Wedging joints adds great strength, but it also is risky. A wedge can split the work, it can fail to dive into the tenon (sometimes popping out of the tenon), or the tenon itself can split when you hit it, making a mess of things. Here are three things I do to reduce the risk. 1. Make lots of wedges. When I make wedges, I usually make at least 100 […]The post 3 Tips for Wedging Your Joints appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
A Good Year for Digital Woodworking Tools Using a 3-axis CNC, the underside of a sofa table's ovoidshaped top is being rough cut in 3D. The edge isa combination of a tapered angular bevel on the sides that graduates to a progressively curved taper over the length of the top. Sounds complicated, but once you work out the design in 3D CAD software and do the CAM programming, it's aneasy […]The post Digital Woodworking Tools in 2016 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
All finishes craze - that is, develop small cracks - as they age, especially if they are exposed to a lot of sunlight. But there's another type of crazing, and it can happen much faster. This is crazing caused by body sweat. You commonly see crazing of this type around cabinet-door pulls and drawer handles, and on chair backs, arms and wooden seats. This type of crazing is caused by […]The post Crazing from Body Sweat appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
A stout “deadman” or “bench slave” is one of simplest jigs you can build, and it can be an invaluable addition to any workbench with a tail vise. You clamp this fixture, which is essentially a heavy block of wood that rests on the floor, into your tail vise and set a pin into an appropriate hole to support the end of long pieces of wood you want to work […]The post Workbench Slave (aka Deadman) a la Tage Frid appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Below are Christopher Schwarz's “12 Rules for Tool Chests” in short form (the full article, as it appeared in the December 2011 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine, is downloadable at the end.) The chest pictured here is his full-size traditional English tool chest, but the rules apply no matter the chest. (You'll find instruction on building an English tool chest on Chris' video “Make a Traditional English Tool Chest” (Popular […]The post 12 Rules for Tool Chests appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Check out this video from Jim Steinbrecher. He's a smart guy with a knack for conjuring up unique ways to construct do-it-yourself methods for getting things done
This video shows his take on a way to sharpen circular blades for table saws or circular saws, using a jig for the table saw, and a common diamond blade mounted on the table saw.
So, I was looking for a way to make precise dadoes without having to resort to a dado set or the router table, and I stumbled upon this little gem while scouring the interwebs.
It's not only the simplest dado jig you'll ever make and use, but it's without a doubt the simplest JIG you'll ever make and use... period.
Here it is...
It's just a scrap rectangle with a single sheetrock screw embedded in one end, but it's so much more than that.
The purpose of the screw is to account for the thickness of your table saw blade. The blade doesn't really need to be anything special, but it should have square ground teeth such that one swipe cuts a flat bottomed kerf.
These are the steps required to cut a PERFECTLY sized dado...
Establish screw depth in dado jig, to match width of blade
FIRST UNPLUG YOUR SAW
Hold the jig up to your table saw blade, and adjust the screw in or out to match as closely as possible the width of a tooth on your table saw blade, to the distance from the scrap block to the flat screw head.
Line up FAR side edge of groove marking just beyond far edge of blade (this image shows a completed dado, but you'd line up the far layout line)
Butt fence against piece to be grooved, and lock in fence
Place SCREW SIDE of spacer jig against right side of fence, then place stop block against jig and clamp the stop block in place
Cut one pass making FAR SIDE of groove
Unlock fence and slide left a bit
Flip spacer jig to NON-SCREW side, and butt against stop block
Put piece that will fit into groove between fence and spacer jig
Butt fence against piece that will fit into groove, and lock it down
Cut near side of groove, then clean up in between with a few more cuts
Make a few more passes to clean up the waste in the middle, and that's it !! You should now have a nice, tight fitting joint
If the dado is too wide, turn the screw OUT just a tad, if it's too narrow, turn the screw IN just a tad, then retry
Once the screw depth is established, and the dado is the perfect size, the screw never has to be touched again, unless you mount a different blade, but I suggest you make one of these for each blade you typically use
The February issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine (#230) just mailed to print subscribers and emailed to digital subscribers. It's live in our online store too. This is a solid issue that's sure to keep you busy for some time - Bill Rainford's Tage Frid-inspired mid-century workbench is a challenge that will stand (strong - it's sturdy) as testimony to your woodworking skills. And Willard Anderson's tricked-out knock-down shaving horse, featuring […]The post Popular Woodworking Magazine, February 2017 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Drilling a mortise, gluing and finishing a live-edge waterfall coffee table. A few months ago I began telling you stories of the furniture built in the live-edge class that I taught at Peters Valley this past summer. Among the furniture created there was a waterfall mitered coffee table that my assistant, Anneloes, and I built. Today I will show you the finalstages of our coffee table story. After turning the […]The post Live Edge Waterfall Coffee Table: Conclusion appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
These elegant joints are difficult to cut and clamp. These jigs can help. by Bill Hylton from the December 2003 issue The only frame joint that doesn't leave a bit of end grain exposed is the miter joint. Given that it's almost invisible when done right, it's visually appealing, so you see it used for picture frames, for architectural trim, when assembling mouldings and occasionally in face or door frames. […]The post Frame Miter Joints appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
I was looking through vintage issues of the magazine this morning and stumbled upon “A Workshop Wish List” from 1996 wherein we randomly selected 500 subscribers to tell us the tools and equipment they wanted in seven price categories, chosen from a list that we provided. I don't know what all the choices were; we didn't list them. But what I find most interesting is that in every price category […]The post Workshop Wish List: 1996 vs. Now appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
The Shaper Tools Origin: AHand-held CNC Designed for Woodworkers Last week I took a trip to California to check out the latest in digital woodworking tools: the Shaper Tools Origin. Essentially, the Origin is a very high-tech router. It uses a touch screen to guide you through a cut and CNC motion for accuracy. As you're cutting, tiny corrections to your position are made along the way. After using one […]The post The Shaper Tools Origin is a Different Kind of CNC appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
There's probably no phrase in finishing that irritates me more than this one: Get a perfect finish every time. It's commonly used by editors and publishers to title articles, sub-title books, and in general to promote information they want you to look at. You rarely see this type of phrase in reference to woodworking: Get perfect saw cuts every time. Learn how to cut perfect dovetails every time. Produce perfect […]The post Get a Perfect Finish Every Time appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Sure, you can use a thin, flexible offcut of wood to make a drawing bow - and I've done that a number of times (sometimes pinning it in place with nails so I don't need three hands to draw a curve). But a piece of wood doesn't always bend symmetrically. So when I built a Krenov-inspired live-edge hanging cabinet for which I needed perfectly matching curves on the doors and […]The post The Anarchist's Editor's Gift Guide, Item 5: Lee Valley Drawing Bow appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
While at Bloodline Merchants we also investigated this English workbench, which is almost certainly an early manual training bench. The face vise is a Parkinsons Perfect Vise (and yes, it is spelled vise not vice on the casting). Parkinsons were made in the 1880s and this example features early metal screw threads that are not the familiar Acme thread we use today. The vise is a quick-release model and opens […]The post Early English Manual Training Workbench appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Until yesterday, I'd not seen a left-handed antique workbench in the wild. While I'm sure there are some out there, the historical record suggests that left-handed woodworkers usually made do with right-handed benches and learned to plane with their dominant hand on the toe of a handplane. While poking around Bloodline Merchants, a delightful import business in Cincinnati, we stumbled on this bench which, like my bench in my shop, […]The post Antique Lefty Workbench in the Wild appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
At the conclusion of every gift guide, I like to offer a tool that is a bit expensive but will change the way you work or - at the least - wildly exceed your expectations. This year, it's the Blue Spruce Try Square. When I first saw photos of the square on the Internet, the tools looked a little plastic-y, probably because of the different color schemes available. But when […]The post Anarchist's 2016 Gift Guide, Day 10: Blue Spruce Try Square appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
By hand or power? With a spring joint or not? by Robert W. Lang, Glen D. Huey & Christopher Schwarz pgs. 40-43 From the April 2009 issue #175 Buy the issue now One of the most important joints in woodworking is the edge joint. Without it, our projects would look like they had been built from narrow popsicle sticks. The joint bewilders many amateur woodworkers - perhaps because there are […]The post Three Ways to Make Edge Joints appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
At the conclusion of every gift guide, I like to offer a tool that is a bit expensive but will change the way you work or - at the least - wildly exceed your expectations. This year, it's the Blue Spruce Try Square. When I first saw photos of the square on the Internet, the tools looked a little plastic-y, probably because of the different color schemes available. But when […]The post Anarchist's 2016 Gift Guide, Day 10: Blue Spruce Try Square appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Once you finish creating a nice miter joint, then comes the time to think about making the joint stronger. As glue alone will not suffice, adding splines or keys in between the two banks of the miter can ensure a long lasting joint. If you have a Festool Domino this is going to be a cakewalk, but since many of us don't have access to onehere are a few other […]The post Reinforcing& Gluing a Waterfall Miter Joint appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
The Veritas Workshop Striking Knife (I just call it a “marking knife” or “knife”) is my new Fridge Super Magnet. Huh? Well, on the rare times I actually remember to place my orders during one of Lee Valley's free shipping events (instead of what usually ends up being two days before or after said events), in order to reach the spend threshold to qualify for the free shipping, I inevitably […]The post The Anarchist's Editor's Gift Guide, Item 4: Veritas Striking Knife appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Yes, yes. It might seem self-serving for me to recommend a subscription to Popular Woodworking Magazine as a holiday gift, but I firmly believe that what we publish is worth reading. If I didn't, I wouldn't work here. Here's our mission statement: We inspire furniture makers of all skill levels with a broad range of historical and contemporary tools, techniques, topics and projects that touch on all facets of the […]The post The Anarchist's Editor's Gift Guide, Item 3: PWM Subscription appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
The following statement contains 99 percent corn, but the remaining 1 percent is what gets me moving in the morning. The greatest woodworking gift isn't a tool or a shop accessory. It's watching someone else fall in love with the craft based on something you've done. If there's someone in your life who might be teetering on the edge of becoming a woodworker, purchase Good Clean Fun by Nick Offerman […]The post Anarchist's 2016 Gift Guide, Day 9: 'Good Clean Fun' appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
I'm sure you've heard the admonition to measure twice before you cut once. If you haven't, take it from me that it's very good advice. You'll save a lot of wood and grief by doing this. But what about measure twice before you paint once? The grounds crews at Montreal's Olympic Stadium where the Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference Championship was being played apparently hadn't heeded this warning and painted […]The post Measure twice, paint once! appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
I know, I know. If you've been reading this blog, my blog or following me on social media for while, you're already familiar with my deep-seated love for the Benchcrafted Skraper (what is it with the tools I like and funny spellings?!). This is not your grandfather's scraper. It has a 5/8″-wide x 3/16″- thick solid carbide bar on the business end that is honed on all working surfaces - […]The post The Anarchist's Editor's Gift Guide, Item 2: Benchcrafted 'Skraper' appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
I have worked out of an 18th-century-style tool chest since 1997 or so, but I still love a good metal toolbox. They are great for moving tools to a jobsite or storing a dedicated set of wrenches or a socket set. The plastic or sheet-metal toolboxes at home centers do nothing for me. The plastic breaks and the sheet metal is thin and bends when you look at it too […]The post Anarchist's 2016 Gift Guide, Day 8: A Trusco Toolbox appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Like a good French rasp, a spokeshave will open your eyes to a new world. Furniture parts that were once simply flat or round can easily be made curved and subtly faceted. And though the type of spokeshave you prefer is pretty personal, it's hard to argue that the most successful and copied model is the Stanley 151 shave. I think this model is the apogee of this form's design. […]The post Anarchist's 2016 Gift Guide, Day 7: Veritas Spokeshave appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Christopher Schwarz has commenced his annual “Anarchist’s Gift Guide” on his PWM blog, and though he and I have many of the same tools, products, likes and dislikes (he is, after all, my mentor), there are some things by which I swear that he’s unlikely to mention. So over the next two weeks(ish), I’ll offer here 12 things I can’t live without, items that would make great gifts for […]The post The Anarchist’s Editor’s Gift Guide, Item 1: Elipse P100 Dust Mask appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Jameel Jamal-Alabama Abraham of Benchcrafted introduced me to these bits, and I still need to repay the favor with beer and/or bratwurst. These bits are the cats meow, knees and pyjamas. Made in Japan, the WoodOwls cut through tough, wet, thick wood like it almost isnt there. When you drill a lot of holes through 6-thick wet French oak, these bits are a lifesaver. But even if you dont build […]The post Anarchists 2016 Gift Guide, Day 6: WoodOwl Auger Bits appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
In my last post, I covered some of the big issues in learning to use CNCs. Woodworkers first startingto use CNCs in particular benefit from in-person learning because of all the idiosyncrasies that are present when youre designing and machining wood with a digital tool. There are a number of good solutions for learning more about these tools. Some are available in your local community. Here are some suggestions on […]The post Where to Learn About Digital Woodworking appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
The largest, and I think only, hide-glue factory left in the United States is Milligan & Higgins, located in Johnstown, New York, west of Albany, off Interstate 90. You can buy hide glue directly from the company in 50-pound or larger quantities. For smaller quantities, resellers include Woodworkers Supply, Tools for Working Wood, Merit Industries/Wood Finish Supplyand a number of suppliers to the musical-instrument industry. My experience with hide glue […]The post Hide Glue (2): How it’s Made appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
It is bymere coincidence that as I am about to wrap up myrecent bundle of blog entries about live-edge design, my friend Daniella Ohad is releasing her highly engagingdocumentary aboutGeorge Nakashima. Nakashimawas (and still is) considered to bethe greatest live edge furniture maker and one of the most famous American designers of all times. The 50 minute moviewill walk you through all aspects of Nakashima’s monumental achievements. It includes discussions […]The post George Nakashima’s Furniture: A Documentary by Danielle Ohad appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
I have burned through a lot of burnishers, from the ones Ive made myself out of carbide rod to very expensive variants. My favorite is the French-made Arno burnisher. Everything about the tool is right. The handle is lightweight aluminum, perfectly shaped and has a guard so my fingers wont slip off the handle and onto the scraper. The tool has two carbide rods for burnishing scrapers. One has a […]The post Anarchists 2016 Gift Guide, Day 5: Arno Burnisher appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
A lot of woodworking problems can be avoided simply by monitoring the relative humidity in your shop with a simple and inexpensive hygrometer. In most areas of the United States, the target relative humidity for inside buildings is 35 to 45 percent, though that will vary if you live in a desert or a swamp. So if your shop is in the garage, your basement or the neighborhood cave, you […]The post Anarchists 2016 Gift Guide, Day 3: Humidity Monitor appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
I am not a joiner. Well, I am a joiner in that I join pieces of wood. But I dont join clubs. I dislike clubs. But despite this, I love being a member of the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association (MWTCA). Its a bunch of the nicest old dudes and women in the world who collect woodworking tools. If you join the organization for just $25, you get its magazine, The […]The post Anarchists 2016 Gift Guide, Day 4: MWTCA membership appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
A dedicated sharpening station makes your work so much easier, but since leaving the magazine in 2011 Ive never had the space (or a sink) for one. One day I saw this $20 boot tray at my home center and I knew exactly what to do. I cut a piece of masonite to fit in the bottom and turned it into a great sharpening station that lives under my workbench. […]The post Anarchists 2016 Gift Guide, Day 2: Boot Tray for Sharpening appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Well-made high-carbon scissors are a joy to use and are indispensable in my shop for cutting paper patterns to shape, trimming veneer and 100 other tasks. For years I used junky office scissors but finally got my hands on a pair of traditional hot-forged dress makers shears from Clauss. Despite their reasonable cost (less than $20), they are like wielding a custom tool. They are perfectly balanced, polished and properly […]The post Anarchists 2016 Gift Guide, Day 1: Clauss Scissors appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
A few years ago, we published some books to help build your dream home. We covered subjects like home construction, remodeling and backyard buildings. They didnt really fit with the mission of Popular Woodworking Books but were great books with excellentinformation and so we ended up publishing them under the Betterway Books imprint. The bestselling of these booksis “The Complete Guide to Contracting Your Home” by Kent Lester & […]The post Build Your Dream Home: This Book Can Help appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
The most common questions that I hear are about how togo about learning to use digital woodworking tools? And, as woodworkers how do you use these tools to get the best out of them? In this post and the one following, Ill point out different ways to learn how to use these tools. First an overall view. Then some suggestions on different ways to learn how to use digital tools. […]The post Learning to Use Digital Woodworking Tools appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Now that Thanksgiving is over andall of my pants seemed to have shrunk, it’s time to get back to work. I made a quick SketchUp model of the traveling tool chest that I’ve decided to build in case of roadside emergencies. The Plan I’m going to build the disaster tool chest out of pine and cover it withmilk paint to match my Dutch chest. It’s going in the back of […]The post Traveling Disaster Tool Chest: SketchUp appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Wedging joints adds great strength, but it also is risky. A wedge can split the work, it can fail to dive into the tenon (sometimes popping out of the tenon), or the tenon itself can split when you hit it, making a mess of things. Here are three things I do to reduce the risk. 1. Make lots of wedges. When I make wedges, I usually make at least 100 […]The post 
A Good Year for Digital Woodworking Tools Using a 3-axis CNC, the underside of a sofa table's ovoidshaped top is being rough cut in 3D. The edge isa combination of a tapered angular bevel on the sides that graduates to a progressively curved taper over the length of the top. Sounds complicated, but once you work out the design in 3D CAD software and do the CAM programming, it's aneasy […]The post 
All finishes craze - that is, develop small cracks - as they age, especially if they are exposed to a lot of sunlight. But there's another type of crazing, and it can happen much faster. This is crazing caused by body sweat. You commonly see crazing of this type around cabinet-door pulls and drawer handles, and on chair backs, arms and wooden seats. This type of crazing is caused by […]The post 
A stout “deadman” or “bench slave” is one of simplest jigs you can build, and it can be an invaluable addition to any workbench with a tail vise. You clamp this fixture, which is essentially a heavy block of wood that rests on the floor, into your tail vise and set a pin into an appropriate hole to support the end of long pieces of wood you want to work […]The post 
Below are Christopher Schwarz's “12 Rules for Tool Chests” in short form (the full article, as it appeared in the December 2011 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine, is downloadable at the end.) The chest pictured here is his full-size traditional English tool chest, but the rules apply no matter the chest. (You'll find instruction on building an English tool chest on Chris' video “Make a Traditional English Tool Chest” (Popular […]The post 
The February issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine (#230) just mailed to print subscribers and emailed to digital subscribers. It's live in our online store too. This is a solid issue that's sure to keep you busy for some time - Bill Rainford's Tage Frid-inspired mid-century workbench is a challenge that will stand (strong - it's sturdy) as testimony to your woodworking skills. And Willard Anderson's tricked-out knock-down shaving horse, featuring […]The post 
Drilling a mortise, gluing and finishing a live-edge waterfall coffee table. A few months ago I began telling you stories of the furniture built in the live-edge class that I taught at Peters Valley this past summer. Among the furniture created there was a waterfall mitered coffee table that my assistant, Anneloes, and I built. Today I will show you the finalstages of our coffee table story. After turning the […]The post 
These elegant joints are difficult to cut and clamp. These jigs can help. by Bill Hylton from the December 2003 issue The only frame joint that doesn't leave a bit of end grain exposed is the miter joint. Given that it's almost invisible when done right, it's visually appealing, so you see it used for picture frames, for architectural trim, when assembling mouldings and occasionally in face or door frames. […]The post 
I was looking through vintage issues of the magazine this morning and stumbled upon “A Workshop Wish List” from 1996 wherein we randomly selected 500 subscribers to tell us the tools and equipment they wanted in seven price categories, chosen from a list that we provided. I don't know what all the choices were; we didn't list them. But what I find most interesting is that in every price category […]The post 
The Shaper Tools Origin: AHand-held CNC Designed for Woodworkers Last week I took a trip to California to check out the latest in digital woodworking tools: the Shaper Tools Origin. Essentially, the Origin is a very high-tech router. It uses a touch screen to guide you through a cut and CNC motion for accuracy. As you're cutting, tiny corrections to your position are made along the way. After using one […]The post 
There's probably no phrase in finishing that irritates me more than this one: Get a perfect finish every time. It's commonly used by editors and publishers to title articles, sub-title books, and in general to promote information they want you to look at. You rarely see this type of phrase in reference to woodworking: Get perfect saw cuts every time. Learn how to cut perfect dovetails every time. Produce perfect […]The post 
Sure, you can use a thin, flexible offcut of wood to make a drawing bow - and I've done that a number of times (sometimes pinning it in place with nails so I don't need three hands to draw a curve). But a piece of wood doesn't always bend symmetrically. So when I built a Krenov-inspired live-edge hanging cabinet for which I needed perfectly matching curves on the doors and […]The post 
While at Bloodline Merchants we also investigated this English workbench, which is almost certainly an early manual training bench. The face vise is a Parkinsons Perfect Vise (and yes, it is spelled vise not vice on the casting). Parkinsons were made in the 1880s and this example features early metal screw threads that are not the familiar Acme thread we use today. The vise is a quick-release model and opens […]The post 
Until yesterday, I'd not seen a left-handed antique workbench in the wild. While I'm sure there are some out there, the historical record suggests that left-handed woodworkers usually made do with right-handed benches and learned to plane with their dominant hand on the toe of a handplane. While poking around Bloodline Merchants, a delightful import business in Cincinnati, we stumbled on this bench which, like my bench in my shop, […]The post 
At the conclusion of every gift guide, I like to offer a tool that is a bit expensive but will change the way you work or - at the least - wildly exceed your expectations. This year, it's the Blue Spruce Try Square. When I first saw photos of the square on the Internet, the tools looked a little plastic-y, probably because of the different color schemes available. But when […]The post 
By hand or power? With a spring joint or not? by Robert W. Lang, Glen D. Huey & Christopher Schwarz pgs. 40-43 From the April 2009 issue #175 Buy the issue now One of the most important joints in woodworking is the edge joint. Without it, our projects would look like they had been built from narrow popsicle sticks. The joint bewilders many amateur woodworkers - perhaps because there are […]The post 
Once you finish creating a nice miter joint, then comes the time to think about making the joint stronger. As glue alone will not suffice, adding splines or keys in between the two banks of the miter can ensure a long lasting joint. If you have a Festool Domino this is going to be a cakewalk, but since many of us don't have access to onehere are a few other […]The post 
The Veritas Workshop Striking Knife (I just call it a “marking knife” or “knife”) is my new Fridge Super Magnet. Huh? Well, on the rare times I actually remember to place my orders during one of Lee Valley's free shipping events (instead of what usually ends up being two days before or after said events), in order to reach the spend threshold to qualify for the free shipping, I inevitably […]The post 
Yes, yes. It might seem self-serving for me to recommend a subscription to Popular Woodworking Magazine as a holiday gift, but I firmly believe that what we publish is worth reading. If I didn't, I wouldn't work here. Here's our mission statement: We inspire furniture makers of all skill levels with a broad range of historical and contemporary tools, techniques, topics and projects that touch on all facets of the […]The post 
The following statement contains 99 percent corn, but the remaining 1 percent is what gets me moving in the morning. The greatest woodworking gift isn't a tool or a shop accessory. It's watching someone else fall in love with the craft based on something you've done. If there's someone in your life who might be teetering on the edge of becoming a woodworker, purchase Good Clean Fun by Nick Offerman […]The post 
I'm sure you've heard the admonition to measure twice before you cut once. If you haven't, take it from me that it's very good advice. You'll save a lot of wood and grief by doing this. But what about measure twice before you paint once? The grounds crews at Montreal's Olympic Stadium where the Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference Championship was being played apparently hadn't heeded this warning and painted […]The post 
I know, I know. If you've been reading this blog, my blog or following me on social media for while, you're already familiar with my deep-seated love for the Benchcrafted Skraper (what is it with the tools I like and funny spellings?!). This is not your grandfather's scraper. It has a 5/8″-wide x 3/16″- thick solid carbide bar on the business end that is honed on all working surfaces - […]The post 
I have worked out of an 18th-century-style tool chest since 1997 or so, but I still love a good metal toolbox. They are great for moving tools to a jobsite or storing a dedicated set of wrenches or a socket set. The plastic or sheet-metal toolboxes at home centers do nothing for me. The plastic breaks and the sheet metal is thin and bends when you look at it too […]The post 
Like a good French rasp, a spokeshave will open your eyes to a new world. Furniture parts that were once simply flat or round can easily be made curved and subtly faceted. And though the type of spokeshave you prefer is pretty personal, it's hard to argue that the most successful and copied model is the Stanley 151 shave. I think this model is the apogee of this form's design. […]The post 
Christopher Schwarz has commenced his annual “Anarchist’s Gift Guide” on his PWM blog, and though he and I have many of the same tools, products, likes and dislikes (he is, after all, my mentor), there are some things by which I swear that he’s unlikely to mention. So over the next two weeks(ish), I’ll offer here 12 things I can’t live without, items that would make great gifts for […]The post 
Jameel Jamal-Alabama Abraham of Benchcrafted introduced me to these bits, and I still need to repay the favor with beer and/or bratwurst. These bits are the cats meow, knees and pyjamas. Made in Japan, the WoodOwls cut through tough, wet, thick wood like it almost isnt there. When you drill a lot of holes through 6-thick wet French oak, these bits are a lifesaver. But even if you dont build […]The post 
In my last post, I covered some of the big issues in learning to use CNCs. Woodworkers first startingto use CNCs in particular benefit from in-person learning because of all the idiosyncrasies that are present when youre designing and machining wood with a digital tool. There are a number of good solutions for learning more about these tools. Some are available in your local community. Here are some suggestions on […]The post 
The largest, and I think only, hide-glue factory left in the United States is Milligan & Higgins, located in Johnstown, New York, west of Albany, off Interstate 90. You can buy hide glue directly from the company in 50-pound or larger quantities. For smaller quantities, resellers include Woodworkers Supply, Tools for Working Wood, Merit Industries/Wood Finish Supplyand a number of suppliers to the musical-instrument industry. My experience with hide glue […]The post 
It is bymere coincidence that as I am about to wrap up myrecent bundle of blog entries about live-edge design, my friend Daniella Ohad is releasing her highly engagingdocumentary aboutGeorge Nakashima. Nakashimawas (and still is) considered to bethe greatest live edge furniture maker and one of the most famous American designers of all times. The 50 minute moviewill walk you through all aspects of Nakashima’s monumental achievements. It includes discussions […]The post 
I have burned through a lot of burnishers, from the ones Ive made myself out of carbide rod to very expensive variants. My favorite is the French-made Arno burnisher. Everything about the tool is right. The handle is lightweight aluminum, perfectly shaped and has a guard so my fingers wont slip off the handle and onto the scraper. The tool has two carbide rods for burnishing scrapers. One has a […]The post 
A lot of woodworking problems can be avoided simply by monitoring the relative humidity in your shop with a simple and inexpensive hygrometer. In most areas of the United States, the target relative humidity for inside buildings is 35 to 45 percent, though that will vary if you live in a desert or a swamp. So if your shop is in the garage, your basement or the neighborhood cave, you […]The post 
I am not a joiner. Well, I am a joiner in that I join pieces of wood. But I dont join clubs. I dislike clubs. But despite this, I love being a member of the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association (MWTCA). Its a bunch of the nicest old dudes and women in the world who collect woodworking tools. If you join the organization for just $25, you get its magazine, The […]The post 
A dedicated sharpening station makes your work so much easier, but since leaving the magazine in 2011 Ive never had the space (or a sink) for one. One day I saw this $20 boot tray at my home center and I knew exactly what to do. I cut a piece of masonite to fit in the bottom and turned it into a great sharpening station that lives under my workbench. […]The post 
Well-made high-carbon scissors are a joy to use and are indispensable in my shop for cutting paper patterns to shape, trimming veneer and 100 other tasks. For years I used junky office scissors but finally got my hands on a pair of traditional hot-forged dress makers shears from Clauss. Despite their reasonable cost (less than $20), they are like wielding a custom tool. They are perfectly balanced, polished and properly […]The post 
A few years ago, we published some books to help build your dream home. We covered subjects like home construction, remodeling and backyard buildings. They didnt really fit with the mission of Popular Woodworking Books but were great books with excellentinformation and so we ended up publishing them under the Betterway Books imprint. The bestselling of these booksis “The Complete Guide to Contracting Your Home” by Kent Lester & […]The post 
The most common questions that I hear are about how togo about learning to use digital woodworking tools? And, as woodworkers how do you use these tools to get the best out of them? In this post and the one following, Ill point out different ways to learn how to use these tools. First an overall view. Then some suggestions on different ways to learn how to use digital tools. […]The post 
Now that Thanksgiving is over andall of my pants seemed to have shrunk, it’s time to get back to work. I made a quick SketchUp model of the traveling tool chest that I’ve decided to build in case of roadside emergencies. The Plan I’m going to build the disaster tool chest out of pine and cover it withmilk paint to match my Dutch chest. It’s going in the back of […]The post