3-Minute Dovetail Pointless?
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“Could I do it,” I thought? A half-reasonable set of through-dovetails in thre minutes? Needless to say, I could not do it the first time of asking (and if you are interested you can watch my best attempt below). But the lessons to be drawn, reflections and the benefits of such a challengeare beyonda quick set of dovetails in pine. Here are some of my thoughts. An analogy would be […]The post 3-Minute Dovetail Pointless? appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 31-Dec-2014
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The Best Defense Against Rust: Frank Klausz
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I wish I could send Frank Klausz to the shop of every reader to teach you the following lesson, but I think hes busy. The first time I met Klausz was at a woodworking show on the East Coast about 15 years ago. He was demonstrating wooden moulding planes; I was demonstrating some infill planes I had built. At one point during my demonstration, Klausz walked up to my bench […]The post The Best Defense Against Rust: Frank Klausz appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 30-Dec-2014
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LVL Workbench Plans, Free
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I get more questions about workbenches than any other and among those, many of them are about the LVL (Laminated Veneer Lumber) bench Christopher Schwarz and I built in 2009, that appeared in the November issue. After more than five years in use, the top remains dead flat. It has a few dings from chisels and the like, but it had not needed flattening. in contrast, my pine “roubo” […]The post LVL Workbench Plans, Free appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 25-Dec-2014
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Cover-worthy: Jim Leamy Plow Plane
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For subscribers who have received their copy of the February 2015 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine, you are forgiven if you didnt notice the piece of furniture on the cover and became fixated on the plow plane sitting on top of the piece of furniture. The plow is a masterpiece of ebony, brass and steel made by Jim Leamy, a long-time planemaker. And it is one of my most prized […]The post Cover-worthy: Jim Leamy Plow Plane appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:05am on 24-Dec-2014
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Skelton Dovetail Saw Part 1
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In life there’s a first time for everything and in this case it’s my first time with a woodworking tool custom-made by a small family business. Shane Skelton is the person behind the saw and I was eager to find out what he’s come up with. Just for the record Shane has be lending his saws out to anyone who wants a go, for free. A few UK tool sellers […]The post Skelton Dovetail Saw Part 1 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:05am on 24-Dec-2014
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Q & A: Installing Threaded Inserts
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Q: I made a jig that needed threaded inserts but I had one heck of a time installing them by hand. They went in cockeyed and I trashed their slots.What am I doing wrong? A: The most common kind of threaded insert is the straight brass barrel with thin outside threads and a single slot. A better one has wide threads, a hex wrench slot and is tapered to guide […]The post Q & A: Installing Threaded Inserts appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:03am on 23-Dec-2014
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$73 jig changes tablesaw joinery
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 Posted by AsaC
A small tool company is offering a simple setup tool that will revolutionize tablesaw joinery of all kinds--from grooves and dadoes to drawer joinery. And it couldn't be easier to use.
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posted at: 12:02am on 23-Dec-2014
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A Gift to Myself: (More) Brad-point Bits
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I’m at home today awaiting the arrival of family, so I’m taking this time to install the doors on the pantry I built into a wee hallway between my living room and dining room. And though I’m at home, my good drill bits (the boxed set of seven) are not. Its almost worth it to run out to the office to pick the up (and I probably would, except that […]The post A Gift to Myself: (More) Brad-point Bits appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:02am on 23-Dec-2014
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Help the Blog; Help Yourself
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I try to be transparent about my financial dealings in the woodworking world thats why I dont take free tools, wood, classes or anything. So how is this blog funded? Simple: I am paid monthly by F+W, the parent company of Popular Woodworking Magazine. Lee Valley Tools pays for advertising space cast your eyes to the right. But my agreement with F+W is that I am free […]The post Help the Blog; Help Yourself appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:02am on 22-Dec-2014
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Shaker Living Room Suite Free Plans
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I’m (theoretically) off work from now through January (I already know I’ll be popping into the shop a few times over the holiday, though, and I’ve a massive pile of editing to get through). But just in case I consume too much eggnog in the coming weeks and forget, here’s my holiday gift: a PDF collection of the articles on the three Shaker-inspired pieces I’ve built for my living room. […]The post Shaker Living Room Suite Free Plans appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:17am on 19-Dec-2014
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Q & A: Easy Drawer Dividers
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Q: Help! The junk drawer in our kitchen is out of control! I have trouble finding anything in there. Is there a simple way to add dividers to my kitchen drawers without taking them apart? A: You bet! Heres a way to control the clutter in less time than it takes to find the potato peeler. To make the brackets that hold the dividers in place, groove the edge of […]The post Q & A: Easy Drawer Dividers appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:02am on 18-Dec-2014
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Hilla Shamia Wood Casting Very Cool
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Hilla Shamias work is among the most arresting marriages of wood and metal I’ve seen. Her pieces are made using a casting process Shamia developed while working toward a bachelor’s degree in industrial design at the Holon Institute of Technology in Holon, Israel. (She now has her own studio.) She calls it Wood Casting, and has trademarked the process. Shamia uses whole trunks of mostly local trees; they are cut […]The post Hilla Shamia ‘Wood Casting’ Very Cool appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:02am on 18-Dec-2014
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Frank Klausz The First Master I Met
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About a month after I joined the Popular Woodworking staff (so three weeks after I learned to spell “rabbet”), I traveled to New Jersey with then Senior Editor David Thiel (he’s now in charge of our videos) for a woodworking show. I remember three things about that 2005 trip: I’ve never been so ill yet still ambulatory than I was that weekend; Harrelson Stanley taught me his side-sharpening method; and […]The post Frank Klausz The First Master I Met appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:02am on 17-Dec-2014
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Dry Honing
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Since taking my hobby woodworking more seriously I’ve tried a few different honing mediums, but I always seem to come back to the venerable India combination stone that’s used by all the joiners in our workshop. It’s always had a dash of oil when in use and think no more about it. However, most of my hobby projects are much smaller than the general joinery products I’m involved with and […]The post Dry Honing appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 16-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 8
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Here’s a little something that kicked off my crazy over the last year: Wanting a home that has space for a nice shop. For those of you who are new to this blog, I had my house on the market for six months in 2013, because though I do like the place (and have a put a lot of work and money into making it a nice home), when I […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 8 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 16-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 7
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I’m spoiled. I’m in the enviable position of trying out new tools that come into Popular Woodworking. Sometimes I take them home for testing, if I’ve a project there where I’ll be better able to put a tool through its paces. (Ethics as well as the need to take good pictures dictate that I always return the tools right away.) Yesterday, I half took the day off. Yes, […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 7 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 14-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 8
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Like last year, I am ending this gift guide with a tool that is a little expensive but will change your work to the core. (Last year is was an EasyWood Full-Size Rougher turning tool.) This year it is the best mortising gauge ever made: the Veritas Dual Marking Gauge. Anyone who has worked with me knows that I am crazy in love with the Tite-Mark marking gauge, which is […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 8 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 14-Dec-2014
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Whats Your Woodworking Story?
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Do you have a great woodworking story to tell? Do you like having achance to getfree stuff? I’m guessing the answer is “yes” to both questions. Your writing about woodworking could win youacopy of the four-volume set of The Practical Woodworker (a must-have foundation set of books for the woodworker interested in early 20th-century woodworking techniques, edited by Bernard Jones.) For the storytelling part,I am seeking submissions forour End Grain […]The post What’s Your Woodworking Story? appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:04am on 13-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 7
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You do not need a complete set of 11 chisels from the 1/8 up to the monster 2-wide chisel. Sure, the part of you that also collects Hummel figurines really wants a complete set, but most of the chisel sizes will go unused even if you are an active woodworker. Your work and your hands will eventually tell you which chisel sizes you really need at hand. Thats the […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 7 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:04am on 13-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 6
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Hand-forged hardware is a great way to make your projects that much more hand made and if you can work with a blacksmith to “personalize” the hardware, so much the better (in the right circumstances, of course cat heads might look a bit silly on a Stickley cellarette). The cat-head iron lifts above are on my tool chest. I’d asked John Switzer of Black Bear Forge to make […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 6 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 12-Dec-2014
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Q & A: Matching Old Stains
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Q: I have to match an old stain. Ive come pretty close with a new stain I bought at the hardware store, but its not good enough. Is there a way I can tint the stain? A: There are several fairly simple ways to alter the color of commercial stain. Probably the easiest is to mix two or more colors of the same type and brand of stain to match […]The post Q & A: Matching Old Stains appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 11-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 6
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I have owned several plant sprayers since Harrelson Stanley of Shapton USA introduced them to me in 2003 as a great way to keep your waterstones wet. Of all the sprayers Ive used, this sub-$10 one from Home Depot or Lowes is by far the best. Its sold under the Project Source label and is found in the gardening section. (Definitely skip the nicer-looking Flo-Master that thing leaks like […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 6 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 11-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 5
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Ask for a week at a woodworking school any respected woodworking school and take a class that includes at least a handful of other students. There is simply no better way to quickly improve your woodworking than to learn a few techniques and approaches from someone who knows what she or he is doing. And it’s doubly nice if the instructor is willing to share his or her […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 5 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 11-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 4
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Today’s pick is one I actually have. Books are my first love, and from a very young age. (In fact, years ago I camethisclose to pursuing a graduate degree in the history of books and book making.) Woodworking came later in life, but is now equally important to me. So something that combines both these interests? Perfect! (And to me, worth saving my pennies to purchase.) The limited-edition deluxe version […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 4 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 10-Dec-2014
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When Your Tool Chest Needs to Be a Tank (or a Boat)
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When tool chests suffer damage, its usually in three places: the top rim of the lid, the lower skirt around the carcase and the bottom boards, which are rotted. The rim of the lid gets dented by falling objects, such as clamps, heavy boards and other things in the truck when you move the chest. The lower skirt gets rammed by other shop stuff, including rolling machinery, work boots, rough […]The post When Your Tool Chest Needs to Be a Tank (or a Boat) appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 10-Dec-2014
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Alf Sharp Cartouche Winner & Words with Friends Dynamo
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Alf Sharp has an almost unparalleled woodworking resume. Like many of us, his first woodworking involved home repairs and remodeling, and he soon began doing more trim work and carpentry (with the occasional furniture commission). And, like many of us, he’s in large part self taught; he learned by doing, reading and asking questions. But unlike most of us, he developed his skills over the years to such an astounding […]The post Alf Sharp Cartouche Winner & ‘Words with Friends’ Dynamo appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 10-Dec-2014
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How Low Can You Go?
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With the Christmas season soon upon us there are currently two lists running on the Popular Woodworking web site to tantalize your woodworking taste buds. The “sensible” Schwarz list and the “I can dream” Fitzpatrick list. My one and only contribution to the festivities will be this 8 ($12.50) set of four chisels currently available from the European supermarket chain Lidl. I became aware of this set via UK […]The post How Low Can You Go? appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 09-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 3
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One tool I use on every build and every project in my house is a combination square. So it’s important to me to have good ones. That is, squares that are reliably square, and that lock tight and don’t slip. I have several inexpensive ones that are good enough for framing, but just a hair out so I don’t use them for furniture work. For precise layout and measurements, […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 3 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 09-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 2
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I have several matched hollows & rounds…but I don’t have a full set. Or a half set. Poor me. (That said, I do have the two sets I knew I would use, plus a couple unusable ones inherited from my grandfather.) Anyway…I don’t think a half-set is unreasonable for anyone who pursues hand-tool woodworking. So these aren’t really be an indulgence so much as something you might just have to […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 2 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:02am on 07-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Would-be Sybarites Gift Guide: Day 1
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Over on his blog, Christopher Schwarz has been writing the 2014 Anarchist’s Gift Guide since Dec, 1. I’m starting a little late with my 2014 Sybarite’s Gift Guide…because too much self-indulgence leads to blackouts (apparently), and causes one to not realize it’s already a new month. Like Chris’s, the woodworking-related gift ideas I’ll be presenting are 100-percent unsponsored. But unlike Chris’s, these are not items likely to be found in […]The post The 2014 Would-be Sybarite’s Gift Guide: Day 1 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 06-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 4
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Woe is the poor glue scraper. There are no toolmakers crafting these tools with rosewood handles and German silver accents. No annoying forum threads that debate the merits of the different handle angles and blade widths. The glue scraper is the squirrel exhibit at the zoo. Once you get a Benchcrafted Skraper, however, the heavens will open up, you will hear birds singing and true craftsmanship will be revealed through […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 4 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:00am on 06-Dec-2014
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Q & A: Sanding Scratches Revealed
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Q: What can I do to see sanding scratches before I apply stain? I always miss some of them until its too late. A: Doesnt that drive you crazy? Just when you should be home free, wham! Now youre stuck with a lousy finish and theres no way out.One simple measure can prevent this from happening again. Use a bright light to make the scratches visible before you stain. A […]The post Q & A: Sanding Scratches Revealed appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 04-Dec-2014
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2014 Popular Woodworking Compilation CD
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Just in time for a holiday gift (possibly for yourself), we have available all seven issues of Popular Woodworking Magazine from 2014 on one CD. (I’m told a download version of the whole shebang will be added at the same link shortly.) You can read the back-cover copy on the store site that text speaks to the wide variety of projects, techniques and instruction presented in 2014. But no […]The post 2014 Popular Woodworking Compilation CD appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 04-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 3
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If you read this blog regularly, you should be sick of this suggestion: Buy Pgas coping saw blades. Hoard them. I do and Im not generally a hoarder. I have about 150 stashed away in case Pegas doubles the price or stops making them this well. I dont have evidence that either event will happen, but I use a coping saw every day that Im in the shop. So […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 3 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 04-Dec-2014
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Wood, Writing & Winning
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I’ll cut right to the chase: I’m giving away a free copy of the four-volume set of “The Practical Woodworker” (a must-have foundation set of books for the woodworker interested in early 20th-century woodworking techniques, edited by Bernard Jones. And I mean free no shipping costs, no free trials, no nothing just an awesome collection of books. Why? We always try to work ahead, and I am seeking […]The post Wood, Writing & Winning appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 03-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 2
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Its easy to be skeptical about the polissoir. Could a bundle of broom corn radically change the way you finish some pieces of work? All of us who worked on the translation of A.-J. Roubos lArt du Menuisier were wary when we translated the section on the polissoir literally polisher. So we were shocked to see how well it worked and now I have a beat-up one in my […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 2 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:01am on 03-Dec-2014
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Shellac Tiger Flakes from Tools for Working Wood
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by Christopher Schwarz page 16 Because shellac is my favorite finish, I have tried nearly every brand of flakes on the market. By far, my favorite brand is the premium dewaxed flakes Tiger Flakes sold by Tools for Working Wood in Brooklyn, N.Y. Because there are no lac bugs in Brooklyn, this stuff is obviously sourced from a third party. But what makes it special is the care […]The post Shellac Tiger Flakes from Tools for Working Wood appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:11am on 02-Dec-2014
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Tormek T-4 Water-cooled Sharpening System
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by Megan Fitzpatrick page 16 Im not usually a wet grinder kind of woman, because a dry grinder does the same work faster, then I move to waterstones to polish and hone. I might be a convert, however, when it comes to tools that are difficult to grind on a dry grinder, including carving gouges and turning tools (and my kitchen knives). Thats where the Swedish-made Tormek system excels. Precisely […]The post Tormek T-4 Water-cooled Sharpening System appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:11am on 02-Dec-2014
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The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 1
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Full disclosure: The following gift ideas are 100-percent unsponsored. I bought all these tools myself and would buy them all again thats why they are on this list. First on my list for 2014 is a tool you dont see much in woodshops, but you should. Its called a lead holder by artists and architects and it basically what a normal mechanical pencil would look like if you were […]The post The 2014 Anarchists Gift Guide: Day 1 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:11am on 02-Dec-2014
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A Faster Way to Assemble a Roorkee
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Roorkee chairs are great fun to show customers until they ask me to take it apart and put it back together for them. For the first year or so, I was pretty slow at putting them together because there are eight buckles to tighten up all while keeping the loose parts from falling down like a Jenga game. After thinking about it and working with the chairs for three […]The post A Faster Way to Assemble a Roorkee appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:11am on 02-Dec-2014
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The Least Popular Vise
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When I built my bench I wanted a cost effective vise that I could build myself. I had a choice between the popular leg vise or the less-liked face vise. One thing I was sure about was that I did not want a leg vise with a pin. I know there are some clever solutions to avoid the pin but they were not in the picture for me at the […]The post The Least Popular Vise appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
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posted at: 12:11am on 02-Dec-2014
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