I like a sharpie. I don’t recommend it in lighter woods once milled, but on rough it’s great.
Chalk is messy and dull.
Sharpies are the right combination of sharp and soft to make them appropriate for the topography of a rough board.
Moderator
I like a sharpie. I don’t recommend it in lighter woods once milled, but on rough it’s great.
Chalk is messy and dull.
Sharpies are the right combination of sharp and soft to make them appropriate for the topography of a rough board.
Guest
Pencil if I want it to go away.
Sharpie if I don't.
Blood if I'm stupid
Member
Bitta blue tape on the sheet then you can write on that with a pencil or similar. Anything thats not been surface planed yet, not so much of a big deal what's used.
Contributor
The problem we always have with sharpies is on rough stock very quickly you will have worn the tip off the sharpie and you are left with a sharpie that costs 2 bucks and you have 1.80 worth of ink left in the marker that you cant use because the tip is gone.Originally Posted by Prashun Patel
Moderator
This, for fine lines on dark wood:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004M5BGD4
JKJ
Guest
Those were my 3 too.
Moderator
The sharpies lose ink before they get too dull to work. Works well for me.
Honestly even on milled, light woods it’s easy enough to plane off. I don’t use it for marking once joints are cut.
Member
I actually use Chinese markers. The ones with the string. Once I realized that I can use the large side of a pencil sharpener for these things instead of trying to unpeel them they work great. A little acetone on a rag takes it right off.
Contributor
For planing and jointing I use lumber crayons (Harbor Freight) and for all other marking I use mechanical pencil (0.5mm I think). If it’s a rough measurement I make a V shape tik mark, precise I make a small straight/perpendicular to cut line. Just the method that works for me.
Contributor
Yeah, I've used number three a few times also.
Usually I mark with a variety of soft lead pencils no matter what it is. I don't think I own a piece of chalk.
I also use a razor knife, but sometimes it's responsible for me using number 3 above.
"The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)
Contributor
Now THAT looks interesting. I use a white artist's pencil on dark woods but those require lots of sharpening to maintain a reasonably thin line.
Last edited by Curt Harms; 09-23-2018 at 8:10 AM.
Member
I use a sharpie on board ends after rough cutting to length at RAS, and on plywood edges as I process on the panel saw. We buy these in bulk! I have some different colored lumber crayons for marking up rough lumber that will be surfaced, blue shows up well on light woods, orange on darker stuff, yellow on mahogany. At a certain point in the process I switch to tape, either blue or white masking, for surfaces that have been sanded which I don't want to have to detail further. The lumber crayons don't wipe off easily or smudge like chalk and they don't spread, can be cleaned with acetone but I usually use those early in the process where they will be physically removed during surfacing. I've switched to .7mm mechanical pencil for precise layout and story poles, beats repeated trips to the sharpener.
"A good miter set up is like yoga pants: it makes everyone's butts look good." Prashun Patel
Guest
Bic sells .9mm as well.
Contributor
Marker for marking rough cut boards to lengths. Sharpie on the end to identify what furniture parts come out of each piece. Pencil for everything else.
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