of the blade becomes a case of ‘open

door, observe blade position, adjust tracking

slightly (hopefully in the right direction),

close door, run bandsaw, open door, observe

blade position... and continue until satisfied’.

Occasionally, if you get it wrong, the blade

will come off the wheels and you have to start

all over again. The attached photo shows my

solution. This was a little bit harder with the

steel frame of the Scheppach – the Draper

had plastic frame covers and was easily cut.

For the Scheppach, I used an oscillating multi-tool

Hello Tegan,

Introducing Geoff the BFG (Big Friendly Giraffe),

which I recently made for my youngest

granddaughter. It looked a bit strange with eyes

so we added false eyelashes (Boots’ cheapest!)

We thought he looked more like Geoff than Gilly!

Kind regards, John Ingrey

Hi John, well that’s fantastic! Thanks so much for

sharing and I love the addition of the eye lashes!

I hope he brings your granddaughter many hours

of entertainment and joy! We can’t wait to see

what you make next!

Best wishes, Tegan

Hi Tegan,

The Veritas plane has landed! What a beastie.

As you can see, I’m quite thrilled and can’t wait

to give it a go. Off to the workshop – thank you

so very much!

Kind regards, Denis Whittaker

Hi Denis, what a great photo – I think that perfectly

sums up your excitement! It is a fine beast indeed!

I hope you enjoy using it to make lots more

woodworking projects! Congratulations again!

Best wishes, Tegan

Hi Tegan,

My name is Kev Dale and I’ve been woodcarving

since last September. I’m such a woodworking

fan that I’ve finally decided I want to become a

carpenter. I start college in September, for one

day a week. I work full-time as a gardener, but

now, at the age of 52, I want a career change.

I’m so excited when I finish work in the afternoon

that I start woodcarving. I have made spoons

and bowls for presents and they have been

well received. I really like your magazine. At the

end of the year, I’m even thinking about starting

my own woodcarving blog.

Warm regards, Kev Dale

Hi Kev, many thanks for your email. I’m really

pleased to hear you’ve discovered woodcarving

and fantastic news that you’re starting college and

learning carpentry – this is a very inspirational story!

It’s clear you have a deep love of woodworking and

great that you are going to expand your skill set

when you start your course. We love your rustic

carvings and look forward to hearing how your

journey develops! Good luck with your blog too!

Best wishes, Tegan

LETTER OF THE MONTH

to cut out the window – not easy to start with

as you can see by the initial scratches – until

a decent groove was established, but now I can

see the blade running on the upper wheel, and

can adjust during operation. There’s no need to

remember which way to turn the adjuster, either,

as any adjustment instantly moves the blade

across the wheel. I will clean up the cut-out and

attach an acrylic window to the inside. This is

such an easy modification that I wonder why

no manufacturer has thought of it before? They

would obviously do a much better job than me!

Best regards, Colin Lloyd

Hi Colin, thank you for another useful tip! Yes,

this seems a very easy mod, and you can’t help

but wonder why it’s not used more commonly by

manufacturers? Perhaps it’s a case of not being

thought of before, in which case, well done for

coming up with it! Let’s see if anyone else has

developed a similar solution.

Best wishes, Tegan

Colin’s simple modification for his bandsaw –

a handy observation window

Recent readers’ tip winner Denis Whittaker is

just a little overjoyed with his new Veritas plane!

Geoff the BFG (Big Friendly Giraffe)

This heart carving was given as a Valentine’s Day gift

Thistle carving, inspired by the film Braveheart