This may not be anything new but it is new to me and it worked really well so I thought I would pass it on. I had to glue some billets up today that had a high crown and very irregular surface. Bottom was nice and flat. The way I normaly do is draw my "W" splice out on some shoe box cardboard then cut it out with a razor blade, I then glue it to my billet and just cut it out following the pattern very close. Without a flat surface on the billet to glue the pattern to the cut doesn't come out as accurate. This time I built up the back of the billet with some sawdust and elmers glue and let it sit in the sun for a few hours, I flattened it with my belt sander and then glued my template to it, came out perfect. Thinking back instead of the glue and sawdust plaster paris or flower and water would probably work just as well to build it up to a flat surface, depending on how much time you had to let it dry. Anything cheap that will build it up flat will work.
