It’s never too early to start planning for fathers day or your dads birthday. Here are 18 awesome gadgets that will save you tons of time on woodworking projects. Sometimes the simplest woodworking tools can be so expensive and the more gadgets you get the more that cost adds up quickly.
Please use all of these tools with care. There are some woodworking tools that can be very dangerous so please use proper PPE as well as lots of common sense.
I have also added amazon links just in case if you don’t have time to 3D print the gadgets!
Pocket Hole Jig
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:890283
Click here for the copper insert used above.
A pocket hole jig is one of the most useful gadgets for connecting two boards at a 90 degree angle for frames or structures that hides screws and provides a clean professional look.
Without a pocket hole jig you can still achieve the same effect but it requires a craftsman with a higher skill level to make it look professional and even.
Corner Clamp
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:713236
A corner clamp is used to join two pieces to wood at a 90 degree angle. This is very useful almost as a second set of hands when joining boards while using a drill or a hammer and nails.
This is a must have for any woodworker especially if you are building cabinets or framing.
Corner Radius Router Template
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2438336
You can print any radius on a corner router template and then use your router to transfer that radius to your board. It is possible to achieve this radius without a template but it makes your project look much more professional and symmetrical if you use a template that can make a perfect radius.
Hand Planer
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4830480
This hand planer is designed for a standard razor blade which will not be strong enough to take on harder wood. You should have no problem with softwoods such as pine, spruce, and balsa.
A planer is great when you are trying to achieve a specific thickness and flatness on a project.
Drawer Slide v3 Alignment Jig/Tool
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4833186
This drawer slide alignment jig is a must have when you are installing drawer hardware. You will need some kind of clamp for securing the jig and a bubble level can be installed for ease of use.
Click here for the Bubble Level used above.
Vise Soft Jaws
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1376177
Protect your project with a good set of soft vice jaws. There is nothing worse than damaging your hard work with hundreds of little dimples from your vise. You will not regret printing these for your vice.
Customizable Sanding Stick
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2404850
You can get to more hard to reach areas with a custom sanding block/stick. If you need a cheap custom sanding block, here you go! Don’t ever go without the tool that you need if you can help it.
Back to Basics Drafting Set
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:152531
Measure twice, cut once. There are few things more important than measuring your parts and making sure that everything goes together as it should. You can draw angles as well as perfect circles with these drafting tools.
Center finder (square/round)
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3283699
This is one of the most amazing simple tools for woodworking. You can easily find the center of small and large pieces with this center finding tool. All you have to do is place the center finder tool on a corner or on the radius of your part and draw a line then rotate 90 degrees and draw another line. Where these lines intersect is the center of your piece.
Center Finder For Edges Set
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2199356
This is another center finder tool, but this tool is specifically designed for finding the center of the edge of a board or a smaller work piece. There are hundreds of variations of this tool on amazon that are honestly pretty cheap but it is hard to be cheaper than 3D printing.
Handle Hole Jig
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2194273/files
This is an amazing solution for one of the most frustrating parts of installing cabinets. Handles and hole locations for handles will either be something that is very simple and a somewhat pleasant experience (if you have a tool like this), or it will be one of the most frustrating things that you have ever experienced.
Customizable Multi function ruler
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4027750/files
This tool is especially amazing for cutting tile and carpet. Exactly as you see in the photo if you are trying to get exact profiles around corners and islands. You can also use this tool then measure the angle of it with a protractor for cutting exact baseboard angles.
Table saw for Dremel 4000
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:670704
This is really cool for cutting thin sheets of plastic as well as thin boards. There is not an amazon equivalent for this one so if you want it then 3D printing is the only way to go. This is one of the tools that is pretty dangerous so please be safe.
Push Block
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2056511
This push block is a safety device for a table saw, use this instead of trying to push the board through with your hand. Do not ever push a board through a table saw with your hand. Use this and save your fingers!
Lockable Contour Gauge
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4727114
This is one of the coolest tools on the list. The contour gauge is similar to the multi-function ruler where it captures the contour of a complex shape so that you can then transfer that complex shape to a piece of wood or a tile.
Like most of the items on this list there is some assembly required. One of the mistakes that I made early on in 3D printing is that I wanted to 3D print everything and never use off the shelf hardware. Do not make my mistake there is nothing wrong with using nuts and bolts to hold your parts together.
Gauge 60mmX150mm / Drawing / Wood
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4186423
This is a pretty simple tool used for scribing straight lines to a board at a specified distance. This tool gives you many length options and will keep your pen or pencil very stable while you are using the tool.
Reversible Hold-Down for T-Slot Tables
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:21057
T-Slot clamps are very useful for CNC wood mills for quick and sturdy fixturing. This is also very useful for routing tables to hold your piece stable while your are using your power tools against it.
Strap Clamp Wood Tool
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4633970
This is very useful when securing larger boards that you are glueing together or even for transporting clusters of boards. There are so many uses for these corner tow strap clamps so they are a great addition to any toolbox.
