This live-edge coffee table is just the beginning of what you can build with a $20 doweling jig. Project #2302 • Skill Level: Beginner • Time: 4 Days • Cost: $400 This walnut coffee table is featured in my latest book, “Build More Stuff with Wood,” (see all the places you can purchase it here)…

What is a CNC? Why might I want one & How does it work? Over the last decade, CNC machines have become a common topic in woodworking. Most know that they cut things out, but that’s the extent of their knowledge. If you had a stronger understanding of what CNCs are, how they can be…

A few tools can go a long way. When you get started in woodworking there are many paths to follow, forks in the road, dead-ends and shortcuts. It’s a journey that our forebears would make with the help of a living, breathing guide: a master, a grandfather, a shop teacher. Sadly, the guides are fewer…

Discover a bit about clean, accurate boring. There are many tools in modern woodworking you can use to bore holes: powered drills (both corded and cordless), drill presses, hand-powered eggbeater drills, braces and more. Drill presses are the powered method of choice when accuracy is important. Battery-operated drills are convenient and fast. Corded drills are…

A bevel is a bevel… except when it’s a miter, unless it’s a chamfer. Confused yet? You’re not alone. To the uninitiated, woodworking can be a tough nut to crack. Even the most basic of projects assume a certain level of prior knowledge. In order to create any of the projects on this website, you…

Tools and techniques for general metalwork in the shop. While the woodshop may be where I’m most comfortable, I’ve been fascinated by metalwork for some time. I’m always watching for tips and tricks I can steal for my own use, and as such I’ve become attached to a few methods of working with metal in…

Basic woodworking tools are different from beginner woodworking tools. For one thing, I don’t like to use the word “beginner” unless I am using it accurately. It’s not a very useful label, in my opinion, because it implies that there are clear-cut and hierarchical steps in your growth as a woodworker. Who wants to return…

Do you feel that? The chill in the air? It’s the sign that peak woodworking season is upon us (especially for those of us without climate-controlled workshops). This year the first 60-degree day triggered near-compulsive response in me to go to the garage and put tool to wood. It’s a good feeling. But it feels…

Shape wood with a propane torch. Here’s a simple, but effective way to bend thin stock (1/4″ thick or less). The only tools you need are a length of 1-1/2″ galvanized pipe, a propane torch, a jig to hold them both, and a fire extinguisher–just in case. The pipe is attached to a flange through…

The end grain holds the secret to what stock to use where. The single-most important factor in the appearance of any woodworking project is the selection of the material. This isn’t what species to use or what color of finish; it is the choice of which board goes where. The wrong grain pattern in the…

Attach the tree to the base. Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 4: Rounding the Tree • Part 5: Sculpting the Branches Now that we have finished creating the tree, it’s time to plant it. You have several options for creating…

Sculpting the Tree Branches Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 4: Rounding the Tree • Part 6: Attach to The Base We’ve reached the final stages of the whittling journey – crafting the tree branches. Let’s start by tracing five or…

There’s no need to fear the most versatile machine in the modern shop. There are good reasons that the table saw is at the center of many shops. This machine revolutionized the way we make things. And in recent years, it has become the center of controversy on two fronts: safety and accuracy. There is…

Rounding the Tree Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 5: Sculpting the Branches • Part 6: Attach to The Base In our previous installment, we dived into the part and pull technique to shape the main facets of the trunk (F &…

Parting and Pulling Techniques Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 4: Rounding the Tree • Part 5: Sculpting the Branches • Part 6: Attach to The Base Continuing our journey through the art of whittling, we arrive at the third part of our series. After successfully carving out…

Mastering the Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers Part 1: Introduction • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 4: Rounding the Tree • Part 5: Sculpting the Branches • Part 6: Attach to The Base In this installment, I’ll be your guide through the fundamental knife techniques that my students and I employ to sculpt…

An Introduction to Whittling Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 4: Rounding the Tree • Part 5: Sculpting the Branches • Part 6: Attach to The Base I’ve been passionate about whittling and teaching wood carving for quite a few years now. Whittling, one of…

In just over 90 seconds Logan walks you through all the main parts of a metal body hand plane. Interested in learning more? Check out the article Handplanes for Beginners. For Basics Week we’re presenting a special offer on our PopWood+ membership, where you can save 25% off your first month or full year when…

It is estimated that nearly 80 percent of all woodworking requires some type of sawing. The power, accuracy and control of the table saw has made the process of sawing wood a lot more productive and a lot less physical. It’s arguable as to who first invented the circular saw, but one thing is certain…

Need to discover the differences among a groove, dado, and rabbet? Have trouble remembering what’s a rail and what’s a stile? Or maybe you just need to know how to spell “cyanoacrylate” (spell check will tell you you’re wrong). You’ve come to the right place! We are building this glossary of woodworking terms based on…

The awl is one of the most useful tools in woodworking and perhaps the most basic of them all. Awls help to initiate indentations into which screws, nails, and drill bits will bore. We use them to mark locations for sawing, and score lines to define parts’ parameters. And awls are used to pock holes…

It’s an age-old question I hear uttered hundreds of times a year: What hand tool should I buy first? Without context, the question is impossible to answer. Most times, I fire back several questions that help people understand why I can’t give them specific recommendations yet. What tools do you already own? What do you…

Prepare your wood, pick the right glue and prevent problems. Baseball bats, utensils, turned items and small carved objects are usually made from one piece of wood. But most woodworking projects are made under the premise of “some assembly required.” Face it: Most everything we make with wood involves one or more boards joined together….

Good stock is the foundation of a good project. But if your foundation isn’t square you’re going to have issues. Learn how to use a jointer and planer to square your stock and create three flat, true surfaces to work with. For Basics Week we’re presenting a special offer on our PopWood+ membership, where you…

About a year ago we did a week of articles focused on woodworking basics, which you all seemed to love. And since we continuously see an influx of new woodworkers visiting our site, we’ve decided to make it an annual tradition going forward. Like last year, we’ll be gathering articles new and old that showcase…

Demystifying volts, amp hours, and types of cordless tool motors. More and more, cordless tools are becoming everyday fixtures in the woodworking shop. The most common of these is the drill, which you can see broken down below. Most cordless power tools have the same basic components, though, so once you understand how one tool…

This versatile hand tool should be every woodworker’s first plane purchase. As a “professional woodworker” I often get asked what’s the best bang-for-the-buck tool by people getting into this craft. My response is always to ask if they have a good quality block plane. I know, it’s not the big, awesome aircraft carrier-like jointer plane….

No matter what your style of woodworking, you need a basic set of hand tools. Here’s where to begin. When I came to America, I had a lovely wife, two suitcases and 50 bucks. Oh man, where do I start? Everybody needs a basic tool kit, especially if you want to do woodworking. I had…

Blacksmithing is a hasty sport. Unlike woodworking, where you can step back and contemplate a cabinet’s lines or run your hands over a planed surface to check its smoothness, working with hot iron means moving fast. You’ve only seconds before the malleable, bright orange steel has faded nearly to black, and any further hammering is…

Tools solve problems in wood. Hand tools bought just to collect do not serve you well. But tools bought when you need them will serve many projects to come. Don’t hesitate to buy a good hand tool suitable to the task. The tools mentioned here actually stand a chance of being useful in the hands…

Seven Essential Tools The easiest path to a clean shop is to control the dust while working. Even with the best dust collection systems, things are still going to get dirty though. Here are the tools you’ll want to get your shop back to new after finishing your latest project. Broom(s) You’re going to want…

Have questions about the features of your drill? We have answers. Check out the short video below, then keep on scrolling for more detailed breakdowns of the clutch and gear adjustment settings. What does the clutch on a drill do? The clutch regulates the amount of torque (power) the drill will generate while driving a…

There are a number of things to think about when choosing wood for your woodworking project.  You can have a great design, but if the material you use in your woodworking project has flaws in it, there may be problems that cause it to break in the future.  I had the opportunity to talk in…

Learn techniques for ‘shallow relief’ and ‘applied’ carvings. Have you ever been involved in something where you get completely absorbed in it? Where hours go by without realizing it? Those are the moments when you discover something you truly love. Within a month of taking classes from European Master Carver Konstantinos Papadakis, I knew carving…

Cost, time, and a spouse’s patience help determine the course of action. Editor’s note: This article was originally published in the November 2009 issue of Popular Woodworking.  It’s a dilemma nearly every woodworker must face. Whether you are a weekend warrior or a woodworking pro, eventually you will ask yourself, “Should I build or buy?”…

A Forstner Bit can drill holes other bits only dream about. Forstner-style bits can go where no other drill bits dare. The reason is simple: A Forstner bit is rim-guided while other bits are center-point guided. That means you can use all or only part of the bit’s diameter to drill overlapped, angled or partial…

What tools do you need to start your woodworking journey? “What tools should I buy first?” is one of the more common questions I get from friends who are getting started woodworking. When you look on YouTube, everyone (ourselves included) is using a fully decked-out shop with all the newest, fanciest tools out there, and…

For the cost of one large piece of machinery, you can set up a complete shop with hand tools. Here’s what you need to get started.

The right techniques and tools (plus a few tricks) will give you a good start on mastering this fine traditional joint. Dovetails have long been recognized as the premier joint for casework and drawers – and for good reason. They’re the strongest way to join the corners of a box, and they look great. However,…

This kitchen workhorse presents a surprising and rewarding challenge. A wooden spoon – you can get one for a dollar in many places. It’s just a stick with a hollow shaped at one end. Why go to any bother over such a thing? Use them to stir sauces, dole out rice and beans, then forget…

Hey! In our last episode of I Can Do That, we introduced the table saw. This time, we’re covering three table saw basics that will take your woodworking to the next level. We start by angling the blade. By angling the blade, you’ll be able to make bevels and chamfers that add a lot of…

Double-check your tools, your technique, and your thinking. One of the most important skills in woodworking is rarely discussed or considered as a thing that needs to be learned or practiced. The basic skills of measuring and its close cousin, layout, are essential to produce quality work. As a bonus, mastery of these basics reduces…

Understand the fundamentals. A wood finish is a clear, transparent coating applied to wood to protect it from moisture and to make it look richer and deeper. This differs from paint, which is a wood finish loaded with enough pigment to hide the wood. And it differs from a stain, which is a wood finish…

Once you understand the anatomy of a handplane, you’ll be well on your way to using it with success. [View the full-size exploded view of a handplane here] Handplanes are the king of woodworking tools in that they are the most versatile tool in a shop. They do so many varied jobs, that the more…

Seasoned professionals also benefit from woodworking safety. Regardless of your experience level, it never hurts to review the basics. In fact, I believe there are a number of standard safety items and practices that not only help keep you safer in the shop, but also could very well improve the quality of your work. Personal…

A near-universal truth about woodworkers is that they’re always working to improve their craft and expand their skills. That goes for the authors and editors here at Popular Woodworking as well; we just can’t resist trying something new every time we undertake a project. This mindset isn’t without faults though- the wide variety of techniques…

Some people get pretty worked up about using the right word for the right joint. Perhaps they have a point since imprecise use of terms can lead to confusion. So, to be precise, here are the proper definitions: A dado is a U-shaped, square-bottomed channel cut across the grain. A groove looks just like a…

Destroying 10 joints taught us surprising lessons about joint design, wood failure and the tenacity of modern glue. Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the December 2005 issue of Popular Woodworking, when Robert W Lang decided he really felt like smashing things with an anvil. It has been said that we learn more from…

Our staff offers simple, strong and fast ways to make this important furniture component. In woodworking magazines, books and plans there’s almost always an omission that’s big enough to drive a truck through: How to build the drawers for the project. Usually the woodworking author (always well-intended, I can assure you) writes instructions such as:…

Simple to advanced methods for precisely duplicating parts. No other method for shaping is as fast or efficient as template routing. It works like this: the part to be shaped is fastened to the template; the router follows the template as it is guided around the template perimeter (Photo 1). Template routing ensures that each…

Master this most basic turning tool. When I introduce someone to woodturning, I choose the spindle roughing gouge. When I work with kids, it’s the first tool I place in their hands. Why? Because, used correctly, the spindle roughing gouge is the safest, most user-friendly turning tool of them all. And don’t be fooled by…

From way back in Popular Woodworking #39, here’s a very tongue-in-cheek quiz to determine what your woodworking skill level is.

T-track is a versatile product that has many great uses around the shop. It can be attached to the fence of a chop saw, drill press or router table to provide a quick, secure place to attach feather boards, stops and hold-downs. It also makes a great addition to jigs and fixtures with parts that…

A swing of an arc is the solution to many layout and construction problems. If you think a compass is only for drawing circles, think again. This simple and inexpensive device can divide almost anything into precise and equal sections, construct complex polygons and find the precise settings for making miters on any angle. Most…

Select a reliable tool with these simple tests. I can’t think of one project I’ve made that hasn’t involved using one or more of my combination squares. I use these to lay out joints and cuts, and to check cuts to confirm that they’re square (a test I perform on a scrap piece every time…

There are router bits that I use on a day-in, day-out basis on many of my projects. However, there probably aren’t as many as you might expect. I find myself using a few unique bits for most of my operations, and I find there are but a few profiles that I have in my shop…

Add a new dimension to your woodworking skills. With the right techniques and tooling your CNC router can mill brass and aluminum with dependability, accuracy and consistency. Milling these materials on a home shop CNC router isn’t difficult, but milling metal requires a different and a disciplined approach. Here is a basic formula to get…

Why liquid hide glue should be your first choice as an adhesive. Since the beginnings of civilization up until World War II, most pieces of furniture were assembled using animal-based glues. That fact changed almost overnight in the 20th century, however, with the introduction of polyvinyl acetate (PVA), what we call yellow or white glue….

This much-maligned fastener has a place in the finest furniture. Here’s why. Among furniture makers, the reputation of the simple nail is somewhere south of expired glue and tacos made from weasel knees. The following statement is one you hear all the time: The best furniture is built using wood-to-wood joinery alone – just like…

Tips and techniques for beautiful bowties Furniture made from thick wood slabs, with gorgeous grain and natural edges, at once rustic and refined, has remained popular ever since George Nakashima first introduced it to U.S. woodworkers in the 1950s. Better yet, woodworkers of almost all skill levels can build something with a natural-edged slab. If…

A Backer Board Prevents Chip-Out Chip-out is always an issue when you even up the stiles and rails of a door with a plane. If you plane all the way across the door, from one end to the other, you’re bound to chip out the outside edge of the stile. That damage is not easy…

Everything you always wanted to know about screws, but were afraid to ask. Many of the tools and fasteners we use in woodworking have been around for thousands of years. The concept of the screw goes back to the ancient Greeks. Archimedes took a wedge, a simple but powerful device, and wrapped it around a…

Article sponsored by Woodpeckers. Working with plywood is always an adventure. The large size of the sheets isn’t easy to handle in my small shop. This means that I’m often left wrestling these sheets in the garage and breaking them down there. But, just because you’re working with large sheets doesn’t mean that you have…

1. Paraffin Lube When you rout a dovetail joint, your sense of feel is important. Your router should slide easily around the jig’s fingers, without hesitating, so you can tell which direction to push the router. To eliminate drag, rub a piece of canning wax (paraffin) on top of the comb. You won’t need much,…

1. Lubricate a Bandsaw Blade It’s safe and easy to cut brass and aluminum with a bandsaw and a regular woodworking blade. Using a miter gauge, you can make a very straight cut. Be sure to use a 4 TPI blade with hardened teeth. A blade with finer teeth is likely to clog up; an…

Cutting precisely to a line on a miter saw isn’t easy. Usually, you have to make multiple cuts and sneak up to it. My solution is to use this universal gauge block; one cut is all that’s required. The block works for cutting pieces of any length, as long as they’re not shorter than the…

Your frustration is well-founded. We test 11 samples from around the world, unveil their inconsistencies and offer solutions.

Curved-front drawers add a touch of grace and liveliness to a cabinet. But if you’re not set up to re-saw wide stock into thin, uniform laminations, you’re sunk, right? Wrong. You can use thin plywood instead of re-sawn hardwood, so the biggest obstacle is out of the way before you start! Build the Drawer, On…

Mark the End Grain When you’re jointing, mark each board’s grain direction by drawing a line on its end. The line means “Start here.” A mark on a board’s face or edge can get erased by a planer or jointer, but a mark on its end grain won’t be touched until you trim the piece…

Choose complementary blades for perfect results. In the dark ages of woodworking, before carbide, you never used the same blade for ripping and crosscutting. Cutting plywood required yet another blade. Today, hybrid blades allow you to avoid blade changes entirely—unless you want absolutely perfect results. Then it’s better to have more than one blade. I’ll…

Keep these tips in mind when buying rough lumber to get the best deals on the best wood.

When hobbyist woodworkers do any sort of veneering, they usually work with raw veneers. These un-backed sheets are great for small projects, and though they can be used for large work, most commercial woodworking shops use paper or phenolic-backed veneers because they’re more convenient. You can decide for yourself which is better for your project,…

Just as with building any woodworking project, eliminate one step from the manufacturing process and the results can be fatal. It usually happens as you hang a door or install a shelf. You’ve got a balancing act going as you hold one piece, steady a second piece and attempt to drive a screw all at…

From how to get started with hand tools to mastering (and super-tuning) your handplane, this exclusive value pack has it all. Learn everything from designing and building a proper tool chest to sharpening a saw, to cutting a huge array of joints. Get top-notch instruction in sharpening, chisels, awls, marking knives, spokeshaves, planes and

All hardwoods have vessels (little pipelines) that are used in sap production. The size and distribution of these vessels vary among species; some are visible to the naked eye. When the vessels are cut across the end grain, they’re often referred to as pores, thus hardwoods are known as “porous woods” (see below for further…

Why Should Understand How Wood Fails Tear-out is ugly, but how does it happen? Ground-breaking research that began in the 1950s by Norman C. Franz showed how wood fails when you cut it with hand tools or power tools. Using a movie camera and a milling machine, Franz made amazing photos that pointed out how…

I gotta say, the timing is bad on this. At the same time that we’ve announced DVD compilations of four seasons of Roy Underhill’s “The Woodwright’s Shop,” there’s a new video out from another red-headed woodworker who prefers hand tools. That would be me. And it’s my first commercial video, so please be kind. “Tool…

When it comes time to choose instructors for our Woodworking in America conferences, I feel like a kid set loose in the candy store. We don’t use demographic studies or market research, instead we sit down as a group and each of us presents a list of the woodworkers we really want to meet, shake…

One of the sure signs of getting old is finding out that the kid who works in the next cubicle never heard of the TV show “WKRP in Cincinnati.” Another sign is remembering something that is taken for granted today was at one time brand spanking new. Our web guy wasn’t even born in 1982…

Another video on sharpening? Ugh! No, wait…this one’s kinda different. In fact, this video isn’t about the cutting edge of the chisel. What?! It’s true. “Chisel Sharpening with Harrelson Stanley” is about the ergonomics of the body and its relationship to the chisel. Japanese tool and sharpening expert Harrelson Stanley discusses how to hold your…

I’m not a hand tool guy. There, I’ve said it. If I can find a way to use a power tool, I will. That said, I, like most woodworkers, do use hand tools on a regular basis. My experience has been that most woodworkers who have an aversion to hand tools (like me) weren’t taught…

I’m focusing on basic skills in PW. Know that this isn’t news from the mountain top, but rather my very real commitment to fundamentals in my own shop. “Fundamentals” could mean different things to different people. Here’s what the word means to me: My goal is to: 1) Be able to measure and mark rough…

Anyone who has glued up a few doors knows how frustrating it can be attempting to build assemblies that turn out both flat and square. As I’m working on a cabinet article for the April issue of the magazine, I’m happy to have a few quick jigs on hand that make the process much less…

By Nick Engler Pages: 45-52 From the June 2004 issue #141 Buy this issue now Routers were developed to cut moulded shapes in wood. Although their workshop role has expanded (greatly) during the last century to include joinery and other operations, moulding is still what they do best. They remain the chief woodworking tools for…

By Nick Engler Pages: 49-56 From the April 2004 issue #140 Buy this issue now Woodworkers have been building boxes for at least 5,000 years. For much of that period, boxes were made using a single chunk of wood with the insides dug out to create a cavity. That’s because up until about 600 or…

By Nick Engler Pages: 49-56 From the February 2004 issue #139 Buy this issue now Although routers were originally designed to create moulded shapes, they can be excellent joinery tools. In fact, they’re better in some ways than table saws, professional-quality mortisers or dado cutters when it comes to cutting joints. There are several reasons…

By David Thiel Pages: 45-52 From the December 2005 issue #152 Buy this issue now In chapter three of our continuing look at case construction we’re going to take a look at many of the most practical joinery possibilities for building casework furniture. As you might imagine, this is a huge topic. Casework runs the…

By David Thiel Pages: 49-56 From the November 2005 issue #151 Buy this issue now In this chapter of our series on case construction we focus on the materials that make up the boxes-within-boxes that are casework. We’ll discuss using solid wood versus plywood, and discuss the properties, both pro and con, for each. Along…

By David Thiel Pages: 53-60 From the October 2005 issue #150 Buy this issue now To open our seven-part series on casework construction it’s probably smart to include the definition of casework. “Webster’s Dictionary” (Random House Value Publishing) gives it a one-word definition: cabinetwork. I think that’s both a little too complicated and simplistic at…

By Nick Engler Pages: 45-52 From the August 2005 issue #149 Buy this issue now In this chapter I’ll be sharing some advanced techniques you can use on your table saw to do some amazing things. How about cutting coves for crown moulding? That’s just one application for a coved shape, and with a couple…

By Nick Engler Pages: 45-52 From the June 2005 issue #148 Buy this issue now Although the table saw was invented to cut large boards into smaller ones, that’s not all it will do. With the proper accessories, you can use it to cut a variety of woodworking joints, and an astonishing number of simple…

By Nick Engler Pages: 49-56 From the April 2005 issue #147 Buy this issue now In Chapter 3 of this series we discussed basic joinery on the table saw, including miters, bevels, rabbets, dados and grooves. In this chapter we’re going to take those concepts a step further. Essentially we’ll be using the same techniques….

By Nick Engler Pages: 49-56 There are dozens of table saw accessories you can mount on your machine to make it safer, more accurate or extend its capacity. Some can be purchased, others can be made by you. By carefully choosing these options, you can soup up your old table saw or customize a new…

By Scott Gibson Pages: 49-56 From the December 2006 issue #159 Buy this issue now In a much earlier era, cabinetmakers didn’t spend much time worrying about where to put machines in their shops. They didn’t have much to work with. A small shop might have had a communal lathe turned by an apprentice, but…

By Bill Stankus Pages: 45-52 From the November 2006 issue #158 Buy this issue now When the workshop has proper lighting, sufficient electrical power and plenty of outlets it is a safer and better work environment. Whether you are building a new free-standing shop or adapting a garage or basement for your woodshop, determining a…

  By David Thiel Pages: 45-52 From the October 2006 issue #157 Buy this issue now Most woodworkers back their way into woodworking, gathering tools and equipment slowly. Because of this fact most woodworkers also grow their woodworking space slowly as well. They may start out with a corner of the garage or basement dedicated…

By David Thiel Pages: 41-48 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now Over the past six chapters of this primer on Casework Construction we’ve focused on how case pieces are built: the joinery, materials and construction techniques that are unique to this type of woodworking. And we’ve also looked at the doors,…

By David Thiel Pages: 45-52 From the June 2006 issue #155 Buy this issue now Whether your casework is a bookcase, kitchen cabinet or highboy, the hardware you use to prop up the shelves, hang the doors or make the drawers slide smoothly can make or break the look and function of the finished piece….

By David Thiel Pages: 45-52 From the April 2006 issue #154 Buy this issue now Casework, by its very nature, exists for storage. That storage can range from china to rare books, or simply be a place for your children to store their puzzles or you to file your bills. Regardless of the ultimate purpose,…

By David Thiel Pages: 45-52 From the  February 2006 issue #153 Buy this issue now What are we talking about when we say “smart assembly?” In previous chapters, we’ve discussed a couple of issues that can complicate casework: proper material preparation and choosing the proper joint to make the strongest furniture. Another place to trip…

By Marc Adams Pages: 43-44, 53-56 From the December 2007 issue #166 Buy this issue now I recently ran into an old woodworking friend of mine who had his hand all bandaged up, and the first thing he told me was: “I have new respect for my router table.” He went on to say that…

By Marc Adams Pages: 45-48, 53-56 From the November 2007 issue #165 Buy this issue now We’ve all heard the joke about the woodworker in a bar who holds up two fingers to order four beers. Or the one about “What does a woodworker do with the third hole on a bowling ball?” I can’t…

By Scott Gibson Pages: 41-48 From the August 2007 issue #163 Buy this issue now It’s tempting to think of sawdust as little more than a nuisance, a housekeeping problem like mud tracked across a clean kitchen floor. Sawdust is more ominous than that. It does seem to get in every nook and cranny in…

By Christopher Schwarz Pages: 41-48 From the June 2007 issue #162 Buy this issue now When it comes to building or buying a bench, most woodworkers get wrapped up in what form it should take. Should it be a continental bench popularized by Frank Klausz? A Shaker bench like the one at the Hancock community?…

By Scott Gibson Pages: 45-52 From the April 2007 issue #161 Buy this issue now It takes more than a room full of tools to make a productive woodworking shop. Along with stationary power tools and a collection of handplanes and chisels comes a diverse list of materials that must be kept on hand and…

By Scott Gibson Pages: 45-52 From the February 2007 issue #160 Buy this issue now ?Many of us plan our workshops around big things – workbenches, table saws, planers and jointers. It’s a challenge to arrange these large tools so the shop is efficient and comfortable, especially when space is limited. But as we ponder…

A Better Way to Work: Part 6 By Marc Adams Pages: 51-56 From the August 2008 issue #170 Buy this issue now When I started woodworking, owning a planer was just a dream. They were big, expensive and power-hungry machines that were not well suited for the small shop or hobbyist market. At the time…

A Better Way to Work: Part 5 By Marc Adams Pages: 43-48 From the June 2008 issue #169 Buy this issue now I once toured a very large custom cabinetmaking shop and noticed that they had no band saws. When I asked the owner what his reason was for not having one of these saws,…

A Better Way to Work: Part 4 By Marc Adams Pages: 47-54 From the April 2008 issue #168 Buy this issue now Power miter saws, for the most part, are saws of our generation. They were first introduced to the hobbyist market in the mid-1970s but really took off in the 1980s. They have become…

A Better Way to Work: Part 3 By Marc Adams Pages: 41-56 From the February 2008 issue #167 Buy this issue now One of the very first lessons of working wood is how to “S4S” a board – surface it on all four sides. One small caveat to the process is that the board also…

If you look at the video I made about buying lumber, you can see how I approach that task. If the piece were more complicated, I would have had my cut list in hand. The most important part of the video is at the end. I have all the raw materials I need, I’ve checked…

By Nick Engler Pages: 45-52 From the December 2004 issue #145 Buy this issue now There are three basic saw cuts: crosscuts, rips and miters. Crosscuts are made perpendicular to the wood grain, rips are cut parallel to the grain and miters are made at angles diagonally across the grain. None of these requires elaborate…

By Nick Engler Pages: 49-56 From the November 2004 issue #144 Buy this issue now Your table saw is the central piece of machinery in your shop, and the blade (or more appropriately – blades) is a critical aspect of the ease and accuracy of your work. A top-quality blade mounted on a medium-quality saw…

By Nick Engler Pages: 53-60 From the October 2004 issue #143 Buy this issue now Few tools have revolutionized a craft as much as table saws have changed woodworking. These saws saved tedious hand work and – beyond making single pieces – made it possible to precisely reproduce parts quickly and accurately. This affected how…

By Nick Engler Pages: 41-48 From the August 2004 issue #142 Buy this issue now The router is an amazing tool that can mimic many of the other tools in your shop, including the table saw, the shaper, the jointer and even the planer. But it’s also capable of amazingly delicate profile work, complicated joinery…

Popular Woodworking Senior Editor Robert W. Lang visits Frank Miller Lumber to select the stock for his Craftsman Bookcase, the August 2008 cover project.

Robert Lang heads to Frank Miller Lumber in Union City, Indiana, where he explains how to purchase wood for your project. He also visits with FML Outlet Store Manager Josh Brennen who demonstrates a few differences in wood selection, and tells us all about quartersawn white oak. – Tom Nunlist If you liked this video,…

Among the most often-asked questions we get are about buying lumber for a project. Although it seems to be a very basic question, and knowledgeable folks like us should have a quick answer, it isn’t as simple as going to the grocery store for ingredients for a meal. When you buy hardwood lumber, you’re not…

One of my favorite tasks in the shop is making solid-wood tabletops. Over the years I’ve made quite a few, and I’ve developed some methods that remove most of the risks and drudgery that spoil the fun. If you’re not careful, it’s easy to make some mistakes that will leave you wishing you had used…

I’m getting about a letter a day from people interested in building (or taking me to task) for the Roubo-style workbench shown in Issue 4. Reader Dan Chaffin, a furniture maker in Louisville, Ky., had three good questions about the base, then bench stop and the holdfasts that have come up a few times with…