Wood Filler Fiasco

Wood Filler Fiasco

In order to fill some tiny gaps in a box I was making, I decided to make my own wood filler. I dumped fine sawdust from my sander’s filter bag into a small cup. Then I squeezed wood glue on top—or so I planned. Unfortunately, the bottle was nearly empty, so instead of glue, I puffed a shot of air into the cup—with enough gusto to explode the dust into a huge cloud around my head. Next time, I’ll check the bottle before I squeeze.

Dean O. Travis

Ninja Woodworking

My wife, a math teacher, asked if I could make 25 wooden triangles for her pre-geometry class. I laid out the triangles on thin plywood and started cutting them on my tablesaw. About halfway through, I noticed that the stack of finished triangles was getting pretty high, so I decided to move it to a safer spot. I wasn’t going very far, so I left the saw running as I picked up the stack. Naturally, the top triangle slid off onto the spinning blade, which hurled it across my shop and embedded it in the wall, just like a Ninja throwing star. Now I have a new job for tomorrow—wallboard repair.

Roy I. Steele