What to do with cutoffs, etc

[Jim Becker]

I used to keep almost everything over a few inches. No longer...there is just too much. Solid stock that I don't feel to be particularly valuable for the future goes in the kindling bin (my original 33 gallon Oneida drum) and scrap manufactured material goes in the trash. The "size limit" is arbitrary and depends on the specifics of the stuff, but it's kept things workable for me.

[Jim Heffner]

Keith, I bought them from Klockit.

John, you might want to try this idea for clock parts ( especially for the free/ giveaway ones. Take a couple of 2AA batteries with you to the next yard sale/ flea market or thrift store. You can test any potential clocks you find and they sell them cheap there. You make up the wood base yourself and install a cheap clock in it and save some money to boot!

[Mickey Finn]

The clocks are a great idea. Rockler and Woodcraft have a boatload of insets in various styles to choose from.

I'm a noob, but since I've started (about three months ago) I've been working solely with exotics or otherwise non-big-box type of stuff... "in for a penny, in for a pound", right? (yeah, right, until you realize that template was on backwards... LOL)

What I've been doing is taking a 3x5 piece out of the scrap and finishing it on one side the same way I finished the piece that it was part of. On the other side of the piece, I use a fine point pen with indelible ink to jot down what the project was, the sanding protocol, the method of finishing (for that particular look) and any other curveballs to look out for that I ran into along the way while creating the piece.

Again, I'm a noob... Haven't yet had to refer to my massive library of THREE samples for guidance... , but in the future, I think it'll be a good reference point to not only avoid issues, but to also replicate a finish... as well as to provide a base-point to think about how to tweak it so it's even better.

Whatever scrap is left beyond that, I'm currently stacking up and will probably sell as penblanks.

(note for you pen-makers out there... there may be some absolutely killer Birds-Eye Maple on your radar sometime soon. )

[Ron Hildreth]

I bought an electric branding iron from Rockler, that I burn my logo into scrap pieces, add a small chain, and I now have a key fob to give my prospective customers, or give along with any project I've finished for a customer. This works well as a finishing touch if the project has a door that locks!

Ron in Iowa

[Keith Beck]

Keith, I bought them from Klockit.

John,

Thanks for the info. Looks like their prices are much better than what I paid at Woodcraft.

keith

[glenn bradley]

Here is what I do with some of mine.

Rick,

That is a really cool "basket/vase" piece.

[glenn bradley]

I have 4 boxes, one for hardwood, softwood and plywood, one for exotics and the last one is for really little stuff.

When one gets full I go though and clean it out and only keep the best stuff. I don't worry about the width as much as the length, I can always you long skinny ones for inlays and things like that.

I too built 4 stacking bins out of some discarded T1-11 ply and keep small pieces by catagory. Larger pieces go in "the bin". The bin can be built from one sheet of 3/4" MDF and I realize I don't have a picture handy. . . I'll post that later, sorry.

[Bill Keehn]

Waste not want not.

I use scrap plywood or MDF for fixtures and story sticks.

I use the long thin strips of hardwood that I rip off my boards when dimensioning my lumber as stiring sticks. I save the choice pieces for inlay trim.

If I have cutoffs with a fairly square cross section across the end, I put it on my turning stock shelf. I visualize what I'd like to do with them. Wide and short pieces are probably going to become bowls. Longer and narrower pieces, fancy tool handles. Short and Narrow pieces are destined to become pen blanks. Some pieces are destined to simply become sawdust as I practice turning.

I save short planks for making test cuts on the router and saw. I also like to use them to test out various finishes before I try it out on the finished work.

The other day my daughter's kindergarden teacher asked if I could make a flag holder for her classroom to hold a dozen or so little flags of the world she bought for the class. I took a piece of scrap mahogany that was 1"x2"x24" and drilled a series of evenly spaced holes. I beveled the edges and finished it with a little tung oil.

When I gave it to her that afternoon, I got as much satisfaction and as many kudos for that simple thing as for anything else I've done. My daughter was beaming proudly. I was very glad I saved that piece.

I routinely go through and pare down my scraps to what I think are the best pieces. Sometimes I square the ends and true up the faces. I limit myself to what fits in my scrap bin. So far its working.

[Lee Schierer]

I could really use some whistle plans.

Whistles are easy. I cut stock 3/4 square and bore a 1/2" hole down one end so it is 2-3" deep. The deeper the hole the lower the pitch. Then cut a notch in one side about 3/4-1" from the open end, 1/4-3/8" deep and then angled 45 degrees toward the closed end. Leave teh angled edge sharp. Then cut a length of dowel that is just long enough to go to the front edge of the notch to plug the hole. Plane off one side of the plug so there is a narrow flat area that aligns with the notch for air to go through. You can do some testing to see how much flat area to make on the side of the dowel to get the best sound. Once you have the sound you want glue the plug in place.

I've found that moisture will tend to dull the tone so a bit of shellac on the air passage surfaces might help. Whistles work again when they dry out.

P.S. For maximum effect, give them to your grand kids about 5 minutes before they pile in the car to go home.

[Paul O'Halloran]

I make toys for needy kids from cut-offs. See this site
Paul

http://pohallor.fp.execulink.com/toys1.htm

[Cary Swoveland]

That's incredible, Paul. Over the years you must have made thousands. That's a lot of happy kids. Good work.

Cary