Small tip. I have spring clamps that have a heavy bite, but I wanted more pressure so this is what I came up with. I inserted a small piece of hard wood under one of the steel arms and that worked fine. Now I can barely open them with one hand.

I did sort some wood yesterday and took some inventory for the bow building/swap thread this year.  Got some nice wood. Will post up later and see what people think for combos.

I did get to try out my Festool sander and vac yesterday.  Wife wants her butcher block counter tops redone. We sanded one and I was amazed. Litteraly NO SANDING DUST!

The dust removal on this system is absolutely unbelievable.  I was pretty skeptical when I would watch the YouTube videos about how clean they were. They are correct!

Ken

Bue that's a great idea.

Roy we don't have to hit the lottery for that clamp

Nope, all we gotta do is buy a special chunk of wood off Bue:)

Well, I used East Indian Rosewood so it won't be cheap.

Ah crap, that's the wood that messed me up 10 years ago...

And now this purple heart wood is messing me up, I might not be able to finish this bow I'm working on.

i've got a serious alergic reation to zebra wood now. have had it for 5 years now. makes me sneeze not stop until my eyes are watering... im talking 20-30 sneezes. bout blew my mustache off a couple times, and had to quit working with the stuff....

Leopard wood got me. Like poison oak. Even the inside of my mouth where I breathed the dust burnt...

I'm curious, do any of you guys with wood allergies have a reaction to any domestic wood, or is it all tropical hardwoods?

Quote from: Buggs on January 11, 2023, 12:22:55 PM
I'm curious, do any of you guys with wood allergies have a reaction to any domestic wood, or is it all tropical hardwoods?

Walnut slight headache, yew splitting headache, using dust collection also.  No rashes or skin probs like coco does me...

The last few days I haven't been able to spend much time working on the bow because of my back there's a fine line when you're taking pain meds and working with power tools to keep it safe .
Since I started this bow building, I've read so much about the health hazards of fibreglass and certain woods that I automatically wear my respirator , gloves, long sleeve shirt when I'm working in my shop , slowly getting used to it .

The only way I'll be able to finish this bow with the purple heart in it will be to wear a lot of personal protection gear cause it's messed me up twice now and takes a week or longer to recover..

What I hate most is my goggles always fog up when wearing a mask over my mouth and nose and then I can't see what I am doing..

The only wood that bothers me is the tropical exotic oily ones.

It was Pau Ferro that I first became allergic to. It made me itch. Then I noticed that some other woods were beginning to affect me as well, so I bought a powered respirator. I learned that once you become allergic to one kind of wood, it's a matter of time until you become allergic to others.
The 3M respirator is great. It's got a full face guard that's strong enough to be a safety shield for working on a lathe and it blows cool air over your face to prevent fogging. It also feels good on a hot day.
Dave.

I have a 3M respirator, an older version of this one;[attachment=1]

It's not powered, but the incoming air passes by your face. Never get any sweat fog. It's not too heavy either, with the P100 dust discs. Other nice thing is I can wear glasses with it on. Thats become critical as the years pass!

What's the model #...
I'll check into them.

Mine is a 6800. Noticed they have gotten expensive since I bought mine

If you do get one, be sure to get the silicone model. The other plastic ones they make are not very comfortable and don't seal as well on your face.

Thanks Philip.

Mine is the 3M Versaflo PAPR. ( powered air purifying respirator). It was expensive when I bought it, but now the price is nuts. I'm glad that I bought it when I did.
For me it was a choice between continuing my woodworking or giving it up.
There is another powered respirator by Trend. It's a lot cheaper, but all the mechanics are in the helmet rather than on a belt.
Dave.

Thanks Dave