Shop update #89 (7-10-19)

I went on a hike with my son’s Cub Scout Pack Saturday morning and didn’t get back until mid afternoon.

I needed some 1/2″ plywood to finish up the washer toss games so I made a trip to Home Depot. I grabbed a sheet of 1/2″ plywood and took it to the back to get cut down the middle lengthwise so that I could fit it in my car. Once there I discovered some 1/2″ plywood in the cull section. I took the good plywood back and had the worker cut 2 sheets of the cull in half for me. I also picked up a sheet of 3/8″ OSB that had already been cut into quarters. I got everything for under $13. The plywood was pretty warped but I am cutting it down into 16″ squares so it is not a big deal. The OSB was also slightly smaller than a quarter sheet each but also not a big deal for I what I need it for and well worth the price.

I had enough pieces to build 6 octagon rings for washer toss games but only enough pocket screws to make 4. I made another trip to Home Depot that night and picked up some more screws as I knew that if I didn’t do it that night I would use it as an excuse to not get started in the morning.

On Sunday I broke down all the plywood into quarter sheets and then 1 full sheet into 12 – 16″ squares and 8 – 3 1/2″ x 48″ strips. I am going to use the strips and the leftover 16″ squares to see if I can make a lightweight version of the washer toss game.

Once the plywood was cut down, I finished making the last 2 octagons.

I then placed one of them on top of a 16″ square and marked the corners that needed to be cut off. I clamped 2 pieces together and cut them with my cordless circular saw. Once the bottoms were cut out I glued and stapled them onto the octagons.

Once the bottoms were attached, I clamped them sideways on the workbench and tried out my new cordless belt sander. This was my first time using one and it made quick work of all the uneven corners.