Comments on: How To Start Big Projects?

By: Lone_Wolf

Lone_Wolf — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 15:05:45 +0000

Marc,

Thanks for the idea. I get very little time to work in the shop and it may be days apart. I often feel as if I can’t start larger projects. Breaking them down on a to-do list will certianly help!

-Brian

By: Robert Stuart

Robert Stuart — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:00:14 +0000

Zach

One of the best advice I was given with woodworking was – it’s only wood. So don’t be afrraid to make that first cut – as you said you can always buy more lumber and even if you ruin a piece – seldom is it ruined completly – meaining it can easily be used for something else. If you approach woodworking this way you will relax a lot more. (and I know it isnt easy – I sometimes hate to start a project out of fear myself – but I just tell myself – it’s only wood) oh and it was David Marks who gave me that advice.

By: Matthew Hills

Matthew Hills — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:04:22 +0000

I think you have some great ingredients: plenty of scrap wood and some ideas. Release yourself to use that scrap wood for prototypes or to learn other techniques. Hand cut dovetails, working out an angled mortise, edge profiling, or finally making that shop mallet with the funky dovetail joint.

Nothing paralyzes me as much as wanting perfection — not starting anything until everything is decided; not wanting to waste any wood, etc. Sadly, this gives poor results when I finally do get off my duff and try to finish everything.

Matt

By: jHop

jHop — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 16:52:31 +0000

I can walk through a selection of lumber, and I can see the project that that piece is destined to become. My particular problem is a lack of confidence in my skills, to bring it to the beauty I see in my head.

This may be a part of Jay’s problem.

Sometimes, it’s not the vision for the big projects that gets in the way, its the “now how do I get there from here?” stage. lists are wonderful. I have three clipboards around the shop, two with projects (“Wood projects” and “combined projects – eventually”), and a third with the day’s to do list. (laundry always seems to come before “true up end table”…)

As for scraps, I like to save as much as I can. (packrat is in my blood…) But the smaller scraps can be cut into slivers, or small squares, and turned into game pieces, laminated into something larger (pen stock, or cutting boards, for example) and can be used for little things. (like the pulls on the gadget station.)

What seems to help me the most is the old adage: “start with a clear workspace.” When you can see everything, and do not have “stuff” cluttering up your area, it feels like the ideas and confidence turn from a trickle into the roaring Niagara.

By: Zach

Zach — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 06:26:11 +0000

I’m always scared to start a big project. Not that I’ve done anything really big so far, but I did just start a big one today. Making those first cuts always makes me nervous. I always get the feeling that the cut I’m making or the one I just made is going to screw something up down the line. But I double checked everything this time, so I should be alright. That method hasn’t been perfect so far though, hopefully things work out differently this time. If not, I have an excuse to buy more lumber.

So, despite my nerves I tend to just jump into a project. I do try to make a rough cut list of some sort to get started, but after that I just try to work on things in a logical order and get as much done as I can each time I work.

By: Tomcat

Tomcat — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 01:15:24 +0000

Im sure I’ve been vague but I don’t intend to. Hopefully, I dont seem on the offensive either, but truly big ideas are created in very simply ways. Lets throw the scraps on the table, think a bit, find the idea, and it will be a project dear to you and well worked. Try it, you will suprise yourself!

By: Mark Taylor

Mark Taylor — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 01:13:14 +0000

I draw things out with SketchUp first. I get all of my measurements from here and even show my wife what the thing will look like (and get her approval) before I ever buy the wood. I already know that the joints work with what’s next to it and am able to pre-think the tough parts. Once I buy the wood, the steps all seem pretty obvious since I’m so familiar with what it’s going to look like. Hope this helps!

Oh, and on each project, I learn something that I DON’T want to do next time. After enough projects (and mistakes) I’m more efficient, whatever.

By: clint

clint — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:26:51 +0000

I kinda feel the same way, I have wood in the shop, but I dont seem to have much time, and I dont have any big projects in the works. So when I find a couple hours I feel like I want to go into the shop, and do something, ANYTHING, so I usually end up cleaning up, and sharpening tools. Maybe I just need some small project ideas that would give me something to work on.

By: Tomcat

Tomcat — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:26:36 +0000

This topic got my attention because I think Jay is having trouble with “ideas”! As an artist, I come across this all the time and best advice I can give is to take some Candidates (scraps), lay them out in front of you, go back to your roots and play with the blocks! Cut some wood in a way you might not normally (they are only scrap). Give that band saw a test with free form and add a branch or log from your back yard. Once you get your project in mind, you’ll have no problem with how long it takes to complete!

By: emmrys

emmrys — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:19:22 +0000

I am also a compulsive list maker. I have lists of lists. I have also taken note of how I tend to work. I am more focused and motivated at the beginning and end of a project. Whether I am sewing a garment, reading a book, or building a project the middle section is always where I struggle to keep going. Lists help to break things into parts that often can be done in only a few minutes. As long as I keep doing those I get past the mid-section and eventually finish.

I also don’t have long stretches of time to work on things. I always try to have a plan of what I need to do next before I even go into the shop. That way I can begin immediately.