Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Skill”
I’ll be honest with you, for many years I didn’t use masking tape. Being young and full of myself, I thought, (dare I say it), that it was strictly for amateurs! Oh the ignorance of youth. Then I discovered , and now I know better. And I know better because masking tape got better. Or rather I found a better one, i.e. the aforementioned blue masking tape. It’s massively superior to regular yellow masking or painters tape. If you don’t have a ‘blue’ masking tape in your neck of the …
Easy method: find and remove drywall screws.. Yes, yes, yes; I know you can remove drywall by punching a hole in it and pulling it to pieces with a hammer, but what if you need to be a bit more careful? This week I’m working in an occupied home and I need to remove part of a wall and then fill in an existing doorway. I obviously don’t want to make a lot of unnecessary dust right? Plus I’ve got a million small jobs to do in around a dozen …
Metric wood screw sizes and why they beat imperial… The old imperial method of measuring screws by gauge makes little sense to some of us today, (like most imperial measurements) and the logic of their origins is known only to Wikipedia (he says smiling!). So, now we are getting to grips with the common sense of metric wood screw measurements. (Arguments against on a postcard to the usual address please!). Right, so what do the numbers mean? Lets take a look at the packaging to start with… The basic info …
I want to go back to basics for a while with some posts about building some core skills. Starting with the hammer (because it’s fun!) and because it’s pretty easy to practice…. go grab a block of wood (or nail a few bits together….) and some nails and lets go… The statement “anyone can hammer in a nail” is a falsehood soon discovered by those who try it for the first time. That said, I think most folks find hammering in nails very satisfying; once you get the hang of …
For my wife’s birthday the other day I made her a nice cheese board after seeing some in the store and thinking crikey, they’re expensive considering how easy it’d be to make one in the workshop… So I headed out and found a nice piece of old pallet wood with some interesting colours and set about cutting a heart-shaped hole in one corner (my signature move with anything I make for my wife, smooth huh?). So, kicking the snow away from the workshop door and firing up the old diesel heater I cleared …
Caulking is a must in most houses, new and old before getting the paint out. But first, you should do all your preparation work, because you cannot sandpaper caulk in any way! Nope, don’t even try it. Get everything washed down with a well wrung out sponge and some pre-decorating cleaner (bedrooms etc. don’t need much, but kitchens and bathrooms, hallways etc., need a lot!). Wipe away the cleaner with a big microfiber cloth and a bucket of clean water. Change the water often. Once dry again, sandpaper everything down …
Using a Washer and a Pencil… Been using this tip for a few years now for small scribes such as this MDF top for a small cupboard going up to a curved wall etc… Keep a selection of washers handy in your toolbox, preferably with lots of variation from thin to thick ‘penny’ washers. Simply measure the front projection to ensure it’s equal, and then run a pencil inside the washer, making sure the washer is tight up to the wall all the way. The washer will follow the undulations …
