Use Big Chisels for Fine Work
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Though it might seem counterintuitive, sometimes bigger is better when you are doing fine work with veneer and inlays. A wide chisel provides plenty of reference surface to keep delicate cuts straight and square and plenty of heft to slice effortlessly. If you excavate for banding using a router, you will wind up with rounded outside corners. Once again, a wide chisel is better to square off those corners because []
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posted at: 12:01am on 31-Oct-2014
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Screws, A Quick Guide
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I was hoping to get into the shop today to finish the assembly on my current project, a kitchen island, and post about that. But in between meetings, Ive been (metaphorically) chained to my desk all day. Sono shop time. Ill be using screws to secure the piece together. But because I have no shop shots to share, instead, heres a handy quick-reference guide to screw types and uses. Its []
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posted at: 12:01am on 31-Oct-2014
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A Return of the Home Invasion
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This morning the crew from Popular Woodworking Magazine showed up to shoot photos of my recently built aumbry for an upcoming issue. While Im always happy to shoot my own photographs, if they offer to send photographer Al Parrish, I roll over immediately. He is one of the finest photographers Ive ever worked with. I also immediately purchase pastries Al travels on his stomach. They started by shooting the []
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posted at: 12:01am on 30-Oct-2014
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Cut a Bead Detail for the English Square
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When I first built an English layout square in 2011, it took me about 20 minutes to cut one of the six bead details on the square. Four years and more than 100 beads later, each bead is less than 5 minutes of work. If you have ever thought of building one of these beautiful squares, here are tips for the tools and processes that make it easy. Make a []
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posted at: 12:03am on 29-Oct-2014
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Free Excerpt: The Ultimate Router Guide: Jigs, Joinery, Projects & More
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I love routers. In fact, as I write this I can hear the high-pitched whine of a 2-hp router bearing into the edge of a piece of wood begging to be formed. OK, I love most things about routers. They are a little noisy, and they do make dust but I see those as necessary by-products of an incredibly versatile workhorse that will always have a home in my []
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posted at: 12:03am on 29-Oct-2014
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Dados for Lunch, Yum!
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I got a good start on my kitchen island over the weekendbut then Monday came along and work intruded. Loath to let my momentum falter, I decided on sawdust for lunch instead of my usual diet of Diet Coke and pretzels. So I headed to the shop to cut the dados for the two floating shelves; the top one will hold the microwave, the bottom one will likely be quickly []
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posted at: 12:00am on 28-Oct-2014
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Mr. Langmaid's Tool Chest
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Antiques stores are often a draw for me and I'm sure for many fellow woodworkers. You can be sure to find inspiration and education in equal measure. While browsing through one of the local venues I found a smart-looking tool chest. Chatting with the owner I discovered the chest was brought in by a person late in years and was reputed to belong to their Grandfather, who was a lifelong []
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posted at: 12:00am on 28-Oct-2014
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Open-sided Mortises
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Though Im still coughing and sniffling a little, I just couldnt bear to sit home while theres work to be done in the shop. And I want my kitchen done. So, I came in to work on the base of my kitchen island. I wont be writing about it for the magazine (the dimensions and purpose are too particular to my narrow needs), so Ill share bits of it here. []
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posted at: 12:01am on 27-Oct-2014
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Hello, from an English Joiner!
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As a new name here it seemed wise to make my first post a brief introduction. My name is Graham Haydon and Im a woodworker in England. By day I have the good fortune of making a living as a joiner within our family business. Being a joiner from a small town in the rural South West means we cover a wide range of work the core being windows, []
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posted at: 12:00am on 24-Oct-2014
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WIA 2015 Location: More Hints
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In the comments on my post from yesterday, all possibilities were eventually correctly postulated for the location for Woodworking in America 2015. But which of the four possible cities is it? (Im now wishing my hints had been less narrowI have to string this out for a few more days until the conference team says I can reveal the location.)...
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posted at: 12:00am on 24-Oct-2014
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How Best to Adjust the Cap Iron on a Veritas Plane
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I bought one of the new Veritas bevel-down planes to get familiar with its parts I'm quite sure I'm going to see a lot of these planes at woodworking schools and in the hands of students in the coming months. Overall, it's a great plane, and I have a full review coming up shortly in Popular Woodworking Magazine. One of the little difficulties I had with the plane at []
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posted at: 12:00am on 23-Oct-2014
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Modern Wooden Planes, Why?
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Let me be honest up front. I do know how to use a hand plane, and I have used a jointer plane once or twice. But it was a metal-bodied plane only remotely similar to a wooden-bodied plane as used during the 18th Century. I liked the feel of the plane, and it's long body made sense for one of its purposes of shooting edges to join boards...
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posted at: 12:01am on 22-Oct-2014
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How to Make Condor Tails
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An ingenious way to combine routers, a band saw and hand tools for big dovetails. by Jameel Abraham pages 48-53 from the August 2011 issue click on the photos below to make them larger I know what you're thinking: Another opinion on how to cut dovetails. I hear you. But this one's different. I promise. No back and forth over pins or tails first. No Rob Cosman vs. Frank Klausz. []
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posted at: 12:00am on 21-Oct-2014
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Make Monster Dovetails
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I have, inexplicably, received several questions over the weekend about cutting really big dovetails for workbenches, such as on a tail vise. Thats weird, given that most bench questions I get are about what kind of wood to use (whatcha got? use it), and how the LVL top is holding up (quite splendidly, but Id not use LVL for a base again). Not to mention, weve not published a bench []
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posted at: 12:00am on 21-Oct-2014
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The Slant-lid Tool Chest
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In some Victorian books on woodworking, the author suggests that if you don't have a shop you could use a chest of drawers as a woodworking bench, tool chest and shaving collector. I've not seen an occurrence of this in the wild, but it is an interesting idea. Recently, Will of Texas sent me photos of his tool chest, which is based off a slant-lid desk with banks of drawers []
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posted at: 12:01am on 19-Oct-2014
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Sniffle Island
Furnished content.
Id planned to go to the office/shop today (Saturday) to work on the personal project thats been a millstone round my neck for months, a kitchen island/microwave stand. But Ive got a bad case of the chest and sinus crud; the very thought of sawdust makes me cough (even more than I already am). And thats OK (well, the staying home part, Id rather not be ill), because []
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posted at: 12:01am on 19-Oct-2014
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In Search of the Perfect Wax Finish
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My four-decade-long desire to identify, understand, replicate and develop new analogs to historic furniture-making materials has led me on some interesting quests and situations. Included in these would be learning a lot about tropical insects whose sweat is the foundation for the most amazing finish ever (shellac); studies of sausage casings, artificial skin and corneas as I tried to (successfully) create a convincing alternative to tortoiseshell for my own Boulle-work […]The post In Search of the Perfect Wax Finish appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 17-Oct-2014
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In Search of the Perfect Wax Finish
Furnished content.
My four-decade-long desire to identify, understand, replicate and develop new analogs to historic furniture-making materials has led me on some interesting quests and situations. Included in these would be learning a lot about tropical insects whose sweat is the foundation for the most amazing finish ever (shellac); studies of sausage casings, artificial skin and corneas as I tried to (successfully) create a convincing alternative to tortoiseshell for my own Boulle-work []
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posted at: 12:01am on 17-Oct-2014
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And the Practical Woodworker Winner Is
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Congratulations to DBell, whose comment on my giveaway post last week was chosen randomly from among all respondents. He or she is the lucky winner of a set of the four-volume paperback set of “The Practical Woodworker.” Megan FitzpatrickThe post And the ‘Practical Woodworker’ Winner Is… appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 16-Oct-2014
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Grain-painting Done Well Quite Well
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When people ask me what foods I hate, I usually say, Ill eat anything, as long as its prepared well. I didnt like Brussels sprouts until I had them roasted. I didnt like oysters until I tried them right from the creek. And I didnt like green beans until I had fresh ones (ugh, 1970s canned green beans;I’d rather eat bauxite). The same thing goes for furniture finishes. Most people […]The post Grain-painting Done Well Quite Well appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 16-Oct-2014
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Frank Klausz: The Man Behind the Bowsaw
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I have a strange relationship with Frank Klausz. Frank doesnt know it, but Ill share it with you. I went to work with my father in his custom woodworking shop when I was in high school, and worked there through college. I learned much from my dad, but I also lost something in the process the dynamic of father and son. Decades later dad and I are on good […]The post Frank Klausz: The Man Behind the Bowsaw appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 16-Oct-2014
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Grain-painting Done Well, Quite Well
Furnished content.
When people ask me what foods I hate, I usually say, I'll eat anything, as long as it's prepared well. I didn't like Brussels sprouts until I had them roasted. I didn't like oysters until I tried them right from the creek. And I didn't like green beans until I had fresh ones (ugh, 1970s canned green beans;Id rather eat bauxite). The same thing goes for furniture finishes. Most people []
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posted at: 12:00am on 15-Oct-2014
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Friends of the Finisher: Glazes, Toners & Wax
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Here's a common and frustrating finishing problem: You apply finish to your piece, and one of the parts, say a rail or a stile, ends up a slightly different color or shade. The off-color piece makes the project look like a jumble of parts instead of a cohesive whole. There are several ways to fix this problem. And while a full explanation of color-matching would require a book []
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posted at: 12:01am on 14-Oct-2014
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Sharpening Shortcuts
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It goes without saying that there is a renewed interest in hand tool woodworking, and much has been written on the topic, and thats great because there really is a lot to know about these tools that are new to many woodworkers. That said, my experience with hand tools has taught me one thing, Keep it Sharp! Whether a saw, knife or blade, sharp tools cut more accurately, safely []
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posted at: 12:01am on 14-Oct-2014
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Sharpening Shortcuts
Furnished content.
It goes without saying that there is a renewed interest in hand tool woodworking, and much has been written on the topic, and thats great because there really is a lot to know about these tools that are new to many woodworkers. That said, my experience with hand tools has taught me one thing, Keep it Sharp! Whether a saw, knife or blade, sharp tools cut more accurately, safely []
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posted at: 12:01am on 14-Oct-2014
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Linseed Oil, an Ancient Friend (and Foe)
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When Egyptian King Tutankhamun was buried in haste, the linen cloth he was wrapped in was soaked with linseed oil. And, perhaps because Tut was buried in haste, the oil was not allowed to cure. And so began one of the most common safety messages in relation to finishing: Spread out your oily rags to dry cure to avoid spontaneous combustion. Yup. The oily rags that wrapped Tut's body spontaneously []
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posted at: 12:08am on 11-Oct-2014
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Pattern-transfer Tip from Mary May
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I just finished the binder read-through for the December 2014 issue, and in it, Mary May has an article titled Woodcarving Basics. Therein, she shares the tools and techniques you need for a successful start in carving, and one of her suggestions was so interesting that it caused me to pick up an iron for the first time inI dont know how long. (We share office space with our parent []
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posted at: 12:08am on 11-Oct-2014
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Linseed Oil, an Ancient Friend (and Foe)
Furnished content.
When Egyptian King Tutankhamun was buried in haste, the linen cloth he was wrapped in was soaked with linseed oil. And, perhaps because Tut was buried in haste, the oil was not allowed to cure. And so began one of the most common safety messages in relation to finishing: Spread out your oily rags to dry cure to avoid spontaneous combustion. Yup. The oily rags that wrapped Tut's body spontaneously []
Read more here
posted at: 12:04am on 10-Oct-2014
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Your Passion for Woodworking Could Pay
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Weve just posted two positions, one to conceive of, acquire and edit woodworking books; the other to conceive of, storyboard, direct, film and edit woodworking videos, for the Popular Woodworking community, reporting to the content director (thats me). If you have a passion for and solid knowledge of woodworking (along with the skills particular to each job) and live in or are willing to relocate to the Greater []
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posted at: 12:04am on 10-Oct-2014
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Favorite Woodworking Book Buys of 2014 (Thus Far)?
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Im looking for a gift list to give to my mom, brother, etc., and I like books , the old-fashioned kind. Paper. Ink. Binding. Words on a page. So, I want to know your favorite woodworking book buys of 2014or the books youd like to get (perhaps the ones on your list!). And they neednt have been published this year. Limit it to maybe five? Otherwise, this may get []
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posted at: 12:01am on 09-Oct-2014
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Classifying Greene & Greene, Designing with an Aesthetic Utility
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Is Greene & Greene actually a part of the Arts & Crafts Movement? Lately, there has been discussion that would bring this into question. It is undeniable that their work was highly refined and stands apart from the other makers of the era. So, is it possible they were simply lumped together with their contemporaries out of convenience? The American A&C Movement was a celebration of craft. It paid homage []
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posted at: 12:02am on 07-Oct-2014
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Designing with Chalk
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You may recall that a few months ago, I tore out my old kitchen and built new cabinets, installed a new floor, a farmhouse sink, etc. etc. But once everything was fully functional, well, I moved on to more pressing things. (I still need to finish the backsplash, the door thresholds, the toe kicks) But its been bugging me to not have the small island built (because that will also []
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posted at: 12:01am on 05-Oct-2014
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American Gothic: An Aumbry from Kentucky
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Last night I put the first coat of linseed oil on this oak aumbry I'm building for an upcoming issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine and think it came out like I wanted. The oak is nothing special, just rift and quartered red and white oak off the rack at the lumberyard. I chose it mostly for its straight grain and color. Most of the construction is dados, rabbets and []
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posted at: 12:00am on 04-Oct-2014
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Wish You Well
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Following a restructuring of the woodworking team by our parent company, three people have elected to leave the company. October 15 will be the last day as part of the F+W woodworking community for Robert Lang, Glen Huey and Chuck Bender. I, along with the rest of their co-workers, thank them for the excellent work they've done for Popular Woodworking Magazine and the F+W woodworking community, and wish them well []
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posted at: 12:01am on 03-Oct-2014
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Frank Klausz The Man Behind the Bowsaw
Furnished content.
I have a strange relationship with Frank Klausz. Frank doesn't know it, but I'll share it with you. I went to work with my father in his custom woodworking shop when I was in high school, and worked there through college. I learned much from my dad, but I also lost something in the process, the dynamic of father and son. Decades later dad and I are on good []
Read more here
posted at: 12:01am on 03-Oct-2014
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Does the Arts & Crafts Cycle End with the Greenes?
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I can't swear to there being a "cycle" for every Arts & Crafts woodworker. I can only speak to my own experience and add that I have had many nods of agreement when sharing my philosophy. I began building Arts & Crafts pieces, because the sturdy simplicity spoke to me, and the beauty of the quarter-sawn white oak was all the embellishment I required. A gentle curve here or there []
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posted at: 12:00am on 02-Oct-2014
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An Introduction to Gothic Tracery (With a Router)
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This week I'm finishing up work on an aumbry for a future issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine. More than anything, this project has been about exploring Gothic geometry. But as with any project, I always have a lot of detours and dead ends. The pierced carvings on the front of the aumbry are fairly simple, yet I was afraid they would be off-putting for some beginning woodworkers. So I started []
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posted at: 12:00am on 01-Oct-2014
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Straight or Spiral
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In the November issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine I wrote an article outlining the router bits I consider to be the core of any powered shop. The workhorse bits of that core set are the straight bits. Straight router bits come in three varieties: Spiral-upcut, spiral-downcut and straight-cut bits. The choice of which to use comes down to the specific job and your preferences. The difference between straight and spiral []
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posted at: 12:00am on 01-Oct-2014
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