We may receive a commission when you use our affiliate links. However, this does not impact our recommendations.
I’m near Philadelphia this week teaching at Acanthus Workshops. This is Chuck Bender’s woodworking school. (You know Chuck, he wrote the “Carving Spanish Feet” article in our April 2009 issue.)
Chuck and I go way back to the days when he and I traveled around the country to sell furniture. He still does a show now and then, but has focused his attention on teaching and writing about woodworking.
The thing that keeps Chuck and me connected (besides our passion for building reproduction furniture) is that we both have a basic approach to woodworking. Neither of us looks to complicate what we do , we prefer to keep things straightforward and simple. So when I arrived at his shop, I did what most woodworkers do when they enter new woodworking territory. I scouted around to see his tools, then we discussed woodworking. (I’ll share information about his woodworking machines later in the week , you simply have to see the old iron in his shop.)
During our talk, we got onto the topic of inlay (Chuck will have plenty to say about inlay at our Hand Tools & Techniques Conference in October). I asked how he cuts the grooves for inlay on his spice boxes and his basic, simple approach was immediately evident. He handed me a compass and said, “They call it compass inlay, you know!”
Look closely at the compass shown in the photo. Chuck has one end ground to the exact size he needs for stringing. All that’s left is to use the customized tool to scratch in the groove. That’s a new one on me. And you better believe that I’ll try that on my next Chester County inlaid spice box.
Stay tuned. I’m not sure how many other ideas I’ll get while I’m here, but I’ll pass along anything worthwhile (please don’t tell Chuck I’m stealing his tricks!).
Looking for More Woodworking Information?
– Subscribe to Popular Woodworking and save 52 percent off the cover price!
Here are some supplies and tools we find essential in our everyday work around the shop. We may receive a commission from sales referred by our links; however, we have carefully selected these products for their usefulness and quality.
You just owe him a quarter every time you use one of his ideas. He’s got a bunch of good ideas and a few already showed up in my shop. I certainly enjoyed the simplicity of construction I picked up during my last course there.