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sorcerertd

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OK, fess up. What silly things do you do in the shop to save a few cents?
Me? I clean sandpaper with a toothbrush. The funny thing is that I buy scraps of it in bulk, sold by the pound. I usually pick up so little that they don't even charge me for it and I still clean and use it as long as I can. Silly, huh?
 
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Edgar

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I don't clean my sandpaper, but I do save all my used sandpaper strips in a small box and use them to clean/sand things where a dirty/somewhat worn piece of sandpaper will do - like cleaning my mandrel. Then I throw the used pieces away.
 

jttheclockman

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Have to agree with John. My hobbies are my vices and if I need it and sometimes even if I do not I will buy it. Not sure how much longer I will here to enjoy hobbies so spend it. Can not take it with me. Have been doing alot of late night computer spending these days. :)
 

Kenny Durrant

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I'm bad about trying to save the brass tubes. I'm retired so I have time to play. I'll save anything I think I can use later. The problem with that is when I try to clean up I'll throw away things that's have set around a while and the next day I'll need it. I guess that's another topic for another day.
 

InkyMike

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I don't clean my sandpaper, but I do save all my used sandpaper strips in a small box and use them to clean/sand things where a dirty/somewhat worn piece of sandpaper will do - like cleaning my mandrel. Then I throw the used pieces away.
I do this, too. I usually have small patches perfect for custom finials.
 

jrista

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I try to build my own sleds and other jigs when I can, rather than buying pre-made ones. Sometimes, building myself isn't actually cheaper, but they tend to work more the way I want them to. I have bought a couple pre-made jigs, only to find they didn't quite fit my equipment, or didn't fit at all, or were hard to use in one way or another...so I ended up returning them.

I have been buying metal T-track and miter track. For some things, I will probably keep doing that. However now that I have a router, I am thinking I may pick up a T-track bit and router my own tracks when I don't necessarily need the durability of metal.

When it comes to sandpaper. When I first started out, I was using those pre-cut round pieces, often with the velcro felt on the back. I tried to save as much as I could, as those things are expensive... I've tried ton of brands and types, and they are just expensive. I tried ways to keep them going... I eventually picked up some 8.5x11 sheets of Norton's sandpaper, and it just worked so well! Something about that sandpaper, it just works better than any of the other stuff I've used, except one other kind that also comes in sheets. The Nortons, being sheets, is not as expensive as the circular stuff, even the 2" size...guess you really pay for the cutting, and the extra coatings that stuff usually has, the velcro felt backing, etc. So I've saved by using the Nortons. But then, I also find ways to use the smallest pieces I can at a time as well, either on pens, or on larger turned items.

I've found that sandpaper works exceptionally well when you DON'T try to reuse it. I even researched the subject, and it really doesn't take much to break down the sharp points of the grits, rendering them far less useful. I've found that coated sandpapers might as well be near a full grit coarser than their rating as well. By not reusing any sandpaper, and just being efficient with the pieces I cut, I think I get better, faster sanding with better, smoother, cleaner results. That's been a money-saver that's also been a time-saver and a quality booster.
 

Larryreitz

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Rubber gloves. When the pandemic hit they were difficult to find at Harbor Freight. I was lucky enough to find a pack of the heavier version and figured rather than toss them every time they came in contact with epoxy I would try to reuse them. With a little care it worked and I still reuse them several times.

Larry
 

SteveG

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I've found that sandpaper works exceptionally well when you DON'T try to reuse it. I even researched the subject, and it really doesn't take much to break down the sharp points of the grits, rendering them far less useful. I've found that coated sandpapers might as well be near a full grit coarser than their rating as well. By not reusing any sandpaper, and just being efficient with the pieces I cut, I think I get better, faster sanding with better, smoother, cleaner results. That's been a money-saver that's also been a time-saver and a quality booster.
My thoughts are closely in line with Jon's. Sandpaper rapidly looses its sole purpose capability: to sand things. I have a lifetime of woodworking experience, and once I learned to NOT economize by way of extended sandpaper usage, my life got better by about 25%!

But WAIT! There are two steps to this process...

The next revelation in my woodworking journey was to learn the specialized skill of discarding/replacing the sandpaper early. It works SO MUCH BETTER when fresh. With that, my life improved by another 25%.

BTW, I Do economize in the shop in other ways, just not with sandpaper. One exception: I do keep a small amount of used sandpaper just for those jobs where the surface being sanded will very quickly clog the paper, There is value in that.
 

sorcerertd

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I usually move it down the line to consider it a lower grit after a couple uses, but don't save it forever. the oily woods definitely tend to finish them off.

BTW, I Do economize in the shop in other ways, just not with sandpaper.
So, toss a couple ideas out there for us. I'm a very low budget person. Our household income was cut off by probably about 35% several years ago and that has never been replaced. I decided that I'm not going to buy stuff for the shop unless I make the money for it from my products. So far it's been working out OK.
 

InkyMike

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I usually move it down the line to consider it a lower grit after a couple uses, but don't save it forever. the oily woods definitely tend to finish them off.


So, toss a couple ideas out there for us. I'm a very low budget person. Our household income was cut off by probably about 35% several years ago and that has never been replaced. I decided that I'm not going to buy stuff for the shop unless I make the money for it from my products. So far it's been working out OK.
As a household where both of us became unemployed, I'm starting to follow this as well - now that I've ramped up on tools and equipment, I'm trying to sell what I make outside of some samples.
 

jttheclockman

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If we are talking sandpaper I am in the camp that fresh is best. I buy in bulk so savings are built in and frustration is taken out. That is how sandpaper works. The crystals break down to expose more sharp edges with some sandpapers. Other cheaper versions just fall off. So buying quality can be more value than trying to safe and stretch what you use.

When I was running full time woodworking shop and doing tons of scrollsaw work I constantly did not want to throw away all the scraps I was creating. So I would fill barrels of this stuff. Had all kinds of wood varieties in there. This may have been a reason I could not give that stuff away. I offered for free to use in fireplaces or wood burning stoves or outdoor firepits but no one wanted it. I wound up throwing in the dumpster. I do not save like that any more.
 

woodwzrd

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The rule of sandpaper is "use it like someone else os paying for it". I only buy Klingspor and Norton sandpaper.
When I first started turning game calls one of my mentors told me this very thing. Unless I am in a pinch and can't find Norton locally that is all I buy and I am sure I go through more than most.
 

WriteON

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OK, fess up. What silly things do you do in the shop to save a few cents?
I wasted so many items there are not enough silly things to do to compensate. I'm so behind the 8 ball. I cannot find anything and buy it again. Horrible thread... I should report it. I should have saved electric by not reading/posting here. I'm damaged. Thanks everyone
 

jttheclockman

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I wasted so many items there are not enough silly things to do to compensate. I'm so behind the 8 ball. I cannot find anything and buy it again. Horrible thread... I should report it. I should have saved electric by not reading/posting here. I'm damaged. Thanks everyone
Is that you behind one of these billiardballs?:p:D:D:D I think I see behind the 8ball.

Copy (2) of IMGP0506.JPG
 

Woodchipper

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I do scrub my MM with a bit of Dawn and a tooth brush. Dry on a cake cooking rack and back to the shop!
John T., looks like you are behind the 9 Ball. Great idea for clocks! Anyone make a clock from a bowling ball?
 

egnald

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I'm in the same camp as Jon (jrista). I will spend hours and hours making a fixture or jig to save minutes (or maybe even seconds) for potentially repetitive tasks. On the other hand, the fixtures usually add a certain level of accuracy and repeatability that I wouldn't be able to attain without them.

The other confession is that I often make the jigs and fixtures over once the concept has been proven out, so there is almost always a 2.0 version -- and sometimes even a 3.0.

My most recent is a jig that I use to cut 8mm tubing for CO2 and beer lines. It is important with push-in fittings that the ends be cut nice and square - much better than can be achieved with a pair of shears or a simple knife (especially because of the natural curvature that most tubing gets from being wrapped in a coil). My version 1.0 is basically a lever arm with a utility knife blade affixed and a block with a 8mm hole that goes through it to support the tubing and to hold it perpendicular to the blade. The ideas for a version 2.0 just keep swirling around in my head.

Dave
 
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I suppose I should post on this thread.... I use a wipe one wipe off method with my sanding sealer and wipe on poly.... I save the wipe off paper towels, usually the blue shop type, stack them on a section of the work bench to dry, then bag them up to use as kindling when I burn scraps and the shavings off the lathe. I have a burn pit out back that I accumulate limbs and such from the yard, to which I add the scraps from y turning and burn a couple or three times a year.
 

KMCloonan

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Jun 13, 2017
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Round Lake, Illinois
Here are a couple thing I do:

I buy less expensive gloves from Harbor Freight for applying CA finish, and when the index finger starts collecting dried CA and bits of paper towel, I turn the glove inside out to get a couple more uses from it.

I also only buy sandpaper from Klingspor - I have gotten several of their 10 pound scrap boxes - you can't beat the price. I then cut the larger pieces into individual small single use pieces, and write the grit on the back. I keep an accordion folder for my sandpaper. Each "pouch in the folder contains a different grit, from 80 to 1200.

I also buy the larger 3 x 4" micromesh pads and cut them each into 4 smaller pads. I put the 4 sets into ziplock bags and have them in my supply cabinet.

Lastly, I scrounge at Goodwill looking for things to use in my segmented blanks (like colored acrylic platters) or for casting (dried flowers, odds & ends).
 

WriteON

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TDahl

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I'm from the same school of thought as Jon (jrista) and David (egnald). I like to build my own jigs and equipment when I can. My latest contraption is when I made a thickness planer (drum sander) for smaller segmenting parts out of a handheld drill and scrap pieces and parts. It may not look like much but it does the job.
 

jrista

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BTW, I Do economize in the shop in other ways, just not with sandpaper. One exception: I do keep a small amount of used sandpaper just for those jobs where the surface being sanded will very quickly clog the paper, There is value in that.
I guess I do keep sandpaper after teh first pass for one reason:

Sanding, or rather scuffing up, pen tubes! I only really use lower grits for that, though...the higher grits, i haven't really found a good reuse for yet.
 

sorcerertd

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I also only buy sandpaper from Klingspor - I have gotten several of their 10 pound scrap boxes - you can't beat the price. I then cut the larger pieces into individual small single use pieces, and write the grit on the back. I keep an accordion folder for my sandpaper. Each "pouch in the folder contains a different grit, from 80 to 1200.
Wow, this is me to a tee. Klingspoor's gold is fantastic stuff. I just pick up bulk pieces when I'm in the store.

One of these days I'm going to build a jig for easy repeatable cuts for segmenting. I have everything I need to do it other than the time.

This wasn't really supposed to be about sandpaper, though. What else have you got? You guys do have me with that thought of spending so much on other crap that being cheap about the other stuff doesn't really help much.
 

KMCloonan

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Klingspoor's gold is fantastic stuff. I just pick up bulk pieces when I'm in the store.
Unfortunately, I don't live in NC, so I can't stop in to Klingspor's so I order from them online. They are who I bought my Laguna lathe from.

I was traveling on business several years ago, and was flying in and out of Asheville - there is a Klingspor's store a very short distance from the airport. I stopped there on my way to fly home, and picked up a bunch f wood blanks and other stuff. Airport security had fun going through my carryon bag.
 
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