They’re the next best thing to a giant assembly table. Maybe better! The next time you need a sturdy, level work surface, I’ve got the perfect solution for you: sawhorses and a pair of torsion beams. Torsion beams are incredibly strong and will always be dead straight; they’re easy to make and inexpensive. But best…

Crosscut sleds have been around for a long time, but few are ideal. Many are heavy and hard to store. Most develop an extra-wide saw cut in the fence and allow the blade to throw sawdust in your face. My design solves all these problems.

An 18th-century French workbench is quite possibly the most perfect design ever put to paper. In the 18th century it was common for the workrooms and living areas of a home to share the same space. A workbench, for example, would not be out of place in the front room of the house. This small…

Vacuum attachments are a challenge to store. They come in so many shapes! I made this device to keep them all together, within easy reach. It’s just a long chain with shorter lengths of chain branching out from it. Each branch has a 3″ to 4″ length of 1/2″ dowel fastened to its end. The…

After roughly shaping the awl’s handle (read the first part of the story here) on the bandsaw, I clamped it inside my Pattern Maker’s Carving Vise and began shaping the neck. This vise is the perfect tool for holding tapered shapes and any blank with unusual facets. If you don’t have a dedicated vise, you…

Hardware-store parts do the trick. This simple leg vise is based on a traditional design still favored by many woodworkers. My version is built with inexpensive parts you can buy from any hardware store or home center. Every bench should have a good vise. Why use a leg vise, rather than a commercial face vise?…

It is fun to make a tool for your own use. When that tool becomes one of the handiest tools in the shop, you’ll be delighted that you took up that challenge. On the many occasions you hold it in your hand and mobilize it into action, you’ll look fondly at it and be proud…

Based on watchmaker and spool cabinets, this project is a great way to hone your hand tool skills. Project #2213 • Skill Level: Advanced • Time: 7 Days • Cost: $300 One of my favorite ways to spend my lunch hour is to pop into any one of the dozen antique and thrift stores within a…

  Bodger and blacksmith Don Weber shows how to effectively combine power and hand-tool techniques to build a simple and sturdy toolbox. Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the April 2005 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine. I’m a bodger and a blacksmith, making tables and chairs in iron and wood. When I’m not in…

Make your own light-duty one-handed workholding wonders. Like most workshops, mine is well-populated with spring clamps, the ubiquitous tool for applying localized pressure with one hand while holding the workpiece (or workpieces) with the other. But one of the most intractable problems is the need for either gentle holding pressure or a much greater throat…

Most of us have used, at some point, a pegboard to organize our tools. In fact, a few years ago, I reclaimed a hanging pegboard toolbox (a colleague of mine discarded it) and have been using it ever since. While pegboard hanging is not a rock-solid way to support heavy tools, it does provide a…

Separate, sort, and see your collection With just five different parts to make, this easy-to-build caddy accommodates bits with both 1/2″ and 1/4″ shafts. It can be customized to handle just about any collection. Long bits have plenty of room on the top shelf. The caddy stands solidly on its wide base, stores easily on…

I have two kinds of push sticks I use all the time. The first is the excellent Big Horn 10230 orange plastic push stick which is good for anything wider than ⅞” (otherwise, you’ll be risking grooving its sole). The Big Horn stick has a handy spring-loaded heel that adjusts to the thickness of the…

The bench hook is without question one of the most indispensable tools in my wood shop. The force of gravity and the force of using the tool up against a solid fence is all that it takes to keep the work from moving. It’s deceptively sophisticated and exceptionally simple to make. It’s a great choice…

Router table cabinets can be a waste of space. This compact, vise-mounted unit stores easily and is just the right size. I think it might have been seeing a $1,000 router table setup at a recent woodworking show (it’s very cool, but $1,000?). Or maybe it was realizing that our shop’s router table’s cabinet mostly…

A notched batten is one of the best jigs you can make to help in hand planning. This simple thin hardwood strip has a hoof-shaped notch at its end and is used to prevent boards from shifting during planing. The way it works is pretty simple. First, tuck your board against the bench’s planing stop,…

Make your own copy of this precision vintage tool. Even after two years of working alone, I can still hear the visitors to my museum shop where I worked for 20 years: “My grandpa was a carpenter….” It’s a line I heard a lot. I used to wish for a secret button I could step…

I needed an easy-access storage unit that wouldn’t take up a lot of room but would hold a large number of tools. My solution was a wall-hung tool cabinet with slide-out vertical pegboard drawers. I used 2′ x 4′ sheets of pegboard and a sheet of 3⁄4” oriented strand board (OSB). The outside dimensions of…

Cut perfect circles up to 4′ across! Have you ever tried to cut a circle on a bandsaw, freehand? It’s quick, but it sure isn’t exact. Dollars to doughnuts you’ll get flat spots or bumps that are a pain to sand out. Big circles are really tough to get right. Fortunately, there’s a clever solution….

This sandpaper storage system is about as simple as it gets. It’s just a stack of folded envelopes bound with a big rubber band. Each envelope is marked with a grit number. A thin piece of wood on the bottom of the pile keeps the envelopes flat. Standard letter-size envelopes work well. Fold and tape…

Modern hardware and techniques update this Tage Frid-inspired bench. Scandinavian- or Continental-style workbenches are the vinyl LP records of the woodworking world. These iconic benches have never left the scene. A few are classics and others are the flavor of the month. Some benches in this style are masterworks and some are poor approximations of…

A single cable provides 120-volt and 240V service. Every article I’ve seen describing the wiring of a shop for both 120 volts and 240V uses separate cables for each voltage, which is a significant waste of time, effort and cable. Here I describe how a single cable can be used to provide both 120V and…

They’re cheap! All you need is some PVC and plastic laminate. A central dust collection system is a big improvement to any shop, but the cost can really add up. With commercial gates going from $4 to over $50 each, building your own can help lower the bill. I make my own gates from a…

  I built a deep drawer for my workbench so I would have lots of storage, but it created another problem. The tools I wanted were always at the bottom of the heap. I solved my frustration by adding an upper and lower tray. The upper tray slides forward or backward on top of the…

Cut mortises of any width and length in stock of virtually any size. Here’s a win-win proposition: Spend a day in your shop and turn your drill press into a mortising machine. This fixture makes it easy to cut mortises in multiples for doors, tables and frames. It has four components: a fixed base, a…

This functional form is an ideal intro to the Shaker Style. Learn how to make this useful project, all while sharpening your hand tool skills.

Six great ideas for space-challenged woodworkers to get more out of their small shops.

Old glasses cases are great for protecting, containing and organizing small tools, scrapers and plane irons. I label the outside so I can see at a glance what’s inside each case. -John Rustan

Expert craftsman Tom Donahey shares his plans for an essential tool to work green wood. Few woodworking experiences are as sweet as working wood that’s just been split from a recently felled tree. Green wood is much easier to shape with hand tools than wood that’s been dried. It has a special character–a pungent odor…

For turning spindles, there’s nothing like having a  really long tool rest. You never have to move it! I made my own with parts from the hardware store. This rest is just a length of square steel tubing with a steel rod fastened to its top. The rod’s rounded surface makes it easy to slide…

After building an I Can Do That: Tool Rack , I wanted to have my planes accessible on the rack as well. So here’s my solution. Cut two pieces of oak into 1⁄2” x 3⁄4” pieces, one 2″ long and the other 3 3⁄8” long. Form a “T” by cutting a sliding dovetail with the…

Tool: LINK Wall Storage Shop Now  Manufacturer: RYOBI MSRP: $5.98+ Today we’re trying out the new RYOBI LINK system and seeing if it’s a good fit for woodworkers, or better for the general DIY type instead.  

Welcome to my home shop. It’s fairly small — about 14×24 and located in our finished basement. It houses my collection of hand tools, lathe, table saw, router table, drill press, band saw, and various smaller “benchtop” type tools.  While I spend most of my time at my bench with handtools, the first thing you…

Effective control for a notorious sawdust creator In addition to being versatile, accurate and virtually indispensable, my sliding miter saw also excels at spewing sawdust and resisting effective dust collection. I tried connecting a shop vacuum, but even when I remembered to turn it on, the vacuum only collected about half of the dust. I…

As it often happens with my ideas, the moment I start thinking about some type of innovation or another I gravitate to my sketchbook and try to evolve it on paper until I feel certain it has ripened enough and is ready to be built. But sometimes, at least with me, I have to force…

Simple joinery creates a compact cabinet with full-size storage.    When I spied an old machinist’s chest loaded with narrow drawers in my neighbor’s garage, I knew my small tools were finally going to have a permanent home. My version isn’t nearly as grand, but it’s just as useful, and it only took a couple…

As I mentioned last week, a common way to flatten a board that is too wide for your jointer is to build a planing sled and then pass the board & sled through the planer. Via incremental milling, the uneven top surface of the board will be flattened, and then you can flip the board…

“You can’t have too many clamps,” a wise cabinetmaker once said. That is certainly true, but in a small shop, you can easily run out of room to store them. On clamp is so different from another that no single rack can accommodate them all in a compact space. Most woodworkers benefit from a variety…

If you don’t own a big European style table saw or a large miter saw, and need to crosscut wide lumber at 90 degrees you will probably like my newly-built CCS (Cross-Cutting Square). This jig is easy to build and use. You can clamp it to your lumber or hold it down tightly with one…

Forget plastic or metal pans – a wooden one looks nicer and works better. Some time during the last 25 years of prowling around workshops, museums and antique stores, I spotted a wooden dustpan. The encounter made me slap my forehead – why do I have a plastic pan when I could build a wooden…

For accurate drilling, build an engineered table. Did you know that most drill press tables are made for metalworking? Woodworkers need a better table: it should have a broad surface, an easily adjustable fence with a stop, hold-downs, and replaceable inserts. I’ve studied many plans for a table with these features, but each one seems…

I own three bandsaws. Two are hand-me-downs from neighbors and the most recent arrival is a brand new Grizzly 17”  that I bought. The Grizzly is a great machine but like many of its peers, most of the bandsaw adjustment features are controlled by locking socket head cap screw, aka Allen screws. There is nothing…

  A few years ago I wrote about Ha-Khoret’s wooden bench vise and its embedded feature which prevents the notorious jaw racking syndrome. Vise racking happens when clamping a workpiece on the right (or left side) of the jaws, and while tightening the screw, the moving jaw pivot in the opposite direction. This condition prevents…

Last week I showed how to make wooden scales for a marking knife’s blade, then glue them in place, and this week we will see the culmination of this project.  After removing the clamps I held the knife between a vise’s jaws and filed down the brass pins until they were flush with the scales. …

Read part 2 here There are plenty of high-quality marking knives on the market. Some have plastic handles, others come with wooden handle scales, and a third kind is just a simple thin piece of steel that was ground to an arrowhead geometry. Recently I found yet another option – a kit made of a…

Combine power and hand tools to improve your joinery skills Building a toolbox much like this one was a real turning point in my woodworking career. It was 1999 and I had begun classes at Boston’s North Bennet Street School’s Cabinet and Furniture Making program. At the time, I was a pretty good carpenter and…

The single most important hand-tool appliance is 3 sticks of wood. Owning a backsaw without owning a bench hook is like riding a bicycle without handlebars. This simple hand-tool appliance (three sticks of wood) uses the force of the tool and gravity to hold your work as you saw. And it helps guide your tool…

After milling the parts for the shelf’s frame, rabbiting them, and cutting the miters, (read the first part of this story here) I connected them to the legs with screws. I found out that the geometry of the shelf was closer to a trapezoid than a square or a rectangle. Plus, even if I could…

Build a modern workbench using digital woodworking tools The Maker Workstation Overview • Building The Top • Building The Base •  Furniture & Accessories • CNC Instructions If you’re a CNC user who would like to build a Maker Workstation, this article is for you. Since CNCs come in a wide range of sizes, capabilities,…

Build a dedicated setup that creates perfect joints every time. Imagine routing perfect box joints whenever you want, without having to waste time setting up your router table. This notion may seem half-baked, because box joints can be fussy to fit. But it isn’t! This jig allows you to go directly from milling the parts…

Six years ago my neighbor and friend Dave gifted me his vintage Sears Craftsman 12” band saw. I love this machine and use it quite a lot. Sears used to make these saws and sell them mainly to hobbyists and amateur woodworkers, but should not be disregarded by serious woodworkers; this machine is quite reliable…

Transform your workbench with custom-fit workholding – without any fuss. For many woodworkers, especially those of the Galoot persuasion, a workbench with a tail vise of some sort is a fundamental necessity. These vises are integral to most European-style benches, and there are now extraordinary aftermarket options, some of which I own. But what are…

Storage and utility in just the right size. It’s often said that a shop layout is never truly complete. While that may be true, I have discovered a valuable asset in my shop that can move and adapt to changing layouts. I’ve been testing a mobile shop cart over the last several years to make…

Customize their fit for comfort and performance. Decades ago, woodturning tools came without handles, and turners would simply fashion their own. This makes perfect sense, because a handle that fits and feels “right” gives a turner confidence. And who better to custom-fit the handle than the person who’ll use the tool? Turning and installing your…

Accessories = Versatility The Maker Workstation Overview • Building The Top • Building The Base • Furniture & Accessories • CNC Instructions A key feature of the Maker Workstation is versatility. What makes it work is the precision grid system that’s the foundation for all that happens on the surface, sides, and base of the…

One Workstation. Two Bases to Choose From The Maker Workstation Overview • Building The Top • Building The Base • Furniture & Accessories • CNC Instructions When designing the maker workstation, a goal was to make sure the top would work on different kinds of bases, sawhorses, or other stable platforms.  The workstation top is a…

A Hybrid Construction Method that Imitates a CNC The Maker Workstation Overview • Building The Top • Building The Base • Furniture & Accessories • CNC Instructions This the first of five online articles on building the Maker Workstation featured in the June 2021 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.  This is an extended version of the…

A modern workbench system Project #2109 • Skill Level: Beginner • Time: 1 Week • Cost: $400 The Maker Workstation Overview • Building The Top • Building The Base • Furniture & Accessories • CNC Instructions Most workbenches come with a little history. This history is personal. My very first woodworking project was Tom Casper’s clever…

Sponsored by Shaper Tools. Cutting dovetails with Shaper Origin and Workstation is a very precise and adaptable process you can use on all kinds of casework, drawers, boxes and more. See how we built an Adventure Chest in the video below. You can learn more about Shaper Origin and Workstation at shapertools.com. You can download…

This reproduction is a fun build and a great gift for a budding woodworker. Project #1922 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 3 days • Cost: $200 “Hand and heart lead to life.” was an early motto of the North Bennet Street Industrial School (NBIS), now called the North Bennet Street School (NBSS). Founded in…

Is it necessary? And if so, what are the best techniques? Like any tool or machine, a workbench requires accessories (jigs, fixtures, appliances) and occasional maintenance to actually do anything of great value. A bench without a bench hook is a dining table. A bench with a cupped work surface is an exercise in bewilderment…

As easy to use as it is to build. Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the March 2008 issue of American Woodworker. Adjusting for inflation, the correct title would be “$121.49 Router Table” Sometimes, less really is more. Take router tables for instance. It’s not at all difficult to ring up a $1000 tab…

It’s accurate, easy to use and built to last. There are all manner of drill press tables and fences, from a simple 2×4 clamped to the machine’s cast iron table to ones with gadgets and gizmos galore. The latter is not my style, so when the time came to replace my drill press table the…

While building this little station to organize my cordless-drill paraphernalia, I discovered that bicycle hooks make great drill holders. Mounting the station on the wall saves valuable benchtop space. Now I never have to hunt for my drills, chargers, and bits. –Hans Wendt        

Sharpen your hand-tool skills with this useful project. I recently obtained a nice piece of leather about 1⁄4” thick that I wanted to use as a strop for plane irons and chisels. And, I was looking for a simple hand-tool project. So I decided to make a “strop box” in the Queen Anne style. The…

Building this handmade saw cabinet employs vital hand tool techniques with an emphasis on dovetail, dado and mortise and tenon joinery.

Tool: The Orginal Saddlebag Buy Now Manufacturer: Texas Heritage MSRP: $80 I’m a fan of having my tools out and at hand in the workshop. It’s easy enough to mount the saws to the wall, whip up a chisel rack and tuck the planes on a shelf, but the small items rarely have a good spot…

Simple Router Table While many woodworkers spend weekends making stationary router tables, mine have always been very simple, driven by expediency, and the desire to get other things done. My first was just a router base screwed to the underside of a piece of plywood. I simply clamped the plywood to a workbench, installed the…

Shop-Made Rocker Jaw One simple board, cut into the shape of a seesaw, can make a huge improvement to your vise. It allows you to firmly hold tapered work and long, upright boards off to the side of the vise. For a tapered piece, such as the leg shown here, place the rocker in the…

Learn how to make compound-angle dovetails building this handy stool and portable tool box. For my job as a trim carpenter and furnituremaker, I’ve always needed a sturdy stool to stand on. I’ve also wanted to make a nice box for carrying my tools and a small workbench for cutting molding. While perched on an…

To Get the most from my limited shop space, I built a two-sided “mobile tool wall” to park in front of my overhead garage door. The wall is just basic carpentry construction, with a 3/4″ plywood bottom and bracing, a stud wall with perf-board panels on both sides, and heavy-duty 4″ casters. When I need…

Simple design. Sturdy construction. Every shop needs a pair of trusty sawhorses. I like ones that are easy to build and easy to store away. These sawhorses definitely fit that bill, and nest together quite well, too. This unique design is within reach of any woodworker and doesn’t require many tools to build.  The wood…

A good lathe stand is just as important as a good lathe. Build a professional-quality lathe stand that’s stable, strong and heavy.

Carrying plywood by yourself is a pain. This caddy allows you to roll it around instead. Just clamp this caddy to the board’s edge, tip the sheet down onto the wheels and off you go.

Plastic bins are excellent for storing hardware and other small items. After purchasing all the types and sizes of bins I needed, including some complete cabinets, I made this shelf unit to neatly house them in one place. –A.J. Hamler

26 drawers for tools and supplies. My beat-up garage-sale seven-drawer metal tool cabinet was an eyesore. I wanted something bigger and better, but mostly I wanted something that looked like it belonged in a woodworking shop. Online I found a wooden version that fit the bill, but at $5,000 it was far too expensive. After…

Tool: 3pc Handyman Tool Belt Set [Buy Now]  and Padded Suspenders [Buy Now] Manufacturer: ToughBuilt MSRP: $39.99 (belt) 14.99 (suspenders) The first thing I noticed when taking the ToughBuilt Tool Belt out of the packaging was the quality of the materials and construction. The fabric was heavy-duty, the seams and stitching were even, and there was no…

This hybrid design holds work any which way you want it to. Good design is little more than selective thievery. This workbench is a good example of that. A combination of features from several historic forms, ranging from the Roubo to the Workmate, becomes a new form, suited to being the center of a modern…

Build a small workbench with full-sized features for a budding woodworker. “The bench is probably the most important item in the workshop.” Those are Charles H. Hayward’s first words in his article “Fitting up the workshop: the bench.” As a woodworking vise manufacturer and bench maker, I couldn’t agree more. Tons of ink has been…

Like all of our I Can Do That! projects, this router bit storage case is designed to be useful, easy to build and made from inexpensive materials.

Make your ‘MegaSled’ into a shop workhorse.  Previously, we built the MegaSled – a table saw sled designed to accommodate a series of joinery jigs. The jigs and attachments I cover in this article are just the beginning – and with them, you can cut flawless finger joints, tenons, lap and bridle joints, and even…

Make accurate and safe crosscuts with ease – and set the stage for clever accessories Most power-tool woodworkers have at least one table saw sled. And while a sled can make your work safer and more accurate, a well-thought-out sled can also do much more. Sometimes I call this one the “MegaSled,” other times the…

A simple-to-build tote, perfect for tool and supplies transport. I designed this stacking tool caddy to hold small parts and a few tools. It’s comprised of three tool trays that stack and interlock together to form a single unit that can be carried wherever needed. Best of all, it stores my screws, nails and small tools…

From the Middle Ages until the dawn of the 20th century, wooden planes were the dominant bench plane form in the Western world. But when I started woodworking (in the hand-tool dark ages of the late 20th century), this traditional form seemed practically extinct. As I became interested in planemaking, I found plenty of information…

It won’t solve a tool addiction, but it’ll make finding tools easier. You’ve no doubt seen photos of the H.O. Studley tool cabinet – the Sistine Chapel of tool cabinets. And as far as I’m concerned, Studley got it right. Yes, his tool chest is a work of art and all that, but more importantly,…

This handle design is a safety improvement over commercial versions. Let’s face it: Many of us all too often see safety as…well, just plain boring. We always seem to be anxious to use that little bit of free time to get to the shop and work on that next pressing project for our spouse, kids…

With this inviting and accessible setup, there’s no excuse for dull blades. The ability to keep tools sharp is a most important woodworking skill – that’s why I have a dedicated sharpening station in each of my classrooms, readily available for my students. Many woodworkers think of sharpening as drudgery, right up there with sanding….

Don’t reinvent the wheel when storing your tools. A proper chest is still the best. When I tell people that I’ve worked out of a traditional tool chest for 15 years, they look at me as if I’m someone who has not yet discovered the joys of indoor plumbing. They say, “Haven’t you tried a…

Historic proportions and details are still the best. Since I started woodworking in about 1993, I’ve stored my tools in almost every way imaginable – from plastic buckets to wall cabinets, racks and a variety of tool chests. Read about how the lid was built here. After exploring each of these methods, I kept coming…

Great shop storage isn’t always built using plywood. As I look around my shop, or most woodworking shops, I see cabinets built with plywood and screws. But there are other options. I decided to change things up and make a shop cabinet using hardwoods, and to use the project to experiment with a couple of…

Whether I’m working in the shop, remodeling or performing routine maintenance around the house, I am in constant need of a sturdy, lightweight worktable. The most popular one for, oh, the past 2,000 years, has been a pair of sawhorses with a board on top. But the older I get, the shorter the fuse on…

On April 21, 1868, the United States Patent Office issued Patent Number 76,884 to Wessel Brodhead for an improvement to the field of carpenters’ marking gauges. Brodhead developed a tool that used a simple, elegant method for securing the bar to the head or fence of a marking gauge. Instead of the more common thumbscrew…

Store all the tools you need in easy reach If I were to make three lists – the tools I want, the tools I own and the tools I need – the last would be the shortest. When I decided to build a wall cabinet for my hand tools, I put my most-used tools close…

Whenever I work on a project, I end up with my handsaws scattered about the shop. I thought about storing them under my bench, but my bad back keeps me from being able to easily bend down, so it was sometimes difficult to tell which saw I was grabbing. Putting the saw back into my…

One of the first tools I bought was a 9″ steel try square with a brass and rosewood stock. Like a supermodel, it’s nice to look at, but not so fun to deal with day-to-day. Its blade is too short, it rusts when you look at it and it chews up the backs of my…

This sawhorse/workbench combo is made using dimensional pine construction lumber from a home center. It’s rugged and inexpensive, with no complicated joinery – just butt joints, glue and screws. While my sawhorse bench is perfect for taking along to a job site, its versatility makes it equally handy in the shop. Sawhorses and workbenches are…

Cutting dovetails by hand is supposed to be an orderly, precise process. But when you’re in the thick of it, it’s all too easy to end up with a bench littered with stray tools and precious little free space left over for the actual work. I built this station to keep all my tools in…

This useful tool is easy to make, easy on the eyes and awesome to use. Wooden layout tools usually are superior to metal ones in my opinion. They are lightweight, inexpensive and as accurate as woodworking requires. Period. A 36″-long wooden straightedge can easily be trued to be as accurate as a metal machinist’s straightedge,…

I was looking for a safer way to use my trim router for everyday chores around the shop. My solution was to build a router table that hangs off the end of my bench on a French cleat. When I’m not using the router table, I store it under the end of the bench on…

Unique because of its appearance and easy to build because it’s constructed using basic woodworking techniques, this two-part cabinet provides copious storage and signals the work—and the shop—of a true craftsman. The two cabinets share the same features and joinery, so building them simultaneously offers economy when milling the parts. But either cabinet would make…

Whenever I make a right angle cut on my tablesaw, I use a sled. If I’m cutting large panels, I use a big crosscut sled. I pull out a smaller sled for rails and legs. To cut tenons with a dado blade, I use a third sled, one with a 3/4″ wide slot already cut…

Whether you’re using it for woodworking tools or garden tools, a tote is a simple and quick project. It’s so simple, in fact, that I decided to add a wee degree of difficulty with a curved handle secured in place by wedged through-tenons. And, I wrapped the handle with suede for a more comfortable and…

Close your eyes and picture it: your entire shop organized, a place for every tool, never struggling to find your cardscraper when you need it, and a stress-free day of woodworking. Sound like a dream? Not anymore! Finally get your shop organized just the way you want it. Swing-Out Plywood Storage I was looking for…

Machinists and mechanics keep their small tools in a chest with shallow drawers. I do, too—except mine is custom-built, sized to exactly fit what I want to keep close at hand. And it’s more than a merely functional metal box: Made from figured cherry, matched all around, my tool chest is a daily reminder that…

Swiped from a French engraving, this easy tool rack works in your shop or even in your kitchen. It’s good to keep your tools protected (think: tool chest). But it’s also good to keep them handy (think: at arm’s reach). My favorite way to accomplish both goals is a stout tool rack. I’ve made many…

This 3-cabinet unit is designed to organize and store finishing supplies ranging from flammable liquids to Q-tips in ways that makes them easy to access and (just as important!) easy to put back. To avoid clutter, it’s designed to limit whatever is being stored to one layer deep. Safely storing flammable liquids (a requirement in…

A word about Plywood I used 3/4″ thick Baltic Birch for this cabinet. It has a thicker, more durable veneer than typical plywood. Like all plywood, however, 3/4″ doesn’t mean 3/4″. For example, Baltic Birch is typically 11/16″ thick. Whatever plywood you use, check its thickness and adjust your dimensions accordingly. Also, Baltic Birch comes…

“Have chisel, will travel.” As an itinerant carver, teaching classes here and there, I’ve always wanted a bench that I could store in a small space, carry around by hand and set up without any fuss. And, of course, be sturdy enough to carve on. This bench fits the bill in every way. It breaks…

Designed to work closely with your bench, this toolbox keeps your tools organized and close at hand, but out of the way of your project. By making it the same height as your bench, it also works as an outrigger for breaking down plywood and supporting large work. The cabinet features full-extension drawers without the…

A storage tray is a useful addition to any stationary tool. After adding this one to my tablesaw, I don’t know how I ever did without it. I made the tray about 3″ deep, just deep enough to store the essentials lower than the surface of my saw, but shallow enough to keep items from…

The modern router didn’t arrive on the scene fully evolved; it descended from a hand-powered tool called the router plane. A quick glance at the router plane’s handles – and the tasks for which it was used – makes the family resemblance clear. Though these tools went out of favor in the woodworking trades long…

A welded base provides tons of strength for a versatile platform. Project #2003 • Skill Level:Intermediate • Time: 2 days • Cost: $250 My shop is a 12×24, one-car garage. I’ve fought (myself mostly) to optimize every square foot of that space to create a shop I enjoy spending time in and doesn’t leave me…

This project looks pretty simple, doesn’t it? It’s just a box with two sides and a few shelves. It’s got a curved drawer, too—which isn’t so simple—but let’s skip that for the moment. As I started building a prototype, I thought, “This is just normal cabinetmaking.” As it turns out, this cabinet isn’t normal at…

So tell me—how many jigs do you have scattered around your shop? Is it true that a guy can’t have too many, just like you can’t have too many clamps? Well, here’s one that I’ll bet you haven’t seen before. I designed it to make a corrugated lamp reflector, but when I was done, I…

Many woodworking tools, like the saw, chisel and plane, go way, way back. We’ve no idea who invented them or who refined them. This jig is one of those anonymous acts of genius. How in the world did somebody come up with such a neat idea? You spin an arm around and around, and instead…

While working on my pegboard cabinet and trying to integrate into it most of my frequently used tools I noticed that one of them, a Woodriver spokeshave, didn’t have a hanging hole. Hanging holes are quite a common feature on many tools, and are part and parcel of all the Stanley and Record cast iron…

An accurate combination square is the cornerstone of every layout work. It allows us to measure and mark joinery, and check for flatness and squareness of workpieces, setups and tools. I have a few squares and I treat them with respect, making sure that they would not get nicked by other tools or accidentally drop…

Read part 1 here and read part 2 here. As the design and construction of the rack was completed (see part one of the story) and after I  added the utility magnets and tried to hang the rack using the generic pegboard hooks (see part two) I came to the conclusion that my work was…

Read part 1 here and read part 3 here. As I was about to finish the rack, I began contemplating what would be the best way to hang it on the pegboard. One of the most abundant pegboard hooks in my arsenal  is a simple angled hook that fits into a pegboard hole and send…

Read part 2 here and read part 3 here. The pegboards hanging system was, and still is, one of the most common shop organizing platforms out there. It is a versatile system that is easy to organize and reorganize, and it comes with lots of hanging hook options that can accommodate almost every tool with…

Get more out of your table saw with these four handy jigs. These simple jigs take advantage of the table saw’s speed and accuracy without tempting you to perform risky operations.

Check out these cheap and easy ideas to make the most of your small shop space.

“I was looking for a tool tote to set beside my shave horse when doing demos with the SCA East Kingdom Foresters Guild. I attached the cover with hinges and added tool slots for use when working. Chisels store in till when traveling.” –Bill Childs

Build these easy-to-make plywood show panels to display your woodwork. Woodworkers love to make things out of wood. Naturally, we like to share what we make. And, if you’re at it long enough, many of us start to think about showing and maybe even selling your creations. Along with that big decision comes a long…

Zero-clearance throat inserts are a simple upgrade you can make to your table saw. Make your saw safer and achieve better cutting results with less hassle.

Resawing on the bandsaw allows you to cut logs into lumber, make thin boards from thick and cut your own veneer. Here’s how.

I’m excited to share that my traveling tool case is featured on the cover of the December issue of the magazine. If you are a subscriber, you should receive your copy in the coming days, I believe they’re out to the post office at this point. I first learned of this tool case design from Chris…

Upgrading tools is a really touchy subject. As a hobbyist/enthusiast there’s a fine balance between needs, desires, and budget. I can remember those nagging mantras…“buy once, cry once,” “buy your last tool, first,” “get the best money can buy.” That’s all great if you have an endless supply of cash burning a hole in your…

I needed to cut long boards on the table saw, but had only a small table for the outfeed and none for the infeed. So I built this handy infeed table using scrap plywood and a sawhorse, both of which I already had on hand. I drilled a hole in the center of the sawhorse…

When I lived in Maine, I had a wide array of projects and furniture that I wanted to build for our house. When it became clear, however, that we were going to move down here to Covington, Ky., I put the designs and wood aside, not wanting to build a bunch of furniture only to…

Tool storage – is it the most controversial subject in the craft? People have debated it. Great books have been dedicated to it. Philosophies have developed and wars fought over it (well, at least flame wars). I’m quite sure many woodworkers spend their entire woodworking careers pursuing it. Here, I’m going to put the subject to…

Shop-Built 3-Jaw-Chuck A cheap, effective turning tool.   Three-jaw lathe chucks are virtually indispensable for a turner, yet the cost of buying one can be prohibitive. Three-jaw chucks are useful when turning small pieces at low speed, and permit multi-axis turning. This shop-made chuck can be made from scraps of maple and a few machine…

Air Scrubber Trio Three shop-made machines that clear the air. By Ed Krause   Dust haze.Even if you have a dust collection system you’ve probably found yourself in the middle of it. This fine dust settles onto all the surfaces of your shop where it is a fire hazard (as well as a nuisance) and…

Folding Worktable This simple, roll-around worktable fits in tight spaces yet expands to a huge work surface. By David Radtke   Here’s a work space that’s huge and accessible from all sides, yet folds up and stows away easily. If you don’t have room for a full-size, permanent table for glue-up, assembly and finishing, this…

Ultimate Tool Stand An easy-to-use space saver with more functions than a Swiss army knife. By Dave Munkittrick For those of us who share shop space with a car or a washer and dryer, elbowroom is always a problem. This tool stand is the answer. A 2 ft.by 6-ft. section of floor space is all…

3 Classic Vises made with Pipe Clamps Increase your bench’s versatility on a budget. By Chad Stanton As a professional woodworker, leaving the comfort of my shop to work on a jobsite is part of the routine. I always take along a portable bench that’s equipped with three inexpensive vises made with pipe clamps. They’re…

Roll-Around Shop Cabinet This wooden cavern holds tons of tools, plus it doubles as a bench outrigger. By Ian Kirby For tough and intelligent tool storage, it’s hard to beat a professional mechanic’s tool chest. It has shallow full-extension drawers tailored to the tools inside, it rolls around, and it’s indestructible. However, in the woodworking…

Feature-Filled Router Table Fence This $50 fence can make your router table sing! By George Vondriska You can build this completely tricked-out router table fence in an afternoon for about 50 bucks, using easily available parts.Here’s what you get:• Flexibility. Tall or short, it’s easy to swap between the faces of this fence, so you…

Flammables Cabinet Keep your shop and family safe! Have you got finishing supplies scattered all over your shop? Concerned that they’re a fire hazard? Organize them into this cabinet built out of one sheet of plywood and you’ll sleep better at night. The basic purpose of a flammables storage cabinet might come as a surprise…

Tablesaw Storage Cabinet All of your tablesaw accessories close at hand By Eric Smith The last time I could find them all, I counted 18 accessories for my tablesaw. Dado set, push sticks, throat plates, extra blades, miter gauges, tenoning jig, wrenches, etc.—they’re all essential and they were all over the place. The problem is…

Chad's Sawhorse Workbench Stacking sawhorses serve a dual purpose. By Chad Stanton I usually need a pair of sawhorses when I'm working outside the shop, but sometimes I also need a bench. Here's both, rolled into one. The bench is actually a pair of sawhorses that stack to together. I recently designed some inexpensive vises,…

Chad's Stepbox Learn how to make compound-angle dovetails building this handy stool and portable tool box. Chad Stanton For my job as a trim carpenter and furnituremaker, I’ve always needed a sturdy stool to stand on. I’ve also wanted to make a nice box for carrying my tools and a small workbench for cutting molding….

Shopmade Handscrews Thread your own wooden screws. By Steven Bunn Even though I have a small fortune invested in tools, I always seem to be short of wooden handscrew clamps. But daydreaming about buying ten more of these versatile tools runs smack into the reality that such a purchase requires spending anywhere from $200 to…

Mobile Router Center This rolling router center has onboard storage for all your router components, folds into a tidy package, serves as an extra work surface and rolls out of the way when you're done! By George Vondriska   Use It! Click any image to view a larger version. Move It! Store It! Unfold It!…

Is Your Shop Too Small? Tips for making king-size projects in a pint-size shop. By George Vondriska n a recent poll of woodworkers, the most common complaint,by far, was that their shops were too small. Even one guy with 5,000 square feet thought he was cramped! In spite of that, most of us would like…

Compact Turning Center Put all your tools and accessories at your fingertips by building this storage rack. By Jim Williar I made turning on my lathe much more enjoyable by trimming out the metal stand that it came with. Now all my turning tools are right at my fingertips, thanks to the built-in tool storage…

I’ve turned hollow mortise chisels into square punches, refashioned chisels and their handles, made a number of scratch stocks, ground steel bar stock into embossing punches and a made a few other quick tools. And I’ve built a few wooden, Krenov-style handplanes over the years – I had a fine time and wound up with…

Tom’s Torsion Box Workbench This rock-solid workhorse is simply four easy-to-build 2×4-and-plywood boxes. By Tom Caspar Quick, cheap, solid. You can’t ask much more from a workbench, and this one delivers it all. Made of out nothing more than ordinary construction lumber, this durable, 250-lb.  heavyweight has all the features of a master cabinetmaker’s bench:…

The Grand Rossa A craftsman and artist transforms a stock piano into a Ferrari-inspired work of art. 28-year-old Justin Elliott, a craftsman from Florida, embarked on a journey eight years ago to enhance the appearance of the piano. To do so, he began designing and handcrafting custom piano legs using rare, superior species of wood…

Drill Caddy This drill caddy is compact, yet big enough to hold your cordless drill, an extra battery, and all the tools and fasteners you’ll need for any installation project. By Jan Carr Tired of rummaging around your shop to find what you need to hang a picture or put up a shelf? This drill caddy…

6 Storage Solutions You Can Build Into Any Cabinet By Bruce Kieffer You may also like… Modular Shop Cabinets Hyperorganize Your Shop Hold-Everything Tool Rack Sandpaper Roll Storage I use pressure-sensitive-adhesive (PSA) sanding discs. For easy access, I like to get them out of their packages and lined up by grit. I hang my rolls…

Dream Workbench A modern bench that features storage, stability and mobility By Dave Munkittrick Tired of working on a sheet of plywood thrown over a pair of sawhorses? Had it with rolling benches that wiggle and wobble? Hate running around your shop whenever you need a tool? Boy, do we have the bench for you….

Wedged-Base Workbench Tablesaw joinery locks it together. By Tim Johnson This workbench has a top ready for hard use. But it’s the base that catches your eye. The interlocking joinery, with its dovetails and wedges, is rock solid, yet it knocks down quickly for moving. Although it looks complicated, the base is surprisingly easy to…

Torsion-Box Workbench and Expandable Assembly Table Double your work space without doubling your shop space. By Randy Johnson and Luke Hartle In our shop, we used to pile tools, parts and hardware on top of a wobbly workbench made from 2x4s. When we had to glue a project together, we shoved everything aside. Finally, we…

Wooden Bar Clamps Shop-made clamps that deliver versatility and performance. By Dave Olson End your clamp shortage once and for all. These wooden clamps are easy to make, a joy to use and they exert plenty of clamping pressure. If you build them with scrap lumber, they cost less than half the cost of a…

Modular Shop Cabinets Euro-style construction makes them easy to build, easy to customize. By Bruce Kieffer In days gone by, apprentice cabinetmakers used to build their own tool chests. The chests were often works of art that both displayed the owner’s level of craftsmanship and provided practical storage for tools. These modular shop cabinets function…

Double-Duty Shop Stool It's all plywood, and only uses a half sheet. By Eric Smith A combination stool and work support? OK, it’s an odd pair, but in my crowded shop, it makes a lot of sense. Anything that takes up less room is a good idea! The stool’s seat is divided into three pieces….

Hardworking Horse and Cart ??Two great additions to any small shop. By Randy Johnson Do you spend a lot of time stacking, storing and pushing stuff around your small shop just to make room for the next phase of your project? Here are a couple of no-nonsense shop helpers that can make your small shop…

Plumb Your Shop with Air Flexible hose saves time and money By Richard Tendick Moments after I tripped over the air hose and dropped an armload of boards, I decided it was time to plumb my shop for air. I was tired of having 50 ft. of hose on the floor and dashing back to…

Dovetailed Tool Box Fill it, carry it, bang it around: These joints will last forever. By Seth Keller A lightweight, sturdy toolbox is perfect for odd jobs around the house. Carpenters used to make their own, just nailed together. I’ve built a more sophisticated design using two different dovetail joints. You may also like… Drill…

4-in-1 Screwdriver Buy the parts; turn the handle. By Alan Lacer You may also like… Surefire Marking Gauge Wooden Bar Clamps Double-Duty Lathe Cabinet You just can’t beat the look and feel of a beautifully turned handle. I love commercially made multiple-tip screwdrivers because they cut down on the clutter in my tool drawers. I…

Mobile Outfeed Tables Upgrade your tablesaw and save precious shop space with a pair of outfeed tables. By George Vondriska A tablesaw is a lot safer and easier to use when it’s equipped with an outfeed table. Whether you’re ripping long boards or crosscutting big sheets of plywood, you really need more support than just…

Power Sharpening System By Tom Caspar I’m crazy about sharp hand tools. When edges are perfect, these tools sing in your hands. When they’re dull, you might as well hang them up. I’ve been looking for the ultimate sharpening system for years, one that can quickly and accurately grind and hone a perfect edge. One…

Small Parts Carousel Put a spin on storing shop necessities. By Jeff Timm Here's a way to store all that indispensable small stuff that clutters your workshop. Based on a rotating bolt cabinet from an old-fashioned hardware store, this re-design rotates on inverted swivel casters. Easy to build, because there’s no complicated joinery, it's just…

Bandsaw Fence Our fence shines where commercial models fall short. By Richard Tendick Every bandsaw deserves a good fence. After all, a bandsaw is capable of doing much more than cutting curves. With a well-designed fence, you can accurately resaw boards into thinner pieces, rip warped rough lumber without worrying about kickback and precisely cut…

This is a model of a drill press table from the April 2012 Issue. View the SketchUp Model Buy the April 2012 Issue Purchase SketchUp Learning Products from Shopwoodworking.com View All SketchUp Models Purchase SketchUp Learning Products from Shopwoodworking.com

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…

Central Dust Collection Five simple rules for a dust-free shop By Dave Munkittrick Small, one-person shops don’t need complicated dust collection systems. We’ll show you how to get powerful collection at the lowest possible price without ever having to use a calculator. Even if your shop is shoehorned into a corner of your basement or…

Mobile Router Center This rolling router center has onboard storage for all your router components, folds into a tidy package, serves as an extra work surface and rolls out of the way when you're done! By George Vondriska A router table is one of the most versatile tools you can add to any shop. Whether…

Drill Press Table By Tom Caspar Standard drill press tables may be fine for metalworking, but they sure are frustrating to use in a woodshop. Attaching a fence with woodworking clamps is a pain in the neck; finding a clean backer board can be a real challenge; and building a contraption for your sanding drum…

Router Table Jointer Fence Edge joint long stock, thick stock, wide stock or man-made materials with this easy-to-build fence. By Rick McKee Is your shop too small to even think about squeezing in a jointer? Then do we have a project for you! And even if you already own a jointer, there are some things…

Bandsaw Table System This oversized table provides extra support for sawing or resawing plus the quick-set fence ends blade drift hassles. If you’ve ever been frustrated by your small bandsaw table, this project is for you. No more struggling to balance large pieces while making intricate cuts or resawing. Designed by George Vondriska, this two-part…

Last Friday afternoon we moved tons of stuff (literally) to our new shop and managed to get most of the big stuff set in place by the end of the day. The photo here will show you how things are shaping up and you can click on the photo to enlarge it for a better…

Here’s a great gift idea for the tech-savvy woodworker in your life. You can bring this CD right into the shop on your laptop computer and build these innovative and ingenious jigs! Learn to build more quickly & efficiently. Cut accurate joints in less time. Make safety a priority in the shop. Jigs are your…

Simple All-Purpose Shop Cabinets Organize your shop in a weekend, for less than $20 per cabinet! By Jean Bartholome Walk into a typical small cabinet shop, and you’re likely to find simple, functional cabinets made of inexpensive sheet goods. Not that these pros couldn’t make furniture-grade cabinets for their shop if they wanted, but when…

Unless you’ve been hiding in a cave, you’ve likely heard that print is dead and digital is the new reality. That may be a slight exaggeration as I, for one, still enjoy turning pages. However, there is no doubt that whatever the future holds, we will be consuming information in many new forms – and…

Tool Cabinet Tons of flexible storage for today's woodworking tools.  By George Vondriska and Dave Munkittrick Old tool chests made by the masters utilized every square inch of space with custom-fit nooks and crannies for all of their hand tools. Today’s woodworker needs a different kind of storage space, geared toward power tools. Our tool…

Last winter, I was puzzling out a way to make edge joints that are just the opposite of what we normally want – perfectly straight. I wanted free-flowing curves and I wanted to join contrasting colors of wood species. So the question was how to match the two joint lines on the different pieces of…

Our latest CD collection, “The 100 Best Shelving & Storage Projects,” is on sale now at ShopWoodworking.com for the introductory offer of $15.99 through August 31 (regular price: $19.99). For this collection, we looked through all the issues of Popular Woodworking from the last 12 years, and all our issues of Woodworking Magazine, to select…

Hyperorganize Your Shop A hook-and-slat wall system puts everything at your fingertips. By Jock Holmen I’ve struggled with the clutter in my small garage shop for years. Recently my neighbor remodeled his garage using a commercial wall-slat system. That gave me an idea for designing my own system. I used 1/4-in. and 3/4-in. plywood to…

Giant Shop Cabinet Organize tons and tons of woodworking supplies with room to spare. By Tim Johnson If your workshop seems cluttered and your workbench is always covered with stuff, you need this cabinet. It packs 30 cubic ft.of storage, enough for all of those got-to-have supplies, from screws to paint cans. Everything is readily…

Simple Steam Box Build a box and add a steam kettle: you’re ready to bend wood. By Seth Keller Building a steam box for bending wood only requires exterior-grade plywood, waterproof glue and an electric tea kettle.   I bought my kettle from Lee Valley (see Source, below). It came with an aluminum pipe to…

Giant Shop Cabinet Organize tons and tons of woodworking supplies with room to spare. By Tim Johnson If your workshop seems cluttered and your workbench is always covered with stuff, you need this cabinet. It packs 30 cubic ft.of storage, enough for all of those got-to-have supplies, from screws to paint cans. Everything is readily…

Heavy-Duty Folding Shop Table You can build this workhorse in a day, using little more than a tablesaw, jigsaw, hacksaw and a drill. By Tom Caspar Need more bench space? Who doesn’t? Here’s a terrific solution: a folding worktable that’s both big and strong.And we mean strong. You can set it up in only a…

Big Capacity Storage Cabinet Restaurant storage tubs organize shop supplies for stow and go. By Dave Olson When I worked in a restaurant as a teenager, I hauled dirty dishes in plastic bus boxes. Using them to organize my shop is much more pleasant. Bus boxes are light in weight and strong enough to hold…

This is a model of a foot-powered lathe (with a scroll saw attachment) that was featured in an article in the October 2000 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This is a model of a table saw tenon jig that was the “Jig Journal” project in the August 2007 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a horizontal router table with a sliding table.

A typical clamp used in woodworking.

This is a model of a tool chest featured on the cover of the June 2009 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a cabinetmaker’s toolbox that was featured on the cover and in an article in the August 2006 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This is a model of a double screw portable vise that was featured as the “Jig Journal” project in the December 2010 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This is a model of a wooden square that was featured in an article in the December 2010 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This is a model of a birdhouse that was featured in an article in the August 2010 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This is a model of a toolbox featured in the article “One for the Road” from the February 2010 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a router table featured in the Jig Journal column of the June 2009 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a turned stool that was featured in an article in the October 2009 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a hand plane cabinet that was featured in an article in the October 2004 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a wooden jack plane designed and constructed by Mario Rodruiguez.

A good project will push your skills, and test your ability. A great project will push you into a different way of thinking and take your skills to places they’ve never been. The Chinese stool from the last issue of Woodworking Magazine is by all measures a great project. It looks simple, but a close…

This is a model of a drill press workstation that was featured in an article in the June 2004 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a stand for a benchtop router table that was featured in an article in the June 2004 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a multi-purpose support stand featured in an article in the October 2000 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a Jorgensen pipe clamp.

This is a model of the “Shop Box” system.

This is a model of the “Jig Journal” project from the November 2007 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

Rockler pipe clamp submitted by reader Jon Shackelford.

This is a model of a hand saw storage till featured in an article in the October 2000 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a sawbench featured in an article in issue 6 of Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a box for storing 10-inch table saw blades that was featured in an article in the June 2003 issue of Poular Woodworking magazine.

This clamp storage cart was featured in the October 2007 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This is a model of a project featured in the June 2005 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a scratch beader that was featured in the “Jig Journal” column in the February 2008 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a drill press table featured in an article in the October 2002 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a miter saw stand feature in an article in the October 2002 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a mobile tool box featured in an article in the October 2003 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a portable tool rack featured in an article in the December 2003 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a table saw tenon jig that was the “Jig Journal” project in the August 2007 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This is a model of a table saw tapering jig featured in an article in the February 2009 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

This miter saw work station was featured in the October 2007 issue of Popular Woodworking magazine.

Jim Tolpin’s newest book, “The New Traditional Woodworker” teaches the reader how to work with hand tools by using them to build useful bench and shop tools. Each project builds on the skill learned in the preceding chapter. This process makes for an easy and fun learning curve. One of the more attractive project tools…

Every now and then I get a question from a reader about the tool rack that hangs in the window of our shop behind my workbench. The rack in question was originally made in May 2007 for an article in Issue 8 of Woodworking Magazine. Like most good ideas, it isn’t mine. Chris Schwarz made…

Get extra outfeed space without sacrificing precious floor space. By Eric Hedberg Pages: 84-85 From the August 2006 issue #156 Buy this issue now Who says that table saws aren’t “hip?” This version of an outfeed table puts a little swing in one of the most useful but problematic tools in my shop, and like…

Milk Jug Dust Collection Routing makes a real mess. But, here’s a solution that won’t cost you a dime.Take a 1-gallon milk or windshield-washer container and cut a hole in one side for a bit. Slice off the bottom with a utility knife. Cut back the three other sides so they line up with the centerline of your router shaft. Push a…

        My power tool cords were always in a tangle, so I finally did something about it. All it took was a couple of cable ties; a small standard one and a large resealable one. I drilled a couple of tiny holes in the resealable tie (near its clasp) and inserted the small standard tie. Then I fastened the…

Spacious Drill Press Table You may also like… Drill Press Table Bandsaw Table System Improved Crosscut Sled     I built this auxiliary drill press table to give me the extra support and room I need when drilling cabinet doors and sides. The core is MDF but particleboard would also work fine. I edged my table with oak…

    Woodtek’s coupling skirt ($30) makes it easier to dispose of the dust your collector collects. It adapts your 2- or 3-hp dust collector to a metal trash can. Simply disconnect the full can, put on the lid and haul it to the trash. However, to maintain your collector’s efficiency (rated CFM) without the benefit of its lower bag, you’ll also have…

        3M’s gold-colored FreCut sandpaper cuts faster, lasts longer and leaves the wood looking better than conventional paper. A great finishing tool, FreCut paper is now packaged as 3M’s SandBlaster series.  Norton Abrasives also markets a high-performance abrasive paper.Norton’s 3X series takes dead aim at 3M’s SandBlaster, right down to the packaging. Both papers claim to…

    The key to effective dust collection is something you can’t see.The tiniest dust particles are the most hazardous to your health, so the best collectors capture the largest number of the smallest particles.  According to Jet, the polyester spun-bond filters on their new single-stage dust collectors (1-1/2 hp,2 hp and 3 hp) capture particles down to…

Double-Duty Planer Stand You may also like… Mobile Outfeed Tables Mobile Miter Saw Stand Double-Duty Shop Stool I love two-for-one deals.Even my shop is a twofer; it doubles as a garage (sometimes) when I’m not woodworking. My recent purchase of a benchtop planer inspired me to create another two-for-one deal. I built a mobile outfeed table for my tablesaw…

        In my basement shop every square inch counts! Out of necessity I found a wealth of unused space tucked right under my nose,or should I say feet.That awkward space under the basement steps can easily be turned into a set of deep shelves perfect for storing everything from tools to shop vacuums, and of course, lumber. Help your small…

        I decked out my chop saw station with a shop vacuum for dust collection and a shop light so I can see where I’m cutting. It worked great except for one thing: I had to flip two switches just to make one cut.The solution was simple. I bought a power strip,with keyholes for…

Space-Saving Clamp Rack My bench is too small for big glue-ups. The only spot large enough is a little bit of open floor in my basement shop. I wasn’t about to try glue-ups on the floor, so I had to get creative. My space-saving clamp rack was the answer. I punched a series of 1-1/8-in….

Benchtop Tool System My shop is in a two-car garage, which (outrageously enough) I must share with two cars. That’s why I use benchtop tools. Unfortunately, they’re somewhat  hard to store.My solution is a two-part benchtop tool system that’s as versatile as it is compact. The first part is a simple storage rack to keep…

Turn Your Storage World Upside Down In my small garage shop, floor space goes for a premium while the air space overhead goes unused. I came up with a neat little trick to make use of that free space. All I did was bolt together a set of inexpensive metal shelves (about $15 at a…

Next-Generation Router Table Make more accurate cuts with a flat, solid-surface top. By John English 9 Key Features 1. Hinged Top. Bit changes are much easier. 2. Pivot Control. Just loosen the fence’s left side for quick micro-adjustment. 3. Tall Fence. There’s plenty of support for raised panel work 4. Solid-Surface Top. It’s slick, flat…

Tackle Box Storage This is my all-time favorite way to store screws, small hardware and router bits. Fishing tackle boxes come in a variety of sizes and shapes but I picked this one because the inner utility boxes have lids to keep stuff from spilling and the adjustable dividers allow me to use the trays…

Blade Caddy Here’s a handy tote for scrollsaw blades that I fashioned from a scrap of 2×6, a piece of plywood, and two Peg-Board multiple-tool holders. I cut the curved tips off the multiple-tool holders with a hacksaw so they would sit flat against the plywood. I attached the holders to the caddy with cable…

          This is one of my favorite shop upgrades. By adding this suspended outlet over my work area I always have electricity close at hand. It sure beats running an extension cord across the floor and getting my feet tangled in it. This suspended outlet is not difficult to install, but…

Double-Duty Roller Tables I like getting double duty out of my tools whenever possible. So, when I decided to build outfeed tables for my miter saw and tablesaw, I worked up this dual-use design. The roller tables are simple to switch between machines and take up very little space when I store them against the…

Laminate Flooring for Zero-Clearance Inserts Rather than mess with gluing up plastic laminate, I use a piece of laminate flooring when making zero-clearance inserts. Laminate flooring is great because it’s stiff, with a nice slick surface. It’s between 1/4-in. and 3/8-in. thick, which is just right for inserts. It also saws and routs nicely.  I…

Tablesaw Tapering Jig I recently built a pair of garden benches that required several identical parts that were tapered on both sides. To make the job easier, I built this jig that worked for both angles. The two screws make setting the angles quick and precise. On the first cut, the edge of the board…

        Here’s a quick and easy way to align your tablesaw fence with your miter slot. Plane down a board until it fits into your miter slot without play. Now slide the fence up to the board and use a feeler gauge to determine your fence alignment. It’s that easy.    

Pivoting Outfeed Support I recently saw an outfeed stand that had a pivoting top. The pivoting action prevents a workpiece from catching the front edge of the outfeed top. Instead, the top just pivots up level as the workpiece passes over it. I figured I could make something similar that would work just as well. …

Rigid Routing Sled A routing sled is a great help when coping the ends of rails and stiles. But I had a problem when I built my first sled. The pressure from the toggle clamp caused the 1/4-in.-thick sled base to deflect, which messed up the alignment of the rail-and-stile joints. I solved the problem…

Anti-Slip Dust-Collection Table Here’s a pair of sanding helpers that work great together. The rug pad provides a soft anti-slip surface. The Peg-Board, combined with the holes in the rug pad, allows dust to be sucked down through the table. My shop vacuum provides plenty of airflow.  I bought the wood for my sanding table…

          It seems like I’m always misplacing my push sticks, blade wrench, featherboards and other small tablesaw accessories. To solve my problem I added a shallow drawer under the side feed table. I simply built a wood box that was open in the front and screwed it to the bottom of…

Spray Can Storage I’m a great fan of aerosol finishes, especially now that many of them have adjustable tips that make much less splatter. But my shop got so cluttered with half-used cans that I had trouble finding the color I wanted, so I built this simple storage rack for all the cans. Now I…

        Here’s my solution for storing skinny things like wood trim and edge banding. I bought a 12-in.-dia. by 8-ft.-long cardboard concrete form at a home center for about $14. I slid plywood dividers into the tube and added a few screws to hold the dividers in place. I hung it from…

        Fifty bucks and a few hours is all it takes to put together this finishing booth. It keeps overspray off my tools and dust off my projects. Since I use waterborne finishes, I’m able to use a regular box fan in the window to vent the fumes. A furnace filter over…

Universal Clamp Rack I’ve tried several designs for clamp racks but this one’s the best because it holds lots of different types of clamps. It’s also very simple to build. I used 1/2-in. metal electrical conduit pipe and two 36-in. pieces of 2×6. I bought everything at a home center for about five bucks. Cut…

Light-Duty Folding Worktable By Kevin Boudreau   Sometimes a guy just needs some space on which to spread out. That’s why I built this folding worktable for my compact workshop. It’s not strong enough for heavy work, but it’s very handy for light-duty jobs. And it’s easy to fold up for storage—just remove the stretcher…

        I came up with this slick way to drill a large, straight hole in the end of a post. It works great and makes good use of my tall floor-mounted drill press.   To make the jig, I first swung my metal drill table to the side and clamped on an…

          I recently built a project that required a tall vertical fence for my tablesaw. My tablesaw fence lacks a T-slot and I didn’t want to drill holes through it, so I came up with this solution.    I made my tall fence out of 3/4-in. plywood and assembled it with…

Stunning grain. Huge boards. Highly rot resistant. A dream (or a nightmare) to work. What one wood fits this bill? Mahogany, of course.   by Tom Caspar           Even the plainest mahogany boards are quite beautiful, because the color is usually  a deep, rich coppery red (Photo 1). Mahogany trees are…

          I love the convenience of mobile bases, but I hate it when they wobble on the floor even when they’re locked down. I got my chock block idea at the airport where the ground crews use something similar for parked aircraft. My chock block locks the fixed casters on my…

          A little metalworking finds its way into my woodshop from time to time. When cutting metal, it’s best to use a machinist’s vise to get a better grip. Because it sticks up and is in the way, I can’t permanently attach it to my woodworking bench. Instead, I built a…

        I found a new place to store dispensers right under my nose. Any lightweight stuff that comes in a box can be fastened to the bottom of a cupboard and still leave plenty of room over the counter below. A little double-faced tape or hot-melt glue makes a strong but temporary…

            My outrigger support is just the ticket for cutting full sheets of plywood in my small shop.    If you own a T-square-style fence, or even one with a round tube, you can build this crosscut support in a few minutes. I milled a 2×4 to fit inside the…