Back when he started woodworking a few years ago, Casey worked with his wife’s uncle – and some wood from Bradford Forest, the Pennsylvania lumberyard where his wife was employed at the time – to make some pieces for the church where he worked. One was a small candy stand for the youth group; another a wooden cross.

“The first project I did mostly on my own was a shoeshine box for my father-in-law,” Casey said.

For some time, Casey had also wanted to start his own business. “I wanted to teach that to my kids, as a really valuable skill. I wanted to do it myself, so I could teach them.” In searching for his business opportunities, however, Casey “didn’t want to just make something and put it on the shelf for somebody to look at. I wanted to make something useful.”

A long-time reader of The Deliberate Agrarian blog, Casey noticed that site owner Herrick Kimball had started selling things on the side and purchased a plans book that taught him to make wooden clothespins.

Now living in Texas, where he works full-time for an oil and gas company, Casey spends his evenings and weekends making wooden clothespins.

“All the clothespins you can find in the big box store are poorly made from cheap material,” Casey said. “They are not made to last, but the ones I make are. Most of the store-bought ones are small, have weak springs and are not made of hardwood. People who hang their clothes on a line are tired of purchasing clothespins that do not do the job and do not last long.”

The clothespins Casey makes are hardwood, with stainless steel springs, and are double the size of those sold in stores. Most of those he sells are made from ash, and used for hanging clothes on the line, although he also has some available in cherry and walnut that might be used in the kitchen to hold chip bags closed, for example.  Cherry and walnut clothespins, Casey said, “you don’t want to use outside because the tannins in them could stain your clothes. Ash doesn’t.”

When creating the clothespins, “The tolerance is quite tight for some of the different parts,” Casey said. “I use a caliper quite a bit.”

He starts with a rectangle of wood measuring 3-1/2 inches x 6 inches, then cuts it into slices on the table saw. The table saw is also how he cuts the clothespins’ three grip grooves and spring clip groove. He then uses a shaper to round out grooves and create the front angle. A jig mounted on the table saw creates the internal angles. “Every clothespin is put together by hand,” Casey said.

Eventually, if they’re interested, Casey said, his kids (he currently has one daughter and another child on the way) might take over the clothespins business – and potential future business ideas. “Right now, all the money I make from this is going to my daughter’s college account,” he said, “so the idea is, she could take it over.”

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-Dan Martin
Galena, Ohio

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-Milton W. Fisher
Dayton, Virginia

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The XSL02Z is powered by a Makita BL brushless motor that delivers 5,700 rpm — the fastest blade speed in the category, Makita reports. Soft start suppresses start-up reaction, and Automatic Speed Change Technology adjusts cutting speed and torque during the cut. A direct-drive gearbox increases cutting efficiency, and it will require less long-term maintenance than a belt drive system. An electric brake stops the blade quickly.

The saw has a four steel rail sliding system (see below) riding on four linear ball bearings to help produce smooth and accurate sliding action. Its aluminum base supports large stock.

Cutting capacity of the XSL02Z is 2″ x 12″ at 90˚ and 2″ x 8″ at 45˚. It has a 5/8″ arbor and positive miter stops at 0˚, 15˚, 22.5˚, 30˚ and 45˚ left and right. The saw swivels 47 degrees left and 57 degrees right for making miter cuts. It tilts up to 45 degrees left and 5 degrees right for bevel cutting. A rubberized soft-grip handle should improve comfort during repetitive cutting.

The XSL02Z weighs 28.2 lbs. with battery. It comes with a 7-1/2-in.-dia., 40-tooth carbide tipped saw blade, dust bag, a vertical hold-down clamp and two steel extension wings. Batteries and charger are sold separately.

This new cordless saw is part of Makita’s expanding 18-volt lithium-ion series, which will exceed 125 tools in 2016. It is the world’s largest cordless tool line-up powered by 18-volt lithium-ion slide-style batteries.

Currently, Makita’s 18V X2 LXT^® Lithium-Ion (36V) Brushless Cordless 7-1/2-in. Dual Slide Compound Miter Saw sells for around $600.

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Tim Inman: I have personally not experienced this, but who’s to say. I think the answer to your question should come from one of the manufacturers.

Bob Behnke: Here’s the short answer: If the CA glue is still liquid, then it’s still active and able to cure. The longer explanation: CA glues are made up of single molecules of cyanoacrylate. The glues harden when their molecules react to moisture in the air and link together (polymerize) to form long chains. Thinner CA glues tend to react faster than the thicker adhesive due to wetting and spreading on the substrate, but thickeners used to formulate various viscosities shouldn’t affect performance. Manufacturers add inhibitors to the glue to keep it from reacting (and thereby curing and hardening) in the bottle. For most cyanoacrylate adhesives, the inhibitor is an acid. An acidic inhibitor works fine when you apply it to most surfaces (e.g., metal or ceramic) because they are typically alkaline (the opposite of acidic), which neutralizes the acid and enables the reaction to proceed. On the other hand, some woods, such as oak or maple, can contain surfaces with tannic acids that keep the acidic inhibitor from neutralizing – and either slow down or prohibit the reaction altogether. In those cases, you want to use an accelerator or activator to coax the reaction along. The activator or accelerant neutralizes the acid, and the reaction proceeds. Depending on the species of wood you are gluing or the time of year the tree was cut, the tannic acid concentration in the wood can vary considerably. If gluing wood with CA glues, it’s imperative to keep an activator handy.

The shelf life of CA glue depends on the amount of inhibitor in the formulation. (Titebond adds a higher amount than most formulations, so our product will last a minimum of two years.) Higher levels of inhibitor, though, can require you to use an accelerator in a higher percentage of applications. Also, moisture in the air kicks off the curing reaction, so storing in a low-moisture environment can increase the useful life of the CA glues. Storage in a freezer where moisture levels in the air are very low can allow product usability for up to 10 years. Be sure to squeeze out as much air from the bottle as you can before replacing the cap. As stated above, as long as the adhesive is liquid, the product is still good to use.

(Bob Behnke is the technical service manager for Titebond products.)

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-Don Quinn Sr.

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“I haven’t actually tried it yet, but let me congratulate and thank you for making the back issues available to subscribers! My wife would likely be happy for me to remove some of the many back issues that sit in boxes in the basement.

“I wish more publications did the same (made electronic archival versions available to print subscribers). I still like getting the dead tree version because I find the format easier to read/handle than a tablet. I’ve tried reading magazines on a tablet, and so far I’ve not been convinced that it’s a better thing. When we get 14″ tablets that are 400ppi or better and weigh the same as a magazine does today… maybe. Until then, I’ll read the print version and reference historical versions electronically.” – Scott Chapman

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